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It had been a long day for Lois Lane. A very long day.And a very boring one.She hadn't had a decent scoop since forever.Well all right, since last week, but even so. No news may be good news for some, but not for her. Her whole life revolved around finding the next story, the next angle, the next moment. For a journalist to have nothing to write about, it was virtually comparable to a fish without water, or a storm without thunder. A bike without wheels. It just didn't work. It was uncomfortable. In fact, it was downright irritating.Sitting on the porch swing of the Kent farm, a bottle of soda in hand and gazing at the sunset, she was just debating whether a piece on the various shades of pastel that the sky could turn would be a front page headline – or more to the point, could she MAKE it a front page headline? - when in the distance, a car came down the lane, stopped outside the farm entrance, then after a few seconds of hesitation – the driver clearly checking that this was the right place – the car swung in and began the long trip down the gravel track."Well, what have we here?" Lois muttered to herself before taking another swig from the bottle and setting it down, watching the car with keen eyes. It wasn't one she recognized. And anyone she did know, knew that she and Clark had taken a week off to return to the farm for a break from the busy city, so they wouldn't have bothered coming all the way out here to pester them. Not unless it was really important, anyway. But then a phone call first to warn them would have been appreciated.The windows were completely blacked out of the SUV, and something about the whole thing screamed 'military' at her."Smallville, visitors," she spoke calmly, not bothering to raise her voice because she knew that Clark would have heard her anyway. He'd probably heard the car coming long before she'd even known it was there, after all."I know," he spoke suddenly into her ear as he appeared on the porch swing beside her - the only indication that he'd just arrived (other than his sudden appearance) being Lois' hair plastered across her face from the gust of wind he'd caused upon his rapid entrance.Scraping the hair away from her face, she glared at him. "Was the 'whoosh' really necessary?""I was in the barn," he shrugged, by way of an explanation. "Some of the machinery's gone a little rusty."He rubbed at one ear and Lois watched him for a moment, then sighed. "Your ear again?""The ringing came back about five minutes ago," he nodded. "It'll stop in a minute. It doesn't last very long each time.""I told you not to get a building dumped on your head," Lois shrugged as she turned her attention back to the car. "So it's your own fault."Clark frowned, about to protest that an entire city had been crumbling because of an earthquake, but sensing that she was perhaps not in her best mood today, he decided not to.He knew why she was being like this, though. She had itchy fingers. She was desperate to get back to Metropolis and write. She was desperate to get out and investigate, and recently there hadn't actually been anything truly groundbreaking to write about, which was why she and Clark had decided now would be the best time for their 'vacation' whilst things were calm and Superman wouldn't be missed.Besides, all the trivial stories had been covered already by the rookie journalists in the bullpen, and Lois Lane was above and beyond these stories now that she was Superman's official reporter. The fact that she and Clark also had their own office up on a higher floor also showed their status and the fact that they were on their way to the top, after years of hard work and dedication.It was now her job to report on all the Man of Steel's activities, but considering the Man of Steel was also her fiancé, she knew there would be no stories from him in the immediate future.Clark was enjoying the break, but Lois wasn't. She couldn't wait for him to don his 'iconic' outfit and do some 'hero' stuff again, just to give her something to write about."Am I really the only one who's finding it hard to believe that there's NOTHING going on right at this moment that requires Superman's attention?" She sighed, picking up her soda bottle again as finally the black SUV – still screaming military at her (Probably the General, come to check up on her again. He had a habit of dropping in at the most inconvenient times. Or maybe it was her kid sister and pain in the ass, Lucy?) – pulled up alongside the white picket fence that marked out the farm house's small grass lawn and flower garden."I'm sure Kara's got it covered, if there is anything going on," Clark replied. "You know she promised to keep an eye on Metropolis for us as well as National City. Besides, I'm surprised you're not more intrigued by our guest," Clark smirked as Lois took another swig from the bottle."It's just the General, probably," she shrugged."I don't think it is," Clark shook his head as the door opened and a pair of boots emerged from the car, stepping out onto the gravel. Who the boots belonged to, still remained to be seen as the owner of said feet was hidden behind the car door still."What makes you say that?" Lois frowned, still convinced it was her father."Because those boots belong to a woman," Clark replied."How do you -?" Lois started, staring at him for a few seconds before realising what he'd done and slapping him on the shoulder. "Oh, you cheat! Using X-ray vision does not count!"Clark bit back his retort as the car door finally slammed shut and his theory was confirmed.Their visitor was indeed a woman. About five six in height, she was slim but by no means thin. There was a good deal of muscle beneath the surface, giving her a more athletic look, rather than a supermodel one. Pale skin and short red hair that was cut into a messy bob, along with dark, inquisitive eyes that were currently surveying the surroundings with curious interest.She wasn't wearing a uniform of any kind – just black cargo pants and a black polo shirt, but something about her did indeed scream 'military' to Clark. Lois was right about that theory, it would seem. Though he of course had the added advantage of knowing this woman. Lois – to his knowledge at least – didn't. Though she'd heard about her from her much more famous sister.As she glanced towards the house and spotted the two occupants on the swing, the woman turned sharply on her heel and headed for them at a brisk walk, head carried high and proud, a very distinct posture with no slouching or sloppiness, that clearly displayed she meant business. She didn't march, as such, but Clark had no doubt in his mind that she could, if she desired, and it would be a very imposing thing indeed. Very regimental."Do you guys realise how damned impossible you both are to get hold of?!" She asked as they both stood from the swing, Lois setting her bottle down to one side once more."What's that supposed to mean?" Lois retorted without thinking, earning a glare from Clark.The woman stopped before them, glanced from one to the other and then looked back to Clark, deciding she'd get a better answer from him."Agent Danvers," he greeted her, walking down the steps and extending a hand. "What a pleasant surprise! What brings you here?""Wait, Danvers?" Lois frowned, also coming down the steps. "Any relation of Kara Danvers?""She's my sister," Agent Danvers replied with a tight smile. Then she glanced to Clark before amending. "Well, 'adoptive' sister, if you catch my meaning?""Lois, this is Alex. Alex this is Lois, my fiancée," Clark introduced them both to one another as they shook hands. Then he looked to Alex. "Is there something we can do for you, Alex? Why don't you come inside?""Actually," Alex was looking all around as if expecting to see someone. "I was hoping Kara might be here? I tried calling you both, but seeing as you decided to go 'off the grid' and turn your cells off, I ended up having to drive all the way out here instead.""Here?" Lois frowned, even as Clark asked "Why would she be here?""Well, she hasn't checked in for at least eight hours now, and we're kind of starting to get worried," Alex admitted after a brief hesitation. Whilst Clark was Superman, Lois was still a civilian. And a reporter at that. A damned good one, if the Pulitzers and various other accolades were anything to go by. Still, she was worried about her sister and if that meant that a civilian got involved, then so be it. She'd accept the consequences – and the reprimand from J'onn later."She's probably just in Metropolis," Lois shrugged, not truly understanding the implications of Alex's words. "Clark asked her to keep an eye on both cities whilst we were gone, which shouldn't be too hard because... well, basically nothing has happened in Metropolis for the past two weeks now. It's been disappointingly boring, from a journalistic point of view.""It's the same in National City," Alex agreed. "Something's not right.""Kara doesn't just miss her check ins," Clark agreed. "It's not like her.""We've checked with our Metropolis Field Agents," Alex sighed, deciding that Lois had just as much right to know as Clark. She did know his secret, after all. And Kara's. She wasn't just any random civilian. "Kara hasn't checked in with them either. No-one's seen her. It's like she's just vanished.""Have you tried the Fortress of Solitude?" Clark asked, folding his arms across his broad chest, his brows furrowing deeper and deeper with concern.Alex shook her head. "J'onn J'onzz is on his way there now, but since Cyborg Superman broke in and your new security measures have been put in place, he wasn't sure if he would even be able to get in.""Ah," Clark looked suitably chagrined at that, even blushing a little as Lois turned to him. Alex wasn't sure why he was looking so embarrassed at first, until Lois spoke, one eyebrow rising."Someone broke into the Fortress? Clark, honey, are you still leaving your key under the doormat? I warned you that would only invite trouble.""I know, I know," he sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I... found a new place for it now, though.""And now J'onn won't be able to get in to see if Kara's there or not," Alex sighed."Look on the bright side?" Lois suggested. "If this J'onn can't get in, then it must mean the door's locked, right? Does Kara have a habit of locking herself in when she's there?""To be honest, I have no idea," Alex groaned, rubbing a hand across the back of her neck in agitation, though to be fair, Lois had made a valid point that she'd not even considered. Perhaps having a journalist's perspective on everything may not be such a bad thing?"All I know is she's not checked in, and it's not like her. I can't even reach her on her cell, she's not been to work – for either job – she's not in her apartment, she's not in Metropolis... something's not right."Clark considered for a moment, and then he nodded. "I'll do a flyby of Metropolis then head to the Fortress, help J'onn. With any luck, she's just in there doing a bit of research on something." Then he turned back to Lois. "I'm sorry, Lo, but it looks like the vacation's over."Rather than look upset, disappointed or even angry at this however, Lois beamed in delight. "Thank God! No offense, Clark, as lovely and relaxing as this place is, I was going stir crazy! Now my reporter's nose is itching, and I just need to scratch it!""I'm sorry?" Alex frowned, afraid she may have misheard."I'm coming with you," Lois nodded brightly.Alex scoffed and shook her head. "I don't think so, Miss Lane.""Well I do, Agent Danvers. We come as a pair, he and I. You don't get one without the other. So you want OUR help? I'm coming with you." She placed a hand over Clark's chest, roughly over where the large 's' symbol would be on his suit, just to make her point.Alex turned to Clark, her mouth working furiously, but no words coming out. After a moment, they came tumbling out in a frantic, annoyed frenzy."Clark, she cannot come with me! You know she'll never get within a hundred feet of the... of where I work if J'onn has anything to say in the matter. Which he does, seeing that he's the Director and all.""Clark, honey?" Lois smiled sweetly up at him. "I'm going. I'll see you in a few days, alright?""Alex," Clark sighed with a humorless smile. "Look how big I am. Do you know what that means?""That you can bench press a cruise liner?""That I don't fit on the couch. Take her with you. Believe me when I say that it's the lesser of two evils."Alex raised an eyebrow at them both, unable to believe what she was hearing. She needed Superman. She didn't need the annoyance that was Lois Lane. But apparently she wouldn't get one without the other. The phrase "take it or leave it" sprung to mind and she knew she had no choice.So, knowing that she would more than likely regret these next words, but feeling duty bound to say them anyway, she nodded. "I'll be in the car. Don't be too long, Miss Lane, or I WILL leave without you.""Ouch," Lois grumbled as Alex stalked away, back to the SUV. "Who pissed on her pancakes this morning?""Lois," Clark attempted to sound stern, though he was fighting back a smirk. "Please play nice whilst I'm gone? Her sister's gone AWOL. Think how you'd feel if I just disappeared without a trace.""I can't even imagine it, Clark," Lois replied, serious and somber as his words hit home. "Promise you won't leave me?""Only for a short while," he smiled properly this time, kissing her lightly on the lips. "I'll be back before you know it."Not satisfied with just this little peck from her future husband, Lois wrapped her arms about his neck and pulled him in for a proper kiss, full of passion and love and all the things they felt about one another. His hands wrapped about her, to hold her close, and Lois was pretty sure she could have stayed there for all eternity, lips locked with the man she loved, his strong arms protectively wrapped about her...The illusion was shattered by a loud blast on a car horn. There was a moment's silence wherein the two of them jumped apart, startled, and then Alex pressed her hand on the horn again and held it there this time."Alright, alright!" Lois snapped, shooting an angry glare in Alex's direction as she threw one hand in the air. "Sheesh!""Remember, play nice. I'll see you soon," Clark grinned, ripping open his shirt to reveal the famous scarlet 'S' emblazoned against royal blue and gold. The blink of an eye later, his 'farm boy' clothes were fluttering to the floor as he streaked into the sky, nothing but a red and blue blur."Man, I love it when he does that," Lois grinned to herself as she once again brushed the hair back from her face before bending and scooping up his clothes, hurrying them back inside the farmhouse.<><>The trip back to National City was incredibly quiet. And incredibly tense.And incredibly long.Mainly because they had to drive the whole way. When Alex had told her that they would be flying back to National City, Lois had had to admit that she was on the 'no fly' list. Alex, not believing her, had had Winn check to see, and was furious when the he'd confirmed it to be the case."How the hell did you even get yourself on the 'no fly' list?!" She'd snapped, diverting the car away from the airport and seeing no other alternative, setting them on the highway out of town instead."Long story," Lois shrugged. "I mean, we've got the time, but I'm not sure you're in the mood to hear it.""You're right, I'm not.""Are you mad?""No, I'm not mad. I'm fucking furious!""Yeah... I sensed that," Lois nodded, biting her lip for a moment. "Want me to drive for a—""Nope.""Okay. Well if you get tired, let me know and I can—""No.""... Okay."Every time Lois had tried to engage in some sort of conversation with Alex after that, to pass the time, she'd been met with short, snappy, one or two word answers. Occasionally, three if she was lucky.They drove through the night and on into the morning, and were still nowhere close to National City. Lois had slept, fidgeted, had one sided conversations, messaged Clark, checked her phone a dozen times for a reply, checked the news on her phone, checked the weather, rechecked the news, checked again another dozen times for a message from Clark, hunted all around the dashboard for a place to plug in her phone after she'd drained the battery, slept some more and was now sitting twiddling her thumbs – quite literally – as she waited for her phone to recharge so she could check it again."Aren't you tired?" She asked her stoically silent companion at last. "I could take over for a bit if you wanted to catch some shut eye? I promise I won't hit anything... well... I promise I won't 'try' to hit anything."Alex just glared across at her, hands gripping firmly to the steering wheel. "You talk a lot."This surprised Lois. It was the most she'd been able to get out of the other woman for hours. "Well, I'm just not comfortable with uncomfortable silences, and you're not exactly keeping up with your end of the conversation."Alex glanced at her again, then sighed and her grip visibly relaxed on the steering wheel. "Sorry. I'm just worried.""About your sister?" Lois asked, turning in her seat slightly, sensing that finally she might be about to engage in some conversation that wasn't entirely one sided."This isn't like Kara," Alex nodded through gritted teeth, doing her best to keep her emotions in check and failing miserably. "She doesn't do this. She's... she's the carefree, happy go lucky, 'sun is always shining, today is a good day' kind of person. Even when it's pissing cats and dogs, she'll always see the bright side of everything. She doesn't just drop off the radar. She doesn't just skip work for no reason – either her civilian job, or her superhero one. One of her best friends owns CatCo where she works, another works alongside her there... more of her friends and family work at her other job... what reason could she have for skipping out on the job and the people she loves? It just... it doesn't make sense!"A fist pounded angrily off the steering wheel, making Lois jump. She bit her lip for a moment, trying to judge the other woman and her obviously foul mood, and then she did what Lois Lane does best. Charged right on in, no holds barred, no holding back. No cares for her own safety."Who does she work for?"Alex gave her a sideways glance that clearly suggested she couldn't believe she'd just been asked that."CatCo. I just said—""No, no, no not her civilian job. Her 'other' job. The cape and tights getup gig.""Oh. That's classified.""Huh," Lois considered for a moment. Though she was in 'reporter' mode now, not to be perturbed or put off by anything. Lois Lane didn't take 'no' for an answer. "Alright then, who do YOU work for?""Also classified.""Huh," Lois nodded again. Then she frowned. "Wait, is that actually the name of the company? Classified? Damn, that's a good name. Great for avoiding any unwanted questions. 'Where do you work?', 'Classified'. Bet it comes in handy a lot.""I..." Alex hesitated, confused. "I can't work out if you're joking or actually being serious, right now.""So Classified isn't the name of the company you work for?" Lois pouted. "Why not? It's a good name.""I'll put in a suggestion with the boss when I get back," Alex replied, and the corner of her mouth quirked up a bit. It would have been optimistic to call it a smile, but it was a start. Lois didn't miss it, but she decided not to point it out for now in case Alex slammed her defenses back up and shut the other woman out again. That would have been a shame, given the progress they were currently making, after all."Okay so... you and Kara work at a place that isn't called Classified, for some reason. What can you tell me about—""Classified.""Will you let me finish! What can you tell me about the place that isn't the place that isn't called Classified.""... What?" Alex frowned, totally confused."Oh come on, I work for their rival. Speaking the name of that place is like speaking the name of He Who Must Not Be Named.""I never had you pegged as a Harry Potter nerd.""Likewise," Lois smirked, and Alex realised the trap she'd just fallen into. She didn't bother to complain because as much as she hated to admit it, talking to Lois was providing a good distraction from the monotony of driving and the worries about Kara."Alright, fair point. Well CatCo—""Ah!" Lois held up one finger, fixing Alex with a stern glare of warning.Alex stopped the car sharply with a screech of tires and glared at her in return, matching Lois' intensity and then dialling it up several notches, and Lois grew uncomfortable under the other woman's scrutinizing gaze. It was almost as if Alex was trying to peel back every layer of the protective shield Lois had spent years building up around herself using snark, wit, sarcasm and sass.It made Lois feel suddenly vulnerable and exposed. There was only one person she would ever tolerate feeling this vulnerable and exposed around, and it certainly wasn't Alex Danvers."Eyes front soldier!" She snapped at last, pointing to her eyes, then to the road in front of them. Alex blinked, but surprisingly did as she was told – a good soldier following orders as she looked forwards once more and pulled away, thankful that the road they were on was pretty deserted. She'd stepped on the brakes without thought for other road users and was only now realising her stupidity at such an action. Her worries about Kara were seriously clouding her judgement.Lois also blinked in surprise, amazed it had even worked. Perhaps being an army brat had it's advantages after all.They traveled for another hour in silence, before finally Lois grew bored and began to fidget again. Her phone still wasn't charged – how long did it need?! - and she was getting restless."Are we nearly there yet?""You sound like a child.""You sound like a child," Lois mimicked petulantly.Alex had two choices open to her at that very moment. Three if she wanted to get violent. But seeing as Clark wouldn't take too kindly to her if he found out she'd punched his fiancée in the face, and she'd never hear the end of it if she pulled over and made Lois get out now and walk the rest of the way, she really didn't have any choice but to go with the third option."You wanted to know about the Media Company whose name I'm apparently not supposed to mention?""You can say the name," Lois grumbled sulkily. "I was just trying to have a joke, but apparently they're beyond you. Or beneath you, most likely."Alex bit her tongue and silently vowed never to volunteer for any assignments that involved Lois Lane ever again. She counted to three, to calm herself down, then forced herself to speak calmly once more."Okay, you wanted to know about CatCo Worldwide Media? Why?""Just curious," Lois sighed as she sat up in the seat, realising that Alex was trying to offer a proverbial olive branch of sorts and knowing that their squabble had been petty. Plus she didn't like sitting in silence, so any excuse for a conversation was good enough for her. "Besides, I know the score. I'm a civilian. Which means I also know that when we get to National City, you're going to be off doing your Confidential Secret Agent stuff, and I'd rather not be sitting on the sidelines doing nothing. I'd have stayed at the farm if I'd wanted to do that. So I thought maybe I could check out Kara's day job. Her civilian life. See if I can find any clues there.""And you're just going to walk into a rival media company and do what exactly?""What I do best," Lois smiled brightly, her sulk forgotten now. "Be a journalist.""Lois, look," Alex sighed as she turned the car off the road they were on and finally the city came into view, at last. "I let you come to National City with me, but that doesn't mean I had to like it. I know it's a lot to ask, but please, can you try to stay out of trouble until I can work out what the hell to do with you?""What the hell to do with me? What the hell does that mean? Am I under house arrest?""You're overreacting. I think it would be best for everyone if we held you someplace safe and had someone watch you to—""Someone watch me?" Lois repeated, raising one eyebrow. "You're making me out to be some kind of prisoner. Or worse... a child! That's it, that's exactly what I feel like right now! A naughty child who is being punished by her uptight, 'doesn't know how to have fun' mother. All because I asked if I could go out to play.""You're a journalist, and journalists are trouble," Alex was trying to keep calm and not snap again, but Lois sure knew how to press all the wrong buttons. "Especially you. I've heard the stories. The lengths you'll go to, to get the next scoop."Rather than be annoyed by this particular comment though, Lois beamed with pride. "My reputation precedes me, it would seem.""Exactly. Which is why I've been told to take no chances.""By your top secret Government agency? Please tell me it at least has an acronym I can call it by?""FBI.""Right," Lois scoffed. "As if I'm going to believe you work for the Feds.""You don't have to, but it's the cover I use everywhere else, so I'd appreciate if you could go along with it and not screw up my day any more than it already is.""Wait... if I've got to keep your cover intact, that means I'm actually going to speak to people! Have I been let out on early parole for good behavior?"Alex knew Lois was just winding her up on purpose now, so didn't even deign to reply. Instead she pulled the SUV into the parking lot of an apartment complex, killed the engine and sighed. "Come with me."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Alex’s apartment was small, modest yet tastefully decorated, Lois discovered as she stepped through the door that Alex held open for her. If this was going to be her home for the next few days, she could live with that.Alex noticed Lois’ eyes appraising everything around her and taking it all in. “Everything all right?”“I’ve been in worse prisons,” Lois shrugged, moving further into the apartment and taking a seat on the sofa.“Most people would say that as a joke, but I get the feeling you’re not joking,” Alex replied as she closed and locked the door. Lois wanted to make a comment that locking the door wasn’t going to stop her from getting out again, when she saw that Alex now had her cell phone to her ear and was pacing back and forth as she waited for the person on the other end to answer.“J’onn, it’s me. Any luck?” She asked as soon as the line was picked up – no hesitations, no hellos. Lois turned to face the other woman, waiting expectantly and listening intently.“No, she wasn’t at the Kent farm either. Superman went to the Fortress to find you and Lois came with me, back to National City. We drove through the night to get here and… what? No I know she’s a civilian… I know… J’onn, I couldn’t stop her...” Alex cast a furious glare at Lois over her shoulder, but Lois didn’t shy away. She wasn’t ashamed of what she’d done. If anything she was impatient to find out what was being said to Alex right at that very moment. Which judging by Alex’s frown, was nothing good.“No, he left us and said he was going to do a flyby over Metropolis, then come straight to you at the Fortress. That was yesterday. You mean he never showed up?”Lois sat bolt upright. “Alex—”Alex raised a hand to Lois, forestalling the verbal assault that was sure to be forthcoming.“J’onn, Lois is with me now and—”“Give me that!” Lois was on her feet and snatching the phone from Alex’s hands before the young agent knew what was happening. “Listen to me, J’onn… yes it’s me Lois! No, I’m not giving the phone back to Alex, listen to me damn it! Where is Clark? Is he with you now? Did you see him?… No no no, don’t you tell me to calm down, J’onn J’onzz. You tell me where Clark is or I’ll—”Alex snatched the phone back from Lois again, the two ending up in a momentary wrestling match over it. They grunted and cursed one another, their argument turning louder and angrier with each passing moment. It may even have turned into an all out brawl if J’onn hadn’t suddenly appeared in the apartment, having used his powers to simply walk right through the locked door.“Alright, you two, that’s enough!” He barked, stepping between them and glaring first at Alex, then at Lois. “You’re both lucky I was nearby. We’re two Supers down, and the last thing I need is any of my agents getting involved in altercations with civilians! Miss Lane, I understand you’re worried about Superman. Agent Danvers, I understand the same about you and Supergirl, but fighting amongst ourselves is not going to solve anything!”Alex and Lois glared at one another for a moment longer, then Lois finally let go of the phone in Alex’s hand. “He’s right. I’m sorry.”“Me too,” Alex nodded, tucking her phone away and pushing her hair back out of her eyes, looking exhausted all of a sudden as her drive through the night seemed to be catching up to her.“So, what’s the situation?” Lois turned to J’onn, who raised an eyebrow at her. She scowled right back. “Don’t give me that look. Clark Kent is my fiancé. That makes me more than just an ordinary civilian. I have a right to know what’s going on!”“I agree,” J’onn nodded, cutting off any further protests by Lois, who blinked in surprise.“Oh. You do?”“Absolutely. If anything happened to M’gann, I’d be beside myself with worry too. In fact, I am right now. Kara is like a daughter to me, and I hate not knowing what’s happened to her just as much as the rest of you do. But we can’t just go blundering in, looking for trouble when we don’t know what it is we’re dealing with.”He motioned to the sofa, and reluctantly Lois sat back down on it. J’onn looked to Alex. “I know you’re tired and worried, but I need you back at HQ. Can you call someone to come and sit with Miss Lane for a while? Mr Olsen, perhaps?”“On it,” Alex nodded quietly, taking her phone back out and walking into her bedroom so that she wouldn’t be overheard.“J’onn, I don’t need a babysitter,” Lois protested as he sat down on the sofa with her. “I need to be out there, looking for my fiance and his cousin.”“No you don’t, Lois. My people are already on the case. Whatever has happened to the Supers, we’ll find them. But we can’t do that if we have to constantly watch out for you at every step of the way. So please, stay here and try to get some rest. I promise, you will be the first to know as soon as we know anything.”“You promise?” Lois asked, fixing him with a steady gaze.“Absolutely,” he took her hand as he said it, and gave it a comforting squeeze. “I promise that we’ll find Clark and Kara, and we’ll bring them home. We just need you to stay here and not get in the way. Can you do that?”“I—”“Lois, please.”With a deep, resigned sigh of defeat, Lois nodded. “All right fine. Just make sure it’s a decent babysitter, yeah?”“I was thinking more of a friend than a babysitter,” J’onn chuckled. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a couple of twenty dollar bills, setting them on the coffee table. “I know it’s still the morning, but a little later on, why don’t I ask Mr Olsen to bring a couple of coffees and some sweet pastries up with him. Then you two can maybe watch a few movies or some daytime tv? I’m sure you’ve both got plenty to catch up on?”“You know, in all my thirty four years on this planet, I don’t think my father has ever done anything like this for me,” Lois grinned as she nodded to the money. “You’re more of a father to me already, and you’re not even from this planet.”“Better keep that to yourself,” J’onn smiled patiently – a fatherly smile of pride. He had experience at playing the role model and father figure to Kara and Alex, after all.“Oh, don’t worry, I’ve kept Clark’s secret all these years. I’m sure keeping yours will be a piece of cake,” Lois grinned as she reached over and took the tv remote, switching it on and beginning a search of the channels to see what was on.J’onn, seemingly satisfied with Lois’ compliance, stood up and walked over to Alex. “I have to get back. Come find me as soon as Mr Olsen turns up.” He glanced over to Lois, who’d found an rerun of Sex and the City to watch. “I don’t think she’ll give you any more problems.”“Let’s hope so,” Alex nodded. “I’m exhausted, and she’s REALLY hard work! Like more work than hyper Kara. And that’s saying something.”J’onn chuckled and patted her shoulder fondly, before he let himself out, using the door this time.Little did either of them know, Lois actually hated Sex and the City and had absolutely no intentions of ‘playing ball’ or staying where she was. She was putting on a front, for now. The defeated young woman who knew when to do as she was told.All she had to do was wait for the opportune moment.<><>James arrived not long after J’onn had left, and Lois was both surprised by his appearance and delighted to see him. They spent the best part of the next two hours catching up on everything – including but not limited to James’ relationship with her sister Lucy, their subsequent break up, his work at the Daily Planet alongside her and Clark, and his work here and now in National City.Alex had slipped out at some point, though neither of them could have honestly said when that was, and James had indeed done as J’onn had requested, supplying the coffee and a movie.Towards the end of the movie, however, the novelty of seeing an old friend like James had worn off, and Lois’ fears had returned once more. She’d grown fidgety and restless, as she often did when something was on her mind, and in the end James reached for the remote and switched it off.“Hey, I was watching that,” Lois protested half-heartedly, as she stared at the screen of her phone again for the billionth time.“He still hasn’t made contact yet?” James asked, his smile unable to offer anything but weak comfort as he gestured at the tiny screen in her hand.“It’s not like him to go silent like this. I dunno, maybe it’s the signal? It’s pretty crappy here?” She started to hold up her phone above her head, waving it about. Then she stood up and began to pace, shaking her head and muttering.“Hey, Lois,” James stood, drawing Lois’ attention back to him. His smile was gentle, and his eyes were sympathetic. “I get it. You’re worried sick. But we don’t know that Clark’s gone missing yet,” he assured her as he started to clear away the empty coffee cups and the package of cookies that Lois had found stashed in one of Alex’s cupboards.“J’onn said that he never showed up at the Fortress.”“Which means nothing. You know Clark, he probably got sidetracked helping to rescue a kitten out of a tree, or he’s putting out a forest fire or something.” He looked up from his domestic chore, smiling again.Even though James was being deliberately sarcastic, it made Lois grin involuntarily anyway because as much as she was worried about her future husband, James was right. Clark often hopped across the pond to France before breakfast to help his friend Diana take care of business. He’d stopped off in China on his way home a few weeks ago to help the local police deal with a drugs bust that had gone wrong, and just last week in fact, before their vacation, he’d gone to Canada on his lunch break to help repair a burst dam.“He’ll probably call me later,” she nodded, not at all convinced, but knowing that for the moment she was helpless.“Why don’t you go and get some rest,” James suggested, putting the rubbish down for a moment and walking over to her, to offer her a friendly hug. “J’onn said you and Alex drove through the night to get here. You must be exhausted? Go get some sleep and I’ll let you know as soon as anything happens.”“Yeah, maybe I’ll do that,” Lois nodded, feigning a yawn. “Thanks Jimmy.”“No problem, Lo,” he smiled patiently, watching her take herself off in the direction of Alex’s bedroom. As soon as she’d left, the smile disappeared from his face and a thoughtful look took its place.Anyone who’d work with Lois, like James had, would know she wasn’t this easily defeated. Lois was brave, smart, funny, witty, sarcastic to the extreme at times, and she didn’t take no for an answer. One of her ‘rules’ of reporting was to do whatever it takes to get the story. James had seen the lengths she’d gone to before. Lois Lane was not this easily defeated especially when it came to Clark Kent. She was more than motivated, she was also more than capable, which dictated his next action.Moving to sit on the arm of the sofa closest to the bedroom door, he pulled out his cell phone and dialled a number. He held the phone to his ear but glanced in the mirror on the opposite wall, his back to Lois but part of his attention still trained on her.“Winn, hey it’s me. I was just wondering if you had any updates on the Supers?”For a moment, there was no movement from the bedroom, but James carried on anyway, his voice deliberately louder than it needed to be as he put the phone on loudspeaker. “Because you know it’s been over a day now and still nothing.”“Dude, why are you shouting?” Winn’s tired voice grumbled into the room. Clearly Lois and Alex weren’t the only ones who’d been up all night.“Sorry, I’m on loudspeaker and wasn’t sure if you could hear me.”“Uh, hearing you. Very loud and very clear,” Winn grumbled again.“So, anything? Because I’m with Lois now, and she’s beside herself with worry. And she’s got every right to be.”
“You’re phoning me in front of a civilian?!”
“No, no no no.” Motion in the mirror caused James’ gaze to flash that way and then away again, rather purposefully not making eye contact with Lois’ reflection. Standing up and pacing, he never went far, always staying within hearing distance of the bedroom. He cleared his throat. “She’s asleep in the other room. Listen, Winn, has anyone tried to contact Lena Luthor yet?”
“Why would they?”
“Well, because she and Kara are best friends, both as Kara Danvers and as Supergirl. They’re very close. Plus she’s, you know, a multi-billionaire and a genius. If anyone’s got the money and the resources to help you guys out, it’s her.”From Winn’s end of the phone, there was a loud sigh. “I know. And I’ve already tried to bring up the subject like a hundred times in front of Alex, but she’s having none of it. Anyone would think I’d asked her to cut her ring finger off, or something. She just keeps snapping that Lena’s an even bigger security risk than Lois. Which, going by Lois’ record, is saying a hell of a lot.”James began to chuckle, turning the noise into a throat clearing. “Why, because she’s a Luthor?”
“Pretty much.”
Rubbing the back of his neck, James nodded. “I get that. Well, I got that. I remember Lex from back in Metropolis when I worked at the Planet, and I’ll be the first to admit that I kind of judged her on her brother’s actions. But I was wrong. Kara told me that, and Lena has proven herself again and again. I can see that now. Kara trusts her, and Clark’s investigated her. He was happy with what he found. The word of two Supers has to be more than enough, right? You see it, don’t you, man?”
“Hey, I don’t make the rules. I just do as I’m told. I’m just the ‘tech nerd’. ‘Hack this, Winn’. ‘Look up that, Winn’. Do people realise I can do stuff other than be a nerd?”
James sighed, giving a quick glance to the mirror which revealed Lois still eavesdropping, none too subtly now, either.“Oh, come on, man. You’re sure Alex can’t even spend a few moments to at least talk to Lena? She’s got a couple of meetings this morning at Catco, one at nine-thirty with some important visitor from the UK, and the other at eleven. I’m sure the eleven o’clock one could be postponed if you asked Lena’s assistant Eve?”In the bedroom, Lois had her reporter's notebook out and was scribbling notes frantically as she crouched in the doorway. She made note of the times of the meetings and Eve’s name, all information that might provide useful.
“I’ve tried, dude. Really I have. But Alex and even J’onn seem dead set about getting Lena involved. And they absolutely don’t want Lois to get involved either. So if I were you, I’d do whatever you have to do to keep Lois out of the way and let them get on with it.”
“Maybe,” James sighed. “Well, alright. Thanks anyway, Winn. Catch up with you again soon.”From behind James came the telltale creak of the bedroom door closing again, and he grinned as he hung up. With any luck, Lois would be able to work with that little bit of information he’d managed to wave under her nose. She was the kind of person to go and do something amazing now, just to prove to everyone that she could.He sat back down on the sofa and flicked the tv on again, turning up the volume loud enough that it nearly drowned out any sounds from behind him. When the bedroom door opened again, followed by the soft shuffling of feet in the direction of the front door, it was something that couldn’t be heard unless you were listening for it. There was a gentle click and a small motion along the frame of the apartment as Lois slipped out, closing the door behind her.Jimmy turned down the volume before beginning to flick through the channels. “Go get ‘em, Lo.”<><>Lois stopped off at a newsstand on the way to her current destination and purchased the latest copy of CatCo magazine. Inside the cover, it had the company contact details. She could have looked them up on her phone, but if the top secret government agency she still didn’t know the name of, was keeping tabs on her, they’d probably have hacked her phone and would know she was up to something. So she was doing some old fashioned investigating instead.After a bit of a hunt, she finally found a payphone that was still in some form of working order and, digging a few quarters from her purse, she dialled the CatCo number.
“Hello, this is CatCo, how may I help you?”
“Hi,” Lois put on her brightest and politest voice, even throwing in a smile because she knew that just because someone couldn’t see you, they could still tell if you were smiling or not. “Could I speak to Eve, if possible?”
“One moment, please.”
Some incredibly lame and annoyingly upbeat ‘on hold’ tones began to play down the line as she waited for her call to be connected, but thankfully, she only needed to listen to them for a moment before the line was answered again, this time by a different voice.“Lena Luthor’s office, Eve Teschmacher speaking, how can I help?”“Hi, I’m sorry to bother you,” Lois flicked through her reporter’s notebook quickly as she spoke, leafing through until she found her page of scribbles, reminding herself of the times of the meetings James had mentioned. It was nine thirty now, so the first of the two meetings would already be underway. Which left only one option... “I have a meeting with Miss Luthor at eleven o’clock…”She hesitated, hoping that Eve would be the perfect assistant - one who was prompt and organised, and was even now pulling up the information on her screen to verify against what she was hearing on the phone. Lois could hear the woman clicking about on a mouse and breathed a silent sigh of relief. Eve Teschmacher did indeed seem to be one of these people.
“Ah yes, Miss Tschudin with Helios Solar Energy, wasn’t it?”
“That’s me,” Lois grinned broadly. Now she had a name and a time, that was all she needed to get in. Except there was one more thing, to ensure her plan was sound.“The thing is, there’s been a bit of an unexpected change in my schedule for this morning, and I’ve found myself double booked. So I was wondering if there was any chance I might be able to come in a bit earlier to see Miss Luthor?”“Oh.” Eve hesitated. More clicks from her end of the line. “Well, she’s in a meeting now, but I’m sure it should be fine to come along after that. Would you like me to double-check?”“Oh no it’s fine, no need to interrupt her meeting now, I’ll just come along anyway and if she’s free, great. If she’s not, I’ll just cancel my other meeting that I stupidly booked for the same time. Would that work?”
“That will be fine, Miss Tschudin. We look forward to seeing you soon.”
“Great, thank you. I’ll be there shortly.” Lois beamed proudly as she hung up the payphone receiver.Digging around in her purse, Lois pulled out a handful of coins and dialed 411, connected with Information, and requested the number for Helios Solar Energy. The number was provided, then the operator offered to connect her for an extra charge.Instead, Lois noted the number on her pad, hung up, and dialed herself, saving the extra money and only paying the normal cost for the call. She’d never really understood why anyone would pay more for ‘convenience’ when it really wasn’t that hard to hang up and then dial another number.“Helios Solar Energy, how may I connect your call?” Came a crisp voice on the other side of the line. More stuck up, and bored sounding than Eve Teschmacher had been. Clearly this person didn’t enjoy their job as much.“Yes, hello,” Lois replied. “This is Eve Teschmacher from CatCo Worldwide Media. I’m calling on behalf of Miss Lena Luthor. Would you please connect me with Miss Tschudin?”
“One moment please.”
Smiling, Lois waited, though her smile quickly turned into a sigh and barely restrained eye roll as yet more upbeat hold music played across the line.Fairly quickly, a professional sounding woman interrupted the light jazz. “Miss Tschudin speaking, how may I help?”“Miss Tschudin. You haven’t left yet!” Lois said with exaggerated enthusiasm.
“Sorry, who is this?”
“Oh, you mean the operator didn’t tell you? It’s Eve Teschmacher from CatCo Worldwide Media.”
“Ah Miss Teschmacher, I wasn’t expecting a call from you. Is something wrong?”
“No. Well, I mean yes. I mean…” Lois sighed, over-exaggerating for emphasis. “I’m so sorry, I’m afraid you’re double-booked.”
“I’m doubled booked?”
“Yes, I’m so sorry,” Lois pushed her voice up into an uncomfortable octave, making it squeak slightly. “I... double-booked you.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Stupid. Stupid. This is the second time, Eve, the second time,” Lois chided herself across the line loud enough that her audience could hear her. “Miss Luthor was kind to me last time, but it was such an embarrassment with those investors there and her being new to the role. She apologized in front of them and said it must have been her mistake but… oh, she’s going to fire me for sure.”
“Surely she doesn’t need to know? If it helps, I can reschedule?”
“You could do that?!”“Well, it’s really not a problem,” the other woman agreed. “I haven’t even left yet, after all. And it would give me more time to get ready for my 1 o’clock.”“Oh Miss Tschudin, you are a lifesaver! Well, at least a job saver. My cat is going to have kittens, and I’m naming the cutest one after you! What’s your first name?”She laughed. “Eugenia.”“Ah…” Lois paused before putting her best smile on her face again. “Eugenia kitty it is. I’ll send you a picture.”Laughing back the woman replied, “Thank you. I love cats.”“Who doesn’t love cats?” Lois shook her head. “So, when would be a more convenient time to reschedule you for?”“Oh um…” There was a clicking of keys. “I could do Thursday afternoon?”“Let me check Miss Luthor’s schedule....” Lois tapped her pen several times on the metal surface of the phone booth to mimic keystrokes as best she could. “How about one-thirty?”
“That sounds great. I look forward to seeing you and Miss Luthor both then.”
“Oh, we’re really looking forward to meeting you too, and Miss Tschudin?” Lois paused, a smile in her voice.
“Yes?”
“You are a veritable angel. Don’t ever let anyone tell you otherwise. Thank you for being so understanding, and I really am sorry for the inconvenience.”With a chuckle, the woman replied, “It’s perfectly fine. Have a nice day.”“You too.” Lois hung up. “Sucker. Like taking candy from a baby. Okay, time to go meet Luthor Junior.”Leaving the phone booth, she was about to dump the CatCo magazine in the trash, when she saw the Exclusive story that was listed on the front, all about Lena Luthor becoming the new CEO and owner of the media company. Written by none other than Kara Danvers.“Actually, this might be just what I need,” she nodded, folding the magazine and tucking it into her bag beside her reporter’s notebook instead, then starting off towards the towering building in the distance.<><>Lena Luthor studiously poured over every inch of the portfolio in front of her, going over even the finest details on every page. She didn’t say anything – barely even acknowledged the presence of the other woman in the room, who sat on the opposite side of the desk, waiting patiently, her eyes flitting from screen to screen on the wall behind CatCo’s newest CEO as she watched the various news reports, whilst one hand fiddled, unconsciously, with a silver bracelet with dangling charms that hung from her wrist. She could have stood up, waltzed around the room, done an Irish jig on the table and juggled fire to her heart’s content, and Lena still wouldn’t have noticed – her attention was fully engaged on the portfolio that had been presented to her by the young woman. But Abigail Storm was used to difficult bosses – she worked for one of the UK’s richest and most difficult men, but she respected him a great deal and when he’d asked her to come to National City and present this business venture to Lena Luthor on his behalf, she’d been honored that he’d even entrusted something of such great importance to her.He was also expecting a complete and full rundown on everything Lena had to say about his proposition, which was why she was waiting patiently now, not allowing her mind to wander or distract her in any way as she waited for Lena to finish reading.Finally, Lena set down the last page, and Abigail sat up a little in her chair – not a lot, just a slight change in her demeanor – but it told Lena that the woman was now giving her full and undivided attention once more.“Well, it’s certainly an interesting proposition,” she said at last, closing the portfolio and clasping her hands lightly together on top of it.Abigail folded her hands neatly into her lap as she smiled, sensing a ‘but’.“Well put together, and sound in principle, but what he’s asking for in return is simply too high a price, I’m afraid. Far too steep, even for me.”Abigail nodded patiently, her rich mahogany eyes meeting Lena’s dazzling emerald ones steadily. “That’s why Lord Sugar has granted me permission to negotiate on his behalf.”Her accent – full English with just the tiniest hint of an American twang on some words – was refreshing for Lena to hear. The woman was clearly confident as well. With her accent she carried a confidence that was virtually impossible to miss. And this gave Lena confidence as well. She may have been new to the media business, but science and technological businesses she could pretty much run standing on her head. This woman knew what she was talking about, and that was reassuring to Lena that this wasn’t all just a waste of time.Abigail crossed one leg casually over the other before resting her hands back on her knee again. “Provided the price is reasonable.”“I see,” Lena smiled, sensing an opportunity here but knowing that she couldn’t rush into anything. Like all good business deals this would take time and careful negotiation. Something that thankfully she was very good at.<><>The main foyer of CatCo Worldwide Media was a complete contrast to the foyer of the Daily Planet. Where the Planet was polished oak, marble floor and ‘retro’ in it’s decor (most people said outdated, Lois insisted it was classic antique), CatCo was modern, chrome and glass and sleek. Seriously, there was a LOT of glass, Lois decided as she crossed the foyer and stepped into the elevator, hesitated for a moment as she realised she had no idea which floor she needed, then just decided to go to the top and work down, floor by floor if she had to.Stepping from the elevator on the top floor, she was greeted with a whole load more glass, as well as several desks with people tapping frantically away at keyboards, whilst phones rang and there was a general frenzy of chatter that made Lois feel right at home. It was the sound of stories being told, news being reported, journalism at work. It was the heart of the newspaper. The very soul, even. This was where the pages came to life.Navigating the sea of news reporters with the ease of someone who knew their way around the world of news and media, Lois spotted what she was looking for, and made a beeline for it.The largest office on the floor with an assistant’s desk right outside.Walking up to the desk, she stopped in front of the blonde woman and smiled brightly, noting with relief that she was in the right place when she saw the nameplate reading “Eve Teschmacher” sitting proudly on the desk.“Hi,” Lois glanced through the glass doors and into the office briefly, to see two women deep in conversation, sitting on either side of the desk.“Can I help you, Miss…?”“Tschudin,” Lois’ head snapped back to the front as she remembered her cover, just in time. “We spoke on the phone earlier.”“Miss Tschudin,” Eve smiled politely as realisation dawned. She glanced into the office as well, for a moment, then back to Lois apologetically. “I’m so sorry, Miss Tschudin. Miss Luthor is still in her meeting. Perhaps I could reschedule you for a more convenient time?”Lois glanced to her watch. It was only just gone ten. That gave Lois plenty of snooping time until Miss Luthor’s current meeting ended and she needed to impersonate Miss Tschudin. “No, no I can wait. I cancelled my other meeting anyway, but thought I’d get here early, just in case.”“Of course,” Eve nodded. “Can I offer you any refreshments while you wait?”“No I’m good. Actually,” Pulling the Catco magazine out of her purse, Lois opened to Kara’s article on Lena. “I suppose this must sound like a bit of an odd question, but I’m quite the fan of Kara Danvers. I’ve read every one of her articles, and her writing is excellent. Which is partly why I came early. I was hoping to maybe meet with her? I won’t take much of her time, but I’d love to say hello, maybe get an autograph?” Lois smiled endearingly.“Oh, I’m so sorry,” Eve smiled apologetically in return. “Unfortunately, Kara’s away at the moment on a family matter.” Her eyes shone with sympathy.“Oh, so you mean she’s not…” Lois turned, sounding disappointed whilst scanning the room for empty desks. “Not here… anywhere?”Standing, Eve pointed over Lois’ shoulder. “She usually sits right there, but not this week. We’re sure she’ll be back soon, though. Maybe you can see her next time?”As Lois turned and saw Eve sitting again, Lois added, “Actually, you know what, I’d love a coffee, if that’s okay?”“Of course,” Eve rose quickly from behind her desk. “How do you take it?”Lois was tempted to say “warm and wet”, but instead knew that she needed to stall the young assistant for as long as possible, so reeled off the most ludicrous order she’d heard someone place when she’d been in the queue for a coffee once. “Half-decaf, quarter non-fat, quarter 1%, half whole milk, two splenda, one sugar.” Lois held up a finger, nodding, then added, “Make that a sugar in the raw if you have it, though I’m not picky, and drop in an ice cube when it’s done. Don’t want to burn my mouth.”Eve nodded, her eyes wide and mouth agape. “O-o-kay… What?” She grabbed a sticky pad and a pen from her desk. “Could you repeat that, please?”“Really?” Lois fought her smirk back. “Sure. Half-decaf, quarter non-fat, quarter 1%, half whole milk, two splenda, one sugar in the raw if you have it, though just sugar is fine, and an ice cube.” Lois watched Eve scrawl furiously and when the blonde made eye contact again she asked, “You get that, sweetie?”“Yes, I think so.”“I’m sure it will be fine. I’ll drink it however, really.”A series of indiscernible expressions crossed Eve’s face before she finally said, “I’ll get your coffee.”Lois waited until the other woman was about fifteen feet away and then called out, “Oh, Miss Teschmacher?” When the other woman stopped and turned, Lois asked, “Do you have any cinnamon?”Eve blinked rapidly. “Cinnamon?”Smiling, Lois waved the blonde off. “It’s fine, don’t worry, just ignore me. I don’t want to be any bother.”A nod and a stumble as she left was Eve’s only response.Chuckling, Lois headed off toward the desk that had been pointed out as Kara’s and mumbled to herself. “Well, that should keep you busy for a little while. Now, Kara, let’s see if you left us any clues here.”She poked around on the top of the desk first, taking note of the small pink vase with the flowers that had seen better days, a small potted plant, a framed picture of Alex and Eliza, an orange and clear plastic rectangle filled with maybe a dozen pens, a big glass candy dish filled with...Lois peered inside. Yep, candy. No surprise there. Helping herself to a piece, Lois continued to search.There were two mugs, one with just a ‘K’ on it that seemed to exist to hold plastic utensils and another bearing the picture of a white puppy that looked suspiciously like Krypto. Lois smiled as she reached out a hand to touch the photo of the dog for a moment. Hopefully, he was having a great time protecting Mrs. K and keeping her company.There was also a ream of paper and a folder with a few news articles about a local food shelter, but nothing that looked relevant.Moving to the drawers, Lois started in the long one across the top, narrow, shallow, and filled with a collection of brightly colored pens, brightly colored sticky pads, brightly colored paper clips, brightly colored rubber bands, brightly colored… “Okay, okay, Little Miss Sunshine, that is some seriously colorful office crap.”Closing the top drawer and moving onto the top left, she found mainly steno notebooks, both new and old, staples, other generic office supplies plus a few things that seemed odd until one realized that someone might need to replace their mouse and the receiver of their phone quickly and without being noticed if they had super-strength.Pulling out the latest used steno notebook by date, Lois shoved it into her purse for later snooping and opened the large bottom drawer. It was filled with file after file, all neatly organized and labeled, and making Lois raise her eyebrows. The reporter began to flip through things, checking briefly to make sure Miss Teschmacher hadn’t yet returned with the order that would have pissed off the most polite of underpaid baristas. Seeing she was still in the clear, she dug through each file by name, hoping something stood out. When she found one labeled ‘L. Luthor’, Lois pulled it out, dropping it onto her lap as she began to look through it.Though all of the Luthors were ‘L. Luthor’, this file was on Lena, the new CEO of CatCo.Lois flipped through some early articles, some of which looked familiar. A few were only vague memories of seeing the young woman in the background when her older and at the time much more famous brother was arrested. Lena was a relative unknown back then. But not for long. Article after article delved into the young heiress’ life, hack jobs with badly veiled innuendo that made Lois’ eyes roll wildly. Then came the article that Clark wrote after the problem with the oscillator on the Venture led him to Lena. Lois gave it a cursory glance as she had a vague memory of the details, mainly remembering that Clark had cleared Lena of any wrongdoing and been fairly impressed by the young CEO. Lois flipped through a few more articles which led to some from Kara which were very different than earlier takes. It started with something about an alien detection device and then led to things about green energy and even about the arrest of Lena’s own mother.“Yeesh, poor kid,” Lois muttered with a sigh.As she moved to the back of the file, she found not articles or newspaper clippings as she’d expected, but actual photographs. It started with just Lena, but then there were some of Lena and Kara. The two young women were sitting on the couch together, on a park bench while Lena made a rather appalled face at the three, no four! scoops of ice cream Kara balanced on top of her cone, the duo walking conspiratorially together with their shoulders knocking as they both grinned shyly, and the last a four-strip from a photo booth with the two of them smiling and laughing like they’d known each other forever and every joke was some long-known secret. They were obviously great friends. They looked really close, almost like—“Ahem!”Startled from her reverie, Lois nearly dropped the file as she closed it quickly, her head snapping up as she stared into bright emerald eyes that bore into her with an intensity that could rival Clark’s heat vision. Her hand caught in the proverbial cookie jar, Lois smiled awkwardly and said, “Oh, I’m so sorry. I was just looking for—”“You’re not Kara Danvers,” Lena Luthor said, her arms crossed imperiously across her torso as she continued to glare.“Nooo, I’m not,” Lois agreed cautiously.“So, why are you sitting at her desk and going through her things?” The only change in her visage was one eyebrow lifting.Lois swallowed hard and with it swallowed down her immediate response. She shoved the file rather haphazardly back into the drawer, kicking it closed as she stood and stretched out her hand, smiling. “I’m Miss Tschudin. Miss Eugenia Tschudin from Helios Solar Energy. I’m your eleven o’clock.”Eyebrow still crooked and arms still crossed, Lena replied, “Still not Kara Danvers.”“Ah…” Noticing the woman several feet behind Lena but watching with a keen interest, the same one who had been in the meeting with the CEO not long ago, Lois stepped around the young Luthor and extended her hand. “Eugenia Tschudin, Helios Solar Energy.”Obviously taken aback at first, the woman nearly instantly recovered and responded politely as she took Lois’ hand, her English accent clear and strong. “Abigail Storm, personal assistant to Lord Sugar.”“Wow, firm grip there.” Lois shook out her fingers, then smiled over her shoulder at Lena before returning to Abigail. “Seems Miss Luthor is a busy woman.”“She is,” Lena agreed, clearly still not amused.At that moment, Eve arrived with a cup of coffee in hand. “Miss Tschudin, here you are. I apologize for the delay but—”“Not at all. This is perfect.” Lois took the cup, sipping it quickly as it gave her something to do other than wilting under Lena’s intense glare. But almost instantly she had to work to contain several explosive coughs. Finally, she garbled out, “Found the cinnamon I see.” She smiled in a fairly convincing manner and said, “Delicious.”“Eve,” Lena walked around Lois with only mild annoyance. “Will you please assist Miss Storm in setting up a follow-up appointment? She and I have further details to discuss.”“Yes, Miss Luthor,” Eve replied as she hurried back to her desk, the entire party moving in that direction. “Any particular date or time, Miss Storm?”Lena shrugged and looked at Abigail.“Well, I fly back to London tomorrow, but I’m coming back over in two weeks time? Would that be too long?”“That’s fine,” Lena replied with a nod. “I look forward to seeing you then. Today was a pleasure.”“Moreso for me, Miss Luthor.”“Please, give my regards to Lord Sugar.”“Of course.” Abigail turned to Eve to book herself in for two weeks time, whilst Lena made her way back to her office again, freezing and turning to see Lois following in her wake. Again the imperious eyebrow rose. Her gaze wandered to the clock on the wall and then back to the woman who had been following her as she said, “You’re my eleven o’clock?”“Yes,” Lois said slowly. “Your receptionist said you might be able to see me early.”“Oh, I can see you Miss Tschudin.” Lena crooked a finger as she turned and led the way into the office.Lois pulled at her collar slightly, trying to let out some of the heat from the laser glare that had been set on her once again before she followed the CEO into the office.She looked around as Lena closed the glass doors behind them both, seeing several familiar photographs along the walls. A few were of the Man of Steel himself, but others were less well known. All had been taken by a very famous photojournalist.“Is this your office?” Lois asked as she placed her coffee on the corner of the desk and pulled out her notebook and pen.“Was that a topic of this meeting?”“No I…” Lois caught sight of a nameplate bearing the name ‘James Olsen’. She cleared her throat and said, “No, of course not. It just doesn’t seem very you.”“And you know me?”“You’re a Luthor - the last one standing in fact. Lena Luthor, CEO of the company formerly known as Luthor Corp, now L-Corp, current CEO and owner of Catco Worldwide Media and you made number two on the list of ‘Top Thirty Under Thirty’. Quite frankly, you should have made the top pick, but it’s always about a pop star, isn’t it? You’re sure to make the list again this year.” Lois paused, then added, “Hey, Rihanna turned thirty in 2018 so maybe now you’ll take that number one slot this time.”Leaning back in her chair, a small smile lit the CEO’s lips, though it was clear she was still trying to suss Lois out. “Who are you?”“Eugenia Tschudin, Helios Solar Energy,” Lois replied without skipping a beat.“And what do you do there?”“We uh… We’re a green energy company. You know.” Lois pointed up. “The sun. You can’t get much greener than that.”“I could argue that, but let’s say I don’t. Answer me this. Who is Helios?”“Helios? Helios is my employer.”“Well, yes. Originally, though, who is Helios? From where did the name come?”“I don’t follow,” Lois replied as she tried to surreptitiously slide her cell phone out of her purse for a google search.Her head tilting slightly to the right, Lena dryly informed, “The son of the Titans Hyperion and Theia, Helios was the personification of the sun in the Greek mythos. Brother of the Goddesses Selene, the moon and Eos, the dawn.”“Oh, oh! You meant originally like from a marketing picking the name perspective. Why didn’t you say so?” With a sigh, Lois shifted in her seat. “Look, Miss Luthor, I don’t want to get off on the wrong foot with you.”“I’d say we’re beyond that.”“Right. Sorry.”Pointing, Lena’s finger wavered slightly. “I know you.”Lois shook her head. “Don’t think so. Pretty sure we haven’t actually met before.”“I’ve got a rather good memory for faces, and I’ve seen yours before.”“Well, that’s possible. Maybe Lex—” As Lena tensed, Lois immediately realized her mistake.“You know my brother?”“That was not a threat.”“You know my brother, and that’s not a threat?”“I… jeez, good going, Lois,” she mumbled. “Definitely not a threat. I knew him, past tense. At least, I thought I knew him. I guess none of us did.”Varied expressions crossed the CEO’s face seemingly in a millisecond before it was schooled back to neutrality again. “Who the hell are you already?” There was heat in her voice now.Realising the game was up and her cover was blown, Lois sighed. “Lois Lane. I’m a reporter for the—”“The Daily Planet,” Lena finished, cutting Lois off. “Yes, I know who you are, Miss Lane. I recognise you now from Lex’s trial. And I’m afraid if you’re here for an interview, as… lovely as it is to finally put a face to a name, I’m going to have to ask you to leave. I have a business to run, and I don’t have time for your theatrics.”“Theatrics? Ouch. Look, I’m not here for an interview, but I am doing my job, Miss Luthor.”“I seem to remember you are employed by the Daily Planet, not CatCo,” Lena retorted. “Again, if you consider this to be some kind of interview, you didn’t get the job - not that we’re hiring. Now, do you know how to show yourself out, or would you like me to call someone to assist you?”“Oh, I am doing my job. I’m working on a front page story for The Planet right now,” Lois nodded fervently as she stood up and walked around the room, trying to release some of her nervous, pent up energy. “See, word on the street is that Supergirl has gone missing and the Government is trying to cover it up. But I believe the public has a right to know what’s going on. So, that’s what I’m doing.”“Making yourself a nuisance?” Lena retorted, pressing her finger against her temple as she closed her eyes as if to ward off a headache… perhaps one with the last name of Lane.“I’m an investigative journalist. Clue is in the name,” Lois sighed, annoyed by Lena’s apparent lack of interest. “Means I investigate my stories. Verify every source, check out every angle, and right now I’m looking for information.”Lena sighed and set her pen down a little too forcefully. “So why are you bothering me with this? Why were you rummaging in one of my employee’s desks?”“I was looking for Kara Danvers. She IS Supergirl’s official reporter, isn’t she? Only I couldn’t see her out there, is all, so I poked around a bit.”Opening her eyes, Lena rolled her hand from her wrist. “Oh, Kara’s taken some time off to be with her mother. Apparently, she’s not well. Kara’s sister has been called away on last minute business, so Kara is handling things on her own.”“Ah,” Lois nodded, knowing full well this wasn’t the truth. But Lena didn’t know that Kara and Supergirl were one and the same, so in Lena’s eyes at least, she was telling what she believed to be the truth. And to contradict her would give the game away. “Shame. I was looking forward to finding out her opinion on what was going on.”“Why don’t you ask your Man of Steel?” Lena replied, turning her eyes back to the report on her desk – an indication that the conversation was over. “They are cousins, aren’t they?”“Superman and Kara?”“Superman and Supergirl.”“Oh, right. Yeah, course they are.” Lois paused for a moment, struggling with her next words because saying them out loud all of a sudden made them real. All the time she didn’t say it, she could deny that any of it was happening. But if she was going to get Lena’s help, she’d have to stop denying it and accept the truth of the situation.“The thing is, Superman’s gone AWOL too.”This caught Lena’s attention and she looked up again. “Both Supers are missing?” Arms pressing on the desk, she stared intently at Lois. “They’re both truly missing?”“And the Government is covering it up. I tried to interview a few of their agents, but they were giving nothing away.”“How do you know Government Agents?”“They came to ask me if I knew where Superman was,” Lois lied quickly. “So I turned the questions back on them. Didn’t work though.”“I see.” Lena sat back in her chair and set her pen down again, finally giving Lois her full attention. “And how long have they been missing?”“Long enough for people to notice.”“Are you writing a story on their disappearance, or actively trying to help in finding out what’s happened?”“I can’t believe I’m about to say this,” Lois shook her head. “But right now the story isn’t important. Finding the Supers is.”Lena nodded again slowly, processing this information. Then she sat forward. “So what can we do?”“You mean you’ll help me?”“Supergirl is my friend. If she’s in trouble, I want to help. At first, I thought you were only interested in the story, but if you’re actually trying to do something about it, then count me in.”And just like that, Lois found her first ally in the hunt for the missing Supers.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

It had been decided that Lena and Lois would move their investigations over to L-Corp, across the city because they could use one of the labs, and they would have a lot more privacy to work in, without the prying eyes and ears of a hundred curious journalists watching their every move.On the way, Lois used the last of the money J’onn had provided to buy a cheap phone - a burner cell - that she could use to make calls without the government agents or anyone else knowing it was her or tracking her calls.Once at the huge skyscraper building, she and Lena stepped into an elevator, and Lena used a thumb pad to scan her thumb print and grant her access to someplace that was apparently top secret.Or at least Lois assumed it was - people didn’t make a habit of installing fingerprint recognition for no reason, after all.After a couple of moments of awkward silence whilst they waited for the elevator to ascend, the two women stepped out into some kind of laboratory, or workshop area. Lois was surprised - she’d been assuming Lena would take them to her office and do some technical stuff on an iPad then command other people to do the dirty work for her. But no, this looked like Lena’s own personal lab where she did her own hands on work.This became especially obvious when Lois noticed the desk over in the far corner, near one window that looked out over National City. And judging from the view, Lois guessed they must have been about halfway up the massive skyscraper. Yet another shocker. If Lena was going to have a secret lab that only she could access, Lois was going to have placed it at the top, near her office, for convenience if nothing else.Crossing the room to the desk, Lois sat herself down in the swivel chair to observe the contents.The desk itself was a clean stainless-steel design, sleek with rounded edges. The pen holder, stapler, tape dispenser, even the pens were of a matching stainless steel look. All very uniform and downright boring, compared to Kara’s myriad of rainbow colors in her desk. Even Lois’ haphazard desk at the Daily Planet had more charm than this one did.It was possible the stationary was all ordered from the same place or as one unit. Also on the desk was a monitor that dwarfed the set up, easily 32” across, but set far enough back that it didn’t dwarf the viewer. There were no plants, no family or friends photos, and the only mug was plain and black, sitting on a matching silver drink warmer that was powered off. The entire scene would have been without any touch of mirth or whimsy except for the dotting of gadgets off to one side. These stuck out like a sore thumb, and Lois was immediately drawn to them. There was a Rubik's cube, all six sides solved, an abacus, a 3-D star-shape puzzle made up of interlocking pieces of wood, a robot that stood about eight inches tall, a miniature wooden catapult, a small bust of Albert Einstein with paperclips on his head like hair, and a miniature Supergirl figurine floating maybe half inch above its base. Lois picked up the star and turned it over a few times, quickly dropping the pieces as it fell apart in her hands. Brushing them to one side, she slid a few beads of the abacus about, poked Einstein’s nose, waved a hand under the Supergirl figurine to try and work out how it was floating, then took the Rubik's cube, as Lena finally came over.“You’re in my seat,” she said haughtily, one eyebrow rising as she made a shooing motion with one hand. Lois evacuated the seat but took the Rubik's cube and Einstein with her. Lena rolled her eyes.“Put them back.”“I’m just looking,” Lois replied, turning her back on Lena. As Lena flicked on the monitor and brought her PC to life, Lois set the Einstein back on the desk, minus the paperclips. Then she set the cube back beside him, completely muddled and in no sense of order at all. She hadn’t even attempted to make any kind of pattern.Lena barely suppressed a groan as she took the cube and in less than a minute had it back to uniformed perfection. Lois was impressed by that, in particular. Then she held up the paperclips, which she’d threaded into one long paper clip chain, with a triumphant grin.“Oh for the love of— ” Lena grumbled as Lois went for the robot next. But a sharp hand across the back of her wrist stopped her short with a yelp of surprise.“No.” Lena spoke firmly - a mother telling a child in no uncertain terms that this particular item was off limits.“But— ”“No!”Now it was Lois’ turn to pout as she turned away, pulling the cell phone from her purse that she’d bought on the way to L-Corp. Dialing a number that she knew off by heart, she held the phone between her shoulder and her ear as she pulled out her reporter’s notebook and ballpoint, and began to wander round the lab, taking the rest of it in as she waited for the person on the other end of the line to pick up.“Perry, hi! It’s me… Lois… Lois Lane?… You know, your star reporter?... Yes me! Listen, I need a favor… What? Oh yeah, I forgot to phone and say I wouldn’t be at work. Last minute story came up in National City and… what? Yeah I’m here now… what do you mean ‘what am I doing here?!’ I just told you, working on a story… I need some numbers. Contacts. Names. Give me people to talk to here, Perry. You’re always barking at me to verify my sources, so give me some sources to verify… No, no I wasn’t calling you a dog, Sir. Not at all. I didn’t mean it like… I know it sounded that way but… What? Oh, Clark’s looking after Mrs K. She… .she… had a, uhm… a nasty fall last week and… oh yeah, yeah I’m sure she’s fine, but the barn roof collapsed in that storm a few weeks back, so Clark’s gone to fix it… to be fair Perry, Clark and I are on vacation, so he’s kind of entitled to - actually that’s a point! I’m on vacation! Why are you getting your cornstalks in a twist over me not being there when I’m not actually supposed to BE there this week!” Lois sighed heavily, pressing a hand to her head. “Perry, please, just give me names and numbers, that’s all I’m asking… Thank you.”She turned back to Lena and pointed to the phone. “He put me on hold.” Then she turned back to the lab, continuing to wander as she waited for Perry to come back with the information, and the on hold music played softly into her ear, the bright, melodic sounds of Johann Strauss’ Blue Danube.With a little waltz in her step, moving in time to the music, Lois passed from workstation to workstation - the soundtrack to her explorations playing through the phone as she remained on hold.The rest of the room was filled with a series of different work stations. There was what looked a little bit like a microwave, a little bit like a power tool. It was black along the top and bottom with a black back. On the exterior top and bottom it had a red lid. There were black arms along the front to frame it and a panel at the top that could obviously be used for programming, along with and a big red button that practically screamed, ‘On.’ Inside was a piece of machinery along the top that could obviously slide from side to side on the rails provided, and the base on the bottom looked to move allowing for full movement along the interior of the casing.Checking over her shoulder to see if Lena was watching - she wasn’t as she’d set to work at her computer - Lois reached out and pressed the button. Almost immediately the machine came to life, and she watched in fascination as an ear began to take shape. It was only then that she realised it must have been some kind of 3D printer, of sorts. Leaving the printer to finish it’s job, she moved onto the next workbench.There was nothing on this one but a monitor, powered down, and a square of plastic about 4” by 4” that sat over a thin pool of liquid. On the back of the square was a switch. Reaching out and flicking it on, Lois watched as it illuminated the pool of liquid below and turned on the monitor. On the screen, a creature came into view. It looked a bit like a ray. Its body was round, but it had a tail, and it began to move, rippling and moving across the fluid as it swam. The screen was much larger than the dish below in which it was held, so it was obviously being magnified, and in its center was a golden line with several smaller lines branching off of it a bit like a spine with a rib cage. Leaning closer, it looked entirely metallic, just like gold.“Huh, you’re cute,” Lois grinned as she watched it swimming around for a moment. Then when it didn’t do anything immediately different, other than swim, Lois once again moved on, still leaving it turned on, just as she had with the 3D printer.The next workstation had a square of glass, about 6” in either direction that was braced along its sides, top, and bottom in a sturdy frame. There was no sign, no indication of what this was. The only other thing on the table was a hammer that was chained to the desk and well within striking distance of the glass. Once again glancing back towards Lena, who was still engrossed in her work, Lois set the phone down on loudspeaker in case Perry came back, then picked up the hammer and studied it for a moment. She looked from the hammer, to the glass, then back to the hammer again, the dots connecting in her mind. Glancing back to Lena again, just to make absolutely sure, Lois got a better grip on the hammer then swung it at the glass, expecting it to smash under the impact. Ready to leap back and deny all responsibility, Lois wasn’t expecting the glass to hold firm. The impact jarred her arm, and she bit back an exclamation as she dropped the hammer and rubbed her elbow for a moment, frowning.Then she picked up the hammer again and this time knowing what to expect, swung it at the glass once more, bracing for the impact again. The glass didn’t even crack under the impact. Lois nodded, impressed, as she set the hammer down again and picked up her phone, taking it off loudspeaker and replacing it between her shoulder and her ear. “Come on, Perry, what’s taking you so long!”The workstation next in line held a strange contraption that was like a lattice work of metal, bright and silver, akin to Swiss cheese (albeit light on the cheese and heavy on the holes). It was incredibly strong to the touch but also much lighter than expected - about half the weight of steel but apparently just as strong, Lois discovered when she tried to bend it. She poked and prodded it a few more times, then grew bored and moved on once more, not really knowing what it was or understanding it’s design and purpose.“Now this looks more interesting,” Lois grinned as she bent over slightly to get a better look at what was going on. Two plates sat with a thin string between them, and a bright red button on the base. Pressing it curiously, Lois watched as the top plate started to rise, and rise, and rise up to four times the height it had been. The string stretched the whole time but held. It stayed like that for about thirty seconds before the machine, with a big exhalation of air, released again and went back to its earlier decompressed state. When it did, the string resumed its earlier form, showing no sign of being stretched or misshapen. “Huh, neat.” She reached out and pinged the string a few times, listening to the noise it made. Then she pressed the button to start it up again, pinging the string as the plate rose and listening to the varying pitch as the string stretched. “Awesome,” She grinned, all set to do it again, when a noise from another workstation caught her attention and once again, she left the machine running so that she could go and examine this newest one - there now a trail of machines and robots running of their own accord, unsupervised and undirected.“Gross,” She frowned as she watched what appeared to be raw sewage vanishing into some kind of filtration system. Or at least she assumed it was, given that the water that came out the other end was crystal clear. Lois considered sticking her fingers in the water for a moment, then thought better of it and held back.Which was when she saw the gigantic wall of Plexiglas and the big DANGER sign on the front.Head tilted to one side, she walked over to it, peered at the robotic arm behind the glass for a moment, then set her phone down, not even realizing that Perry had hung up a while back and the music had stopped. Looking around, she found what appeared to be some kind of remote control - a bright yellow brick-like object, and shrugging, she pressed the big green button.The arm began to move and a red laser beam shot out, burning into the sheet of steel it had been aimed at. A small joystick on the remote was soon being pressed and maneuvered by a curious Lois and the robotic arm turned towards her, the laser cutting a line through the Plexiglas and heading straight for Lois’ exposed neck.Lois’ phone began to ring at that moment, vibrating itself off the table where she’d sat it.Lena looked up and jumped out of her seat suddenly. “LOIS! Look out!”“Oh shoot,” Lois exclaimed, ducking down to pick up the phone as the laser passed overhead, the reporter completely oblivious to the danger she’d just been in and the very near miss. “I got it, I got it.” Standing up again, she pressed the phone to her ear, just as the sheet of Plexiglas fell in two, the top half crashing to the floor.“Perry, hi! What took you so long? Hang on, let me get my notepad… where did I put it? Oh, there it is. So here’s what I need...”And leaving the laser running, now burning a hole in the nearby wall instead, she passed back across the room and grabbed her notebook and pen, blissfully unaware of the carnage she’d inadvertently left in her wake.“Oh for fuck’s sake!” Lena exclaimed, rushing over to the myriad of machines to turn each of them off, one by one, starting with the laser.Lois, meanwhile, was leaning against yet another workbench, scribbling notes into her notebook as she listened to Perry.“Uh huh… yep… got it… yep… uh huh… seven five? Oh five seven. Right… yep… yep… yep… uh huh… wait, how do you spell that? Never mind I’ll work it out… That’s brilliant, thanks, Perry. You’re a star… Yes I promise Clark and I will be back soon… Yes, I promise I’ll stay out of trouble… Yes I promise I’ll give your regards to Mrs K… Yep, okay, uh huh, bye!”Hanging up and brandishing her notebook triumphantly, Lois spotted several oddities about the workbench she’d been leaning against. They certainly caught her eye, and she couldn’t resist picking a few of the items up from within a Plexiglas tank - A spoon attached to a big paper clip, a broken mug with two chopsticks firmly adhered to its side, three matchbox cars, with their wheels facing out, all stuck to an empty pickle jar. Lying about were several small, white tubes with the L-Corp logo on them, looking suspiciously like super glue tubes. And hanging from a robotic arm was another tube with the same markings.Her curiosity once again getting the better of her, Lois was just about to examine the larger tube of glue, when Lena’s voice rang out, echoing across the lab.“LOIS LANE, DO NOT TOUCH THAT!!!”Lois flinched and jumped back, alarmed. “I wasn’t doing anything, jeez!”“If you touch that, you won’t be doing anything for a very long time. That creates a bond on a molecular level. Do you understand?”“It sticks things to other things?” Lois shrugged.Lena pinched her brow. “Oh, good lord. Forever!”“Forever?” Lois repeated thoughtfully. “And that’s… bad? Huh, I could think of some great uses for this! Have you got any spares?”After glaring at Lois, Lena walked over to her computer and pushed a button, then spoke out loud. “Jeffrey, if I called security, how quickly could a team get here?”“Under a minute, Miss Luthor,” A voice responded through a loudspeaker somewhere in the room. “Is there a problem? Do you need me to send some personnel?”Raising an eyebrow, Lena stared Lois down for several seconds before finally saying, “Not at this time, but I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you, Jeffrey.”
“Yes, ma’am. Have a good day.”
Lois blinked at the conversation, then slowly held up her hands - notebook and ballpoint clutched firmly in one, but the other empty, and backed slowly away from the workbench, making a point of not touching.Like a child in detention, she stomped over to the desk with a little more attitude than was actually necessary and flopped in the chair. “Fine, be boring then. What’s going on? What did your little tech whizzy things find out?” She motioned to the monitor as she was talking, though her tone had taken on a bit of a monotone, like she was asking a question even though she actually didn’t care for the answer and was only asking for the sake of it.Lena clicked a few keys on her computer again, then motioned for Lois to come closer though the CEO’s attention was entirely on the screen as she began to talk. “Actually, I’ve been thinking through some abnormalities here at L-Corp, anything that could even remotely be related to our missing Supers. It’s a long shot, but I’d reviewed some reporting last week with Sam, our new CFO. Originally, it looked like we had some shipments that went through a local warehouse go missing, but when we investigated it further with accounting, there was no actual record of them. We were able to track it back to a glitch in some computer software.”“And what’s that got to do with us?” Lois asked. “You’re telling me the Supers disappeared because of a glitch? Is that even possible?”“No, of course not. But what if there was no glitch? What if the so called glitch was manufactured to hide L-Corp resources being used to for some other, more nefarious purpose?”“Ooooh, you mean like Lex-type dodgy dealings? Now I’m with you. Do you suspect your new CFO?”“Sam?” Lena shook her head. “If anyone’s above suspicion it’s her. Anyway, she wouldn’t have the means to do it. She’s new to the company. Whoever did this would have to have had long term knowledge and access to L-Corp systems. If anything, Sam’s uncovered something here.”“Okay, well yay for her. And where is this shady base of operations?”“I wouldn’t call it a ‘shady base of operations’. L-Corp has several warehouses downtown. We use them to store material we’re bringing in by ship across the Pacific. From there things are either moved to our facilities here in National City, or out to any number of our other facilities or subsidiaries across the country or Canada. The paper trail, well, the glitch, leads there, but there isn’t an actual invoice. We’ll have to go to the facility and pull the files there, maybe download the video records for the past few weeks and cross-reference them with actual shipments to look for an anomaly. We do that, and we’ll find our glitch.”“Finally! Some proper investigative journalism!” Lois jumped to her feet. “What are we waiting for? You drive. I’ve got some calls to make, and I can’t promise I won’t hit anything again if I call and drive.” The way she said it seemed to indicate that it wouldn’t have been the first time she’d done that, either.Lena pushed to her feet, brow pressed together as she asked, “Excuse me, did you say, ‘hit anything again’?”“Oh don’t worry, was only my fiancé,” Lois shrugged. “The first time, anyway. The second time it was his dog. But they’re both fine.”“You… you hit your fiance AND his dog?” Lena looked around her lab, and the destruction that was nearly contained. “What do you think the odds are that the poor man will make it to the wedding?”“I didn’t hit them at the same time, obviously,” Lois frowned as if this was obvious. “And believe it or not, I actually made it down the aisle - we were halfway through our vows in fact before some big national emergency struck and I hitched a lift on Airforce One. Which got shot out of the sky. Superman came to my rescue yet again, and Clark and I just haven’t found the time to rearrange since. We will though.”After several stunned blinks, Lena nodded. “I’ll drive. I’ll always drive.”“Sounds good to me,” Lois smiled. “Gives me more time to phone my contacts and ‘verify my sources’.” Then as an afterthought she added, “When I say I hit them, I do mean with a car. I didn’t just go up to them and punch them, or anything. Well… actually I did punch Clark once. But he deserved it.”“You know what, you don’t need to explain. I think the less I know about your… relationship the better.” Lena walked past Lois and back to the exit.“Oh, honey, you have no idea,” Lois muttered quietly to herself as they left the lab, using the same elevator as they’d arrived in to take them back down to the ground level.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Lois stood staring at the the 1964 Aston Martin DB5.  It was sleek and silver with mirrors set further forward near either bumper and a slightly raised intake on the hood.  Over a third of the car was nose, and the back window curved down slowly to help manage wind resistance.
While the words,
James Bonds’ car!
jumped around in her brain, what Lois actually said was,
“You’re shitting me!”
 
Raising one eyebrow, Lena sniffed politely as she walked past Lois to the right side of the car and said, “I don’t believe I’ve ever done any such thing.”
 
“Hey, I thought you were dri—” Looking down at the license plate that stated ‘LL007’, Lois became momentarily distracted. When she looked up, Lena had climbed into the passenger side, so the reporter headed over to the driver’s side and pulled open the door.  “Hey, I thought you said you were...?” A look of dawning realisation crossed her face as she also climbed in. “Oh, the wheel’s on that side. How British. You know, I’m getting a very James Bond vibe about all this, which is quite frankly awesome.” Lois ran a hand appreciatively over what looked to be either a very, very antiquated GPS device, or some kind of radar scanner in the centre of the dash console beneath the radio.
 
Lena started the car with a healthy thrum of the engine, which received an excited chuckle from the passenger’s side, then she checked her mirror before putting the car into reverse and pulling out of the space. “I need to stop by my place before we head to the warehouse. I just need to pick something up.”
 
“Ok, sure,”  Lois looked around at the cabin of the vehicle with its dark leather seats, brown, wide steering wheel, numerous dials and odd switches and covered things that seemed out of place.  “Hey, you know this really REALLY looks likes James Bond’s car. Is it like some kind of replica? Are you a secret James Bond fanatic?”
 
Clearing her throat, the young CEO pulled carefully out into traffic. “Well, it is a 1964 Aston Martin DB5, the same model that was used in Goldfinger. So yes, you could say it’s a James Bond car.”
 
“I did say it. Well, I said it was like it, not that it was it. Because that would be insane.”
 
“Did you know there were two of them?”
 
“Two of what?”
 
“There were two identical cars used in the movie - two cars used by James Bond. One was used for many of the close up scenes, and the other was the one that was actually outfitted with many of the gadgets and devices seen in the movie. It’s what was called the ‘props cars’,” Lena informed casually as she drove the stick shift vehicle like it was second nature to her.
 
Lois blinked several times, taking that all in.  “Oh. Well, I guess that makes sense. They trashed about seven of the ten DB10s in Spectre. So, did you buy one of those Bond cars, then?”
 
“No.”
 
“Oh.” Lois deflated back into her seat and pulled out her phone. “So this is just a regular, mundane Aston that just looks like the one from the film? Boring. Quaint, but boring. I’m going to start on my calls.”
 
“In 1997, the props car went missing from a warehouse where it was being stored in Florida.”
 
It was such a casual, throwaway comment, it was almost as if she’d been talking about the weather. But it had the desired effect as Lois sat bolt upright again, turning to smile at the CEO as her eyes lit up with hope  “Alright I’m listening. What happened to it?”
 
Lena shrugged. “No one knows. The insurance company paid out the claim - over a million dollars in liability. It’s become one of life’s great mysteries, and no one has ever seen the car again.” Turning to look at Lois briefly, a sly little smile touched Lena’s lips and she shrugged. Almost as if there was something funny - an inside joke, or something only she knew. “No one.”
 
Lois was quiet for a moment, and then she very nearly exploded with excitement. “Holy fuck!  Are you saying this is the missing Bond car?!”
 
Looking at the road again, Lena shrugged. “I didn’t say that.”
 
“O… kay. Are you saying this
isn’t
the missing Bond car?”
 
There were several moments of silence, and then Lena pulled up at a red light. Turning to look at Lois again, she slowly lifted one eyebrow while her lips curled up at the corners.  “Well, I didn’t say that either.”
 
“I knew it! This is the missing Bond car!” Lois bounced in her seat as excited as a child on Christmas morning. “Does it do stuff?! What does it do!? It does stuff, right!?” She started to reach out and touch things, pressing panels to look for secret compartments, looking for dials and switches with which to play.  Suddenly Lena grabbed her hand, pulling the excited reporter’s attention back to the driver.
 
Staring at her passenger, Lena said quite seriously, “Lois, I’m the CEO of one of the largest media companies in the country, and I’m still responsible for my family’s business on top of that. I’m the only Luthor not dead, incarcerated, or sought by the federal authorities for attempted genocide. Since I was a teen, my pursuits have been curing cancer and finding a way to bring clean and renewable resources of energy to every corner of this world, as well as advancing medicine to benefit the future of mankind.”  Pulling back her hand, Lena suddenly smiled an actual, proper and genuine smile, her nose crinkling up. “Of course, it does stuff! I’m a bloody engineer first!”
 
Lois’ smile lit up the entire car. “Make it do something! Make it do something!”  Reaching out she flipped open the top of the gear stick, hoping and praying to any and all gods out there that - yes! There it was! The big, red button!
 
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Lena chuckled as the light turned green and they pulled off again. “Because you’ll end up out there.” She raised a hand and pointed to the roof, and her meaning became suddenly very clear. Slowly, Lois closed the flap again and retracted her hand.
 
“Ok, point made. Do these all do things?” Her hand moved to the somewhat safer display of switches built into the armrest between the seats, and accessed when she flipped it open. Glancing down, she read the various descriptions of each switch.
 
“Oil… nails… smoke… M-guns? What’s - oh wait machine guns! Cool! Out rear and out front?”
 
“Extendable bumpers to use as battering rams.”
 
“Ooooh! Plates?”
 
“Changes the number plates.”
 
“Bet that’s handy for speed traps.”
 
“I wouldn’t know.”
 
“You mean you’ve never been tempted to go through a speed trap deliberately fast and then switch the plates when the cops pull you?”
 
“I can safely say that thought never crossed my mind. I don’t go out looking for trouble, Miss Lane.”
 
“Ugh, what a horrible way to live… aha! Is this one the—” She didn’t finish her sentence because she was already turning in her seat, having flipped the last of the switches which read ‘bullet screen’. A no doubt bulletproof (given its name) sheet of metal slid up into position from the trunk of the car, to completely cover the back windshield, blocking it and protecting it from gunfire.
 
“Yes!” Lois mini-punched the air, flipped the switch and watched the sheet retract back into its original position so she could see out of the rear window again.
 
Lena couldn’t help it, and chuckled at Lois’ sheer enthusiasm. “I take it you’re a big Bond fan?”
 
“Huh?” Lois turned and sat properly back in her seat again. “Oh, not at all. Well, not the man himself. Though I do love the cars and the gadgets. It’s all just so… spy-fi!”
 
“Spy-fi?” Lena raised an eyebrow.
 
“Uh huh. Like sci-fi, but with spy stuff instead of space.”
 
“Sci-fi isn’t all about space, you know,” Lena rolled her eyes. “It’s called Science Fiction, not Space Fiction.”
 
“Actually, James Bond went to space in Moonraker.”
 
With a loud sigh, Lena pulled over to the sidewalk and cut the engine. “Stay here and don’t touch!” She warned, pulling the keys from the ignition and taking them with her. Lois pouted, but made no further protests - mainly because as soon as Lena had run inside the building she’d parked in front of, Lois began pressing buttons and turning dials, only to find that none of them worked. Lena had rigged them all to work only when the keys were in the ignition.
 
“Spoilsport,” Lois pouted again, pulling out her notepad and flipping it to the page of contact names and numbers Perry had given her. Dialling the first number on her burner phone, she set about arranging times and meeting places for these contacts, whilst she waited for Lena.
 
…………..
 
It was about fifteen minutes later when Lena returned from whatever she was doing upstairs.  She placed a laptop bag on the floor behind her seat then climbed back in and started up the engine again.
 
“Yeah, yeah, hold on a sec,” Lois said, sticking her thumb over the mic of her cell phone.  “You get what you needed?”
 
“I did indeed,” Lena replied, checking traffic again as she pulled out into the flow. “I’ll need a decent system if we’re to retrieve data from the warehouse. I trust I didn’t keep you waiting too long.”
 
“It was fine.” Lois looked at the bag in the back. “It took you that long to get a laptop?”
 
“Well, if I’m going to be out of the office for an extended period, I needed to get someone to come in and cover CatCo. I called the former acting CEO, and he was able to free himself to return to the office. We had to cover a few business items. Then I had to phone my CFO at L-Corp. I didn’t think you cared to hear boring business talk though.”
 
“Not really. So who’d you call? Your former acting CEO and CFO. Who are they?”
 
“James Olsen and Sam Arias.”
 
“James? You called James?”
 
Glancing over at Lois, Lena nodded. “Yes, do you know him?”
 
“Yeah, you could say that. We used to work together. He was my photographer out in the field. Did you mention me? Did he ask about me?”
 
“I don’t make it a common practice to speak about personal matters with my employees,” Lena replied, fairly tartly, Lois couldn’t help but notice. “Kara’s an exception, but she was a friend before we started working together. Likewise with Sam.” Taking the exit for the highway, Lena asked, “So is there a message you’d like passed onto Mr. Olsen?”
 
“What?  No. I think your ‘no fraternization policy’ is a - Oh, Eddie! Sorry, I totally forgot… yeah, sorry. Okay, so where is the bar located?” Lois took notes while making encouraging noises.  “Great, just great. Now did you say this guy’s name was actually Peewee or does he just go by Peewee, like a nickname? Okay, got it. Eddie, thanks a million. I owe you one. If there’s anything I can do… Italian Pastries?  Sure. Where’s the shop located?” Taking notes on the name and address of the shop, Lois added an extensive order of the exact type of pastries and cookies to be ordered. She tapped her pen on the pad. “Got it. I’ll pick that up when I’m heading back to Metropolis. Eddie, it’s been a pleasure. Take care.”
 
“A successful endeavor?”
 
“Eddie’s got a sweet tooth.”
 
“Apparently. The next exit is ours.” Lena pointed to a sign saying there was an exit in three miles.  
 
They sat in relative silence for the next three miles, and then took the exit. They wound their way through a few city streets before finally coming out in an area that was a series of warehouses and other urban facilities. After a few turns, they came to a fenced-in warehouse that looked much like any other and was only identified by its address. The gate outside was large with barbed wire around the top, security cameras, and an inner gate with a sign warning that the fence was electrified. Uniformed men roamed the facility in groups of two with a dog, each close enough that they could see the next in the distance. There was one gate in and one gate out, and a security booth stood there, one guard remaining inside and the other coming out to meet the ladies when their car stopped.
 
Leaning down, the security guard said, “I’ll need to see some identification.”
 
“Uh, I got one of these?” Lois said hooking her thumb over toward the driver’s side where Lena sat.
 
Frowning at the passenger where a driver normally sat, the security guard looked past Lois as his expression changed to one of startlement. “Miss Luthor! Ma’am, we didn’t know you were coming.”
 
“Surprise inspection. Open the way for us, won’t you?”
 
“Yes, ma’am. Right away, ma’am.” Snapping upright, the guard spun and began hurrying the other guard to open the way.
 
As the gate opened and the car slid through, Lois laughed.  “Well, that was fun. Is your life always like that, people jumping and hurrying to do what you want when you glare at them?”
 
“On the good days, yes.”
 
Pulling up into a space near the front of the warehouse building, Lena killed the engine and stepped out.
 
Lois climbed out a little more slowly, almost reluctant to leave the amazing James Bond Gadget Car, but knowing she couldn’t stay in it forever. Shutting the door carefully, as Lena leaned into the back to retrieve her laptop bag, she suddenly let out a loud exclamation.
 
“Oh crap!”
 
“What?” Lena stood up sharply, looking at Lois and seeing, perhaps for the first time, a look of genuine panic flicker across the other woman’s face. Following Lois’ gaze towards the gate they’d only recently driven through revealed a black SUV that had pulled up. “I assume you know who they are?” she asked, turning to look back at Lois for confirmation - only to find that the woman had vanished. Blinking in surprise, Lena looked around for a moment, then stepped round the car to find Lois crouching beside the front passenger wheel, peering over the hood of the car. “Um, what are you doing?”
 
“Huh?” Lois jumped, startled. “Oh, stone in my boot. Don’t mind me.” She was making no move to do anything with said boot, however, and was simply staring at the black SUV still.
 
With a sigh, Lena turned back toward the two federal type agents that had now stepped out and were flashing what appeared to be badges at the security guards. Leaving her laptop bag with Lois, Lena stormed over to the gate, and as she got closer, snatches of what the two agents were saying became audible.
 
“
'It’s a federal issue… need to know basis… you don't want to hamper a federal investigation… how do you spell your full name again?...”
 
She stopped by the gate and cleared her throat, getting their attention. “Can I help you? Because this is private property, and you’re trespassing.”
 
“Agents Vasquez and Johnson of the FBI, ma’am. We’re here on federal business,” one of the two agents turned to her, flashing her FBI badge and stepping forward, clearly used to this working and allowing her entry to most places.
 
But Lena didn’t budge. She simply folded her arms across her chest and glared sternly at the two agents. “What federal business?”
 
“I’m afraid it’s need to know, ma’am. Now please, you’re blocking our investigation and—”
 
“And unless you have probable cause or a search warrant to enter these premises, you’re going to turn round and leave again,” Lena said calmly, cutting Agent Vasquez off, mid ‘federal’ spiel. “Though I’m assuming, being that you’re with the FBI and all, that you’ve done your research and have such a warrant in hand already? In which case, it should be presented to the owner, who happens to be myself. So may I see it please?”
 
The two agents looked uneasily at one another for a moment, then shook their heads in defeat.
 
“I see. Well, in that case, I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to leave. And if I might remind you that this property contains all the land between this point and the city street? I’ll be happy to call a few friends at Quantico, Agent… Vasquez, was it? Should you need clarification on where exactly the boundaries of my property end.”
 
“That won’t be necessary, Miss Luthor. Thank you for your time.” The two agents hesitated for a moment longer, and Lena raised an eyebrow. Taking this silent cue that they’d outstayed their welcome, they climbed back in the SUV and put it into reverse.
 
Lena watched them pull away, waiting until they disappeared from sight before she nodded slowly.  She turned to the guard at the front gate. “No one gets in here but me or someone with me. I want all transportations suspended, in and out, deliveries both ways, until further notice. Is that understood?”
 
“I… I… Yes, Miss Luthor.”
 
“Excellent. That order doesn’t get lifted until you hear it from me either in person or over the phone. That means verbal confirmation, nothing in writing or via email. Oh, and we’re also going to enact beta protocols.”
 
Brow furrowed, the guard asked, “Beta protocols, Ma’am?”
 
“Yes. Look them up. Today’s password is chromosome. You’ll need to go confirm that.” She waved the man off, back to the guard shack, with one hand.
 
He hurried away and came back moments later. “Password confirmed. Thank you, Miss Luthor.”
 
“Thank you. Remember, not even I get in without that password. Any questions?”
 
“No, Miss Luthor.”
 
Glancing over her shoulder to make sure the SUV was still out of sight, Lena said, “And if the FBI comes back—”
 
“They won’t get in, and you will hear about it, Ma’am.”
 
Her smile was small but satisfied. “Excellent.” Lena strode back to fine Lois standing by the hood of the car now. “Everything all right?”
 
“Sure. Why wouldn’t it be? I was going to ask you that. Who were those people?”
 
Eyes narrowing nearly imperceptibly, Lena grabbed her laptop bag. As she headed toward the warehouse entrance she said, “FBI. They wanted access to the warehouse.”
 
“Why?”
 
With a little grin over at her companion, Lena replied, “Let’s see if we can’t find out.”
 
Lois grinned in reply. “Well, now you’re talking, Luthor. If the FBI want in, we must be on the right trail. Let’s crack this egg and see what the yolk’s made of.”
 
They were about halfway to the entrance when Lena held out a hand, stalling Lois’ progress. “Careful, don’t step on the snake.”
 
“The fuck?!” Lois shrieked, leaping a good few feet backwards in alarm.
 
“Seriously?” Lena crouched and carefully lifted the small green garter snake, moving it off to some shrubs along the side of the building and away from the walkway. Smoothing her skirt, she shot Lois a withering glance. “I thought you were Lois Lane, the intrepid and fearless investigative reporter.”
 
“Intrepid? Absolutely. Fearless? Definitely. Most of the time. But, but…” she pointed to where Lena had set the snake down. “Snake! Big fucking snake just walked right in front of us and you just picked it up and why did it have to be snakes? I hate snakes!”
 
“Big? That one couldn’t have been more than a foot long. Lois, garter snakes are harmless. ”
 
“Size isn’t everything!” Lois snapped as she stormed towards the warehouse, her hands clenched into fists by her sides as she focussed continually on the shrubs, almost as if she was daring the snake to “walk” right back out again.
 
With a head shake and a sigh, Lena hurried her pace and caught up to Lois. “I apologize. We all have our fears, and it’s justifiable. For instance, I’m terrified of family reunions.”
 
Lois tried and failed to contain a snort of laughter at that, covering it up with a poor attempt at a coughing fit. “Yes well, you know one of mine. I’m not telling you my other one.”
 
“I won’t press.” As they reached the warehouse, Lena entered a security code and pulled open the door. “Come along, Indiana Lane.”
 
Lois opened her mouth to protest, realised what Lena had said and grinned a huge grin instead, her ‘snake ordeal’ forgotten at last. “Hey, I like that. Indiana Lane.” She repeated it, as if testing it to see what it sounded like, then nodded, grinning. “Alright, I’m right behind you Luthor… Lena Luthor.”
 
Lena glanced over at Lois but only shook her head, saying nothing.
 
The warehouse was like nothing Lois had ever seen before, as she stepped through the heavy iron doors and stared upon a tall and long building, filled almost to the brim with crate after crate stacked high upon pallets. There were section markers both painted on the floors and hung high from the ceilings. It stretched longer than the eye could see, and the boxes were only coded with alpha-numeric markings that made sense to someone but without a legend were total gibberish.
 
Letting out a long, slow whistle, Lois looked up and around as she trailed after Lena and held up two fingers. “Okay, two questions.”
 
“Go ahead.”
 
“Number one: where are you keeping Jimmy Hoffa in here? And number two: jumping back on the Indiana theme, which one of these things has the Ark of the Covenant in it?”
 
With a quiet chuckle, Lena replied, “Oh, the Luthors had nothing to do with Jimmy Hoffa’s disappearance. Feel free to publish that. You won’t find him here.”
 
After several beats of silence, Lois asked, “No witty comeback about the Ark?”
 
Smirking over her shoulder, Lena tilted her head to the side then marched onward, head forward.
 
“Hey, whoa whoa whoa, hold up there Indy! After the Bond car, you can’t just lead a girl on like that!”
 
Lena crooked a brow. “Not familiar with Luthor foreplay?”
 
Opening and closing her mouth, several comments flew through the reporter’s mind. Finally, Lois made the rare choice to say nothing and, head down, trudged past the CEO.
 
“Do you know where you’re going?”
 
“Yeah, I uh…” Lois’ head swiveled left and right before her gaze fell upon a computer terminal and she smiled.  “Right there.”
 
“Fine investigative skills there, Miss Lane.”  
 
Both women made their way to the computer. Pulling out her laptop, Lena powered it up.  She dragged out a cable and plugged her system in with a USB cord. There were several commands entered as the warehouse’s desktop responded.
 
“Does this place seriously not have wireless?”
 
Lena shook her head.  “All records are brought over to L-Corp by courier daily. The system is segregated and secure. There’s no internet.”
 
“No inter…” Looking around again, Lois let out a breath, “Okay, now I’m only half-joking about that Ark of the Covenant. It’s not in here, is it?”
 
Lena shrugged.  “This was Lex’s facility before it was mine. Soon we’ll have the complete log and a listing of all the contents. I’m asking for dates things were shipped in and out in the last year along with the volume and weight of everything here just in case anything stands out.  If we have a crate of… oh, say a thousand ping-pong balls and they way a half-ton, that’s a discrepancy.”
 
“Or someone takes ping-pong way too seriously,” Lois joked. “So, a list of the complete contents of this facility, huh? You do realize you let a reporter in here, don’t you?”
 
“Oh, it’s much worse than that.” Lena looked up from her typing to see Lois’ furrowed brow and added, “I let Lois Lane in here. Some might say I let THE reporter in here.”
 
Mouth hanging open for three heartbeats, Lois suddenly broke into a bright smile and said, “Hey, thanks, Luthor. I take that as a compliment.”
 
“I had no doubt that you would.” With a final keystroke, she moved her hands away from the laptop.  “All right, that should do it. It’s downloading the data now. Time to download is approximately four minutes.” Lena’s brows furrowed as she rubbed her hands together.
 
“What is it?”
 
“Hmmm?  Oh, I just hate wasted time. I can’t help but think about how I could be making better use of these minutes.”
 
“Four minutes?” Lois shook her head. “Jeez, and Clark says I’m a fidget. Hey!” Stooping down, Lois stood up again with a crowbar in hand. “Want to crack a few of these open and see if we can find Mr. Hoffa?”
 
“Again, we had nothing to do with his misadventures.”
 
“Jimmy Hoffa was before your time, sweetheart. You weren’t even born in 1975. Hell I wasn’t even born then.”
 
“Neither was Lex,” Lena countered. “When Hoffa went missing, my father was still running Luthor Corp. Lionel had many shortcomings, but he was a good man.”
 
“It sounds like you miss him.”
 
Playing with the edge of her jacket, Lena’s fingers moved up and down while she seemed to consider her response. “He brought me home when my birth mother died, took me in when I had nowhere else to go. He was always kind to me, always made me feel loved.” Meeting Lois’ gaze, she added, “There are things I wish I had know about him before he… well, I wish I had gotten to know him better, but I feel lucky to have known him.”
 
“Sounds like you loved him,” Lois said with a gentle smile.
 
“Very much, and I was loved by him.” Clearing her throat under Lois’ gaze, Lena asked, “What about your father?”
 
“The General?” Lois laughed without humor. “Oh, The General and I have a complicated relationship.”
 
“The General?”
 
Lois nodded.
 
“Hmmm. Well, complicated sounds like my mother and me.”
 
“Lillian Luthor?” Eyes bright as pennies, Lois leaned forward. “Now that is a woman I’d love to meet!”
 
“You’re kidding!”
 
“Nope!” The reporter’s grin grew. “There are so many things I’d love to ask her. Boy-o-boy, that would be the interview of a lifetime. I mean, given my well documented relationship with The Man of Steel, that lifetime might not last terribly long, but what’s life without a little risk, right?”
 
“You’re a bit of a madwoman, aren’t you?”
 
Lois continued to grin. “Now you sound like my fiancé.”
 
“Clark Kent? I met him once. I liked him. He was… There was a bit of steel under that Kansas wheat.”
 
Lois blanched and looked away, checking the download time remaining on the laptop.
 
“If it’s ever possible, I’ll see if I can arrange that interview.”
 
“Hmmm?” Lois turned back to the CEO.
 
“My mother, if the authorities ever catch up with her, I’ll see if I can arrange an interview for you. Of course, whichever federal agency will have to agree, but I’ll put in the good word with my mother for you.”
 
With a loud clang, the crowbar fell from Lois’ hands and rattled against the cement floor. “Are you serious?”
 
Lena startled momentarily but recovered quickly. “I don’t see why not. The only other friendly reporter I know is Kara, and she wouldn’t want to see my mother nor do I expect my mother would agree to speak with her.”
 
“I’ll hold you to that, Miss Luthor. Thank you.”
 
Lena smiled and nodded, then went back to her laptop. The download was halfway there. As Lois fidgeted nearby, growing restless again, Lena struck up further conversation as they passed the time. “So you call your father ‘The General’. Why?”
 
“Because that’s what he is. A General.”
 
“My father was a businessman, but I still called him Father.”
 
“Like I said, The General and I have a complex relationship. And by complex, I mean we just avoid one another these days and don’t talk unless we absolutely have to.” She hopped up to take a seat on one of the nearby crates, her legs swinging back and forth a little as she glanced down at her feet.
 
“When my mother died, he was unable to cope with raising two daughters alone. So he modelled his parenting on what he knew best - the army. He implemented a chain of command, so he was in charge of me, and I was in charge of Lucy. We both resented him for it, but it was the only way he knew how to deal with the hand he’d been dealt. We tried our best to fall in line and be the good little soldiers he wanted us to be. Yet my best was never good enough. Lucy joined the army, worked her way up to Major, and became Daddy’s Golden Girl. While I became a huge disappointment in his eyes. I was the failure, and Lucy was the star.”
 
“Because you became a journalist?” Lena asked softly, surprised by this new, almost vulnerable side to a woman who had, until then, been all brass and mouth and confidence on two legs.
 
“No. Because I got involved with Superman.” Lois jumped down off the crate again, clearly still in fidget mode despite her sombre tone. “The General is, to put it bluntly, a huge opposer of anything and everything alien. My journalist career wasn’t so much a problem until the Man of Steel arrived. He saw how close I was getting to this “off world security threat”, and he warned me to back down. I refused, we argued and needless to say, our relationship has been somewhat strained ever since.
 
“Sounds like he and my mother would get along far too well. She hates aliens too.”
 
“Well, actually, there’s only one thing he hates more than aliens, and that’s fugitives who evade capture.”
 
“Perhaps not then,” Lena nodded.
 
There was a moment of silence that quickly became too uncomfortable for Lois, but she couldn’t think of anything else she wanted to say on the matter - she’d said too much as it was, in her eyes at least. Lena was still a Luthor, after all. A rather likable Luthor, but a Luthor nonetheless.
 
Thankfully, said Luthor came to her rescue by providing a new topic of conversation for them both. “So, you and Superman?”
 
“What about us?” Actually, Lois had changed her mind. She didn’t like this topic any more than she had liked the last one.
 
“Well, I’ve read a lot of your articles about him. It’s clear through your writing that you care a great deal about him.”
 
“Of course I do,” Lois nodded slowly again, sensing a trap.
 
“What does Clark say about it?”
 
Lois blinked for a moment, then laughed. “You think that because Superman and I are close, we’re romantically involved, even though I’m engaged to Clark Kent?”
 
“Well, I wouldn’t have put it like that exactly…”
 
“But you wanted to know if I had any dirty little secrets about my love life with Clark Kent, and my non-existent, so called affair with Kal-El, the Man of Steel from Krypton?”
 
“You know his name.”
 
“I know your name. Does that make us an item?”
 
Lena scoffed and shook her head. “No offence, Lane, but you’re not my type.”
 
“And you’re not mine either.” Rather than be annoyed by these comments, Lois was actually highly amused. “Oh honey, if I had a dime for every time I’ve been asked that question about Superman…”
 
“You still haven’t answered it, though.”
 
This momentarily wiped the smile off Lois’ face. “Huh. Good detection skills you got there, Poirot. We’ll make a reporter of you yet.”
 
“I have no desire to become a reporter.”
 
“Says the woman who just bought an entire media company.”
 
There was another moment’s silence, and then Lena chuckled. “Touché.”
 
Thankfully, Lois was spared any further discomfort in this particular line of questioning by a beep from the laptop to indicate the transfer was complete.
 
“Looks like our files are ready,” Lena noted.
 
“Ah, great. Maybe we can start to solve this little mystery. What does it tell us?” Lois asked eagerly, glad the topic had finally steered away from her once more. She wrote the news, after all. She wasn’t comfortable being the centre of it.
 
“Well, there’s still a lot of data through which we’ll need to dredge. It’s going to take some time.  I also added the video files for the past two weeks. I’m curious as to who made that delivery and took delivery of the time in question… if indeed we do have something that’s gone missing.”
 
“Okay, so what do you need to sort through all of this?”
 
“Just me and my laptop. It will be rather boring for you I’m afraid. I’d suggest we—”
 
“How about lunch?!”
 
Lena blinked several times. “Lunch?”
 
“Well sure.” Looking down at the time in the corner of the laptop, she looked back at the CEO. “It’s after one. I don’t know about you, but reporters don’t work without a constant influx of fuel. Take me to your local hotdog cart.”
 
Eyebrows skyrocketing, Lena took a half-step back. “Oh, good lord. Perhaps it’s just a reporter thing. Kara’s eating habits are clear now.”
 
“Excuse me?”
 
“That, Miss Lane, will not be happening. Have you ever been to Sheerwater in Coronado?”
 
“Ah… I can’t say that I have.”
 
Shutting down and closing up her laptop, Lena began to put everything back in order. “We’ll get my usual table. It will supply us with ample privacy and protect our arteries from heart disease.”
 
Lois laughed. “I should have known you’d be one of these health nuts. Low carbs, no fat, skinny vegetable crap. Honestly, a good old fry up every now and then never killed anyone, you know?”
 
“The American Medical Association would disagree.” Slinging her laptop bag over her shoulder, Lena asked, “Ready to go?”
 
“As I’ll ever be,” Lois shrugged. “Though I’m making note of the exact location of this place because one day I will be coming back, and I will be finding that Ark!”
 
“Good luck with that, Indiana Lane.”
 
Lois’ eyes lit up. “Indiana Lane? I really do like that! What are my chances of convincing Clark to like it too?”
 
Lena faltered slightly but then recovered as she headed for the exit. Looking over her shoulder at the woman next to her, the CEO grinned. “Well, I barely know this fiancé of yours, but you do rather seem to be a force of nature. I assume convincing people of things you want is part of your DNA.”
 
“Nah, usually I just ask, and if that doesn’t get me anywhere, I take,” Lois shrugged, giving no indication at all if she was joking or not. Then she tilted her head, looking up as if she expected to see something there. “How do you think I’d look in a fedora?”
 
Pausing at the door, Lena shook her head. “Like you left your bullwhip at home. Let’s go, Miss Lane. Lunch awaits.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Lena had already called the mâtre d’ at the restaurant to make sure her regular table would be awaiting them when they arrived and now the two women were making their way back through city streets, aiming toward Coronado. As they headed up B Ave, Lena checked behind them in the mirror for the fourth time.
 
This fact hadn’t gone unnoticed by Lois, who even though she’d been on her phone, had still managed to see Lena’s almost imperceptible head movements each time she checked the mirror, and her slowly deepening scowl.
 
Considering it was something she was seeing in the mirror, and as Lois didn’t have a mirror of her own, she turned to peer out the back instead. “Son of a bitch!”
 
Suddenly she’d all but vanished into the footwell of the passenger seat, slinking as low as she could while still buckled in, out of sight.
 
One eyebrow raised, Lena glanced down briefly before returning her view to the road. “Drop something?”
 
“Huh? Oh, yeah my….um…...my….thingy.” Lois made no move to retrieve anything, however, and no move to sit back up again properly either.
 
“I hate it when that happens,” Lena deadpanned.
 
“Uh huh,” Lois nodded, only half paying attention as she turned again, unfastening her seatbelt so she could turn round properly to get a better look, peering between the seats. Then she glanced down at the row of switches by her elbow. Reaching out, she flipped a switch, then scrambled back up to see the outcome of her actions. Seeing the hundreds of little metallic objects dropping from the rear of the car, she grinned in glee, then hit the smokescreen button as well. “Found it!”
 
A plume of black smoke billowed from the back of the car to completely obscure them from view.
 
“Oh, good Lord! What are you doing?” The concern was obvious in Lena’s voice.
 
“Nothing,” Lois shook her head, still turned backwards, kneeling in the seat and watching. “Come on, come on….”
 
“Lois, those are federal agents. With federal agents come federal charges.”
 
Lois stared at Lena a moment, confused. “What’s your point?”
 
“My point is your last name may be Lane, and your father may be a General, but my last name is Luthor. I’m the last of a murderous, genocidal family. This is my car, my...oh, dear Lord...this is my
stolen
car that my insane brother bought from who knows where. Who do you think is going to end up in a federal prison for this?”
 
“Oh, lighten up and live a little, will you? Look,” Lois reached down and hit the ‘plates’ switch. “There we go, now your plates don’t match the ones in their description they’ll be giving out. So it can’t possibly be us. The smoke is from engine troubles - we’re on our way to a garage to get it sorted if anyone asks and besides, they’ll have to catch us first which will be difficult when their tyres are shot to pieces, thanks to the little presents we just left for them.”
 
Seeing the black SUV emerge from the smoke, then pull over to the side of the road, clearly unable to go any further and growing smaller and smaller, the more distance they put between them, Lois turned back round in her seat and sat down again, doing her belt back up with a triumphant grin. “I love this car.”
 
Lena made a left and stopped two blocks further ahead at a red light. She sat in complete silence staring ahead barely blinking. Slowly a smile spread across her face until it was all consuming, her nose crinkling as her eyes lit up. She turned to the reporter. “Oh, my God. That was amazing. You actually...You used the gadgets and they...Oh, my God! That was genius!”
 
“Nah, you’re the genius,” Lois grinned right along with her. “You did that. I just pushed the buttons. You made the actual gadgets that work, which is pretty damned awesome.”
 
“Lois, I haven’t had this much fun since…” Lena paused, brow furrowed as her mind wandered back through time. The light changed and the car moved forward. “Actually, I don’t remember having this much fun ever. Is your life always like this?”
 
“Pretty much,” Lois nodded. “When you hang out with Supers, you can be sure there’s never a dull day. And even when there’s no Supers around, there’s always trouble. I’m an investigative journalist - means I go out and dig up dirt, uncover clues and actually investigate what I’m writing. It’s not all interviews in posh offices over cups of coffee, or sitting at a desk typing. Well ok, I do have a desk, and I do interview people over coffee but still…”
 
“Interesting. I’ve always been on the receiving end of interviews. I’m getting to know the process a bit more now, thanks to my recent purchase, but still, I’m more a desk type of woman. That’s not to say we haven’t had some fairly exciting moments of scientific discovery in my day. For instance, there was the portal and then the lead dispersal unit. For all the harm that portal did, it still holds vast scientific possibilities.”
 
“Ah, the Daxamites,” Lois nodded knowingly, understanding what Lena was referring to. “Clark said they were a tricky bunch of bastards. Did a real number on him...because,” She paused, realising what she’d said and having to think fast to cover it up. “He was in National City on an assignment at the time, and the Daxamites were all punchy douchebags trying to enslave everyone. Clark’s not the best fighter, bless him. Ended up getting hit more than a few times before Supergirl was able to save him.”
 
“Clark…” Lena nodded. “I’m so sorry, Lois. I’m sorry your fiancé was injured due, in part, to my actions. I’d like to apologize to him when I get the opportunity.”
 
“Honestly, it’s fine, Lena. He admits he shouldn’t have been there, though he was glad he was. Ended up helping quite a few people in the end.” Of course she’d failed to mention that the punches Clark had received had been from his own cousin, not the Daxamites. But Lena didn’t need to know that bit. Nor that he was in his ‘other work’ uniform. Or that he was affected by silver kryptonite.
 
With a slight smile, Lena replied, “He’s sounds like a very good man.”
 
“He is. A bit of a dork. Well, more of a geek really, I suppose. A bit clumsy and bashful, but he’s my world. And I can’t wait to meet up with him again.”
 
As she pulled onto the highway, the CEO’s smile grew far and away.  She was looking at oncoming traffic as she merged, but her mind seemed to be elsewhere. “A clumsy, bashful, geek, huh? Well, I can see the attraction in that. I’m happy for you. I’m happy for you both.”
 
Lois, who had been drifting off into her own reverie of Clark, swallowed back her fears for his safety as Lena spoke again, and forced herself back into the present, just in time to catch the look on the young CEO’s face. She couldn’t resist a little digging then, her reporter senses tingling. “How about you? Anyone special in your life right now?”
 
Lena’s head turned quickly, her expression suddenly guarded as she faced the reporter before returning to traffic. “I’m much too busy for any of that. I’ve just bought a new company, and I’m still CEO of L-Corp even though I have a fabulous new CFO. No, dating is for other people. I’m...I’m a Luthor.”
 
“You sound just like me, when I first started out,” Lois chuckled. “All I cared about was my career. Clark was a bumbling idiot, and I hated being paired with him for assignments. And then one day, all that just changed. I can’t even pin it on any one, specific event, really. All I’ll say is don’t rule it out yet. And as for you being a Luthor? Means nothing. Lex dated all the time.”
 
“Well, I’m not going to be Lex no matter what people say about me.” Lena swallowed hard, her words coming out a little bit too harsh in the small confines of the vehicle.  There was a silence that lasted a few beats and then, with a gentler tone, she added, “So, somehow things just fell into place for you and Clark? One day you were coworkers and then...then what?”
 
“I think he saved my life,” Lois considered for a while, then shook her head. “No, Superman saved my life, that was it. Superman saved me, but Clark was there to pick up the pieces after. I needed a couple of stitches I think, and he sat in the hospital all night with me as I waited to be seen. Didn’t complain once, just sat and kept me company. I think that was probably the moment when I first saw him in a whole other light. The kind, caring, compassionate man he could be under all that geek.”
 
“Superman saved your life and Clark picked up the pieces? Hmmm, well, if that’s all it took I’d be dating…” Clearing her throat, Lena continued, “We’ll be at the Sheerwater restaurant in less than five minutes.  Do you like seafood? They have a wonderful lobster bisque.”
 
“Not so fast there, Skippy. Who were you going to say just now?” Lois leaned forward a little to get a better look at Lena’s expression.
 
Her expression placid and unchanging under the deep scrutiny, Lena shrugged. “Given the number of times Supergirl has saved my life? Likely half of National City by now. Wouldn’t the gossip rags have a field day with that. No offense. The Daily Planet is an upstanding publication, much like CatCo.”
 
“Are you trying to flatter me, to make me change the subject?” Lois smirked, one eyebrow rising. “Perry called me a Pitbull once, and I think I’ve been called a Bloodhound too. You want to know why? Because when I get hold of a scent, I can’t just let it drop. So flattery might get you everywhere, Miss Luthor…..but I’m not fooled.” She pointed two fingers to her eyes, then to Lena. “I’m onto you and your tricky….tricks. But for the sake of this newfound alliance, and because you’re my ticket to food, I’ll stop with the questions… For now.”
 
Eyes shifting between her companion and the road several times, Lena finally said, “The Sheerwater also has excellent cheesecake.”
 
“So what were we talking about just now, that had absolutely nothing to do with your love life?” Lois asked brightly, suddenly very keen to change the subject, despite her words of a moment before.
 
Lena shook her head. “Reporters and their stomachs. I’ll have to take a look at the CatCo budget. Perhaps our doughnut to pen funding ratio isn’t out of whack.”
 
“Hey now, you can’t get between a reporter and her doughnuts! That’s just a big no!” Lois frowned as if this was indeed a truly terrible sin.
 
“I wouldn’t dream of it. When Miss Danvers gets back from seeing her mother, I do hope you’re still in National City. You two can go for doughnuts together.”
 
“Miss Danvers?” Lois asked carefully. She knew who Kara was, of course, but as far as she was aware, Lena didn’t know that she knew her. She’d need to tread very carefully here, in order not to give anything away. “Oh, as in Kara Danvers, the reporter? Supergirl’s reporter?”
 
“Indeed. She’s our local expert on all things Supergirl and all things doughnuts. Given your affinity for the Man of Steel and fried baked goods, you two should get along famously. The two of you should spend time together when she gets back in town.”
 
Lois smiled and nodded. “I think I’d like that. I’d love to hear all of her stories about the Girl of Steel. I know Clark was very impressed by her writing when he shared that interview with her - the one where they came to your office after the whole Venture fiasco. He was talking about it for weeks after.”
 
“Yes, another little something from Lex. Family, the gift that keeps on giving,” Lena said with obvious bitter sarcasm. “Your Mr. Kent was quite fair to me in his article. I wasn’t expecting that, especially not from someone who used to be a friend of Lex’s. My brother burned so many bridges, I’m surprised they didn’t add several charges of arson to all of those murder counts against him. You’ve got yourself a good man there, Lois. Don’t let go of him. A man like that is one in a million.”
 
“He sure is,” Lois nodded, slipping away into her own world of thoughts again. And then Lena’s other words registered, and Lois blinked back to reality, then smirked. “Hey, at least he didn’t tie you to a stake in the middle of a cornfield and set the place on fire. That was something to remember, let me tell you! If I ever see his smug, bald head again, I’ll be sure as hell to give it a good slap for that.”
 
Swerving slightly before she recentered the vehicle in the lane, Lena swallowed hard as she blinked rapidly. She took her exit, but needed close to a minute before she could speak. “My brother tied you to a stake and set the cornfield around you on fire? He...He tried to kill you?”
 
“Uh huh,” Lois nodded as if it was an everyday occurrence. As if being in life or death situations was a daily thing for her. Though to be fair, it usually was. “He thought he was being clever. Gave Superman a choice - save me or save Metropolis. Silly fool didn’t believe he could do both.”
 
“Lois I…” Lena sighed heavily. “I’d apologize, but that sounds like hollow words when one’s brother tries to kill someone. My whole damn family is toxic. That’s why most people won’t touch a Luthor with a ten-foot pole. Are you okay with…?” Lena gestured back and forth with one finger between herself and Lois.
 
“You? You’re a whole other bucket of awesome, Luthor. Nothing to worry about there. Don’t worry, you impressed Clark and that takes a lot. And from what I’ve seen so far, we are going to be friends for a very long time. So no worries from this side of the car.”
 
Lena blinked several times, not responding, then pointed to a gated area ahead.  As she pulled in she said, “We’ll valet the car.”

She pulled up front and a young man in a white shirt, black pants, and a black vest hurried immediately to Lena’s side and opened her door. As she got out, he held the door and waited for Lois to exit, and Lena to take her laptop bag and purse from the back, before he drove around back with the vehicle.
 
The Sheerwater was attached to the Hotel Del Coronado, a vast expanse that stretched along the beachfront. It was picturesque, white room upon white room with bright red roofs and in the corner, an iconic red circular tower that stood out like a lighthouse but was much broader. It was a lovely combination of classic and modern architecture.
 
As they stepped inside the Sheerwater restaurant, rich warm colors brought with them a coolness beyond the comfort of the air conditioning. The rug was a paisley design, burgundy with cremes, some greens, and even the occasional bright blue to liven up the scheme. The ceiling was an elongated arch design, dark wood with a hint of red and exposed posts coming together to a beautifully designed center that was a combination of form and function. Small tables of glass and wood, bright among the otherwise dark design, sat about the room, and the windows stretched from floor to ceiling allowing in ample light. To one side was a small area of fresh fruit and pastries, and on the other was a station where a chef would cut fresh slabs of beef or chicken.
 
“Well this is very….expensive,” Lois surmised at last as she took in the surroundings with a keen eye. Then she glanced across at her companion, and somehow wasn’t at all surprised. “Suits you. This place, I mean. It’s very…..you.”
 
“Hmmm?”
 
Before Lois could say anything else, the mâtre d’ greeted them. “Miss Luthor, it’s a pleasure to have you joining us again this afternoon. We have your usual table, and the privacy dividers are ready. We have it prepared for two people. Is that correct?”
 
“Yes, Christopher. It will be just the two of us.”
 
“Perfect.” The man bent ever so slightly at the waist and gestured toward his left. “If you ladies will kindly follow me, I’ll show you to your table.”
 
They were led to a table at the far end of the restaurant next to a window. There were two white screens, folded up leaning against the glass, and as Lois and Lena took their chairs, a waiter and waitress set them up between the two women at the table and the rest of the patrons.
 
“Okay, do you always eat like this?”
 
“Like this?” Lena looked up to see where Lois was looking. “Ah, the dividers. Paparazzi I’m afraid. I don’t know if it’s worse when I’m eating alone or with a companion. Either way, there’s certain to be pictures and interesting comments.” Snapping open her menu, Lena added, “Can the youngest Luthor not get a date, or who is she sleeping with this week? If you like seafood, you can’t go wrong with anything on the menu, I hear. It’s all fresh.”
 
“Perfect,” Lois nodded, opening up her own menu. Then peering at Lena over the top of it, she grinned, wondering if she was brave enough. To hell with it, she was Lois Lane. Of course she was!
 
“So…..care to give me an exclusive? On who you’re sleeping with, I mean,” she teased playfully, forcing herself to look at the menu and keep a straight face. Though she was carefully studying Lena’s reaction out of the corner of her eye.
 
“I should have known better than to lunch with a reporter,” Lena replied, though there was just the hint of smile on her lips. “I’m sorry, Miss Lane, but you’ll understand of course, when I say that will have to be a CatCo exclusive. I can’t go around giving away that kind of juicy tidbit to the competition.”
 
“Ah well, was worth a try,” Lois shrugged. And then her eyes snapped up. “Wait, you mean there IS an actual ‘juicy tidbit’?! Who?”
 
Dropping her menu with an exasperated sigh, Lena replied, “You are a damn bloodhound, aren’t you?”
 
“Thank you,” Lois beamed with pride. Then she set her own menu down. “Seriously though, off the record, if there is anyone…...well good for you. I know how crap the rags can be when they catch wind of a juicy bit of gossip. I was on the receiving end of it myself, remember? ‘World renowned reporter engaged to co-worker, secretly dating alien from another planet’. Well, replace ‘dating’ with ‘sleeping with’ and you get a more accurate picture of some of the absolute drivel that the lesser reputable tabloids will run these days for a fast buck.”
 
“I’m sorry they dragged you through that. Are

still

dragging, most likely. I don’t read those things. I have lawyers that file lawsuits that don’t cover the costs of their legal fees, but it helps to keep some of the rags from getting out of control.” Lena paused. “Off the record?”
 
“Off the record,” Lois nodded, sitting forward a little.
 
“There’s no one, hasn’t been for years. I’ve dated a little bit, though socially really. It’s more as a business acquaintance sort of way if that makes sense. Romantically though…” Lena shook her head.
 
Lois nodded, a small smile of understanding as she reached across the table and took the other woman’s hand, giving it a gentle, encouraging squeeze. “You’ll find someone. Someday. Hey, maybe you already have, and you just don’t know it yet?” She also paused for a moment, and then grinned. “By the way, that reporter who ran that particular article about me? I got my own back. Punishment Lane-Style. Poor guy never knew what hit him. My dad might be difficult, but he has his moments. Especially when I put on my ‘Daddy I need you’ act. He whacked that guy with a Federal Court Martial summons, told him he’d committed treason and unless he wrote a retraction, he would be facing some serious consequences.” She grinned a huge, mischievous grin. “I may have exaggerated ever so slightly to dear old papa, when I was telling him what had happened.”
 
“Well, that’s rather terrifying. Remind me to stay on your good side. To be fair, if my mother ever did me any favors she’d likely murder someone for me. I suppose that isn’t any better.” Lena met Lois’ gaze for a few heartbeats then nodded. “No, likely worse. So, I’m thinking drinks. The Blood Orange Avenue is Makers Mark Bourbon, blood orange juice, and blood orange bitters.  Thoughts?”
 
Lois cringed a little, without meaning to. “Too much blood mentioned in all that for my liking.”
 
“Well…” Lena looked at the menu briefly. “They have a martini? Sunset Martini with Belvedere Vodka, pomegranate liqueur, and pineapple juice. It’s a bit sweet for my tastes, but you could get it shaken and not stirred.”
 
“Alright Double Oh Seven,” Lois chuckled, shaking her head. “If there’s a strawberry daiquiri or a bellini, I won’t say no though.”
 
Reaching across, Lena pulled Lois’ menu from her hands. “Darling, you just tell the nice waiter what you want. They’ll make it happen.”
 
“Just like that?” Lois asked, surprised. “In that case, I’ll have one of each. Although…...actually better make it half a one. My supply of cash has fast dwindled since I’ve been here and I, uh….didn’t bring my cards.” She had, but she knew that using them would alert the ‘relevant authorities’ to her presence, and the longer she could fly under the radar, the better. Though J’onn’s cash, plus the small amount she’d brought with her was really pulling a disappearing act on her rather quickly now, she’d only just realised. If she was going to make it last, she needed to be more careful.
 
Lena tutted. “I invited you out for lunch. This is on me. Hmmm...actually, what do you think about working at CatCo, Miss Lane?”
 
“As sorely tempting an offer as that is, Miss Luthor, I’m afraid I’ll have to decline. There’s no end of people who would likely kill me if I accepted. Clark Kent, Superman and Perry White being at the top of that list.”
 
Lena chuckled. “Well, don’t decline yet. Make it through the end of lunch and then give it a day or two to mull it over.  After all, if we don’t get through this interview, how am I going to write this off as a business expense?”
 
“You’d use and abuse your business expense on something like this? Oh, of course you would, you’re a Luthor,” Lois teased again. “Well, I suppose you did do me a massive favor when you bought CatCo, so I at least owe you that much. I’ll consider it, Miss Luthor. But don’t get your hopes up.”
 
“Miss Lane…” Hands folded on the table, Lena smiled slyly as she leaned forward. “You totally underestimate my powers of persuasion. After a few days together, let’s see on who’s payroll you are.”
 
“And you, Miss Luthor,” Lois replied as she also leaned forward a little, mirroring Lena’s pose. “Totally underestimate my powers of being a complete pain in the ass. So indeed, let’s see who's payroll I’m on after a few days together.”
 
Raising a finger, Lena signaled the waiter over to her. “We need drinks. This relationship needs a toast.”
 
“Hear, hear,” Lois agreed with a mischievous grin again.
 
“I’ll have a blood orange avenue and for my business associate…?” One eyebrow raised, Lena looked over at Lois.
 
“I’ll have a bellini please,” Lois decided after a brief deliberation. She usually always went for a strawberry daiquiri, after all, so the bellini would make a change.
 
“Thank you,” Lena said, “Also, please let the chef know we won’t be ordering off the menu. That’s all for now.”
 
With a nod, the waiter left the table.
 
“We’re not ordering off the menu?” Lois pouted. “But….but….food?”
 
With a hearty laugh, Lena said, “Darling, you and Kara truly do have to spend time together. If I’d closed my eyes just then, I’d have thought she was here with me.” Sobering slightly perhaps at that thought, Lena added, “We are ordering food.  We’re just not limited to what’s on the menu. If you ask for something for which they don’t have the ingredients, it could take a bit longer. They might have to do a bit of shopping.”
 
“Oh, give me a burger and some fries and I’m all good,” Lois nodded. Then remembering where she was, and that this was a more ‘high end’ class of dining, she faltered. “Uh….maybe that should be…….steak? With…...something that’s like a posh version of fries?”
 
Rubbing at her lips to try and hide her smile, Lena quickly tapped it down and returned her face to a neutral visage. “They have both a steak and a burger. According to Kara, both are excellent, especially when eaten at the same meal. As to the fries, they just call them fries. It’s as ‘posh’ as they get.”
 
“You and Kara have eaten here before, huh?” Lois asked, picking up on this particular trail of evidence. “Well obviously you have, but Kara? She’s...just a reporter isn’t she? Do you make a habit of wining and dining all your employees, Miss Luthor, because if that is the case, you are a considerably more favourable option than Perry White, right about now.”
 
“I...I wouldn’t call it wining and dining I...Kara and I are friends.” Lena waved a hand around in the air a bit aimlessly. “At any rate, before Kara was my employee, she was the reporter at CatCo who was assigned to L-Corp. At times we’d have interviews at more relaxed venues such as this.”
 
“Wish all my interviewees were as accommodating to me as you are,” Lois shook her head, now her turn to have a slightly bitter tone. “Most of them either tell me to get lost, leave them the hell alone, threaten to call the cops, or just straight out threaten me. Wonder Woman was even convinced that I was the spawn of Aries, come to test her, or…..something….”
 
“Spawn of Aries.” Lena laughed, the smile sliding off her face a moment later as she looked at Lois’ own face. “You’re being serious? She was being serious? Wait, is Aries real?”
 
“I think she may have been hit with one too many U-boats in the First World War, to be perfectly honest with you, but I had a hell of a job convincing her I was just a regular human,” Lois sounded as if she herself couldn’t quite believe what she was saying, though the ludicrousness of such a statement did leave serious room for debate, even for one who’d been there and met the woman in question, herself. “Needless to say I won’t be going back to Paris in a hurry.”
 
“World War One, Aries, Wonder Woman, U-boats.” Lena shook her head. “On what kind of stories does your editor send you?”
 
“If you’d told me I’d be reporting on all this stuff when I first stepped into the world of journalism, I’d have laughed at you. But then Superman came along and the whole world changed overnight. Suddenly the impossible became…..well, possible.”
 
“I’m a scientist and therefore not a fan of the word impossible.” As the waiter came back with their drinks, Lena paused in her commentary and thanked the man. “Lois, steak or burger?”
 
“Burger please,” Lois replied, looking up to the waiter. “Ooh, and extra fries, I’m starving.”
 
“How would you like it cooked…” He glanced down briefly at her hand before making eye contact again, “Miss?”
 
Lois also glanced down at her hand, and found that she’d forgotten to put her engagement ring on in her haste to leave the Kent farm, however long ago that had been now. “Ah crap. Clark is gonna kill me if he finds out.” A polite cough from the waiter and she was reminded that he’d asked her a question. “Right, medium...no, well done. No….wait that sounded like I was congratulating you, which I wasn’t but well done anyway for being you. Oh and can you maybe make it medium-well done?”
 
The waiter nodded, trying not to smirk as he remained professional. “That comes with a side-salad unless you’d prefer fruit.”
 
“Fruit?” Now Lois was confused. “What…...what kind of fruit?”
 
Glancing briefly at Lena, the man looked at Lois again. “What would you like?”
 
Lois also looked at Lena. “I’m way out of my league here. I’m a burger van girl…..what do I ask for? Like apples or, I dunno, kumquats or something?”
 
Picking the menus up from the table, Lena handed them to the waiter. “Bring her a spring fruit salad, and I’ll have my usual. That’s all.”
 
“Thank you, Miss Luthor,” the man nodded, taking the menus and walking away.
 
Lois watched him go, then whispered conspiratorially, “Do people really eat fruit with their burgers? That’s just…….weird.”
 
Lifting her drink, Lena said, “Lois, to our relationship. May it continue to be as illuminating as it has begun.”
 
Grinning, Lois picked up her own drink from the table and held it aloft. “Oh, I’ll illuminate you, Luthor. This is going to be the start of something beautiful, informative, a bit madcap, and definitely not something you want to do without at least one drink in you.”
 
As their glasses gently clinked together and they both drank, Lena smiled and said, “Miss Lane, I have no doubt everything you said is true.”
 
After a few sips, Lena set her drink down and pulled out her laptop, setting it up on the table. “Let’s see what our investigating revealed, shall we?”  She clicked through several settings, gaining access to the files that had been downloaded earlier. Pulling out several sheets of paper from her bag, she looked at some numbers that were highlighted. “Okay, let’s see what happened here.” Typing into her system, she then sat back, waiting for the results.
 
“Anything?” Lois asked impatiently after about five seconds.
 
Smirking but not looking up from the screen, Lena said, “You’re really not a fan of foreplay, are you?”
 
“Oh there’s foreplay and there’s

foreplay

. I’m not a fan of your version of it, let’s put it that way.”
 
Still smirking, Lena watched her screen for several moments as she sipped her drink, not saying a thing. Finally, she lifted a single eyebrow, the smile gone. “Well, that’s interesting.”
 
“Interesting……?” Lois prompted, tapping the fingers of one hand on the table impatiently. “How interesting?”
 
“Yes it’s um...very,” Lena replied, typing again.
 
“Very…..?” Lois prompted again, the tapping fingers becoming more impatient as a foot under the table joined in, tapping out a rhythmless tune. “How ‘very’ are we talking, here?!”
 
“Hmmm...quite.” Lena typed again, her brows deeply furrowed. “Let’s see what this brings up.  Nothing good I expect.”
 
Lois waited for exactly five further seconds, then let out a loud exclamation. “Oh for the love of God, scoot over!” Standing up and picking up her chair, she shuffled it around to sit beside Lena’s. Then she pointed at the screen. “Alright, explain.”
 
Startled, Lena slid her chair over a bit when the other chair bumped into hers. “Oh, all right. You see, notice the contents listed here?”
 
“Uh huh,” Lois nodded. She could see a list, though the things in it meant nothing to her.
 
“Notice the weight in the margins over there next to the shipping costs?”
 
“Uh huh,” Lois continued nodding, again seeing what Lena was pointing out, but not understanding it.
 
“Clearly incongruous, don’t you agree?”
 
Lois spent some time studying the list, then the weights, then the costs. Then she shrugged, with a sheepish grin. “It’s all alien to me.”
 
“All right, let’s begin again,” Lena said with a heavy sigh.  She pointed at the screen. “Capacitors are listed here. See, capacitors, agreed?”
 
“I can read, you know,” Lois frowned, a little put out by Lena’s tone, like she was a child in a school lesson. “But what have those capacitors got to do with the weights and costs?”
 
“I didn’t mean to insult you. I just…” Lena shrugged. “Tantalum capacitors are extremely light weight. A shipment of two thousand, as is listed here, would not explain this shipping weight. Either Fed Ex is cheating me, or the contents of that container was something entirely different.”
 
“See, now

that

I understood,” Lois nodded, her frown vanishing in an instant as she reached across the table and retrieved her own beverage, taking a sip that immediately brought another smile to her lips. “And you didn’t insult me. Takes a lot to do that, trust me. I’m just not as up to speed with your science lingo yet. Give me time, I’ll get there.”
 
“Well, I’m far from an expert at the lingo of investigative journalism, and I have an entire company to run. Perhaps we can be patient with each other and both learn a thing or two along the way,” Lena offered as she sipped her drink again. “At any rate, I’ve cross referenced the shipments that left that same day headed to the same destination.  I’m also pulling up the video files for that day, for the shipments in question, so we can see who actually took delivery.”
 
“Sounds like a plan. When will we see that?”
 
“Classic Lane patience.”
 
“Hey, I resemble that remark.”
 
“Indeed.” Opening another window, Lena started a video file. “These are the people who took delivery that day. Our policy is to get video of anyone entering or leaving the premises. No audio, of course, because that would require authorization. However, we have videos of everyone, and these are the people who took delivery.”
 
Lena clicked on the white arrow, starting the video file. A generic brown truck pulled up, and a man and a woman stepped out of either side. Two people wearing L-Corp Security uniforms were waiting for them. There was a check of identification and paperwork, and after things had cleared, the guards lead the newcomers into the warehouse.  The view changed to one from a different camera again and again, until it stopped by a set of crates. The guards checked the paperwork again and pointed out a crate and the newcomers began to load it onto a pallet jack. They took it back to their truck. This process repeated twice while Lena and Lois watched. Finally, the duo waved off the guards, closed up their truck, and drove away.
 
“Well, that’s disheartening. There’s nothing like watching a video recording of yourself being robbed,” Lena said taking another sip of her drink. “Recognize either of those two?”
 
“I’ve never seen them. The whole thing looked pretty normal, but I suppose that was the point.”
 
“Hmmm.” Pulling out her cell phone, Lena thumbed through her contacts before one eyebrow rose briefly. She hit a button. “Excuse me please, Lois.”
 
“Sure thing. Hot date?”
 
A smile tugged at the corner of Lena’s mouth while she waited for the call to be answered, and then she plastered on a smile that didn’t reach her eyes, “Alberto, darling, it’s Lena Luthor. I need a favor, of course.” She laughed slightly. “No, I promise it won’t be that bad this time. How could it? No, this is a simple matter of track down two people. I’m going to send you a video file. You’ll see two people taking delivery of some cargo. I need to know who they are, and where they are now.” She nodded, listening. “Yes, that’s right. Depending on where that is...Alberto, these people stole from me. You know how bad it would be for business if that got out. I need to know exactly for whom they’re working. I can track down the shipment to some extent, but the more information and the quicker you can help me the better. Your usual retainer?” This time when she smiled her eyes glimmered, but not with joy. “No questions on either end. You’re the best for a reason. A risentirci.” Disconnecting Lena put her phone away again.
 
Eyes narrowed, Lois leaned a bit closer to the other woman. “Did you just put a hit out on someone?”
 
“What?” Lena waved vaguely. “Oh, don’t be so dramatic. No, Alberto doesn’t take care of those sort of things for me. He procures information. He’ll use facial recognition software to gather the identities of the people in question, find what airports they’ve used, track them down, and...speak with them on my behalf.”
 
“Speak with them,” Lois repeated sipping her drink again.
 
Nodding, Lena took a sip of her beverage also.
 
“You know, for the good Luthor, you’re scary as all heck sometimes. Okay, so what’s our...Wait a minute. You said Alberto doesn’t take care of those sorts of things for you. That kind of implies someone else does. Do you have a paid killer on retainer?”
 
“Well, if I told you that, I’d have to have you killed, wouldn’t I?”
 
Lois blinked several times then downed her drink. “Okay, that bellini was great. You think I could get a strawberry daiquiri this time? I feel like this isn’t going to be a one drink lunch.”
 
Raising her hand, Lena wiggled a finger and a waiter seemed to appear from nowhere. “The lady would like a strawberry daiquiri.”
 
“Of course, Miss Luthor, and anything else for you?”
 
“No, actually, yes. I’ll have a sparkling water with a twist of lime. That will be all.”
 
As the waiter left, Lois grinned. “Can’t hold your liquor, Luthor? I don’t seem to remember that being a Luthor family trait. Both your brother and father drank like...well, like Aquaman.”
 
“Oh, I’m sorely tempted, Miss Lane, believe me, but I feel like two could become three could become four all too easily, and I’m driving. When I retire this evening it will be with a stack of quarterly reports and a bottle of
Glenfiddich forty-year-old Single Malt Scotch Whisky.”
 
Lois leaned back in her chair, head turned so she could watch the younger woman. “Is that how you usually spend your evenings?”
 
“No.” Lena laughed off the question. “Sometimes it’s wine.” Before Lois could pry any further, she picked up her phone again, “Excuse me, but it occurred to me there’s one more thing we should do in regard to this missing shipment. I apologize for continuing to be rude and making calls while-”
 
Lois waved her off, “If I weren’t on vacation, I’d be on the phone and making notes this whole time. Honestly, you’re seeing me on my best behaviour.”
 
“This is your vacation?” Lena asked as she hit a number in her contacts then smirked up at Lois. “This is your best behaviour?”
 
“Ouch.”
 
“Sam, Lena,” the CEO said into the phone. “Check your schedule if you would. Do you have any openings later on this afternoon? There’s something I’d like to go over with you, and I’d rather not do it on the phone.” Lena covered the mouthpiece of her phone and whispered to Lois, “This is Sam Arias, the CFO of L-Corp. She’s the one who discovered the discrepancy in the shipment in the first. I’d like to bring her up to speed on this.”
 
“On this?!” Lois whispered a bit too loudly.
 
“No.” Lena shook her head. “Nothing to do with Superman or Supergirl. I just want her to look internally as to how this was all hidden and to see if we have any more missing shipments. If we do I...Yes, Sam.” Checking her watch, Lena smiled. “Oh, that would be perfect. We’ll see you then.  Hmmm? Ah, yes, I’m bringing a business associate. I’ll explain when we get there. See you soon.”
 
“Oh, now I’m a business associate,” Lois said steepling her fingers as she looked at the CEO. “My how quickly things change.”
 
“Well, this is a business lunch.”
 
Lois scooted her chair back round to sit opposite Lena as the food came out, a salad covered in fresh vegetables with dressing on the side for Lena and burger, medium-well on some fancy artisan bun with horseradish sauce on the side and an extra serving of extra-thick steak fries on the side for Lois along with her fruit salad, all extremely fresh looking. Lois’ drink was brought out also, a strawberry nearly as big as a small apple slit and stuck on the rim.
 
Raising her glass, Lois said, “Well, then a toast to a successful business venture. Let’s hope this partnership brings the important people back home. This world sure needs them.”
 
“Miss Lane, I couldn’t agree more,” Lena said clinking her glass carefully off Lois’.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Lena pulled into her reserved spot in the L-Corp underground parking lot, and she and Lois made their way directly to the top floor via the elevator there. It opened up to a broad waiting area outside Sam Arias’ office, what had once been Lena’s office at L-Corp. As the ladies stepped out of the elevator, the Executive Assistant rose smiling from her desk, her eyes only trained on the CEO.
 
“Miss Luthor.”
 
“Jess.” Lena opened her arms. “You’re a sight for sore eyes. I hardly get to see you anymore.”
 
Stepping around her desk, the shorter woman exchanged a brief embrace with the young Luthor before she stepped back and said, “Well, whose fault is that? You know where I am.”
 
Lena chuckled. “That’s fair, I suppose. I’m still trying to get my legs under me at CatCo. Trying to learn a new industry is taking all my time.”
 
“Oh, Miss Luthor. You’ll conquer it in no time and have the media industry eating out of your hand. You turned this place around after all.”
 
“You flatter me,” Lena said then gestured to the door. “Is Sam…?”
 
Nodding, Jess walked behind her desk. “Miss Arias is in her office and expecting you.”
 
“Excellent.  Will you let her know we’re here?”
 
“That won’t be necessary, Miss Luthor. She said to let you and your guest know to go in when you got here. Can I get anything for you or Miss…?” Brows furrowing, Jess stared at Lois as familiarity slowly overcame her expression.
 
“Nothing for me, thank you, Jess.  Did you want anything?” Lena asked.
 
“No, I’m still stuffed from lunch and a little…” Holding out her hand, Lois wiggled it back and forth palm down. “You know, from cocktails.  Though I should stick to the soft stuff from now on. Can’t write a story if I’m intoxicated. Still, it’s a good thing you’re driving, Luthor.”
 
“Especially since we don’t need you hitting anyone’s fiancé.”
 
“It was one time,” Lois argued, holding her finger in the air as she trailed after Lena. “Jeez, you tell a pal something in confidence.”
 
“What about the dog?” Lena asked as they entered the office.
 
“Okay, in my defense, the dog ran in front of my car, and he isn’t as tall as a person. Sure, Clark I saw when I hit him with the car, but the dog, that was a surprise.”
 
“Lena?” Eyes shifting back and forth between the newcomers, a confused expression on her face, Sam slowly rose from her desk.
 
“Sam, thank you for seeing us on such short notice. Lois, I’d like you to meet Sam Arias, the new CFO of L-Corp and the woman keeping the ship afloat and moving full speed ahead in my absence. Sam, this is Lois Lane, reporter with the Daily Planet, all around troublemaker but seemingly good sort.”
 
“But not a good driver I’d gather,” Sam said as she walked out from behind her desk and extended her hand, “Miss Lane, it’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”
 
“Miss Arias, the pleasure is mine. I wish I could disagree with anything Miss Luthor here has said, but she actually painted me in a fairly good light.” Pulling back her hand, Lois wiggled her fingers about. “Wow, that’s some grip you’ve got there.”
 
“Oh, sorry about that. I think it’s from signing all of this paperwork for L-Corp. When I bought my home they misspelled my name. I had to sign my name incorrectly, initial it and then sign it again correctly. I thought that was a lot of paperwork, but it’s nothing compared to corporate America.”
 
“Regretting the job already?” Lena asked.
 
“No, not at all,” Sam said quickly. “I think I just may be developing carpal tunnel. I’m glad this job came with a top notch health insurance plan. Now, how can I help you ladies? Does this have something to do with a story?”
 
“Unfortunately not,” Lena said. “Sam, remember last week when you brought those abnormalities to my attention, the ones that showed we had shipments that went missing from a warehouse downtown?”
 
Sam nodded, “Sure the software glitch. I’ve got a tech team working on upgrading the software so it won’t happen again. What about it?”
 
“It’s not a glitch,” Lena said.
 
“Excuse me?”
 
Lena nodded. “You heard me. It’s not a glitch. Miss Lane and I went to the warehouse today. We pulled the records and then the video files to go with it. The shipment was there, and someone took it. The shipment weights didn’t match itemized objects in the shipments. We were able—”
 
“Lena wait.” Blinking rapidly, Sam’s mouth hung open for a moment before she closed it and shook her head. “Are you saying we’ve been robbed?”
 
“I’m saying we’ve been robbed.”
 
“Oh, my God,” Sam whispered, hand briefly covering her mouth. Hurrying back around her desk, she nearly fell into her chair as she began typing into her system. “Have you contacted the authorities?”
 
“No.”
 
Looking at the CEO, Sam sighed. “Lena…”
 
“Sam, I have someone working on this, but we’re handling it internally. We can’t involve the police. You know this company can’t afford a scandal.”
 
After just a moment of maintaining eye contact, Sam nodded and then went about her typing. “I can’t believe this happened on my watch. Lena, I’m so, so sorry.”
 
“Sam, no.” Sitting on the edge of the desk, Lena reached across and stilled her CFO’s furious typing by grasping one of the woman’s hands. “This didn’t

happen

on your watch. This was

discovered

on your watch. Thank you for that.” Lena waited until Sam nodded in acknowledge then withdrew her hand and stood. “Now, how do we move forward?”
 
“Well, the tech team that was working on the glitch was ordered to locate and isolate any other glitched occurrences so we could upgrade the software. However, if that wasn’t a glitch…” Sam held Lena’s gaze.
 
“Then maybe none of it was.”
 
“That’s what I’m thinking.” Sam typed for a few more moments, then her printer began to spit out paper. “This goes back several months, and the shipments come from different warehouses. They all use the same software.”
 
“But the systems are separate. There is no network for a reason. Each upgrade is manual.”
 
Sam nodded. “Yes, but all with the same software which made the glitch possible.”
 
“It doesn’t make theft any less possible.” Lena’s brow furrowed. “How long ago did this start?”
 
Pulling the sheet of paper off the printer, Sam studied the dates. “The earliest one listed is nearly five months ago. Why? Is that relevant?” She asked, one finger drawing down from her upper lip to land on her lower lip briefly before returning to play with her top lip, the CFO studying Lena.
 
“At this point, I haven’t the foggiest, but it could be. Sam, we may have to involve legal. Who’s in house today?”
 
“I’ll check,” Sam said pushing her intercom button and calling for Jess.
 
Lois wandered about the office for a bit as Lena and Sam got ‘corporate’. Namely, they began to speak business, in technical terms that Lois neither understood, nor cared to even bother trying.
 
A thought occurred to her as she completed a circuit of the office, and she looked towards the balcony.
 
“Mind if I make some calls?” She asked, pulling out both her actual phone and the burner phone she’d been using, to ensure she couldn’t be tracked. She looked towards the balcony, and Lena, catching her eye and seeing what she was silently asking, nodded.
 
“Of course. You’ll find some privacy out on the balcony if you need it.”
 
“Thanks.” Lois was already opening the door, even before Lena had given her permission to, and stepping out onto the small balcony of the office, she closed to door again behind her as Sam and Lena resumed their conversation. Considering she couldn’t hear them talking, Lois took that to mean that the glass was soundproof and would work both ways, meaning that they wouldn’t be able to hear her either. After straining to hear them for a few moments longer, just to make absolutely sure, she then looked back to the two phones in her hand, and scrolling through the contacts on one, she found the number she was after, dialled it into the burner phone, then took a shuddering breath, her heart pounding so fiercely in her chest that she was afraid it might crack a rib or three, as she waited for the other end of the line to be picked up. It seemed to take an age, and with every passing second, Lois found her nerve slipping away, as she began to pace in agitation up and down the small area of concrete. Just as she was about to bottle it completely and hang up, however, there was a click, and then an oh so familiar voice.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Mrs. K,” Lois breathed, already feeling so much better, just hearing that one single word from the other woman who had become like a mother figure to the reporter in the years that she’d known her.

“Lois!”

Martha Kent’s voice was pleasantly surprised.

“It’s been a while, my dear! How are you?”

“Honestly, Mrs. K?” Lois tucked her phone back into her pocket as she spoke on the burner, then pressed her now free hand to her eyes, squinting them shut and pinching the bridge of her nose for a moment. “Not great.”

“Oh dear,”

Martha’s tone was sympathetic.

“What’s happened?”

“It’s… oh, Mrs. K, it’s really bad,” Lois blurted out then, feeling a sudden and unexpected swell of emotion as she took her hand away from her face again. “It’s about Clark. Maybe you should sit down?”

“Lois?”

Now Martha’s tone was concerned. More than a little, in fact.

“What’s going on? Has something happened to Clark?”

“He’s…” Lois swallowed hard for a moment, feeling the tears prickling at the corners of her eyes, but as yet refusing to fall. She took another deep breath and forced herself to carry on. “He’s gone missing.”
 
There was a long silence from the other end of the line, and if Lois hadn’t been able to hear the other woman’s breathing, she’d have wondered if the line had cut out completely. But not really knowing how to carry on, she just waited and let the other woman digest this news first.
 
Eventually, Martha let out a long, slow breath herself.

“Are you absolutely sure he’s missing?”

“Positive,” Lois nodded, even though she knew the other woman wouldn’t be able to see the action. “The last anyone heard from him, he was heading for the Fortress to look for Kara. She’s missing too. Both of them are gone. Like vanished, without a trace. I can’t get hold of him - not even on his Super phone. That’s not like him, Mrs. K. He would have called by now.”

“Lord have mercy,”

Martha breathed again, a tremble in her voice that she was trying to hold back, for Lois’ sake no doubt.
 
“Mrs. K…” Lois’ voice was barely more than a whisper now as the first tear rolled free and unchecked down her cheek at last. “I’m scared.”

“It’s alright, Sweetheart,”

Martha was putting on a brave voice now, most certainly for Lois’ sake.

“Where are you?”

“National City…” Lois sniffed and palmed away some of the tears with her free hand, though she was finding it difficult to talk around the lump in her throat. “I came here with Kara’s adoptive sister Alex. There’s… there’s people working on finding them both… I’ve got some leads I’m tracking down right now as well.”

“You’re not alone, I hope?”

“No, no,” Again Lois shook her head, sniffing and palming away a few more tears, though her voice was stronger now. More steady. As she reassured the older woman, she was also reassuring herself. And it was helping. “Would you believe I’m working with a Luthor?”

“Lois!”

Now Martha’s voice was shocked.

“What on earth are you playing at?!”

“It’s ok, Mrs. K, she’s the baby one. Lena Luthor - she’s one of the good guys. Don’t worry, Clark vouched for her in person when he first met her, and from what I’ve seen of her so far, she really is great. I feel terrible keeping all these secrets from her though. She has no idea who the Supers really are.”

“And it has to stay that way, Lois. For her safety, as well as theirs,”

Martha sighed, though from the tone of her voice she’d relaxed once again - apparently Lois’ word being enough to convince the older woman of Lena’s character and good intentions.
 
“I know, I know,” Wiping away the last of the tears with the back of her hand, and finally able to compose herself once more, Lois nodded. “So anyway, I figured no one had told you, so I thought I should at least bring you up to speed.”

“Thank you, Lois, I appreciate it. I know if anyone’s going to find my son and his cousin, it’ll be you. Do keep me informed if you find out anything?”

“On my word as a Lane, you’ll be the first to know,” Lois promised. “Try not to worry, Mrs. K. I’m sure he’ll be home again in no time.”

“I’m sure he will too,”

Martha’s tone wasn’t convinced, but just as Lois was now doing, she was attempting to be optimistic and hopeful that all would turn out right.

“You know where I am if you need anything.”

“Sure do. Can you give Krypto a big hug for me, by the way? It’s been far too long since I gave him one myself.”

“Careful, Lois, or you’ll ruin that carefully crafted reputation you have of being a dog hater.”

“I don’t hate dogs, Mrs. K. I have allergies. Krypto’s different though.”

“I know. I’ll give him a big hug and a kiss, especially from you.”

“Thanks. I’d better go now, Mrs. K. I’ll speak to you soon, hopefully with better news.”

“You take care, Lois!”

“Oh come on, you know that’s one promise I can’t make.”

“That’s what worries me,”

Martha managed a light chuckle as she ended the call.
 
Lois smiled and used her sleeve to dry her cheeks. Leaning on the balcony wall, she looked out over the city beyond, and the busy hustle and bustle of the streets below, and after a couple of deep breaths, she was calm and composed again. Talking to her ‘almost’ mother-in-law had helped a great deal, and now Lois was ready to face the world with a brave face once again.
 
Pulling out her phone, she scrolled through to the next contact she needed, then dialled it into the burner and initiated her second call.

“Good afternoon, Miss Lane,”

the prim and proper English voice of Alfred Pennyworth greeted her after three rings.

“How can I be of assistance?”

“Hey, Alfred,” Lois grinned. No matter what mood she was in - angry, upset, frustrated or anything in between - hearing the voice of the genteel butler was always enough to put a smile on her face. “How’d you know it was me?”

“Master Wayne likes to keep tabs on all members of the League, including honorary ones such as yourself.”

“I’m an honorary Leaguer?” Lois blinked, surprised.

“Well of course, Miss Lane. You are soon to be the wife of one of its founding members, which places you under the protection of the entire League. So when Master Wayne’s facial recognition software picked you up in National City, he tracked you down to a cell phone store and picked up the number of the ‘burner cell’ you procured. Then he programmed it into the telephone directory of Wayne Manor.”

“I… see…” Lois didn’t know whether to be horrified by the prospect of Big Brother watching her every move, or pleased that she wasn’t alone and always had someone watching her back. “Speaking of everyone’s favourite billionaire, is he home? Maybe he can put that high tech wizardry of his to some good use and help me track down someone very important.”

“Unfortunately, he’s not my dear. He’s attending to some business down in Arkham. I’m afraid the Joker escaped last night and took several associates with him, so Master Wayne’s hands are a little tied at the moment - though I’m hoping for his sake, they’re not literally tied. It wouldn’t be the first time, after all.”

“Bummer,” Lois cringed. “That’s really crappy.”

“Yes, it is indeed,”

Alfred agreed. Lois could hear the tinkling of china and glassware in the background along with a few metallic clinks and assumed that Alfred, like the good servant he was, was getting Bruce’s evening dinner ready, even as he was on the phone to her. She could just imagine him in his butler’s tux, apron over the top and sleeves rolled up, phone tucked between shoulder and ear as he worked over a stove in the kitchen.

“But I’m sure he won’t be long. Might I give him a message at all, Miss Lane? Perhaps he can set up a scan for your missing person when he returns?”

Lois ummed and ahed for several moments. She could really do with some of Bruce’s high tech gadgets and gizmos to help point her in the right direction, but even she knew that the Joker was bad news. Despite how grave the disappearance of Superman was, locking the Joker back behind bars had to be the priority.
 
“No, it’s okay, Alfred. He’s far too busy.”

“I’m sure it’s no trouble, Miss Lane. Whatever you need, if he can be of any assistance, I’m sure Master Wayne will be most obliging?”

“Well, if it’s really not too much trouble, I could use his help. Superman and Supergirl have gone AWOL.”

“Good heavens!”

There was the sound of a metal spoon clinking against a plate.

“Are you absolutely sure they’re missing, Miss Lane?”

“Positive,” Lois found herself repeating, but this time in a much calmer and more composed manner than she had previously. “I’m working to track down a few leads, but any help would be most appreciated.”

“Absolutely. I shall inform Master Wayne as soon as he returns, and we shall not rest until young Master Kent is safe and sound again, along with his cousin.”

“Alfred, do you ever rest?” Lois couldn’t resist, and there was an uncharacteristic but not at all unpleasant chuckle from the other end of the line.

“Master Wayne asked me that once.”

“Yeah? And what did you tell him?”

“That when he decides to stop playing fancy dress every evening, I’ll consider it.”

Lois burst out laughing at that and said farewell to the butler, ending the call on a high and feeling even better now than she’d done after her conversation with Martha. Oh, she’d needed this! She’d just never realised how much, until now.
 
Glancing back into the office to see that Sam and Lena were still in some deep discussion about something or other, Lois looked up her third number and dialled it on the burner cell, then waited.

“B

onsoir, département des antiquités du Musée du Louvre, comment puis-je vous aider?”

Lois cringed, not having entirely thought this through. Her French was a little rusty, so this could go one of two ways.
 
“Uh, puis-je parler à la conservatrice, Diana Prince, s'il vous plaît?”

“Qui dois-je dire appelle?”

“Lois Lane.”

“Un instant s'il vous plaît.”

Lois let out another breath, this time one of relief, as some calm, soothing tunes played through the speaker of the phone. She started to pace again, her free hand running along the balcony wall this time as she waited.

“Lois, it’s been far too long!”

Diana’s voice came through the receiver, far too upbeat for Lois’ liking. Though, doing a quick mental calculation in her head, she realised that it was well into the night, over in Paris

.

This still didn’t explain the chirpy, upbeat tone, however.

“How are things in Metropolis these days?”

“I… uh… they’re… I mean I’m not in Metropolis and… hang on, why are you still at work? Isn’t it after closing time?” Lois’ brain was struggling to comprehend the time difference.

“A curator’s work is never done,”

Diana replied, though there was a double meaning to her words, and Lois finally understood. It was night in Paris. The time when a museum curator retired, and a certain scantily clad Amazonian Princess came out instead.
 
“Well, before you retire for the evening, I’ve got some news. A uh… a boyscout went out in the woods a few days ago, and he hasn’t been seen since.”
 
There was silence for a moment on the other end of the line. When Diana spoke again her tone had immediately changed to reflect the gravity of the situation.  “

How many scout meetings has he missed?”

“Enough to get us all worried.”

“And no one knows anything?”

Diana cleared her throat across the line.

“This sounds like a bit of a detective mystery.”

“That was my first thought too. I wasn’t able to get one on retainer.”

“Hmmm. Have you called his parents?”

“Of course. And the authorities. They’re searching for him now. The air in their household is rather

blue

right now,” Lois cringed. As far as ‘covert conversations’ went, this one was far from brilliant. But she was hoping from Diana’s reaction that she’d at least got her point across.

“I’m truly sorry, Lois, I’d love to help. But I’m in Paris at the moment. I fear I wouldn’t be of much use. Have you tried the other scouts? Maybe he’s at a sleepover? Have you contacted…?”

There was a pause, the only sound coming over the line the drumming of fingers.

“He does have other family. Perhaps

—”

“His cousin, the girlscout, went missing too. He actually went out looking for her and hasn’t been seen since.”
 
Diana spluttered, in disbelief.

“That’s terrible! Lois, this can’t be a coincidence.”

Exhaling heavily, Lois replied, “I know.”

“Of course,”

Diana replied, her tone changing to one of composed sympathy.

“I need to remember to whom I’m speaking. You’re not calling because you’re lost or unsure, but because you need assistance. Tell me what you need.”

“Are you still a Scout Leader these days, or did you hang up your boots when you went across the pond?”
 
Again there was a pause, as Diana seemed to consider.

“No, I’m still one of them. I’ll check in with some of the other Scouts, see if I can’t find out anything for you that might help.”

“That would be amazing! I’m… borrowing a phone at the moment, so if you do find anything, could you call me on this number?”
 
A light knock on the window behind her made Lois jump, and she turned to see Lena standing there, a questioning look on her face, her meaning clear.

Are you done?

“Diana, I’ve got to go, but you’ve got this number. Call me if you find out anything? I mean anything!”
 
“

Absolutely. Good luck, Lois.”

“Thanks.”
 
Hanging up, Lois tucked both phones back into her pocket and walked back to the door, stepping inside with a smile. “Sorry about that, ended up chatting with a couple of old friends. So, we ready to roll?”
 
With a smile over to her CFO, Lena nodded. “We’re settled up here, and Sam has another meeting in a few minutes.”
 
“Sorry about that,” Sam said. “L-Corp is a busy place.”
 
“I’m familiar,” Lena replied, still smiling. “Thanks for fitting us into your schedule, Sam.”
 
“For you, anytime, Lena. My company is your company… literally.” Sam’s smile was broad as her joke made Lena’s smile grow. She gave a small wave, just from the wrist, to Lois. “Miss Lane, it was a pleasure meeting you. I’m sorry it couldn’t be for longer or under better circumstances.”
 
“Oh, yeah… uh. Same here. I’m sure I’ll be back in your neck of the woods at some point. Maybe we can do lunch and set up an interview.”
 
“An interview?” Sam’s eyebrows skyrocketed.
 
“Yeah, you know. New CFO of L-Corp, there’s got to be lots to tell there.”
 
“I uh.” Sam cleared her throat. “I’m pretty sure that would be a CatCo exclusive.”
 
“Nah, Lena wouldn’t mind, would you Luthor?” Elbowing the CEO none too gently, Lois grinned. “Just let us work out the details, Miss Arias, and I’ll be in touch.”
 
Taking Lois by the arm, Lena led her to the door and waved Sam goodbye. “I’ll be in touch, Sam. Miss Lane and I will be leaving so you can make your next meeting before there’s a hostile takeover.”
 
“Hostile? Never,” Lois argued as she allowed herself to be led from the office, ignoring Sam’s fading laughter behind her.
 
“Honestly, Miss Lane, do you ever stop?”
 
“Nope. That’s why my middle name is Persistent.”
 
Eyes narrowed, Lena paused mid-stride and replied, “I thought it was Trouble.”
 
“It’s hyphenated,” Lois said with a shrug.
 
“I have one more quick stop to make on our way out,” Lena replied choosing not to engage with Lois’ latest shenanigans.
 
“Another meeting?”
 
“Not really. I just want to speak to security. It should only take a few minutes. With what’s been going on here of late, I’d like to invoke some protocols.”
 
“Invoke protocols?” Lois smirked. “How very James Bond of you, Miss Luthor.”
 
“Well, one has to dress for the car, after all.”
 
“It was nice seeing you today, Miss Luthor,” the assistant sitting outside the office said as they began to walk again and passed her desk.
 
“You too, Jess,” Lena replied. “Lunch Sunday assuming work doesn’t rear its ugly head for me?”
 
Jess smiled broadly. “I’ll make reservations.”
 
“You know you don’t have to do that. It isn’t your job and
—”
 
“But I’m very good at it.” Jess waved Lena away with the back of her hand. “Have a good day, Miss Luthor.”
 
“You too, Jess.”
 
As Lois and Lena stopped by the elevator, Jess called out, “Oh, and Miss Luthor?”
 
Lena turned. “Yes, Jess?”
 
“Is Miss Danvers all right?”
 
Brow furrowed, Lena tipped her head to the side curiously.
 
Pointing at Lois with an inscrutable look upon her face, Jess said, “You’re keeping company with a different reporter. Is there something going on at work or…?”
 
“I… what? No I
—”
 
“Friend of the family,” Lois offered, throwing her arm over Lena’s shoulder and pulling the younger woman into the elevator as the doors opened. “It was nice meeting you.”
 
“Hmmm.” Jess watched the other women leave, a thinning of her lips as she stared Lois down the whole time.
 
“Wow, tough crowd,” Lois said, as the doors closed securely. “Does she dislike everyone, or is it just me?”
 
“Who, Jess?”
 
Lois nodded.
 
“She’s a bit… protective. Jess has been with me for some time, and the press hasn’t always been welcoming. It took quite some time for her to trust Kara. Seeing a new face, especially one she recognized as being so infamous as yours, was sure to bring about some unrest. Don’t be concerned. Jess is harmless.”
 
“I sure hope so.”
 
The trip to the ground floor was quick, no stops along the way. The duo stopped briefly by the security desk where Lena spoke to the guard stationed there and had him make some changes as per her instructions. Lois was just getting antsy from standing around again when a familiar voice got her attention. She turned left and right before seeing someone, head down and talking on their phone, striding in quickly through the front doors.
 
“I’m on it, J’onn,” Alex Danvers said as she made her way through the lobby at L-Corp and headed to the security checkpoint. “Look, I’m here. I’ll call you once I find out what Sam knows. Hopefully, we can go around Lena and just get it this way. I know Kara loves that woman, but she’s a colossal pain in the ass right now. I’ll be in touch.”
 
Looking at Lois who was on the floor behind the security desk, the guard said, “Miss, you can’t be down there. I’m going to have to
—”
 
“Ahem.” Clearing her throat, Lena shook her head at the guard and then turned to wait for Alex’s arrival.
 
After going through the security checkpoint, showing her identification to carry, and having the guard call upstairs to confirm she was expected, Alex was allowed through. She gave the guards a brief wave, but the smile fell off her face when she saw Lena Luthor leaning against the security desk and watching her.
 
“Miss Luthor, what are you doing here?”
 
“Agent Danvers, I own the company. Perhaps I should be asking you that question instead. I thought you were in the middle of an investigation, and that’s why you couldn’t take care of your mother. Has that investigation led you here?”
 
“Uh… No. Yes. No.”
 
One eyebrow rising, Lena said, “Well, it’s one of those, isn’t it.”
 
With a small laugh, Alex rubbed at the back of her neck.. “It’s a little of both, actually, but nothing that should concern you. My case isn’t settled because I’m following up on a lot of loose ends. They’re leading to thefts at major tech firms, so I thought I’d head out here and make sure there was nothing going on with your security that was… alarming?” Alex leaned forward a little bit, smiling.
 
Smiling back, Lena asked, “You have a meeting with security then?”
 
“Actually, no. I’m meeting with Sam.” Alex pointed toward the elevators.
 
Gesturing toward them with her hand, Lena walked over with the agent following along, pushing the up button. “Ah, well, good to see a friendly face. Good luck to you, Agent Danvers.”
 
Alex nodded. As she walked into the elevator and turned she said, “You can call me Alex, you know.”
 
Lena nodded in return. “Of course, Alex. Good luck.” She watched the agent disappear as the elevator doors closed and then the smile fell off her face. Grabbing her phone she hit her most recently dialed number. “Sam, this is very important. Agent Alex Danvers is on her way up to see you. The FBI will try and tell you that there have been a string of thefts at tech companies, and they’ll ask if we’ve been targeted. They’re phishing. You’re to give them nothing, understood?” Lena nodded once. “Excellent. Yes, I’m sorry to put you in this situation. You handle the investigation internally. If things change with the FBI, I’ll let you know. For now, mums the word.” Ending her call, Lena went over to the security desk and knocked on it. “Miss Lane, Agent Danvers has gone upstairs. Did you drop your

thingy

again?”
 
“Oh, um… yeah,” Lois replied as she rose to her feet and brushed herself off.  “Damn slippery um… thingies. They need to stop making those things out of teflon.”
 
With a chuckle, Lena replied, “Perhaps I should put someone in the R&D department to work on that.”
 
“Oh you’d make a killing, I’m sure,” Lois agreed, stepping out from behind the desk and glancing quickly in the direction of the elevator, then hurrying for the door. “So, onwards and upwards!”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Lena’s silver Aston Martin pulled to a stop on the street across from what was rather obviously a biker bar.  It was a two-story building with decking around the semi-open upper level, pillars stretching to ground-level to hold the decking up. It went around the side of the building and sloped down on the left, perhaps allowing for an entryway from somewhere out of view.  
 
There were people on this open top-level drinking and smoking, laughing and going in and out from the double doors that led inside. Several small tables were scattered about up there but no chairs. There were men and women in various jackets of leather and denim material. If this weren’t enough to make the place look like a biker bar, add to it the lights shining down on the painted words declaring the establishment was called “Kickstand”.
 
The final touch, of course, were perhaps two dozen motorcycles parked out front, all cruisers, and more stretching around on either side.
 
Checking the notes scribbled in her pad, Lois looked up at the name of the bar and nodded.
 
“This is the place. Let’s go.” She flashed Lena with a bright smile, then turned back to the street and grabbed the door handle, stopping and turning back again when a hand gripped her shoulder and squeezed hard.
 
“Are you insane?!” Lena’s head shook back and forth quickly. “There is no way on God’s green Earth I’m going in there. My mother only raised one madman, and he’s serving thirty-seven consecutive life sentences.”
 
Brows drawn sharply together, Lois asked, “Why not?”
 
“That’s a rhetorical question, right?”
 
“Oh come on, Princess, live a little. It will be fine. We’ll just go in, ask some questions, grease some palms, get some info, then sneak out before anyone really even notices we’re there.  It will be fine. I do this kind of stuff all the time. You wanted to learn about the newspaper biz, right? Well, this is it. Trust me.”
 
Lena gave a low and throaty laugh. “Not the obituaries. Lois, being a Luthor is about being noticed. I have spent the last twenty years of my life making sure of just that when I walk into a room. My goal has been to be the center of attention and control that room. However, this is not my powerbase. I’m intelligent enough to know when I’m at a strategic disadvantage. I will admit that as a child, at times in my teen years, I mistook bad attention for some kind of attention from my mother. I’m not a child anymore, and this would be the worst kind of attention. I’m not going in there.”
 
With an eye roll, Lois said, “Don’t be so dramatic. Everything with you is all ‘I’m a Luthor and life is dark. Bad things are going to happen.’ Just relax and live a little. Come on.”
 
“Not going to happen.”
 
“Give me one good, non-vague ‘because I’m a Luthor and evil lurks around every corner’ reason why not.”
 
“One,” Lena said holding up a finger.  “If we go in there we’ll get murdered. I have a rule about being murdered.”
 
Lois just sighed and waited for whatever was coming next.
 
Lena raised an eyebrow, “Family has dibs on murdering me. That only seems polite. Two.” The young Luthor raised another finger. “If by some miracle we survived our encounter with that den of iniquity… which I don’t think is possible since both Supers are AWOL, and I’m fairly certain they’re the only reason either of us are still alive to this point—”
 
“Hey!” Lois protested, then realised what Lena had said, processed the words for a moment, then nodded, conceding. “Okay, valid point. Carry on.”
 
“Thank you. Where was I?”
 
“We’re missing our alien protectors and are going to die in a bar fight.”
 
Lena snorted. “Almost worth it if that sentiment would end up on my gravestone and make it to my mother. At any rate, if we somehow managed to stumble out alive and with all our fingers and toes, the statistical probability of this car still being here is zero.” Arms crossed, the Luthor just stared.
 
“Hey, you’re right.” Lois said exaggeratedly and with deliberate sarcasm as she rolled her eyes. Then she reached out and squeezed Lena’s arm. “You stay with the car. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
 
As Lois popped open her door, Lena reached across and grabbed the older woman’s coat sleeve. Shaking her head as Lois looked back, Lena was close to - but not quite - pleading.
 
“Lois don’t.  Don’t go in there.”
 
“Oh, it will be fine. Just relax.”
 
“But… the murder.”
 
“I promise not to murder anyone,” Lois said, pulling her coat sleeve away as she stepped out of the car and leaned back in. “Want me to pinky swear?”
 
“Lois, please…” Lena’s eyes were wide, her fear obvious. “I don’t want you to die.”
 
With a kindly smile, Lois squeezed Lena’s arm again. “Well, that makes two of us. I’ll just be a few minutes. You relax, okay?”
 
Lena shook her head.
 
“Okay, well if you can’t do that, can you at least try not to have a nervous breakdown while I’m gone?”
 
With a loud swallow, Lena admitted, “I don’t know.”
 
Chuckling, Lois held her fist inside the car. “Fistbump for luck?”
 
“...what?”
 
“You just… Hold up your… Oh, for Pete’s sake!” Grabbing Lena’s hand, Lois curled it into a fist and bumped hers into it. “There. We’ll work on that. Now, try not to have a stroke while I’m gone. You look so nervous. Are you sure you’re Lex’s kid sister?”
 
“Quite certain… unfortunately.”
 
“Jeez… no kidding. Well, I’ll be back before you can calculate pi out to a thousand places… which you can probably actually do, so nevermind. I’ll just be quick, okay?”
 
As Lois walked away, Lena rolled down the window and called out, “How long do I wait to call the police? Do I call the police? What should I do?”
 
Smiling as she walked backwards, Lois gave a little salute and turned around. Her smile changed into something less cocky but quite genuine as she said to herself, “Okay, that Luthor needs a hug. She is nothing like Lex.”
 
……………...
 
Inside the bar the biker chic decor continued. The bar itself was normal enough, wood with lots of stools, and men and women who looked liked they had recently been on the bikes outside milled about. Behind the bar were several layers of alcohol on tiers, and above all of that was a black chopper with red flames painted on it with chrome that was polished to a mirror finish. A gigantic American flag, that must have been forty-feet in length, hung to cover a section of the ceiling like another tile.
 
There were a few tables scattered along the main part of the bar, and there were bench seats against the walls. In a back section was pool tables and a few dart boards, all in use with loud and happy patrons. Music blared from a jukebox. Along a distant wall was a stage, no one on it at this time, and the locked cage that would normally protect the musicians from the patrons was quite telling. One section of the bar was wallpapered with Polaroid pictures, hundreds of them though they were too far from the newcomer for her to make out any of the images. Given that the only other decoration on the wall were dozens of bras, that distance didn’t change.
 
As Lois entered, conversation nearby died down and heads turned in her direction though she ignored it. Finding an empty stool, she slid onto it and waited until the bartender approached, drumming a light tune on the counter with her fingers as she waited. A skinny man with more hair on his face than his head and two arms covered in sleeves of tattoos beneath his denim shirt, he gave Lois the once over. She held his gaze unfalteringly when he met hers again.
 
Nodding once, Lois looked briefly to her right and said, “Excuse me, I’m looking for…”
 
Her attention was momentarily distracted by something on the bar, however and her voice trailed off as she turned to look at it properly. It was silver and looked like a vase with a top. There was an engraving on a plate on the bottom. It read, ‘Trigger. He died the way he lived: fast, loud, and on the wrong side of the road. Drink up brothers!’
 
Meeting the bartender’s gaze again, Lois pointed at the vase-thingy and asked, “Is this an urn?”
 
“A-yup.”
 
“Huh…” She nodded to the urn once, a silent salute of respect, then looked back to the guy behind the bar again. “Okay then. So, I’m looking for a guy named Peewee. I was told I could find him here. Could you point him out?”
 
“You’re looking for Peewee?”
 
Lois nodded.
 
“Are you drinking?”
 
She smiled. “Whatever you’ve got on tap.”
 
He grunted and filled a mug. Handing her the beer he said, “Go sit by the table with the picture of Muhammad Ali. Peewee will find you.”
 
Her beer in hand, Lois carefully navigated the crowd, happy to find the empty table with the picture as directed. It was oddly empty given how crowded the rest of the place was. Sitting, she she flipped through her notebook as she waited.
 
“You looking for Peewee?” A voice boomed down at Lois from somewhere above.
 
She jumped a little in surprise. Then, stiffening, she turned in her seat and looked up… and up… and up… yup, up just a bit further. “Yikes,” she mumbled under her breath before plastering on a smile.
 
The man looming over her was big, maybe 6’6”, bald, and had a handlebar mustache that went down to the end of his chin. His arms folded over his chest showed off the muscles on his muscles, along with a bit of a gut. He had an open black leather vest with no shirt, jeans, a gap between his front teeth when he sneered which was apparently a lot, and a face only a mother could love (albeit it barely).
 
“Peewee?” Lois croaked out, then cleared her throat, repeating, “Are you Peewee?”
 
“Depends who’s asking?”
 
“Um… Lois. Lois Lane.  That’s my given name. I’m assuming yours isn’t. I mean, you know… your birth certificate and… parents and…” As he stared, Lois slunk down slightly. “That assumes you had parents.”
 
“What does that mean?” He snapped.
 
“Great going, Lane,” She muttered to herself, then looked up, “Can I buy you a beer?”
 
Looking back at the bar, he nodded then pointed to the table before sitting, the entire table pushing a good six inches toward Lois as he did so.
 
“Whoa. I thought that was bolted down when I… ah, nevermind,” She slid a little further back in her seat to try and give herself more room, then flipped open her notepad to a blank page and set down the pen beside it, ready to take notes. “So, Peewee. Can I call you Peewee?”
 
The man grunted, so she took it as permission.
 
“Great. So, Peewee, I understand you might know something about some alien related activity that went down in the alley behind here about two weeks ago. Is that right?”
 
He nodded. “I might. Why do you want to know?”
 
“I’m… looking for someone, and I was told you could help.”
 
“Who?”
 
“A friend,” she answered hurriedly as his drink arrived and he passed along his thanks to the waitress. “So, what can you tell me?”
 
“What will it get me?”
 
“My undying affection?”
 
He snorted.
 
“If it’s useful, how about twenty bucks?”
 
“How about a hundred?”
 
“How about you kiss my...!” Taking a moment to calm herself, she let out a breath and said, “Look, I’ve got forty. Are you forty dollars worth of useful?”
 
“You’ve got some fire in you, don’t you babe?”
 
“I’m not your babe. Do you have information or not?”
 
Taking a deep swig of his beer, the man watched Lois. “I saw something.”
 
Leaning forward eagerly, Lois asked, “What did you see?”
 
“I saw one of those things getting its ass handed to it.” He grinned.
 
Brows creased, Lois asked, “What things?”
 
“You know, a Marvin.”
 
“A what?”
 
Taking another sip, the guy said, “A Marvin Martian. I don’t know where it came from, but I know it don’t belong here. A couple of guys were taking turns kicking it, and it was curled up on the ground and bleeding real good. It was making the weirdest noises too.”
 
Lois swallowed hard, one hand in a fist in her lap and the other squeezing the handle of her beer mug so tightly her whole arm trembled.
 
“Then some people came out of the apartment next door and the guys took off. I went over to check on Marvin, and he opened his big bug eyes at me. He was bleeding green. He looked up at me and said, ‘Help’ in this pathetic, little voice.” The guy laughed. “So, I did. I kicked him, and I kicked him, and I kicked his ugly alien face in and I—”
 
“Shut up!” Lois shot to her feet suddenly. “Shut the fuck up!”
 
Her hand darted out and cold beer splashed him in the face as he suddenly found himself wearing the contents of her drink. Screaming, tears welling in the back of her eyes, she pointed a trembling finger of her other hand at him sharply. “You’re a bigoted, racist, xenophobic, supremacist piece of shit! Someone should kick YOUR face in!” As Lois raised the now empty mug, a hand grabbed her wrist from behind.
 
“Whoa, easy there, Missy,” the waitress said, holding Lois by the wrist. “Leo, what did you do to set this one off?”
 
Rising to his feet and wiping beer from his face, the bald man laughed. He pulled a rag from the waitress’ belt to dry his face better as he smiled. “Oh, I deserved that, Deb. Thanks for the assist.”
 
“Any time,” Deb said, taking back the rag as she let go of Lois’ wrist, but not before prying the empty beer mug from it. “You two going to be okay?”
 
He nodded. “We’re good.”
 
As the waitress walked away, Lois took a shuddering breath, visibly forcing herself to calm down, before she said in a quieter voice, “You’re not Peewee?”
 
“I’m not Peewee,” Leo agreed.
 
“So what the hell is going on here?”
 
“Sit down, kid. It was a test, and you passed with flying colors,” Leo explained gently, patting her on the shoulder in what she was sure was supposed to be an encouraging or kindly manner, but actually caused her knees to buckle. As she half fell, half sprawled back into her seat, he laughed. “If you had cracked my head open, however, I never would have lived that down. Hey, Jojo!” He waved down the bartender. “Get my friend a new drink. She spilled hers.”
 
“All over you!” Someone called out to be greeted by much laughter.
 
“Fuck you, Dutch!” Leo replied.
 
“As soon as I’m done with your mom!” Dutch called back.
 
“My mom’s dead!” Leo said.
 
“She wasn’t any better when she was alive!” Dutch said, and the whole bar erupted into laughter, including Leo. Lois was quite relieved that he was able to see the funny side.
 
“Fun crowd,” She said with a smile, relaxing a little as Deb the waitress brought her a beer. “When’s ladies night?”
 
“This is ladies night,” Deb replied. “That’s why we have such a gentile group in tonight.”
 
“Ah.” Lois nodded, gripping her drink and looking around a bit again but not holding eye contact with anyone.
 
“You stay here, Notebook, and try not to pick a fight with anyone else until I come back for you. Can you do that?” Leo asked.
 
“Notebook?” Lois blinked.
 
Tapping on Lois’ notebook, Leo nodded. “Just stay out of trouble. I feel like that may be hard for you.”
 
“You have no idea. Where are you going?”
 
“To see if he’ll meet with you.”
 
Eyebrows high, Lois asked, “He?”
 
Leo smiled. “Just enjoy your beer and no bar fights without me.”
 
As he walked away, Lois yelled after him, “No promises!” She watched him disappear into the crowd then turned back to her notebook. “See what you missed, Lena? This is going great. This is fun, and you’re just sitting outside bored off your ass and missing all of the action.”
 
<><>
 
Outside, Lena drummed her fingers as she watched the group of young men grow ever closer to her vehicle. At first they’d been satisfied to simply stare from a distance. The engine was purring gently, and there was still a bit of daylight, but perhaps that was asking too much in the way of protection. She caught movement in her rear and side view mirrors. It looked to be a good ten people or so, but it was hard to say. She could call 911 and say there were people looking at her car… right. She could drive off and leave Lois alone in the bar… not. The only other option, as the young people drew ever closer, was to face things like a Luthor.
 
Turning the keys to kill the engine, she stepped out, cinching her coat closed and locking the vehicle behind her. She clenched the keys tightly in one hand, which she buried into her pocket, hiding the fact that she’d stuck the key between two fingers like a makeshift weapon, just in case. She kept her other hand tucked into her pocket as well, in what she hoped was a casual, non-threatening gesture. No point provoking anything until she’d got the measure of the group, after all.
 
She took exactly three steps away from her vehicle and toward the person to whom the others turned when she first stepped out. In every pack there was an alpha. She didn’t need to beat the pack, just their leader. One eyebrow raised, she waited with her head held high.
 
As expected, the leader stepped closer, bridging the gap between them. “Nice car.”
 
Lena nodded once. “Yes, it is. Thank you for noticing. Nice…” She let her gaze run up and down the young man before eye contact returned. “...shoes.” She managed to keep her face neutral at the laughter that brought forth.
 
Mouth tightening and nostrils flaring, the leader said, “Kind of a tough neighborhood for a car like that, dontcha think?”
 
“Is it? I hadn’t noticed.”
 
Taking a step closer, the kid said, “Kind of a tough neighborhood for a lady like you, dontcha think?”
 
Taking two steps closer, Lena smirked and raised an eyebrow. “Well, that’s definitely not the case.”
 
After about three beats, the leader’s expression changed from an angry arrogance through confusion to something like familiarity. Hand over his mouth, he took two steps back. “Oh, hold up bitch! I know you!”
 
“...excuse me?”
 
“Yeah, yeah, yeah! Your brother killed like a thousand people. He’s in jail for a hundred life sentences, no parole and shit. Your mom tried to kill all aliens on Earth, and you flipped on the bitch! You sold her out to the cops, right? Yeah, you’re that Luthor. Bitch, you crazy!”
 
“Ugh… well, fuck,” Lena grumbled.
 
Slowly, the group of teens and young adults circled, surrounding Lena, until she was completely encircled and lost in the swirl of bodies and gang colors.
 
<><>
 
The elevator only had the one button. Apparently, you either went someplace or you didn’t. Leo pressed it, and Lois looked at her notes while counting the seconds of their descent. It was an older elevator, one meant for moving stock into and from storage, and it moved slowly, but still it felt like they were moving down more than one level.
 
When they finally reached their destination, Leo opened the gate and said, “Ladies first.”
 
With a small chuckle, Lois stepped out. “You wouldn’t call me that if you knew me better.”
 
Smiling in a way that suited the homeliness of his face, Leo stepped past Lois and led the way.  They continued down a long and unchanging corridor. Finally, they reached the singular door along the way. Pausing, perhaps for dramatic effect, Leo said, “Notebook, welcome to Homeworld.”
 
“Homeworld? What is—?”
 
As the door opened and she turned, the rest of the sentence died on her lips. Lois stumbled into the room, looking around in awe and distraction. Her head turned left, right, up, down, every-which-way she could look and still she couldn’t take it all in quickly enough. This was… was…
 
“Amazing,” Lois said as she slowly breathed out.
 
“This way,” Leo encouraged.
 
Lois nodded, allowing herself to be led by the arm but looked around grinning the whole time.
 
Kickstand was a biker bar, undoubtedly, but it was a bar over a bar. It was a cover for those who didn’t fit into society over those who didn’t fit into the world. Here they’d created a world away from home, several little pieces of home, and made it their own.
 
The bar in the middle of this room looked normal enough. Well, normal except for the array of races represented. People had ears on the tops of their heads, skin of blue, red, purple, or even rainbow colors. Some of the patrons had fur or scales. Tails twitched and huge horns rose over the back of one person’s skull. Some were no more than two-feet-tall, while another stretched and must have been closer to eight feet. These were not the sorts of people who blended with humans. They stood out.
 
As she continued through the bar, motion to her right caught Lois’ attention. She turned her head quickly to see something…

someone

jet by in a tube that was set into the wall at about shoulder height.  It was large, clear, and filled with what looked to be water. Lois followed the motion as she continued walking in the direction of the swimming person.  The tube ended in a large tank set into the wall behind a sectioned-off area of the bar. It had glass walls all around, a fine mist of water spraying from the ceiling, and a glowing blue barrier over the entrance. People sat at tables drinking from glasses that looked like orbs with flat bottoms and straws sticking out of the sides. The occupants had gills, fins, webbed fingers, some just one but some all of these. They were light-blue, green, dark gray, or vibrantly colored. Right by the entrance, Lois and Leo stopped as a waitress, wearing a raincoat and carrying a tray in one hand and an umbrella in the other, stepped out. The blue barrier crackled off of her and seemed to dry her as she stepped through.
 
Snapping the umbrella closed and clipping it onto her belt, she smiled and said, “Hey, Leo. Who’s your friend?”
 
“Hey, Amber. This here’s Notebook.”
 
“Nice to meet you, Notebook,” Amber said smiling at Lois. Then leaning in closer she said, “Watch out for this one. He can get handsy if he has too much to drink, and he thinks you’re really cute.”
 
As she walked away with a wink, Leo said, “Mind reading is rude, Amber.”
 
“So is pinching asses, Leo!”
 
Lois blinked. “She’s a mind reader?”
 
Leo shrugged. “Yeah, but it doesn’t take one. You are cute. Come on.”
 
They kept moving through the bar.  It was long, and there were several different ‘zones’ along the wall as they passed it. Each had an entrance with a barrier just like the mist-filled aquatic area. The next was bare and white. The tables and chairs were the same, seemingly chiseled from snow and ice. The occupants were shaggy white beasts, blue humanoids around the size of average men, and gigantic ‘men’ that could have been sculpted from ice. They sat, drank and laughed together.
 
The next area was all fog. Lois slowed the peer inside, trying to see anything within the depths. Occasionally something shimmered in the pea-soup-like interior. They were glowing shapes that would appear, light up, then fade as quickly as they came into being. Lois paused by the glowing barrier that marked the entry way. One finger extended, she pushed her hand forward. A sudden throat clearing caused the reporter to turn her head.
 
“You don’t want to go in there,” Leo said shaking his head.
 
“They’re not hospitable?”
 
“Oh, they’re mighty friendly, real decent folk. The atmosphere in there is highly acidic. That’s why you can’t get in unless you have a protective suit on with a sensor that lets you through the barrier.” Leo gestured to a bright yellow suit that hung on a hook on the left side of the doorway.
 
Lois eyed it briefly before her gaze shifted to the right. On other hooks were what looked a bit like some kind of protective suits but they ranged in color from tan to brown and had shaggy head coverings. “What are these?” Lois asked grabbing one by the top and lifting before she let go suddenly. “Is that… Is that hair?”
 
“Yup.”
 
“Why? Why is that…?” Reaching out much more tentatively this time, she took the ‘hand’ of one of the suits before letting it go. “That feels like skin. Is that skin?”
 
“Yup.”
 
Turning suddenly, she hissed out, “Are these skin suits?! Do they wear skin suits?!”
 
Leo laughed, his shoulders bouncing up and down. “Relax, Notebook. No one was killed for these. People were done with them, and the families donated them. They come from people upstairs. It’s okay.”
 
Lois relaxed marginally. “Okay, but still… they wear skin suits, don’t they?”
 
He nodded. “They have a hard time with our atmosphere without protective gear. This lets them get around. It’s working.”
 
Looking back at a glow from inside the list, Lois asked, “What are they?”
 
“Not exactly sure who they are or where they come from. They don’t talk or hear, so people just started calling them Wisps.”
 
Lois looked back at him. “Wisps?”
 
“Yeah, you know, like Will-o-wisps. Once we figured out how to get them protective suits, and they learned sign language, we were able to communicate. Still, they communicate with each other through lights, and there isn’t a word in English, or any human language, for flash-flash-flashity-flash-flash or whatever they’re called.” Tugging on Lois’ arm he said, “Let’s go.”
 
The next section they passed was an array of colored crystals. It looked like giant rock candy, but the rocks seemed to glow slightly. Lois peered inside looking for the inhabitants of the room. It was possible no one was there at present. It was also possible the rocks were the inhabitants. Somewhat distracted looking for motion, Lois would have tripped if she didn’t have Leo holding her arm.
 
Up above, a fluttering noise of something/someone launching themselves from branches growing down from a section caused Lois to look up. There she saw a whole other bar set up and set of patrons… winged patrons. Branches, some small and some huge, all jutted down several feet from the ceiling so that these people could sit… squat together and share in drinks that sat nestled in nest-like sets of branches. As Lois watched, another patron took off and flapped their wings to land a good fifty feet away next to someone else.
 
“Keep walking,” Leo urged as they continued past the next area.
 
This room was as dry as the first room was wet. The floor was a red clay, split from baking, and several rocks were set throughout the zone. On a few of them different colored, sized, and shaped lizard creatures basked under artificial red lamps that were set throughout the area. Other rocks were smaller and gray, one causing Lois to jerk back when it unfurled, stretching and rolling over where it curled up again.
 
Next they passed an area that looked like a rainforest. A dragonfly that was easily three feet long flew through the room picking up empty glasses from a table and depositing them on a tray near the door. At a table, two people sat who looked half-frog. One eyed the dragonfly in a way that seemed concerning, but they made no overt move toward it. The most interesting thing was the foliage. Leaves were huge, larger than a person, and the flowers in there were six-feet tall if not taller. One which was a vibrant mix of pinks, purples, reds, and even a hint of orange was in the corner and near Lois.
 
Coming to stare at the flower, Lois smiled and said, “Oh, my God. Have you ever seen anything like this before? This is the most beautiful flower I’ve ever seen.”
 
The flower shifted, rising and turning its petals to the back of its head while a decidedly masculine but pleased looking face stared at her and said, “Why thank you, dear. You’re lovely too.” Before turning back around and sitting again.
 
Blanching, Lois turning and stumbled with Leo. “Is anything in here what it looks to be?”
 
“I’m a big ugly dude.”
 
Lois laughed. “Thanks for that, Leo. You’re my hero.”
 
As they stopped in front of a rather unremarkable looking area, Leo let go of Lois’ arm and said, “Okay, you’re on your own from here. He’s in the table in the back there. Good luck.”
 
Grabbing his arm before he left, Lois asked, “Anything I should know?”
 
“Be polite. Don’t throw your beer in his face or try to smack him in the head with your mug.”
 
“Ah, not my strong point,” Lois admitted.
 
Leo grinned. “You’ll be fine, Notebook. Just no touching without permission.”
 
As Leo walked away, Lois called after him, “So don’t pinch his ass?”
 
Turning around and walking away backward, Leo said, “Everyone’s a mind reader now!”
 
Lois smiled as she watched him leave. When he was gone into the alien crowd, she inhaled deeply, gathered her courage, and turned to find Peewee.
 
After the cornucopia of alien environments, this area looked downright normal. The only thing that seemed out of the ordinary, outside of the obviously diverse alien species sitting at the different tables, were that each table was behind some sort of relatively low but solidly constructed barrier. None was so daunting that it couldn’t be leapt over, crawled under, or gone around, but the meaning was obvious: please don’t. There was a hinged gateway at each barrier surrounding each table, and that allowed for entrance and exit.
 
Lois glanced from table to table, but her eyes finally settle upon one person, covered nearly completely in clothing and wrappings from head-to-toe, who sat alone in a back corner with his back to the wall. He was small in stature, his legs swinging freely and not touching the ground, and his shoulders narrow and sloping even under the clothing. She stopped outside the barrier, one hand resting on the gate, and asked, “Peewee? You look like a Peewee. No offense.”
 
“None taken,” he said in a fine and high-pitched voice as he gestured to the empty seat across from him. “You’re a reporter?”
 
Pausing with the gate open in her hand, Lois blinked rapidly at a question that sounded like an accusation. “Is… Is that a problem?”
 
“That depends. Are you here to write a story?”
 
“Definitely not,” she answered without hesitation as she moved the rest of the way into the area, securely closing the gate behind her and taking a seat. “I’m looking for a friend. I think he’s in trouble, and I need some help.”
 
“Hmmm.” Sliding the wrappings covering his mouth the slightest bit to the side, Peewee lifted his glass and put the straw to his lips. “What kind of trouble?”
 
Lois set her notebook and pen on the table, opened at an empty page, and Peewee made a point of glancing down at it, then he shook his head.
 
“You…. have a problem with me taking notes?” She ventured. “Like I said, my friend’s in trouble. Any help you can give me would be much appreciated, but you honestly can’t expect my primitive human brain to remember everything you tell me, right?”
 
She was hoping that some flattery - or at least a little ‘human bashing’ might help to soften him a little.
 
There was a soft drumming as Peewee’s gloved fingers thrummed against the table, him considering her words. “Look, lady, I feel for you and your friend,” he squeaked out. “I’m sure you’re a nice lady, but this is about more than just your friend. This is about our whole community, hundreds of people. Some of us are the last few of our race, only a handful of us left. We’re the living embodiment of entire cultures. You have to look at this from our side. Having a reporter down here sniffing around, it’s scary. Do you know what would happen to us if a story on Homeworld got out?” He shook his head, only his eyes visible and them scrunching up in obvious displeasure.
 
Lois took a deep, slow, measured breath as she weighed up his words. He had a very valid point, of course. One she’d not even considered before. Rule number three of her journalist rules was “Do whatever it takes to get the story”, after all. So if this was what it took?
 
“Alright, strictly off the record,” she agreed, closing the notebook and sliding it to the very edge of the table, within sight, but out of reach. “Though this friend I’m looking for? He’s a Kryptonian. One of only a few left. So I’m not doing this to out or hurt anyone. I’m on your side, Peewee. I promise you.”
 
Those eyes, one of the few visible parts of the alien, that had be narrowed just moments before flashed wide. “A Krypt…?!” He looked left and right then hunkered down even further into his seat and lowered his voice a half-octave though it was still quite high. “A Kryptonian? So, do you mean you’re looking for…?” Peewee nodded, watching Lois carefully.
 
Catching his meaning, she smiled and nodded as well, leaning over the table a little so that she could speak quietly and he could still hear her. “My name’s Lois Lane,” she semi-whispered. “If you know anything about me, you’ll know that Superman and I are very good friends.” Her smile faltered and then vanished completely, as her voice turned serious. “He’s gone missing, along with his cousin, Supergirl. And I won’t lie. I’m worried about them. Something’s happened, and I can’t... no I
won’t
rest until I find them again.”
 
Peewee nodded nearly as gravely as Lois’ expression. “Okay, okay.” He touched the hoodie on the back of his head, rubbed the coverings on his face, then his hands together. His shoulders moved up and down as he squirmed seemingly trying to find comfort. “Yeah, okay I get that. Look, I need to just make 100% sure. If I’m sure I can trust you, then I can help you. Are you willing to trust me?”

Do I have a choice?

Lois almost said. Instead, she bit back those words, remembering rule number three again.

Do whatever it takes to get the story.

“What do I have to do?” She asked cautiously.
 
Slowly, almost methodically, Peewee removed the glove on his right hand finger by finger to reveal a small but otherwise human-looking hand. He blinked at it for several moments before laying it palm up between them on the table and meeting Lois’ gaze, saying simply, “Take my hand.”
 
“You about to transport me to some far off place of magic and mystery?” She teased lightly, albeit to cover her nerves a little. Aliens didn’t generally make her nervous as a rule. But shifty, mysterious characters did, regardless of their species. And this was definitely hitting her ‘iffy’ radar right about now.
 
When he replied, it sounded like he was smiling. “Not on a first date. Come on, Lois, take my hand. Let’s trust each other.”
 
“First date, huh?” She grinned again, reaching out, before hesitating for a moment with her hand hovering over his. And then she weighed up her options for a moment, before shrugging. “Oh what the hell.” Her hand closed the gap between them, and she took his gently.

The connection was instantaneous. Though Lois didn’t physically move, she was completely aware of everything Peewee felt in that moment. His fears, anxieties, concerns, loss… Oh, Dear God the loss of his world, his people, his loved ones, Jirahaela, Sasahel, Kikavema, all gone never to share their hearts with him again, that was almost overbearing. To rise each day and only face one sun, go to bed each night and say the prayers alone, to break bread on an alien world and somehow take a new step forward with people he KNEW hated him because they feared him because they didn’t understand him because they chose ignorance was almost… ALMOST unbearable. Hope, he had hope and each day he kept it in his heart and let it grow like a mavakavik seed into a flower and would not falter. He would find more of his kind, and his culture would continue. Hope kept him alive each day, hope and finding people who chose love and acceptance over ignorance.

As quickly as Peewee’s feelings pushed into Lois they pulled out again and with it she felt hers flow back in toward him.

On the surface there was bravado, of course. She used her confidence - her over confidence in fact - to mask the deep and turbulent current of what was going on below the surface on an almost daily basis.

Because contrary to what everyone saw, Lois wasn’t confident at all. If anything, her confidence had been severely shaken after the loss of her mother when she was younger, and she’d never truly recovered. Oh, she could talk a good game, of course. She could play the part, but in reality there was always that chasm deep down - that sense of loss, of longing, of never quite fitting in or living up to expectations. She was a failure in her father’s eyes, not because she hadn’t followed him or her sister into the army but because of the friends she chose to keep and the life she chose to live. He would never approve of her bond with Superman, and that would forever be Lois’ biggest failure. That she’d learned to see the people beyond the aliens. That she could see them for what they were - living, breathing creatures with minds of their own, lives, opinions, families and jobs and personalities.

Smallville was the pivotal one who had taught her that. Oh, her Smallville. Where was he now? What if he was hurt? What if he couldn’t find his way home again? What if he was gone forever? What if she never saw him again? Why couldn’t she find him? Why hadn’t she been there to protect him? He helped everyone else, yet who was there to help him? It should have been her. So why had she failed him? Why hadn’t she been able to keep him safe? What if he was dead and she’d never see him again? What had her last words to him been? Why had the bloody idiot gone off without her?! Why hadn’t he waited? She could have gone with him! Maybe he wouldn’t be in this mess then?

He was her world. Her reason. Her heart. Without him she was empty. She was nothing. No-one. She was a hack writer and a shoddy reporter. He made the news, she just reported it. Yet if he wasn’t there, what would she report about?

Who would she go home to every day? Who’s arms would she fall into when she needed a hug? Would she ever find anyone who could love her as wholly and completely as Smallville? Why did she even want anyone else, when he was everything to her and more.

Where the hell was he? She was dying inside - the unknown was tearing her apart and there was literally nothing she could do about it. What if someone had found out about kryptonite? What if they were using it against him? What if he was in agony? What if he was being tortured right this very second, and she was doing nothing about it? What if it was too late? What if he was already gone? What if he was lying in a ditch somewhere, a kryptonite dagger through his heart?

It was the only explanation. He had to be gone. He would have come back to her by now otherwise. He HAD to come back to her. He had always come back to her. The only reason he hadn’t now, was because he was dead.

Superman was dead. Clark Kent was dead! Now she was absolutely certain. She couldn’t deny it any longer.

And… oh God, what would his mother say?! Would she blame Lois? Chalk that up to another failure in the steadily growing list of Lois Lane failures. Martha trusted Lois after all. Trusted her to keep him safe. To watch over him and make sure nothing happened to him. Lois had promised her. And now she’d failed her. She’d failed Mrs K. The woman who was the closest thing to a mother that Lois now had. How the hell was she going to tell her what had happened? How her only son had died on Lois’ watch, and she’d let it happen. Mrs K would never forgive her. Hell, Lois would never forgive herself. How could she?

Lois lurched backwards into her seat, gasping, staring blindly into the room for a moment, grasping the sides of the table.
 
She had no idea what the hell had just happened, but it had shaken her deeply.
 
It took her the better part of ten seconds to work out where she was. Her vision was blurred and she blinked a few times, waiting for it to clear. In the artificial lights of the underground bar, she could just about make out the shape of Peewee the alien, sitting across from her once more. His hands were withdrawn where he had broken contact. Sitting up again slowly, she buried her head in her hands, sobbing quietly.
 
The tears that ran between her fingers then were tears of grief, anger, and if she was being brutally honest - fear as well.
 
All the things she’d been dreading, all those fears she’d been denying to herself, because saying them out loud only made them all the more real… Everything she'd been suppressing, pushing down and avoiding at all costs had now been laid bare before her, for the whole world to see. She couldn’t avoid it any more. She couldn’t ignore it or pretend it wasn’t happening.
 
Reaching out but immediately withdrawing his hand, though it was still a good two feet away from Lois when he did so, Peewee’s voice was laced with regret. “Miss Lane, I’m so very sorry. I had no idea that—”
 
Her hand cutting through the air in front of her, Lois stood quickly, knocking over her chair in her haste. Her head pounded furiously, the veins in her temple throbbed painfully and her whole body screamed in protest with every tiny movement, but she ignored that for the moment, just needing to get some distance between them.
 
Her weakened legs struggled to hold her up as she staggered over to the barrier giving entry to this section, before eventually giving way altogether, and causing her to lean on the chilled rail, just to keep herself upright. Grasping it furiously, desperate for a grounding feeling in her life, she stood and stared out upon the endless regions of the rest of this exotic Homeworld bar.
 
Taking in all the sights and sounds of a hundred different species going about daily life and enjoying some time with friends and family.

Her heart still thrumming too fast in her chest, mouth dry and throat like sandpaper, she clung to the bars like a liferaft in a storm, her forehead resting against the cool metal, the only reprieve she had from the fever of terror that raced inside of her. It was then that she became suddenly aware of her breath. She sounded like she'd been running.
 
Holding her throbbing head and feeling the mixture of sweat and tears on her cheeks, she took several shuddering breaths, trying to calm her wild nerves and piece together everything that was going on.
 
It was several long minutes before her heart rate returned to normal, her breathing didn’t betray her any longer, and she was able to roll her body along the barricade and stare with misery laden eyes at the man who stared back with a look not too dissimilar.
 
Swallowing hard, it took Lois three tries to croak out, “How… How could you?”
 
“I’m sorry,” he whispered, his voice barely audible over the hum of the other bar patrons.
 
With three lurching steps, Lois’ hands came crashing palms flat against the table surface, her face a portrait of misery as she spat out more loudly, “How could you?!”
 
Head shaking rapidly, Peewee leaned in on himself. “I didn’t know. You said a friend. You said concerned. You said—”
 
“You had no right! I wasn’t… I couldn’t…!” Eyes closed, more tears rolled down her face, unbidden. And just when she thought she’d managed to get them in check once more.
 
Her hands clenched into fists, as she shook her head weakly. “I can’t lose him.”
 
“I might know something.”
 
Lois’ eyes flashed open again in an instant. “What?”
 
“Men came around almost two weeks ago. They attacked me, and they hated aliens more than anything in this world. I’m certain of that. I saw their truck, where it was from. I don’t know if they took your… friend, but I’ll tell you what I know.” His eyes were full of compassion and sympathy… and regret.
 
Scrubbing away tears with the back of her sleeve, Lois nodding as she righted her chair and dropped into it, grabbing her notebook and pen. “I’m taking notes. That isn’t up for discussion.”
 
“Of course,” Peewee acquiesced immediately. “You wouldn’t do anything to hurt aliens. We’re people to you.”
 
Head snapping up from her notebook, Lois said, “That’s because you ARE people.”
 
He shrugged. “I really am sorry.”
 
“I know, and I’ll forgive you, but not right now. Let’s just get through this.”
 
“Of course,” he nodded getting down to business. “Well, three men attacked me. They pulled off some of my coverings, and they were kicking me. I’m not one for fisticuffs, so I did the only thing I could do to protect myself. I…” Slowly, he held out his hand palm up.
 
“Right,” Lois said very slowly, his meaning becoming quickly apparent and sending a slight shiver down her spine. Biting back tears at the memory of what had happened, she cleared her throat and asked, “What did these three men look like? Can you describe them?”
 
“Human. I believe they were males of your species. I’ve gotten to know some of you and can tell a few apart, but I’m sorry to say this, and please don’t mistake me for a racist, but you all look the same to me.”
 
Lois blinked rapidly.
 
“You feel very differently. I can tell you apart from the others, based on your feelings. But looks-wise, humans are all pretty similar, don’t you think?”
 
Relaxing slightly, a smile hinted at the corners of her lips. “You know, I really wish this part of the conversation was on the record. Okay, so you can’t describe the guys, but you saw their truck? Was it local?”
 
“It was from Earth, even this country, I believe. So yes, I’d say fairly local.”
 
Dropping her pen, Lois groaned and scrubbed at her face. “Oh, for fuck’s sake, Peewee. What little patience I have is now wearing dangerously thin. Give me something! When you say local, are we talking feet or zip codes? Did you get a license plate number? Please, for the love of God tell me you at least got that?”
 
“There was a company name and an address on the side of the truck.”
 
Snapping to attention again, Lois grabbed her pen. “I’m listening.”
 
“It was from Wayne Enterprises, 1437 Merryweather Avenue, Gotham. Is that helpful?”
 
“Are you kidding?” Lois blinked in surprise, then grinned at last. “Peewee, I could kiss you. No! No I can’t. Cancel that.” She scribbled a quick note, then nodded and looked up to him again. “Anything else?”
 
Peewee shrugged. “Some of the people from upstairs came out, and my attackers ran off. That’s all I saw, but I felt their hatred. They wanted me dead because I wasn’t human. They wanted all aliens dead, and it felt like they were working on doing it. They were organized.”
 
“Organized.” Lois scribbled again. “Perfect. Is there a way I can contact you again if I have follow-up questions?”
 
Pulling a card out of his pocket, he slid it across the table to Lois.
 
She picked it up and and looked at the address and phone number, then read the company name aloud. “P & W Small Exotic Animal Breeder. You’re an animal breeder?”
 
He smiled. “The emotions of animals are simple. They aren’t overpowering like people. I can be around them, touch them, and just share with them and it’s fine. They enjoy my company and are very easily managed. If you’re ever in the market for a bearded dragon or a degu, let me know.”
 
Eyes squinting, Lois leaned forward. “That’s not a real dragon, is it?”
 
“No fire, I promise, and they’re quite small.” His voice sounded like he was smiling. “I’m afraid that’s all I know about the humans who attacked me. Is there anything else?”
 
Picking up her notebook, Lois glanced at it briefly and shook her head as she stood. “Not for now. I think I’m all set. If I have any questions, or need a pet, I’ll call you. I’d shake your hand but… yeah, I’m not shaking your hand.”
 
“Thank you. I prefer it that way.” As she turned to go he added, “Miss Lane, I really am quite sorry.”
 
“I know. We’ll get there.”
 
“Good luck finding your… partner? I’m not sure what the term is here.”
 
Face shifting across many expressions, Lois finally settled on a half-smile. “He’s just a friend. A really good friend.”
 
“Miss Lane—”
 
“Bye!” Lois turned and left hurriedly, making great haste through the bar, into the elevator, through the upper bar, and out into the quickly fading daylight.
 
<><>
 
As she stepped onto the sidewalk in front of the bar, she flipped back through the pages in her notebook, reviewing what she had written last. It had been an interesting encounter to say the least. Or perhaps traumatising was a more appropriate word?
 
Pulling out her burner phone, Lois dialed up a recently used number and the call was answered nearly immediately.

“Good evening, Miss Lane,”

said Alfred Pennyworth in his prim English voice.

“How can I be of assistance?”

“Hey, Alfred. Any chance Bruce is back? I need a favor in Gotham now.”

“I’m afraid not, Miss. May I give him a message?”

Lois sighed. “I… look, I tracked some guys down to one of his businesses. They may have had something to do with Clark going missing. I really need Bruce’s help.”

“Oh, good Lord! Which business?”

Lois flipped through her notebook. “Uh… All I’ve got is Wayne Enterprises, 1437 Merryweather Avenue, Gotham. Does that help?”

“Not off the top of my head, no, Miss,”

Alfred admitted.

“However, I will let Master Wayne know of it when next he surfaces.”

“And when will that be?”

“I’m not certain. I’m sorry, Miss, but this situation at Arkham is quite nasty. I have no way of contacting him or for this I would. You know that.”

“I do.” Lois sighed. “Look, as soon as he checks in you let me know, okay?”

“I shall and Miss Lane?”

Alfred paused.

“Please take care of yourself and be careful whatever it is you’re doing. These are dark times.”

“Tell me about it.” Disconnecting, Lois shoved the phone back into one pocket, the notebook into another, her mood slightly soured but her determination only growing.
 
Still, it looked like Gotham was their next stop. That was clear on the other side of the country. Lois sighed, considering how many hours of driving that would be. Maybe Lena would let her take a turn driving the shiney Bond-mobile and be less of a control-freak than Alex was on the drive to National City.
 
As she lifted her head to cross the street, Lois immediately tensed. On the other sidewalk was a group of teens and young adults. They were wearing matching gang colors and were huddled around in a group near Lena’s car. There were murmurs and loud noises coming from them, some back slapping and the like. Lois looked in the car seeing it empty, Lena not inside and nowhere in sight when the reporter looked up and down the street. Worse yet, when the gang parted for just a moment before closing up again, a familiar splash of a bright burgundy coat was clearly visible in their midst.
 
“Oh, fuck no!” Lois yelled as she launched herself across the street and raced toward the group. “Hey! You get away from her! Leave her alone!” She grabbed the closest person, pulling the much larger young man by the shoulder and yanking him out, only surprise allowing Lois to move the guy. Then she muscled her way toward the middle with her shoulder to arrive within their circle and find Lena.
 
Lena Luthor stood as if holding court. Her stance was regal and her smile enchanting. She held one hand up, bent at the elbow, and twirled her hand around at the wrist. Green eyes sparkled as one of her eyebrows crooked up, her lips quirked with endless amusement. As she spoke, her audience guffawed, slapping each others’ backs and hanging on her every word.
 
Lena gave a small and amused laugh. “Oh, and then there was the time Lex set my hand on fire.”
 
“No fucking way!” One of the gang members said.
 
Lena waggled a finger at the man. “Yes fucking way. I believe I was six. He showed me how to make fire retardant gel. It was something he was making for a science project. I was completely enthralled, so when he asked if I wanted to see how it worked, naturally, I said yes. We coated my hand and set it on fire.” Lena wiggled her fingers in the air. “It worked perfectly.”
 
“Bitch, that bro was nuts!”
 
Lena shrugged. “Well, I see that now. When you’re six and your fifteen-year-old brother suggests something, it seems perfectly natural. The nanny, however, she was scarred for life when Lex called her in and screamed, ‘Lena’s on fire!’ Oh, how she ran out of there screaming and looking for a fire extinguisher. Lex laughed, and laughed, and laughed. Mother did not. Mother strolled into the room, took one look at my burning hand and said, ‘Do you know how hard it is to find a good nanny? Lex put your sister out. And no dessert for either of you’. Then she just strolled out again. I’ve never been quite able to stroll in and out of a room like my mother can. But then again, she is six-feet-tall.”
 
“Was your brother trying to kill you, even back then?” One girl asked.
 
“Lex?” Lena shook her head. “Obviously, Lex had his… troubles, but he was quite kind when he was younger, a sweet boy before he went insane and such. The mad ranting and the murder was totally unexpected. It’s made for many awkward social situations.”
 
“I bet,” one kid replied, a lanky youth who stood a bit formally with his arms in front of him, hands held out as if trouble could come any moment. On his knuckles were tattooed letters. One hand spelled out, “HELL” and the other was, “BENT”. Still smiling and with a bit of a laugh, he leaned forward toward Lena and asked, “What about ya ma? She a tough bitch, right?”
 
“Mother, hmph.” Lena’s head ticked to the side and a smile hit her lips but never touched her eyes. “Well, Mother is a different story altogether. She’s always been… difficult. What Mother lacked in love she made up for in discipline. Given her personality, it shouldn’t have come as any surprise that attempted genocide was in her future.”
 
“Lena?”
 
“Oh, Lois.” The young Luthor’s smile grew into something real. “When did you get here?”
 
“Right around the time I found out Lex has been setting things, and by things I mean

you

, on fire since long before I met him.  It seems we have something in common.” Lois grinned. “Making new friends I see.”
 
“Yes. I met these lovely ladies and gentlemen from The Savage Reapers. We’ve been trading tales of our childhoods. Apparently, we’re not so different.”
 
“Nah, our mamas are way better,” one of the ladies said.
 
“Well, no doubt,” Lena agreed. “Lois, are you all done. Did you have any luck?”
 
“Ah, yeah. We have a long drive ahead of us though. Maybe we should talk in the car?”
 
“Of course.” Nodding to the gang members, Lena said, “Well, I hope I see you all around. It’s been such a pleasure.” Unlocking the car, she slid into place still waving and smiling as people walked away.
 
Lois took her seat, looking at her notebook. She buckled the belt then took up the pad again, flipping frantically through the pages of notes, a broad smile on her face. “You won’t believe what you missed in there, Lena! You should go in with me next time. Here’s what I—”
 
“Are you insane?!”
 
“Huh?” Lois looked up from the notebook at the obviously upset young woman staring at her.
 
“What were you thinking running into that gang? Lois, you could have gotten yourself killed!”
 
“I didn’t even think you’d noticed me.”
 
“Ugh.” With an eye roll and an exaggerated sigh, Lena said, “Of course, I noticed you. I was trying to just keep their attention on me and keep the atmosphere as light as could be. Then you came running into the middle of things like a bull in a china shop—
 
“My specialty,” Lois interjected.
 
“I’ve noticed,” Lena said between gritted teeth as she stared forward, hands gripping the steering wheel until her knuckles turned white. “You barged in and could have gotten yourself killed. What were you thinking?”
 
“That you were in trouble and needed help. You’re welcome, by the way. So, do you want to know what I found out or not?”
 
“You’re unbelievable!”
 
“What? Why?”
 
Lean’s head snapped toward Lois. “I wasn’t thanking you! I was telling you how stupid you were!”
 
Lois rolled her eyes. “I’m an army brat, Princess. You honestly think the General didn’t teach me a thing or three about defending myself?” Lena opened her mouth to protest further, when Lois - who apparently wasn’t finished - continued on. “Besides, what do you know about Klurkor?”
 
“Kla-what?” Lena blinked in confusion.   
 
“Klurkor,” Lois repeated patiently. Then seeing Lena’s confusion hadn’t dissipated, she sighed. “It’s the Kryptonian form of Karate. Makes our form look incredibly primitive.”
 
“And let me guess, you’re an expert in this Kryptonian version?” Lena drawled sarcastically, one eyebrow raised, as she finally pulled out into the road to start them on their journey - even though no one had actually given her a destination.
 
“Well I wouldn’t say I’m an expert as such,” Lois shrugged, going back to her notes again. “But I mean, at a pinch I could
maybe
give a powerless Supergirl a run for her money.”
 
Lena glanced at Lois several times, her mouth opening and closing as if she were about to say something, before, with a shake of her head, she closed her mouth firmly and her gaze focused entirely on the road before her.
 
“You do realize there were ten of them, don’t you?  You can at least count.”
 
Lois scratched at the bridge of her nose. “What’s your point?”
 
“My point is you could have gotten yourself killed. It was just you, you all alone against ten gang members.” Lena sighed heavily. “What in the world were you thinking?”
 
“I wasn’t alone.”
 
With an eye roll that she extended by rolling her entire head on her shoulders, Lena’s sigh was even louder this time as she came to glare at the reporter for long enough that it was likely a road hazard. “Oh, and I suppose you have an entire army battalion in your pocket or some secret Kryptonian force at your disposal? Tell me, Lois, who exactly was going to help you in this situation?”
 
“You,” Lois said plainly.
 
“... what?”
 
Lois pointed back to the road, relaxing a bit when the younger woman’s gaze returned in that direction. “Yeah, I had you, Luthor. You and me, we’re a team. I had your back, and you had mine.” With a small smile, Lois squeezed Lena’s forearm before returning to studying the pages of her notebook.
 
A long silence stretched between them, Lois studying various pages in her notebook, making notes and drawing lines, jotting things down in a shorthand that would mean nothing to anyone else. Lena just drove. Brows creased while she fretted at her lower lip, the Luthor heiress continued steadily forward. She didn’t speak or even glance to her side. Eventually, tension left the younger woman and the silence turned back to comfortable. There was nothing between them but the drumming of the road under their tires, things that had been said, things left unsaid, and a more pressing mission.
 
Finally, clearing her throat, Lena asked, “Alright, fine. Where are we headed then, Miss Reporter?”
 
“Gotham.”
 
Lena’s foot hit the brakes hard, and Lois jerked forward in her seat unexpectedly, then immediately looked up, expecting to see something in the road. When there was nothing immediately obvious, she turned to Lena. “What the hell?”
 
“Gotham?”
 
Lois frowned. “That’s what I just said, wasn’t it?”
 
“Gotham?!”
 
Lois nodded patiently. “Yes. If you’d let me explain what I’d found out in that bar instead of tearing me a new one for trying to save your pretty little Luthor ass, you’d know that we need to go to Gotham to see a certain playboy billionaire.”
 
“... Why?”
 
“Oh, so now you want to know? Well, we’ve got a long enough drive that I can fill you in on the way. Now, we moving again or what? People are staring.”
 
“Unbelievable!” Lena groaned, as she started them off once more. “I am not driving all the way to bloody Gotham.”
 
“Oh, I don’t mind driving,” Lois piped up, a little too eagerly for Lena’s liking.
 
“We’re not driving to Gotham,” she repeated.
 
“But… we’ve got to,” Lois didn’t exactly pout, but it was close.
 
“We’ll go to Gotham, but we’re not driving. Luckily, I happen to have a plane on standby for emergencies.”
 
Lois opened her mouth to say something, then sighed. “You’re not joking about the plane, are you.”
 
“No.”
 
“Is now a good time to tell you I’m on the ‘no fly’ list?”
 
“... Why?”
 
“Something happened once,” Lois shrugged, trying to act nonchalant. “I may have punched a passenger.”
 
Lena’s eyebrow rose slightly. “I presume he deserved it?”
 
“Oh, he did. The air hostess might not have, though.”
 
“The… ? Seriously?” Her brow rose even higher.
 
“Yeah, and the Air Marshal definitely didn’t, but he just sort of got in the way. Anywho, Lois Lane isn’t allowed to fly.”
 
“Lois Lane is a certified nightmare,” Lena couldn’t help but tease, shaking her head in wonder. “Luckily, my plane doesn’t have an Air Marshal, so I think you’ll be fine.”
 
“Well, when you put it that way,” Lois grinned back, settling into her seat. “To Gotham?”
 
“To Gotham.”
 
“Can I drive the Bond-Mobile for a bit?”
 
“No.”
 
“Can I drive it later?”
 
“No.”
 
“Can I drive it ever?”
 
“No.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The ladies arrived on the tarmac some time later, an attendant already waiting to take Lena’s car as they unloaded themselves. Lena grabbed her laptop bag from the backseat and headed toward the plane - a Phenom 300 light jet plane made for travel within the continent.
  
As they approached the short stairs up, Lois paused. “Huh.”
 
“What is it?” Lena asked, turning to look back at the other woman, one foot on the steps.
 
“I was just thinking,” Lois said as she stepped forward past Lena and paused again, this time on the steps, “that this plane is about the same size as the one Martha and I took that crashed near the Fortress of Solitude. I was just thinking—”
 
“Don’t,” Lena said, suddenly bustling by the other woman and heading onto the plane without another word.
 
“Something I said?” When it was clear she’d be left alone to stand on the tarmac if she did nothing else, Lois followed onto the plane.
 
The interior of the plane was whites, cremés, and mahogany woods.  Directly across from the entrance was a loveseat with a pull down armrest in the middle.  To the left of the entrance was a bar and TV set up. Turning left was the cockpit, and right was the aisle and the rest of the seating.  A seat on either side faced another, so four in all, with pull out tables in the middle, and far more comfortable looking and with more legroom than any commercial flight.  Further down were two more seats also facing the front of the plane. The last seat was on the left as one continued down the aisle, facing the same direction as the loveseat, and across from that an entertainment center.  The restroom was in the rear of the plane.
 
Lena had taken a seat by one of the tables, facing forward, and set up her laptop on the table.  Lois considered sitting across from her but decided to instead sit on the opposite side of the plane. Digging through her purse, she came across Kara’s notebook and started flipping through pages from the front looking for clues, but her conscience was catching up to her at last.
 
“I’m sorry if I upset you.”
 
Lena didn’t comment, but her gaze swung to meet Lois’.
 
“Outside. Whatever I said that set you off, I’m sorry. Apparently, I have a bad case of foot in mouth disease. Clark says…” Brows furrowing together, it was Lois’ turn to look away and fold into an awkward silence.
 
“You miss him. Clark. You miss your fiancé.”
 
“Of course. Who wouldn’t? It’s only been a few days, but I love the big idiot. Not that I’m worried. I have no reason to be worried but…” She faltered, not able to finish her thought.
 
“It’s I who should apologize for snapping at you outside. You said nothing wrong. I’m afraid I have a bit of a phobia of flying.”
 
“You can’t have a
bit
of a phobia.”
 
“Fine, then I have a phobia,” Lena allowed. “Statistically speaking, I know flying is the safest way to travel, but I seem to be beating the odds here time and time again.”
 
“Ah. What happened?”
 
“Which time?”
 
“The first time, the formative time?” Lois shrugged. “There had to be something that set you off, so what was it? You were on a plane and something happened and… I mean, if you don’t mind talking about it or...There I go with my foot in mouth disease again. Never mind.”
 
“No, you’re fine,” Lena assured. “It’s nothing my therapist and I haven’t discussed ad-nauseum. I wasn’t on a plane, actually.  I was a child and the plan was that my mother and I, my birth mother I mean, were due to travel somewhere. We were moving but I was up sick the whole night before, feverish and having nightmares. The next morning I couldn’t go, but she still had to leave to make arrangements for our new home, so a friend stayed with me. My mother’s plane made it into the air, but didn’t make it very far from the airport before it exploded.”
 
“Oh, God, Lena, I’m so sorry that-”
 
“I heard it.”
 
“... what?”
 
The copilot came by and brought Lena a drink that Lois hadn’t seen the younger woman order. It was a dark amber, straight up, and three fingers’ width high. When he turned to ask Lois what she wanted, she asked for her usual sweet coffee and turned back to see if Lena would continue.
 
Turning her hand at the wrist, Lena seemed hypnotized by the swirl of the liquid in her glass. She took a deep swallow, perhaps fortified by the beverage as she continued in a slightly richer tone. “We lived less than a mile from the airport. The explosion rocked me away. I looked outside my window, and I could see the fireball in the sky. I didn’t know it was her plane but…” She drank again. “I knew it was her.”
 
Lois swallowed hard. “I’m sorry.”
 
Lena shrugged. “That makes two of us.”
 
“How old were you?”
 
“Four.”
 
“Do you remember her?”
 
“You know what’s odd? I have an eidetic memory. I can vividly recall details with only limited exposure to information, but I don’t remember my mother’s face. I can recall her voice, her singing, her playing the piano or violin, but not what she looked like. I do remember the last thing she said to me though.” Lena stared very intently into Lois’ eyes. “She told me to feel better, and that Libby, that was our neighbor, would watch over me. Then she said she loved me. My mother told me she loved me, and she meant it. I’m certain of that.”
 
Lena spoke with such certainty that Lois nodded and said, “Well then that’s what’s important.” Feeling the tension between them again, Lois asked, “You mentioned your mother singing and playing music. Was she a musician?”
 
“Hmmm, first seat violin. Apparently, she was quite good.”
 
“Do you play?”
 
With a loud and sudden laugh, Lena sloshed back a bit more of her drink. “Oh, God no, much to my adoptive mother’s scandal. My piano teacher said I had the hands for it, but I was much too stiff. It was just one of my many faults. I was a shy child, prefered chess to vocal lessons, and quite stubborn for some reason. No, music was never my thing. Bad memories or good memories to which I would never add perhaps.”
 
Before Lois could respond further, the copilot came back out with her coffee.  He handed it over and asked, “Would you ladies like something to eat? I’m afraid we aren’t stocked for full meals with this sudden need for an immediate departure…” He looked apologetically over at Lena. “But we have danish, croissant, bagels, doughnuts-”
 
“Maple doughnuts?” Lois asked eagerly.
 
His smile was kindly. “Of course.  Miss Luthor?”
 
Lena held up her glass. “Just a refill.”
 
Though his eyebrows rose, he took the glass without further comment and walked away.
 
“I’m just going to dig into some research,” Lois offered up. “Food will be good, though. I don’t think well on an empty stomach. You’ve got to feed a reporter’s stomach.”
 
Lena’s head turned sharply, and she stared at Lois.
 
With an obvious eye-roll, Lois groaned. “Okay, what did I say now?”
 
Lena shook her head, turning away.
 
Sliding into the seat across from the younger woman, Lois pushed Lena’s laptop mostly closed. “Is this about your mom?”
 
With a smile that didn’t touch her eyes, Lena stared out of the plane window. “No, I barely knew her. There’s just something about reporters and doughnuts, isn’t there?”
 
“I…” Lois frowned thoughtfully then shrugged. “Yeah, I guess.”
 
Three beats later, Lena added, “Kara loves the things.”
 
“Oh. So does… Clark.” Lois’ voice fell off and her eyes fell to her hands on the table. Tears burned in the back of her eyes, threatening to spill out, her walls still weak from the encounter within the bar. A hand covered hers, making her stiffen slightly but then grab hold of it like a lifeline as she felt grounded. When Lois looked up, Lena was still staring out the window.
 
“How old were you when she passed?”
 
“What? Who?” Lois asked, blinking in confusion as she tried to sort her way out of the swell of emotions.
 
“Your mother,” Lena clarified still not making eye contact but proving a physical connection with the reporter. “You’ve said a little bit about your father, but all you said about your mother was that you lost her. If you don’t want to talk about it…” Lena shrugged, the motion clearly stating there was no pressure.
 
Lois was sorely tempted to agree that indeed, she didn’t want to talk about it. But then considering that Lena had just opened up about her own mother, it would have been incredibly rude and disrespectful for Lois not to return the same gesture in kind. No matter how much it pained her. So, she took a deep breath, considering.
 
“It’s funny how your memories can screw with reality,” she said eventually, by way of an answer. “I mean, in my mind I was five, maybe six. In reality, according to my dad, and the dates and, you know, all the stuff you can’t actually argue with - I was ten.”
 
When she glanced up, Lena was no longer looking out of the window. Instead she was looking back to the older woman, a sympathetic look in her eyes. This was a woman who at least shared Lois’ grief over the loss of a loved one at an early age. At least Lena would know exactly what Lois had gone through, having been through it herself. And it had been too long since Lois had opened up to anyone about it, anyway. Maybe it was time.
 
“She had cancer. Fought it for years, but spent the last five weeks of her life in hospital. My dad was so sure she’d come home again. That she’d make it through and beat it. But…. she didn’t. She couldn’t. It was too aggressive.”
 
There was another long pause, as Lois glanced to her fingernails, willing herself to continue. “I never went to see her in the hospital. For years I blamed myself. I didn’t go to say goodbye. What kind of a child doesn’t go to say goodbye to their sick mother?”
 
“A scared one?  A child?” Lena offered gently. Lois didn’t look up, but nodded.
 
“Turns out it hadn’t been my choice not to go see her. That was yet another trick of my mind. Another memory recalled incorrectly. A few years ago, I found a box that Mom had left for me. It had a load of things in it that she’d left for me and a note on the lid that said I’d open it when the time was right. It had been sitting in the back of my closet for years - I’d actually forgotten about it. And then when Clark and I got engaged and moved in together, I found it as I was packing up my other stuff. All those years I’d been putting it off, but finally, I summoned up the courage and opened it. There were all sorts of things inside - a blue crystal bird called Old Blue that used to sit on Mom’s windowsill in the kitchen. Cards for birthdays that she’d known she was gonna miss. Even a wedding card. Somehow, even in her last few weeks, she’d managed to pretty much think of everything I could possibly want or need, and put it in that box. There were video tapes as well. Tapes she’d made when she was in the hospital.”
 
Lois paused again, her voice catching on the lump that had welled in her throat. Tears stung the corners of her eyes, but they didn’t fall. Not yet.
 
“In the video, she explained that she was the one who had asked that Lucy and I weren’t brought to visit her. I think she was afraid that she’d look weak. And she didn’t want us to see her that way. She was afraid that she’d failed us by leaving us. But you want to know the worst thing? She never failed us. How could she have? If anything, she is the bravest person I know. She’s the bravest person I’ll ever know. And given the company I keep, that’s saying something.” She allowed herself a slight smile then, at that. Lena’s hand, which had been holding Lois’ the entire time, gave a comforting squeeze, and Lois’ smile turned into something much more real and genuine then.
 
There were a few moments of silence that stretched between them, and then Lena cleared her throat. With just a hint of a smile on her lips she said, “You know, Lois, I’ve just known you this last day, and I never had the honor to meet your mother. The way you describe her though, her bravery…” Lena squeezed the reporter’s hand again. “Well, I can’t help but feel I’ve gotten to meet a little bit of her in you this day.”
 
“Thank you,” Lois smiled as finally a single tear slid free. She palmed it away quickly, battling to control her emotions as she sniffed, taking a deep breath. “She… uh…. she’d have liked you. I know she would.”
 
Lena’s laugh was small but explosive, a quick output of breath that seemed inappropriate for the moment. “Forgive me, but that isn’t the usual sort of thing people say about me and their mother. Even my own mother… well, you know.”
 
“Yeah, I hear she’s a real bitch,” Lois couldn’t resist, managing her more usual mischievous grin.
 
“For someone who’s never met her, you’re an excellent judge of character, Miss Lane.”  Lena squeezed Lois hand once more before pulling back her own. “For what it’s worth, though, I do wish I’d had the opportunity to meet your mother, for my own sake as well as yours. I’m sure my life would have been enriched for it.”

“Well, it’s not too late,” Lois chuckled. “I mean, my real mother is gone, but there’s still Mrs K. She’s the closest thing to a mother I have now and, well…. she’s awesome actually. You’d love her.”
 
As the copilot came back with a plate with a doughnut on it and Lena’s drink, the CEO nodded and noncommittally replied, “I’ll keep that in mind.”
 
“No really, you should meet her. She’s a remarkable woman. I’m sure she’d adopt you in a heartbeat. She took me in, took me under her wing, even before Clark and I were ever a ‘thing’. I stayed with the Kents on their farm during Spring Break, and I was so welcome there, she really made me feel a part of the family.”
 
Looking at her drink in her hand, Lena pursed her lips. “Lois…” The CEO began and stopped as if not sure what to say, and perhaps she wasn’t. Lifting her eyes, she met the reporters gaze and spoke with more assurance. “Lois, you’re a lovely person. Even with whatever transpired between you and my brother, you’ve been nothing but kind to me. I don’t understand it, but I appreciate it, especially from a reporter. Honestly, though, in the real world, not everyone is as… open minded as you. People meet me and see a Luthor first, and, if I’m lucky, they see Lena second. Most of the time, they never even make it to me.” Lois tried to speak but Lena hurried to finish her thoughts. “I’m sure Mrs. Kent is a lovely woman. To have you speak so highly of her, she must be a gem, but I’m still me. You understand that, don’t you?”
 
“Alright, fine. Would it make you feel any better if I told you that I was one of those people you speak of? Seeing the Luthor first and to hell with the rest. But then you know what happened? Clark came home, and he showed me the article he’d written about you. And you know what? That was good enough for me. So what if you’re a Luthor. You’re not your brother, and you’ve proved that. Time and time again.”
 
“Would it make me feel any better to know that you thought of me as everyone else does?” Lena held up her hand. “No, that’s unfair. I thought of you as just another reporter before I got to know you. I do the same thing. I suppose, we’re all guilty of our prejudices. I’m just tired of living under a microscope.” She rubbed at her temples before dropping her hand back to the table. “What I wouldn’t pay for a little anonymity.”
 
Lois studied Lena for a moment, her head tilting sideways as she considered. “Ever thought about going blonde? I think you’d suit being blonde.”
 
Elbow on the table, one hand held palm up, confusion colored Lena’s face as she shrugged. “So I can have more fun?”
 
“I can guarantee that if you dyed your hair blonde and walked past someone in the street, they wouldn’t look twice. If they were out looking for Lena Luthor, the raven haired beauty, and a blonde walked past them? Nah, couldn’t possibly be her because she’s blonde. They wouldn’t even give you the time of day. Trust me.” She tapped the side of her head for emphasis. “I used to be blonde, so I should know.” Then she considered. “Well… I say blonde… was more of a dirty blonde. Or a light brown, I guess. But still, the point stands.”
 
Lena swirled her glass again before taking a sip, it being her chance to study the reporter. “Lois, may I confide something in you?”
 
Lois sat forward eagerly. “Is this on the record or off?”
 
“Good Lord!” Lena startled.  “Is this whole conversation on the record?  Has this whole day been on the record!?”
 
Lois held her gaze for exactly 0.325 seconds before she cracked and laughed. “Look at your face! I was joking, Princess. Of course we’re off the record. Hell, if you want the truth, we’ve never been on the record since we met. I told you, I’m only interested in finding the Supers, not writing a story. I know, I know,” she nodded sagely. “It’s hard to believe. But hand on heart, I’m telling the truth, Your Honor.” She placed a hand to her chest, for emphasis.
 
Lena slumped in her seat, her face falling forward until her forehead rested in her hand. She mumbled something under her breath before she sat back and lifted her head, hand held high. “Bring me another drink and make this one a double! Thanks to you, Miss Lane, I’ll barely be able to walk by the time we get to Gotham.” She sat up again, straightening her blouse likely by habit. “Well,
off the record
, I wanted to say that I have thought, on more than one occasion, what it would be like to just cash out my golden parachute and take off to parts unknown. You know, go someplace where people don’t know the Luthor name. Hell, I could even get a legal name change. You need a reason, but I suspect the fact that my last name is Luthor is reason enough. I’m only in National City to try and salvage the family business, but what do I really owe my family? I mean, the only other thing that…” Lena glanced to the right at the other table and said, “You should eat your doughnut before it gets stale and your coffee before it gets cold. Would you like a fresh one?”
 
“A fresh what?” Lois blinked, glancing to the right as well. “Wait, the only other thing keeping you in National City is the doughnuts? Are they really that good? And if you’re that dead set on changing your name, why not get married? You wouldn’t need a reason to change it then.” She reached across to the other table, grabbed the doughnut and bit into it. “Oh, and if you did wanna cash out, I’m sure there are people out there who would love a bit of extra cash.” She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. “By that, I mean you could chuck some my way.”
 
Looking down and away with a shy expression, Lena smiled. “Yes, it’s definitely the doughnuts.” Smiling up at the reporter she said, “Well, if I ever need to hide a spare million or two away somewhere, I’ll keep the underside of your mattress in mind. Though it might make it a bit lumpy.”
 
“Pfft, it wouldn’t be there long enough,” Lois smirked. “It would have gone up in a puff of smoke. Literally. I’d buy a really, REALLY big fireworks display and just stand there and watch it all with a bucket of popcorn and a bottle of beer.”
 
“Fireworks, really? You have a mattress full of money, and that’s the dream?”
 
“Uh huh,” Lois nodded sincerely. “Was one of my better memories from my childhood. After Mom died, Dad ended up dragging my sister and I wherever he was reassigned to. A new barracks or whatever. Sometimes the guys there would let us go watch the shooting ranges, or fire practice and you know, all the stuff that makes really loud bangs. New Years Eve they’d set off a load of flares and grenades and make up a little mini display for us. It wasn’t proper fireworks, but it was as close as. I’d love, just once, to see the real things though.”
 
“Hmmm. Well, I hope you get that fireworks display then, Lois. I can say I’ve seen my fair share of them and giant Christmas trees and the like. We’d stand around smiling for the cameras. There were always cameras. My best memories were Lex dragging me away when Mother and Father weren’t watching so we could go do something less formal. I realize your dealings with Lex were less than spectacular, but he really was a wonderful brother… until he wasn’t.”
 
“Lucy was kind of the opposite,” Lois shrugged. “She was a real pain in the ass when we were kids. Still is really, but I don’t see her that much these days so it makes it more bearable. Well, I don’t see her at all, so it kind of worked out perfectly really.” She knew she sounded bitchy, but she just couldn’t help it. Her relationship with her sister was just as complex as her relationship with her father. Just as turbulent. So Lois was doing what she did best in those kinds of situations.
 
She was avoiding them.
 
“Anywho, we’re not flying all the way to Gotham, just to bitch about our siblings, so uh…. yeah. I should probably get back to some work.” Sensing that the mood was dropping again, thanks to her bitterness, Lois slid back to her seat and picked up her coffee, testing it to find that it was still tolerably warm. With a quick glance at Lena, she pulled out Kara’s notebook and began to leaf through it again. It was written in shorthand, the same thing both she and Clark used for their notes. A collection of curved and straight lines with circles and dots, it would be gibberish to everyone but reporters and perhaps secretaries. There were some notes written in English in the margins, and quite a few doodles and smiley faces too. The whole thing was very Sunny Danvers.
 
“New notebook?”
 
“Hmmm?” Lois looked over at Lena when the other woman spoke.
 
“That’s not the one you were writing in before, so I asked if it was a new notebook.”
 
“Oh, this?” Smiling, Lois leaned across the aisle. “Actually, I guess this is yours. I swiped it from one of your reporters, Kara Danvers, when I was digging through her desk. I had hopes it might give us a lead as to what Supergirl was up to since Kara is Supergirl’s reporter.”
 
“That’s Kara’s?” Lena asked turning in her seat and leaning across the aisle. “Does it give you a hint as to where she may have gone?”
 
“Kara?”
 
“Supergirl. Kara is with her mother, right?”
 
“Right. I mean, that’s what you said. I don’t know where Kara is. Kara who?” Lois smiled a bit sickly. “Anywho, I don’t have any leads yet, but I’ve just started looking through this. Seems like she was looking into some issues between aliens and humans in National City after the invasion.”
 
“
I recall a story she wrote. Supergirl was quite vocal in that, trying to calm the humans and remind them that one group of aliens is not all aliens. Is there a possible lead there?”
 
“Not sure yet. Look, right here it talks about some troublemakers that are going around stirring up folks who have already lost their homes. I’m going to see if she puts any names to those folks.”
 
“What are those scribbles.  Is that...?” Lena stared blankly at the page for several seconds before meeting Lois’ gaze. “Is that an alien language?”
 
“It’s shorthand.”
 
“You’re making that up.  It’s just squiggles and dots.”
 
“Right. Shorthand.”
 
Green eyes narrowed. “There’s no way that’s a language from Earth. Those are just doodles, aren’t they?”
 
“We have an entire computer language that’s just zeros and ones and you question this?”
 
“Well, that’s different. Binary—”
 
“Go, go—”  Lois waved Lena back toward her laptop.  “Go do your millionaire work. Let me do my reporting.”
 
Sliding into her seat and turning around, Lena mumbled under her breath, “Billionaire… and I still don’t think that’s a real language.”
 
Ignoring whatever Lena was muttering under her breath, Lois took a careful sip of her coffee and kept reading. She made it through two stories worth of notes before coming to one that was quite recent and, although unlikely to have anything to do with Supergirl’s disappearance, it did draw in the reporter’s attention. The subject of this story was also on the plane.
 
Purchase of Catco

Miss Grant put her shares in a blind trust when she became press secretary.
Expected sale to Edge Enterprises = Edge has been quietly buying up shares until he’s able to then make a ‘tender’ offer to the majority shareholders.
Lena has invested in Edge’s portfolio

Morgan Edge… <little drawing of a pitchfork>

Lois snickered to herself, “Okay, that seems like a rather Earth centric reference coming from Kara.”
 
Lena quote: I hate that sentient bottle of cheap cologne
 
Rubbing at her mouth, Lois muttered into her hand, “Oh Kara, tell me you didn’t print that!”
 
Lena quote on buying CatCo: Just trying, in my own small way, to be more like Supergirl.
 
Lois’ gaze wandered over to the woman in the next seat who was tapping away on the keys of her laptop.

Long list of past legal actions against Edge that have been settled out of court and ongoing legal cases that are still pending (sketch of Edge with a goatee and horns)

Lois snickered. “I’m seeing a theme here, Miss Sunny Danvers.”
 
Sale was halted when Lena Luthor stepped in and purchased it 💖💖💖
 
Mouth pressed into a little circle, Lois’ eyes widened and a smile came to her face.“Hello, what do we have here?  Triple hearts from Miss Kara Danvers? Interesting.”
 
Lena has since stepped in as new CEO of Catco Worldwide Media. She has years of knowledge of working as a CEO, and working with the press, at her disposal.
Include Lena’s resume, philanthropic enterprises, charitable endeavors/donations, Luthor Children’s Hospital, Luthor Women’s Shelter, Luthor Animal Shelter (‘No Kill’ written in the margin with a huge smiley face 😻).
 
Questions:

Q: Miss Luthor, why did you purchase Catco?

A: I’d think the answer would be obvious, Miss Danvers. Certain forces were making a bid for control. The press, without a free voice, is a dangerous tool.

Q: So your goal is to keep Catco a free and unbiased media company?

A: Absolutely. The public needs to be able to trust us to deliver the truth, not our version of the truth. I’ll be trusting my experienced journalists (Lena points at me) to keep me on track here.

<in the margins it’s written: Do her eyes actually get greener when she smiles?>

Q: What do you say to your critics that say a Luthor is just buying the press?

A: My critics have always accused me of influencing the press. The truth hasn’t won them over yet, so I don’t suppose it will now. No, I purchased a media company. That doesn’t mean I purchased good press. My job as CEO is to make sure that Catco is profitable and ethical. I’m here to support my staff. I’m not here to give preferential treatment to L-Corp. If L-Corp wants good press…(Lena leaned back, her arms crossed.)

Q: It will have to earn it?

A: Indeed, Miss Danvers.

Q: To verify, what was the purchase price of Catco?

A: $750 million dollars.
 
“Holy fuck!”
 
Lena pulled out her earbuds. “Are you all right, Lois?”
 
“ Ah… yeah,” Lois held up her coffee cup. “I just uh… burnt my tongue. I’m good.” Mumbling, “I’m also inviting you to my wedding and updating my wedding registry, Mommy Warbucks, but I’m good.”
 
Nodding, Lena went back to her laptop.
 
Q: That was made with L-Corp funds.

A: Certainly not. That was made with my personal resources. There is absolutely no connection between Catco and L-Corp.

Q: Except for you.

A: Yes.. .that’s fair. I do serve the position of CEO on both companies. Financially, there is no connection except that I have a vested interest in both. That’s fair to say.

<written in the margin: She’s soooo honest!!!>

Q: How do you hope to mitigate any possible conflict of interests?

A: I won’t have any oversight on technology based company articles, not just L-Corp but any technology based companies, except for providing my technological expertise. I am one of the leading mechanical engineers, aerospace engineers, computer engineers, environmental engineer, software engineer…(

That’s a lot of engineering… more than I knew existed

)

Q: Can I just write engineer?

A: They’re all very different.

<Oh, Rao. She looks like she’s in pain, but it’s cute.>

Yes, I suppose.
Q: So, Miss Luthor <so weird calling her Miss Luthor, but she’s my boss, yeah!> you won’t have any oversight except for technical critiques on any technology company not just L-Corp? Does that include Edge Enterprises?
A: Absolutely.

Q: Why?

A: It’s simple. Had I not purchased Catco, and had some other CEO of a technology firm, let’s say Morgan Edge for example, purchased it, I would hope they would afford me the same professional courtesy. I would hate to think Mr. Edge would be deciding what spin to put on my products when press about them went out or what about me personally was printed. No, that’s not free press. My reporters can come to me with questions about technical content, and I’ll be that resource, but anything else goes to an editor, and I’ll have no say.

<In the margin: Why can’t everybody see just how

good

she is?>

Q: How are you splitting your time between Catco and L-Corp?

A: Great question, Miss Danvers.

<Look at the way her nose crinkles when she smiles. It’s adorable.>

I’ve hired a new CFO who is fabulous. I can’t wait for you to meet her. You and she will get along fabulously. She has a Masters in accounting and a degree in business, and she will be handling not just the financial side of things but negotiating contracts while I get up to speed at Catco.

Q: You’re trusting someone new with that level of responsibility?

A: Not just anyone. I’ve known this woman for years. She’s a National City local, a single mom, absolutely brilliant, and was being completely underpaid where she was. It’s the problem with being a woman in a man’s world. You have to be twice as smart and work twice as hard to get half as much… and demand it. Luckily, that isn’t hard for many of us, present company included.

Q: Maybe I should hit up my boss for a raise.

A: Touché, Miss Danvers.

<in the margins: Rao, that laugh>

Q: So, anything you can tell our readers about this new CFO at L-Corp? Care to give us a sneak peek?

Jess came in and interrupted us at this point (speaking of women in power in National City who are going places) and reminded Miss Luthor that she had another meeting in less than five minutes and needed to prep. I thanked Miss Luthor for her time, and we made arrangements to speak again soon

<actually, we made a dinner date, potstickers and Lena, yeah!>

Lois smirked. “Well, I’ve never written any notes about Perry’s nose crinkling adorably, or him being sooooo good. He also doesn’t have the greenest eyes or the bluest or whatever. I think we might have a little bit of a crush here, and that’s interesting.” Glancing over at Lena, she added, “I wonder if it’s mutual? I bet a good reporter can find out.”
 
She carried on reading a little bit more to find there were several other notes and outlines, plus a few more Q and A sessions between Kara and Lena.
 
Q: Miss Luthor, you were recently accused of being responsible for the rash of illness that ran through several local children, many of whom ended up in Luthor Children’s Hospital, a hospital built mainly from your generous donations. That must have been a stagger accusation.
 
A: (Lena ducks her head here, laughs slightly, and there’s a bit of a smile when she looks up. I’ve seen that smile before, and it only goes as far as her mouth. It never touches her eyes. That’s pain. She smiles like that when she’s talking about her mother or her brother. It’s not humor. It’s not reminiscing. It’s a distraction. It’s probably the least honest thing about her, and I have to wonder right now if she’s trying to lie to me or herself when she acts like she’s all right, acts like she wasn’t falling apart when she thought she might have hurt children, might have been the person, the Luthor, so many ignorant people have accused her of being for most of her life. It’s odd to see someone who you know is trying to lie to you about something, about anything, in an interview, and just think, ‘She is such a good person.’)

(Lena comes back from her bar with a glass of water in hand. I refused one.) Staggering, well, yes, that’s a word. Naturally, I was quite upset, but I’m a scientist. I went about trying to prove what actually happened as the original incident that created the lead in the air was somewhat… rushed.
 
Q: The Daxamite invasion.
 
A: Yes. (I wait Lena out.) I built a lead dispersal unit that spread lead in the atmosphere. My original calculations said that 99.96% of the lead molecules released would bond to Daxamite genes leaving a negligible amount in our atmosphere.However, that was literally me and the calculator on my phone. The city was in disarray. We were being invaded, and I had no time and no laboratory to do a controlled study.
 
Q: It sounds less than ideal.
 
It was the worst conditions under which I’ve ever worked, and I’ve actually worked out of a garage trying to cure cancer, so I have a fairly broad range with which to compare. At any rate, a colleague ran a controlled study after the children began to get ill. He found that only 89.79% of the lead molecules released would bond to Daxamite genes leaving a much larger, and therefore possibly dangerous level of lead remaining in the atmosphere.
 
Q: But the device wasn’t the cause, and the level of lead in the atmosphere is safe.
 
A: Oh, God, yes. We’ve run extensive scans to look for the presence of lead in the atmosphere. We started in National City and took into account weather patterns starting from the day of the invasion. The atmosphere, the soil, the drinking water… well, we have found some unsafe drinking water, but based on the residents who volunteered their blood samples, that issue was around longer than the end of the invasion, and those people are now being treated as is their drinking water.
 
Q: So, you’ve found other people needing help due to the invasion, and you’re helping them.
 
A: I… suppose. L-Corp has many philanthropic goals. We have one of the better water filtration systems on the planet generally meant for third world use, but apparently, it’s needed closer to home too. I don’t know if I’d call this a silver lining, but we’re happy we can help.

<In the margin: She’s so humble too. Just ‘Yeah, we found people who are drinking lead and getting poisoned. Has nothing to do with us, but we’re going to save their lives. Next question.’ Maybe I should ask her about cloning because I need more of her. I mean, the world needs more of her>

Q: Do you remember where you were when you found out about the children getting sick?
 
A: I’ll never forget. I was in Mr. Olsen’s, office at Catco.  He and I were discussing some advertising I had just approved, and you walked in to ask one of us… something. I don’t know what because you pointed to the screen behind Mr. Olsen’s desk, and we turned up the sound. Morgan Edge was in Luthor Children’s Hospital.
 
Q: What did Mr. Edge say?
 
A: Among other things, he said there were children sick with lead poisoning, and then he said, “Lena Luthor built the bomb that poisoned these children.”
 
Q: But you didn’t.
 
A: I did not.
 
Q: That sounds slanderous.
 
A: It was untrue and spoken on national television. It was followed by a direct fall in stocks of both my companies as well as one of my employees getting shot when he jumped between me and a woman - a mother with a sick child and a gun at a press conference. We’ll let the lawyers and courts sort out whether or not it was slander, and if so, what sort of monetary recompense the injured parties are owed.
 
Q: You mentioned the press conference.  Why were you holding this press conference? Did you have an update on the cause of the poisoning or a possible cure?
 
A: I wish. At the time, I was the CEO of both L-Corp and Catco, but because of this unfounded and as we see now untrue accusation, I stepped down from my positions at both companies.
 
Q: Why?
 
A: It’s fairly obvious, I would think. I was being accused of poisoning children, of being the person responsible for making the dispersal unit responsible for making them sick. I couldn’t then turn around and be the person in charge of deciding what news did and did not go out on that. The public has to trust in the integrity of the news, and that’s much more important than any one person. Likewise, I couldn’t be involved in the research into the cure. People could have perceived me as manipulating data or even as someone who was profiting from the sick when a cure was found. All that mattered was the children’s wellbeing, and that the public understood we were all working together toward that goal and finding out what happened to them. My feelings, my reputation, even my companies needed to be put aside when the wellbeing of the public is at stake, especially children. <

in the margins:

especially children!!!

She’ll be such a great mom one day.

>
 
“Oh, good lord,” Lois rolled her eyes and groaned. “Kara, you and your notes on Lena need to get a room. I feel like I need to read these articles and see how this crush developed into an actual piece of
unbiased
journalism.” Lois glanced over at Lena who was still typing fast away. “Though Miss Luthor does seem pretty great so far. Maybe you could just +1 your wedding RSVP, Kara.”
 
Q: In the end it turned out to be an ex-employee of Mr. Edge’s who was poisoning a local pool and the children. Isn’t that ironic?
 
A: (Lena tilts her head at me here, one of her knowing smiles as she holds up just her left eyebrow. <

In the margin: What is up with that eyebrow thing? Rao, help me.

> Well, I don’t know that I’d call it irony, but it certainly is interesting. Imagine accusing someone else of a crime and instead it’s someone you know, a stranger to this other person with no axe to grind with this third party at all, who ends up being to blame. What are the odds of that?
 
Q: I don’t know.
 
A: Want me to do the math for you? <In the margin: She’s doing the eyebrow thing again!!!>
 
Q: I think I’m good. So, you ended up in a plane filled with chemicals, one operated by a drone that was being sent to crash into the reservoir and poison the water supply. You got off an SOS before someone cut your radio. Supergirl heard and showed up to stop the plane. She broke it mid-flight. One half had the chemicals, and you ended up in the other half. She told you she couldn’t hold both halves, so you told her to drop you, to let you die, and to save the chemicals. You were willing to die to keep the water supply from getting contaminated
.
 
A: How do you know that?
 
Q: <

There’s a doodle here, of the Supergirl symbol, one that goes deep enough it goes into and through the page behind it and to the third page

.> Supergirl told me. I told her I was interviewing you so she <

another doodle of the Super symbol

> told me about what happened on the plane. She said she convinced you to climb up and save yourself, but it was hard up there especially as you had a head injury. She was almost in the position of having to decide between dropping you or the chemicals.
 
A: Well, she would have let me drop.
 
Q: I guess we’ll never know what she would have done.
 
A: Kara, give Supergirl a message for me. You tell that if it’s ever between me and someone else’s life, and this means her life too, she’s to let me go. I’m not worth dying for, and I wouldn’t want to live with that.
 
Q: Maybe she feels the same way.
 
A: Maybe she’ll do a lot more good, save a lot more lives, than I ever will.
 
Q: Maybe that number is subjective based on what you can create and achieve in your lifetime and what your legacy will mean, Miss Luthor.
 
A: Maybe this Luthor doesn’t want to bring any more death to this world especially the death of a Super. That can’t be my legacy.
 
Q: Maybe if it’s that Super’s choice, you’re worth dying for.

I didn’t tell her this though. Instead I thanked Miss Luthor for her time and ended the interview.
 
“And that ended interestingly and abruptly.  I bet there was a bit of private discussion left out of this thing.  Let’s see what else this notebook has to tell us.”
 
As Lois finished with the notebook, which was less than halfway used, she gave it a quick flip through just to check she hadn’t missed anything and came across some sketches at the back.  It was a quick reminder that Kara had an art degree. There was Morgan’s company’s symbol, some sort of chemical company, several of the House of El (“Subtle much Supergirl?”) but then there was a section that was just picture after picture of the new Catco CEO. It was Lena leaning back on a desk and seemingly talking to an employee, Lena sitting at a table with a driven and determined look on her face no doubt discussing business, Lena looking down at a desk and signing some paperwork, Lena standing in profile in front of the balcony at what had been Cat’s office with her tablet in hand and studying the electronic device, Lena with head tilted to the side and an amused and relaxed expression on her face as her hair hung loosely over her shoulder.
 
Lois couldn’t contain a small gasp, her heart rate picking up as a broad smile broke out on her face. "Whoa, we've struck gold here, people!"
 
Again, Lena pulled out her earbuds and turned her attention over to the reporter.  “I’m sorry, Lois. I can barely hear a thing with these on which is usually the point for flights.  They’re noise cancelling, and the more I can do to be unaware of my surroundings…” Lena gave a tight smile. “What did you say?”
 
Lois studied Lena for several moments. "Miss Luthor, do you sketch?"
 
"Do I what?"
 
"You know, do you draw, pencil and paper and the like?” Lois held her hand up feigning drawing something out. “Do you make any drawings of say… people or persons?"
 
Lena’s furrowed brows relaxed, and a slow smile spread across her face. "Why, Miss Lane, are you asking to look at my etchings?"
 
Smiling back, Lois leaned forward on the armrest of her chair. “Why, Miss Luthor, do you ask all reporters that question?”
 
Lena let out a quick, sharp laugh. “Only you, Miss Lane, only you.”
 
“Makes sense,” Lois said as she turned her attention back to the notebook in hand, “seeing as I am one of a kind.”
 
Lena turned back to her laptop, putting her earbuds back in. “The jury is still out as to whether or not that’s a good thing.”
 
Lois smiled as Lena went back to work. The reporter began leafing through the pages of Kara’s notebook again. There were other interviews as well, none with Lena, but in these other interviews were follow up notes with Jimmy and often Lena.
 
“Oh, what have we here?” Lois smiled as she saw more and more adorable scribblings vaguely referencing the interviews but telling more about Kara, and about Kara’s thoughts about Lena. “Awww that's cute… any more?” Her reporter brain near rabid as she hunted down these clues, Lois frantically leafed through, getting more and more excited the more she’d found.  By the time she’d gotten to the last entry in the notebook, though there was not ‘LL & KD (or KZ for that matter) 4EVER’ surrounded by a heart noted anywhere, Lois wouldn’t have been surprised if she’d found one. Maybe she just needed the latest edition.
 
Instead, Lois turned her attention to the magazine selection near her. Though many were scientific journals, others were issues of Catco. Lois grabbed those and thumbed through them until she found anything penned by Kara with the subject being Lena. Although Lois had already read Kara’s articles as a supporter of her fiancé’s cousin, she’d now be looking at things with fresh eyes.  She was seven articles in when she put the magazine down, the article unfinished, and pressed a finger and thumb onto her eyelids. She’d gone cross-eyed tired and wasn’t finding anything in the articles that was unprofessional. Either Kara was excellent at compartmentalizing, or her editor did their job. Maybe it was both.
 
Not long afterwards, the copilot came back to let them know they’d be landing in Gotham in just about fifteen minutes.  He gave them an update on the chilly weather, compared to National City, and checked again to make sure they had all they needed.  True to his word, about fifteen minutes later they’d landed on the tarmac and taxied to a stop outside of a small hanger.
 
Packing up her laptop, Lena rose. “Ready?”
 
“Uh, yeah.” Lois craned her head around, trying to see where they’d be going, but the plane didn’t move at all. “This is it?”
 
With a smile over her shoulder, Lena said, “Welcome to Gotham.”
 
Lois grimaced. No one ever said that sincerely.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The flight landed in Gotham approximately five hours after its departure time.  Adding in the three hour time difference going from the west coast to the east coast of the United States, and it was eight hours later when the ladies landed than when they took off.  The plane taxied along the runway and came to a stop near a hanger on the tarmac, and a staircase was brought out to the plane so that Lois and Lena could unboard directly to their car which was being brought around.  
 
As they made their way off the stairs, Lois said, “You know, a girl could get used to this kind of door-to-door service.”
 
Glancing over her shoulder, Lena asked, “As opposed to?”
 
“You know.” Lois shrugged. “You pull up at the gate, wait for them to hook up that big tube thingy-mc-jingy to the door. You wait for the captain to thank everyone for flying with them and tell you the temperature in the city or whatever. Then first class passengers unload first.  If anyone is in a wheelchair, they go next. Then all us sardines make a mad scramble for our overhead luggage and beat each other, rather politely, about the head and shoulders while we make our way to the gate in a very confined free-for-all.”
 
One hand on the railing of the staircase, Lena stopped with a foot on the tarmac and the other on the last stair.  Brows furrowed, she stared at Lois in obvious confusion.
 
After a few seconds of locked gazes, Lois leaned a bit closer and said, “You know, like when you travel commercial?”
 
Several blinks later, Lena said, “Well, actually I’ve never
—
”
 
“Just move, Luthor, move.” Lois hurried the other woman ahead with two flapping hands. “This wind is whipping through me something fierce. I’m dressed for sitting on the porch of the Kent farm in daylight, not standing on the tarmac in Gotham at nearly midnight. Let’s get into a vehicle before anything freezes off that both Clark and I will miss.”
 
They’d only made it a few feet from the staircase when the low thrum of an engine drew both of their attention.  A white F-Type Jaguar coupe pulled up and stopped directly in front of them. It was impossible to say what caused the noise of unadulterated glee to break free from Lois’ lips.  It could have been the sound of the V6 supercharged engine. It could have been the tires with 20-inch rims, five-spoke carbon fiber, and satin dark gray diamond turned finish. It could have been the spoiler on the back. Perhaps it was the full panoramic view roof giving a view from front windshield, along either side, across the roof, and down the back without break. Likely it was just the entire raw beauty and power of the machine pulling up in front of them, stopping, and being turned over for their use.
 
Lois hurried up to the valet as he climbed out of the driver’s seat, clicking her fingers impatiently at him. When he looked at her in confusion, she huffed. “Keys!”
 
“They’re inside, ma’am.”
 
“They’re… hang on, wait, you called me ma’am? That’s a new one,” Lois blinked, caught off guard. “I’ve been called many things in my life, but never ma’am.”
 
As Lois was contemplating this, Lena stepped forward, intending to climb into the driver’s seat, and this snapped Lois from her reverie. “Oh come on, that’s not fair! You drove the Bond car earlier! It’s my turn now!”
 
"You're not on the rental agreement."
 
Lois blinked again, confused. "So?"
 
"No."
 
“But
—
”
 
“No.”
 
"Is that your favorite word?"
 
"Yes."  
 
“Leeeeeenaaaaa!”
 
“Just get in the car, Lois!”
 
Muttering and grumbling several colorful and unrepeatable words of frustration under her breath, Lois stormed round the car, threw open the passenger door and flopped into the seat, with a barely disguised pout.
 
The young man who had driven the car round for them held out his hand, and Lena gracefully slid her laptop bag down her arm and to him. “Backseat on the floor, please.”
 
“Yes, Miss Luthor,” he replied pushing the driver’s seat forward and carefully placing the bag flat on the floor. As he pushed the seat back, he moved from her way so she could slide into the driver’s side. “Your rental agreement and the hotel reservation have both been sent to your phone as requested. Directions to The Seasons Hotel have been sent to your phone and entered into the car’s GPS. This time of night, the fastest route is I-278. You should get there anywhere between twenty and thirty five minutes from now. Traffic in the city can be a bit unpredictable. The hotel staff has been alerted to your arrival and will be on standby. Your usual suite has been prepared.”
 
“Perfect. Is there anything else I should know?”
 
“No ma’am. Uh, do you have any luggage?” He looked back toward the plane.
 
“No, we’re traveling light.”
 
“I see. Is there anything else we can do for you this evening?”
 
“Close the door, Luthor, I’m freezing!”
 
Lena lifted an eyebrow. “That will be all, thank you.”
 
“Thank you, Miss Luthor. It was a pleasure meeting you, ma’am,” the young man said as he stepped back.
 
“You also…” Her door half-closed, Lena paused and lifted both brows. “I’m sorry, what was your name?”
 
Tentatively, he took a few steps closer to her again. “It’s Charles, Miss Luthor.”
 
She nodded once. “Charles. It was a pleasure meeting you, Charles.”
 
“The pleasure was mine, Miss Luthor.” Closing the door, Lena buckled up and started the GPS.
 
“You done chatting?” Lois asked.
 
“Just being courteous, Lois.”
 
“Could you be courteous some other time when I’m not freezing my…” Lois cleared her throat. “You-know-whats off? With no buildings to break the wind, it’s awful out here. I’m missing sunny California.”
 
Lena reached out, pressing a few buttons on the dash. Quickly, heat poured out through the vents.
 
“Better?”
 
“Much,” Lois admitted, relaxing.
 
After just one click on the GPS it spoke in an oddly sultry tone.

“Time to destination, twenty-two minutes.”

“Hey, your GPS sounds kind of sexy,” Lois noted. “I wanted to get the one that sounded like Mr. T, but then I found out it didn’t say,
‘I pity the fool who doesn’t turn left ahead!’
so I figured what’s the point.”
 
“Who’s Mr. T?” Lena asked putting the car into first and pulling out smoothly
 
“I… You…” Lois sputtered and then sighed. “Was that a joke? Tell me that was a joke.”
 
“That wasn’t a joke,” Lena replied, shifting gears.
 
“How old are you? Twelve?!”
 
“I’m twenty-five… soon.”
 
Lois groaned. “That’s still not an excuse. After we save these Supers, you and I are going to catch up on some movies, television, and I’m going to educate you on some classic rock music. Specifically Whitesnake. Definitely Whitesnake.”
 
As she found third gear, Lena said, “Lois, I don’t really
—
”
 
“Non-negotiable, Luthor! Your lack of culture is putting a serious crimp in our friendship.”
 
Head turning sharply and eyebrows rising, Lena asked, “My lack of culture?”
 
“You heard me. I can only keep up both sides of the conversation for so long.” Reaching out to the radio, Lois turned it on and began to fiddle with the buttons on the display, not staying on any station for more than two seconds. “Now, let’s see what kind of music we can find.”
 
Recognizing a losing battle, Lena said nothing and just shifted the car into fourth gear.
 
After a few seconds more of playing with the radio, Lois’ attention was suddenly drawn to Lena’s hand on the stick shift. “Is this an eight-speed?”
 
“Yes.”
 
Lois moaned in misery. “You get to drive an eight-speed? You’re killing me, Luthor.”
 
With a quiet chuckle, Lena kicked the vehicle into its next gear and said, “I can guarantee that’s not the first time that sentence was uttered.”
 
<><>
 
The car pulled up outside The Seasons Hotel just off of Barclay Street and past the park.  As they stopped outside the hotel, two young men ran out and opened their doors, startling Lois slightly.  Lena took the time to gather her laptop bag from the back and tip the valet before making her way to the sidewalk.
 
Lois was awaiting the younger woman, arms crossed and a smirk on her face as she ticked her head back at the car pulling away. “Is he on the rental agreement?”
 
Wordlessly, Lena sighed and strode past the reporter and through the open doorway, thanking the man who held the door for her and tipped his hat.  
 
Lois followed with the smirk on her face which fell away as soon as she was inside.  The lobby was an expanse of marble. The floor was a dark-brown mosaic shined to a high-gloss reflecting the gentle lights above and from the sides. Set through the middle of the floor was a light marble, an off-white that also lined the dark center. A cremé color edged the room and then darker tan marble made up the walls and pillars that divided the rooms. Sconces of lights illuminated the room just above live plants that may have been small trees. Up some stairs to the left was a sitting area, and above that great pillars of wood that stretched out of sight into yet another room. Ahead were stairs up with a few tables and chairs in black and red. Above that was more seating with a bright backdrop, a piece of artwork of an etching of a woman with her arms outstretched illuminated as the background to some sort of bar with an Asian theme. This time of night, it was largely barren of people.
 
Lois turned to find Lena talking to some overly polite looking woman at the front desk. The blonde there waved a hand and pointed, and a young man hurried over, took something from the woman at the desk while nodding at whatever was said to him, joined Lena, and smiled readily gesturing in a different direction.
 
“Lois?” Lena looked at the reporter expectantly.
 
Walking over to join the other woman, Lois fell into step next to her and behind the anonymous young man in the black vest and dress shirt who led the way for them. “Nice place.”
 
“Hmmm.” Lena replied noncommittally. “L-Corp keeps a suite here.”
 
“Oh, that’s uh… convenient.”
 
“Hmmm.”
 
They arrived at the elevators, and the man who led the way used a card to open the door for them. Inside was another young man dressed similarly except that he was wearing a red vest. “Top floor,” the first young man said after Lena and Lois had boarded.
 
“Of course it’s the top floor,” Lois mumbled quietly. When Lena slowly turned to her with one raised eyebrow, Lois flashed a toothy grin.
 
The duo was led to the end of the hallway, the corner room. The young man opened the door for them, entering and turning on lights. He held open the door as they entered, then showed them the accommodations, asking if they needed anything else before handing over key cards.
 
“No we’re…” Lena looked back at Lois who had begun to wander the suite. “Actually, we’ll need to do a bit of shopping from the room. Make that available to me, won’t you? I assume the kitchen is still open?”
 
“Anything you want, of course, Miss Luthor. The Seasons values your patronage. Anything we can do to make your stay more comfortable, consider it done.”
 
Lena nodded. “Perfect.” As she took the key cards from him, she slid money into his hand as she casually eyed his nametag. “Have the shopping list available through my room connection, Gerald, and I’ll place my room service order. Have yourself a lovely night.”
 
“You too, Miss Luthor.”
 
Lois was walking through the suite with it’s oatmeal colored rugs and light walls. The furnishings were white and gray, and light wood trimmed the rooms. She stood in front of a broad window in the bedroom that had a spectacular view of the park and Gotham when Lena walked up behind her.
 
Pointing at the king-sized bed, Lois said, “We sharing?”
 
“Do you snore?” Lena replied dryly as she dropped to a seat on the bed and peeled off her heels.
 
“Uh… maybe,” Lois admitted. “I sure hope you don’t.”
 
Pulling her hair out of its bun, Lena combed through it with her fingers. “Snorers sleep in the other room.”
 
“Hmmm?”
 
Walking through the archway, Lois came out into a dining area that was also a living room. The eat-in kitchen was to her right, and a full living room was to her left. Continuing around to the left she found another bedroom with a king-sized bed and bathroom. Stepping into the bathroom showed the jacuzzi tub.
 
Lois whistled in appreciation. “So, this is how the other half live, huh? Kind of reminds me of… oh, crap!” Digging out her cellphone from her pocket, the reporter hit a recently dialed number.

“Good evening, Miss Lane. How may I help you?”

“I don’t suppose Bruce is back yet, is he, Alfred?”

“I’m afraid not, Miss, nor has he checked in yet. I will give him your message as soon as he does. I’ve already gathered information on the business in question so that Master Bruce will be best able to assist you when he does become available. Is there anything else?”

“Yeah, tell Bruce I’m in Gotham, and I’ll be doing some nosing around as is my usual MO.”
 
There were several moments of silence from the other side of the line and then Alfred said,

“I apologize, Miss, but perhaps we have a bad connection. I thought you said you were in Gotham.”

“You heard right. Baby Luthor and I are staying in the L-Corp suite at The Seasons Hotel. It’s swanky. I don’t mind telling you, a lady could get used to traveling in this kind of style. Maybe I wrote Lex off too quickly.”

“He was a homicidal maniac, Miss Lane.”

“Oh, yeah, the murders and all of that. Seems like there’s always something with every guy. Some of them are mass killers. Some of them like dressing up like a bat at night.”
 
Alfred cleared his throat, clearly stifling a chuckle,

“Indeed.”

“Anywho, Lena and I are in the neighborhood and will be following up on some leads.”

“Are you sure that’s wise?”

“Wise? Alfred, the only thing that’s wise about me is my ass… perations for the future. Ahem. Sorry about that. No, I don’t know how wise it is, but I do know it’s necessary. I wish we had more information about what was going on here, but with Bruce busy elsewhere, we’ll do what we have to do. Clark and Kara’s lives may depend on it.”

“I… understand, Miss Lane. I wish you and young Miss Luthor my best. I will let Master Wayne know that you called and everything about which we’ve spoken. Good night.”

“Night, Alfred. Take care.”

“And you also, Miss Lane.”

Disconnecting, Lois made her way back to the first bedroom where Lena was already on her laptop and said, “Hey, did you see the bathtub in this place? You could swim in it.”
 
Lifting her gaze, Lena replied, “Planning to take a bath?”
 
“Try and stop me.”
 
“That won’t be happening. I’ll order us up some dinner. Steak and fries for you, or would you prefer something different?”
 
Lois grinned. “That’s perfect. Just get it medium-well done. Holler for me if I’m not out by the time food shows up.”
 
“Do you have a wine preference? There’s a room service menu over there.”
 
“Uh, actually do they do sodas?” Lois asked hesitantly. “Too much alcohol makes me sleepy, and I need to stay alert. Besides, I’ve already had two cocktails, and I might need to drive. Could I just have a coke or something?”
 
Very slowly, Lena nodded, “Of course. Enjoy your bath, Lois. I’ll let you know when food arrives.”
 
“Thanks. Oh, I’m also expecting a call.” Lois put her cellphone down on the table beside Lena. “If I get a call, could you just take a message?”
 
“Certainly.”
 
As Lois left for the other room, Lena picked up the hotel phone and ordered them both food. She got herself a vegetarian crepe and a side salad and Lois a steak and fries as requested. She ordered herself a nice bottle of wine to go with the meal and a coke for Lois. That done, she went back to her online shopping. Lena had barely finished that when Lois’s phone rang.
 
“Lois, are you done in the bath?” Lena called out, and upon getting no answer, the CEO picked up the cellphone. “This is Lois Lane’s cellphone. May I take a message?”

“I… Is Lois available?”

A woman with an accent asked, her tone formal tone. She was clearly caught off guard by the fact it wasn’t Lois who had answered and had stumbled over her response as a result.
 
“I’m sorry, but she’s indisposed at the moment. I’d be happy to take a message.”

“I apologize, Miss, but I don’t recognize your voice. Are you a friend of Lois’?”

The woman asked with a smile in her voice, clearly overcoming the shock of just a moment before.
 
“I… Truthfully I can’t say that I am. I’m an acquaintance, but one who is capable of delivering a message Miss…?”

“Prince. Diana Prince.”

“Well, then, Miss Prince, would you simply like me to let Miss Lane know you called, or is there more you’d like to let her know?”

“Ah… that’s a bit complicated Miss…?”

“Luthor.”
 
There was a pause and audible change in the woman’s tone when she said,

“Luthor?”

“That’s correct.”

“As in…?”

Despite herself, Lena sighed, “As in sister of him and daughter of her, yes,
that
Luthor. Now, was there a message you wanted to leave or should I—?”
 
There was a sharp cracking noise, perhaps of something breaking, and then the woman spoke more urgently in a clipped tone.

“Where is she? Where is Lois?”

“As I said before; she is indisposed. Now, did you wish to leave a message?”
 
<><>
 
Lois, meanwhile, had lowered herself into the gigantic bathtub, her clothes lying in a tangled heap on the far side of the room where she'd thrown them half-heartedly.
 
For a few seconds the water was so hot it stung, and she was ready to leap back out again if it didn't drastically improve, already casting around for the cold tap to add some more. But then it became soothing instead of painful, and she found that she was able to tolerate the heat after all.
 
Cupping some of the water into her palms, she smoothed it over her face, smelling the various incense of the copious amounts of bubble bath she’d also used to create huge foaming mountains that had spilled out of the tub and across the floor as she’d got in.
 
She hadn’t noticed, however. And if she had, she didn’t care. The scents helped her to relax and soon she could feel the soothing heat working its way through her skin and into her muscles. She let out another sigh then, only this time it was more of a contented one.

<><>

As Lena crossed to the door, cell phone still in hand, she knocked lightly and waited. When there was no immediate answer, she knocked again a little louder.
 
"Lois, I’m sorry to bother you, but there’s a lady on the phone that requires some sort of verification password before she’ll talk to me.” Still no answer. Lena frowned and banged a fist on the door. “You haven't gone to sleep have you?"
 
There was a sudden frantic splashing sound and then a rather sheepish “no” in reply at last.
 
Rolling her eyes, Lena sighed. “Diana Prince is on the phone. She wants to speak to you and won’t speak to me until you have confirmed some kind of verification password.”
 
“She on loud speaker?” Lois’ voice called back through the door.
 
“Hold on,” Lena replied as she glanced at the screen of the phone, then pressed the speakerphone button. “Okay, now we are.”
 
“Diana, it’s me!” Lois called as Lena held the phone up to the door. “Look, can you just leave a message with Lena, and I’ll get back to you shortly?”

“You know the protocol, Miss Lane. I’ll need the password. May I have it please?”

Diana asked, attempting to sound pleasant, but failing in light of the fact that suspicion laced every word.
 
“Oh for fuck’s sake,
Themyscira
! Now leave the God-damned message with Lena and bugger off! I’m trying to have a bath!”

“Thank you, Miss Lane,”

Diana at least sounded suitably chagrined at that, and Lena couldn’t help but smirk.

“Miss Luthor, my apologies, but one can never be too careful in this day and age. Please kindly tell Miss Lane to call me at her earliest convenience. Have a good evening.”

“Uh… Of course, you also, Miss Prince,” Lena frowned, not understanding what the hell had just happened, but deciding to just chalk it up to another of those Lois Lane mysteries that she’d probably never unravel.

<><>

Once Lena had stopped asking annoying questions, and all had gone quiet on the other side of the door again, Lois once more dared to close her eyes. Then she slid completely under the water's surface. It closed over her like a dream - like a balm - and the heat worked in toward her bones.
 
Now she was free for the moment to think on other things, whilst she couldn't be disturbed. And what she really wanted to think about right then was what the hell was going on. Where was Clark? Where was Kara? Why hadn’t they been in touch?
 
The images and thoughts that had been stirred up and dragged to the surface by Peewee now swum and collided about inside her mind, refusing to leave, giving her one hell of a headache. Until now she’d been able to put on a brave face. Take it all in her stride and just get on with it. After her encounter with him however, she wasn’t so sure she had the strength to be brave any more.
 
Her lungs burned and her muscles ached. The heat continued to burrow through, soothing and healing and it was amazing how much she didn’t even realise she’d been aching all over, until now.
 
Her pounding head gave one last heave, then subsided, and the aches in her muscles from her marathon journalism detective feats so far began to ease.
 
Damn it, why wouldn’t those thoughts from Peewee just go away? Why was she struggling so hard to be optimistic now? Of course Kara and Clark were all right. They were Kryptonians. Virtually indestructible. Perhaps this was all just some elaborate prank? She’d been complaining only a few days ago that she was bored and needed a story to sink her teeth into. Maybe this was Clark and Kara trying to teach her to be careful what she wished for? Perhaps it was all a hoax and they were out there somewhere, right now, laughing about it?
 
Except that neither of them were like that. Neither of them had a bad bone in their body, and sure they could both crack a few jokes every now and then, and be utterly adorable at completely inconsiderate and inappropriate times, but they weren’t mean. They would never do something like this, especially knowing how much it was hurting not just Lois, but Lena as well. She’d seen the looks on the Luthor Junior’s face when she thought no-one was looking. The downhearted, pained, upset looks. The loneliness as she contemplated the thought that just possibly, she’d never get to see her best friend again.
 
Well Supergirl, who was one of her best friends. Though of course she would never get to see Kara again either. If Supergirl was gone, then Kara would be, too. And the worst of it was, poor Lena was absolutely clueless that the two were one and the same.
 
Lois may well have lost her future husband, but Lena would have lost her two best friends, and she’d never been given the opportunity to know the truth. Lois wasn’t sure, right then, what was worse.
 
The burning in her lungs became suddenly painful and she remembered where she was.
 
Surfacing in a rushing splash, she shook her head, droplets of water flying everywhere as her hair remained slicked to her face.
 
"That's why you don't fall asleep in the bath!" Lena called from the other room, sounding suspiciously like she was pressed against the door. Perhaps she’d been worried by the silence and was trying to check that everything was okay?
 
Lois couldn't verbally reply. All she could do was blink away the droplets that clung to her eyelashes and inhale, mouth gaping open to take in a deep gulp of air.
 
White light hit her eyes, scouring through the mishmash inside her head. Eventually, her breathing deepened and evened out, with only a slight hitch at the end of each exhale.
 
"Everything alright?" Now Lena sounded alarmed.
 
"Fine," Lois managed to rasp finally as she rose from the tub, only now discovering that the water had turned lukewarm instead of the soothing heat it had previously held. As she took the towel that had been hanging up on the rail, just within arm’s reach, she wrapped it about herself, shivered violently, though whether this was through the coldness of the air in the room compared to the heat of the tub, or because of her returning anxiety, she could not say.
 
Stepping from the tub and drying herself quickly, she pulled on the bathrobe that the hotel had supplied, and tied the sash about her waist. Then stood for several moments, stroking the soft, thick, fluffy material and grinning, already feeling calmer.
 
“Yep, could definitely get used to this.”
 
Slipping her feet into the fluffy slippers also provided by the hotel, she re-emerged back into the main room of the hotel. Lena took one look at her and folded her arms across her chest, not at all amused.
 
"Lois, you look like a prune!"
 
Lois glanced down at her hands which had wrinkled in the water. She grinned then, despite everything. “At least I feel human again. So, where we at? Has the food arrived yet? I’m starving. Did Diana leave a message? Did she say what she wanted? Do we have a mini bar, and does it have Snickers? Have you tried this bathrobe? It’s so

fluffy

! ”
 
“Hmmm. Yes, the robes are lovely here.” Lena handed Lois her cellphone. “You might want to call back Miss Prince. She did seem calmer after whatever that code word business was, but the woman was quite distraught beforehand. She asked that you call her at your earliest convenience. I assume this is it.”
 
“Well, yeah I—” There was a knock at their door. “We expecting company?”
 
“Room service.”
 
“Oh.” On cue, Lois’ stomach grumbled. She put her free hand to it and smiled. “Guess I am expecting that.”
 
“I’ll get the door and get us set up at the table while you make your phone call.” Lena raised one eyebrow, her expression making it clear that wasn’t a suggestion, and then she left the room and headed to let in room service.
 
“Jeez, pushy Luthor.” Lois was smiling, though, and she hit the button on her phone to call Diana back.
 
The phone was answered on the first ring.

“Lois?”

“Hey, Diana. I heard you were being—”

“Are you alright? Where are you? Tell me what’s going on.”

“Wow, you are all worked up,” Lois noted. “What has your tiara in a twist? I used the code word, didn’t I? The one that means I’m legitimately okay.” She paused for a moment, then frowned. “Wait, I DID use the right code word, didn’t I? Honestly, Diana, you have so many these days, it’s nearly impossible to keep up.”
 
After several beats of silence, Diana asked,

“Are you alone?”

Looking over at where Lena was directing the woman with the room service cart to set up food on the table in the eat-in kitchen, Lois said, “Um… sort of?”
 
Quietly, with a tone laced with conspiracy, Diana whispered,

“Is she there?”

Flopping onto the comfy couch, Lois asked, “She?  She who, Diana?”

“That Luthor woman. Lois, we need to speak about her.”

“You mean Lena? What about her?” Lois glanced over at the CEO who looked back at her, likely at the mention of her name. Lois gave a casual wave which Lena managed to return with great style from such a minor gesture.

“Have you spoken to Bruce?”

Lois snorted. “I wish. He’s otherwise occupied. That’s why we had to go to Gotham ourselves.”

“You’re in Gotham?”

“Lois?” Lena called from the table area. “I apologize for interrupting, but would you care to cut into your steak to make sure it’s properly cooked?”
 
Lois waved dismissively. “Nah, I’m sure it’s fine. I’m not picky.” Returning to the call she said, “Well, I called twice to get in touch with Bruce, but something major is happening in Arkham. I ended up having to fly out here myself. There’s some Wayne factory in town that a bunch of anti-alien guys were using for some purpose or another. I’m not sure what they were doing there, but I’m gonna find out. Wish me luck.“

“Lois, you can’t go there with that Luthor woman. This could be a trap.”

Brows furrowed, Lois blinked several times. “What do you mean?”

“I called before to tell you I’d looked through some notes that had been left by Bruce. It mentioned that factory, the one you plan to search. There were a few people there, but they didn’t tell him anything. They seemed to be there for final cleanup, because the place was mostly bare. Whatever the shipments were, they were gone, but Bruce did find some shipping receipts. Lois, they were from L-Corp. Your friend, she’s involved.”

Head shaking, Lois said, “You’re wrong.”

“Lois, she’s supplying these people with whatever supplies they need for their agenda. If they were just buying things from a multitude of vendors, Bruce would have found shipping receipts from all over, from several companies, but they were all from L-Corp. What does that tell you?”

“It tells me she was robbed,” Lois replied without hesitation. “The receipts Bruce saw, they came from an L-Corp warehouse that was robbed. Lena and I went there. She confirmed it. She’s a victim in all of this, not one of the villains.”

"How well do you really know this woman, Lois?  She's a Luthor. You know what her brother did. Don’t you think it’s convenient that she confirmed it only after the Supers went missing and you confronted her on it?  When were they stolen?"

"Well… actually, the thefts go back for several months but-"

"And she only notices after the Supers are gone and you confront her?  She only shows up with proof of a theft after you come to her looking for it?  How does that strike you, Lois?"

Lois watched Lena smile at the woman who had brought in their food, exchange a few pleasant words, and give a quick handshake which included a sly shifting of cash into the server’s hand. Nodding to herself, Lois replied, "That lasso of yours makes you suspicious of everyone.  It also makes you a lousy judge of character. You don't know how to trust, Diana, because you can get the answer from a rope. This Luthor isn't like her brother. She's telling the truth, and I don't need a ball of string to figure that out."

"Are you willing to bet Clark's life on that?"

Lois replied without hesitation, "Yes.”

“Lois, I really do think this is unwise…”

“Thanks for the information, Diana, but I'm all set.  Call if you hear anything else."
 
Disconnecting the line, Lois put her phone into the pocket of her robe and made her way over to the table where food was laid out. “You know, Luthor, you keep feeding me like this, and I’m going to be ruined for normal meals by the time I get back to Clark.”
 
“Is that a complaint?” Lena said, opening her napkin with a sharp snap as she laid it in her lap.
 
“Eh, no.” Lois hurried into her seat. Copying Lena’s movements with the napkin, only with a lot less grace and a lot more flap, Lois laid it into her own lap.
 
Then she lifted up her soda glass and held it out, clinking it off Lena’s wine glass lightly when Lena held up her own. “I have no idea what we’re toasting yet, but now we’re one in credit,” she announced proudly before sipping from the glass. Lena just raised an eyebrow, but chose not to say anything and took a few sips of her own drink as well.
 
The silence that followed then wasn’t uncomfortable at all. In fact, it was quite companionable as the two women tucked into their respective meals. Lois could sense that Lena had some questions - it was to be expected after Diana’s behavior from earlier - but Lois wasn’t sure she was up to explaining all of that yet, so she just kept her eyes ducked and focussed on her steak. Which was cooked to perfection. Probably the best steak she’d had in a very long time. No scratch that, the best steak she’d EVER had and nope, she absolutely wasn’t ignoring Lena and avoiding awkward questions at all.
 
“So…” Lena took a sip of her wine and cleared her throat, speaking but not looking up. “Are things well with your friend?”
 
“Oh, yeah, just a misunderstanding is all,” Lois shrugged between mouthfuls. “You know how it is. Someone hears the name Luthor and GASP! Shock horror! I soon set her straight though, so it’s fine.” She quickly cut off another chunk of steak and crammed it into her mouth, just to give herself an excuse not to have to carry on with any further explanation.
 
Lena nodded, still not making eye contact. “Yes, well, I uh… I’m sorry to have put you in that situation. I do know how it is. It does happen… regularly.” She raised an eyebrow, smiling from the other side of her face in a way that didn’t really touch her eyes as she finally looked at Lois. “You can’t really blame people though, can you? I mean, you knew Lex, and you said you felt the same way until your fiancé said otherwise. I suppose there just aren’t many Clark Kents in the world.”
 
“No, there aren’t,” Lois admitted quietly. And then in a bolder voice, she carried on. “I stand corrected though, and for that I apologise. But hey, even without Clark’s seal of approval, I’d have gotten to the same conclusion anyway. Would just have taken me a little longer to get there, is all. As you say, I knew your brother. And now I know you. You are nothing like him, and I very much doubt you ever will be. I don’t think you’re even capable of being like him, to be honest.”
 
Forearms pressed on the table, Lena shifted slightly forward as she studied the reporter.  Green eyes examined the woman across from her for several moments before Lena sat back in her chair, eloquently lifting her drink to her lips and restraining them with wine. This time when she smiled, there seemed to be some sincerity to it.
 
“Well then, I suppose there aren’t many Lois Lanes in the world. It’s a good thing you and Mr. Kent found each other. It seems you’re a perfect match.”
 
“It was touch and go for a while,” Lois smiled more genuinely this time as well. “I thought he was a complete buffoon to begin with. I actually had the hots for Superman.” She winked conspiratorially. “But don’t tell Clark.”
 
“Well, yes, I suppose I could see some appeal there. Not my type, but quite heroic and all. If I do happen to see your Mr. Kent again, I won’t be mentioning your attraction to a certain Kryptonian.”
 
“You’ll have my undying gratitude if you can keep that particular secret,” Lois grinned. She knew there was so much she WANTED to tell Lena. All about the superheroes and their real identities. She didn’t dare, of course. Mainly because they weren’t her secrets to tell. Just to keep. But she felt bad for Lena at the same time, so was trying to be kind, in her own unique way, by dropping a few ‘secrets’ that weren’t actually secrets, but would make Lena finally feel like she belonged somewhere, she hoped. Friends who knew each other’s secrets were true friends, after all.
 
Stabbing a cucumber slice, Lena lifted it and examined it for a moment. Pointing with the fork with speared vegetable, Lena smirked. “So, we’ll just call that off the record then, won’t we?”
 
“Damn Luthor!” Lois laughed. “I’ve taught you well!”
 
“You have, Miss Lane. And as you have, I’ll be writing this dinner off.” Popping the food into her mouth, Lena chewed daintily but the corners of her mouth curved up into a smile. “Feel free to write that in that notebook of yours.”
 
“Hmmm,” Lois mused around another mouthful of fries this time. “We’ll see. I may shred the whole thing when this is done. Or you’ll see your fabulous mug all over the front pages of the Daily Planet as I scoop you! Mwahahaha!” She put on a very overly theatrical evil laugh then, complete with maniacal hand gestures, that was only cut short as she started choking on a fry. Wow, karma really was a bitch!
 
Lena peered in, concerned, but Lois held up a hand and cleared her throat. A knock on the door interrupted any further theatrics. Folding her napkin slightly and dropping it on the table next to her bowl, the CEO made her way to the door leaving Lois to crane her neck but unable to see anyone from their dining table. Less than a minute later, a young man and woman from the hotel staff entered carrying several paper shopping bags and two pieces of carry-on luggage.
 
“Just put the luggage on the floor and the bags on the couch,” Lena directed.
 
“Are… we expecting guests?” Lois asked trying to act calm, but her curiosity was working in overdrive and she was twitching at the table, clearly desperate to know what was going on.
 
“Well, if we are, you’re a bit underdressed,” Lena responded, signing something and thanking the staff who responded courteously and then left. “Lois, I know these robes are comfortable, but you might find it a bit… eh… breezy for Gotham this time of year. I took the liberty of taking note of your jacket and shoe size as you left them in your room. I hope you don’t mind.”
 
“Honey, be glad we’re not at home, because if we were I’d be au naturel,” Lois smirked, motioning to the robe she was wearing. “I give a whole new meaning to the word commando.”
 
Sitting across from the reporter, Lena raised an eyebrow and her wine glass. This time when she smiled it definitely reached her eyes and was many things but definitely not innocent. “Miss Lane, you would be far from the first woman I’ve seen naked. However, I don’t think that little Superman crush is the only thing you’d want to keep from your fiancé then.”
 
“Something you’re not telling me, Luthor?” Lois smirked as she stood up and wandered over to examine the clothes. “Besides, I have standards. Seeing my birthday suit is a third date rule. By my count this is only our second date.”
 
Lena chuckled, her voice rich and amused. “I’m honored that you’re counting, Miss Lane. I would have thought my reputation preceded me, but now I have to wonder if there’s something that you’re not telling me.”
 
“Your reputation?” Lois frowned, not quite understanding. “What, that you’ve seen woman naked? That’s not a reputation, that’s just a personal choice. A preference. I go for men in tights and capes, you go for women. To each their own.”
 
“It’s neither a choice nor a preference, Miss Lane, it just is. Had I a choice in the matter… Well, had I a choice, I would make the choice to be exactly as I am. Still, I doubt you ever made a choice about your attractions. I’m sure my mother would be far more put off by your
preferences
than mine. To each their own, I say.”
 
“Yeah well good for you. Stick to your guns, kid and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. I certainly didn’t. Even when people told me that dating Lex was a bad idea, I still did it anyway and…” She paused, then pulled a face. “Yeah okay maybe that’s not the best example to use actually, because that one did end badly. But… what was the point I was trying to make?” Lois ran a hand through her hair, considering. “Maybe I should have used Bruce Wayne as an example?” She considered again. “Actually, no, that went south, too. Uh… yeah… don’t ever take dating advice from a Lane. Apparently we suck at it.”
 
“Well, I don’t know that we Luthors are much better at it. I’d have to say the high point of my brother’s dating life was likely present company. My father married my mother, yet another prime example of a raving genocidal maniac, and I… well, I’m good at business.” Lena sipped her wine again. “Was my shopping endeavor successful?”
 
“Nice topic change,” Lois smirked. “But this isn’t over. Still, for now I shall humor you…” She went back to looking through them again, only really skimming over them at first, until she saw the label on one, and did a double take. Then she backtracked through all of them, checking all the labels. “You’re kidding me! This is… this is expensive stuff, Luthor! What the hell?!”
 
There was a pale blue t-shirt that Lois had assumed was nothing special at first, until she read the label, still with price tag attached. “Dolce and Gabbana? $350?! For a plain shirt?! Shut the front door!”
 
Then a pair of jeans, dark denim and soft to touch. “Gucci? $600! Luthor! Seriously, what the hell?!”
 
Spotting the maroon leather jacket next, with a label that said “Versace”, tucked just inside the collar, and a pair of sturdy looking leather boots with a tag that said “Yves Saint Laurent” and had far too many zeros after the ‘1’ for her liking, Lois backed away, almost afraid to even TOUCH them for fear that she’d break them and have to pay for them.
 
It made her $75 dollar outfit feel… well, cheap, basically.
 
Napkin on the table once again, Lena joined Lois over by the bags of clothing. With an obvious look of concern on her face and a crease between her brows, she asked, “What?  What’s wrong, Lois?”
 
“This stuff comes to more than my monthly salary!” Lois exclaimed. “Seriously, Luthor, I can’t accept any of this. It’s… it’s too much. I already owe you for the dinners and the hotel room and what-not. I can’t owe you for all this as well.”
 
“Owe me?”  Lena quipped a brow in Lois’ direction.  “Well, now I’m confused. I clearly remember a certain reporter telling me that we were a team.  You bring your contacts, quick wit, seemingly boundless energy, willingness to jump into the middle of trouble, and ability verging on the supernatural to find said trouble.  I bring my charm, my social skill, my technical knowledge, my…” Lena smiled a bit wickedly. “Luthor, and speaking of Luthor, a bank account no doubt gained by ill-gotten means by those with the same last name that came before me. Now, Lois, what did you mean when you said team?”
 
Lois opened her mouth to speak, then closed it again. Then opened it. Then closed it again. Eventually she shrugged. “You and me, going places and doing stuff, I suppose.”
 
Gesturing elegantly at the clothing on the bed, Lena replied, “Then consider that some of the stuff.”
 
“Huh…” Lois looked from Lena, to the clothes, then back again. Then down to the robe she was wearing. She couldn’t run around all day in it after all, regardless of how soft or comfy it was. “Alright fine. But next time you’re surrounded by a gang of… I dunno… hooligans or something, you have to let me kick some ass! Then, and only then, will I consider us even.”
 
“Well, I’d hate for you to feel there’s an inequity in our relationship, Lois. I’ll do my best to allow you to kick some ass on my behalf.”
 
“Thank you,” Lois nodded, scooping up the clothes and heading back for the bathroom so that she could change. Then she hesitated by the door. “Uh, actually, did you want to use the bathroom? I can change out here if you do?”
 
“Yes, but it’s fine.  Each bedroom is en suite.”
 
“You’re kidding, right?” Lois exclaimed, barely able to believe it as she hightailed it into one of the rooms, then came charging back out, almost skidding on the floor in her haste to check out the other room. “Shotgun this one!” Her voice called out from the second of the two rooms.
 
Shaking her head, Lena sighed and pulled out her cellphone. She made a call, smiling as it was answered fairly quickly.

“Lena?

”
 
“Hi, Sam, sorry to call so late. This will be quick. How’s Ruby?”

“Um, fine. How… are you?”

“Fine,” Lena replied with a short laugh. “Okay, I won’t make you be social this late at night, but let’s catch back up in a few days when I’m back in town, all right?”

“You’re out of town?”

“Yes, but I expect to be back tomorrow,” Lena replied. “At any rate, any problems with Agent Danvers?”

“Nope. She asked questions. I played dumb. It was actually fairly painless. She spent more time talking to me about Ruby than the company. Why?”

“Did you happen to mention to her that I had someone with me when I came to see you?”

“I… let me think.”

Sam paused, silence stretching over the line for several moments.

“I didn’t.”

“Are you certain, Sam?”

“Absolutely. I was just rerunning the conversation. We talked about the possible break-in, and I told her we didn’t have one, but that I’d do a complete security review and let her know if anything came up.  I thanked her for alerting me to her concerns. Then we just chatted about Ruby. Lena, is there something I should know about your friend Lois?”

“Just that you’ve never met her and you only know her name from reading articles. Any questions?”

“You’re the boss,

” Sam replied.

“I’ll let Jess know.”

“Jess.” Lena smiled. “Tell her if you want, but Jess knows her job. She wouldn’t tell Agent Danvers anything if she were being waterboarded.”

“Yikes. Um, you do know her name is Alex, right?”

“Not when she’s investigating my company it’s not. Good night, Sam.  Give my love to Ruby.”

“Good night, Lena.”

Lena had no sooner hung up the phone when there was a knock at the door. Brows furrowed, she rose and headed to see whom from the hotel staff was here now. As she opened it she said, “Did we forget a bag or—?”
 
The man who stood at the door was older and quite dapper. He wore a dark suit and tie, the red vest just barely peeking out underneath his wool coat. His mustache was thin and dark unlike the gray hair which was close-trimmed and only along the back of his head. He held himself with an assurance of a man of culture, as if he knew he fit in. He was just snapping closed a gold pocket watch which he slipped inside his vest pocket as he smiled, his other hand tightening against the leather strap on the case hanging against his far shoulder.
 
“Ah, Miss Luthor,” He said with a cultured and crisp British accent. “How lovely to finally meet you. I’m—”
 
“Not a hotel employee,” Lena interrupted. “How did you get up here?”
 
Pointing over his shoulder and behind him, the man said, “The elevator, Miss. Far too many stairs for a man of my age to attempt that way.”
 
“I’m not amused. Either explain yourself or be prepared for an unpleasant hoisting from these grounds.”
 
“Oh, my.”
 
“Hey Lenny!” Lois’ voice called from the bedroom. “If it’s the Feds, tell them that number one, whatever it is, I didn’t do it. And number two, I’m not here!”
 
“Good Evening, Miss Lane,” Alfred chuckled, unable to help himself. Lois’ head poked round the bedroom door, and after a moment of confusion, she beamed in delight.
 
“Alfred! What are you doing here?”
 
She ran forwards and engulfed him in a huge hug, almost knocking him off his feet - though that was partly due to her socks slipping on the marble flooring and pitching her forwards.
 
“Good gracious!” Alfred chuckled, grabbing her as she fell into his arms. “Are you alright, Miss Lane?”
 
“I’m fine,” She grinned, righting herself again, and pushing a few strands of slightly damp, not completely dried hair out of her face as she straightened up again. “I see you’ve met Lena.”
 
Lena looked back and forth between them, confusion coloring her expression. “I gather you two know each other?”
 
“I believe you could say that, Miss Luthor,” Alfred smiled patiently.
 
“He and I go way back,” Lois agreed. Then considered. “Well, sort of. I dated his boss.”
 
Mouth slightly open for a few beats, Lena seemed to be considering her words. Then, with a bit of a smile, she turned to Alfred and said, “My condolences.”
 
He chuckled again, as Lois turned to Lena, mouth wide, an affronted look on her face. “Hey, watch it Lenny! Or I’ll… think of something.”
 
“Still such an eloquent way with words, I see,” Alfred smiled, and Lois turned her expression on him instead.
 
“Don’t you start, or I’ll do something to you too!”
 
“Yes,” Lena said nodding rather seriously. “She could start calling you Lenny.”
 
“You mean you don’t like Lenny?” Lois pouted. “But it’s a good name. I like it. Why don’t you like it?”
 
“No, Lois I… Don’t pout.  Please, don’t pout. I…” Stepping away from the door, Lena said, “We’re keeping our guest in the hallway. We shouldn’t be rude. Won’t you come in Mr…?”
 
“Pennyworth, Ma’am.” He tipped his head to her as he stepped in, and Lois closed the door behind him. “Much obliged. And a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”
 
“Yours also, Mr. Pennyworth. May I take your coat?” Lena offered.
 
“Thank you, Miss, but I won’t be staying long. If you’ll pardon the intrusion at such an unsociable hour, I came to deliver a few items to Miss Lane, as per Master Wayne’s strict instructions. I believe they’re for some kind of ballet recital?”
 
“Oh yawn!” Lois scowled. “Bruce knows I hate the ballet.” She was about to turn away, when she caught Alfred’s eye, and realisation dawned. “Oh, THOSE recital things? Well why didn’t you say so?”
 
“You don’t like ballet?” Lena asked.
 
“I… well it’s not my favorite thing,” Lois shrugged. “Besides, the last time Bruce promised to take me to the ballet, we ended up going to a circus with clowns and penguins and… uh… cat women. Well, one woman. Who thought she was a cat.”
 
“A woman who thought she was a cat?” Lena blinked several times. “Was this in Gotham?”
 
“Master Wayne does have a tendency to visit the circus quite often,” Alfred mused. “He’s been the star attraction on more than one occasion, too.”
 
“Yeah, I don’t like the clown though. The clown is weird,” Lois nodded.
 
“You mean clowns, plural, Miss Lane?” Alfred prompted, but Lois shook her head.
 
“No, not all clowns. Well yeah okay, clowns in general are freaky, but this one particular one, he gave me nightmares for months after.”
 
“Clourophobia is a neologism in the informal phobia list,” Lena said. When the others just looked at her, she added. “It means fear of clowns. That’s what we’re discussing, isn’t it?”
 
“Why can’t you just speak English like everyone else?” Lois frowned. Then she shook her head. “This one was a real Joker though.”
 
“I believe I know the one you’re referring to, Miss Lane. I have to say he’s not Master Wayne’s favorite either, truth be told.”
 
“And don’t even get me started on that bloody Penguin!” She glanced to Lena. “Go on then, smart arse. What’s a fear of penguins called?”
 
“Actually…” Lena mumbled a bit, but she managed to get out, “It’s called sphenisciphobia. Technically it developed as a fear of nuns and convents but… well, you get the picture.”
 
Lois just blinked, stunned into silence. Even Alfred seemed to have been rendered speechless by this revelation.
 
Eventually, Lois raised an arm and pointed. “Just… go and do your millionaire stuff, woman!”
 
“I…” Lena nodded, head down and mumbled, “It’s billionaire,” as she walked away collecting clothes and disappearing into the other room.
 
Lois watched her go, and her heart sunk. “Crap. Now I feel really bad. I mean like REALLY bad. Like I just kicked a puppy.”
 
“Are you alright, Miss Lane? I know that this situation is rather concerning for you right now, but you don’t seem like yourself. Is there something else bothering you?” Alfred asked.
 
Lois rubbed her temple with one hand and sighed. “Honestly? I’m shattered Alfred. I’ve barely slept since Clark ‘left’ and… well this whole situation is getting to me now. I’m just tired and worried about him and Kara. That’s all.”
 
He studied her for a moment, taking in the tightness around her eyes, tension in her jaw, stiffness that started at the tendons of her neck and seemed to ride all the way down her shoulders. He turned his head slightly, pursing his lips as he said, “You do look a bit run down, Miss Lane, but… you’re certain there’s nothing else? I’m told I’m an extraordinarily good listener.” One eyebrow popped up just for a second as a smile played at his lips. “I’m also excellent at keeping confidences.”
 
Lois’ hand that had been massaging her temple, slid down and round to the back of her neck instead as she gave a small, helpless chuckle, shaking her head slightly. “I’ll bare that in mind, Alfred, next time I need someone to hear me out. But honestly, as much as I appreciate your concern, it’s nothing that a good night’s sleep and two Supers flying out there saving the world again can’t fix.”
 
“Well, I wish you both of these things with God’s speed, Miss Lane.” Alfred patted his leather case then reached in and pulled out a file from inside. “Here are the copies of the shipping receipts that Master Bruce was able to retrieve from the the closed factory. There was no equipment there, but I hope these prove insightful.”
 
“Ah, you mean the bits of paper that inspired Diana’s conspiracy theories?” Lois sighed as her hand dropped from the back of her neck and clenched into a fist by her side instead. “How can someone, who doesn’t even know Lena - has never even met her before - pass judgement on her so quickly? It’s not fair on Lena.”
 
“I’m sorry, Miss Lane. Are we talking about Miss Prince?”
 
“Uh huh, Princess Wonderbra herself. She phoned earlier, and Lena answered because I was in the bath, and I swear she was about ready to declare war on the whole of Gotham until I gave her that stupid keyword. Why do we have those keywords anyway? And why are they all stuff to do with the Amazonian woman of… well, why her?!”
 
“I… am perhaps not the right person to answer these questions. Perhaps Master Bruce could discuss this with you when he’s…” Alfred leaned in a bit more closely. “Back from the circus? At any rate, I’m sorry you had a distasteful interaction with Miss Prince. Likely she’s a bit on edge from this whole thing also, but I’m sure this misunderstanding between her and Miss Luthor is nothing that can’t be smoothed away with some honest discussion. She does value that above all else. If your concern is that she is judging Miss Luthor without even meeting her, then perhaps that’s your answer.”
 
Lois shrugged and waved a hand as if to wave away any concerns. “She’s just jealous that I got to the Big Blue Boyscout first. Anyway, thank you for these, Alfred. I’m sure my new friend and I can put them to good use.”
 
“I certainly hope so, Miss Lane. Please wish Miss Luthor a wonderful evening for me. It was lovely meeting her, even for such a brief time. Perhaps you’ll bring her by for a visit at some time when Master Bruce is in residence, and we’ll have a chance to continue our conversation.” Tugging his bag closed, he headed back toward the door as he said, “I shall have to brush up on my knowledge of all things phobia related. Perhaps the Scarecrow is taking visitors.”
 
“To be honest, Alfred, I wouldn’t recommend his particular brand of “medication”. Maybe just stick to Google?”
 
“I don’t think Dr. Krane is part of my network of physicians anyway. I’ll take your advice and seek out alternative sources of information. Well, unless there’s anything else I can help you with, I’ll be going. I’d like to be at home in case Master Wayne returns. He’s sure to have had a harrowing evening.”
 
“Yeah, can’t have been easy with that break out to deal with. Wish him well from me. I’d offer the services of our resident Capes, but they’re indisposed, as you know. Though when he does have a moment, I’d appreciate any help you and Bruce can give us with this ongoing investigation.”
 
“I will let him know, Miss Lane. Though it’s not my place to speak on his behalf, I think I’m fairly safe in saying you can consider that done. Good evening, Miss Lane.”
 
“Safe trip, Alfred,” Lois smiled, offering him a quick, friendly hug. “And thank you for this. I appreciate it.”
 
With a small smile, Alfred replied, “I wish I could do more. Stay in touch. I’ll see myself out.”
 
Taking the pieces of paper that he’d given her, she headed back in the other room, peering round the door sheepishly, hoping to see Lena, but at the same time a small part of her was hoping that the young Luthor had retired for the evening and Lois wouldn’t have to deal with the whole awkwardness of this all until the morning. Seeing that Lena wasn’t in the living/dining area where they had been eating a while earlier, she headed for Lena’s bedroom - noting that the door was closed.
 
“Lenny?” She ventured cautiously, knocking on the door. “You awake? You decent?”
 
After a few moments pause, Lena opened the door partway.  With a somewhat subdued smile she said, “Yes, and that’s a matter of opinion.”
 
“I wish I had something sweet and sugary as a peace offering,” Lois smiled sheepishly. “Can I, uh, can I have a word? If you’re not too busy of course? Totally understand if you are. Just tell me to go away and I’ll go… away. Back to my room. You know… away away. But not away away as in leaving Gotham, because I’d never do that to you. Besides, you’re my ride back and… yeah I’ll shut up now.”
 
“It’s a reporter thing, the babbling. It’s a reporter thing, isn’t it?”
 
“I… yeah I guess it must be,” Lois considered. “Along with the love of doughnuts, I suppose.”
 
“Things they don’t tell you before you buy a media company,” Lena muttered. Looking up at Lois, she smiled with a bit more strength. “What can I do for you, Lois?”
 
“Right,” Lois nodded, rubbing a hand along the back of her neck again. “Can we, uh, maybe not have this conversation in a doorway? Unless you really weren’t joking about not being decent. Though not that I’d mind. I’ve got nothing against a woman loving her body and being comfortable in it and all that and - yeah I’m shutting up again.”
 
“Reporter,” Lena said as she opened the door, having taken the time to change into some newly bought clothing, and stepped away to let Lois in. “Now, what can I do for you, Lois? Are we ready to head out for the evening?”
 
“You mean the morning?” Lois attempted to joke as she walked into the bedroom, and after a moment’s hesitation, sat on the corner of the bed. “Alfred provided some receipts and stuff for the things in this factory. Seems like my sources were correct. But, before we get onto all that, I need to apologize for the way I acted earlier. I owe you an apology, because I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that. I’m sorry.”
 
“I…” Lena paused, studying Lois for a moment and said, “Fine. Done. Now tell me about this factory.”
 
“That’s it?” Lois blinked. “Just like that?” She punctuated the last word with a click of her fingers.
 
“Honestly?” Lena shrugged. “I rather assumed it’s something I did wrong. I’m fine in formal settings, business and the like, but my casual more friendly experiences are rather limited to say the least. Is there something for which I should be apologizing?”
 
“What?” Lois blinked again, even more surprised. She certainly hadn’t expected Lena to try and apologise to HER! “No, no no no, Lena it’s not you, I promise. It was totally my fault this time. You were fine. You were great even! You have nothing to be sorry for. I, on the other hand, should have known better. I was rude, I was way out of line, and I shouldn’t have done that. I really am sorry.”
 
Lena pointed to the other corner of the bed, waiting for Lois to respond.
 
Catching Lena’s silent question, Lois nodded eagerly, and turned so that she could face the other woman. “See the thing is,” she carried on. “I’ve had to face a few very hard truths recently, and… well in all honesty, it’s shaken me up a bit. I thought I could handle everything that’s going on. Turns out I can’t. I’m not so great at handling this shit as I thought I could be, and in my arrogance, I took it out on you. I shouldn’t have done that. It’s not an excuse, and it certainly doesn’t make it right, what I said. I’m better than this. I know I am!” She dropped her head into both palms then, fighting back another surge of despair, and unbidden, unwelcome tears that were even now stinging the corners of her eyes. But she wouldn’t let them fall. She wouldn’t.
 
“Lois I… I don’t know you well, but are you alright? Again, this friendly interaction isn’t my forte, but you seem off. Is there something I can do to help?”
 
“I feel like I owe you this explanation, Lena. I really do want you to know everything that’s going on, but I have to be honest with you. I think this is a conversation that I should have with Clark first.” She considered, biting her lip. “Which could be quite problematic, seeing as he’s not here. You see Lena, the thing is—”
 
Grasping Lois’ forearm, Lena squeezed firmly getting the other woman’s attention. “Sounds like the kind of conversation you should be having with Clark, not some woman you just met today… well, technically yesterday as you pointed out.” Her smile finally reaching her eyes, Lena nodded slightly at Lois.
 
Lois managed a genuine smile of her own then, as she placed her other hand over Lena’s, sandwiching it gently between her hand and her arm, and giving a gentle squeeze of her own. “But I owe you an explanation. Doesn’t matter how long I’ve known you - or not known  you - I still shouldn’t have acted like that, and you deserve to know why.”
 
“Apology accepted.”
 
Lois blinked again. “Yeah but—”
 
“Lois, apology accepted.  Let’s move on.” Lena gave the other woman’s forearm one last squeeze. “So, what did Mr. Pennyworth share with you that’s going to make our little cross-country trip in the middle of the night worthwhile?”
 
“He was able to get hold of these receipts. Apparently, and you’ll probably need to be sitting down for this, so it’s a good job that you are, all the stuff is L-Corp stuff.” She picked up the sheets of paper from the bed beside her and passed them across to Lena.
 
Lena’s eyes narrowed as they moved from Lois’ to the papers that were handed to her.  She opened the folder, studying each one in turn. Her expression changed from agitated, through curious, and finally settled on intrigued.  She went back to the earlier invoices, turning to lay them out on the bed even as she knelt on the floor to take them all in.
 
“I’d offer to join you down there, but uh, bad back you know,” Lois smirked as she shifted over a little to make more room for the paper. “So, anything useful?”
 
“Pencil, Pen,” Lena said as she snapped her fingers, one hand raised above her head and all of her concentration still on the papers on the bed.  “Um… thing that writes.”
 
“Jesus Bloody Christ, Luthor,” Lois grumbled as she stood up. “I wasn’t kidding about the bad back, you know. I’m not as young as I used to be.” She began to scour the room for some sort of writing implement, then sighed. “Hold that thought.”
 
Vanishing from the room, she returned a moment later with her notebook, from which she unclipped the pen and passed to Lena. “Don’t lose it. I need it.”
 
“Hmmmm,” Lena said distractedly as she reached back and took the pen that was slapped into her hand.
 
She began to write on the bottom of one of the receipts, using her hand to stiffen the surface. Lena made several numerical notations, noted a few letters, drew in some odd symbols, and then started to create a diagram of some sort with lines, lines with squiggles in the middle, lines with diamonds in the middle, lines with circles in the middle, lines with triangles in the middle, all of these having some extra symbols thrown in, and then a series of other symbols and drawings thrown into the mix.  
 
As Lena was busy doing whatever it was she was doing, Lois sat back on the bed, fidgeted for a moment or two, then sighed. “I’m hungry.”
 
“You just ate,” Lena replied, not looking up from her work.
 
“And?” Clearly Lois was failing to see the point Lena was apparently making. “You just had a glass of wine. Yet I bet you wouldn’t turn down another if I offered it to you.”
 
“That’s not the same thing.”
 
“You’re thirsty, you drink. I’m hungry, I want to eat. Ooh, do you think they do maple doughnuts?” In a flash she was sprawled across the bed, reaching for the phone on the bedside table to dial room service again.
 
Lena just ignored her, with a shake of her head being the only indication she was even aware of Lois’ actions, and went back to her workings on the receipts.
 
Finally, apparently satisfied with her sketch, she leaned back on her heels and looked up wide-eyed at Lois. “We need to get to that factory. I need to see if they built this thing there.”
 
“You figured out that they - whoever ‘they’ are - built something… and you got all that from a bunch of squiggles?” Lois raised an eyebrow as she peered over Lena’s shoulder and pointed to the annotations she’d made. “You can read that, yet you thought shorthand was an alien language?!”
 
“Lois please, now is not the time. We have to go. I need to see for myself what’s been going on.”
 
Lois pouted and pointed to the phone. “But… room service…?”
 
“Will wait until we return.”
 
“But… doughnuts?”
 
“Will be waiting for you upon our return.”
 
Lois let out a dejected sigh and stood up. “All right, fine. But on one condition.”
 
“Why do I get the feeling I’m not going to like this?” Lena asked as she stood up, gathered up the papers and tucked them into her purse.
 
“You’ve had wine.”
 
“Yes?”
 
“So you can’t drive. Which means—”
 
“No. Besides you’ve also had wine.”
 
“Actually I had a soda, remember?.”
 
“And you’re not on the rental, remember?”
 
Lois sat back on the bed again, folding her arms. “Then I’m going to sit here and wait for my doughnuts.”
 
“See you when I get back then.” Lena headed for the door, counting to five silently in her head. She hadn’t even made it to three before there was the sound of footsteps behind her and a lot of grumbling from one very unhappy, reluctant reporter who was far too curious for her own good, it would seem.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The Jaguar purred to a stop under the archway of an overpass, the Wayne-Tech factory building across the street on the corner. It was a large, three-story, red-brick stone building taking up a good half of the block. Glass windows were now boarded up, and chains locked the doors that were visible from the ladies’ vantage point. No movement could be seen inside or near the building. It looked exactly like what it supposedly was, a closed down factory. But the receipts told a different story.
 
As Lena put the car into first and moved it down the city street again, Lois turned to her in confusion.  “Hey, where are you going? That’s the place.”
 
With the slightest of nods, Lena continued forward. “Indeed. We need to find parking.”
 
“What’s wrong with where we were?”
 
“Lois.” Lena turned for a moment, her tone and face a practice in patience. “This vehicle doesn’t get street parked. There, take a look.” She pointed at a blue sign with a white P on it. “We’ll garage it and walk back to the factory.”
 
“What if we get into trouble and have to get out in a hurry?”
 
“Then we’ll run.”
 
“Honey, I’m used to running for my life,” Lois rolled her eyes. “But I hardly doubt you get a lot of practice sitting behind a desk all day. Running for your life isn’t as easy as it looks. Trust me.”
 
Pulling into the parking garage, Lena stopped and rolled down Lois’ window.  “Grab a ticket, would you?”
 
“Eh, ‘please’ wouldn’t go amiss every now and then, you know,” Lois grumbled as she reached out and took a ticket anyway.
 
Holding out her hand for the ticket, Lena quipped an eyebrow and flatly said, “Thank you.”
 
“You’re very welcome, Miss Luthor. A pleasure to serve you as always,” Lois smirked, now clearly mocking Lena.
 
“Hmmm, not bad.  Keep that up and perhaps there could be a job for you at CatCo,” Lena said as she shoved the ticket into her visor and put the car into first again.  Closing Lois’ window she added, “If you’re so worried about my ability to run for my life, feel free to give me a head start.”
 
“Yeah right,” Lois scoffed. “Don’t you know the first rule of survival is that
you don't have to run faster than the bear to get away. You just have to run faster than the guy next to you.
”
 
“Your definition of team is fascinating, Lois.  I will, however, keep your helpful tips in mind, especially if we see any bears.”  At a free space, Lena pulled in and turned off the car. “Well, ready to go on a bear hunt?”
 
“I’m sure that’s a kids book…” Lois mused thoughtfully as she climbed out and closed the door behind her, then tugged on her leather jacket.
 
Following Lois out, Lena paused by the car as she pulled her jacket on. “Going on a bear hunt.”  A whimsical smile colored her lips. “I’d quite forgotten that. Do you know Lex used to do that with me when I was quite young?”
 
“Yeah? My mom did it with me and Lucy. There was a park near where we were stationed once… back when Dad used to move around the army bases a lot. It had pretty much everything except the snowstorms, and Mom would take us there, and we’d all sing it as we pretended to go on an adventure together.” Lois was also remembering back to fonder memories as well.
 
“Ah, well, we just played in the mansion, but Lex would lay things out to represent different challenges along the way. There was a large, blue tablecloth for water, and we’d go under the formal dining room table. I remember the adventure ending up in the pantry, and Lex would draft one of the cooks into joining us and into hiding in there. They’d growl when we opened the pantry, and I’d shriek with glee. Then Lex and I would race backward through the house going over, under, and all around things all the way back to my room where we’d jump on my bed until we were safe.  I’d be panting and laughing. I felt so safe with him and so happy.” Lena had been smiling brightly, but that smiled fade at her gaze met Lois’ “I’m sorry you never met that Lex, that brother of mine. He was such a good and loving person. I don’t know what happened to him, but I do miss him.”
 
“He sounds amazing,” Lois agreed with a smile of her own. “And I saw glimpses of that side of him - every now and then when he thought no one was watching.” Feeling that the mood might be about to slide again, she sidled up to Lena and nudged her playfully. “So how about it, huh? All together now…

We’re going on a bear hunt, we’re going to catch a big one. What a beautiful day. We’re not scared!”

Though Lena rolled her eyes, there was a smile lighting her lips and all too soon, hands shoved in her coat pockets, Lena had joined into the second go around of the song… “

We’re going on a bear hunt, we’re going to catch a big one. What a beautiful day. We’re not scared!”

Indeed, the mood did lighten, and although she wasn’t a child giggling with glee as she played with her big brother through their mansion, she was a bit closer to the good times in the past again.  The truth about the Luthors was far from pretty, and that was a well-known fact, but although there was many things about them that wasn’t good, that wasn’t all they were.
 
Lois had noted Lena’s reluctance at first, and in all honesty she hadn’t expected the young woman to join in at all, so when she did, Lois’ face had split into a huge grin that most definitely reached her eyes. By now they’d reached a road, which in order to get to the warehouse, they needed to cross. So Lois stopped, and even though there was nothing on said road, she placed her hands on her hips.
 
“Uh oh. A Road. A… uh… a cold… hard… road? We can’t go over it, we can’t go under it. Oh no…” She looked to Lena, hoping that she’d join in and finish it off.
 With a head shake and a slight chuckle, Lena added, “We’ve got to go through it.” 
Grabbing Lena’s hand, Lois started off across the road. “Uh…  what noise would this make?”
 
“Are we seriously going to keep doing this?”
 
“Oh come on, it’s fun!”
 
“Yes, and I’m known for my mirth.  Lena Luthor: CEO, billionaire, maker of merriment,” Lena said with an overly dramatic sigh.  “I should go update my Linkedin profile.”
 
“Look, we’re in Gotham,” Lois sighed as they reached the other side of the road and she let go of Lena’s hand. “If you don’t act even just a tiny bit insane, it makes you a target for those who actually ARE. And trust me, around these parts, there’s a LOT of insane folk. They built Arkham Asylum for a reason.”
 
“Oh, I didn’t realize insanity was the key to surviving here.  Perhaps we should have just stopped off and bought stickers that said, ‘Hello My Name Is…’.  I could have just put Luthor on mine. I’m fairly certain Lane would have bought you safe passage. Name recognition is everything, darling.”
 
“Yeah, and so is image. Like I said, this town? Full of whack jobs. Why do you think the ‘hero’ of these parts dresses like a bat and gets hit in the head twenty eight times a night?” Lois shrugged lightly.
 
“Honestly?” Lena returned the shrug. “My first thought was fetish, and that didn’t leave me to giving it a second thought. Given my family, to each their own.”
 
Lois laughed and shook her head. “Oh, Princess, you’re adorable. Remind me to tell you the story of how Batman came to be, one day. Not now though. There’s all sorts of ears listening around these parts.”
 
Brows furrowed as her head turned slowly until her gaze met Lois’, Lena slowly mouthed something and then clearly said, “How Batman came to be? Lois, if this is some sort of fetish story, I don’t care what any gossip column has published about me, I’m truly not interested… truly… truly.”
 
Lois blinked, and even missed a step, stumbling slightly before catching herself as she looked to Lena in total confusion. “What?” She went back over everything Lena had just said, and then she shook her head. “One: I don’t want to know about your kinky fetishes woman, so please don’t even go there. And two: He didn’t just wake up one morning and decide to be a bat, if that’s what you mean. And I’m pretty sure there were no fetishes involved there, either.”
 
“My kinky fetishes?” Narrowing her eyes, Lena said, “Why do I feel like every conversation with you is a setup? Keep your Batman to yourself. Let’s just work on getting the Supers back. I’m much more interested in my heroes in capes and skirts, not cowls.”
 
Lois raised both eyebrows, the skirts comment not going unnoticed. But she kept it to herself and said instead, “Not every conversation is a set up, I promise. And if it’s all the same to you, I prefer my capes and tights heroes too. Batman is too dark and gloomy and sulky and grumpy and… pretty much every other descriptive word for depressing.”
 
“Sounds homey. Thanks, I hate it,” Lena quipped. “There’s the factory.”
 
“Plus, did you know that Batman is actually afraid of—” Her voice broke off as she glanced to a shadow at the side of the street, her keen violet eyes observing what most other people would probably have walked straight past. A shape, huddled beneath a jacket, small rising and falling movements the only indication that it was even covering anything living. Lois edged closer, carefully, all too familiar with the reputation of these neighbourhoods. Her head tilted to one side as she studied the scene, now close enough to discover that there was indeed a man huddled beneath the jacket, trying to keep warm in the cold night air.
 
To make matters worse - worse than the fact he was so clearly homeless - a beret was set out on the floor about a foot in front of him. A way to beg for money, just to keep himself alive.
 
Lois had seen homeless people before, and although their plight always tugged at something within her, seeing that beret now very nearly broke her heart clean in two. Digging into her back pocket of her jeans, she pulled out a twenty, stepped forwards slowly and made a show of placing it into the beret for the man to see - his bloodshot eyes rising to meet hers for a fraction of a second before he looked away again.
 
“Lois, be careful.” Lena’s voice was low, little more than a hiss as she whispered. She stood wound tight as a piano wire, hands still shoved into her pockets, all of her attention on the man on the ground.
 
“I’m so sorry,” Lois muttered quietly to the man as she remained crouched beside him for a moment. Then she offered him a smile. “Buy yourself something warm with that, huh?”
 
He didn’t say anything, but she just about made out the barely visible nod of thanks from him, before she stood up again, intending to return to Lena.
 
Lena watched the entire exchange with obvious wariness and concern. As Lois stood and turned toward her, the younger woman opened her mouth to speak again but startled and turned her head to-and-fro, while ducking down a bit at a loud noise that came from a nearby alley but echoed and seemed to be from everywhere. In retrospect, it was the backfire of a car. In that moment, it was a loud bang that was followed immediately by the thrumming of her pounding heart.
 
Lois jumped as well, startled by the noise but unlike Lena, who’d probably heard the shot of an assassin’s gun, naturally fearing the worst as any person who had survived as many assassination attempts as she had probably would, Lois had instead heard it for what it was. A car. And just as she was about to say so to the clearly startled young woman in front of her, all of a sudden Lois found herself hitting the deck, blinking at the concrete, all the breath knocked from her.
 
“Stay down!” Someone commanded as a figure crouched in front of her, every muscle tense, his whole body language screaming high alert.
 
Shaking her head a little in a daze, Lois squinted up to see the homeless man was now searching all around with his eyes, breathing heavily, one hand on her shoulder to keep her down. His other hand, she could see, was reaching for something at his hip. Except there was nothing there. A reflex, perhaps? An automatic reaction to a situation, conditioned by years of training to respond in such a way?
 
The most interesting part about it all wasn’t the fact that he’d reached for a non-existent weapon, however. It wasn’t even the firm but gentle hand on her shoulder. It was the fact that he had his back to her and was looking all around their immediate environment instead. She wasn’t the threat, as far as he was concerned.
 
“Lois!” Someone screamed her name, and she was suddenly reminded that she hadn’t been alone. “Get away from her, you bastard!”
 
“No—” Lois groaned, then tried again to find her voice, even as the man looked in Lena’s direction, alerted by her scream, and his whole body tensed even more, if that was even physically possible.
 
“Drop your weapon!” He ordered - a deep, thundering command that suggested he was no stranger to giving orders, and for them to be obeyed. “Drop your weapon!”
 
“Lena, no!” Lois gasped, pushing herself up onto her elbows when she saw who he was shouting at, and realised that Lena had pulled a gun. From somewhere. Lois had no idea where from, but she knew that in this very moment that was the worst possible thing that her friend could have done.
 
“Drop your weapon!” The homeless man bellowed again, reaching once more for a gun that wasn’t at his hip. “Drop it and get your hands up!”
 
Pushing herself to her knees shakily, Lois cast all about furiously for something - anything - to help her dissolve the situation before it got a whole lot worse. But all she could see was the beret, the jacket that he had been using as a blanket… and not a whole lot else. He literally had nothing.
 
Pulling herself back to her feet again, she turned and stepped up beside the man, one hand placed gently on his forearm, as she now chose to put herself between him and Lena. But he fought with her, tried to push her back behind him as he also jumped back to his feet.
 
“Get back, ma’am, please, let me handle this,” he asked her, still in that same authoritative tone minus the volume.
 
“Stand down, Captain,” She returned gently using the rank she’d seen displayed on his jacket, her grip on his arm tightening a little as she got his attention. “At ease. Friendly fire.”
 
He blinked, looked down at her arm on his, then back to Lena, then back to Lois again, and it was clear that he didn’t quite know what to believe.
 
Whilst he had at least calmed enough that he was no longer shouting at Lena, Lois turned her attention to her now, and held out one hand slowly, palm facing Lena in an appeasing manner. “Lena? Honey? Put the gun down. Please? Just… put it down, alright? We’ve got this. It’s fine. We’re all good.”
 
Lena clearly didn’t agree with Lois, but there was something about the tone of her voice that Lena simply couldn’t refuse. Lois may not have taken the army route of her father and sister, but she’d certainly picked up some of the traits of a commanding officer anyway, whether she realised it or not. Reluctantly, Lena lowered the gun, but didn’t put it away completely.
 
Lois turned back to the Captain, then blinked when she realised that in the split second when her back had been turned, he had grabbed up his belongings and fled. She could hear his frantic footsteps carrying him away from them, even as he berated himself over and over, calling himself “stupid”.
 
“Wait!” Lois called, wanting to run after him. But already he’d vanished out of sight. “God damn it!”
 
Lena breathed a little easier as she saw him make a run for it, but her heart was still pounding frantically in her chest and she fought not to let a whimper escape and betray just how scared she’d been in that instant.
 
With a frustrated sigh, Lois crouched down to pick up the beret that the captain had laid out in front of him on the cold ground to collect coins from passing strangers, hoping and relying upon their charity, just for his own survival. Yet in his haste to get away, he’d left it behind and had only grabbed up his jacket instead.
 
At the moment there were no coins in the beret, just the twenty bucks that Lois had folded up and tucked into it for him. But even that could have found him a room for the night, a bed somewhere and a hot meal. Yet in his panicked state he’d not even stopped to consider grabbing it.
 
With another sigh, she tucked the bill back into her jeans pocket and stood up again, the beret still in hand. And as she stepped back from the shadows and into the light, she finally saw the colour of the material, and closed her eyes, gripping the beret tight in one fist and trying very hard not to let out another much more colourful expletive this time.
 
The beret was green. He was an Army Ranger, just like her father and sister. The fact he was homeless was bad enough. The fact he was a homeless veteran was terrible. The fact he was a homeless Army Ranger was enough to make her want to cry. Or shout and rant and rage at the unfairness and injustice of it all.
 
“Are you alright?” Lena asked from a short distance away, the gun lowered but still in hand as she observed Lois’ reaction when she saw the color of the beret in her hand. Lena couldn’t understand the significance, but she figured it had some sort of personal meaning for her friend.
 
“I’m fine,” Lois replied through gritted teeth, not turning to her.
 
Lena frowned, noting the tension and the tightness across Lois’ shoulders in particular, that had come on all of a sudden. A moment ago she’d been calmly talking everyone down from doing anything stupid. Now, she was wound so tight, Lena was afraid she might even hurt herself.
 
“Okay, I know I don’t know you that well, but even I can tell that you’re not fine, right now. Are you hurt? Did he hurt you at all?”
 
“I said I’m fine!” Lois snapped. “Though if you don’t get that

thing

out of my sight, I might do something I’ll later regret!”
 
“Thing?” Lena repeated. She glanced down to her hands, and saw the gun. And slowly realisation dawned. “We’re in a dangerous neighborhood, and you were just attacked. If it’s all the same to you, I’d prefer to keep it out. Just in case.”
 
She was trying to act calm, but nevertheless she was clearly shaken by the whole thing, and Lois’ anger now wasn’t helping either. Mainly because Lena couldn’t understand it.
 
“I wasn’t being attacked, I was being protected!” Lois finally rounded on her, fury blazing in her eyes. A fury so intense that Lena took an involuntary step back. With the hand still clutching the green beret, Lois pointed in the direction the homeless man had run in. “He thought I was in danger. He was protecting me, and
you
pulled a gun on him! What the hell were you thinking?!”
 
“For all I knew, he could have been an assassin, hired by any number of people who seem to want me dead!” Lena countered, losing her calm composure a little.
 
Rather than put Lois in her place, however, as it would have done with anyone else, this comment only seemed to rouse her anger further.
 
“Get over yourself for five minutes, Luthor! The whole world doesn't revolve around you!”
 
Her voice had risen again, but unlike back in the hotel room when she hadn’t meant to snap, this time Lena knew that she did indeed mean it. The reporter was angry now. No, more than that, she was furious. And still Lena couldn’t fathom why. Just hours earlier, Lois had been wading fists first into a street gang in order to protect Lena. Yet now, when Lena had drawn a gun to try and protect her in return, Lois was becoming all hypocritical and furious?!
 
Except there was one very clear difference between the two situations, Lena realized as she glanced down at the object in her hand again.
 
“You don’t like guns.” It was a statement, not a question, but it raised a reaction from Lois nonetheless.
 
“Well, you really are a genius, aren’t you!”
 
“There’s no need for sarcasm,” Lena scowled.
 
“And there is no need for that thing! I am not going to tell you again. Put. It.
Away
.”
 
“I have a right to carry a sidearm and to defend myself with it, should the need arise,” Lena’s tone had turned cold now - a perfect contrast to Lois’ flaming fury. “This is a dangerous area.”
 
“Then go wait in the car!” The way Lois turned her back on Lena had a certain air of finality about it, like she wasn’t going to argue any further. Either Lena put the gun away, or she went back to the car. As far as Lois was concerned, those were her only two options.
 
Knowing she couldn’t leave the other woman out here to fend for herself, Lena very reluctantly slipped the safety back on and tucked the handgun into the back of her waistband, beneath her shirt and jacket so that the coldness of the hand grip sat against the small of her back.
 
Once she’d pulled her jacket back down to cover it up, she walked round in front of Lois and held her now empty hands up for her to see.
 
The reporter still wasn’t happy, but her anger had at least lessened to the extent that Lena wasn’t quite so intimidated any more. As much as she wanted to understand Lois’ abject and blatant hatred of guns, now was most probably not the best time to broach the subject.
 
“So… who was that man?” Lena ventured after a moment of awkward silence as Lois pulled out her burner phone and dialed a number that she must have known off by heart, considering she hadn’t needed to consult her actual phone for it.
 
“He’s the reason I’m about to make a very unpleasant phone call. Though considering he was betrayed by his country, I’d say it’s the least I can do for him,” Lois sighed, visibly forcing herself to calm down as she set the phone to her ear and waited. Again Lena wanted to question what she meant, but Lois was talking now, and she couldn't interrupt. So she decided to listen in and pick up what she could from this conversation instead.
 
“Major Lane, please,” Lois sighed into the receiver, tucking the green beret into the pocket of her jacket then raising her now free hand to her temple and rubbing it. “Security clearance 427857. She’ll want to take my call… yes, feel free to tell her that. In fact make sure you DO tell her that.”
 
Lois paced back and forth a little as she waited for her call to connect, her hand moving from massaging her temple to massaging the back of her neck then back to her temple again. She only stopped pacing when the call was finally picked up at the other end.

“Lois, you had better have a damned good reason for phoning me like this?! I thought you said after last time, that you and I were done?”

“Oh we are, absolutely,” Lois agreed coldly. “But shut up and listen, Lucy. This isn’t about you and me, and trust me if I had a choice, you’re the last person I’d ever call.” Ignoring the stunned expression on Lena’s face, Lois resumed her pacing again. “This is about one of your guys.”
 
There was a pause. Lucy hadn’t been expecting that.

“What do you mean, one of my guys?”

“I’m in Gotham, and I’ve just come across a homeless vet. A green beret no less.”

“Poor guy.”

“He saved my life, and I want to return the favor.” Lois didn’t go into detail, and Lucy certainly didn’t need to know that there actually hadn’t been any threat that Lois had needed saving from, other than Lena’s gun. But that was information that was need to know, and Lucy didn’t need to know.

“What’s this got to do with me?”

“Well, I need to know who he is. All I got was his surname and his beret color, but you can work it out from that, right?”

“It’s a long shot, but I can give it a go. Tell me what you know.”

“He had a jacket with him, Captain epaulettes and a name - Collins.”

“Captain Collins? Lois, there could be any number of Captains with that name… anything else that could help?”

“He had some medals. Erm… hang on, he had the….” Lois wracked her brains as she tried to remember what each of the colored ribbons symbolised on his jacket. She’d only had a quick glimpse, but hopefully it would be enough. “He had the Distinguished Service Cross, a Silver Star, and a Purple Heart. There were others, but I didn’t get a good enough look at them.”

“Okay, that does narrow it down,”

Lucy conceded, and Lois could hear her tapping away at a keyboard someplace.

“He was awarded for his bravery on more than one occasion, and he was wounded in action?... Did he have a Medal of Honor?”

Lois squinted her eyes closed as she tried to recall. “I’m not sure, to be honest. He might have done…That’s the one with the stars, right?”

“There’s a Captain Collins here, sounds like he could fit your description. At least in the medals awarded to him. What about physical description?”

“Now you’re asking,” Lois groaned. “Uh… black, rugged, muscular, brown eyes, full beard that really didn’t suit him, so I don’t think he would normally have had it… I have no idea how tall he was… it was hard to tell when he was crouching over me and I was on the floor…”

“Lois, you’re engaged!”

“And you and I are not on speaking terms, yet here we are! You asked for a physical description, you got one, so quit your whining!” She turned to Lena quickly. “Luthor, how tall was he?”
 
“Uh, about six foot I’d say.”
 
Lois nodded then returned to her call. “Six foot-ish.”

“Did you just say Luthor?”

“Stay on task!”

“Damn it, Lois, you’re even more of a bitch than I remember. What the hell has happened to you?!”

“Nothing you need concern yourself with. Now have you found my guy or not?”

“Yes. Do you want me to -?”

“Just text me the details.” And with that, Lois hung up. No goodbyes or thank yous or anything of the kind. Just cold, hard and to the point.
 
Lena was stunned. This was a whole new side to Lois that she’d never seen before, and quite frankly she didn’t like it. Something about seeing this homeless army veteran had unsettled her far more than she was going to admit, and she was now taking it out on the world around her. Lena wasn’t really sure how to react to it all, so she decided that probably the best thing to do right now would just be to stay quiet and let Lois calm down in her own time.
 
After tucking her burner phone back into her jacket pocket as well, Lois turned to Lena finally, and with a considerable effort to check her tone, she said in a much calmer voice, “We should get going.”
 
“Right behind you,” Lena nodded, reaching round behind her to pat the area where the handgun rested in her waistband, just to reassure herself that it was still there, should she need it. Regardless of what Lois may think.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

After a quick visual check of the outside of the factory to find no one about, the two women went to a side door, and Lois tried the handle, not really expecting it to be open but just deciding to rule it out anyway and try her luck.
 
Sure enough, it was locked, and a small keypad beside the door was illuminated bright yellow.
 
“Over to you, Luthor,” Lois nodded to the keypad.  It was clear from Lois’ choice of name for her - she was using her last name, not some playful nickname - that Lois was still quietly seething over what had happened half an hour or so earlier. Lena had never exactly been one to hold a grudge, unlike the rest of her family. From Lois’ prior attitude and mannerisms, it seemed uncharacteristic for the reporter to hold one, but it seemed that Lois also didn’t forget things in a hurry either. This could be a long night.

No, a long morning.

As she stepped forward, Lena quickly glanced at her watch which showed it was now coming up to 3.30am. She held out a hand to the keypad. Then paused, before looking back to Lois worriedly.
 
“I’m not sure that I can. This is a Schlage Z-Wave Touchscreen Wireless door lock. It has a built in alarm that will notify a remote station if the wrong code is used and not corrected in thirty seconds. Given me my laptop and a little bit of time, I could create a program to run through all of the possible permutations and reset the timer on the alarm,” she pulled out her cell phone, “but I can’t crack it with this.”
 
Lois’ arms rose to cross over her chest as she rolled her eyes. “So what you’re saying is, you don’t know the code?”
 
“Well there’s several it

could

be, is all I’m saying.”
 
“How many is ‘several’?”
 
Lena bit her lip a little, avoiding Lois’ eye. “Well, it’s ten digits with an eight digit code used on this lock and repetition allowed, so that would be ten to the power of eight or 100,000,000.”
 
“One hundred…?! Oh for the love of God. Plus if we make a mistake, we only have thirty seconds before the fuzz gets called?”
 
“Likely the police but also private security who would be much faster to respond and might not be as law abiding in restraining potential thieves,” Lena sighed, shaking her head.
 
Lois stepped away and uttered several expletives, counted to what Lena assumed was ten in a language that she couldn’t even begin to try and understand, then turned back again, visibly forcing herself to calm. “Okay, and I suppose jimmying it open with something is a no-go as well?”
 
“The alarm—”
 
“Yeah, yeah, the alarm and private security. So much doom and gloom.”
 
“Well, we are in Gotham, and when in Rome…”
 
Lois nodded, frowning at the keypad. “Okay, so we have this ten digit, impossible to guess code, that sets off alarms and calls the fuzz down on us. I don’t know about you, but I don’t have Luthor lawyers and have no interested in getting arrested.”
 
“Again,” Lena mumbled.
 
Lois ran a hand through her hair in frustration as something - some instinct perhaps - caused her to look up in time to see the Bat Signal emblazoned across the night sky. “Well, we won’t be getting help from the resident Bat tonight, from the looks of things, so we need to think of something. I’m not coming all this way just to leave and not know what’s in there, now.”
 
“All the way here you were insisting it was probably a waste of time and not even related to the Supers at all.”
 
Lois shrugged. “Let’s just say my reporter’s senses are tingling now. We need to get in there and at least have a look around, even if it’s just to rule it out of the investigation.”
 
Lena dug her hands into her jacket pockets and looked at Lois with one perfectly arched eyebrow rising slowly. “And how do you propose we get inside? Unless you happen to have x-ray vision like the Supers and can see which buttons are frequently used on this thing, there is no possible or conceivable way we can figure it out in only thirty seconds.”
 
Lois had been pacing up until that point, when all of a sudden she stopped and looked to Lena, a smile appearing on her face for the first time since the whole incident with Captain Collins. Crouching down, she sat her purse on the floor in front of her and started to rummage about. A moment later, she gave a little cry of triumph and stood up again, brandishing two items in her hand.
 
Stepping over to the door, she popped open the lid of the small jar of white powder, dipped a brush inside and then very lightly dabbed and brushed the powder across the keypad.
 
“Really?!” Lena couldn’t help but grin as she watched. “You just happen to carry chalk and a brush in your bag?”
 
“Talc actually,” Lois replied with a smirk of her own. “And I’m an investigative journalist. If I don’t go out there and find the news, I don’t get the scoop. My whole career revolves around it in fact. You honestly think I’m not prepared to do whatever it takes to get that exclusive?”
 
After a few more careful strokes and applying the powder to the keys, Lois crouched down and put the brush and jar back in her bag, then pulled out a flashlight and shone it on the keypad to reveal a set of partial fingerprints on some of the keys.
 
“Voila,” she looked up at Lena smugly. “Alrighty then, we have the most common numbers… zero, two, four, six, and seven from the looks of things.” She glanced up at Lena.
 
The CEO’s brows were pressed down in deep concentration. “That brings us down to 100,000 possibilities. Do you want to know the odds of us being able to correctly guess it within thirty seconds?”
 
Lois smirked. “Never tell me the odds.”
 
With an eye roll, Lena pulled her phone back out and began to type. “I definitely feel like the droid in this relationship.”
 
“CP3O or R2D2?”
 
Lena shook her head, her tongue barely peeking out between her ruby lips as she continued to type.
 
“What are you doing?”
 
“Research.”
 
“Um, I’m pretty sure that’s my job.”
 
Lena chuckled. “No, it’s definitely my job. Science is ten percent inspiration and ninety percent perspiration. Now can you be quiet for ten minutes and let me work?”
 
“Ten minutes? Have you even met me?”
 
“Shhh.”
 
While Lois fidgeted, walked around the alley a bit, checked her own phone, walked another circuit of the alley, and even began to pile crates in a pyramid in obvious preparation for a trip to the roof, Lena typed.  She bounced from website to website, making notes in her phone’s notepad. It was closer to twenty minutes later when, with a heavy sigh, Lena stopped.
 
“I’m afraid this list is the best that I can do. You said you knew Mr. Wayne well. Do you happen to know of any private or business holdings he might have in Europe that wouldn’t be publicly listed?”
 
“What? Europe? I—” Lois scurried down from her pile of crates, slipping two boxes from the ground and landing on her butt on one of the lowest crates. She jumped to her feet, rubbing her behind. “Watch that last step, Luthor, it’s a doozie. Now, what was that about Wayne and Europe?”
 
“I need to know if Mr. Wayne has any hidden holdings in Serbia, Macedonia, Bosnia/Herzegovina, Monaco, Armenia, Montenegro, Moldova, Albania, or Kosov, though the last is a disputed state.” Lena waved a hand about, still staring intently at her screen. “That doesn’t matter. It still has 8-digit phone numbers.”
 
“Did you just say Macadamia like the nut? That’s a place?”
 
“No, I said Macedonia. You’re the only nut around here. Do any of those ring a bell?”
 
“No, but I’m pretty sure you made up half of them to test me.”
 
“They’re all very real places.  Don’t confuse your ignorance with my imagination.” Lena failed to look up and see Lois scowl. “Anyway, do you know of any businesses or perhaps a private residence that Mr. Wayne might have in any of those countries?”
 
“Why?”
 
Lena finally stopped looking at her phone, frowning perhaps in response to Lois’ frown. “Didn’t I explain that?”
 
Lois’ only response was to cross her arms over her chest and intensify her frown.
 
“Right, sorry. Anyway, those nine countries have 8-digit phone numbers. I’ve made a list of relevant dates in Mr. Wayne’s life as well as the phone numbers from any businesses that are 8-digits long. Those are the only countries with eight-digit numbers.”
 
“How many did you come up with?”
 
“That fit with the five digits we know are in use? Four. There’s one phone number, the date of birth for one of his wards, and a rather important manufacturing plant that opened in Toledo.” As she spoke, Lena went down to her phone, scrolling through her list. “I thought we had a fifth, but the year of his parent’s death started with a one. Anyway, only a Luthor would be morbid enough to memorialize the day someone died in such a matter.”
 
“His parents’ death? That was June twenty-sixth.”
 
“Right, 0, 6, 2, 6. As I said, it looked promising, but the year doesn’t match. I even looked at the time of the incident as it was reported, but that also started with a one.”
 
Lois grabbed Lena’s hand, causing the other woman to look up and meet her gaze. “What time was it?”
 
“The time doesn’t match Lois. It doesn’t—”
 
“The time, Luthor.”
 
Lena went back to one of her searches, nodding. “It was at 10:27 which starts with a one.”
 
“Nope.” Her lips pressed tightly together, Lois walked over to the keypad and began pressing numbers.
 
“Lois, don’t—” When the light on the lock turned green and the door clicked open, Lena froze. “How did you know the code?”
 
“Because I’m an army brat, and 10:27 PM is 22:27.” As Lois entered, with Lena trailing behind, she said, “I bet you a million bucks we find rats in this place.”
 
“No. This is a creepy abandoned warehouse in Gotham. We’ll be lucky if a rat’s nest is the worst thing we find.”
 
“Oh come on, you must have a spare million lying around that you don’t use?” Lois pouted as she shone her flashlight about whilst Lena pulled out her cellphone and activated the flashlight setting on it so that she could light her own way.
 
“I have assets and shares and companies, Lois. That is where my money is tied up. I don’t literally swim in a pool of dollar bills, or stuff my mattress with them, if that’s what you’re thinking?”
 
“Awww, why did you have to go and ruin that for me?” Lois whined. “That was such a cool mental image!”
 
Lena couldn’t help but laugh as they stepped inside and found… absolutely nothing.
 
Lois literally stood and swept the flashlight at arm’s length in a full circle, turning on the spot as she did so, her brows furrowing more and more with each second.
 
“It’s empty!” She exclaimed at last, looking to Lena in confusion. “What the hell?”
 
Lena had stepped a little further in, and was equally as confused as she also looked about. “Are you absolutely sure your sources were correct about this place?”
 
“Do bears shit in the woods?”
 
“A simple yes or no would have sufficed.”
 
Lois huffed and rolled her eyes. “Yes. This is definitely the place.” She stepped forward, shining her flashlight ahead of herself before turning it on the walls, looking for a light switch. But a gasp from Lena had her spinning on the spot, flashlight raised in anticipation of some sort of attacker come to give them grief. All she found was Lena pointing animatedly to the spot on the floor with both her finger and the beam of her flashlight.
 
“Look, here!”
 
Lois moved closer, then crouched down. “Wow, it’s a dusty bit of floor...”
 
Lena rolled her eyes at Lois’ sarcasm and crouched down as well. “No, it’s a mark on the floor. A very significant mark that tells us something very important.”
 
Lois considered for a moment, and then she nodded finally in understanding. “Alright Smart Arse, I’m with you now. There’s a mark on the floor because there used to be something here. But clearly there isn’t anything here anymore, unless it’s invisible which —” She ran a hand through the air, about three inches off the ground above the mark on the floor. “—it’s not. So whatever
was
here has now been moved to somewhere else instead. And as the dust hasn’t had a chance to settle over this bit yet, then it’s been moved recently, whatever it was.”
 
Lena smiled. “Maybe I underestimated you, Miss Lane.”
 
“It’s easily done,” Lois shrugged. “There’s a lot to estimate.”
 
“Is this you attempting to be humble?” Lena smirked again as now it was her turn to turn her light on the walls as she looked something.
 
“Nope, this is me being an investigating journalist again… emphasis on investigative,” Lois replied around the flashlight she was now holding in her mouth, so the words didn’t exactly come out as clearly as that, but close enough for Lena to get the gist. Once again, Lois was once again rooting around in her bag. Giving up on her quest, Lena hovered with her phone lighting up Lois’ bag from overhead, and finally Lois seemed to find what she was looking for, pulling out a stick of chalk.
 
As she retrieved the flashlight from her mouth however, it began to flicker and she bashed it with the palm of her hand a few times. “Damn it, I knew I should have brought spare batteries.”
 
“What’s with the chalk?”
 
“Well,” Lois glanced up to her. “I was going to draw round each of these marks, to make it easier for us to see what might have been here.”
 
“That’s… not a half bad plan,” Lena admitted, once again impressed. “Here, hold this then and I’ll go and find the lights. I don’t see a switch in here” Lena offered her phone to Lois, but Lois shook her head.
 
“Won’t you need that to find the lights?”
 
“I can see a terminal just over there,” Lena pointed back behind her and slightly to the left. “It’ll be fine.”
 
“And what if you get a call?”
 
“You can take a message.”
 
“So I’m your personal secretary now, huh?”
 
“If you need any tips, I’ve got Jess on speed dial,” Lena retorted playfully as she turned and walked away, leaving the phone with Lois, who’s laughter (albeit sarcastic laughter) could be heard echoing about the emptiness of the vast expanse of warehouse.
 
………..
 
As Lois flicked off her flashlight and tucked it back into her bag, she swapped it instead for the cellphone light and began her task of drawing round the edges of each mark to highlight them. It took her a few seconds to realise that the beam of light was vibrating, however, and turning to look at the phone in confusion, she saw that there was an incoming call. The phone was ringing! Well, vibrating. It had been put on silent at some point so the vibrations were the only indication of the call.
 
Glancing over in the direction Lena had vanished, Lois sat frozen for a moment, staring at the screen of the phone, hoping that the caller would ring off and she could claim she’d missed the call. But they were persistent, whoever they were. As soon as it hung up, the very same number would call back again. In the end, Lois huffed and pulled out her notebook and pen, then hit the answer button.
 
“Lena Luthor’s phone.”

“Oh… sorry, I was expecting Miss Luthor?”

A young woman’s voice came across the line, her British accent surprisingly bright for a 3 AM call.
 
“She’s a little busy at the moment. Can I take a message at all?”

“I… well… sorry is now a bad time? I’m back in London, and I couldn’t remember the time difference between here and National City.”

Lois glanced at her watch and blanched clearly having had no idea it was that late! Well, that

early

, really.
 
“Uh, Miss Luthor and I aren’t in National City at the moment, so the times are a little different and it’s 3:30am or something, but we’re both still awake because we’re in the middle of something, and I didn’t need to say that, so forget that I just did and… anyway. Message? Is there one at all?”

“Oh. Right, yes… uh, it’s Abigail Storm here. Miss Luthor was very kind to meet with me recently about a business proposal that I was there to put to her on behalf of my employer, Lord Sugar…”

“Lord… Sugar…” Lois repeated as she quickly scribbled everything down in shorthand on a blank page of her notepad. Then she paused. “Is that like a nickname or something?”
 
There was a pause from the other end of the line.

“Excuse me?”

“Lord Sugar? Is that like a nickname or something? It’s not his real name, surely?”

“Lord Alan Sugar? You’ve not heard of… okay never mind. Please, can you tell Miss Luthor that I put her proposed improvements to Lord Sugar, and he thinks they’re excellent additions to—”

“Wait, hang on,” Lois cut in as she frantically scribbled. “How many S’s are there in ‘excellent’?”
 
Again there was another long pause.

“I’m sorry… what?”

“Never mind, I’ll just stick one in for now, and Lena should get the gist of what I’m saying,” Lois shrugged, then made a rolling motion with the hand holding a pen. “Please continue…”

“Uh… is there perhaps someone else there I can talk to?”

Not even considering that she should perhaps be offended by this comment, Lois just shook her head. “Nope, sorry. Just me. Anywho, I’ve got the rest of what you said, so carry on.”
 
There was a sigh from the other end, before Abigail continued.

“Alright… Lord Sugar thinks the proposed improvements supplied by Miss Luthor are exce… are wonderful, and he’d very much like to arrange another meeting to go over them in more detail. Unfortunately, he can’t come in person, so he’s asking me to come on his behalf again, and I was just ringing to check on Miss Luthor’s availability for the foreseeable future in regards to the meeting.”

Lois had been making several ‘uh huh’ and ‘okay’ noises during Abigail’s explanation, and as she skimmed quickly back over her notes, she was pretty certain she’d got most of the important stuff down. Except for one thing, which she quickly realised. “Right, that’s great, I’ll let Lena know and I’m sure she’ll get back to you as soon as she can. But can I just take your name again?”

“Storm. Abigail Storm.”

“Storm as in really bad weather?”

“How many other types of storm are there?”

“...touché. And she can get you on this number?”

“She can.”

“And you’re in London now… so you’re… what time is it there?”

“Uh… just gone eight thirty in the morning.”

“Right, five hours ahead of Gotham then so… eight hours ahead of National City. I’ll make sure she knows.”

“Thank you. And who am I speaking to?”

“Uh, you can call me Lois.”

“Lois…?”

“Just Lois,” Lois replied, for the first time ever, not wanting to give her surname in case her reputation preceded her and she somehow managed to mess up even more of Lena’s business dealings with the woman who she only now realised was the same woman she’d met coming out of Lena’s office at CatCo the day she’d been caught raiding Kara’s desk drawers. Which was yesterday morning, she realised with a start.
 
“You got back to London pretty damned quick!”

“Excuse me?”

“I met you yesterday, in CatCo! Strong grip lady! You had a really pretty bracelet on! Blue and silver and… sparkly.”

“Oh, yeah it keeps falling off at the moment though. I really need to get the clasp fixed. One of these days, I’m going to lose it completely. But it’s my own stupid fault. I fiddle with it a lot when I’m deep in thought, or concerned or… actually it doesn’t matter.”

“You should be careful. Would be a shame to lose something as pretty as that.”

“Yes, it would.”

Again there was another pause, and then a slight gasp.

“Hold on, I recognise your voice now. You’re Lois Lane!”

“Uh yeah… hi.”

“Well, it’s a pleasure to speak to you again, Miss Lane. Not snooping in any more drawers, I hope?”

“Drawers? No. I can’t exactly swear I’m not snooping though.”
 
There was a soft chuckle from the other end of the phone, that made Lois smile. “

Getting into trouble a little early, aren’t you?”

“Nah, trouble never sleeps, and neither do I,” Lois grinned. The sudden appearance of lighting all around, meaning that she could finally see what the hell she was doing, caused Lois to jump. “Oh, hey Abbie - can I call you Abbie?”

“Sure.”

“Abbie, I gotta run. But I’ll pass your message on to Lena, and I’m sure she’ll be in touch shortly.”

“Perfect, thank you, Lois. Have a good day.”

“You too. See ya!”
 
“Making friends?” Lena smirked as she walked back over to join Lois, as she hung up.
 
“I took a message, just like you asked,” Lois waved the page of shorthand at Lena, who frowned.
 
“I hope that page comes with a translation?”
 
“Give me time.”
 
“Yes, well, time may not exactly be on our side at the moment. Because I’d very much like to find out who’s been here now, what they were doing, and where they’ve taken whatever it was that was here. It must have been something big, judging by these scuff marks.”
 
“Oh! The marks! Right, here—” Lois snapped the stick of chalk in two and handed it, along with the cellphone, back to Lena. “Start drawing, and we’ll see what we end up with.”
 
“Is that an order?” Lena raised an eyebrow.
 
“It’s whatever you want it to be,” Lois shrugged, as she turned her attention back to the floor and began to draw round the marks with the chalk.
 
As Lena joined in and the pair of them began to detail and mark out the areas of floor that showed signs of something being moved, a pattern soon began to emerge.
 
Standing back up again and brushing her dusty hands on her jeans (forgetting how ridiculously expensive they were), Lois grinned. “Hey, if you squint, it kind of looks like a bunny.”
 
Lena rolled her eyes and stood up as well, brushing her own hands against each other.
 
“No, no seriously, look! There’s the head, and the ears and the feet… and the little tail…”
 
“You do realise the map of Great Britain could be considered a bunny if you squint as well?” Lena joked.
 
Frowning, Lois pulled out her phone and googled a map of the British Isles, squinted at the screen a moment, and then her face split into a huge grin. “I never noticed that before! And now I can’t ‘unnotice’ it! Although… that bit there… is that Wales? Kinda ruins it. Looks like the bunny has a pouch. Hey! It’s a kangabunny! That’s what it is!”
 
Lena just shook her head in disbelief and went back to studying the patterns on the ground.  Pulling out her phone again, Lena swiped the screen a few times and pressed a button to activate one of the apps.  She pointed the phone camera at the marks on the ground and moved it around.
 
“What are you doing?”
 
“Taking some measurements,” Lena explained.
 
“With your phone?”
 
“Mmm-hmm.”
 
“Because you just happen to have something on your phone that lets you do that.” When Lena just glanced back at her, Lois shrugged. “Sure, who doesn’t?”
 
“Well, I am an engineer.”
 
“I thought you were a CEO.”
 
Typing on her screen, Lena furrowed her brow. “By necessity, not education or trade. Hmmm.”
 
Lois stood around fidgeting awkwardly for a few moments while Lena stared at her phone. It didn’t take long for the reporter to find the inaction overwhelming. “It looks like you’ve got this, Luthor. I’m just going to…” Pointing to the side, Lois strode away.
 
Lena looked up, frowning and sighing quietly before returning to her calculations.
 
Lois walked the perimeter of the room more as something to do than as an expectantly productive exercise. However, sticking out from under a door, she saw a folded piece of paper. Grabbing the corner of the paper, Lois carefully pulled so as not to tear it and extracted it. The paper was pink and had several holes as if it were the copy of another printer sheet. It seemed to be some sort of packing sheet. With a burst of excitement, she beat feet back to Lena.
 
“Hey, look what I found! Is this something?”
 
“What is it?” Lena asked looking up from her calculations.
 
Lois handed over the paper. “Not a clue. It’s Greek to me. Like, some of it could actually be Greek for all I know. I’m hoping you can do something scientific and translate. Impress me.”
 
One eyebrow raised, Lena eyed Lois for only a moment before looking at the sheet of paper.  Her expression changed to one of curious scrutiny very quickly.
 
“Is it good? What is it?”
 
Raising the hand that held her phone, Lena held up one finger toward Lois but didn’t otherwise acknowledge the reporter. Just when it looked like Lois might be ready to pounce, Lena lifted her head and asked, “Do you know what this is?”
 
“Yes.” Lois nodded with feigned sincerity. “A piece of paper. Come on, Luthor. You’re leaving me hanging here. What does that clue tell us? It’s good, right?”
 
“Yes. I mean…” Lena waved the piece of paper around a bit. “They listed the components here to build a rather sizeable voltage regulator, a fuel system, a cooling system, an alternator.” She sighed. “What they’re making here seems rather obvious, doesn’t it?”
 
“Rather, yes.” Lois waited but when Lena said nothing else she added, “Okay, I have no idea. What did they build?”
 
“An electrical generator.”
 
“Oh, well that’s—”
 
“A very large generator,” Lena added as she pointed at the marks on the floor.
 
Looking to where Lena pointed, Lois let out a long whistle. “Right. That is a lot bigger than what you keep in your house in case of a big storm. So, maybe it would be good for a bigger building or something?”
 
“Or something,” Lena agreed rather absently as she looked at the paper again. “There’s just one thing I can’t figure out.”
 
“Just one thing?”
 
“Hmmm. On this sheet they list Helmholtz coils.”
 
When Lena didn’t continue, Lois rolled her hand from the wrist encouragingly in front of herself. “Which are?”
 
Staring at the list, Lena bit the pad of her thumb before absently replying, “H
igh frequency Helmholtz Coils are often used to generate uniform but time varying high frequency magnetic fields for a number of applications such as magnetic field susceptibility, calibration, and scientific experiments. A high frequency Hemholtz Coil driver is needed to generate the required magnetic field. Because the magnetic field density is proportional to electrical current, to generate high magnetic field, high current is needed. However, at high frequency, the coils impedance is also high impedance.”
 
“What the hell did you just say?”
 
Making eye contact with Lois, Lena said, “For a given driver voltage amplitude, the coil current is inversely proportional to the coil impedance. Therefore, the two opposing factors that affect magnetic field are current and frequency. Achieving a high-frequency magnetic field is very difficult.  Therefore
—”
 
“Stop! Stop! You’re making my ears bleed. Do you know what they did with these coil thingys?”
 
“No.”
 
“Do you have enough information to figure it out?”
 
“I… not at this time.”
 
“Okay.  Then let’s not speak of that again unless you do. Ever. Ever.” Leaning closer and holding up one finger, Lois once again repeated, “Ever. Any questions?”
 
Shaking her head, Lena looked very much her age, perhaps even younger. Lois once again felt terrible, but she also wasn’t in the mood to backtrack and take back every comment she made, just because the company she decided to keep, didn’t like said comments. So in the end, she sighed and rubbed one hand across her temple, trying to sort out the muddle in her mind.
 
“Ok, so we think we know what they built, but we don’t know what for. Are we any closer to finding out where they went? And more importantly, is this the missing stuff from your other warehouse?”
 
“More than likely,” Lena admitted after careful consideration. “I’ll have to work it all out though - cross reference what was taken against what we think was being built here, and see if it matches.”
 
“Uh huh. Well, while you do your geek stuff, I’m going to try and make another call. We know the Bat’s on the prowl tonight - maybe he saw something.” Lois pulled out her burner cell and headed for the door of the warehouse, just as a dark shadow descended rapidly to land in a crouch in front of her, before standing up to his full six and a half feet and then some, of dark and brooding glory. Lois stifled a scream - barely - and then her hand darted out and she slapped the dark armoured chest.
 
“Don’t do that, you jerk! You know it scares the crap out of me!”
 
“Miss Lane, a bit out of your usual stomping grounds, aren’t you?”
 
“I go where the news takes me, Bats. You should know that by now.”
 
“Slow news day in Metropolis?” Batman’s eyes scanned over to Lena who stood wide-eyed and unspeaking as she followed their conversation. “Maybe I should tell Mr. White there isn’t enough keeping you busy around there.”
 
“I’m on vacation actually,” Lois shrugged.
 
“Vacation in scenic Gotham? Right. Have you done the tour of Arkham yet? It’s lovely this time of year.”
 
“Arkham? Nah, it’s on my ‘to do’ list though. As in things
not
to do!”
 
“Hmmm.” With a shrug of his shoulders, Batman’s shadow seemed to loom in even closer. “Are we done yet, Lois?”
 
“Done? With this conversation, yep. So would you excuse me? Miss Luthor and I have some very important investigating to do. Oh, have you met Miss Luthor by the way? Nothing like her brother. Which is great, considering the Supers have gone missing and she’s about the only one doing anything to help me find them again.” She paused then and waited for his reaction - though the fact she could only see his eyes and mouth was of absolutely
no
help at all. She seriously couldn’t tell what was going on under his cowl.
 
There was a nearly imperceptible tightening around Batman’s jaw, and his eyes narrowed as they scanned over to Lena and stayed there. “Miss Luthor.” Those two words hung in the air. “Perhaps I should continue this conversation with Miss Luthor.” Lena visibly withdrew at that suggestion even though Batman’s tone remained even.
 
“Stop it!” Lois held up one finger in front of his cowled face. “You’re scaring her! Play nice.”
 
His gaze returned back to Lois for a moment. “I’m not the one who dragged her to a dangerous warehouse in the dark hours of the morning, Miss Lane. Maybe she should be scared.” His gaze wandered back and forth between them. “I understand the Supers are missing, and I’d like to help, but what you did was dangerous.” Batman’s gaze flicked back to Lois before he looked between the ladies again. “You two should have waited until someone more capable, more experienced could be here to handle this.” He stared at Lois for a moment before looking around again. “You two should know better than this.” He glared at Lois one more time.
 
One eyebrow raised, Lena finally asked, “Am I interrupting something?”
 
“Oh, Bats just thinks we should have found someone more qualified in art to join the dots for us on the floor over there,” Lois shrugged, glaring at Batman out of the corner of her eye as she folded her arms back over her chest again. “Apparently, coming to an empty warehouse was very dangerous because the thin air could have had some evil agenda.”
 
“You like to make jokes, Lois, but Gotham is dangerous. You two were lucky this time. You won’t be a second time.”
 
With a loud sigh and a roll of her eyes, Lois turned her full attention back to him. “You of all people should know that I can handle myself. Yes, it’s dangerous, yes I knew the risks and yes, maybe I failed to mention them to Lena… but I saw your signal earlier. I knew you were on the prowl tonight. And I also knew a mutual friend would have tipped you off that we were in town. It was only a matter of time before you showed up. Besides…” She didn’t look to Lena, but pointed a finger in her direction, a scowl of disapproval appearing slowly. “She’s armed.”
 
“Hmmm…” Looking at Lena, Batman’s expression mirrored Lois’. “When are you two leaving town?”
 
“Probably sooner than expected. We have a hotel suite, but I’m not sure we’ll be needing it. Her Ladyship wants to crunch numbers or something on what we found here.”
 
Batman nodded once. “What do you need from me? I’m still in the middle of cleanup with Arkham. It’s a mess, but this… What do you need?”
 
“Yeah, I heard. Sorry you’re having so much trouble. I’d offer to send the Capes but… well… kind of why we’re here,” Lois held out her arms to her sides then lightly dropped them down against her legs in a sort of defeated shrug. She considered for a moment, before an idea came to her. “Listen, we just need information really. If you’ve got a moment to look some stuff up for us, that would be good. Something was in this place. Something that isn’t here any longer. We want to know what it was and where it was taken, because we think it’s linked to the disappearances.”
 
Batman’s gaze ran across the warehouse again. “A shipment out of this place.” He nodded. “Let me see what I can find out. I’ll get back to you. Anything else?”
 
“Yes, actually… how good are you at tracking down homeless guys?”
 
“Homeless guys.” Batman stated rather than asked. “This is related?”
 
“Yes and no,” Lois admitted. “We came across a guy earlier - he’s a former Army Captain by the name of Collins… he, uh… he saved my life. Now I want to return the favour. Only problem is,
someone
scared him off by waving a gun around before I could really get a chance to actually talk to him.” She really did glance at Lena now, her scowl deepening.
 
“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” Lena muttered quietly.
 
“Send me everything you have on him. If he can be found, I’ll find him.”
 
“Thank you,” Lois nodded, genuinely sincere and grateful at that. “Maybe you could sweet talk Bruce into giving him a couple of hundred dollars to help him get a flight to National City? I’m going to be there for a while, I think.”
 
“Hmmm. I don’t know about sweet talk, but that guy’s a soft touch. He takes on every charity case that crosses his door. It shouldn’t be too hard. Let me see what I can do.”
 
Lois smirked, barely containing her laughter at Batman’s words, but unable to comment on why she found them funny in front of Lena. Then she nodded. “All right. My sister sent me his official files, so I’ll forward them over to you as soon as I can.”
 
“That will work. Have a safe flight back to National City, ladies. Try and stay out of trouble.”
 
“Neeeever gonna happen,” Lois smirked. And then remembering something else, she rooted about in her bag quickly. “By the way, that reminds me. I found… this-” She pulled something from her bag. “Been meaning to give it back to you for a while now.”
 
She handed over a small, metal item in the shape of a bat.
 
Making a noncommittal noise, Batman took the batarang and slid it into his utility belt. “You know, of all of the things ladies have returned…” He stopped suddenly, looking over at Lena who watched them curiously before plastering on his stoic expression again. “Thank you, Miss Lane. These are made from a custom alloy and are quite expensive.”
 
“I’m sure your pal Bruce could give you a loan if you gruffed at him nicely,” Lois smirked. Then she leaned in closer so that she could mutter something that only he would hear. “Sorry, Brucie, but you snooze, you lose. In another life, maybe you might have stood a chance… maybe. I like my heroes blue and red, not black and grumpy… for the record of course.”
 
Batman stepped back, clearing the way a bit. “Be safe, ladies.”
 
Lena stepped out, glancing up at Batman as she hurried by, but stopping when a hand gripped her shoulder with a firm but not hurtful pressure. She managed not to yelp, but she froze. Her gaze shifted to the gloved hand that pressed against her and then moved up that arm to finally settle on blue-gray eyes that locked her in place even more firmly than that grip.
 
“Miss Luthor, you’re doing good work in National City. You’ve made some amazing changes in the direction of your company. Keep it up. Keep making wise choices professionally and personally. It’s nice to see this direction in the Luthor name.”
 
Lena managed to nod, her voice having abandoned her and not returning even when she was released from the Bat’s grip.
 
“Oh, and keep your head down if you’re traveling with Miss Lane. She isn’t good for anyone’s health, and you have a lot of good work left to do.”
 
“I heard that!” Lois snapped from the doorway where she was now waiting impatiently, tapping her foot. “I’ll have you know, I don’t go looking for trouble. It comes looking for me!”
 
“And it always finds you, Miss Lane.” Pulling out his grappling hook, Batman shot off a line. A hint of a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. “Until next time, ladies. Miss Lane, perhaps in another life.” Then the line went taught and pulled him up to disappear into the dark rafters high above.
 
A hint of a smile tugged at Lois’ lips as well, as she quickly turned away from Lena to hide it. Because despite everything, now that she’d actually had a chance to talk to Batman in person, she strangely felt more at ease. A little less tense and a little more hopeful that everything would work out for the best now. With Batman clued in to the situation and now on board to help out, they stood a much better chance of finding out what was going on, than they had an hour or so earlier.
 
“Come on Luthor, let’s go.”
 
It took Lena several moments of unmoving blinking before she stuttered into action again and hurried after Lois.  “Lois, did you see that? Oh, my God. That was Batman. Lois, that was Batman. Did you see that, Lois? That was Batman!"
 
"You live in a city filled with aliens. You get carried around by The Girl of Steel more than anyone else on this planet, and

he

impresses you?" It was rather obvious just how unimpressed Lois was.
 
Lena nodded vigorously "That was Batman."
 
"Say that again, and I'm driving."
 
“But… but…” With a resigned sigh, Lena pulled the car keys from her coat pocket and slapped them into Lois outstretched hand.
 
Lois blinked, looking at the keys in her hand. “Really? That’s all it took? If I’d have known it would be that easy to get these, I’d have introduced you to the Caped Crusader a hell of a lot sooner!”
 
“All I ask is that you hit no one and nothing, that means animal, vegetable, or mineral. People count as animals, Lois. Street signs, fire hydrants, those are minerals. Do I need to clarify what vegetables are?”
 
“I got it, I got it,” Lois smirked as she twirled the keys triumphantly on one finger, all of a sudden more eager than ever to get going. “Can we take the scenic route back?”
 
Rolling her hand around aimlessly, Lena replied, “Whatever. That was… Batman!”
 
“Yes, we’ve established that. Dear Lord, if I didn’t know you any better, Luthor, I’d say you’re fangirling right now! Close your trap, stop drooling, and let’s hit the road already!” She was all but jumping up and down on the spot now, raring to get behind the wheel of the sleek sports car.
 
With one final roll of her eyes, Lena dug her hands into the pockets of her jacket and nodded, following Lois from the warehouse as she quietly mumbled, “I can’t believe that was Batman.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The ladies made a quick trip by their hotel to pack. On the way, Lena made a call that had the plane fueling and getting prepped for their departure. Lois was happily surprised that the car keys were readily handed over to her for the return trip, but Lena’s immediate use of the laptop explained why. More math was done which involved some 3D-modeling, and by the time they’d reached the airport, a possible image of the electrical generator was prepared.
 
As they boarded the plane and took non-adjoining seats, the earlier tension continued to ride uncomfortably between them. Lena sat with her laptop, typing away and filling the cabin with the ‘click-clack’ of each keystroke. For several minutes, it was the only sound that stretched between them. Just when it had become nearly overwhelming, and Lois was about to break the silence, Lena abruptly stood and crossed the cabin.
 
Stopping next to Lois, Lena held out the laptop to the reporter. “Here.”
 
“What am I supposed to do with this?” Lois asked as she awkwardly took the laptop. It was lighter than expected, and she held it easily with one hand.
 
“It’s a laptop, Lois.”
 
“Gee, thanks. I know it’s a laptop, brainiac. I may not be able to calculate pi out to a hundred digits—”
 
“A hundred?” Lena scoffed.
 
“Shut up. Why are you handing it off to me?”
 
"When you spoke to Batman…” Lena paused, her face softening for just a moment before the Luthor mask slipped into place again and she cleared her throat. “At any rate, you said you’d be sending communications. As time is critical, I assume you’ll want to do so immediately. I’ve created a secure login for you on my system. Your first and last name, one word all lowercase letters, are your username, and the last four digits of your social security number are your default password, but you’ll have to change that as soon as you log in.”
 
“You don’t know my social security number.”
 
Rolling her eyes, Lena continued as if Lois hadn’t spoken. “You can send anything from this securely. It won’t be trackable.”
 
“Which means…?”
 
“Which means that if you want to email things to Batman, I won't be able to trace it.  Of course, you only have my word on that."
 
Placing the laptop on the desk in front of her, Lois nodded. "Your word is good enough for me."
 
“Thank you. I’ve left the 3D-model I built on the desktop so you can send it as an attachment. There’s another file there that explains my best… estimates. I hate to use the word guess. It has my best estimates on weight given the information we gathered, but I simply don’t have all the data. It’s what I would have used to build it.”
 
“Good enough for me! Anything else?”
 
“No. I’m going to try and get some sleep. I’m exhausted. I expect you are also. Do you need anything else?”
 
“This is great. Thanks, Luthor.” When Lena winced visibly, Lois opened her mouth to say something, but the younger woman was already gone across the cabin.
 
Reaching above the seats, Lena opened an overhead compartment. “Blankets and pillows are above you. The seats recline fully and are surprisingly comfortable. Goodnight, Lois.” Without another word, Lena turned off the light above her area, grabbed her bedding, reclined her seat, and tucked in.
 
“Night… Lena,” Lois muttered quietly with a sigh as she turned away, looking back to the laptop. After a moment of hesitation, she signed in, following the instructions Lena had given her, and then chose herself a new password.
 
Then spent at least five minutes just staring at the screen before she snapped back to her senses.
 
“Get a grip, Lane,” She grumbled to herself, shaking her head. “Yes, you’re exhausted, but push through it and send these damned documents! Now I’m sounding like my father...” Shuddering at the mere thought of this, she pulled up a blank email, typed in the email address Batman had given her a long time ago that would encrypt the message and the sender’s location as well as ping it through several servers to scramble the location even further, then began to type an email.

“Hey B, the flies as requesteted. L.L (not me, the otter L.L) has giving me sekyur logan details but nowing you, you’ll allready have veted this male a billion different ways and encripted it even moor...anyhoo….any help you could give would be appreeshiated. I now you’re buzy with AA and the cirkus lode of trouble, but… whatever you can find about the Boy Scowt or CC wood be amazing. Let me no… you’ve got my burner number, and now this asdress to, so no xcuzes! - L.L”

Attaching Lena’s files to the email, she read it back to herself, then paused and grabbed her burner phone, sending herself a quick email of the files from Lucy. Once they were sent to the laptop, she saved them to the desktop then went back into the email and attached those as well. Pleased with herself at being able to not only accomplish this, but also come up with the various code words and names she’d used, she hit send.
 
After that, she took a page from her pocket that she’d torn from her notebook and unfolded it to find her shorthand scribble of the phone message from earlier.
 
Opening a new document on the laptop, she began to translate the message.
 
“Lourd Allun Sugar fought the propossed impruvements were xsellent aditions and wood very much like to orange anovver meating to go over in moor detail. He can’t come himself so is sending Abbygale Storm (Storm as in whethere) on his beehalf. She was just ringing to cheque on your avalabilitie for the fourseeabble futur in reegards to the meating. Can you ring her back on this number?”
 
After checking over her earlier notes to make sure she had everything, Lois saved the note to the desktop for Lena to find in the morning. She shut the whole thing down and followed Lena’s earlier example, settling down to sleep. It only took seconds. It felt like she had barely closed her eyes when the co-pilot was gently shaking her shoulder and saying her name.
 
“Hmmm? What?”
 
“Miss Lane, we’re in National City,” he informed her.
 
“What, already?” She rubbed sleep from her eyes. “That was quick.” Across the way, she saw Lena already standing and stretching out. “Uh… morning?”
 
“Close enough. Come on. The car is waiting for us, and our luggage is being brought out.” Lena took the laptop, stowing it in her bag. “You look exhausted still.”
 
“No, I’m good.” Lois finished up with a yawn.
 
“No, you’re not. Neither am I. We’re only human, Lois, and we’re going to make mistakes if we don’t get a few horizontal hours in actual beds. My apartment is fairly close. I’ll take you there.”
 
“Trying to get me into bed, Luthor?” Lois smirked as she rose.
 
Lena didn’t look back as she made her way to the exit. “I wouldn’t be the first Luthor. Will I be more successful?”
 
“Ah… A lady doesn’t kiss and tell, and neither do I.”
 
“With my brother, please don’t.”
 
“No worries about that,” Lois barely stifled another yawn, and her eyelids were definitely half mast as she blinked several times in an attempt to at least look awake.
 
Lena frowned. “Lois, seriously, you’re dead on your feet. How many hours have you been awake?”
 
“Uh… when was Tuesday?”
 
“Two days ago,” Lena blinked. “Today is Thursday. Very early hours of Thursday, granted, but still.”
 
“Huh…” Lois managed to summon a half frown and nodded. “Then I’m not even going to count how many hours it’s been since 6am on Tuesday. Especially with the time hopping between states. That’s confusing enough when I’m firing on all cylinders...”
 
“You didn’t sleep on the way here from… wherever it was you came from?”
 
“Kansas and one or two hours. Maybe.”
 
An odd expression crossed Lena’s face, likely a combination of her being both impressed and upset that Lois had kept going for so long. No wonder the poor woman could barely stand now - as evidenced by the fact she was leaning against one of the seats. She wasn’t even standing up straight.
 
Without another word, she motioned for Lois to follow her off the plane.
 
The Aston was waiting for them on the runway, and Lois didn’t even protest as she slumped into the passenger’s seat, and the valet handed Lena the keys. Lena climbed into the driver’s seat and started the engine, then pulled away towards the exit of the private airfield.
 
Half an hour or so later, she was pulling into the underground parking lot beneath her apartment building. Gently reaching out and nudging Lois’ shoulder, then calling the woman’s name, she was greeted with nothing but silence from Lois, who was sound asleep, the reporter’s breathing slow and measured. There was no way she’d be able to move the young woman all by herself, so Lena sighed, climbed out, closed the door quietly behind her, and locked it. Then she headed into the apartment building to find some help.
 
As it turned out, Fernando was on door duty tonight. With his six and a half feet of well-toned muscle beneath his doorman’s uniform, built up through hours of dedication at a gym, olive skin and gentle eyes, Lena may have been somewhat attracted to the young man in another life. As it was, he was already married despite his young age, and he and his husband were expecting their first child in a couple of months.
 
He didn’t even bat an eyelid when Lena told him she had a female companion in the car who needed some help. It wasn’t his place to ask, and it wasn’t his place to judge, after all. Lena paid him a good wage to do his job and not ask questions. And she was a generous tipper as well, so he was eager as ever to stay in her good graces.
 
“Heavy night?” he asked with a humorous smile when he saw Lois.
 
Lena just nodded. “Something like that. Go careful with her?”
 
“Yes Ma’am,” he nodded, leaning into the car and very carefully scooping the sleeping reporter into his arms with a lot more ease than Lena would have assumed. Clearly, this wasn’t the first time he’d had to do something like this, for someone. Lois mumbled something and curled into his arms, her head resting against his strong shoulder.
 
Following Lena to the elevator, he travelled with them up to Lena’s penthouse, then took Lois to the guest room when directed, laying her very carefully on the bed, bowing his head to Lena then backing from the room. Lena followed him to the door, then tipped him a fifty for his help, of which he was clearly appreciative. After that, she went back to the guest room.
 
Hesitating for a moment at the end of the bed, she smiled at the young reporter and how peaceful she looked. Even in the short time she'd known Lois now, it was clear that it was rare to see the reporter so quiet and still – Lois was usually a bundle of tireless energy, and even when the reporter wasn't talking, Lois was fidgeting - always seeming keen to be doing something and not liking the idea of just standing around, waiting.
 
Taking Lois’ boots off carefully and sitting them by the bed, Lena pulled the covers up and over, effectively tucking Lois in. Lois shifted a little, mumbling something unintelligible, frowning at whatever dream she appeared to be stuck in as it clearly took an unwelcome turn.
 
Lena once again hesitated, apparently, debating whether or not to wake her from her unpleasant dream, when Lois appeared to relax once more – the dream apparently passing. Hesitating for just a fraction of a second longer, Lena turned for the door at last. “Night Lois,” Lena muttered into the quiet darkness of the room, then stepped out of the room and closed the door carefully and quietly.
 
…………….
 
Dawn came and went. Then mid-morning, followed by noon and still Lois hadn’t surfaced. Lena had now taken it upon herself, at regular intervals, to check in on her sleeping guest to make sure she was in fact still breathing. And in between these checks, she’d set up her laptop in the relative comfort of the kitchen beside a constant supply of coffee from the coffee machine so that she could at least try to catch up on some of her work that she’d slipped behind on over the last few days. James had been holding the fort at CatCo, and Sam had been taking care of L-Corp, but even so, Lena had a hell of a lot of emails to catch up on.
 
Plus a very confusing message from Lois that she’d found on the desktop.
 
In fact, she was still pondering over the message some time later, a pad of scribbles (in her incredibly neat and intricate handwriting, of course) in front of her as she tried to decode the cryptic message left for her by the reporter. Because Lois’ message was so… outrageously bad that it was clear to Lena that there had to be more to it than that. Surely the Pulitzer prize winning journalist of one of the most prestigious and influential news companies couldn’t be

this

bad at spelling?!
 
She’d already tried taking all of the letters of the correctly spelled words, to see if they formed a message. Then when this hadn’t turned up anything, she’d tried doing the same with the incorrectly spelled words. Now she was trying to see if any of the words could possibly be anagrams instead.
 
She was so deeply engrossed in trying to solve the clue, in fact, that it took her several moments to realise there was an almost constant drumming on the front door. Suddenly aware that whoever it was may wake Lois, Lena jumped up quickly and hurried to answer it.
 
“Jess.” Lena smiled brightly and hugged the other woman, moving away to allow the woman entrance. “Thank you for bringing the files. I’m so eager to dig into these.”
 
“You have the strangest definition of fun, Miss Luthor.”
 
“Well, when you get to be my age—”
 
“Next year?”
 
Her smile slowly growing, Lena put her arm around the other woman’s shoulder. “Would you like a cup of coffee to go with that attitude?”
 
“Two cream one sugar, please.”
 
Laughing, Lena closed the door behind them, and they headed in to get some work done.
 
…………………….
 
Two and a half hours later, the two women were engrossed in their work when there was the soft padding of bare feet on carpet from the direction of one of the bedrooms. Jess blinked, as it became clear that Lena wasn’t as alone as she’d first thought, and then a rather bedraggled looking Lois wandered into the kitchen, yawning loudly and making absolutely no effort to hide it as she half-heartedly attempted to straighten her crumpled clothes.
 
“Damn, Luthor, you really wore me out last night,” she spoke without even taking stock of the fact that Lena wasn’t alone in the kitchen. Running a hand through her rather unkempt bed hair, Lois stopped at last and blinked when finally, she saw Jess. “Oh… hi! You’re… now wait, don’t tell me… we’ve met before somewhere, right?”
 
Inhaling through her nose as lips pressed tight and she glared at Lois, Jess replied, “You’re not Miss Danvers.”
 
Lois blinked and looked down at herself for a moment, then back to Jess. “Nope. Should I be? Must have missed that memo.” She held up a hand and mimed writing a note on her palm. “Note to self: Should be Miss Danvers from now on. According to… strange person in Lena’s kitchen.”
 
As Jess tensed and shifted, Lena laid a hand on the other woman’s while pinching the bridge of her own nose and mumbling, “Oh, for fuck’s sake.” She cleared her throat. “Lois, you remember Jess. Jess works at L-Corp.” Raising her brows, she looked at Lois, expectantly.
 
Lois feigned consideration for a moment as she pretended to ponder. “L-Corp… L-Corp… oh! Yes I remember you now!” She pointed to Lena, but looked at Jess. “You’re her minion.”
 
“Minion? I’ll give you a…” Her voice barely over a mumble, Jess was on her feet, shoulders tight and arms straight down at her sides.
 
Placing herself between the two women, a gentle hand on Jess’ shoulder even while she twisted her head and stared rather imploringly at Lois, Lena said, “Now, Jess, Lois didn’t mean anything by that, did you Lois?” Clearing her throat, Lena more forcefully repeated, “Did you,
Lois
?”
 
Lois had opened her mouth to reply that actually she’d meant every word… when Lena’s gaze and the tone of her voice stopped her in her tracks. With a sigh and a grumble, she shook her head. “You’re such a spoilsport, Luthor. And after we had such fun last night, too!”
 
Even as Jess gasped, Lena rolled her eyes. “Oh, my God, Lois. You are the reason that you can’t have nice things. Do you know that?”
 
“Miss Luthor, perhaps I should go so you and your… friend,” Jess nearly spat, “can get back to your business dealings.”
 
“Business dealings?” Lena looked at Jess for several moments, mouth opening and closing before turning to Lois. “Thanks for that.”
 
“What?” Lois asked innocently. Or as innocently as she could with a stupidly smug grin on her face. Then she looked to Jess. “Hey, don’t worry, Little Spitfire, Lenny and I were just exploring some dark places and forbidden areas where nobody’s been for a very long time…”
 
Jess turned to Lena, a look of disgust on her face, but all she said was, “Lenny?”
 
Lena paused to defend herself but instead shook her head and took a seat. “You know what? Think what you want. I’m not going to try and explain any of that. If you two want to go at it, so be it. I’ll just sit over here and watch. Whoever wins can be my partner as I continue my explorations into this mysterious…” As Jess squinted at her and Lois grinned, Lena said, “I’m making it worse, aren’t I?”
 
“Yes,” the other two said together, Lois with a broad smile and Jess’ expression just the opposite.
 
“Ugh… well, at least I got you two to agree on something. Lois, think you can behave long enough to eat some breakfast? Uh, actually better make that lunch?”
 
“Hey, I was just talking about the warehouse,” Lois shrugged, once again playing innocent. “It was you who lowered the tone.”
 
“Right, sure. You’re a patient looking at ink blots, and I’m the doctor showing you dirty pictures,” Lena replied.
 
“Ink blots? Seriously?” Lois lowered one eyebrow and raised the other, quizzically. “Do people really do that?”
 
Arms crossed, Lena replied, “Have you met my mother? I can tell you everything about every psychological exam known to modern science. Rorschach tests are a cake walk. Everything’s a butterfly or a puppy. Healthy kids love butterflies and puppies.”
 
Lois blinked, then nodded. “Uh, yes, I’ve met your mother. Barrel of laughs she was. Almost as much fun as her dear little Lexy. Anyway, I need to pop out for a bit. Don’t wait up.” She considered for a moment, then added, “Oh and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
 
“There isn’t anything you wouldn’t do,” Lena sighed.
 
Lois smirked. “Awww Luthor, you know me so well!” Without another word, Lois turned and wandered back in the direction she’d come from, there was the sound of shuffling and movements from one of the bedrooms and about ten minutes later she emerged again, looking still somewhat dishevelled but at least more presentable to the outside world, her hair tied back in a ponytail and her bag slung across one shoulder, jacket tucked under one arm.
 
Jess watched her leave the apartment, then turned back to Lena. “Is she for real?!”
 
“She’s… really not that bad once you get to know her,” Lena admitted after a moment. “I think a lot of it is overconfidence to hide some deep down insecurities.”
 
“Miss Luthor, there’s overconfident, and there’s Lois Lane.” Clearly Jess wasn’t convinced.
 
“No Jess, it goes deeper than that,” Lena oured herself another mug of coffee. “I’ve seen the way she looks when she thinks no-one is watching. She’s sad. No, more than that, she’s hurting. Emotionally, I mean. This whole thing with the missing Supers is affecting her more than she’ll admit.”
 
Jess watched as a sad expression came over Lena’s face as well, but remained quiet and instead listened to her boss, as Lena seemed to feel the need to defend a woman who, two days ago, the CEO had never even met.
 
“She’s smart, Jess. Brilliant in fact. She knows her job, and she’s amazing at it. She takes investigative journalism to a whole new level, and while her spelling leaves, well quite frankly a

lot

to be desired, she gets results. And she doesn’t stop until she gets them, either. She knows her mind, and she is possibly one of the most determined individuals I’ve ever come across. Once she puts her mind to something, I very much doubt there’s anything she can’t do. But at the same time, it comes at a price. She gets on the wrong side of people because they don’t like what she does. She can find the truth, regardless of how well it’s hidden, and not everyone can appreciate that. So, she overcompensates with her attitude. It’s almost as if it’s a barrier against the rest of the world. As if she’s saying ‘you don’t like me, so I’m not going to let you in’. “
 
“She sounds like someone else I know,” Jess replied with a knowing look in Lena’s direction.
 
“That’s… different,” Lena blinked.
 
“Is it?” Jess asked her softly. “Miss Luthor, you use your name as a shield all the time. Bad things happen? It’s because you’re a Luthor. People try to hurt or kill you? It’s because you’re a Luthor.”
 
“What’s your point?” Lena frowned, not understanding what her assistant was getting at.
 
“My point is, Miss Luthor, those things don’t happen because of what your name is. They happen because bad things happen. Sometimes they just do, and it has nothing to do with who you are or what your name is. But it’s very easy to blame something, and you, Miss Luthor, blame yourself far too much. I’m sure you’d try to take the blame for Global Warming, if you could. Or these missing Supers.”
 
“Well, I do think I may be partly responsible for it,” Lena sighed sadly.
 
“Global warming?”
 
“No, the stuff that Lois and I have been investigating… the missing shipments, the warehouse in Gotham - there genuinely was a warehouse that we were investigating last night… it’s all linked to L-Corp.”
 
“So?” Jess took a moment to be bold, and perhaps she was speaking out of turn, but right at that moment she didn’t care. “You and Miss Lane are possibly the only two people I know right now who are actually doing a damned thing about it. Which is quite frankly surprising that it’s just the two of you. I’d have thought Miss Danvers would have been in the thick of it too? Is everything alright between you two?”
 
“Sorry?” Lena frowned then at Jess’ words. “Oh, she’s… uh… She’s not well. Or rather it’s her mother who’s not well, I think. She’s gone to Midvale to be with her.”
 
“Oh. That’s too bad,” Jess shook her head. “She’s one of your best reporters, isn’t she? Is that why you’ve borrowed Miss Lane from

The Planet

to help cover in her absence?”
 
“Lois is actually on vacation,” Lena chuckled, a little ruefully. “Though trust me, I’m slowly working on her to come over to CatCo. She’s playing hard to get, at the moment… and can you believe she does this kind of thing on her days off?!”
 
“Miss Luthor, do you even know what a day off is?” Jess smirked.
 
Lena’s smile was more genuine this time. “Perhaps I should try it one day and see what all the fuss is about?”
 
“You wouldn’t like it,” Jess chuckled now as well. “You’d end up doing what Lois is doing and finding some kind of work to keep you busy until you were allowed to return to your actual work. Like now, for instance. You’re off work and running round all over the country from the sounds of things, yet you still ask for files and work to be brought to you.”
 
“Actually, these files may be relevant to what Lois and I are working on,” Lena admitted. “We’re trying to find out what was going on in that warehouse and how it all links to the missing Supers.”
 
“Oh, well that…” Jess considered for a moment. “Just the two of you?”
 
Letting one eyebrow raise and drop, Lena ran her hand through her hair. “We’ve made a pretty good team so far. It could be the alliteration thing.”
 
Jess’ brows creased, and then she smiled. “Ah. Well, I don’t fall into that club, but could I lend a hand?”
 
“Do you have the time? Your duties at L-Corp—”
 
“Miss Luthor,” Jess smiled. “I do know how to multitask.”
 
“Yes, you do.” Lena smiled back. “I’d have to fill you in. Would you like some lunch?”
 
“Actually, I already ate, but don’t let me stop you. I’d take a coffee.”
 
“Deal. Coffee and a very long, very confusing conversation it is.”
 
“My favorite kind,” Jess said, her smile growing. “How I’ve missed you at L-Corp.”
 
“We’ll see if you feel that way after I’ve filled you in.”
 
It was almost half an hour later, and Jess and Lena sat around the dining room table, Lena had eaten most of her food as she finished her complicated tale of what she and Lois had gone through in the last twenty-four hours or so.  Partway through, Jess stopped drinking her coffee, only sitting back and listening with rapt attention. Her mouth was hanging open by the time Lena got to Batman.
 
“You mean, the actual…?”
 
“Cape, mask… batarang.” Lena sipped her coffee, her fork left next to three asparagus spears on her plate. “At that point, I let Lois drive. I think I dropped about twenty IQ points on the streets of Gotham.”
 
“Yeah, good thing you had them to spare.”
 
“Heh, thanks.” Lena nodded. “Then we took a plane back here and got some sleep. Then, well, you saw Lois. She slept in a bit. Any questions?”
 
“I do,” a voice cut in from behind them, and they turned round to see Lois standing in the doorway, peeling off her boots, a white plastic bag in her hand and a brown paper bag tucked under one arm. With her free hand, she pointed at Jess. “So she now knows everything then?”
 
“I trust Jess,” Lena replied immediately, her tone becoming a little defensive.
 
Lois just looked to Jess, then back to Lena, shrugged and nodded. “Never said you didn’t.”
 
“That’s… it?” Lena frowned as if expecting much more of a struggle from Lois.
 
“If you trust her, then great,” Lois shrugged again, taking the bags from under her arm and pointing down the hallway. “I’ll just go and… dump my things in my room. Carry on.”
 
“Lois, is everything alright?”
 
“Huh?” Lois frowned.
 
“The pharmacy bag.”
 
“Oh, that,” Lois plastered on a smile and waved her hand dismissively. “Ibuprofen and chocolate. I’ve got a banging headache.”
 
“You know I have those things, right?” Lena pointed out. “You could have just asked if you weren’t feeling well.”
 
Lois shrugged. “Needed some air. Anyway, gotta pee! Back in a moment.”
 
Leaning from her chair, Jess watched Lois’ retreating form before looking back at Lena. “That’s a Pulitzer Prize winner? What’s the criteria?”
 
“She’s an acquired taste, Jess.”
 
“Well, you can keep her.” Sipping from her cup, Jess made a face. “The coffee’s gone cold. I’m going to freshen up my cup.  Do you want another?”
 
“I wouldn’t refuse,” Lena replied, holding up her cup. “Plus, this feels like old times.”
 
“To me too.”
 
Within a few minutes, Jess had returned and a cup of coffee was held out to Lena. “Thanks.”
 
“Never a problem,” Jess said as she slid into her chair again. “So, did these files tell you anything useful?”
 
“They’re a starting point. These L-Corp facilities were all once Luthor Corp facilities.”
 
“Why doesn’t that sound good?” Jess asked.
 
“Because you’re a smart woman, and you’ve seen the toxic waste my family leaves in their path.” Lena bit her lower lip, tapping one finger on the file. “Jess, do you really want to help?”
 
“Get the Supers back?” Jess nodded.
 
“It involves a lot of cross-referencing, double checking of data, micromanaging of people, filling out of—”
 
“God, enough already, Miss Luthor!” Jess held up her hands, her coffee once again abandoned. “You had me at micromanaging.”
 
Lena chuckled. “You are a gem, Jessica. Anyway, I need all of the facilities that haven’t been sold or repurposed to be checked. I need verification based on utility utilization that these aren’t in use. If they’re supposed to be abandoned…” Lena waiting, holding Jess’ gaze.
 
“Then they should only have the minimal usage needed to keep pipes from freezing, electricity to run security systems, and security on site to keep out squatters and vandals. Understood.” Jess took the reports. “If I find any unusual fluxes of power or other utility usage, do I have permission to send in a team for a visual reconnaissance?”
 
“Jess, I’m giving you full executive authority on this. Pick your own security teams. The budget is whatever you need it to be.”
 
Eyebrows rising sharply, Jess said, “Really? Huh. In that case, this process might require my driving around in a new BMW.”
 
“If it brings the Supers back, you can have two, heck, make it seven. Get one for every day of the week.”
 
Mouth open but unspeaking, Jess’ eyebrows had drawn together as she tried to think her way around the gravity of this situation.
 
“Why does she get seven cars, and I wasn’t even allowed to drive the Aston?” Lois scowled from the doorway as she walked in to join them, trembling hands clenched into fists behind her back and away from the view of others. Though all color had drained from her face, something that couldn’t be hidden no matter how hard someone tried.
 
“That was… I… That’s just a figure of speech, Lois,” Lena supplied.
 
“Uh huh,” Lois nodded with obvious skepticism. “You’re a millionaire. Seven new cars is like buying sweets with pocket money to you. Probably.”
 
Saying nothing, Jess sipped from her coffee, her gaze going back and forth between the other women like the onlooker at a tennis match.
 
“Ah… would you like something to eat?” Lena rose and headed for the kitchen before waiting for an answer. “I made lunch, and there’s a plate warming in the oven for you.”
 
“Oh, I uh, I got some doughnuts earlier and… actually...” Lois paused and considered. “What’s in the oven? I am kind of hungry.”
 
About a minute later, Lena returned and placed a bowl in front of Lois. It had pieces of asparagus in it, small brown seed-like bits, and larger off-white pieces that looked a bit like nuts. “It’s asparagus and quinoa salad with pine nuts and parmesan cheese. The dressing is lemon juice and olive oil.”
 
“And people actually eat this?” Lois scowled as she stared at the bowl. Then she looked up at Lena. “Very funny, can I have my burger and fries now, please?”
 
“Lois, this is good for you. A steady diet of red meat and fried foods is very bad for your cholesterol, right, Jess?”
 
“Hmmmm?” Putting down the cup, Jess nodded. “Oh, right. Too bad I already ate before I came over. That smells delicious.”
 
Lois pushed the bowl towards her and motioned to it. “Oh please, feel free. Knock yourself out. My cholesterol and I are doing just fine. We have a deal. I eat what I like, and my cholesterol behaves. So far, it’s worked like a charm.”
 
Jess looked from the food to Lois and then to Lena. “She’s not going to live to see forty, is she?”
 
“No,” Lena said, “But it’s likely her driving or personality that will be the end of her. Lois, look, I’m not your mother, and Lord knows I didn’t have much of an example of a decent one, but at least I was given healthy eating habits. I’m not going to try and guilt you into anything, but if you want to make a good choice for your body, that’s it. If you want to put something unwise into it, let me know, and I’ll make a call and order you something up.”
 
Lois scowled again for several seconds as she considered everything in her mind, then very slowly and reluctantly she dragged the bowl back towards her. “I didn’t hear you complaining about my driving in Gotham,” she grumbled, picking up the cutlery and taking her first mouthful. With a defeated sigh, she started to eat the rest of it, not actually willing to admit that it wasn’t as God-awful as she’d been expecting. It was… not her first choice of food, but it was tolerable. She was loathe to use the word ‘enjoyable’, but actually it was. As much as healthy food could be, anyway.
 
A phone rang, and everyone looked at theirs, but it was Jess who answered, “Miss Arias, I’m still with Miss Luthor. Do you need me back at the office?” She paused, nodding a few times. “Just a moment. Miss Luthor, I’ll need a few minutes. Is there somewhere…?”
 
“You can use my office if you need to speak to Sam privately. You know the way.”
 
“Thank you,” Jess nodded and left down the hallway.
 
When she left, Lena asked, “Do you want a drink with that? I could get you a cup of coffee.”
 
“Just something cold for me, please,” Lois replied. “This head is killing me.” She tapped two fingers off the side of her temple lightly. “Better steer clear of caffeine for a while, I think.”
 
“How about a glass of orange juice?” Lena rose and waited for the reply.
 
Lois shrugged. “I can see you’re intent on this health kick crap, so sure, why not.”
 
“Being healthy is not crap. It’s the other things you put into your body that are crap,” Lena muttered as she left the room. She shortly returned with a glass of juice for Lois as she took her seat at the table again.
 
“Thanks,” Lois nodded as she took a sip from the glass, then resumed eating again. After a moment, she glanced sideways at Lena, more than a little uncomfortable with the fact that the other woman was watching her eat. “Something I can help you with, Luthor?”
 
Sipping from her cup of coffee, Lena asked, "Who's Smallville?"
 
Lois stopped suddenly, forked stalled mid-motion to her mouth. "Who?"
 
Lena glanced over at the reporter. "You were talking in your sleep in the car, Lois.  You were obviously upset and calling out for Smallville, but it sounded like someone's name.  Who's Smallville?"
 
Lois licked her lips trying to force the tension out of her body while intense green eyes seemed to bore right through her. "Did I… say anything else?"
 
Lena shrugged, suddenly not seeming to find Lois interesting as she returned to her coffee and spreadsheets. "Incoherent things. That was the only thing I understood. Smallville, you sounded worried about… him?" Though the question seemed casual, it hung in the air between them, loading the atmosphere dangerously.
 
Shrugging and trying to play it cool, Lois forced as much of a normal tone into her voice as possible as she took a sip from her juice glass, "Huh. Smallville is a place in Kansas. Dreams are weird. Who knows." She took another sip of juice. “This juice is good. What kind is it?”
 
“Kind?  It’s orange juice.”
 
“I know that.  What’s the brand?” When Lena merely furrowed her brow, Lois added, “When you go to the store and buy juice, what name is on the carton?”
 
“Carton at the store.” This time Lena frowned. “I’m afraid I’m not following you.”
 
Lois pointed at Lena, ready to get into it with the younger woman, but instead rose. “Never mind. I’m an investigative journalist. I’ll investigate.” She padded across to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator intent on solving this little mystery in short order but only found a selection of vegetables in neat containers, organic vegetable stock, and a glass pitcher half-filled with orange juice. “O-kay, maybe not.” Returning to the dining room, Lois said, “Okay, where do you buy your orange juice?”
 
Looking up from her typing, Lena replied, “I don’t.”
 
Lois held up her mostly empty glass the contents of which had been nearly consumed. “Let’s try this again. Lena, where do you get your orange juice?”
 
“Oh,
get
my orange juice.” Lena nodded. “Oranges.”
 
“Oh for the love of…” Putting the glass down with a bit more force than intended, Lois said, “Conversations like this are why people are always trying to kill you. Look, you have orange juice, right?”
 
Slowly, Lena nodded.
 
“It gets in here somehow, right?”
 
“Right,” Lena agreed.
 
“And what’s the origin of orange juice?”
 
“Actually, the origin of orange juice is quite fascinating,” Lena began.  “You see, in the mid 1910s there was an overproduction on citrus fruits in California. The growers didn’t—”
 
“Murder, Lena, murder!” Lois said as she nearly launched herself across the table at the younger woman, her hands curled into fists.  “You have orange juice, yes or no!?”
 
“Yes!” Lena replied as she pushed away.
 
“Do you buy this juice?”
 
“No!”
 
“Then how do you—?”
 
“Oranges! I buy oranges and someone...!” Lena’s hands curled in front of her as she made a squeezing motion, staring wide-eyed at the other woman.
 
For several moments, no one moved, no one spoke, and then Lois shifted back, picking up her juice glass as she asked, “Are you saying this is fresh-squeezed?”
 
Slowly, Lena nodded.
 
“Oh.” Finishing off the contents of her glass, Lois said, “Tastes it. I’m going to get some more. You want any?”
 
“I’ll stick to my coffee, thank you,” Lena replied as she wrapped her hands around her mug.
 
“And you moan at me for my unhealthy habits,” Lois grumbled. “The amount of coffee you get through, it’s a wonder you ever get any sleep.”
 
“I’m not sure she does,” Jess said as she entered the room. “And before you disagree with me, Miss Luthor, twenty minute power naps on your couch before a board meeting do not count. You are going to work yourself into an early grave. We’ve spoken about this.”
 
Lois smirked as she came back with a fresh glass of juice and a ‘you’ve been told’ look towards Lena.
 
“I… Seriously, Jessica, who works for whom, here?”
 
“I often ask myself the same question,” Jess replied. “Also, Miss Arias would like you to call her, something about the FBI. Did you and Miss Lane speak about the cryptic note she left on your laptop?”
 
“I…” Lena groaned. “You don’t respect my authority, but I can’t function without you. You know that, don’t you.”
 
“Yes, to all of that.” Jess pointed casually toward Lois.
 
Clearing her throat, Lena typed momentarily on her laptop before turning it toward Lois. “All right, I’m at a loss. The CIA tried to recruit me to work in the decryption department when I was only sixteen, but this has me stumped. Since I don’t have the Rosetta Stone, I can’t break your code, Lois. What the hell does this mean?”
 
“What code?” Lois frowned as she stepped forward and set the glass to one side so she could read the message she’d typed on the screen. “Oh…. huh, yeah sorry about that. I was tired. May have made one or two minor typos. You mean to tell me you honestly can’t read this? And you call yourself a genius!” She shook her head in disbelief. “Basically it says…

Lord Alan Sugar thought the proposed improvements were excellent additions and would very much like to arrange another meeting to go over in more detail. He can’t come himself so is sending Abigail Storm (Storm as in weather) on his behalf. She was just ringing to check on your availability for the foreseeable future in regards to the meeting. Can you ring her back on this number

?”
 
“That… wait.” Lena spun the laptop around to stare at the screen again. With the new information that Lois had just supplied, Lena took a moment to read the note again. “Are you honestly telling me that this… this…
thing
is just typos!?”
 
“I told you, I was tired,” Lois shrugged, not understanding why Lena was getting so irritated. “I made a couple of mistakes, that’s all. It was you who assumed, for Lord only knows what reason, that there was some kind of hidden message in it. I mean who does that, anyway? You’re not one of these conspiracy nuts, are you?”
 
“I’m a Luthor!”
 
Clearing her throat and interceding, Jess said, “Miss Luthor, perhaps now would be a good time to place a call to Lord Sugar and also find out what Miss Arias needs regarding the FBI?”
 
Lena regarded Lois for another moment before fully regaining her composure, nodding, and saying, “That’s an excellent idea, Jess. I’m going to make some calls in my office. I’ll be a few minutes if you ladies will excuse me.”
 
When Lena was gone, Jess said, “Well, you certainly have a knack for getting under her skin. I’ve seen her deal with entire boards of directors with not so much as a ruffled feather. What makes you so special?”
 
Lois eyed Jess with a light smile. “Oh honey, wouldn’t you like to know.”
 
Arms crossed, back straight, and staring head on at Lois, Jess replied, “When it comes to anyone around Miss Luthor, yes, I would. I would like to know everyone’s intentions toward her.”
 
Lois sighed, reaching for the paper bag that she’d brought with her and set on the side when she’d first entered the room. She peeled it open and pulled out a maple glazed doughnut, then held the bag towards Jess. “Want one?”
 
“A doughnut?” Jess asked, her resolve obviously wavering.
 
“No, a stick of Kryptonite. Of course a doughnut!”
 
“Well, I…” Jess looked down the hallway which was still barren before turning back and nodding. “I could eat.”
 
“I won’t tell if you don’t,” Lois grinned, holding the bag even closer to let Jess help herself, even as she took a bite of her own and sighed again, this time in contentment. “Oh, sugary glazed awesomeness, my old friend… reunited at last!”
 
Jess pulled one out of the bag, inhaling the scent before taking a bite, her entire body relaxing. “Miss Luthor has the entire company on a wellness kick. She has weekly communications going out, and she believes very strongly that this needs to come down from the executive department. She says, ‘Jessica, we can’t encourage something that we don’t embrace, so open your arms.’ I just smile and shudder, but I want a cannoli.”
 
“Oh you poor love,” Lois also visibly shuddered. “I can’t think of anything worse. Coffee and doughnuts are what keep Clark and I going at the Daily Planet, most days.” She wiggled the paper bag at Jess. “Here, take another. I think you deserve it.”
 
Jess shook her head. “She’ll know. She’ll smell the sugar on me, and she’ll know. So, you and Miss Luthor are getting to be really good friends?” Jess examined her doughnut as she asked, taking another bite.
 
“Well… I mean we’ve only really known each other a short while, but I’d like to hope so. She’s an amazing person,” Lois admitted, taking another bite of her own doughnut. “I’ll admit, at first when I went to CatCo, I was looking for Kara. But then I met Lena, and we just sort of… clicked. Clark was very impressed with her when he met her, and now I can see why. She’s the polar opposite of the rest of her family, and I think she’s being very brave, doing what she does. I couldn’t do it, if I was her.”
 
Jess watched Lois, taking it all in while she ate the doughnut and sipped her coffee. When Lois had stopped, she studied the other women for several moments thoughtfully. “Miss Luthor is incredibly brave. This world is very lucky the Luthors adopted her and not someone else. If is had been someone more… opportunistic, we’d all be in a much worse place. So, you and Miss Luthor just clicked, huh?”
 
“Am I sensing a tone here, Jessica?” Lois smiled. “Yes, we clicked. But purely as platonic friends. Nothing more. Nothing to get your pigtails in a bunch over. I’m engaged to—” She paused as she glanced down to her hand, and realised the engagement ring wasn’t there, because she’d stupidly left it back in Kansas. “I’m with someone else,” she finished quietly, the blow of this realisation hitting her harder than she’d ever expected it to. Who could have known that the absence of a little piece of metal could hurt so bad?
 
“Are you all right?”
 
“Hmmm?” Lois blinked and glanced up, then forced a smile. “Yep. Just… worried about the Supers, is all.”
 
“You and Miss Luthor both.  Well, I don’t know how much you heard, but she has me looking into some old Luthor Corp facilities to see if we can find some that are still in use. I’ll see if I can help.”
 
“Yeah?” Lois was pleasantly surprised by this, because contrary to what the others may have thought, she hadn’t actually heard any of their conversation, other than the part about the seven cars. “That’s great. Thank you, Jess. Seriously. On Superman’s behalf because, you know, official reporter and all that… he’d want me to say thank you to you, as well.” She lowered her voice conspiratorially. “Remind me to send you a box of goodies when LL’s not around.”
 
In a matching tone, Jess said, “I’ll get you my address.”
 
“Did we just become BFFs?” Lois chuckled.
 
“We’re taking the doughnut thing to our grave. I’m pretty sure all the shops around here report back to her.” Raising her eyebrows, Jess leaned in a bit closer. “I’m not kidding. She’s a Luthor.”
 
“Mum’s the word,” Lois nodded, pretending to draw a zip over her mouth, locking it then throwing away the key. “Besides, I’m pretty sure her reach doesn’t extend as far as Metropolis, and I know this great little shop where I can get them from. They do delivery all over the U.S as well.”
 
“Well, okay then. Let’s make sure…” Jess let her voice cut off as Lena’s steps echoed down the hallway. She turned. “Everything all right?”
 
“Work,” Lena assured. “We can expect visitors, though.” A phone rang in the kitchen, and Lena inclined her head to the side. “I expect that will be them. Just a moment, ladies.” Lena excused herself to the kitchen, and her side of the conversation was still clear. “Of course, go ahead and send them right up. I’ll be happy to speak with them. Thank you.” A moment later, she rejoined Jess and Lois in the dining room.
 
“Is there a problem, Miss Luthor?” Jess asked. “Miss Arias said—”
 
“I told you, Jess, everything is fine. I can handle this situation.” She took her seat at the table again. “Now, where were we?”
 
“Ah… I’ll begin activating security teams for any sites we find are still active,” Jess replied.
 
“If we find any,” Lena countered.
 
“Miss Luthor, no offense, but this is your mother and your brother. I’m going with when.”
 
“My brother is in Maximum Security prison, solitary confinement, serving thirty-seven consecutive life sentences. Whatever’s going on, he’s not involved.”
 
“Miss Luthor,” Jess repeated, her tone even more patient than before as her gaze flicked over to Lois for support. “Your brother tried to kill you at least three times since you came to National City, by my count. I’m sticking with when.”
 
Pointing at Jess, but her fondness for the other woman showing, Lena said, “Another employer might call you insubordinate.”
 
“Another employer might also call me right, but let’s not get into semantics,” Jess countered. “I’ll take care of the list and the security and report back to you. Anything else?”
 
The doorbell rang, and Lena said, “Hold that thought. That will be the FBI.”
 
“The FBI?” Lois squeaked, suddenly finding the conversation not very amusing any more. “Uh… whatever they ask, you haven’t seen me, right? I’m not here and never have been!”
 
She jumped up like a scalded cat, and literally spun on the spot, suddenly spooked and looking for a place to hide. Then she paused and looked back to Lena, but pointed to Jess. “By the way, she’s right. And as I said, I’m not here!”
 
“Well, that was…” Jess shrugged after Lois, then looked back at Lena. “She’s high strung.”
 
“You have no idea,” Lena replied with a sigh as she headed to the door.
 
At the door were two people dressed in dark suits, white shirts, and wearing sunglasses. Their entire look practically screamed federal agent. One was a woman, short with short, dark hair and skin a tan so natural as to make it clear she wasn’t Cascusian. The other was a man, tall and pale with blond hair and a broad chest.
 
“Miss Luthor.” The woman held up a badge as she introduced herself and the man with her. “I’m Agent Vasquez and this is Agent Johnson of the FBI. Could we come in and have a word with you?”
 
Lena quirked an eyebrow and gave them each an appraising look, motioning for the ID to be held out again so she could inspect it further. Vasquez did so without even a twitch of her lips, just held still while the other woman looked over the ID at length.
 
Finally, Lena nodded, allowed Vasquez to put away her badge, and said, “A visit from the FBI at my home. To what do I owe this rare honor?”
 
“Inside, Miss Luthor?” Vasquez repeated, ticking back her head.
 
“Should I call my attorney?”
 
Vasquez narrowed her eyes, the first expression change showing. “Why, have you done something wrong?”
 
Leaning her arm against the doorframe, Lena smiled from just the corner of her mouth as she looked down at the shorter agent. “Define… wrong.”
 
Looking over her shoulder at Johnson, Vasquez raised her brows.
 
“Come in. Come in.” Lena stepped further into her apartment, leaving the agents behind her. “Please leave your shoes in the foyer. Can I get you anything to drink? It’s early in the day, and I’m sure you’re on duty, so coffee or tea?”
 
“We have orange juice,” Jess said as she watched, curious, from the table, seeing the figures hunched in the foyer untying laces and pulling off shoes. “It’s fresh squeezed.”
 
“Oh, good point, Jess. The orange juice is…” Lena turned and waited until the agents joined her by the table. “The orange juice is delicious. May I get either of you a glass?”
 
When Johnson held up a finger to respond, Vasquez spoke more quickly. “No thank you, ma’am. We’re hoping you can provide us with a few answers this morning.”
 
“Hoping you can freshly squeeze a few of those out of Miss Luthor?” Jess quipped.
 
As she sat at the dining room table, Lena smiled at her assistant. “That was clever. I do prefer your barbs when you aren’t throwing them at me.”
 
Jess shrugged. “Usually, I’m throwing them on your behalf. How can I help now, Miss Luthor?”
 
“I suppose it all depends what our friends at the FBI want. All I know so far is it’s not juice.” Fingers steepled, she looked up at the agents. “Would you care to share, Agent Vasquez?”
 
Lips pursed and a slight crease between her brows, Vasquez turned her attention from investigation the room with her gaze to letting it wander across the table. “Two glasses. You have a guest here, Miss Luthor?”
 
Jess cleared her throat, raised her brows as she stared at the agent. “What am I, chopped liver?”
 
“You’re Miss Luthor’s employee,” Agent Johnson replied.
 
When Jess scoffed, Lena nodded and said, “Yes, one of the best with whom I’ve ever had the opportunity to work. I honestly don’t know what I’d do without Jessica. L-Corp and I are incredibly lucky to have her, but I’m even luckier to have her as a friend.”
 
Her bad mood seemingly having melted away, Jess smiled over at Lena. “I think I’m the lucky one.”
 
“I’ll remind you of that come your next review.”
 
Jess picked up the juice, finishing it up. “Remind you of that come the next board meeting when we’re still working past midnight and I’m eyeing the balcony from the thirty-fourth floor as a possible means of escape.”
 
Lena laughed hard, shaking her head. “Is that why you were so eager to see funding for the anti-gravity pack increased?”
 
“Ladies?” Vasquez lifted her brows and her chin. “I realize we interrupted your lunch, but this is a pressing matter.”
 
“When isn’t it?” Lena grumbled. “Go on, Agent.”
 
“Ma’am, this is a rather delicate matter and requires extreme discretion.” Vasquez’s gaze shifted to Jess for just a moment.
 
“Agent, I guarantee you that Jessica is completely trustworthy. Anything you have to say to me you can say in front of her.”
 
Vasquez nodded. “Miss, Luthor, no one in this room doubts Miss Hoang’s principles. Her background check has shown nothing but—”
 
“Wait a second!” Palms flat on the table, Jess pushed herself to her feet. “You did a background check on me? The FBI has looked into me, into my life, my family, my friends, to judge my character for what reason exactly?”
 
“Well,” Vasquez glanced quickly at Johnson who had apparently discovered something fascinating on his shoes, “Miss Hoang, you work at L-Corp and moved from Metropolis with Miss Luthor. You’ve been in her employee for longer than anyone. As one of Miss Luthor’s closest advisors—”

“Are you kidding me!?” Jess took two quick steps forward, making the agents tense, but then she turned her attention elsewhere. “Lena.”

“Jess.” Lena smiled as she stood. “You realize this… violation of your privacy has nothing to do with you, don’t you? It’s about me.”
 
“I know.” Jess closed her eyes, her mouth a tight line as she opened her eyes again. “I don’t know how you can stand people treating you like this with all the good you do. You deserve better, and they should damn well know it by now.” Though she still looked at Lena, Jess stood with a finger pointing toward the agents.
 
“Well, yes, but what you deserve in this life and what you get rarely equal out, unless you’re my brother and enjoying your lifetime in solitary.” Lena rounded the table, picking up Jess’s bag even as she took the other woman by the arm. “I think perhaps I should speak with the agents in private.”
 
Jess tensed, pulling back from Lena’s gentle urgings. “I don’t want to leave you alone with them.”
 
“With them?” Lena gave both agents an up and down look, then smirked. “Please. I wouldn’t even bother calling junior counsel to deal with whatever the FBI wants if they’re sending these two over. Until Agent Danvers shows up, no need to call in backup.”
 
Jess eyed the agents critically but allowed herself to be ushered to the front door, her bag handed over to her. “Fine, but I expect an update as soon as your business with the FBI is complete. I’ll be in the office bringing these papers back to Miss Arias. If you need anything, call me. If I don’t hear from you within the hour—”
 
“I know. I know. I’m grounded.” Lena hugged Jess fondly. “Can’t I stay out just an extra half hour tonight, please?”
 
Jess stared fiercely as Lena pulled back from the hug but eventually cracked a smile. “No, you know your curfew, young lady. While we’re at it, I’ve been meaning to talk to you about the amount of screen time you have.”
 
“Okay, out now!” Lena pulled the door open as she tried to keep the smile off her face. “Now you’ve crossed a line.”
 
Stepping past the front door into the hallway, Jess placed her thumb to her ear and her pinky to her lips while mouthing, ‘Call me.’
 
Lena closed the door without responding and headed back to the agents. “Well, now that the babysitter’s gone home, what can I do for you two?”
 
“It’s about your warehouse, Miss Luthor.”
 
Lena slid into her seat at the table again, tilting her head as she looked at Vasquez. “Could you be more specific, Agent? Even I don’t know how many warehouses I own.”
 
“Miss Luthor, yesterday Agent Johnson and I, for reasons of national security, attempted to gain access to one of your downtown warehouses. We were in discussions with a member of the security there when you arrived and summarily dismissed us from the premises.” Vasquez folded her hands behind her back, standing at a sort of parade rest. “I’m referencing that warehouse, ma’am.”
 
“Oh, that warehouse.” Lena nodded, then took a sip of her coffee, frowning slightly at the liquid and putting the cup back down. She rose, heading to the kitchen. “My coffee’s gone tepid. Are you sure I can’t get either of you two anything?”
 
“Miss Luthor, we’re in a—”
 
A hand on Johnson’s arm, Vasquez shook her head before following Lena into the kitchen. “We wouldn’t want to put you out, ma’am.”
 
“Oh, please.” Lena smiled as she pulled out her french press. “If I were going to be put out, it would be by federal agents coming into my home and questioning me, not by making an extra cup of coffee or two.”
 
“Well, in that case, I take it black,” Vasquez said.
 
Lena smirked and kept preparing coffee. “A woman after my own heart. So, Agent Vasquez, you were at my warehouse? Hmmm. I thought you looked vaguely familiar. I hope this doesn’t sound bigoted,” Lena sneaked a glance at the agent, her smile not faltering, “but you ‘people in black’ all rather look the same to me.”
 
“It’s the suits,” Vasquez replied. “It has the zebra effect.”
 
“One big herd?”
 
“Mhmmm.” Vasquez nodded, her face still neutral. “We all just start to blend together to the civilian eye. One time Johnson’s wife tried to kiss me because of it. She’s damn cute, so it wasn’t exactly a hardship, but it’s not the kind of thing you do to a brother. When I stepped back and pointed out her mistake, she and I shared quite the laugh.”
 
A hand on Vasquez’s shoulder, Johnson looked down a foot at the smaller agent. “Jenny tried to kiss you?”
 
“Oh, she didn’t tell you?” Vasquez shared a look with Lena and winked before looking up again. “I assumed it was the zebra effect, but it was at the company holiday party, so maybe she had too much to drink and… I’m sure it was nothing.”
 
Lena smiled, amused, while Johnson frowned heavily.
 
“Anyway, Miss Luthor,” Vasquez nodded and gave her thanks when a cup of coffee was handed over to her, “we have questions about the warehouse where we met you earlier.”
 
“Let’s see if I have answers,” Lena replied as she poured her own cup of coffee.
 
“Ma’am, the FBI believes there may be some critical information stored on your computers that could be of assistance with a matter of national security. Based on that, we’ve attempted to get a warrant as you suggested, but your lawyers are blocking us at every turn. Miss Luthor, I can guarantee you that no one is looking into you or trying to persecute you for any crimes. We just need that information. Call off your lawyers.”
 
“Call off your lawyers?” Lena picked up her coffee and headed to the table again, taking a sip. “Damn, that’s good. Do drink up, Agent.” She daintily sat in her chair again. “Now, why would I, a Luthor, ever want to call off my lawyers? That seems backwards intuitive.”
 
“Ma’am, this isn’t a witch hunt,” Johnson said.
 
“And I’m not a witch,” Lena replied, “but I do float in the water. I also burn at the stake with enough paper for tinder. Now, why would I give you some of mine to add to the pile?”
 
“Miss Luthor, please. Time is of the essence, and this is about—”
 
“National security,” Lena said, cutting Vasquez off.  “I heard you, Agent. What can be so important in one of my facilities that it’s more sought after than the combined power of Superman and Supergirl. Why not have them just save the day? Why not have her just come and ask me for a favor? That usually works out fairly well.”

.

Johnson was examining a piece of art, Vasquez the interior of her coffee mug and neither meeting Lena’s gaze.
 
“Well, at least we’re closer to the truth now, aren’t we? Supergirl can’t come and speak with me now, can she? Is she tied up… perhaps literally?”
 
“Miss Luthor,” Vasquez cleared her throat, gaze the coffee mug a weighty stare before meeting Lena’s gaze, “if such a thing were true, I wouldn’t be at liberty to tell you that.”
 
“Because of national security.”
 
Vasquez shrugged.
 
“I swear, you two are the worst negotiators ever. You want something from me, something I only have your word that won’t come back to hurt my company and my investors, and in return you feed me the party line. You’re giving me zero incentive.”
 
“Miss Luthor, please—”
 
“No, no ‘please’, Agent Johnson!” Lena’s head snapped around quickly, her gaze locked onto the other agent’s. “Despite my charitable donations, this is no charity. If you have nothing of value to offer me, please leave my apartment.”
 
“Miss Luthor, there’s nothing we’re allowed to say. You run a business. You understand. We work for a huge business, the United States of America.” Vasquez placed her mug on the table and stood with both palms face up. “Even if you were right and Supergirl were missing, we wouldn’t be allowed to tell you that. We wouldn’t be allowed to even confirm what you already seem to know. We just simply can’t tell you, even if it were true, that Supergirl is missing and that the information we need from your warehouse could help bring her home safely. We just can’t, ma’am.” She elbow Johnson.
 
“Oh, right!” He nodded like a bobblehead. “We also couldn’t tell you if Superman were also missing, if we thought they’d both been taken by the same group. We couldn’t tell you that, ma’am.”
 
Eyebrow crooked, Lena stared at them from over her mug as she took a sip. “How interesting it would be if you could. Tell me, Agents, hypothetically speaking, of course, how long would they be missing?”
 
“Well, hypothetically speaking, Miss Luthor, Supergirl would have gone missing sometime early Tuesday, and Superman at the end of that same day.”
 
“Troubling,” Lena replied, mumbling into her mug as she took another sip, her gaze wandering off to stare into nothingness.
 
“It would be if that weren’t a hypothetical situation, ma’am.” Vasquez ticked back her chin when Lena looked over at her again. “So, the data from that warehouse…”
 
After a moment’s considering, Lena looked up at the agent again. “It would get into the right hands?”
 
“Almost immediately.”
 
Lena nodded as she rose. “Both of you, wait here. Don’t leave this room. Don’t touch anything. Don’t respond or do a room-by-room search because you feel my life be in danger. I’m fine. I do not give you permission to go any further into my home or search it. Do you understand?”
 
“Yes, ma’am,” both agents responded.
 
Taking her coffee, Lena headed down the hallway back to her office, closing the door behind her.
 
“Damn, she’s kind of strict.”
 
“Hmmm.” Vasquez nodded. “I like strict.”
 
Johnson did a double-take, looking down at Vasquez. “Did Jenny really try to kiss you?”
 
A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth, but Vasquez shrugged it off. “Relax. I’d offer to get you a coffee, but we’ve been ordered to stay here by the lady, and I’m a good soldier. I follow orders.” Sipping her coffee, she watched him out of the corner of her eye, and a little smirk touched her lips. “Does Jenny ever ask about me?”
 
“Hey! Quit it!”
 
It was several uncomfortable minutes later before Lena reappeared with a USB drive.  She held it out to Vasquez. “Agent, this has all of the relevant pieces of information which I extracted from the warehouse in question: the missing shipment, where it went, and the video file of who took it.” She held it out to Vasquez but didn’t let go when the agent took it. “Agent, I want what’s best for this city. I believe Supergirl is what’s best for this city. In future, if the FBI needs anything to assist Supergirl, please don’t go behind my back. Just ask. You’ll find the process much faster and easier that way.”
 
Vasquez nodded and said, “I’ll make note of that in your file, Miss Luthor.”

“Oh, I have a file?” Lena smiled. “I bet it’s thick.”
 
Vasquez smiled back. “Like the telephone book. Thank you for your assistance, ma’am.”
 
Lena walked the agents to the door, securing it behind them.
 
Almost as soon as the front door had been closed behind the two agents, Lois’ head peeked out of the office where she’d been hiding - and had successfully managed to scare the crap out of Lena when she’d been fetching the USB stick. It was only by some small miracle that Lena had neither cried out in alarm, nor spilled her coffee.
 
“Pssst, Luthor?” Lois stage whispered into the apartment now.
 
“All clear, Lois,” Lena smiled in her direction.
 
With an audible sigh of relief, Lois emerged from the room, and noting that Lena was staring at her with an expectant look, apparently waiting for an explanation, she shrugged. “It was the Feds.”
 
“You don’t say,” Lena raised an eyebrow, not impressed by this explanation. “I’m assuming you have history with them?”
 
“Define ‘history’...”
 
“You’re a wanted woman.”
 
“Is that a question or an accusation?”
 
Lena sighed and shook her head, sensing that she was getting nowhere fast. “Actually, forget I asked.”
 
There was a moment’s pause, and then Lois sighed as well. “I’m meant to be under house arrest. Well, arrest is a strong word, but let’s just say I gave my babysitters the slip, and I’m sure they’re not too happy about it.”
 
“Why were you being ‘babysat’ by the Feds?” Lena folded her arms across her chest.
 
Lois shrugged sheepishly. “I maybe got involved in something I shouldn’t.”
 
“Figures,” Lena sighed, rolling her eyes  - albeit in a fond way now. Anyone who knew Lois well enough knew that whatever Lois may or may not have done, would have been for the greater good.
 
“Alright, fine,” Lois grumbled as if Lena had given her an earful and demanded to know the truth, even though she’d done nothing of the sort. “They came to me, asking if I knew anything about the missing Supers. I told them I knew nothing, but I would be more than willing to help them in their investigation. I sort of wouldn’t take no for an answer, so they brought me here to National City, then took me to a room, patted me on the head, told me to stay put and behave until they came back to get me. I don’t do well at sitting still and waiting for news, so I gave them the slip, the first chance I got, and I’ve been doing my own brand of investigating ever since.” She raised her arms out to the sides, and then slapped them lightly back against her legs again, in some apparent show of frustration, before she pointed an accusing finger at Lena. “Except now you have just given over everything to the Feds.” She snapped her fingers. “Just like that. Poof, gone.”
 
“It was an exchange,” Lena returned calmly.
 
Lois opened her mouth to argue, then considered, floundered for a moment, then shook her head. “It’s a wonder L-Corp has lasted this long, if your definition of an exchange is giving something and getting nothing back in return.”
 
“Who says I didn’t get anything back?” Lena asked with a wry smile.
 
Lois once again opened her mouth, then considered, closed it again and tilted her head to one side curiously. “Go on,” she nodded at last. “I’m listening.”
 
“The thumbdrive did indeed contain the promised information. Truth be told, as upset I am that they tried to strongarm their way onto one of my facilities, I have no desire to slow down their search for the missing Supers. I’m happy to work together, to share my information.”
 
“They don’t feel the same.”
 
Lena gave Lois a wry smile. “They’ve suddenly had a change of heart. You see, embedded in each of those files is the piece of a program. Together they’ll become a blended threat.”
 
“Blended threat?” Lois grinned. “That sounds both HR appropriate and vaguely malicious. That’s your special breed of Luthor showing through.”
 
Lena chuckled. “I’ll take that as a compliment. Well, this blended threat comes in as a trojan horse and is designed to ping on several search terms and install a backdoor for our use. It should spread rapidly as it travels through email, IRC, and shared networks.”
 
Lois squinted. “I didn’t understand most of that except for backdoor. I know backdoors. I’ve snuck in through and been tossed out of enough of them. Did you just give the FBI something that will let you into their computers?”
 
As her smile grew and her eyes twinkled, Lena nodded.
 
A hand over her mouth, Lois took a few moments to let Lena’s words sink in. “Do you really miss Lex that much? Lena, they toss people in federal prison for breaking into government systems like that. It’s a federal crime. They might even call it treason. Do you miss your mom that much?”
 
Chuckling, Lena picked up her coffee and took a sip. “Oh, pish-posh. I’ve been breaking into government systems since I was a child. I suppose you could literally say it’s child’s play.” She smiled, her nose crinkling up at a joke she no doubt found amusing. “Anyway, there will be no evidence that the blended threat came from me, and I’m not going to do any damage. I’m just going to poke around a bit and find out what I can about what the government has on the missing Supers. It’s for a good cause.”
 
“Oh, you’re just going to poke around a little bit inside the computer network of the…” Lois paused, staring at Lena.
 
Coffee cup hovering at her lips, Lena quipped an eyebrow and stared back.
 
“The network of the FBI,” Lois grumbled as she grabbed her juice glass and stomped off to the kitchen, pouring herself some more. She stormed back. “You know, if you were my kid, I’d ground you.”
 
Lena raised both eyebrows, taking another leisurely sip of coffee as she took Lois’s measure, the other woman’s obvious ire and the concern that it masked. Placing the cup on the table, Lena said, “Well, Lois, if I were your daughter, there wouldn’t be five-to-one odds of my ending up in federal supermax prison in the next five years.”
 
Dropping down into a chair, Lois took a sip of the juice, her mood seeming to brighten just a bit as she swallowed the liquid. “Five-to-one, huh?”
 
Lena nodded.
 
“Huh. Where does a lady get in on this bet because after this little stunt you just pulled, I don’t see you lasting out the year.”
 
Lena rolled her eyes. “Gee, thanks.”
 
“Hey, weddings are expensive, and it’s a tough economy.” Lois smiled, and a bit of tension seemed to have gone out of the room. “Okay, I think what you did was risky. I respect it, respect you, but I’m worried.”
 
“You think

I

took a risk?”
 
“I can take care of myself.”
 
“Which implies I can’t?”
 
Lois studied her glass and said, “I’m not saying that. I just worry.” She looked up from the glass, meeting Lena’s gaze. “You get to worry about the people in your life, right.”
 
“The people in your life,” Lena repeated slowly, perhaps unsurely, her brow furrowed. “You don’t have to worry. I know what I’m doing.”
 
“I sure hope so. So, what’s our next move? What do we do?”
 
“Now we wait. We wait for the door to open, for the worm to spread. We wait for the FBI to send emails, to chat, for this to work its way through their secure network. In the meantime, I have two companies to run, and I’ve been dropping that on the shoulders of others. If you have shoulders, or leads, or whatever reporter thing you do, feel free to do it. I’m happy to make resources available to you.”
 
“Like the Aston?” Lois smiled broadly.
 
“I’ll call you an Uber.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

When Lena appeared from her bedroom wearing a pencil skirt, dark-blue blouse, hair in a tight bun, face completely made up, and carrying heels and a blazer, Lois looked up from searching the internet on her phone.
 
“You going somewhere?”
 
“That sort of attention to detail must be what won you the Pulitzer,” Lena said as she sat on the couch, pulling on her heels. “I’m headed to work.”
 
“You’re leaving me?”
 
Lena chuckled. “We’re not exactly breaking up, Lois. I’m merely heading into L-Corp for a meeting then going to look at spreads at Catco. I’ll be back.”
 
“But what about the Supers? I thought we were working on this together?”
 
Shrugging on her suit jacket as she stood, Lena replied, “We are, and as soon as I have more information, I’ll be in touch.” She lifted her phone from the coffee table, holding it up for Lois to see. “Right now we’re in a holding pattern. My worm is doing it’s thing. When we hit paydirt, I’ll be in touch.”
 
“So you just want me to… to… wait?”
 
“Patience is a virtue,” Lena replied in a sing-song sort of voice as she headed to the door.
 
Lois rushed in front of her, cutting Lena off with arms thrust out to either side. “Lady, I’m many things, but virtuous ain’t one of them. And nor is patient. I need to keep busy. For the sake of your valuables, you want me to be busy.”
 
Lena furrowed her brows, looking around at the contents of her apartment before nodding once, slowly. She quickly selected someone on her contacts list, and said, “Eve, I need a favor.”

“Anything, Miss Luthor.”

“Someone is going to call you in a few minutes on my behalf. She’s working on a project for me. Give her whatever she needs to complete it.”
 
A smile broke out over Lois’ face.
 
“Within reason.”
 
Lois frowned. “Awww.”

“Of course, Miss Luthor.”

“Eve, no cars. This person is not to have access to or be given any vehicles. She is to stay in my apartment.”
 
“Seriously!?”
 
Lena nodded. "I don't want you to discuss the nature or any aspect of this project with anyone but me, and that includes Mr. Olsen. If anyone questions you about this project or this person, you are to send them to me. I don’t care if it’s the bloody FBI. Understood?”

“I understand, Miss Luthor.”

“As a matter-of-fact, I don’t want you to mention that you are working with another person for me. Just say I’ve given you a task to complete, and the nature of it is something I asked you not to discuss. You can consider this something covered under your nondisclosure agreement. Any questions about that?”

“None, Miss Luthor.”

“Excellent.” Lena narrowed her eyes as she looked over at Lois. “Oh, and Eve, no fireworks. In fact, I think no fire in general would be safest in this case.”
 
“Oh, come on, Lenny! What do you think I’m going to do here!”
 
Lena quirked up one brow. “For the sake of my belongings and the other residents here, I’d rather not find out. Thank you, Eve. You’re a gem. Call me directly with any questions or concerns.”

“My pleasure, Miss Luthor.”

Disconnecting, Lena held out her hand to Lois. “I’ll give you her number. You be kind to her, Lois. Eve Teschmacher is a lovely and highly competent woman. She’s a bit high strung though. I’m not sure what happened to her working as Cat Grant’s assistant.”
 
Grabbing Lena’s wrist, Lois said, “She worked as Cat’s assistant?”
 
Lena nodded.
 
“Oh, the poor thing. Lena, you should award her the purple heart in journalism, maybe the purple pen or something.”
 
“Why?”
 
“She was Cat’s assistant,” Lois said as if that explained everything.
 
“So was Kara for years. Kara seems to adore Cat.”
 
“That’s because Kara is Super… uh… stupid. Super stupid...”
 
Blinking rapidly, Lena said, “Did you just call Kara stupid?”
 
“Anyone who adores Cat is stupid,” Lois shrugged as if this explained everything. She also hoped this would cover up her almost blunder, as well.
 
Eyes narrowed, Lena’s lips were a thin line as she examined Lois. “Just give me your phone, and I’ll give you Eve’s direct line, but don’t think we’re done discussing the Kara matter.  Kara Danvers is many things, but stupid she is not.”
 
“Yes, boss,” Lois smirked as she handed over her phone.
 
“Does that mean you’ve decided to work for me at CatCo now, then?” Lena asked as she took the offered phone.
 
Lois made a sort of non-commital noise and shrugged. “I’m thinking about it. This is not a yes by the way, Luthor! I don’t want any contracts dropping on my doormat in the next few days, you hear me?!”
 
“Hmmm? Oh, certainly,” Lena said with a half-smile, not looking up from the phone as she handed it off, turned on her heel, waved over her shoulder, and headed to the door. “Have fun, darling. I’ll see you after work.”
 
“Laters!” Lois grinned, even as she thumbed the dial button on her phone and tapped impatiently, waiting for it to be answered.
 
After what felt like forever, the line clicked and a voice spoke politely.

"CatCo Media, Eve Teschmacher speaking."

“Eve, hi! I’m that person Lena was just telling you about,” Lois smiled brightly as she perched on the arm of one of the couches, phone held to her ear with one hand as she began to hold fingers up for each item she started to list. “So I need pens, paper, tape - duct, parcel, sticky and… well, all the other kinds of tape too, maps, lots of maps, pins, string, probably some cardboard, a couple of matchboxes, a box of a dozen doughnuts - maple glazed, scissors, maybe a craft knife, a soldering iron, some pliers… Um, you get all that? Any questions so far?”

“Yes and yes.”

Eve took a deep breath.

“Color preference on the duct tape? Which maps exactly and how large? Pins: safety, straight, bobby, push, other? I can only bring you matchboxes without matches. That’s a comment not a question, but this is a question. What size matchboxes, small or the large ones? Doughnut store preference for the doughnuts? Do you need solder to go with the soldering iron? Is there anything else we need for this project, ma’am?”

“We?”

“Well, Miss Luthor said I’d be working with you to complete this task, and that you couldn’t leave the apartment. I’ve cleared my schedule for the remainder of the day to assist you in whatever way you need.”

A smile formed on Lois’ face. “You don’t say. In that case yes to it all”

“Uh… yes to which parts, ma’am?”

“Bring everything. All colors of tape, maps of everywhere, all those pins plus other, every size of matchbox, don’t care on the doughnut as long as it’s maple glazed - though Krispy Kreme if possible, yes to the solder, and I forgot the post it notes, ball point pens, and marker pens. Maybe a couple of pencils, an eraser or two, a ruler, a tape measure, a spirit level, and a sewing kit. Does that answer your questions?”

<><>
 
The meeting at L-Corp ended, and Lena packed the last of her things into her bag. She checked her phone again, but it still didn’t show any updates from the worm she had planted in the files she handed off to Agent Vasquez. With a slight frown, she slid the phone in her pocket and turned to find the frowning face of her CFO, Sam Arias.
 
“What’s wrong?”
 
“That’s what I was going to ask you,” Sam replied. She gestured toward the pocket where Lena had just put away her phone. “You were only half checked-in during the meeting, and you kept checking your phone under the table. Mind telling me what’s up?”
 
“I did fine in the meeting Sam.  You’re exaggerating about—”
 
“Is it Kara?”
 
Lena stopped, caught verbally flat footed, and it took her a moment to recover. “Why would you ask that?”
 
“Because I’ve known you long enough to know what gives you this level of concern, and it’s family. I know your brother isn’t texting you. I hope to God you mother isn’t texting you. That leaves Kara.” With a gentle smile, Sam reached out and squeezed Lena’s shoulder. “What’s wrong?”
 
Lena relaxed and returned the smile. “You’re family too, you know.”
 
Sam chuckled. “Thank you, but I know I’m not texting you during meetings.”
 
“Oh, I don’t know,” Lena replied with a laugh. “Maybe we could talk about how murdering Mrs. Kandorich would be favorable to listening to her bullet point of objections on each and every topic suggested by everyone at the meeting.”
 
“Lena, people go to jail for murder. I shouldn’t have to remind you of that.”
 
Lena shrugged. “You don’t. Solitary confinement sounds preferable to listening to Mrs. Kandorich.”
 
“I… can’t really argue with you right now,” Sam admitted. “However, we will never discuss murder via texts. What are we, amateurs?”
 
“Until we get paid for it, yes.”
 
“Oh, true.” When Lena made a move to walk away, Sam held her upper arm. “Nice deflection, Luthor, but I know your ways. Now, what’s going on? Who was texting you? Was it Kara? Is she okay?”
 
“No it…” Lena looked down for a moment. “Kara’s away. Her mother is sick.”
 
“Eliza? Is she all right?”
 
Squeezing the back of her neck, Lena sighed and met Sam’s gaze. “Honestly, I don’t know. I haven’t heard from Kara in days. I’m worried about her.”
 
“That’s not like Kara. You two text all the time.”
 
“Well, she’s one of my two best friends.” Lena wandered over to the window and examined the skyline.
 
“Right.” Behind Lena, Sam smiled. “You two are close. I haven’t seen you grow this close to someone this quickly in… well, in ever.”
 
“Kara’s special.” Lena had a small smile on her face when she looked back over her shoulder.
 
“Yeah, I can see that.” Closing the distance between them, Sam said, “I’ve got an idea. Let me talk to Alex. Eliza is her mother too, and she usually keeps pretty good tabs on her sister. I’ll let her know that Kara’s friends haven’t heard from Kara and are worried. Maybe I can get an update.”
 
“I’d appreciate that.”
 
“Hey, what are CFOs for?”
 
“Mom,” Ruby said as she entered the conference room. “Aunt Lena!” She hurried across the room and into Lena’s arms for a hug.
 
“I hope this is all right, Miss Arias, Miss Luthor,” Jess said from where she stood in the doorway. “Miss Arias had said that Ruby could come in as soon as the meeting had ended and all of the other executives had left. I wasn’t sure if I should wait until Miss Luthor left, but someone was excited and wanted to see her aunt.”
 
“You never need to keep my niece from me, Jess,” Lena said as she pressed a kiss to the top of the Ruby’s head. “This is perfect.”
 
“Thank you, Miss Luthor.” Jess held up a file. “I hate to interrupt family time, but I do have some documents that need signatures since you’re here. It will save us couriering them over to Catco.”
 
Lena stepped away from Ruby, moving back to the conference table where Jess met her with the documents. She pulled out a pen and clicked it open. “You know, Sam, maybe we should just make Jess COO and give her signing rights. It would make both of our lives easier.”
 
“Miss Luthor,” Jess gasped, “I’ve been nothing but loyal to you. Why would you threaten me like that?”
 
Sam chuckled. “She has a point, Lena.”
 
Lena signed a document with a flourish. “Yes, but she’s entirely trustworthy and competent. Jess deserves to reap the rewards of her success.”
 
Throwing an arm over Ruby’s shoulders, Sam said, “True but the Luthor brand of success doesn’t fit everyone. Maybe Jess would prefer something that say… How do we say it, Jess?”
 
“Doesn’t fit like a straight jacket?” Jess suggested as she picked up the last of the papers and put them back into the folder. “Ruby, whatever you do, don’t let these two talk you into working here. Get a degree in philosophy or something.”
 
Brows furrowed, Ruby asked, “What can you do with a degree in philosophy?”
 
“Teach philosophy,” Lena said.
 
Ruby seemed to wait to see if there was more to that and when there wasn’t asked, “Mom, can Aunt Lena have dinner with us tonight?”
 
“I don’t know.  Can you, Aunt Lena?”
 
“I wish. I’m on my way over to Catco. Jimmy is working on layouts, so I thought I’d drop by an put my ten cents in.”
 
“It’s two cents, Miss Luthor,” Jess said.
 
“Inflation,” Lena replied.
 
Sam snorted. “More like you have five times as many opinions as anyone else.”
 
“Well, if I do, it’s my company. I can’t afford not to have opinions about it.” Lena nodded and checked her phone again. “Speaking of which, I need to get over there. It was good seeing you all.”
 
As Lena left, Sam looked down at Ruby again. “You okay?”
 
“Yeah, I just miss Aunt Lena. She’s been even busier than normal lately.”
 
“Well, I have something that might help your mood.”
 
“Is it ice cream?” Ruby smiled broadly.
 
“Close.” Sam laughed. “We do have a guest for dinner.”
 
“Who?”
 
“Your Aunt Alex.”
 
“Aunt Alex!” Ruby hugged her mom. “Awesome! Let’s go.” She ran to the doorway, stopping and waiting there.
 
Sam grabbed her phone and her bag. “Someone’s excited. Do you and Alex need me for this dinner you two have planned?”
 
“Not really, but you can join us if you want,” Ruby replied with a smile.
 
“Gee thanks.”  Pulling her bag over her shoulder, Sam walked up to her daughter and rubbed her hair. “Alex is your favorite, huh?”
 
“Yeah, Aunt Alex is the best! She showed me how to throw a punch and can spit like fifteen feet. Do you know she once took down a perp with just a plastic spoon? She is the coolest, but don’t tell my other aunts, okay? I’ll get the elevator!”
 
As Ruby ran off to push the button, Sam smiled to herself. “Don’t worry, kiddo. You’re secret’s safe with me. Aunt Alex is my favorite too.”
 
<><>

At the knock on his doorframe, James looked up and smiled. “Lena, was I expecting you today?”
 
“No, but I managed to carve out a few hours after my meeting at L-Corp, so I thought you and I could go over that layout. I feel rather badly just dropping everything on you and bailing.”
 
“Oh, it’s fine.” James smiled. “If you’re busy, I can hold down the fort.”
 
“Hold down the fort.” Lena chuckled. “While I appreciate the offer, Jimmy, and I will take up your offer for assistance when I absolutely need it, Luthors are not who they are because we ever take the easy path. Now, let’s take a look at that layout.”
 
“Well, all right.”
 
James gestured toward the coffee table where pieces of articles and photos were laid out being prepared for print set up. James and Lena sat together, discussing the options at length, agreeing and disagreeing - politely - about the best options available. It was over two hours later when they both pushed up from the floor, stretching their tired backs and sore necks.
 
Her arms high above her head, Lena said, “Jimmy, let me ask you something, and it isn’t about this layout.”
 
“About Catco?”
 
“Yes.”
 
“Shoot.  I’m your man.”
 
Lena smiled at him, nodding once. “I understand that you worked with Lois Lane for several years. Is that correct?”
 
“Lois?” James laughed as he slid all the way back onto the couch, his long frame stretching to cover much of the property. “Sure, Lois and I go way back. I took some of my first professional pictures with her.”
 
"Well, for some reason, Miss Grant had Miss Lane's file listed under, 'Hell must be frozen over', but I'm seeing her as a promising candidate. I'd love to hear your thoughts on Miss Lane."
 
“You’re thinking of making a job offer to Lois?” James laughed.
 
Lena’s brow furrowed. “What’s so funny? Her reputation as a reporter is outstanding.”
 
“Oh, she’s an amazing reporter. She’s also Lois. Plus, she’s engaged to Clark Kent.”
 
Lena smiled. “A charming man and an excellent reporter in his own right. What do you think about Mr. Kent joining the ranks of Catco?”
 
“Clark? Work for you?” James rose, exhaling slowly as he walked around the room. “Look, Lena, I think you’re great, but I’m not sure that would be such a good idea.”
 
“Because?”
 
“Because… Because… Ah, because, have you ever met Perry White?”
 
“No, should I be looking to hire him also?”
 
“Jeez.” James rubbed his hand along the top of his head. “Is that how you handle everything, just throw money at it?”
 
“It worked when Edge tried to buy Catco.”
 
“Right.” James nodded. “Thanks again for
—”
 
“It was an investment, Jimmy. Keep doing a good job, help me get a good return, and that’s all the thanks that I need. Now, back to this Lois Lane and Clark Kent matter. Why wouldn’t I want to hire them?”
 
“You… wouldn’t
not
want to hire them?” James said, his voice rising at the end to turn the statement into a question.
 
“O-kay. So If I were to make a job offer to Miss Lane or Mr. Kent, or perhaps both of them, you’d feel that would be a wise investment?”
 
“I guess?” James turned in a circle as he thought. “But… But… What about Superman?”
 
“Get me his resume.”
 
“Ha! No, I mean Lois is Superman’s official reporter. There’s no way she’d leave Metropolis to move out here. You don’t know her.”
 
With a little smile, Lena tilted her head to the side. “I feel like a do, at least a little bit. I’ve been doing a bit of research on Miss Lane, and I feel like I’m beginning to get a pretty good read on her.”
 
“Hey, no offense, Lena, but no one has a good read on Lois, and that includes Clark. Lois is just a wildly moving target, if you get my drift.”
 
Lena shrugged. “Sure, she’s complicated. I know her type.”
 
James laughed. “There is no type because Lois Lane is one of a kind, and there’s nothing you can learn about her in any file which will help you to understand her.”
 
“You might be surprised.”
 
“Look, just because a file tells you her… I don’t know, favorite doughnut and how she takes her coffee order
—”
 
“Maple glazed and disgusting.”
 
James faltered before saying, “Okay, accurate on both fronts. Those are some pretty good files Cat kept. What was in mine?”
 
“You don’t want to know,” Lena said with another eyebrow lift.
 
“Right. Anyway, Lois Lane is more than the sum of her parts, or in this case what she ingests. She’s a force of nature, and she’s not easily defined. Do you get it?”
 
“Yes, women are complicated and mysterious. How do we communicate with one in her natural habitat?” Lena said pushing to her feet.
 
“Lena, I’m not saying-”
 
“Let me see if I can, even with my relatively limited knowledge, begin to breakdown the mystery that is Lois Lane.” As she spoke and paced, Lena counted off traits on her fingers. “She’s brash, outspoken, brave to the point of being foolhardy, the voice of those who have none, just, honest as the day is long, and knows all of this and would likely admit it to you with a smug smile on her face. She has a complicated relationship with her father - aka The General - and likely calls him that to his face. She has an equally complicated but more respectful relationship with her younger sister. She misses her mother, doesn’t talk about her often but does think about her daily. While she believes that the means is an important factor in reaching the ends, she also thinks felonies come in so many shades of gray they could make up a trashy poorly edited fanfic turned to self-published best-seller on Amazon.” Lena smiled up at James before she added one more finger to her Lois list. “Oh, and for someone who makes a living as a writer, she would be the worst speller in any second grade class in this country. How’d I do?”
 
James nodded slowly, his gaze never once leaving Lena’s, “Surprisingly well. As a matter-of-fact, I’d say you got an A in Lois Lane 101. Are you ready to move on to the next class?”
 
“No,” Lena admitted, “but I’d like to, so I’m going to keep studying.”
 
“Yeah, I bet you would.” As Lena looked down at her phone when she received a text, he mumbled, “Maybe you should keep taking night classes.”
 
Lena frowned at her phone in hand.
 
“Anything wrong?”
 
She shook her head bit grabbed her jacket from the back of his chair, tugging it on before taking her purse from his desk. “No, I just have another appointment to keep.” She looked up smiling at James. “Jimmy, thank you for going over the layout with me. I still have a lot to learn, and you’re a wonderful teacher.”
 
“Well, you’re an amazing student. I wish every billionaire who bought the place I worked was as quick a study as you. That’s not too likely, huh?”
 
“Hmmm?” She looked up again from her phone that had pulled in her attention.
 
“Have a good night.”
 
“You too.” She waved to him and headed toward the elevators, frowning at a series of texts on her phone.
 
Unknown Caller:
“U nvr call u nvr rit”
 
Unknown Caller:
“U comin home 4 diner?”
 
Unknown Caller:
“Miss ya face”
 
As the elevator opened, Lena got in and pressed the button for the ground floor. “Worst speller in the second grade indeed.”
 
<><>
 
Lena should have known that leaving Lois Lane unsupervised, for any amount of time, was not just a bad idea. It was an absolutely terrible one. As she was soon to find out when she went to open the door of her apartment, only to find that it wouldn’t move.
 
Frowning, and thinking at first that perhaps it was locked, she couldn’t understand why Lois and Eve would lock the door - Lena assumed Eve was still there as she’d never shown back up at CatCo again.
 
She tried the door again, putting a little more weight against it this time, and it moved slightly. Just enough for her to push one arm through and feel about behind the door, only to discover that a chair had been pushed up against the it.
 
“What on Earth?”
 
She shoved even harder, throwing all her weight against the door. It resisted at first, and then gave way at last as the chair toppled to the side. Lena stormed in, only to be confronted with a wall of furniture. Had Eve and Lois been creating a barricade?! Was there even
any
furniture left anywhere else in the apartment?!
 
Hearing voices coming from the main living area at the heart of the apartment, she climbed and scrambled her way, as elegantly as she could in a pencil skirt and heels, over the carnage of furniture that had been haphazardly pushed together in the narrow hallway.
 
Emerging on the other side, Lena was greeted with a sight like she’d never seen before.
 
Every inch of the floor was covered in paper with tape in various colors, mapping out various features across the paper - roads, sidewalks, water sources, boundaries and borders. Three-dimensional constructs had been built to resemble various buildings and other architectural structures, from statues to bridges to causeways to the tallest skyscrapers and the smallest outbuildings. It was as if a miniature paper city had sprung up, seemingly out of nowhere, in the middle of Lena’s apartment.
 
But that wasn’t the most surprising thing - though it was pretty mind boggling. The most surprising thing was that Lois - who was meant to be alone - had somehow managed to amass a small army of volunteer helpers who were even now stuck into whatever task they had been given, constructing even more details on the cityscape. There was no sign of Lois herself, but Eve was standing nearby, placing a gentle hand on an elderly gentleman’s shoulder as he pointed to a square building.
 
“Mr Miller, that’s the GCPD, Sir. You see the bat symbol? That means it’s Gotham. You need to be putting it on the NCPD which is over there in National City.” She pointed to another similar building over the other side of the room, and the elderly gentleman smiled.
 
“Oh, sorry, love. Which color am I putting there again?” He held up two small paper flags - one red and the other blue.
 
“The red one, Mr Miller.”
 
“Right you are, love,” he nodded, then ambled off, following what appeared to be a roadway to get to his new destination so that he didn’t step anywhere he shouldn’t.
 
A little way off to the left, a younger man who Lena vaguely recognized as one of the tenants of another of the apartments in the building, was pointing to the skyscraper he’d just finished taping together. “Is this tall enough?”
 
And then, from right in the middle of all the chaos, Lois’ voice drifted out. “Perfect, Fred. Now we need three more of those, over there.”
 
Over by the balcony, Fernando the doorman was holding up a rounded shape that Lena couldn’t quite make out from this distance. “Can anyone explain why I’m making a polar bear?”
 
“It’s a representation to show it’s the arctic, Mr Costa,” Eve called as she hurried back from Lena’s office with a stack of paper - each one with a printed design on it that when cut out and folded in a certain way, would create a new building. Lena could just about hear the hum of her printer as it was worked overtime, churning out template after template of buildings.
 
“And why are we building the arctic?” Fernando continued to press, still holding up his polar bear.
 
“I’m afraid I can’t say just yet,” Eve shook her head.
 
And then came Lois’ voice again. “Ferdinand!”
 
“Fernando, Miss Lane.”
 
“Tomato, tomato. It’s need to know, top secret stuff I’m afraid.”
 
“To do with the Supers?”
 
“Maybe. Maybe not.”
 
“Then say no more, Miss Lane. I understand. Top secret.”
 
“Good man.”
 
“Mr. Trevor, please be careful, sir. You almost took off Superman’s head!” Eve called out to a man who was desperately trying to regain his balance.
 
“Hey Steve, watch it!” Lois again. “You lop off his head, even if it is accidental, and I’ll lop off yours!”
 
“What the hell is a giant Superman doing in the middle of Metropolis?” Steve protested as he finally found sure footing again, albeit splayed out across the map with two or three buildings in between his feet.
 
“Clearly you’ve not been to Metropolis recently!”
 
Lena noticed the bewildered pizza delivery boy next, as he stood in the kitchen doorway, looking exactly how Lena felt at that moment in time. “Uh hello? Anyone? Still waiting for my tip?”
 
“Don’t go out in the rain. You’ll get wet.” Lena still couldn’t see where Lois’ voice was coming from, but it was unmistakably hers.
 
“Huh?” The pizza delivery boy scratched his head, still bewildered.
 
“You wanted a tip. I told you one, free of charge. You’re welcome.”
 
Had Lena not been so overwhelmed by everything that was going on, she may have laughed at that. As it was, she was gently pushed to one side by an elderly lady who smelled of lavender and chamomile and had a patient smile. “Excuse me, dear.”
 
Stepping past Lena, she walked carefully back into the room, avoiding the buildings and following the road just as the elderly gentleman had done a few moments earlier. “Cup of tea anyone? There’s a couple of bottles of soda in the fridge if anyone would rather, and I’ve served up the pizzas onto some plates so you can all help yourselves.”
 
“Mrs Miller, you’re a star! If I wasn’t getting tied up in all this red tape… literally
—”
Hands that surely belonged to Lois appeared over the top of a skyscraper that looked suspiciously like the Daily Planet building - the fingers all tangled in red insulating tape, “
—
I’d hug you right now.”
 
Lena inhaled sharply as she finally found the apparent source of her ire, and Eve glanced in her direction, then jumped, startled. Clearly, she hadn’t expected to see her boss standing there. “Miss Luthor? I didn’t see you come in. Would you like
—
?”
 
Lena couldn’t help it. She couldn’t stay quiet any more. This was too much. The final straw. “
Lois!!!!
”
 
Lois’ head appeared from behind the Daily Planet, confirming that this was indeed where she’d been doing whatever it was that she was doing with the red tape. “What? There’s no need to shout Lenny, I’m right -”
 
“What the actual fu
—”
 
“Ah!” Lois held up one finger, a band of red tape wrapped around the end. “No swearing in front of the children!”
 
This wrong-footed Lena for a moment, and she looked around in confusion. “What children?”
 
“The two-year-old on the balcony,” Lois replied as she thumbed over her shoulder towards the balcony.
 
“There’s a child on the balcony, unsupervised?!” Lena gasped, alarmed. Why did no-one else seem bothered about this fact?!
 
Ignoring the protests of the others, she rushed across the room to have a look, stopped dead at the doorway out onto the balcony, tried and failed to count to ten as she took a deep breath, and then turned slowly to Lois.  “That two-year-old…...is a dog?!
Why the

fuck

is there a dog in my apartment?!
” She pointed furiously to the Great Dane who was standing on his hind legs at the balcony railing, as tall as the average man, peering out over the balcony with his tongue lolling out to one side of his mouth in an almost goofy manner, his tail wagging happily.
 
“Chill your beans, woman!” Lois rolled her eyes. “I roped Fred into help, but he’s dogsitting Marmaduke for the day and had nowhere else to
—”
 
“I don’t care!” Lena’s voice had risen several octaves. “Get him out!”
 
Lois stood up finally, her hands on her hips and a frown aimed in Lena’s direction. “Now you’re just being rude. Fred happens to be a very charming young man once you get to know him.”
 
The man called Fred, who had been asking if his building was tall enough, smiled across at Lena now and offered a friendly wave. But Lena was too wound up to even consider smiling or waving back.
 
“I meant the dog, Lane!” She waved a hand at everyone else in the room, and the carnage that had been unleashed upon her poor, unsuspecting apartment. “And again, I have to ask, what the actual fuck, Lois?!”
 
Lois looked all about as well, as if surveying the work for the first time, and grinned. “Do you like it? It’s a map. Well, more than one map, really. National City over here, Metropolis over there where you’re standing and Gotham over there by Eve. Oh, and waaaaaay over there is the Arctic. Actually, Lena, honey, could you get out of the river? Danny needs to finish building the bridge, and you’re kind of in his way.”
 
“I… what?” Lena blinked, once again caught off guard, as she glanced down to see a man, apparently called Danny, sitting a few feet away, armed with blue and silver tape and several cut out shapes that vaguely resembled a bridge. She followed the line of blue tape from him, down to where she was standing, and realised that he’d been mapping out a river. “Oh… right...” She stepped to one side, and with a smile, Danny continued to stick blue tape down to mark out the river.
 
For a moment there was silence, Lena unable to think of anything else to say as her mouth opened and shut, but no words came out. Eve, sensing there was trouble and that perhaps her boss wasn’t as amused and delighted by this plan as Lois had promised her she would be, cleared her throat and turned to everyone else in the room.
 
“Uh, well, thank you all so much for coming today, ladies and gentlemen. Your help has been truly appreciated. Please feel free to help yourselves to pizza on the way out, and thank you all again for coming.”
 
“Thank you so much everyone, this looks fantastic!” Lois agreed brightly, with a big, beaming smile. Then she turned to Lena. “Lena? Lena you’re staring. Say thank you to all the nice people.”
 
Lena blinked at last, apparently snapping back to reality. “For what?!”
 
Lois scowled. “Being rude again! Jeez, you’re embarrassing me, Luthor!”
 
“But… My apartment?!”
 
“Was a lot of wasted space and potential. Now we’ve put it to good use.”
 
“But… but… three hours! I left you alone for three hours!”
 
Lois grinned proudly. “Yeah, you should see what I can do in six.”
 
“No way! No way in hell am I
ever
going to find that out!”
 
One by one, the guests filtered out, Lois thanking them all personally as Lena gave a tight, very forced smile. As Marmaduke was called from the balcony, he lolloped over to Lois, almost the size of a small pony, and licked her palm affectionately. She gave him an equally affectionate scratch behind the ears, before he was called by a very loud whistle from Fred, and the two of them vanished down the hallway, back towards Fred’s apartment.
 
Lois and Lena were treated to hugs by Mr and Mrs Miller before they made their own way out, and Lois smiled after them.
"Did you know Mr. Miller and Mrs. Miller had a magic act back in the 50s? He was the great Zambini! She was his assistant and a contortionist." She poked Lena with her elbow. "Lucky Mr. Miller, eh?"
 
“Shut up,” Lena growled. “Just shut up.”
 
“Oh don’t be such a prickly pear,” Lois sighed. “It doesn’t suit you. Look, it was all for a good cause, right, Eve?”
 
“I do believe we’ve managed to establish some form of pattern pertaining to the last known sightings and whereabouts of both Superman and Supergirl,” Eve agreed, albeit sheepishly.
 
Lena pinched the bridge of her nose, closing her eyes for a moment as she tried to digest everything. “So you mean to tell me
—”
she managed at last through gritted teeth “
—
that this is a map of the last known whereabouts of the Supers?”
 
“Yup,” Lois nodded, beaming with pride as she surveyed the creation that rolled out before them.
 
Lena opened her eyes again, then wished she hadn’t. It was all still there. She hadn’t been imagining things, unfortunately. “Lois… you could have saved a dozen forests by building this thing
on a computer!
”
 
“Don’t raise your voice at me, Luthor,” Lois sighed. “And don’t go getting all eco friendly on me now. I’m all for saving the planet as much as the next person, but if we don’t get the Supers back, there won’t be a planet left to save. Desperate times call for
—”
 
“On a computer, Lois! You could have built it on a computer!”
 
“No
you
could have built it on a computer. You have your tricks, Luthor. I have mine. We play with the gifts we were born with. Yours is techy, whizzy, nerdy stuff. Mine is practical, investigative, doing things with my hands and feet and being active stuff! I can’t sit still. I just… can’t!” The way she spoke this last part suggested that she actually found the very idea of sitting still to be a vile and disgusting notion.
 
And then a thought occurred to her, and she hopped and navigated her way across the map to a building that had L-Corp written on the side in big bold marker pen. Taking a small paper figurine from the top of the building, she hopped and danced her way across to another building nearby and set it next to two other figures. “There, now you’re back here with Eve and I, I’ve put us all together on the map, as well.”
 
Noticing how Lena was taking several deep breaths, Eve blushed and bit her lip for a moment, before she hesitantly asked, “Will there be anything else I can do for you this evening, Miss Luthor?”
 
Lena’s head snapped round to face her assistant, who squeaked slightly and jumped back, until Lois stepped between them, her face deadly serious. “This is not her fault. If you’re going to hate on anyone, you hate on me. You got that? Leave her out of this. She was just doing as she was told, like any good assistant would.”
 
Lena took another deep breath, visibly calming herself before she looked past Lois, to Eve, and managed a more genuine smile this time. “No, thank you, Eve, that will be all. And thank you for all your help today. I know you mean well.”
 
“Yes, Miss Luthor.” The assistant bobbed her head quickly and then scurried for the door, but not before Lois called her back.
 
“Eve?”
 
“Yes, Miss Lane?”
 
“Don’t forget the pizza in the kitchen. Help yourself. And thanks again for your help today. We couldn’t have done it without you. I’ll put in a good word with your boss about a raise.” She winked, and Eve grinned even though she knew that she probably shouldn’t in front of Lena.
 
Ducking into the kitchen, she emerged a moment later with a few slices of pizza wrapped in foil and hurried for the door again before she could be called back over anything else.
 
Lois waited until the door had closed, then sighed and turned to Lena, arms folding across her chest, almost in a protective manner, whether she realised it or not. “Come on then, get it out of your system. I know you want to.”
 
“Lois I…” Lena sighed heavily, looking around. “You know, this would be easier if we could sit down on something besides the floor. I feel a bit like Godzilla at the moment.”
 
Lois blinked, her turn to be surprised now. “That’s it? No more shouting and angry hand gestures and… wait, you’re not going to pass out on me, are you? Damn, I think I preferred it when you were shouting.”
 
Lena snorted. “I don’t faint, and I apologize for yelling. This whole thing,” she gestured across the 3D maps scattered across her living room, “took me a bit by surprise. Still, I overreacted.”
 
“Huh,” Lois was staring at her, not sure if maybe now Lena was having a joke at her expense or not. She tilted her head to one side as she studied the other woman, and a slow grin spread across her face, reaching her eyes. “So… you want a tour?”
 
Despite herself, Lena couldn’t control the chuckle that broke free. “That depends, is there wine on this tour?”
 
“I’m sure we could find our guest of honor some wine,” Lois chuckled as well. “But I’m on duty. Can’t drink and tour, after all.”
 
“Oh, of course.” Lena pulled off her heels and made her way to the kitchen where she uncorked a bottle of wine and pulled down a glass. “Would you like anything to drink? Apparently, there’s soda in the fridge, and someone ordered pizza.” She flipped open the first two boxes, moving them off to the side when she found them to be empty, before finding a box that contained food. She put two slices on a plate for herself and left a second plate on the counter for Lois.
 
“I’ll have some more OJ if there’s any going?” Lois smiled as she helped herself to a couple of slices of pizza as well, picked up the first one, folded it in half lengthways and took a large bite.
 
As she poured Lois a glass of juice, Lena said, “So, Miss Tour Director, tell me what sights we’ll be seeing today.” She placed Lois’ glass on the counter next to the other woman.
 
“Oh, all sorts. Come right this way, Miss Luthor, and be prepared for the tour of your life!” Lois smirked as she picked up her glass of juice and led the way back into the paper monstrosity that she seemed so proud of.
 
“Alrighty, so first up on our tour, we have this place where we are now,” Lois pointed to the building that had the three miniature paper figures standing on the roof. “And over there is L-Corp. And CatCo is… somewhere… Oh, there it is, just there.”
 
Lena nodded, perring down to get a closer look at the replicas of her businesses before standing upright again.  “All right. Go on.”
 
“There’s also the NCPD, the NCU, and a whole bunch of other buildings that are just initials, but they’re boring.” Lois skipped and straddled her way across a couple of blocks, then followed a road, still pointing to buildings as she came to them. “City Hall, Luthor Children’s Hospital, and your warehouse where the Ark of the Covenant is buried in all those boxes.”
 
With a sigh and an eyeroll, Lena ignored Lois’ sarcasm and asked, “Is that Sweetwater River?”
 
“Yup! Leading to San Diego Bay. Oh and the San Diego Naval Base too. Been there. I’d advise against it. Boring as… well, boring stuff, really. But then that was where my Dad banned my sister and I from doing anything fun so maybe I’m biased.”
 
“Perhaps your definition of fun is slightly skewed.” Lena stepped between builds, making her way to another section of maps.  “And what’s this over here?”
 
“Oh! Now this you’re gonna love. We’re moving into Metropolis. You ever been to Metropolis, Lenny? Of course you have, what am I saying?”
 
“Yes, it was my first home after my adoption. This must be Metropolis University. I spent so many lovely hours there as a child.”
 
“Yeah? I couldn’t wait to leave,” Lois shrugged. “Still, you’re just odd, so it figures.”
 
Lena squinted at Lois before returning her attention to the map.  “That’s L-Corp East, isn’t it?”
 
“Yep. Formerly the Luthorcorp Headquarters until some bright spark went batshit crazy over a guy in a cape and commited mass murder.” Realising what she’d just said, Lois bit her lip for a moment. “Lena that was… I’m sorry. That was uncalled for.”
 
“But not untrue,” Lena said, not meeting Lois’ gaze. “Tell me what else we have on this map.”
 
“Uh, just a bunch of stuff really. City Hall, Centennial Park. There’s a gigantic statue of Superman there, actually. This little paper one doesn’t do him justice, but we work with the materials we’ve got, right?” She pointed to some other buildings, some with little blue flags in, some with little red flags in, and some with no flags at all. “Lacey’s Department Store, Spiffany’s Jewelry, Glenmorgan Square, the Halldorf Hotel… oh the Wireless City Movie Theatre - they do amazing corndogs and popcorn! Seriously, when this is all over, we should go and catch a movie there.”
 
“Corndogs?”  Lena quipped a brow before humming slightly. “Is that the Daily Planet, with the orb thing there?”
 
“Orb thing?! Lena Luthor, you wound me! And don’t insult the greatest building that has ever stood against the tests of time, technology, and the social-economic climate change! The Daily Planet is not just a building. It’s a home. It’s a sanctuary. It’s… it’s… a character all on its own!”
 
“How gauche of me.  And here I thought it was paper and tape with some kind of wad sitting on top.”  Lena pointed another construct. “I’m assuming that area with all of the matchboxes is Metropolis International Airport, and that section over the blue… ahem… excuse me, water, must be the Metro-Narrows Bridge.”
 
“Don’t mock the paper, Luthor! Come on, show some creativity. Where’s your imagination? It’s a city, and we’re viewing it from above. Just like a Super would.”
 
“We could have done so easily and to scale on a computer model,” Lena muttered.
 
“But we wouldn’t have been able to get into it, Lenny, not like we can here. This is texture and grain. You can feel the city.”  Lois stepped past the bridge. “Look, over here in Gotham is the GCPD. See the little Batlight on it? Now that’s detail. And over here is the Ace Chemical Plant.  This is where the Joker was thrown into acid, where he was born. Speaking of the Joker, this building is Arkham Asylum, his home away from home.”
 
“If that’s Arkham, then what is this one?” Lena asked stopping near a long, flat building with toothpick fencing stringed together with… “Good Lord, woman.  Did you use all of my dental floss?”
 
“Eh, it’s for a good cause.  I’m sure you can afford more.”  Lois waved off Lena’s concerns. “That’s Blackgate Penitentiary. It’s Gotham’s maximum security prison.”
 
“Gotham only has one?”
 
“Surprising, right?” Lois agreed. “Why do you think it’s so big?  See, this place is The Cauldron. If you’re looking to hire a hitman, that’s the place to go.”  When Lena pulled out her phone and started to type something out, Lois asked, “What are you doing?”
 
“Well, now I’m taking notes,” Lena replied with a little smirk on her face. “I can now see how this is useful. Go on.”
 
“You’re unbelievable, Luthor. If I didn’t know you any better, I’d think you were being serious.”
 
Lena looked up, still smiling. “Right.  A Luthor would never do anything like hire a hitman.  We do our own dirty work.”
 
“I meant about you saying the map was useful,” Lois rolled her eyes.
 
“Oh, that.” With a shrug, Lena pointed to another part of the map. “All right, I’m familiar with Robinson Park, and that must be The Gotham Gazette building, but what’s that tall, narrow building there?”
 
“The Clocktower?” Lois frowned. “Well… exactly that. The Clocktower. It’s where Ora
—”
She caught herself, but already feared it was too late. “Ordinary people go to find out the time….” she finished at last, then cringed, the lie sounding pathetic even to her own ears.
 
“So, you’re telling me it’s a big clock for ‘ordinary people’, and you felt the need to recreate it on your not so little 3D map here?”
 
“It’s a landmark,” Lois attempted a nonchalant shrug. “It’s next to Grand Avenue, but people might not know it’s Grand Avenue until they see the clock. Then they go “Oh, it’s Grand Avenue!” and everyone is happy.”
 
“Hmmmm.” Lena watched Lois for several seconds, obvious judgment in her gaze, before turning back to the map. “Fine.  What’s this thing with the little… what are these? Where did you get toys?”
 
“It’s amazing what you can find in the bottom of your bag if you dig around long enough,” Lois smirked. “And I may also have sent Eve out to get some, too.”
 
“You sent Eve…” Lena pinched the bridge of her nose, taking a cleansing breath. “Well, at least you didn’t leave. You didn’t leave, did you, Lois?”
 
“Oh come on now, Luthor! What do you take me for?!” Lois actually sounded genuinely hurt by that. “I promised you I wouldn’t, and I didn’t. Scouts honor.”
 
“I… you’re right, Lois. You gave your word. I apologize. Now, what else is on this map?”
 
“Well, if you’re ever in need of a cat burglar - you might want to write this down - there’s a very… how do I say it? Oh, she’s into theatrics like the rest of the weirdos in Gotham. Calls herself Catwoman, which is totally unoriginal. I mean come on, really? Anywho, that’s her local haunt. She protects the slum of poverty and crime. Sort of like an anti-Robin Hood. If he was a woman. And dressed like a cat. And stole from the poor as well as the rich. And didn’t give any of it back. Okay, bad analogy! Moving on!”
 
“Is the warehouse that we visited here anywhere?”
 
“Uh… it should be…” Lois blinked and glanced about for a moment. “Oh, there it is. Okay, go left at Amusement Mile - the place with all the toys. Hang a right after Wayne Tower - big assed W on the side… through Chinatown then swing another left, don’t go in the Stacked Deck because that really is trouble, head on out into the docklands and voila. Shady warehouse number two.”
 
“That’s likely how mine appears on my books.  So it’s… ah, found it. Not in the best part of town, is it?”
 
“Gotham doesn’t have a ‘best part of town’.”
 
“What about that big house over there, close to the water over by Metropolis?”
 
“Even Playboy Billionaires need a place to live.”
 
“Ah, Wayne Manor,” Lena saigh with an exaggerated sigh.
 
“What was that about?”  
 
“What about?”
 
“The sigh, the eyeroll, the little smirk.  I’m getting to know your mannerisms, Luthor.  Did you have a bad run in with Bruce?”
 
“Not as such. We’ve never met, but I know of Mr. Wayne. However, if you’re asked, I never admitted to that.  Billionaire playboys are a dime a dozen and should be referred to as such.”
 
Again, Lois stared at Lena, but this time in admiration. “I’ve finally found someone else who
doesn’t
like Bruce Wayne? Honey, you and I are like this now. Forever. No buts.” She twisted two fingers together and held them up for Lena to see. “It’s you and I against the world, but you know what? I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
 
“The two of us against the world?”  Lena seemed to consider that for a moment before smiling. “I like those odds.”
 
“Me too,” Lois grinned. And it wasn’t one of her usual, mischievous grins that spelled trouble. It was an actual, genuine smile of affection then.
 
Lena looked left to right, turning and carefully placing her feet down as she examined the map.  “Anything else of mention? What are the little red and blue flags?”
 
“Those little flags are the entire reason for this map. You see, using Strange Skies, an online forum dedicated to alien sightings and conspiracy theories, I was able to track the sightings of the Supers before they went off the map. Red is for Supergirl and blue is for Superman.”
 
“Why isn’t blue for Supergirl?”
 
“Are you seriously going to make me re-do this whole map because you don’t approve of my colour scheme?”
 
Lena blinked several times. “It was just a question. Go on.”
 
“All I’m saying is, he’s not called the Big
Red
Boyscout.”
 
“I withdraw my earlier question.” Lena gestured toward the map again. “Please explain how these flags will help us to find the Supers.”
 
“Apology accepted,” Lois nodded, even though Lena hadn’t actually apologised and had, in fact, nothing to apologise for. Then she pointed to the closest flag to them. “See on the flags? They’ve all got dates and times on them. These are the last recorded sightings of the Supers at each of these locations. I was hoping to try and find some sort of pattern that would maybe point us in the direction of where they were headed, where they were last seen before they skipped off the radar completely, and when it happened..”
 
Lena nodded, frowning slightly. “You said you got this data where exactly?”
 
“An online conspiracy forum.”
 
Lena stared straight on at Lois for several seconds. “Of course, you did. A reliable resource for a journalist of your caliber, no doubt.”
 
“You’d be surprised. SkepticGirl1 and SmallvilleGuy have dug up more dirt on stories in this forum than we’re ever allowed to admit. The ‘nondisclosure of sources’ rule means we don’t have to state ‘anonymous tips’ such as these when writing our articles. At least that’s what I tell Clark all the time. He doesn't believe me, but then he always was a stickler for following the rules to the letter. I like to be a bit more… ’liberal’ in my interpretation of them.”
 
“Is that what they mean by liberal journalism?” Lena shook her head. “At any rate, what has this map told us? Where and when were the Supers last seen?”
 
“Well that’s the thing… I sort of didn’t get that far because you booted out all the hired help,” Lois sighed. Then she looked up to the glass railings of the mezzanine floor above. “I was supposed to go up there and work it out. Join the dots…. though I never really was any good at dot-to-dots. Too impatient. I wanted to see the bigger picture from the start. I didn’t want to sit and work my way through each tiny, insignificant little dot to get to it.”
 
“Well, you’re in luck. Though my virtues may be few and far between, as an engineer and a scientist, patience is among them.” Lena held her glass of wine forward. “So long as I can do it with a drink in one hand, I’m happy to lend you the other one to help.”
 
“I’ll get you a refill,” Lois smirked, clinking her empty glass against Lena’s, before she took both of them and turned for the kitchen, only pausing to look over her shoulder and call back. “And don’t worry, you’ve still got more virtues than me. I’m sure, between us, we can almost make a full set, though.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Several hours later, Lena was working away at her laptop while Lois was stretched out on the sofa, ankles crossed and her hands behind her head - a lady of leisure. Or rather, a lady exhausted by a very productive day of chaos and mischief.
 
“Lee?” She ventured after several long and suspicious minutes of silence.
 
“Hmmm?” Lena turned slowly to look at the other woman, one eyebrow rising in part curiosity, part fear of what was about to come out of Lois’ mouth next.
 
“Do you ever think about your mother?”
 
Lena blinked. Whatever she’d been expecting, it hadn’t been that. “All the time. I wonder when she’s going to make her next escape attempt because I usually have to take a few vacation days to clear up her mess after, when she does. I’d kind of like to know in advance so I can arrange for cover at the office, incase the NCPD comes to arrest me again.”
 
This time it was Lois’ turn to raise an eyebrow. “I wasn’t talking about Lillian. I meant your real mother. Your birth mother.”
 
“Oh,” Lena turned back to the screen and the digital render of Lois’ paper map that she was creating. “At times. Though as I said, I can’t remember her face. But I think I can hear her humming, in my mind, sometimes. She used to sing me to sleep, too.”
 
There was silence again from the reporter, and Lena couldn’t help it. Lena turned back to study Lois more closely this time, noting the pensive, even sad look on Lois’ face as she stared at the ceiling above her, apparently lost in thought. It was the stillest and quietest Lena had ever seen her, when she wasn’t asleep. Which was worrying and more than a little unnerving.
 
“Lois? Is everything ok?”
 
“Uh huh.” The reply wasn’t convincing at all, but instead gave the impression that Lois actually didn’t want to talk about whatever it was that was bothering her. Which was unusual because Lois loved to talk.
 
“You sure?”
 
“Just… thinking.”
 
“Should I be worried?” The attempt at a light-hearted joke had the desired effect, at least, because Lois turned to Lena with a smirk.
 
“Haha. Just because you’re the brains of this little detective gig we’ve got going, and I’m the stunningly gorgeous brawn—”
 
“Detective gig?” Lena interrupted with a frown. “Okay, now I really am worried.”
 
“No, no, think about it,” Lois sat up suddenly, once again animated, the peace shattered.
 
“I’m thinking it’s a bad idea, Lois.”
 
“That’s because you haven’t heard it yet. Okay, so picture this. Lane and Luthor, Detective Directive!”
 
“Excuse me?” Lena blinked and twisted her head, an ear turned toward Lois perhaps in search of clarifty.
 
“We solve stuff. You know, missing persons, missing dogs, missing keys, missing left socks, anything people need detecting, we could detect! You do the computer whizzy stuff, and I do the hands on, door to door canvassing and looking for clues and stuff.”
 
“I already have two official jobs and several side jobs, Lois. You also have a job which I do believe you’ve been neglecting ever since you came to National City.”
 
Lois slumped back onto the couch and resumed her laid out pose along its length, then raised one hand and pointed a finger towards herself. “On vacation.”
 
Lena chuckled and shook her head, returning back to her laptop again. “You’re hopeless, Lane.”
 
“I do believe that’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me,” Lois grinned as she stared back up at the ceiling again.
 
For a while longer, there was a companionable silence between them before, at last, Lena stopped typing with a sigh. “Why Detective Directive?”
 
Lois glanced sideways at her with a triumphant grin. “Alliteration.” She pointed to herself. “L.L.” Then she pointed to Lena. “L.L. We alliterate, so the name of our company has to be the same.”
 
“You really have been giving this some thought, haven’t you?”
 
“Distracts me from thinking about other things,” Lois shrugged, shifting a little to get more comfortable.
 
“Like your mother?”
 
The triumphant grin faded away to be replaced momentarily by a sad look, before Lois quickly hid it behind a mask of - what emotion she was displaying now was difficult to say.
 
“Among other things.”
 
“Want to talk about it?” Lena closed the lid of her laptop and turned to give Lois her full attention, finally.
 
“Yes,” Lois nodded, closing her eyes. “And no.” She sucked in a deep breath, held it for a few seconds then let it out with an exaggerated sigh as she sat up again. “And that’s enough of that. I was starting to feel like I was on a shrink’s couch. So where we at?”
 
Lena watched her for a few minutes longer, her mouth opening with a question budding on her lips, but it was clear that the doors had slammed shut and Lois’ defenses were back up again. So she opened up the lid of her laptop again and turned it for Lois to see.
 
“Well, it’s not conclusive, but I’ve joined the dots, and we have something of a vague outline.”
 
“Okay,” Lois nodded. “Hit me. Not literally though, because fair warning, I will hit you back.”
 
“Duly noted,” Lena agreed. “So it looks like the Supers were heading North. Aside from a few sidetracks along the way, they seemed to be making a pretty direct line North. Their last visual sightings were in or around the area of Nunavut.”
 
“Northern Canada?”
 
“Looks like it,” Lena nodded. “They flew over Quebec, disappeared over Hudson Bay then were sighted again in Nunavut.” As she was speaking, two virtual Supers - Supergirl and Superman respectively - flew over virtual renders of the Canadian landscape, to explain her point.
 
Lois glanced from her sofa, back across the paper city, frowning thoughtfully. She stood up and began to slowly walk a path, clearly thinking everything through and muttering to herself as she headed north. She stopped at the last known sighting of the Supers, then placed her hands on her hips as she looked down upon the paper polar bear, and the big expanse of joined sheets of white paper that represented the Arctic.
 
The Arctic.
 
There was absolutely nothing of interest in the Arctic. What the hell were they doing, going there? Unless….?
 
She needed to make a call. Yet the moment she did, the men in black would swoop down upon her and put her back under house arrest again. Which was infuriating, and a huge inconvenience.
 
“We need to get in their system. Is your worm thingy done yet?”
 
“I’m assuming you mean the highly illegal trojan I placed in the information I gave those federal agents?”
 
“I’m still trying not to be pissed at you about that, but yes.”
 
Lena tapped at a few keys on her laptop to pull up a different screen, then studied it for a moment. “We’re almost there. Maybe another hour or so?”
 
“Too long,” Lois growled in frustration. “I need to know this, and I need to know it now.” She paced back and forth in agitation for a moment, then spun and pointed at Lena suddenly. “You own CatCo, right?”
 
“Yes?” Lena replied hesitantly.
 
“So you’d be able to pull the file of any employee who works at Catco?”
 
“I’d need to run it through the proper channels in HR, but yes.”
 
“What about past employees?”
 
“We keep their records on file for three years for legal reasons, yes.”
 
“Three years,” Lois considered, then pulled a face. “Could be tight, but it’s our only chance. I need the address of a former employee.”
 
“Lois, I wouldn’t be able to do that. Confidentiality is a very serious part of our data protection policies and—”
 
“Spare me the red tape bullcrap, Luthor. This is life or death stuff. We need that address, and believe me when I say ‘we’ need it. Because there is a former CatCo employee who just happened to go and work for the very Feds whose systems you’re now trying to hack. I think it’s high time we went and paid him a visit, see if he can give us what we need.”
 
“And how do you intend on doing that?” Lena scowled.
 
“Persuasion,” Lois smiled. “I can be very persuasive when I want to be.”
 
“Oh, I’ve seen how persuasive you can be. And if he refuses?”
 
“Let’s cross that bridge when we get to it, shall we? No point crying over spilt milk before we’ve even spilled it.”
 
“Uh… Lois?” Lena paused in the middle of telling Lois that that wasn’t the saying when Lois’ entire form suddenly came alive and a look of hope once more sprang up in Lois eye - and the protest fell away to be replaced by a smile instead. “I’m going to need the name of that employee.”

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Lena’s driver dropped the duo off in front of a rather generic looking five-story apartment outside of the downtown area. Lena dismissed him on his way for the evening, promising she’d call her night driver when they were ready to go. As Lois pressed buttons and said, “Pizza,” to anyone who responded until they were buzzed in, Lena stood around fretting. They took the elevator up four floors to find the apartment in question was almost directly across from the elevator.
 
“Are you sure we should be doing this?” Lena sighed as she stood with her back to Lois so that she could keep watch, her arms folded across her chest implying that she seriously wasn’t amused by the whole situation. Lois wasn’t paying attention, however, so didn’t notice the body language of her young companion. She was too busy crouching down in front of the door with a set of lockpicks that she was maneuvering and adjusting in the lock, listening for the telltale signs of the tumblers shifting into alignment.
 
“You want to find out what happened to the Supers, don’t you?” Lois replied around the leather pouch of various other picks that she was holding in her mouth, as until that moment she hadn’t been sure which one of the various types she’d be needing for the door, so had brought a selection with her in case.
 
The fact she was speaking with her mouth full meant that what actually came out was “Oo ant oo ind out ot ah-end ooh eh ooh-ers, on’t ooh?”
 
It took Lena several minutes to translate the words into a proper sentence before she could reply. “I fail to see how we can find out what happened to them from behind the bars of a jail cell.”
 
Lois paused and took the pouch from her mouth as she glanced up at Lena. “Says the woman who’s just given the government a trojan horse so she can illegally access their systems.”
 
“That’s… different.”
 
Lois sighed. “Look, on a scale of one to ten of illegal things I've done in my life, this doesn't even hit the radar.”
 
Lena glanced back over her shoulder, one eyebrow raised.

Lois paused, considering her choice of words. “Okay, that didn't exactly come out right.”
 
With a roll of her eyes, Lena went back to being lookout again while Lois went back to picking the lock.
 
A couple of seconds later, there was the tiniest little clicking sound, barely audible, followed by a much louder exclamation of “Yes! Impossible to crack lock – nil: Lois Lane – one!”
 
“Finally,” Lena pushed past Lois as she was standing back up, clearly eager to get out of the hallway before anyone spotted them. It was as much as she hated the idea of breaking into someone’s apartment, the thought of being caught loitering in the hallway outside was much less appealing. Then she stepped through the doorway and was assaulted by the most God awful smell known to man.
 
Throwing a sleeve up over her nose and mouth, she turned to hurry back out again, only to step straight into Lois who was pushing her way in. “People!” She hissed in warning, trying to shoo Lena back inside so that she could close the door, but Lena was simultaneously trying to push her way back out again. The resulting scuffle ended in Lena being propelled backwards a little more forcefully than Lois had intended. But it did the trick, and she was able to quietly close the door, pressing a finger to her lips when she saw Lena was about to protest. Footsteps in the hallway warned that for the moment, at least, they needed to be quiet.
 
Lois pressed herself against the door and listened, barely breathing as she did her best to keep as quiet as possible. When the footsteps and voices had passed and were nothing but a distant echo, she stepped away from the door and breathed a sigh of relief, turning to Lena finally. “Ok, we’re good.”
 
“We are not good!” Lena snapped, letting go of the breath she’d also been holding. But unlike Lois, she’d not been holding it to keep quiet, she’d been holding it so as not to inhale the smell of the place. “It smells like something died in here!”
 
Lois frowned and sniffed, testing the air for herself finally. “Ah. That, my friend, is Eau de Bachelor.”
 
“Eau de what?” Lena asked, her face screwed up in visible disgust as she hurried towards the blinds, threw one open and fumbled for the window lock.
 
“What are you doing?” Lois frowned, watching her.
 
“Cracking a window! I can barely breath.”
 
“Oh come on, it’s not that bad,” Lois smirked, amused by Lena’s snobbish behaviour. “It’s just a little dose of man smell, that’s all. Trust me, you should try living in an army barracks. Now
that
stinks. All those men, confined to one tin shed… all that testosterone and body odor...”
 
“And how would you know what an army barracks smells like?” Lena sighed as a gust of fresh air finally swept in through the now open window.
 
“My dad’s a four star general, remember?” Lois shrugged. “I’m the very definition of an army brat, in every sense of the word,” she smirked and pulled out her flashlight. They couldn’t risk turning on any lights in case they were seen, so they had to make the best they could with the narrow beams of the flashlight.
 
Lena clicked hers on as well and reluctantly started a search of the apartment with Lois, though it was unclear what they were looking for at that moment in time. Searching, she crinkled her nose as the further she got from the window the more the smell returned.
 
After a few moments of searching, she stopped and threw up her hands. “It’s no use, this place is a sty! How are we going to find anything in here?” Her flashlight beam fell across the coffee table and the abundance of takeaway cartons and debris that littered the top of it and spilled over the sides onto the floor. She screwed her nose up again and turned away. “Honestly, this is ridiculous!”
 
“It’s a bachelor thing,” Lois shrugged, as she walked past one gigantic floor to ceiling shelf crammed absolutely full of action figures in every shape and size imaginable, some free standing, some still in their boxes, some in little glass display cases, the words “Limited Edition” emblazoned proudly across most of the packaging. She studied the action figures for a moment, then changed her mind. “Or maybe it’s just a Geek thing? This guy is one serious collector!”
 
Lena was about to retort with something that Lois had no doubt would be sharp and most likely unsavoury given Lena’s apparent affront at even being in such a place as this, when the bedroom door burst open all of a sudden, and the man himself blundered out, stumbled and tripped in the dark, and landed across the sofa in a green glowing heap.
 
“Get out of here!” He yelled. “I’m... I’m armed and
very
dangerous!”
 
“Uh-huh,” Lois smirked as she reached over the back of the sofa and plucked the lightsaber from his unresisting hands. Winn yelped and threw his hands over his head instead, attempting to curl into a ball.
 
“Take whatever you want, just don’t hurt me!”
 
The lights flickered on, and Winn blinked, looking up to see Lois standing over him, trying hard not to laugh as she twirled the lightsaber almost effortlessly in her hands, making it hum and whoosh with each movement – clearly one of the light, sound and motion versions that tried to mimic the weapons from Star Wars as closely as possible. On the far side of the room by the light switch (and the full suit of Stormtrooper armor, along with a lifesize cardboard cutout of Darth Vader), Lena was standing with her arms folded, the very definition of pissed off.
 
“Oh, it’s you guys,” Winn smiled and relaxed, rolling himself out of the sofa then picking himself up and dusting down his geeked out Star Wars pajamas. “I thought I was being broken into by some, you know, evil alien scientist or super spies or something.” Then he frowned. “Wait… how did you get in?” Spotting the open window, he gasped. “Did you climb four stories?!”
 
“We did not climb anything, Mr Schott,” Lena sighed as if resisting the urge to face palm. Though she did roll her eyes.
 
“We came in through the front door,” Lois explained without even the slightest hint of remorse, handing the lightsaber back to him after flicking the switch to turn it off. It was one of the ‘not a toy’ ones, she guessed judging by its weight and the fact that it was made of metal, glass and carbon fibre, not your run of the mill plastic. She was very tempted to flick the switch back on again, just to see if it made the familiar start up sound from the films, but that would have to wait for another time.
 
“Oh… Okay,” Winn nodded as if this answered his question. And then he frowned again. “How? You don’t have a key?”
 
“Brought my own,” Lois waved the lockpicks for him to see before tucking them back into her pocket again.
 
“Right. So… why?”
 
“We know the feds are holding out on us, so we’ve decided to take matters into our own hands.” She moved to continue her search of the apartment, regardless of the fact that Winn was now there and observing her every move. Over by the doorway, Lena was watching them both, in no hurry to move away from the fresh air of the open window, but watching closely each time Lois went near the shelf of action figures.
 
Winn flinched.  Again and again, Winn flinched.
 
At first it could have been mistaken for a late reaction to something, or a reflex. But each time it happened, it became clearer and clear it was more than just an involuntary move. There was something about the shelf that he didn’t want them to know.
 
“And what was wrong with knocking on the door and asking for my help?” Winn pouted.
 
“More fun this way,” Lois shrugged. “Plus you work for the feds, so you’re probably not allowed to help us, even if you wanted to. Which trust me, you want to. And besides, we thought you were out.”
 
“Well I was, um… just… you know… in there...” He floundered, his cheeks coloring a vivid crimson as he ran a hand across the back of his neck in embarrassment.
 
Lois looked at him in confusion for a moment, then realisation dawned and she groaned, throwing up her hands. “I do not need to hear anything about your ‘alone time’ with Schotty Junior, thank you very much! So you can keep that to yourself!”
 
“What? No! I was watching the Phantom Menace!” Winn exclaimed, obviously horrified that she’d jumped to such a terrible conclusion based on his words.
 
“Liar. No true fan of Star Wars ever admits the Phantom Menace even exists!”
 
“Why do you think I was embarrassed to admit it?”
 
“You were embarrassed to admit something all right. For the love of God, get a girlfriend!” Clearly Lois wasn’t convinced.
 
“I believe he has one,” Lena smirked from across the way, speaking up finally.
 
Lois turned back to Winn in surprise. “Yeah? Last I heard, you were still hankering after Kara.”
 
“Which is exactly why you’re here, right?” He asked hopefully, trying to deflect the subject away from himself. “To find… uh… Supergirl and Superman? Not Kara though,” he glanced warily past Lois, to Lena. “Because you know, Kara’s looking after her mom, who’s sick. Which is why she took time off work. To look after her sick mother. Because why else wouldn’t she be in work, other than to look after her sick mom?”
 
He’d been looking at Lena the entire time, as if trying to convince her of something. Lois rolled her eyes. “Smooth Schott,” she muttered so that only he could hear.
 
He flinched at the tone of her voice.
 
“Mr Schott,” Lena spoke, stepping away from the door where she’d been standing to watch the entire exchange. “I suggest if you know anything about the disappearance of the missing Kryptonians, you stop stalling and help us.”
 
Winn frowned, and in a sudden and unexpected moment of bravado, he stood himself up straighter, lightsaber gripped tightly in both hands – a heroic Jedi facing the evil machinations of Darth Luthor. “Or else what?” Then he either realised what he’d just said or to whom he’d just said it… or perhaps both. But it was too late to back down now.
 
Lena merely raised an eyebrow as she walked over to the wall of action figures and picked one of them up, glancing back to Winn to judge his reaction.
 
“Please put that back?” He frowned, stepping forward to take it from her.
 
But Lois had sensed that Lena may have had a plan, so she held out an arm to block Winn’s path. “Hold up there, Nerd.”
 
Lena set the figure back where she’d found it, then picked up another one, again looking to Winn for his reaction.
 
He folded his arms – albeit awkwardly as he was still holding the three foot lightsaber. “If you think you can intimidate me by threatening my collection, you have another think – aaaah!” He tried not to react, but knew too late that he’d given the game away when Lena picked up an incredibly rare and extremely valuable 1977 vinyl caped Jawa, still on the card and in mint condition. It was clear that she’d found her leverage.
 
“Please be careful with that!” Winn exclaimed. “It’s extremely rare and very valuable!”
 
“Yeah?” Lois asked, feigning interest. “How much?”
 
“One recently sold at auction for $18,000.”
 
“What?!” Lois exclaimed. “Why?!”
 
“Because my friend, the Jawa was part of the first ever action figure collection released for the Star Wars franchise and was released with a vinyl cape originally. Kenner changed the Jawa’s cape from Vinyl to Cloth because of the size of the figure. They wanted fans to feel like they were not being cheated for paying the same price for a product that is only half the size. Since they changed it so early in the release, only a few have surfaced.” He beamed proudly for a moment. “In fact, only about six of them have ever been discovered. The exact number isn’t known, but it’s not going to be much higher.”
 
“So fairly rare then?” Lena asked. “And I’m assuming removing the packaging devalues it considerably?”
 
“Yes,” Winn breathed, recognising her threat for what it was. “Miss Luthor, please, I’m begging you. I am actually -” he dropped to his knees. “Look, I’m on my knees, begging you not to do anything to it. Please, I’ll tell you anything you want, I’ll do anything you want… please… don’t hurt him?”
 
“Then start talking,” Lena fixed him with a level gaze, holding the figure in both hands, ready to put her Luthor genes to work and do some serious damage to the cardboard backing if he didn’t co-operate.
 
Winn was almost in tears as she held his beloved toy hostage. “The, uh, FBI had me gathering data on a satellite that had been repositioned several times over the course of the last week.”
 
“Why would they
—”
 
“Just a moment,” Lena interrupted. “What satellite?”
 
Winn’s response was a nervous smile.
 
“What, what am I missing?” Lois asked.
 
Lena sighed. “It was an L-Corp satellite.”
 
“You have your own satellite?”
 
“Lois, L-Corp is an international conglomerate. We have interest all across the globe.”
 
“And beyond,” Winn said.
 
“Mr Schott, what kind of satellite was it? We own satellites for observation, weather, navigation—”
 
“Communication. It was a communication satellite.”
 
“And what did you find out?”
 
“Just that it sent a series of signals over the past week. Originally, it was in National City, but then it repositioned and sent signals to Metropolis.”
 
“In time with the disappearance of the Supers?” Lois asked.
 
“The signals started before Supergirl disappeared, but the Metropolis signal was sent right around the time Superman went missing. It was too big of a coincidence to ignore.”
 
“Why didn’t you guys just ask Lena about it?”
 
“Because I’m a Luthor,” Lena supplied. “When the Supers go missing, any free Luthor is a suspect.”
 
“So you went behind her back, ignored someone who probably could have sped up this whole process and instead—” Lois squeezed the bridge of her nose before holding out her hand toward Lena. “Give me that stupid toy. I want to peel it open in front of him.”
 
“Eeep!  No, mercy.  Please, I’ve told you what I know.  Don’t hurt him. The jawa is an innocent victim in this.”
 
With a grumble, Lena tossed the action figure back on the shelf before strolling away, causing Winn to scramble to grab it up and check the seal.
 
“He’s not worth it,” Lena said. “None of them are.”
 
“You’re right,” Lois said with a heavy sigh. “So, where do we go from here?”
 
“We need more information on the data sent by that satellite. I can get that for us.”
 
“For me too?” Winn asked.
 
Lois leveled a finger at him and glared. “You watch it Schott. We’re still pissed at you.”
 
There was a long and awkward silence for a moment before finally Winn plucked up the courage to speak again, prompted by the sounds of several pairs of heavy boots out in the hallway. “Uh… would now be a good time to tell you that when I thought you were intruders, I kind of called the cops?”
 
A fist pounded heavily on the door, making both women jump. Lois rounded on Winn furiously, but Lena grabbed her arm to stop her from doing some serious bodily harm, even as Winn threw his hands up over his head again. “Remember, he’s not worth it. Let’s go.”
 
“How?” Lois snapped, tugging her arm free. “Nerd called the cops, that’s the only door in or out of this place, and we’re on the fourth floor. You might be confident of surviving such a drop, but without a Super for back-up, I’m not taking that risk.”
 
“We’re not going to jump out of any windows,” Lena replied calmly as she walked over to the window she’d cracked open earlier. “Because we’re going to climb. You have an emergency exit, Mr Schott.”
 
“I do?” He frowned.
 
“Of course, you do. Fire safety regulations state that every apartment and building complex has to have more than one exit in case of a fire blocking the main door.” She pulled back the blinds to reveal a set of metal stairs outside the window – the traditional stairwell that could be see on the sides of most buildings. The fact that Winn didn’t even know it was there was testament to the fact that his apartment probably hadn’t seen any source of natural light since he’d moved in.
 
Rounding on Winn, Lois held up one finger in warning to him as a fist pounded on the door again and the NCPD demanded that he open the door immediately. “We weren’t here. You tell them it was us, and I’ll come back to rearrange your pretty little face.” She reached out and patted his cheek gently, but he obviously was expecting more and flinched again.
 
Satisfied that she’d made her point, she ducked through the open window behind Lena and motioned for him to push it closed behind them. Groaning and mumbling to himself, he did as she’d said and the two women ducked to the side out of view, just as a booted foot kicked in the door and armed police stormed in, guns and flashlights in hand.
 
Winn threw up his hands. “Don’t shoot!”
 
………..

“Why are we going up?” Lois asked as she hurried up the fire exit stairwell, just a few steps behind Lena.
 
“If they’re following standard procedures, there’ll be cops guarding each exit to the building,” Lena replied calmly, as if the answer was obvious. “If we go down, they’ll know we’re trying to make a quick escape. If we go up—”
 
“We get trapped on the roof.”
 
“Not necessarily. How’re your acting skills these days?”
 
“Tad rusty.”
 
“Better sharpen them quick then. We’re off for a night on the tiles.”
 
“We… are?” Lois frowned, not understanding. Still, it would appear that the young CEO had a plan, and as Lois was all out of ideas, she figured there was no harm in going along with whatever Lena was cooking up in that ingenious brain of hers.
 
Minutes later, they’d reached the roof. Lois had picked the lock to the steel door, and they were back inside the building again. They traveled down the interior steps until they spilled out onto the top floor which was just one above Winn’s.
 
“Just follow my lead,” Lena hissed, taking her hair down out of the tight ponytail she’d had it scraped back into and brushing her fingers through it to ruffle it and fan it out about her shoulders.
 
“So this is you with your hair down?” Lois smirked. Lena shot her a look and Lois backed off a little, still not understanding completely what the other woman had in mind but starting to see the plan come to life anyway. She pulled her hair out of the clip it had been twisted up into, and she flicked it over one shoulder as well, suddenly envious of how glossy and silky smooth Lena’s looked – a picture of perfection – compared to Lois’ ruffled, tangled mess. Well, at least it looked stylishly messy as opposed to just plain unkempt. And messy hair was all the rage these days, apparently.
 
Lena took off her jacket and slipped it over one arm, opening the top three buttons on her blouse as well to show a considerable amount of cleavage. Lois decided to go one better and gathered up the bottom of her t-shirt, lifting it up and tucking it back down inside the neck, pulling it tight into a knot to reveal her entire midriff. Perhaps she’d pulled it a little too tight, because Lena was raising one eyebrow at her.
 
“What?” Lois shrugged, pulling her leather jacket back on over the top. “If you’ve got it, flaunt it. I might be old, but I can still remember the good old party days from when I was your age.”
 
Lois clearly kept herself in good shape, though getting herself into trouble and having to do an awful lot of running for her life on a regular basis, probably also helped. It would also explain why the woman always wore pants instead of a skirt or dress, because pants were easier to run in.
 
Lena rolled up the waistband of her own skirt to shorten it by several inches – it now came to well over half way up her thigh. And then she sighed. “That’s the best we can do at short notice. I feel ridiculous!”
 
She paused, looking at herself in the reflection of a nearby window pane – a shocking contrast to her usual smart, sophisticated look, she almost didn’t recognise herself.
 
“Wait a sec,” Lois dived into her bag and rummaged about for a moment, before pulling out a stick of lip gloss. “Here we go.” She used the pane of glass as a mirror as well, to apply some to her lips, then held it out for Lena, who eyed it warily for a moment, then apparently seeing no other option, took it and applied some as well.
 
“Thanks.”
 
“Alright, I think I can see your plan now,” Lois smiled as she glanced along the top floor corridor. “We share a place – apartment 524, right? And we’re off out to meet our ‘gal pals’ for a night out.”
 
“Got it on one,” Lena smiled. “If we’re coming down from an upper floor, cops won’t be expecting it. They’re already assuming the culprits would have escaped down the building, not up. And they certainly won’t be expecting them to just go and walk right past them and out the front door.”
 
“You know that’s… actually really clever!” Lois grinned, amazed. Why hadn’t she ever thought of it? Clearly, Lena had a way of viewing a situation that others – Lois included – didn’t. Not for the first time, Lois found herself glad that she’d picked Lena as her partner in crime. So to speak.
 
As soon as they got on the elevator and pressed the button for the ground floor, Lois jumped into character. “So there’s this great new place that’s opened up on 5
th
and central, Alex said about it last week when she went with Kara. I thought we could try there first, and then Sharron wants to go to that Thai place just up the road.”
 
“Oh Sharron’s coming tonight?” Lena asked, actually sounding genuinely surprised, playing along with far more conviction than Lois had ever thought possible. “I thought she was too busy with that guy from the shop? Oh, what’s his name?”
 
“Darren?”
 
“That’s the one! I really don’t like him. Did you know he was sleeping with Stacey just last week?”
 
“What? No way!”
 
“Yes way! Then he dumped her for Tina and now he’s moving on to Sharron. I really don’t understand what anyone sees in him to be honest.”
 
“It’s because he’s got a lot of this,” Lois replied, holding out her hands to mime cash as the elevator door opened. The cop standing guard outside of Winn’s apartment stood there, legs slightly splayed and weapon pointing at them.  
 
“It’s medicinal! She has a license!” Lena exclaimed, her hands in the air.
 
Lois contained her eye roll but didn’t fail to glare at Lena.  
 
“Sorry, ladies,” he greeted them both, sliding his sidearm back in the holster and giving them a quick cursory glance up and down, not checking them out, but doing a quick visual assessment to see if they posed any threat. “Where are you off to this evening?”
 
“Out with the girls,” Lena replied sweetly. “It’s Denise’s 30
th
, and the poor woman is freaking out because apparently she insists it’s all downhill from here, so we’re taking her out to show her that you can still have a good time, and we thought we’d try that new club that’s just opened up, you know the one with the – Oh I’m so sorry, I’m rambling, aren’t I.”
 
Lois was amazed. Lena was so convincing, with her fumbling hand gestures and the way she was speaking at a rapid pace, clearly the sign of someone excited and embarrassed and nervous, all rolled into one. It was very similar to how Kara could be sometimes. Excited and flustered and talking at a million miles an hour, complete with hand gestures.
 
Clearly, Lena had studied the young Kryptonian, and was now taking a leaf out of her book. Perhaps without even realising what she was doing? This was certainly a whole new side to Lena that Lois doubted very few people had ever seen before. Granted, it was all just a ruse, but the fact that Lena could pull it off so convincingly, Lois found herself wondering if in a different lifetime, this could have been the real Lena, here and now, hair down, relaxed, and chatting animatedly about her friends. Just like any regular young woman her age.
 
“Mind if I ask you both a couple of quick questions before you go?” The cop asked them both now, pulling out a notebook and pencil from his belt.
 
“Sure,” Lois and Lena shrugged together. And then Lena made a point of peering into the apartment, curiously, even as Lois asked “Why, has something happened?”
 
“There was a break in. The suspects got away, unfortunately, but we’re appealing for witnesses.”
 
“That’s terrible!” Lois gasped, even as Lena made a point of looking both shocked and horrified at the prospect of someone being broken into.
 
“Is everyone ok?”
 
“The guy who lives here is a bit shaken up, understandably, but thankfully no-one was hurt. So can I ask where you both live?”
 
“Well that’s a bit forward, isn’t it?” Lois joked, flashing him a mischievous grin. “I usually like to have at least one dinner with a guy before I tell him where I live.”
 
“Not true. Half a pint and she’s anyone’s,” Lena joined in, except she turned her mischievous grin on Lois instead, who was seriously taken back by the comment, and rendered momentarily speechless.
 
The cop chuckled, falling for their banter, and apparently believing that they were both just two young women who wanted to have a good time.
 
“I just needed to know if either of you saw anything that might have been suspicious at all. Anyone lurking around that you didn’t recognise? Did you hear anything or see anything?”
 
“Sorry, Officer, we were too busy getting ready,” Lois shook her head, then pointed a thumb in Lena’s direction. “Honestly, the amount of time she spends in that bathroom, it’s a wonder we even made it out at all this evening.”
 
“You can talk!” Lena gasped, affronted. “The amount of time you spend with that hair dryer! And don’t even get me started on how many outfits you went through before deciding to wear the very first one!”
 
“Ladies, please, this is a serious investigation.” The cop stepped in quickly, sensing a possible argument brewing. “Four men broke into Mr Schott’s apartment less than an hour ago and threatened him. At least one of them was armed, but they’d already escaped by the time we got here. I need to know if you saw anything that could help in our investigations. Anything at all.”
 
“Four men?” Lois tried not to smirk.
 
“At least one of them armed?” Lena repeated, also not letting any amusement show.
 
They both considered for a moment, then shook their heads.
 
“I’m really sorry, Officer. As I said, we were too busy getting ready up on the next floor. I’m afraid we didn’t see or hear anything. This-” Lois motioned to the crowd of activity surrounding the apartment. “-is the first we knew that anything had happened.”
 
“Alright, well thank you for your time ladies. If you do think of anything, let us know.”
 
“We will officer,” Lena smiled sweetly as they both moved past him to carry on their way.
 
“And ladies?” They cringed, thinking that perhaps they’d been rumbled after all. Very slowly turning back to look, they saw the officer touch the peak of his cap and nod his head. “Stay safe out there.”
 
“We will, thank you,” Lois smiled. Then she and Lena turned and hurried - whilst trying to make it look like they weren’t hurrying - away from the scene as quickly as possible. Lois didn’t breathe a sigh of relief until they were safely back outside on the main street once more.
 
“Oh my God, I can’t believe that worked!”
 
“The art of telling a believable lie,” Lena shrugged as she slipped her jacket back on, doing up the buttons of her blouse again and unrolling her skirt back to a much more acceptable length – in her eyes at least. “Throw in just enough truth that people stop looking for the lie.”
 
A light rain had picked up by now, and in the distance, there was a gentle, steadily building rumble of thunder.
 
“Come on,” Lena sighed as she ducked her head and started off walking in the direction of the CatCo building, seven blocks away. “Let’s just get moving, and I’ll call my driver to take us back to my penthouse.”
 
“Actually, since we’re out, there’s somewhere else I’d like to stop on the way.”
 
“Not more breaking and entering, I hope.” At Lois’ sly grin, Lena sighed. “Seriously, Lois? Do you break this many laws when you’re in Metropolis?”
 
“Oh, so many more. The police and I are like this.” Lois crossed two fingers and grinned.
 
“Well, I for one do not need to test the patience of the authorities. My last name is already like waving a cape in front of a bull.”
 
“Oh, relax. Anyway, I know for a fact that the owner of this particular place is out of town.”
 
Lena didn’t respond, just pouted and buttoned her coat.
 
Lois tugged up the collar of her jacket, unhooked her shirt so that it fell back down to cover her stomach once more and jogged a few paces, until she was side by side with the young CEO. “You were really convincing back there, by the way. And the look on poor Winn’s face when he actually believed you were going to do something to that ridiculously overpriced toy!”
 
Lena shrugged again. “It’s far too easy for people to believe that a Luthor is evil. I’ve learned to use it to my advantage.”
 
“You’re not like them, you know,” Lois spoke quietly. Lena turned her head to regard the other woman, one eyebrow slowly rising, though she didn’t stop walking, and didn’t speak another word either.
 
Sensing that Lena didn’t believe her sincerity, Lois took the other woman by the arm to stop them both, then she turned Lena to face her. “No, really. I mean it. Your mother, Lex, even your father. I had the misfortune of meeting them all – hell I even dated Lex once upon a time. But anyway, my point is – you are not like them. Any of them. The only thing you have in common is that you share a surname with them. That’s it. So you shouldn’t talk yourself down like that all the time. Kara sees the good in you. Supergirl and Superman see the good in you. And if you wanted proof that you are not the same as every other Luthor out there, consider what you’re doing now.”
 
“What’s your point?” Lena frowned.
 
“You’re going out of your way, going above and beyond in fact, to try and save the Supers. How many others can say they’ve done that? You’re a hero to the heroes, Miss Luthor.”
 
Lena was trying to act nonchalant, like Lois’ words meant nothing to her, but Lois could see the spark of pride in the woman’s emerald eyes. The smile tugging at her lips. The joy of the biggest compliment she’d ever been given as she took it all in, accepting it with silent gratitude because she simply didn’t know what to say. Lois grinned and nodded to the building, that wasn’t that far off now.
 
“Come on, we should head inside before this storm gets any worse.”
 
“We’re going to Kara’s?”
 
“She’s Supergirl’s go-to reporter just like I’m Superman’s. I figure she might keep some work notes at home,” Lois replied. “Then we can head back to your apartment.”
 
“Who said you’re invited back up to my place?”
 
“I… but we just… and… the weather…?” Lois floundered, stunned. Just when she’d thought they were on a fast track to BFF territory.
 
Lena watched her for a moment, her face blank and void of all emotion. And then she cracked into perhaps the biggest grin Lois had seen on the young woman’s face, to date.
 
“I’m joking. Besides, there’s still that paper monstrosity that you need to tidy up.”
 
“Oh, you’re right!” Lois scowled, feigning anger even though she wasn’t angry at all. “You are far too good at being bad!” And then Lena’s other words finally registered. “Wait, why do I have to clear it up?!”
 
“You made it.”
 
Lois opened her mouth to argue, then conceded defeat. “Okay, fair point.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The design of Kara’s apartment building was entirely similar to Winn’s but two stories shorter. Again, the ladies took the elevator up, getting off at the third floor and heading left to the end of the hallway.“What exactly do you expect to find in Kara’s apartment?” Lena asked as they walked towards it.“Like I said,” Lois shrugged, “reporter notes on Supergirl and such.”“At her apartment instead of at work?”“Look, I already grabbed the most recent notebook from her desk, and that didn’t have anything relevant so—”“You what?”“Just relax, Luthor. I’m not spying for the Planet. I’m just looking for a clue on the missing Supers. We’re in this together, right?” When Lena continued to scowl, Lois asked, “What’s wrong?”“Kara enjoys her privacy.” Lena thrust her chin forward. “Going through her desk was disrespectful.”Failing to contain her eye roll, Lois replied, “I’ll apologize when we find her.”“Supergirl?”“Ah, yeah. When we find Supergirl, I’ll apologize to Kara for snooping through her things. I’m sure she’ll, she as in Kara I mean, will agree that it was for a good cause.”Somewhat mollified, Lena let the conversation drop and they continued on to the apartment. It had been a short trip to the third floor and was an even quicker walk to Kara’s apartment.“Let’s just hope she didn’t leave the chain on,” Lois said as she pulled out her lock pick case and unzipped it.“How would she have the chain on if she isn’t at home?”“In case she left through the… Yeah, good point. What was I thinking?” As she knelt in front of the door with a pick in her mouth and the tension wrench in her hand, Lois pulled her head back when a hand with keys in it cut in front of her gaze. She harrumphed and looked up at Lena. “You have a key?”Unlocking the door, Lena pocketed her keys and stepped through the threshold. “Of course. It’s Kara’s apartment.”“Of course,” Lois muttered as she put her picks away and closed and pocketed the case before following Lena inside. “So, you come here often?” When Lena cast a difficult to decipher look in her direction, Lois said, “I mean, do you often come here to Kara’s apartment?”“Oh.” Lena flicked on the switch, illuminating the room as Lois closed the door. “I suppose. Kara and I try to get together once or twice a week. Though my place is bigger, hers is much… homier. Anyway, we don’t need much room for two people.”“Right,” Lois said slowly as Lena cast her gaze around the room. “And you have a key?”“Hmmm?” Lena prodded the soil of a plant with her fingertip. “Sometimes, Kara will have to run out unexpectedly, and I’ve been stuck in the hallway waiting for her to return on movie night. This way, I can let myself in. I also water her plants while she’s away.” As if to demonstrate, Lena flicked on the kitchen light, grabbed a glass from a cabinet, and filled it from the tap.Lois was already digging through drawers in the living room, her gaze quickly examining the contents before dismissing them and moving on. “You two sound close.” When Lois looked up, Lena was leaning against the kitchen counter, frowning.“She’s my best friend.”Lois offered an awkward smile. “She’s lucky to have you.”“I’m the lucky one,” Lena replied rather dismissively as she turned her back on Lois and moved to the houseplant from earlier.“Look, Lena—”There was a noise outside, the jangle of keys and then a thud as they perhaps fell to the hallway floor. A slight groan followed that along with a muttering of, “God damn it. I’m too fucking tired to deal with this shit.”As Lena and Lois’ wide-eyed gazes locked, Lois whispered, “That’s Alex.”“She can’t find you here,” Lena whispered back.“No shit.” Lois looked over toward the windows. “What do we do?”“Uh… go hide. I’ll take care of her.”“But…” Lois tried to argue, but between Lena’s hurried waving and the sound of a key in the lock, she fled the room and headed to Kara’s bedroom, mostly closing the door behind her.The doorknob jiggled. “What the… did I just lock it? Who left her door unlocked?” The keys jingled again, and then the door opened. There was a rush of motion, the sound of a ring of keys clattering against a hardwood floor, and then Alex said, “Lena?”Gasping, Lena spun from where she stood watering the plant. She sloshed water over her hand and spilled some onto the floor. “Damn it, Alex. You nearly scared the life out of me.” Her gaze went to the partially lowered weapon in Alex’s. “Is this a stickup, or do you think I’m here to rob the place?”“What? Oh.” Alex slid her weapon back into the holster and secured it before picking up the keys from where she’d dropped them onto the floor. “Sorry about that. Why are you here?”“Watering the plants,” Lena replied as she went to the kitchen and returned with a dishrag. “Apparently, I thought the floor looked thirsty too.”As Lena crouched to wipe the floor, Alex frowned. “Kara asked you to water her plants?”“Not this time,” Lena replied as she stood and turned to Alex with a weak smile. “I didn’t even know she was going away, but I didn’t know if anyone else was doing it. It’s a good thing I stopped by. Kara’s philodendron is looking a bit crunchy. Why are you here?”“Oh, uh, same thing. Kara asked me to feed the plants when we spoke.”“Today?” Lena took several eager steps toward Alex. “Did you talk to Kara today?”“Yes,” Alex replied slowly.“Oh, I haven’t heard from her since she left. I was getting worried.”“Well, my mom is… Kara’s super busy— really, she’s really busy! Um, she said to say hi to you, and she’d call as soon as she could come up for air.”Lena silently examined the cloth in her hand for several moments, her expression inscrutable. “How’s your mom?”“Sick but she’ll be fine. We all appreciate you giving Kara the time off with no real notice.”“It’s her family, and Kara is… Just tell her I was getting concerned if you do speak with her before I do. She can have as much time as she needs.” Lena smiled a bit. “I’ll put in a good word with management.”Alex chuckled. “Good to know. Well, if you’re going to feed the plants, I should probably head out. Take care, okay?”“You too.” Lena followed Alex to the door, watching until Kara’s sister got into the elevator, waved goodbye around the door, and disappeared as the elevator doors closed. In turn, Lena closed and locked the door again, this time adding the chain for additional security, before heading to Kara’s bedroom. “She’s gone.”“And we should be too,” Lois said as she stepped by Lena. “We don’t want to be here if she comes back.”“Why would she come back?”“FBI agents are suspicious by nature. Let’s go.”“I have to finish watering Kara’s plants.”“Seriously?”Lena shrugged. “Well, I’m here, and I just chased Alex off. I can’t have Kara coming home to decomposing plant husks.”“That’s a lovely image.”“Thank you. I’m rather surprised you’re not keen on continuing your search. What if there’s a clue here that we missed?”“I’m sure there’s not… probably… maybe… definitely. Look, if Alex comes back and throws me in a federal holding cell for impeding her investigation, I can’t be of much help to anyone.”“I’m still not clear on why Alex would expect you to interfere in—”“I’ll be downstairs when you’re done with your watering, alright?”Lena shrugged, and Lois left the apartment. Once outside, she pulled a leather journal from her coat pocket, flipping briefly through the pages, then grabbed her phone and replaced the notebook. She looked through her texts, frowning at one from her sister, Lucy. She didn’t even look up as the elevator chimed and walked directly into one of the men who was exiting it, nearly dropping her phone.“Hey, watch it!” Lois complained.The men were both large and intimidating figures, well over six feet tall and muscular. One stooped to grab a photo he had dropped in the collision, looking at it for a moment before returning his gaze to Lois and grunting. Lois tracked his gaze, a photo of Lena in his hand which he snapped to his side as he walked past her back the way Lois had just come.“Oh, crap,” Lois muttered to herself as the men walked away. She pulled up her contacts and quickly shot off a text to Lena.Lois: “911!”Lois: “2 BIG guys headed your way!”Lois: “Get out of there!”She lurked in the hallway, studying her phone and waiting for the little bubbles that would be a response. They still hadn’t come when a throat cleared, returning her attention to the goons that now stood in front of Kara’s apartment.“You lost?” One of the men asked.“No, I uh…” Lois wiggled her phone about. “I’m visiting a friend. It’s my first time at her apartment, and I forgot the number.” When the guy took a step toward her, Lois pulled her phone in and looked at it again. “Good timing. She just responded. I’m that way.” She pointed over her shoulder with a thumb and took a few more steps past the elevator and away from Kara’s apartment. “Have a good night, fellas.”The men just stared at her in response.Turning and walking away, Lois texted Lena again as she continued down the hallway.Lois: “Are you out? Are you safe?”Lois: “They’re going in. Hurry!!!”“Come on, Lena, come on,” she mumbled as she turned the corner. “Text me back and let me know you made it out of there.”About two minutes later, the door to Kara’s apartment opened again, and both men reemerged with Lena sandwiched between them.“Whatever you’re being paid, I can double it,” Lena said.“It’s not about the money,” the first man said as he looked back at her.“Oh, it’s always about the money,” Lena replied.“Lenny, duck!”As Lena dropped down, a white spray from a fire extinguisher blasted first one man in the face and then the other. Lois smacked the butt end of the extinguisher into the forehead of one man before hefting it about and clunking the other man along the side of the head. They both went down, momentarily stunned.“Are you alright?” Lois asked as she reached down with her free hand for Lena.Taking the proffered hand, Lena let herself be jerked upward. “Lois, I love you.”Holding Lena’s hand, Lois pulled her down the hallway. “If I had a nickel for every billionaire that said that,” she stopped in front of the elevator, pressing the down button, “I’d have a dime.” Lois glanced back over her shoulder, wincing. “They’re getting up. Let’s go.” Hand-in-hand the ladies raced down the hallway. “Didn’t you get my texts?”“Yes!”“Then why didn’t you get out of there?”“I think Kara’s window locks are rusted shut, either that or someone closed them with a power tool. I couldn’t budge any of them.”The duo raced around the corner, and as they neared the end of the hallway, Lois looked left and right. “Crap, we passed the stairs.”“We’re trapped?”“Not yet,” Lois replied as she released Lena’s hand to grab with both hands the exhausted fire extinguisher she was still holding. With a grunt, she hefted it forward, smashing the window and diving through after it.“Hurry up! Hurry up!” Lois exclaimed as Lena picked her way through it a bit more gingerly.“This is me hurrying!”“Down the fire escape!” Lois ordered as she grabbed the extinguisher from where it lay and pressed her back against the wall. Out of the edge of her vision, she watched Lena make her way down the exterior stairs. When the head of one of the goons was stuck out through the broken window, Lois clocked him with the base of the extinguisher once again. “Sucker!” Then she fled down the escape herself.She landed in the alley just a few moments after Lena even though the latter had a head start.Together they raced toward the street but had only made it a few steps before two more looming shapes appeared at the end of the alley blocking their path. With silent agreement, Lois and Lena turned and ran in the other direction. There was a fence at that end of the alley, but Lois threw a small crate against it and climbed over before reaching back and helping Lena who was doing the same.The duo landed in an open parking area filled with cars. They hurried through toward the other end, but about halfway there, voices and lights caused them to pause, ducking down and hiding amongst the cars. It was clear they were still being pursued, and with voices coming from more than one direction, fleeing would be difficult.Both crouched beside a car, Lena pulled on one car handle and then the other of that side of the car closest before shifting to the car next to it and repeating her action.“What are you doing?” Lois hissed out.“Looking for a way into one of the cars. If we can find an unlocked door, can you hot wire it?”“Is that a joke?”“From anyone else I’d take that as a no. Help me find an unlocked car.”Lois disappeared around the back of the cars and seconds later reappeared. It was the noise of smashing glass right next to her that made Lena spin.Dropping a rock to the ground, Lois grinned. “Found one.”“Lois,” Lena berated, “someone will have heard that.”Lois popped open the door, climbed in, and unlocked the passenger door. “Then you better get in.” Lena did so while Lois worked with the wires below the steering column, setting off two sparks before the engine thrummed with power. As she pulled the driver’s side door closed, Lois hissed with pain.“What’s wrong?”A hand to Lois’ right thigh came away wet and sticky. “I must have cut myself going out the window. With the adrenaline, I didn’t notice.”“Maybe I should drive.”“No time,” Lois replied as she pulled on the lights, illuminating figures two cars ahead. “Buckle up.”“Dear God,” Lena prayed, and she pulled her seat belt into place as the car lurched into motion.They raced through the parking lot, not stopping for bodies that were forced to hurl themselves out of the way in order to survive. The whole time Lena muttered something, some of it not in English, and all of it in a panic. The sound of gunfire coming from behind them did nothing to staunch the flow of her words.As they headed for the exit, Lena’s eyes widened. A secure looking chain link fence stood perhaps eight feet high before them, the gate closed and chained in place. “Gate, Lois… gate!” Lena’s volume increased as the car streaked forward, not slowing down but instead accelerating. “Gate!” she finally shrieked as she grabbed the ‘oh, shit’ handle just before they crashed through, leaving the gate shaking and swinging in their wake.“Woo Hoo! We’re like the female Dukes of Hazard!”“Who?”Lois flashed a quick glance at Lena as the car jumped onto the city streets. “I forgot that the Luthors couldn’t afford a TV.”“We could afford one, but Mother didn’t let us — Car, Lois, car! Dear Lord, that was close.”“Nah, it could have been closer.”Lena looked behind them as the car weaved in and out of traffic, crossing into the oncoming traffic lane to pass at points.“We’re being followed.”“I know,” Lois said as she shifted gears. “We need to go faster.”“Faster?”“Faster,” Lois replied with a grin.Lena hunkered down slightly in her seat. “Perhaps you could just let me out of the car. I’d prefer to take my chances with the nice kidnappers. I’m probably overdue for my biannual ransoming, anyway.”“Relax, Luthor, I’m a great driver.”“You hit your fiancé… and his dog… on separate occasions!”“Who are not on the road,” Lois reminded Lena, “so we’ll be fine.”“Lucky them,” Lena muttered.As the sleek silver Mustang they were driving took another corner too fast, Lena bounced off the side window again, silently cursing and gripping the seat with both hands until her knuckles had turned white. She threw a wild look over at Lois, but the reporter had given up apologizing after the first three sharp turns had thrown Lena every which way and made her thankful that she’d had the foresight to put on her seat belt when Lois had told her to. Unlike Lois who had literally jumped in, hot wired the thing and taken off as if her life depended on it.Which to be fair, at this moment in time, it probably did.She was absolutely engrossed in the driving now - Lena could tell from the fierce concentration in her eyes. It was a steely focus that told Lena the reporter wasn’t going to be distracted or dissuaded. She was in her “all or nothing” mode. Either they were going to escape the agents who Lena was 99.9% sure weren’t the FBI, or she was going to wake up in the remains of a stolen car, enveloped by the airbag and ready to admire the efficiency of it’s crumple zones.When Lois accelerated sharply between two badly parked white vans in a side street, Lena couldn’t help but gasp and briefly closed her eyes, expecting the worst. It never came, however, and they emerged on the other side unscathed. A small miracle, Lena considered, given the speed they were currently travelling at, and the alarming fact that when she checked in the side mirror, the black BMW was still hot on their heels.The contents of the glove compartment rattled and clashed about, and a half drunk can of soda shuddered in the cup holder, slopping blobs across the dash.They sped along a wider stretch of roadway, and Lena saw the cop car sitting in the side alley too late to warn Lois about it. Not that Lois would have slowed at all, mind you. Lena’s foot slammed on a non-existent brake out of instinct, even as Lois’ foot slammed on an actual pedal. Except it wasn’t the brake; it was the gas, and she pushed the car to go even faster. The BMW came up alongside them, and as they streaked past the cop car, it joined the pursuit with a blaring of horns and a disco of dancing lights.Neither Lois nor their pursuers had any intention of stopping, however, and Lois tugged the wheel hard, sending them skidding to the left, across several lanes of traffic when she passed through a red light. Lena could hear the blaring of horns and glass smashing of cars joining the cacophony of the sirens in their wake as more cop cars joined in the pursuit. She could now make out three, perhaps four individual sets of flashing lights on their tail.Lois crunched the gears down into third and cursed as the engine over-revved. “Son of a bitch! This is really starting to sting now!” She glanced down at the slowly spreading patch of crimson that was working its way further out from the gash on her thigh, turning the denim a dark red instead. The flap of material had folded back across to conceal the gash in her skin, but Lena would bet that it wasn’t looking too healthy. And there was no wonder it would be hurting Lois, especially given her adrenaline fueled actions right now and the way she was pumping the gas with her foot to try and coax more speed out of the car.After a brief battle with the gears, she skidded them through another red light, kicking up another cacophony of beeps and crunches.The high speed chase carried them onto the highway that would lead them out of the city.“Where the hell are we going?!” Lena gasped when she realised.“Just shut up and trust me,” Lois replied calmly as she pulled up alongside a huge eighteen wheeler. The BMW was still right on their tail, so she tapped the gas again and pushed them in front. Then glanced to the right. “Shit, that’s our turn.”“Where?” Lena asked.Lois pointed to the truck beside them. “On the other side of this thing. Hang on.”Lena glanced down at her white knuckles. “What the hell do you think I’ve been doing?!”Lois pressed hard on the gas and they surged forwards again, then she pushed them into the path of the rig.“Jesus, Lois!”The truck’s horn brayed and there was an accompanying shriek of heavy tires on the roadway. The driver of the rig slammed down on his brakes and wrestled with the monster vehicle to avoid a collision.The Mustang bounced over the chevrons between the highway and the onramp to the exit, cut another corner and jerked too harshly against a high curb. The whole car bounced, the can of soda jolted out of its cup holder and the contents of the glove compartment burst free, spilling into a startled Lena’s lap.Lois gave an anguished cry of shock, then twisted the wheel in an effort to regain control.“What is it?!” Lena gasped, panicked and looking desperately around to work out what was happening.“Sorry, sorry,” Lois gave a whooping gasp of relief as the car levelled again.“You scared the life out of me, Lois! Did we nearly flip?”“Don’t be so dramatic, Luthor. It was that can of soda,” Lois explained calmly as she casually brushed the empty container into Lena’s footwell. “Bloody thing dropped into my lap and it’s soaked right through. Just look at the front of my jeans!”“That’s nothing,” Lena muttered under her breath. “You should see the back of mine.”“It looks like I’ve had an accident!”“We will if you don’t pay attention! Watch that car!”“Nobody likes a backseat driver, Luthor. Especially one who sits shotgun.” There was a moment’s silence and then a groan from Lois. “These jeans are totally ruined. Most comfortable pair I’ve ever worn, and they’re ruined. Just my luck.”Lena ignored her and turned slightly to look behind her. “They’re still on our tail. Along with half the NCPD from the looks of things.”“I know, I know,” Lois nodded as she turned them sharp right and Lena once again banged off the window. “I have an idea.”“I’m learning that’s never a good thing,” Lena turned back in her seat, then braced against the dash with both hands. “Water! Lois, water!”“I know,” Lois grinned. “That’s my idea.”A sudden, icy cold feeling of dread washed over Lena as she stared in horror at the rapidly approaching ocean in front of them, and she knew exactly what Lois’ idea was. “Lois you’ll never stop in time. You’re not going to do it! Don’t do it! Don’t even think about it!”“Oh stop getting your pigtails in a twist,” Lois replied cheerily as rather than stepping on the brake, she stepped on the accelerator, and if possible, the car reached an even more alarming speed. “Haven’t you ever played chicken before?”“Lois, I don’t even eat chickens, let alone play with them!” Lena was almost hyperventilating now as the concrete wall separating them from billions of gallons of saltwater grew larger and larger before them. “Lois! LOIS!”The black BMW drew up alongside them, and Lois glanced over with an almost maniacal grin. She gave them a one finger salute and pushed the car even faster. The BMW picked up speed to match them.Then she said calmly to Lena, “Brace yourself. Not literally though because it might snap your arms if you do.”“Wha—?” Lena started to exclaim, before she was suddenly propelled forwards, the seatbelt snapped sharply taught and she was forced back into the seat again with a jolt. The BMW rocketed ahead, there was a screech of tires and a cloud of smoke, but it was too late. Lois had timed her move perfectly, and their car came to a juddering, screeching halt a foot before the concrete wall. The black BMW wasn’t so lucky. It smashed through the wall in a shower of rubble and debris, out into thin air, before dropping with a titanic splash into the ocean.There was a moment of deafening silence, punctuated only by the sounds of ragged breathing from both women, and then a siren steadily growing in the distance, getting louder and louder as it was joined by others.Lois unbuckled Lena’s seat belt and reached for the door handle. “Time to go.”“Wh-what?” Lena stammered, still shaken from what had just happened.“Get out of the car and leg it! Unless you plan to explain to the cops how you came to be in a stolen car that they’ve just witnessed racing through the city with that car right there.” She pointed to the black BMW whose occupants had yet to surface from within. Lena nodded, unable to form any more words, and fumbled for her own door, managing to open it and stumble out, her hands shaking.Lois jumped out, then yelped and pressed a hand to her leg. “We need to move it, Luthor! Now!”Seeming to snap back to her senses at last, Lena nodded and pulled off her coat, then leaned back inside the car again.Lois held her wounded thigh with one hand, and bounced on the spot impatiently. “What are you doing?!”“Removing our prints,” Lena hissed back as she hurriedly scrubbed at the dash, steering wheel, and other interior bits of the car. “I assume yours are also in the system.”Lois rolled her eyes, delved into her purse and pulled out a box of matches. “Luthor!” She tossed them across the gap, to Lena. “Use these. Much quicker!”Lena juggled the matches a bit as she caught them, looking down at them in shock before staring daggers at Lois. “We are not burning this car!” She tossed the matches back to Lois.“Ugh, alright fine we’ll push it into the ocean then. Just hurry the fuck up!”Muttering, Lena finished her sweep and turned, pushing past Lois and away from the nearing police vehicles. “I can’t believe you sometimes. That car is a piece of art, and you are a public menace!”“That’s not the first time I’ve been told that,” Lois smirked, more than a hint of pride in her voice as she limped along after her friend.Lena stopped and spun on her heel. “And I’m sure it won’t be the last. It’s bad enough you broke the window!” She snapped before turning forward again. After a few moments of a light jog, she looked back at Lois’ trailing form limping behind her. “We’ll need to call a car. You can’t travel on that too long without getting stitched. You’re bleeding profusely. I hope the police don’t have your DNA on file.”“It’s just a scratch,” Lois insisted, though she did turn and glance back nervously, just to check. Then she nodded and decided to pick up the pace. Except every time she placed weight on her leg, she let out an exclamation.“Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow….”Pulling her phone out of her pocket, Lena pressed one of her contacts but didn’t break stride. “Daniel, I require a car by the most expedient process possible. Follow the GPS signal in my phone, and get here immediately.”
“On my way. Anything I should know, Miss Luthor?”
“There’s a medical kit in the car?”
“Yes ma’am.”
“Good enough.”“Miss Luthor, are you injured?” There was the sound of an engine revving.“Not me but Daniel… hurry.”
“I have your signal and am on my way, ma’am.”
“Thank you,” Lena replied before sliding her phone back in her pocket. “Think you can last five minutes, Lois?”“I’m not dying, for God’s sake,” Lois grumbled as they paused for a moment and she leaned up against a wall, glancing down to see the trail of red seeping through the gaps between her fingers. “Just a scratch,” she repeated, though whether she was telling herself, or Lena, it wasn’t entirely clear. “It’s… nothing. I’m… fine...”Lena squinted behind her. “Lois?”“Hmmm?” Lois blinked several times and looked up, but her eyes weren’t focussing properly. She squinted and blinked again, but a strange darkness was pushing its way across her field of vision.As Lois staggered, Lena reached out, grabbing the other woman by the shoulders. “Lois!”The last thing Lois remembered was someone calling her name. But they sounded distant, like they were standing at the other end of a very long tunnel. And who’d turned out the lights? Everything was going dark. How very inconsiderate of them.Lena was just about able to catch the taller woman and lower her gently to the floor before she passed out completely.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The scene that greeted Fernando, the doorman, was one that raised brows. Lena walked side-by-side with Daniel, not an unheard of occurence, but in Daniel’s arms was an unconscious Lois.  Unfortunately, that wasn’t an unheard of occurrence either.  
 
Fernando held the door open and smoothed his face back to one of neutrality.  “She seems to make a habit of entering buildings this way, doesn’t she?”
 
“She certainly does make a statement,” Lena said by way of reply as she paused at the door.  “Fernando, if any police officers or agents of the FBI were to ask—”
 
“You’ve been home all day, Miss Luthor, and you haven’t had any visitors,” Fernando finished for her.
 
She squeezed his forearm, offering him a genuine smile as she passed. “You’re too good to me.”
 
“Not possible, ma’am,” he said with a tip of his hat.
 
The elevator ride to the penthouse was quick, Daniel standing rigidly with Lois in his arms while Lena frowned. When they reached their floor, Lena hurried forward to open the apartment door and usher in her driver and his… passenger.
 
“Just put her on the couch,” Lena said as she peeled off her coat and went to a closet to retrieve a full medical kit.  
 
When she came back, Lois was still unconscious, and Daniel had placed a bowl of hot water on the coffee table next to a leather journal. He excused himself briefly to return with two washcloths and some towels.
 
Lena used the medical sheers from the kit to cut off the field bandage she had applied in the car and further open Lois’ jeans to expose the wound. She frowned at the nasty gash in Lois’ leg, the bleeding having slowed from the pressure and now at a trickle but clearly in need of stitches.  She cut the pants further effectively removing the bottom part of the pants leg from the top and rolling it down to give herself full access to the wound.
 
As Daniel handed her a washcloth, Lena thanked him. “Let’s see if we can get her washed up and stitched up before she comes too. The closest thing I have to anesthesia is a 130 proof bourbon.”
 
“If she does come to, a few shots of that will knock her out again.”
 
“It’s the George T. Stagg at the bar. Would you get that and three shot glasses? I think we’ll all need a drink when this is over.” Lena was drying the wound she had just washed when Daniel laid down the bottle and two shot glasses. “I said three glasses.”
 
“I’m driving, ma’am.”
 
“Nonsense, we’re getting you a car. You’re taking the rest of the night off.”
 
“Miss Luthor, I think—”
 
“Daniel, that wasn’t a request, it was an order.” She looked intently up at him from where she knelt on the floor. “Get another glass.”
 
He just nodded and headed back to the bar. When he returned, Lena had the threaded suture needle in the forceps and was prepared to do her first stitch.
 
“Will you place a hand on either side of the wound in case she wakes up during this? I don’t want her moving.” Daniel excused him briefly to wash his hands before putting on surgical gloves and taking a knee next to his employer.  As Daniel braced Lois’ thigh, Lena grabbed a piece of gauze from where she’d placed it on the table. Her gaze drifted over the unfamiliar journal before she began to work on Lois’ leg. “Where’d you get that book?”
 
Daniel glanced back to the table for just a moment, his hands remaining steady. “It fell out of her coat pocket, ma’am.”
 
Tying off the first stitch, Lena furrowed her brow. “It must be some kind of reporting notebook. I don’t think I saw that one before.” Lena placed and tied off a second stitch and a third before Lois murmured. “She’s coming to. Don’t let her move that leg. Until it’s stitched up, that will start it bleeding again.”
 
Lois grumbled slightly, her eyes blinking open lazily to focus on the face near hers. “...Lena?” As Daniel’s face came into view, she frowned. “Not Lena.”
 
“No ma’am,” he smirked.
 
“I’m here, Lois. We’re back at my apartment. We’re safe now.”
 
“Mmmm…” Lois blinked some more, seeming spent of energy. “Told you I was a good driver.”
 
Lena chuckled. “Yes, you did. However, you’ll have to practice your “climbing through broken windows” skill. I’m afraid you need a few more stitches.”
 
“... stitches?”
 
“Yes, just lie still. We don’t have any anesthesia, so I’m afraid this will hurt.”
 
There were several seconds of silence, and then when Lena pushed the suture needle through her skin, Lois yelped and her eyes opened wide. “Hey!”
 
“Don’t move,” Lena cautioned. “I need to finish this, or you’ll lose more blood. I can give you a few shots of bourbon for the pain, if you want.”
 
Lois scowled, eyed the bottle then shook her head. “No, just stitch me up. You startled me, is all.”
 
When Lois hissed quietly at the next needle piercing, Lena asked, “Are you sure you don’t want a drink? It may not help, but in my experience, it never hurts… until the next day.”
 
“I’m good. Just do your worst, Dr. Luthor.”
 
“That’s another phrase I’m also certain has been uttered before.”
 
While Lena stitched and she winced, Lois patted her pockets, finding only her cellphone. “Crap.”
 
“What’s wrong?”
 
“Lost a notebook. We’ll have to go back for it.”
 
“Oh, I don’t think so.”
 
“Lena, it’s important and—”
 
“It’s on the table,” Lena said as she tied off a stitch. “Daniel put it there for you.”
 
Lois looked down the length of her body to the gentleman grasping her leg. “You’re not bald, fat or fugly like that other guy. You must be Daniel.”
 
“Ma’am,” he replied with a nod, never looking away from the wound, though his brow did dip in confusion. Lena rolled her eyes, but chose to stay silent as she focused on what she was doing.
 
“I’d say this was an odd way to meet you, but you’d be surprised by the number of people I meet over bleeding bodies. It’s not usually mine, but this isn’t exactly an unprecedented event.”
 
At that, Daniel did smile up at her. “I was a Navy Seal, so this isn’t exactly a unique situation for me either, ma’am.”
 
“A Seal?” Lois whistled long and high. “Are you Lena’s security?”
 
“Just a driver, ma’am. I left combat in my past.” When Lena paused in her tendings to smile fondly at him, he added, “Anyway, driving Miss Luthor around is a bit like Abbottabad in 2011.”
 
Lois’ eyes widened, “Do you mean Bin Laden?  Were you part of Team Six?”
 
Not responding, Daniel smiled gently at Lois. “How’s the pain, ma’am, not too bad?”
 
Lois studied the Navy Seal. “Do you know Sam Lane?”
 
Daniel’s brows rose. “General Sam Lane? Not personally, but I know him by reputation. His troops say he’s… strict.”
 
“His daughters aren’t so polite,” Lois muttered.
 
Daniel seemed to consider her statement for a moment. “Are you Lois Lane?”
 
She raised an eyebrow at him. “What makes you say that?”
 
“Well, I know you’re first name, and your comment about General Lane seemed to imply… I’ve enjoyed your writing.”
 
“You have?” Lois was genuinely taken back by this comment. Usually, people told her she was a troublemaker, her spelling was appalling or some other such comments. Nobody had ever commented on her writing. Or even better, the fact that they LIKED it! “Well… I… um…” She floundered, rendered speechless. 
 
“Lois Lane, speechless?” Lena smirked. “Daniel, don’t go anywhere. I have a new assignment for you.”
 
“Shut it, Luthor,” Lois grumbled, flopping back into the couch cushions. “Are you nearly done yet? I need to pee!”
 
“Ah, there’s the Lois I know and love.” Lena tied off the last stitch with a flourish before pressing the gauze pad into place and wrapping cling around the leg to secure it in place.  “No more jumping through broken windows or playing the live action version of Grand Theft Auto, all right?”
 
“No promises,” Lois grinned. And then she considered. “You realise that’s the second time you’ve told me you love me tonight. You’re not crushing on me, are you? Because I’m flattered, and all, but I’m also spoken for.”
 
Lena stood and held down a hand to Lois. “Get over yourself, Lane. If I want to fool around with some reporter I…” She cleared her throat, the smile falling from her face.
 
Lois smirked, but chose to say nothing as she accepted Lena’s hand and sat up, then gingerly put her weight on her leg and stood, testing it to see that it wasn’t as bad as she thought it would be. “This isn’t half bad, Luthor.”
 
“Wait till you see my bill. Now, go use the restroom and get changed. I don’t want you ruining my furniture.”
 
“Get changed into what?” Lois frowned as she tugged at the flapping remnants of what had once been one leg of her jeans. “You attacked my favourite pair of jeans and now they fly in the wind. It’s rather breezy.”
 
“Oh, true. Well, I’ll get you a pair of pajama pants to wear for now. I’ll leave them on your bed.”
 
“Nothing frilly or pink. I’m warning you Luthor. Not even as a joke.” Lois wagged a finger at Lena before she turned and headed for the bathroom, limping, but not nearly as much as she had been before.
 
Ignoring Lois, Lena spoke to Daniel. “I’ll call down to Fernando to get you a cab. Thank you for all of your help tonight. I don’t know what we would have done if you hadn’t shown up.”
 
“It’s my pleasure, Miss Luthor. You call me anytime you need me. Are you and Miss Lane going to be okay tonight? I could call my wife and tell her I’m staying.”
 
“Nonsense. We just had a small misunderstanding with some businessmen. I’m sure it won’t be anything that they would bother us here about.”
 
He squeezed her upper arm. “Just keep your cellphone handy and don’t hesitate to call, no matter the time, if you’re concerned about anything. I’m a light sleeper.”
 
Lena nodding as he left, calling down to Fernando as she’d promised. She grabbed a pair of soft pajama pants, not pink, for Lois and left them on the bed in the room where Lois was staying. She was logged into her laptop and frowning when Lois reappeared.
 
“Whatcha doin’?” Lois asked, barely stifling a yawn as she carefully sat herself on the couch, making sure not to tug the stitches on her leg, before pulling on the extremely comfortable (if slightly short around the ankles) PJ pants that Lena had supplied for her. 
 
“I’m trying to suss out why someone would choose this particular satellite to hijack. If the goal was to try and frame me for misdoings, I own a satellite through CatCo which is more powerful and hasn’t gone through the L-Corp security upgrade. Though not easy, it would have been simpler to hack than any L-Corp technology.” Lena sat back, biting at the pad of her thumb while she studied the screen.
 
“Maybe it was an insider job?” Lois suggested. “Someone at L-Corp, perhaps?”
 
“Well, I’d hate to think that. Every new employee goes through a rigorous security screening.”
 
“Any left over from Lexy-boy’s days as Head Honcho?”
 
Lena raised an eyebrow and studied Lois. “If you’re asking if I have any employees who had been under my brother’s employ, the answer is yes. I made cuts when I came in, either because the person failed my security checks or they had a… Let us say they were vocal in their support of my brother’s management and beliefs. Those I had to let go. It was a large portion of upper management and some of the technology staff. Administration and services were largely untouched.”
 
Lois considered for a time, and nodded. “I’m no expert in corporate management and stuff, but… well I have no idea about it at all. So I’ll stick to what I do know. And that is that someone with some whizzy techy skills hacked a satellite of yours. Someone with a motive. Dunno what that motive is yet, but the fact they targeted something with your name on it, instead of a more general satellite like CatCo’s… kinda suggests it’s personal, to me.”
 
“It’s definitely feeling that way.” Rising from the couch, Lena grabbed the bottle of bourbon and glasses. She dropped the bottle back at the bar and headed to the kitchen. “I’m opening a bottle of wine. Red or white?”
 
“Hmmm?” Lois blinked, barely registering the question because she’d been yawning again and had hardly heard it. Meaning she misinterpreted what she did hear. “Oh, bed. I’m definitely going to bed.”
 
“Are you sure?” Lena popped her head back around the corner then held out two bottles. “I have a lovely 2015 Kathryn Hall red and a 2016 Catena Zapata Adrianna. I can’t tempt you?”
 
“You have fun with your Catherine Zeta Jones, I’m going this way,” Lois pulled herself slowly back to her feet and thumbed in the direction of what had unofficially become her room now.
 
“No, it’s a bottle of…” With a smile, Lena shook her head and disappeared back into the kitchen. “Nevermind. I suppose I’ll just have to be responsible for drinking for both of us.”
 
“You do that,” Lois waved a hand vaguely in her direction, not even listening any more as she padded to her room. Reaching the bed, she pulled her phone from the pocket of her jacket, which was sitting across a chair in the corner. Glancing briefly at the screen to see another message from Lucy, she chucked the phone on the bedside table. “Too tired for her shit.” Then she turned and fell face first onto the bed, not even bothering to get under the covers before she fell asleep, her legs hanging off the side of the bed as she slept across it lengthwise where she’d dropped.
 
Lena went through two glasses of the red while she ran full security scans on the satellite, even involving her cyber-security team to expedite the process. While she left them to the work, she set about cleaning up the paper cities that Lois and company had erected throughout her home. The model of The Planet was saved, as per Lois’ request, and left on the coffee table. The rest was put into recycle.
 
“What a waste of trees,” Lena grumbled as she cleaned up the last of it. With a roll of paper in her arms, she knocked over a trash can which only worsened her mood. Inside were paper products. “Really, Lois, really? Would it kill you to recycle?” As she pulled out the third box, Lena stiffened and stood, examining the box in detail. “Oh, my. Well, this explains a lot.” Fretting and concerned, Lena finally went off to bed well after three in the morning, but sleep didn’t come quickly.
 
Unlike for Lois, who’d been asleep before her head had even hit the pillow… if she’d been lying the right way for her head to have hit the pillow, that was. As it was, she woke with a start some time later and floundered for a moment as her legs kicked in thin air, and she flinched and gasped at the wound pulling on her leg, before she could gather her bearings and work out what was going on. Twisting and shimmying and shuffling until she was sort of upright, she glanced around sleepily, then sniffed.
 
Then sniffed again. She could smell coffee. Lovely, glorious, strong, rich coffee calling to her. Beckoning her. Tempting and teasing her with it’s aroma.
 
“Alright, I’m coming, I’m coming,” she groaned, reaching for her phone to check the time. 7AM. Plus three messages from Lucy now. 
 
Rolling her eyes and tucking her phone into the pocket of the pajama pants, Lois got up and limped to the bedroom door, sticking her head out and listening for a moment. Then she frowned.
 
“Luthor?” Nothing. No sound of movement. “Huh.” Stepping out of the bedroom, she moved a little further into the apartment. “Lenny? Lenny Lenny Lou Lou? Where are you? I’m coming to find you, ready or not, here I come!”
 
Still nothing, so Lois huffed. “Spoilsport. Alright fine. I’m going to go through all your stuff now. Shout if it’s not ok.” She paused, waited, then grinned. “Okay thanks!”
 
As tempting as the coffee was, Lena’s laptop sitting on the coffee table was far more irresistible, and Lois scurried over, glancing over her shoulder in case Lena appeared. Sitting down and pulling it into her lap, careful to avoid the recent wound to her thigh which was pulsing painfully, she flipped the lid open and frowned. “Aw crap. What sort of password would a billionaire geek have? I’m guessing she’s not a ‘password’ kind of woman. Wonder when her birthday is?”
 
She was just about to start randomly entering passwords when something else on the table caught her eye. “Oh Lenny, you shouldn’t have!” 
 
It was the paper model of the Daily Planet. And it had a post it note on it. Her curiosity in overdrive now, Lois reached forward and snagged the note to read.
 
“
Lois, hope you slept well. Feel free to grab anything in the fridge or call downstairs for delivery. Here is my password if you want to go online. - L.L,” Lois read the note then grinned with pride. “She alliterated! That’s my girl! Alrighty, so she’s given me the password which means she trusts me. Oh Luthor, you pretty little idiot you. Never trust Lois Lane with your password.” She cracked her knuckles, then got to work on the laptop, logging in using Lena’s password then first of all finding the secure server that Lena had let her use last time to contact Batman. She needed to forward him some more information. That was the first and ultimately the most important part that she needed to do before anything else. 
 
With the laptop balancing carefully on her lap, she thumbed the pincode into her phone to unlock it, scrolled through Lucy’s messages until she got to the important one, then emailed the details to herself so that she had them at hand on the laptop. She should have been surprised at how “tech savvy” she was becoming of late, but in truth, she was too busy to even notice. 
 
Once she’d forwarded the information to Batman, she shut everything back down again on the secure server, sat for a moment looking at Lena’s desktop background - it was a picture of her and Kara sitting together, grinning for the camera - then she grinned as well and began to type something, even though there was no word document or text box up to register the letters.

Hey Oracle. You out to play today?

Lois waited, knowing that if Oracle was around, she’d be able to see what was written just by monitoring the keystrokes, even though text hadn’t actually been written on the screen. But when nothing happened and nobody responded, Lois sighed in disappointment and glanced around the apartment, looking for something to do. As she was about to log off, however, something caught her eye at the corner of the screen.
 
It was a thumbnail of a picture that clearly showed a blonde woman and a brunette standing together. It was too tiny to see who the figures were, but Lois would stake her Pulitzer on who she was sure the photo would be of when she called it up. And sure enough as she enlarged it, a beaming Kara grinned right back at her, arm in arm with Lena as the pair of them attended some kind of gala event, Lena’s free hand holding a glass of champagne, whilst Kara’s held - wait… was that…?
 
Lois leaned forward a little to get a better look, then grinned. “Pot stickers? Oh Kara, really.”
 
This, naturally, sparked Lois’ curiosity, and despite the fact that Lena could potentially walk in at any moment, she couldn’t resist having a look at the other images that Lena had saved on her laptop. 
 
“Cute...” Click. “Awww bless…” Click. “Green really does suit you Lenny…” Click. “Oh dear Lord, what is that woman doing?” Click. “Kara, you can be such a goofball at times…” Click. “I’m starting to see a pattern now.” Click. “Oh hello, Supergirl.” Seeing the picture of Supergirl in all her red, blue and golden glory caused Lois to pause for a moment. “Oh Kara, where are you? Is Kal with you? I hope you’re both ok. Why haven’t you called?”
 
Clicking off of that picture quickly, Lois scrolled through a few more of Kara and Lena at lunch together, at a gala together, walking through the park together, having ice cream… and the reporter sighed. “Come on, Lena, you’ve got to see it. How can you not?”
 
She pulled up an image of Supergirl and an image of Kara Danvers, side by side, and sat staring at them for a moment, then shook her head. “Well done, Lois, pot calling the kettle black. How long did it take you to realise about Clark and Kal, huh?”
 
She flicked through a few more, then deciding that she’d probably pushed her luck as far as it would go with the laptop, she really did shut it all down this time and set it back on the coffee table.
 
But instead of resting, she grabbed up Kara’s leather bound journal instead - it was the type with a leather cord tied round it to keep it closed - and she settled on the sofa with her feet up on the coffee table to read it from cover to cover, if she had to, looking for clues.
 
This seemed to be Kara’s personal journal, that she didn’t intend on sharing with the world because she was very open about her Supergirl persona within the pages. Sometimes she wrote in Kryptonian, and Lois could loosely translate it, but she was no expert. Sometimes she wrote in shorthand. Most of the time, though, she wrote in longhand English. And sometimes she sketched or doodled pictures. 
 
Lois was in no doubt at all that she’d struck upon a veritable goldmine of Kara Danvers and Supergirl information. But it was something that was far too dangerous to fall into the wrong hands. Especially Lena’s. Lois, as much as she hated keeping things from Lena, knew that the CEO could never, ever, read the contents of this journal. And that was perhaps the worst part about it all, for Lois. Not being able to tell her. Not being able to share the sketches that Kara had done - which were quite frankly amazing. True works of art. But works of art that must be kept secret from the world, nonetheless.
 
“Morning.”
 
Lois jerked her attention away from the journal, closing it hurriedly at Lena’s approach. “Oh, hey. How’d you sleep?”
 
Lena yawned and stretched. “Quite well. I must have had nearly five hours. How about you?”
 
“Uh, about seven. I think. Give or take.”
 
“Coffee, or have you already had a cup?” Lena asked as she entered the kitchen.
 
“No, I uh… I’m not really—”
 
“I’m afraid it’s decaf. It looks like I’m out of regular coffee.  I’ll have to order some.”
 
“Decaf?  What’s the point?”
 
“I could say the same thing with the amount of sugar and cream you put in yours,” Lena said as she returned with a mug of black coffee. “Did I get a delivery while I was still asleep?”
 
“No, I haven’t seen anything.”
 
Lena placed her mug on a coaster on the coffee table before going to the front door. She returned moments later with a medium-sized box in hand.
 
“You discovered something you didn’t own and have to have it?” Lois smirked.
 
“Actually, it’s for you.” Lena put the box down on the couch next to Lois. 
 
“What is it?” Lois didn’t hesitate and ripped into the box, opening it and pulling out brown paper used as packing material.
 
“I thought it was the least I could do after the incident with the window. As stylish as my pajamas are, I can’t be seen in public with you while you wear those.”
 
Inside the box was several pairs of jeans, each the same brand and size as the ones that Lois had lost to the broken glass last night.
 
“Oh, Lenny, now I’m the one who loves you!” Lois beamed as she examined the pairs of jeans in delight.
 
Lena chuckled. “Should your fiancé be concerned?”
 
“Hmmm?” Lois had already stood up and without a single care for the fact she wasn’t alone, had already started to strip off the pajama pants so she could change into the jeans. “Oh, nah, he knows what I’m like. I tell my coffee mug and Krispy Kreme I love them every morning before I knuckle down to business.”
 
“Well, don’t I feel special now.” Lena pulled the laptop onto her lap and opened her email. She ticked off several, marking them as important, then screened through it and silently read an internal L-Corp message.
 
“Of course, you’re special,” Lois agreed as she threw the pajama pants back to Lena, and they fell across the keyboard of the laptop. “Thanks for those. Bit short, but they did the job.” Then she began to hop about, pulling the jeans on a little awkwardly with her wounded leg. 
 
“Lois!” Lena complained as she peeled the pajamas off her laptop. She frowned, casting a worried glance at Lois. “Do be careful. You don’t want to pull your stitches out.”
 
“Oh, I’m pulling them out in a few days when they get irritating anyway,” Lois waved a hand to dismiss the notion, then shimmied into the jeans at last, did them up and sighed in relief. “Ah, bliss. That feels so much better already.”
 
“I’m afraid though effective, my amateur surgery was a bit sloppy. Once this business with the Supers is behind us, I’ll get you in touch with a plastic surgeon to rectify that.”
 
Lois raised an eyebrow. “A plastic surgeon? What the hell for? It’s just a scratch.”
 
“Well, you don’t want it to scar, do you?”
 
“Lenny, it’s the twenty first century. Scars are sexy.” Lois winked at Lena then sat herself down. “It’s not my first, and it won’t be my last either.”
 
Lena frowned but didn’t respond, instead reading through the email with a furrowed brow. “My security provided me some details on the satellite that was hijacked, but I’m not sure what it means.”
 
“What sort of details?” Lois asked, sensing that playtime was over and it was time to be serious again.
 
“Well, the satellite in question is designed for communications with high range emitters. It’s not the most powerful, but it has the broadest range.” Lena took a sip of her coffee before returning to the email. “Apparently, a series of ultrasonic bursts were sent throughout the past week. The frequency continued to rise until the last set of pulses were somewhere in the 1,000 Hz range. That’s above the range of even a bat. The only thing that would be useful for is as a weapon. If the decibels were high enough, the heat could be dangerous to humans.”
 
“So someone’s trying to weaponize your satellite?” Lois asked with a frown of her own. “But why? And why use ultrasonic bursts when a laser would be so much more… hang on… you said nothing could hear them, but they were in pulses, right?”
 
“Several sets over the week with the Hz increasing every time. It was as if they were searching for… something.”
 
“Or someone,” Lois shuddered all of a sudden as a thought came to her. “A pair of someones in scarlet capes with super hearing. What if it wasn’t a weapon at all? What if it was a Kryptonian dog whistle?”
 
“I… suppose? Honestly, I’m not the alien stalker that my brother was. I was aware that the Supers had extraordinary hearing based on an article that Kara had published, but I thought it was just extraordinarily acute. I didn’t realize it allowed them to hear in the ultrasonic.”
 
Lois unfastened the silver watch from around her wrist, then held it out to Lena, but not before she’d flipped the face up to reveal a button underneath in the shape of the Super logo. “Kryptonian SOS button,” she explained as she pressed it. Nothing appeared to happen, except the button beginning to flash. “Superman gave it to me and told me that if I was ever in trouble and needed him, all I had to do was press this once and he’d hear the signal and come find me. Press it twice and he’d know it was a trap.”
 
Taking the watch, Lena sat studying it for several moments. “So this is a miniature ultrasonic transducer? Is it just a transmitter, or is it a transceiver?”
 
“A what or a who?” Lois blinked. “I press it, he hears it and saves my ass. That’s all I know.”
 
“It doesn’t receive a signal then just sends one. Hmmm… I’d love to take it apart.”
 
“Don’t you dare! Get your own!” Lois made to snatch it back, but the sudden movement tugged on her leg and she yelped, her hand falling short. She took a deep breath, glared at Lena and raised one finger to her. “Don’t. Just don’t.”
 
“I told you to be careful with your stitches.” Lena handed the watch back. “I said I’d love to take it apart, not that I’m going to. Still, I would like to know at what Hz it transmits. Perhaps you’re right and the borrowing of the satellite had something to do with the missing Supers. The timing is uncanny.”
 
“I need paper,” Lois mused as she looked around. “I need to write it all out. Can’t think with it all jumbled and crashing about up here.” She tapped on the side of her head. “I need to throw it out onto paper. A really, really big sheet of it. Then I can sit and look at it properly.”
 
“I don’t have anything like that here, but if you’d care to wait while I shower and change, we could take a trip to L-Corp. I’d like to run some tests on the watch.” At the look on Lois’ face, Lena added, “The kind of tests that don’t require the watch to be taken apart.”
 
Lois nodded, but she was scowling even as she clipped the watch back round her wrist. “You break it, you bought it, Luthor. Although that probably means diddly squat to you. You do know Olsen has one of these too, right? You could just borrow his and dismantle that one. I’m sure he doesn’t use his nearly half as much as I use mine.”
 
Mouth agape, Lena snapped it shut. “Why am I even surprised. It seems I am the very definition of the last to know.”
 
“Olsen only has one because he was my photographer for years,” Lois smirked. “Meant he had to come with me. Where I went, he went. Superman insisted that he have one after we got buried underneath half a mountain in the Alps that one time.”
 
“And people think my life is exciting.” Lena took a final swallow from the coffee cup before heading to the kitchen. “Okay, I’m done with breakfast. I’m going to grab a shower and get dressed. I should be ready in twenty minutes.”
 
“Mind if I make some toast?” Lois asked after a moment. “I’m kinda hungry now, but I’m not really sure what I want. You got any bacon?”
 
“Vegetarian,” Lena shot over her shoulder as she emerged from the kitchen and headed down the hallway. “Help yourself to whatever is in there. Me casa is su casa… not literally.”
 
“Who’s Sue?” Lois called back. “You cheating on me, Luthor?”
 
Lena just shook her head and disappeared into her room.  It was almost twenty minutes on the dot when a freshly showered and changed Lena reappeared. Her makeup was just so, and she was blotting at her lipstick with a tissue. “Any other stops while we’re out?”
 
“How do you always manage to look a million dollars?” Lois grumbled, glancing Lena up and down. “Without even trying.”
 
“A million dollars?” Lena scoffed. “Please, don’t sell me so cheap. Just let me grab my laptop so I can plug in when we get there. I’m still waiting for my worm to finish its work.”
 
“We can’t just walk around talking about worms, you know,” Lois replied as she grabbed up her jacket from the back of the sofa where she’d placed it earlier, having fetched it whilst Lena was in the shower. She’d also pulled on her boots and grabbed her bag too. “People will get completely the wrong idea. We should give him a name. He needs a name. I vote Dave.”
 
Lena paused, one foot halfway into a pair of heels. “You want to call it Dave?”
 
“Sure. You got a better idea? Because I mean, if it’s the name you don’t like, we could always go with Leroy?”
 
“I should learn to quit while I’m ahead with you,” Lena grumbled as she reached down and used her finger to slip her heel into the shoe. “Fine, then I need to bring my laptop in case Dave reports back on his assignment.  Better?”
 
“Uh huh,” Lois nodded proudly. “Now you could just be talking about an employee or a work colleague. Far less conspicuous, see?”
 
“I’m more worried that by the time you’re through, Dave will be pulling a salary.” Lena pulled the front door open. “Let’s go.”
 
“Yes Ma’am, you’re the boss,” Lois mock saluted with a grin as she passed, slinging her jacket over her shoulder in a casual way, not at all aware of the fact she almost swiped Lena in the face with it. “Hey, how would Dave pull a salary? He hasn’t got any hands.”
 
Ignoring Lois, Lena pressed the button for the elevator. They went to the parking garage and chose a different car for their travel to L-Corp. The drive over was fairly quick, and they went to underground parking once again, taking the elevator down to Lena’s secondary lab in the basement this time. Lena setup the watch with some equipment to register the signal, all the while threatening Lois to touch nothing and scolding the reporter who seemed incapable of doing so.
 
“Alright, so this device here,” Lena said gesturing at a machine, “will tell us how many Hz… Lois, don’t touch that. This will tell us at how many Hz the watch transmits. Then we can… Lois, what did I just say? Thank you. We can compare our findings to the results from the
— Lois Lane, I swear to God if you don’t stop flipping switches and pushing buttons, I’m going to take a hammer to your watch!”
 
Lois sucked in a sharp breath. “You wouldn’t!”
 
Grabbing a wrench from a nearby table, Lena slapped it repeatedly into her hand. “I am a Luthor, after all.”
 
“You’re evil, that’s what you are,” Lois made a point of holding her hands up by her head in a sign of surrender. “Look, no touchie! I’m behaving! I’m behaving! So, you were saying sciency geeky stuff and I stopped listening. Please, carry on so I can go back to ignoring you.”
 
Lena sighed and discarded the wrench back onto the table. “Just come over here and push the button on your watch.”
 
“You told me not to push any more buttons.”
 
Raising an eyebrow, Lena asked, “Would you prefer that I do it?”
 
“I really don’t get you sometimes,” Lois scowled, walking back over and reaching for the watch. “First you tell me to stop pressing buttons, then you tell me to press that button, then you moan at me for telling you that you told me not to press any buttons.” Her finger pressed the button and the light began to flash, just as it had done back in Lena’s apartment.
 
“And here I thought the surest way to get you to do something was by telling you not to do it.  My mistake.” Lena flipped a switch on a receiver, studying the readout.
 
“But you didn’t tell me not to do it,” Lois argued petulantly. “You told me to do it, which isn’t telling me not to do it, so why would I have done it when you told me to do it, if you were trying to get me to do it by telling me not to do it?”
 
“Reporter babble,” Lena muttered as she studied the readout. “1,036.”
 
“Is the number of times you’ve wanted to kill me since we first met?” Lois guessed.
 
Lena chuckled. “No, that number is much higher. The watch transmits at 1,036 Hz.”
 
“I was gonna say,” Lois nodded, “1,036 isn’t very high at all. I was expecting at least over twice that amount. And that’s from you, the good Luthor. Your brother would be pushing 10k by now.”
 
“I grew up with Lex. I have a high tolerance for annoyance.” Lena flipped off the switch on the machine. “You can turn off the watch, now. It’s told us what we needed to know.”
 
“Which is what exactly?” Lois asked as she switched off the watch and closed the face back up.
 
“That this watch transmits at exactly the same Hz as the signal sent through my satellite.”
 
“Like I said,” Lois nodded. “Kryptonian dog whistle. Someone called and they answered. Though who and why, I don’t know. And why they haven’t come back to us…” She threw up her hands in frustration, very nearly letting go of the watch in the process. 
 
“Lois…” Lena hesitantly reached out but then pulled her hand back. She grabbed her laptop bag from the stool where she had left it and patted the side. “Let’s go to my office. I need to plug in.”
 
“Okay,” Lois breathed, running her empty hand through her hair, then fixing her watch back round her wrist before she threw it or lost it. It was bad enough that she’d forgotten her engagement ring. Clark would kill her if she lost her SOS watch as well.
 
Together they traveled to the top floor and went to Lena’s office. The blinds were drawn, and bright light filled the room. Lena closed the blind directly behind her office chair before setting up her laptop.
 
“Would you like me to have some food sent up? I think this is the longest you’ve gone without talking about food since I met you.”
 
Lois blinked, pausing in her slow walk round the office. Then she looked to Lena. “Huh, go figure. Well, now that you mention it, I could murder a maple glazed.” She looked all around the office again, then waved at the desk. “Where’s your woman?”
 
“Excuse me?”
 
“A maple glazed. It’s a doughnut. You know? The glazed ones that taste like maple syrup.”
 
“I know what a doughnut is. Kara has ensured my education on that front is complete. My question was, who you think ‘my woman’ is exactly?”
 
“The woman who sits there normally. Oh, what’s her face, you know?” Lois clicked her fingers as she tried to remember the name. “Sarah? Susie? Sharon? No, not Sharon… Sophie? Sally? Come on, tell me I’m getting close? I’m running out of names here.”
 
Lena chuckled. “Actually, I was enjoying the alliteration parade. I take it you mean Miss Arias, Sam.”
 
“Sam’s missed her ass? Poor woman! Is she ok?”
 
Casting a look at Lois out of the side of her eye, Lena picked up the phone and dialed an extension.  “Hmmm… went to voicemail. That’s odd. Jess should be at her desk.” She stood and headed for the door. “I’m afraid my executive assistant is on loan to Sam what with me mainly working at CatCo. Let me just pop out for a moment and see if I can locate her. Do you think you can possibly stay out of trouble for a few minutes in my absence?”
 
“Oh come on, Lenny, you know you can’t ask that of me, it’s not fair!” Lois whined as she slumped down onto the couch. 
 
“Feel free to be as bored as you want. I’ll be back with a delivery of maple doughnuts,” Lena paused by the door and quirked up an eyebrow, looking back at Lois, “so long as you manage not to destroy anything in my absence.”
 
Lois made a point of placing her hands behind her head and crossing her feet, placing them up on the coffee table - a lady of leisure who wasn’t going anywhere.
 
Lena’s gaze wavered to the feet on her coffee table before she sighed and left the room.
 
Lois watched her go, counted to ten then sprang to her feet again like a spring loaded jack in the box. Pacing back and forth about the room as she looked for something, though she had absolutely no idea what she was looking for, she came across a dry erase marker in Lena’s drawer, a drawer which just casually happened to slide open as Lois walked past it, and gave it an experimental tug.
 
“Aha!” Brandishing the pen triumphantly, Lois looked all around, before spotting the huge, empty, extremely inviting white wall across the room. “I’ve told Perry we need these walls at the Planet,” she mused as she scurried across, popped the lid of the pen and began to jot down everything she could remember, of what they had discovered or found out so far, right across the wall from one side to the other. The notes were in no particular order, but it didn’t matter. As long as she got them all out of her head and into a place where she could view them all together, it would make seeing the pattern so much easier.
 
Because there was a pattern. She was certain of it. Everything they had found out so far - or most of it at least - was linked in some way.
 
So in the very centre of the wall, she wrote the words “Superman and Supergirl”, circled them and then drew lines out of the circle, each line going to a different point or note of interest. And then each of those had lines leading off to other notes and points of interest too, until when she finished, she was greeted with what looked like a gigantic spider hybrid of sorts, clinging to every inch of space on the wall.
 
Then, just because she didn’t like there to be any spare gaps at all, she filled them with random words that sort of made sense in the grand scheme of things. Plus a few doodles of the Super ‘S’, and also a shopping list of things she needed to get for the kitchen back at the Kent farm.
 
Finally satisfied that she could think again without being overcrowded, she stood back, hands on hips, to study her work. “Da Vinci, eat your heart out.”
 
“Lois!”
Standing just inside the office with Jess next to her, a box of doughnuts in the assistant’s hands, Lena stood with her eyes blown wide. “I was gone five minutes!”
 
“What?” Lois asked, genuinely confused by the outburst as she spun on the spot like a scalded cat. “I didn’t do anything!”
 
“You didn’t do… You just… A marker… My wall and…” Wheeling back around toward a sympathetic ear, Lena said, “Jess?”
 
Clearing her throat, Jess deposited the doughnuts on the coffee table before putting herself in the line of fire… between Lena and Lois. “I believe what Miss Luthor is attempting to express is that you just wrote all over her walls with a marker and she’s,” she glanced back at Lena whose hands were in fists, a vein throbbing at her neck, “surprised.”
 
“Why?” Again Lois was genuinely confused. “It’s a whiteboard wall. I used a dry erase, look. Don’t worry, even I know not to use permanent markers on whiteboards. If that’s what she’s worried about, it’s all good.”
 
“Whiteboard!?” Lena lurched forward, only to stop as Jess turned fully toward her, hands on Lena’s shoulders.
 
“Don’t kill her,” Jess said then continued on a bit more quietly, “the security feeds are still running.”
 
With a small nod, Lena straightened her blouse and walked away to the bar. Two fingers of whiskey later, she came back to stand near Lois with arms crossed. “It’s not a whiteboard.”
 
“Yes it is,” Lois frowned. “Everywhere has them. And you had this in your drawer.” She held out the dry erase as if to prove her point. “Why did you have one of these if you don’t have a whiteboard?”
 
“Oh, I have a whiteboard. It’s just not. That. Wall.”
 
“You sure?” Lois asked as she turned back to the wall, then reached out to rub out one of the random words she’d written. And then she froze as nothing happened except a slight smudging of the letters when she ran her finger over them. Scrubbing at it a bit more forcefully, her eyes widened in shock. “Oh… shit… ”
 
Taking a deep breath, she bit her lip for a moment, facing the wall so that the others couldn’t see. Then she composed herself and turned back with an appeasing smile. “It was an easy mistake. Anyone could have made it, honestly.”
 
“Anyone?” Lena turned back to Jess. “Disable the security cameras.”
 
Jess’ eyebrows rose and she walked over to Lois, tugging the reporter gently by the arm. “I think everyone could use a doughnut. This seems like low blood sugar to me.”
 
Lois wanted to make some smart comment, some witty retort or comeback. Instead, she deflated completely and stepped over to the doughnut box.
 
“Are you alright?” Jess asked.
 
“Your leg. You weren’t limping yesterday.”
 
“Yeah, just… cramp.” Lois looked up with a doughnut in her, an apology in her eyes as she gazed at Lena. “I really am sorry. It was a genuine mistake this time. I’ll, uh… I’ll buy the paint to get it redecorated.”
 
Lena stood stock-still, glaring at Lois for seconds before her posture deflated also. She walked over to the couch, flopping down and squeezing the bridge of her nose. “It’s just paint, Lois. I overreacted. It seems we can’t escape the voice of our parents from childhood.”
 
“Maybe you can’t,” Lois flopped onto the couch as well, though she kept a wary distance. “I never really had a mother. And the General is just a - no, I’m not even going to finish that. God, it’s at times like these when I miss Clark the most. Usually, I’m a jerk, and he tells me how to make it right again.” She placed her head in her hands for a moment, took a few shuddering breaths, then a deeper one, sat up calmly and began to study the wall. “Look, there’s a pattern. I just couldn’t see it when it was all in my head. Can you please help me find it now, and then… then I’ll get out of your hair. I won’t cause you any more trouble. I promise. Just point me in the right direction, then I’m gone.”
 
“Lois,” with a little smile, Lena grabbed a doughnut from the box and placed it on a napkin, holding it out to the reporter, “you can’t make that promise to anyone. Anyway, don’t threaten me with sanity when I was just getting used to… you.”
 
With a sideways glance at Lena and a small smirk, Lois accepted the doughnut and nodded. “I’m sorry. I’m just having a blip. It’s a minor one, I’ll be alright in a moment. Guess I’m just having an off day.”
 
After handing a doughnut to Jess, Lena took another doughnut for herself and held it out. “To off days… and off lives.”
 
“Welcome to my world,” Lois smirked, bumping her doughnut lightly against Lena’s in the most unorthodox toast she’d ever taken part in.
 
“If there’s nothing else, Miss Luthor, I should return to my desk,” Jess said.
 
“That would be fine, Jess.” However, before Jess had left the room, Lena called out to her. “Oh, Jess, will you please check in on Sam this afternoon and get me an update? I am worried about her.”
 
“Oh course, Miss Luthor,” Jess said with a nod as she left the room.
 
“Is your friend alright?”
 
“Hmmm? Oh, you mean Sam.” Lena waved her hand slightly. “Apparently, she hasn’t been feeling well. She’s had ringing in her ears on and off all week. It started again, and luckily Jess convinced her to go to the doctor.” Lena sighed. “Sam really needs to take better care of herself.  She’s a mother, after all.”
 
Lois didn’t respond, just studied her doughnut before taking another bite, an odd silence growing between the two women.
 
As things grew uncomfortable again, Lena gestured to her marker covered wall. “So, exactly where has your little kindergarten creation on my wall gotten us?”
 
“I’m not sure.” Lois shook her head, sitting forwards to study the wall across the room. “The Supers went missing. At the same time, your hijacked satellite was used to send signals that only they could hear, and it seems to have called them somewhere. My guess is North, given their tracked paths of last known sightings. In the meantime, alien haters stole a load of stuff from one of your warehouses, ferried it all to an abandoned Wayne Tech warehouse and built something huge. Which they then had moved before we got there.” 
 
Tearing off a small piece of her doughnut before laying the rest on the table, Lena rose and stood across from the wall. It was a series of scattered phrases in no particular order except like the order the thoughts appeared in Lois’ mind. Some phrase wrapped around, some stretched the length of the wall, and some even curved up and ended with a little arrow pointing to another phrase. 
 
Chewing on her doughnut bit, Lena’s brows furrowed as she read the mish-mash of information before her. “Warehouse parts = generator (BIG). Heineken coil… Is that supposed to be Hemholtz? Of course, it is. Journal + mega hurts…” Lena cleared her throat. “Megahertz = Super dog whistle. Map to Canada/north. What about Dave?” Lena turned speaking directly to Lois, “Where’s Dave?”
 
Lois jumped up from her seat again, all eager and ready to go once more as she bounded over to the wall like an excited puppy. “He’s here, look. Dave the worm. And look, I even remembered this bit too. Goons = big bastards. Crappy drivers. Beat ya suckers, haha!”
 
“Yes, a pivotal piece of information. Alright, so our conjecture is that the satellite was hijacked to send a signal to the Supers which caused them to travel north. Whoever was involved with this has created a huge generator and is using Hemholtz coils too… We don’t know what yet. I hate to assume, but it seems likely they’re being used to create an electron beam. As to why someone would want to do that, I don’t know. Am I missing anything?”
 
“Peewee said they’re alien haters,” Lois tapped on Peewee’s name as she spoke to illustrate her point. “So whoever it is, they have beef with aliens. They also know you’re involved. Why else try to kidnap you? Unless… unless unless unless…. oh! Unless they wanted to force you to do something that they couldn’t do! The stuff they stole was L-Corp stuff, right? And the satellite is L-Corp. Maybe they need you for something?”
 
“Well, they can hold their breaths, but it won’t do them any good. I’m not assisting anyone with an anti-alien agenda. I mean, I can certainly understand the concern about humans feeling less when dealing with those we view to have extraordinary powers, but you never become more by trying to knock someone else down. You need to build yourself up.”
 
“Preaching to the choir, lady,” Lois replied as she turned to study another part of the wall. One single word was written, larger than all the others. “Fortress.” She considered it for a while, her hands twisting and fidgeting as she considered. “We could go to the Fortress and see if there’s anything there that could help us?” She suggested at last.
 
“How would we get in? I portaled in last time, and it took a cyborg to get us out.”
 
“Whoa, hold up there. You’ve been to the Fortress?” Lois frowned. “Since when? And what cyborg? You holding out on a juicy story there, Luthor?”
 
Lena waved a hand dismissively. “No, it was just the Daxamite invasion when my mother, Supergirl, and Hank Henshaw teleported from the Fortress to the Daxamite mothership and then back again… Well, minus Supergirl. Huge shock that my mother was an untrustworthy bitch.”
 
“Yeah, heard that tune before. A Super and a Luthor teaming up, then the Super being stabbed in the back by the Luthor,” Lois agreed, without even thinking. “I think we should check the Fortress out anyway, I’ll figure out a way to get us inside when we get there.”
 
“You want us to travel some three thousand miles, into the frozen north, and then wing it when it comes to getting into our destination?”
 
“I’m Lois,” Lois smirked. “It’s what I do. But seriously, think about it. We’ve spent all this time looking around down here, but where did the Supers go? North. Why waste more time down here when we know they didn’t come back this way. We should at least follow their path and see if we can pick anything up along the way.”
 
“Their path,” Lena repeated quietly before snatching up the marker and writing two series of numbers on the window.
 
“So you can do it, but I can’t?  Sheesh.”
 
Lena studied the numbers before returning to her desk to type something into her laptop. Even as a document was opening up, Lena said, “Lois, read me off the times there, alright?”
 
“Um, sure.” The document included a lot of information that was gobbledygook to Lois, but there was a series of times listed also. She read them all out and then looked up to see Lena finish writing then circle the last two numbers in that series along with two numbers in the earlier series. As Lena capped the marker and stepped back frowning, Lois asked, “What just happened and how bad is it? This can’t get any worse.”
 
“Did you just say that out loud?”
 
“No, no one heard me, shut up, I’m still tired. Just give me the bad news.”
 
“I don’t know that it’s so much bad as corroborating.” Lena tossed her pen back into the drawer and closed it before closing the document on her laptop. “The times you read me where when the signal was sent from my satellite. The times I wrote were when the Supers were seen in areas in the United States. Two times from the satellite match a time for each of the Supers.”
 
“That… Yeah, okay. That’s bad but at least a bad we know. So, we’re heading north?”
 
“Well,” Lena seemed to consider that for a moment and then said, “we’ll need a change of clothes.”
 
“And I need to borrow your laptop, or a computer, or something to send a message with,” Lois agreed, already looking around for something to use. 
 
“I’ll log you in while I have Jess arrange our flight and do some shopping for us.  I’ll be right back.”
 
“Take your time,” Lois shrugged as she dropped into the chair behind Lena’s desk and spun it round so that she was sitting at the desk. Then she spun it fully in a complete circle a couple of times, before she sighed and sat back at the desk again properly.
 
Lena logged into her laptop and then excused herself to ready the arrangements leaving Lois alone in the office.
 
Once she was logged in, Lois opened up a blank word document and started to type.

“Hey, O. You there?”

There was a few moments’ pause before new words appeared on the document. “Hey, L, what do you need?”

“Oh hey, u r playing today. Why didn’t u anser me earlyer?”

“Sorry, I was deep into research. Things have been busy down this way.”

“So I herd. Did B catch the clown?”

“Yeah, but we’ll see how long that lasts. It’s like that place has a revolving door.”

“I give it 3 days.”

“Are we taking bets now? :)”

“I play with billyunares these days, O. I’m game 4 a bet.”

“Whew. Sounds like a bit out of my budget. Any billionaire I know?”

“U know every 1. What sort of questun is that?”

“Fair. Anyone I know personally?”

“Ever met Baby Luthor?”

“Can’t say I’ve had the pleasure, but I’ve read a few articles, several by the Girlscout. She seems legit.”

“She’s amazeing. U should meat her. Anywho, soz to cut the chit chat short, I need u to get a massage to the leegue for me.”

“The league? Wow, okay. You don’t mess around, do you? Go big or go home. What’s the message?”

“Think weve found the Scouts but cant be sure. Was kinda hopping 4 some back up just in case stuff went south.”

“Oh, that is big. Can you give me a location? I’ll reach out to the league and see who’s available.”

“Santa land.”

There was a little word bubble on the bottom that lasted for several seconds before disappearing, and then the response of.

“Oh, got it. That’s a big location, you know. You heading anywhere in particular up there?”

“Thinking of cheking out the Fortress 4 clues first.”

“Makes sense. So you’re not expecting to find the Scouts there?”

“The scouts havent made comm….commoonicashun…..oh sod it, they havent talked 4 days. Not like them. They’ve gotta be in truble. No truble at the Fort.”

“Any idea what you’re up against? If it made the Scouts non communicado, it’s got to be serious.”

“Marshun h8ers with a big dog wisal. A Kryptonian dog wisal.”

“A dog whistle? Can you elaborate on that? What was the frequency and the delivery device?”

“Long and 1000 mega hurts. Oh wait soz, fort you said distance, not device. Device was a sattelyt.”

“Whose? It could help lead us to the perps.”

“My buddy’s. But is wozn’t her.”

“Someone inside her organization?”

“A freind of Lex, yep. Probly. Most likey.”

“For an unfriendly person, he certainly has a lot of friends. Any chance you can get me the name of the satellite in question? It will make things faster on my end.”

“A name? Like Dave? No wait hes a worm. Damn, ill have to ask Lenny.”

“Okay, it will be something like NOAA-18 (NOAA-N, COSPAS-SARSAT). You’re friend will likely know what I need. I assume she’s working with you fully and will be okay with me spelunking through her system?”

“Yep, yep… .mind u, I did draw all over her wall. Im not in her good books at the moment. Hang on let me ask her.”

Lois sat back from the computer and looked about, then noticing the phone on the desk, pressed a button she’d seen Lena press once or twice. The button to call Jess. “Come on, pick up, pick up, pick up,” she muttered, tapping her fingers impatiently on the desk as she waited.
 
Suddenly, a voice cut through the quiet from the intercom,

“Miss Lane, do you require assistance?”

Lois blinked. “How’d you know it was me?”

“Because Miss Luthor is here with me. Is this a request for more doughnuts?”

“Triple glazed with frosted sprinkles, please. Oh, and is Lenny ok with a friend of mine looking through her stuff for the name of her satellite?”

“I’m sorry. Who’s Lenny?”

In the background, there was chuckling.
 
“I can hear her laughing. Just… stick her on the line for a moment, yeah? Please? S’il vous plait? Look, I’m asking in French, ooh la la, I’m getting a bit desperate now. Time is ticking and all that.”

“Just a moment, I’ll see if Miss Luthor is available.”

There was a brief silence, and then Lena’s voice came through the intercom.

“This is Lena Luthor. With whom am I speaking?”

“Cut the crap, Lenny, and don’t ask questions, ok? I’ve got a friend. She needs to know the name of your satellite. Are you ok for her to look through your systems to find it? Yes or no?”

“You know the most interesting people, myself included. I assume you mean the communication satellite we were discussing earlier. If so, I can have Jess send you the name to pass along. It will be faster, and it won’t cause anyone on my cyber-security team to have an aneurysm.”

“Ok, yep, great, thanks very muchly. Ciao for now.” Lois hung up the phone and went back to the keyboard.

“I know u haked the fones as soon as you heard who I was with, so I take it u got all that?”

“Hacked the phones, moi? Hey, I resemble that remark. And yes, I got all that. As soon as she sends you the name, pass it along. It’s not as much fun as hacking L-Corp, but it’s a lot more fun than messing around with their lawyers.”

“So, think you can find what u need?”

“Is that doubt I’m hearing? Are you doubting my skills?”

Another pop-up appeared on the laptop.

“Miss Lane, Miss Luthor has approved the release of the name of one of our satellites to you. Advanced Orion 5 (Mentor, NRO L-32, USA 223). Let me know if you or your associate need anything else. I’ve been authorized to cooperate with you completely on this matter.”

“Never dowted u O, just Lenny’s assistant but she’s cool with it now 2. U can see her massage, yep?”

“Hold on, let me borrow your screen for a moment.” The cursor began to move without Lois touching the touchpad. “Okay, I’ve got it. Anything else I should know?”

“Did B get those files I sent 2 him. Abowt the Captain?”

“He did, and it’s on my research list… which is growing longer by the moment. You folks need to learn how to use a computer properly. They’re good for more than Candy Crush, you know.”

“I cant stand that game! Pokemon all the way! And u reelly need to get outta ur little cave more. Come out 1 evening, we can piant the town red.”

“I’m not much of a town painter anymore.”

“Oh don’t be like that, just coz youve got weels. Its fine! I promise you it will be great.”

“Tell you what, you get the Scouts back, and I’ll show up for a celebration. How does that sound?”

“You got yourself a deal :D”

“Okay, then let me get back to work. Hit me up if you learn anything new. I’ll message you if I learn anything, and I’ll get in touch with the league. Best of luck.”

“Thanks O. U too.”

“Wait, is there some offishul way for me to sign off? I cant remember.”

“Just say goodbye and bring them home.”

“Rodger that. Id saloot, but I might get wired looks.”

At the sound of a clearing throat, Lois looked up to find Lena standing in the doorway.
 
“I’ve got our flight booked, and clothing will be waiting for us on the plane. Do you need more time?”
 
“Nope, I’m done,” Lois nodded as she shut down the chat, flicked the laptop shut and stood up. “We’ve got backup on the way in case things get hairy, but I’ve told them it could be a wild goose chase, so they’re to wait for my signal before they act.”
 
“I’m sure I don’t even want to know what you mean. Could I bother you for access to my laptop?”
 
“All yours,” Lois nodded, motioning to it. 
 
Lena logged in, a little smile on her lips.  “It looks like Dave has been hard at work. He sent me a message.”
 
“Ooh, ooh, what’s he say?” Lois perched on the corner of the desk, peering over. 
 
Lena frowned.  “It’s not overly surprising, given that we know hemholtz rings are part of this equation. It looks like there is evidence of a powerful electron beam being used, at least twice, up in the arctic circle.”
 
“And electron beams are bad, right?”
 
“Not in and of themselves. They’re powerful bursts of heat capable of liquifying solid matter quickly depending on the source, and these seemed quite powerful. They’re used in welding, but unless someone wanted to do a lot of damage to the caps in a short matter of time, I’m not sure what else these could be used for in that location.”
 
“Could be why the Supers went up there?” Lois suggested. “They got wind of some devious, nefarious plan to speed up Global Warming by melting the ice caps and flooding stuff, like in that film that time. The Supers went up to stop them and something happened.”
 
“Well… had these been ongoing bursts, yes, but these were two fairly quick bursts about a day apart.”
 
Lois opened her mouth to say something, then paused, her mouth forming a little ‘o’ for a moment before she changed what she’d been going to say. “So these Heineken coils be used to create a really hot beam, and it happened about the same time apart the Supers went missing?” Lois frowned. “Is the answer to why they were stolen really something as straight up as shooting superheroes out of the sky?”
 
Lena tapped her nails against the desk. “Yes? Technically, there are other theoretical uses for them, devastatingly powerful uses, but there is a stunningly short list of people capable of doing something with them, and one of them is locked up for multiple life sentences. The other one is... me.”
 
“You, who was nearly kidnapped not that long ago,” Lois pointed out. “Something tells me the stuff stolen from your warehouse was just the tip of a very long iceberg of stuff that was stolen. Someone had the knowhow to hack your satellite, and they knew they needed you. The Supers vanished a day apart from each other. This is all too much of a coincidence for me. Like the General says,” She affected a deep voice. “Never ignore a coincidence.” Her voice went back to normal as she added, “Unless you’re busy, then always ignore a coincidence.”
 
“I won’t even pretend to understand your family dynamic. So basically, we’re looking for an iceberg in the arctic?”
 
“A bit like a needle in a haystack, yep. But do you know something you’ve got on your side right now, Lenny? Someone who’s actually done that. Found a needle in a haystack, I mean. Took me a week, but that’s besides the point.”
 
“Tenacious may be our greatest strength. So, we head north? I don’t have exact coordinates for the electron beam, but I can get us in the right vicinity.”
 
“We go North,” Lois nodded. “You get us in the right place, near enough, and I’ll work it out from there. Though we’ll have to get past Castle Black and the Wall first and hope we don’t meet any Wildlings on the way.”
 
“Are you being serious, or is this some kind of movie reference again?”
 
Lois blinked. “Oh for goodness sakes, Luthor! Please tell me you’ve seen Game of Thrones? ‘Winter is Coming’, Jon Snow and all that?”
 
“Sorry. I started the first book, and while well written, I found the representation for the treatment of women unconscionable. I’d rather spend my time reading scientific journals.”
 
“You do that for fun anyway,” Lois smirked. Then she shrugged. “All I’ll say is Arya Stark kicks ass, but the same can’t be said for her poor father. I’d warn you it was a spoiler alert, but he’s played by Sean Bean. Naming something that man DOESN’T die in would be a spoiler alert.”
 
Lena was absently biting her thumb, and she looked up oddly. “I’m sorry, Lois, were you saying something?”
 
“Uh huh,” Lois nodded, her face deadly serious. “I was saying blah blah, blahblahblah, blah de blah, blah blah blah, blublublublah.”
 
“Good that I didn’t miss anything then.” Lena said as she logged off her laptop and began to pack up.  “Do you want me to order lunch for delivery so it’s waiting at the plane when we get there?”
 
Lois sighed and rolled her eyes, knowing not to even make a comment about Lena not paying attention. “Sure, I’ll have whatever you’re having. But with meat. Oh and no alcohol, because I’m driving.”
 
Lena opened her mouth,inhaling deeply as if to argue but instead said, “Fine, but that means you’re having vegetables. You need to eat more vegetables.”
 
“I eat plenty,” Lois pouted. “You’ve just never seen me do it.”
 
“I’m sure you’re also quiet at times, but until I observe that phenomenon, I’ll be keeping it on the list of urban legends.”
 
“You’ve watched me sleeping, Luthor,” Lois raised one eyebrow tauntingly. “I’ve seen you do it, so don’t deny it. I’m quiet then.”
 
Lena snorted. “Who told you that you were quiet when you sleep?”
 
Lois opened her mouth to reply, then tried to come up with an example, floundered for a moment, and then grinned. “Yeah okay, you got me there.”
 
Lena slung her laptop bag over her shoulder, pulling something out of the pocket and holding it out to Lois. It was car keys. “Please, don’t kill us before we find the Supers and preferably before I cure cancer. As much as I enjoy your company, wrapped around a telephone pole is not the mark I want to leave on the world.”
 
“Fine, fine, next time you’re being kidnapped, I’ll drive slowly so they catch us, shall I?” Lois grumbled as she followed behind, twirling the keys on one finger.
 
“Pouting does not become you, Lois.”
 
“And being evil doesn’t become you, Lena, but you’re having a good go at it. I thought my driving was good? I didn’t hit anything animal, mineral or vegetable, and I didn’t even scratch the paintwork. That’s got to be worth bonus points, surely?”
 
“Yes, and the only ones that landed in the drink were the kidnappers, so good job there. Perhaps we should get you something special for dessert. How about cheesecake?”
 
“Ooh,” Lois perked up immediately. “Make it profiteroles and you’ve got a deal.”
 
“I’ll call the bakery on the way, just make sure you get us home safely to enjoy them.”
 
“Aye, Ma’am. That I can do,” Lois smiled and nodded, dipping an imaginary hat to Jess on the way out as a farewell.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Five hours later, Lois was huddled up in several layers including a thick snow jacket, two pairs of gloves, three pairs of socks (including one thermal pair), heavy duty boots, a woolly hat, faux-fur lined hood and ski goggles – a scarf wrapped tightly across her nose and mouth.
 
She held tightly around the waist of Elliott as he expertly drove the snowmobile across the harsh white terrain of the Arctic. To their right, Lena was similarly riding on the back of a second snowmobile, this one driven by a man called Remy, while following them both were two further snowmobiles and a sled pulled by eight huskies, driven by Jacques and loaded high with various supplies.
 
It never ceased to amaze Lois how money could quite literally, in this day and age, buy you anything, including a private jet to the Arctic, a shed load of supplies, a small crew of men and even eight husky dogs to help them, all assembled and ready to go within half an hour of Lena’s call. She was either paying them a huge sum of money, or they showed her considerable and unwavering loyalty. Probably convinced to do so by the huge sums of money she was willing to pay them. Whoever said money couldn’t buy loyalty had clearly never had enough to try.
 
Lois tentatively let go with one hand, fumbled about beneath her hood for a moment and finally reached her ear, pressing the button on the headset she was wearing beneath the many layers.
 
“See anything yet?”
 
Across the small gap of unrelenting whiteness, Lena shook her head beneath her own hood. A definitive no. 
 
Determined not to give up, Lois gripped tightly round Elliott’s waist again as he bounced them over a particularly rough patch in the snow.
 
“Hey watch it!” she snapped, even though he wouldn’t be able to hear over the roar of the snowmobile, and the wind rushing past them due to the speed they were currently travelling at. Behind them, some of the huskies bayed and barked in excitement, happy to be put to work, and running across the snow like they’d been born and bred for just this sort of thing.
 
Which Lois belatedly realized they had. They were working dogs, bred for one purpose. No wonder they loved their job. It was, after all, what they’d been born to do.
 
She glanced back to the front, then found her gaze drifting off to the left, for some unexplained reason. Which was when she saw it – barely visible through the clouds of snow that the wind kept kicking up, but she fixed her eyes on that spot and watched and waited. When she was absolutely 100% sure that she wasn’t seeing things, she thumped Elliott on the shoulder, a little harder than she’d intended, then pointed. He nodded and skidded the snowmobile to the left. It only took Remy, Lena, and the sled a few seconds to notice this altered course and change their own directions accordingly.

“What is it?”

Lena’s voice crackled through the headset.
 
“Building on the horizon,” Lois fumbled for the device at her ear again. “Call me paranoid but it’s not exactly exuding an air of natural scientific research. More like ‘top secret, keep the hell out’.”

“Your reporter senses telling you that?”

“No, my army brat ones.”

“Alright then. We’ll start there.”

………………

As they got closer, the vast scope of the facility became clear – a main central building surrounded by a dozen or so outbuildings, all linked with interconnecting corridors and a barbed perimeter wire fencing. Watchtowers on each corner sported gigantic spotlights, no doubt an armed guard or two in each keeping a lookout.
 
“I’m telling you, this is all screaming military to me,” Lois hissed as she and Lena crouched behind one of the smallest outbuildings, on the very edge of the facility, just inside the perimeter fencing. A heavy snowstorm had picked up not long after their arrival, providing the perfect cover for the two women to cut the wire fencing and sneak into the compound unseen. The snowmobiles, dogs and the men who had accompanied them were waiting on just the other side of the nearby ridge, ready to make a quick getaway if needed. Lena was carrying a flare gun, and the men had been told that if they were to see a red flare, they were to get the hell out of dodge as fast as they could. No questions, no arguments. Remy hadn’t liked it, but in the end, Lena had talked him around, and he’d reluctantly agreed.
 
As she crouched beside Lena now, Lois pulled out her phone - her actual one this time, not the burner cell - and turned it back on. It didn’t connect to any network, of course - there was no signal this far north, but even just the action of turning it on would be enough for anyone looking for it to track her location via GPS. Then tucking it back into her pocket again, she studied the various areas of the compound one last time, her days as an army brat coming back to her in full force as she remembered the games she and Lucy used to play - trying to see who could sneak from outside the fence into a designated room in the base without being spotted. 
 
Their father actually hadn’t minded them playing that game because it kept his men on their toes as well. Children could be sneaky and cunning, and far more imaginative than any grown ups, so if anyone was ever going to sneak into a secret base, it would be Lois and Lucy Lane. Soon all the soldiers at each barrack had been acquainted with the game and had become much more vigilant as a result. Which had saved more than one man’s life in later years when insurgents would try sneak attacks of their own.
 
“So how are we going to do this?” Lena asked now as she also studied the base, but with a much less trained eye than Lois, because she’d never been in a situation like this before. Usually, flashing some form of ID to show she was a Luthor would gain her the ability to just walk on through the front door. 
 
“Scooby style?” Lois suggested finally, turning to her friend. At Lena’s confused expression, Lois rolled her eyes. “Oh come on, don’t tell me you never watched Scooby Doo. Practically every episode, Fred is guaranteed to suggest the gang split up and look for clues!”
 
Lena shook her head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. Besides, I left my Scooby Snacks at home.”
 
“So you have watched it,” Lois sighed, relieved. “For a moment there, I thought you’d had a very deprived childhood.”
 
“I did.”
 
“Sooo, why not split up?” Lois asked quickly, changing the subject. “We’ll cover more ground that way. And if one of us gets caught, at least we know the other will still be out there to come and rescue us.”
 
“That’s an awful idea.”
 
“You have a better one?”
 
Lena nodded.  “Several. They all involve me sitting at my desk in National City and commanding a vast army of highly trained mercenaries to do this in my stead.”
 
Lois smirked. “So why aren’t you doing that right now then? You had that option all along, yet here you are now.”
 
Lena opened her mouth to reply, then froze, momentarily lost for words. Eventually, her brows dipped into a scowl. “Let’s just do what we came here to do, shall we?”
 
Lois smirked again.  “Splitting up is a no then, I take it?  Sooooo what do we do now, Sherlock?”
 
Lena still didn’t like the idea, but Lois was right. And she couldn’t see any other alternative either. Like it or not, their best chance of finding out what was going on, was to split up and go separate ways.
 
“Fine.”
 
“Great! I’ll be Daphne, you can be Velma.”
 
“What?!” Lena exclaimed. “Why the hell am I Velma?!”
 
“Oh come on, Daphne’s sexy and Velma’s a genius,” Lois replied as if the answer was obvious. “Sounding familiar?”
 
“And Daphne always had a habit of getting herself into trouble.”
 
“Which is why I’m Daphne,” Lois grinned. 
 
Lena couldn’t help it and grinned as well. “See you on the other side then,” she nodded. 
 
Before Lena could protest, Lois threw her arms around the other woman in a big hug. “Be careful, Velma.”
 
“You too, Daphne.”
 
“Jinkies.”
 
“That’s my line.”
 
“I’ll give you ten dollars to say it.”
 
“I’m a billionaire.”
 
“And?”
 
“No.”
 
“But—”
 
“No!”
 
……………
 
Getting through the perimeter fencing had been easy. Getting into the building itself was a whole other matter, as Lois found out when she came upon a side door that required a keycard to swipe against a panel and open the door.

With a sigh, she found a spot to huddle down and hide behind some oil drums stacked nearby, then she surveyed her options.
 
She could either double back around and rejoin Lena, she could smash the swipe card pad with something and risk setting off an alarm, or she could get herself caught and let the guys in charge of this place escort her through the door.
 
As appealing as that thought was, she’d then be left with the problem of most likely armed goons stuck to her like glue. Getting rid of them wouldn’t be easy. 
 
Alternatively, she could sit out here in the snow and let her vital parts freeze off one by one while she waited for someone to open the door.
 
As an icy arctic blast picked up, Lois made up her mind and ran for the relative shelter of the alcove that covered the door. Ducking into it, she looked for the security camera. Every door had to have one. Rule 101 of shady top secret bases.
 
Locating it just above the keypad, at eye level, she grinned and tapped on it, then waved, hoping that someone was surveying the cameras at all times. “Hey there! Helloo? Hi! Question for ya.” She cleared her throat then carried on in a bright, sing song voice. “Do you wanna build a snowman? Come on, let’s go and play!”
 
There was a momentary pause, and then a crackling voice spoke over some sort of intercom system. “Identification?”
 
“I never see you anymore, come out the door, it’s like you’ve gone awaaaaay. We used to be best buddies, but now we’re not, I wish you would tell me why… do you wanna build a—” 
 
“
Identification!
”
 
“Rude! I wasn’t finished! But seriously, dude? Open the door, it’s freezing out here!”
 
“I cannot let you in without identification. You have five seconds to produce some, or I’m alerting security.”
 
“Alright, alright, got it here with me. Hang on one sec.” She rifled and rummaged in the pockets of her thick coat, then withdrew her gloved hand from her pocket and held up her middle finger to the camera. “That good enough for you?”
 
A red light began to flash on the panel, and Lois smiled. Then she frowned. “Ah crap. Didn’t think this through.” 
 
The door was pulled open and a guard, clad all in black, ran at her suddenly, causing her to shriek and jump backwards. She tripped, fell into the snow and he tumbled over the top of her, likely not expecting her to react in such a way. Taking advantage of the fact he was down, Lois got up quickly and kicked, with all her might, booting him in the face. Then she cringed. “I’m so sorry, I wasn’t meant to get you there! I’m sorry, I’m so sorry! I was going for the helmet!”
 
Feeling terrible as she saw the blood gushing from his no doubt broken nose, she grabbed him by the feet quickly and dragged him back inside, then crouched down to assess the damage for herself. He was out cold. And his nose was already starting to bruise. She hadn’t kicked him that hard, surely?
 
Before she closed the door behind her, she reached out and grabbed a handful of snow, compacting it in her hands and then pressing it against his nose. Then noticing a door beside them, she opened it to find a small room with a computer terminal that showed a clear image through the camera, out to the compound beyond. This must have been the guard on duty who’d come out to her when she’d flipped him the finger. 
 
Hefting and heaving him back into his swivel chair, she glanced at his uniform briefly. He was her height. Sort of. Give or take. She could use his uniform to blend in. But then he’d be left in just his underwear, freezing his ass off. She’d already broken his nose. Could she really do that to him as well?
 
As it turned out, however, she didn’t need to worry. Because a quick study of the room revealed a locker set into the wall that was easy enough to jimmy open. Inside was a spare uniform. And luckily, it was big enough that she could pull the black overalls over her beloved jeans and most of her other gear she was wearing. The only sacrifice she had to make was her gloves, scarf, wooly hat and coat. Which was a small price to pay in the grand scheme of things.
 
Lois dressed in the uniform quickly, took a holster and sidearm out and belted them in place. The pistol was odd looking, a metal slide on its side and the magazine wider and longer than what she’d seen in the past.  She pulled back the metal slide frowning slightly at the odd noise it made, then gave the trigger a slight squeeze. It wasn’t enough to fire it, just enough to make sure it moved smoothly, but the trigger didn’t budge. Lois tried a bit more force, but still, nothing happened, so she began searching the weapon for a safety. She eventually found a metal button on the side which she pressed, jumping when releasing the safety caused the weapon to fire. There was a grunt and then the guard, who had apparently come to and begun to stand, slumped to the chair again with a tranq dart in his neck. 
 
Lois winced. “Yeesh, not your lucky day, is it, pal. I really am sorry about all this but you should have built the snowman. So… yeah. Um… sweet dreams?” 
 
She patted the unconscious guard on the shoulder by way of one last apology, holstered the tranq gun, chucked her coat and other gear into the locker, and hurried from the room, pulling on the full faced helmet as she did so.
 
…………...
 
Lena, meanwhile, had opted for a slightly different approach. Beneath her own snow clothes she was wearing another business suit, only this time she wore pants instead of a skirt. Walking right up to the front door, she looked the guard on sentry duty, who was pointing a weapon at her, directly in the eye. “Open the door.”
 
“On whose authority?”
 
She smiled a cold, humorless smile. “I’m Lena Luthor. I’ve come by my own authority.”
 
The guard stood to attention, suddenly. “Ms Luthor, forgive me, we weren’t expecting you.”
 
“Clearly,” Lena raised an eyebrow. “Now if you don’t mind, it’s freezing out here.”
 
“Of course, Ms Luthor. I’ll let Doctor Bradley know you’re here.”
 
He stepped aside and keyed in a code on the door panel. The door slid open with a soft whoosh and Lena stepped inside, only to be greeted by another guard.
 
“Ms. Luthor, would you care to leave your coat with me?”
 
She took it off and handed it to him, knowing that if she tried to get the flare gun from the pocket she’d raise suspicions. So for now she’d have to leave it where it was and come back for it later if necessary. 
 
After that, she was led to a bright, well-lit room, furnished with sleek chrome furniture that looked like something out of a sci-fi movie and was completely at odds with the harsh, metallic structures of the rest of the compound. This room was built for luxury, not whatever else the rest of the place had been built for. She still wasn’t sure if this was a research facility or a prison, after all.
 
Her questions would soon be answered. 
 
A tall, dark haired young man in jeans and a black shirt with a white lab coat over the top, walked into the room with a smile. “Ms. Luthor, what an unexpected surprise! Your mother didn’t mention that you would be visiting any time soon.”
 
Her mother? Well this was bad news. No, worse than that. This was the worst possible news! 
 
“I had a last minute change to my usual schedule, so I decided to stop by and see how things were getting along,” She told him calmly, playing the part. With any luck she might be able to get answers out of him. “Dr. Bradley, I assume.”
 
“Oh, forgive me.” He held out his hand, shaking hers when she offered it in return. “Doctor David Bradley, head of the technical division team here.”
 
“Doctor Bradley,” Lena repeated as she shook his offered hand, committing his name to memory. It might come in useful later. “My mother has spoken highly of you, but it’s an honor to finally meet you in person. However, I didn’t fly all this way for pleasantries, so please educate me. What is this place?”
 
“What is this place?” He laughed, thinking it was some kind of a joke on her behalf. “Ms. Luthor, you amuse me.”
 
“And perhaps you could amuse me, too?” She returned with a patient smile. “I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not quite as up to speed on this project as everyone else. If you could humor me with the details, I’ll be sure to add a positive recommendation when I report back to my mother later?”
 
“Of course,” he nodded his head, suddenly more than eager to help. If it meant getting into Lillian Luthor’s good graces, then who was he to argue? “Perhaps it might be better if I show you? This way, Ms. Luthor.”
 
And just like that, Lena found herself being given a guided tour of the facility.
 
……………………….
 
Hands folded behind her back and head held high, Lena followed the proud doctor on his tour of the facility which was apparently extensive. In retrospect, perhaps she shouldn’t have played the Lillian Luthor card, because this man was showing off every nook and cranny in the place. At least she wasn’t wearing four-inch-heels. Her feet might be baking in her boots, but they weren’t aching.
 
“And this, Miss Luthor, is the executive dining hall. The kitchen runs twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, and 365 days a year… 366 on a leap year.” He grinned over at her, the same proud smile that had been making her uneasy since the moment she shook his hand. “We have a lovely quinoa and turnip salad being served today if you’d like something to eat. We always have a vegetarian option.”
 
“How did you know I was a vegetarian?” Lena furrowed her brows as she surveyed the doctor.
 
“Miss Luthor, I’ve studied your accomplishments at length, and I was heartbroken when your alien detectors weren’t released to the public. What happened there?”
 
“Oh, public pressure caused my board to back down. The idiots are more worried about stock prices than the safety of our planet,” Lena said as she watched him smile and nod. “It’s frustrating, but you can’t get anything done without capital.”
 
“And Luthor Corps… forgive, L-Corps’ public image gives us access to technology we couldn’t otherwise afford, so I suppose sacrifices have to be made.”
 
Lena stiffened but said nothing to his comment.
 
“Did you have to scrap the whole detector project?”
 
Putting on her best evil Luthor grin, Lena patted him on the arm. “Please. The detectors still exist. We sell them to a select few markets with a high ticket prices. Would you like it if a case of them got misdirected up here?”
 
His eyes glimmered as he pushed the door for the dining room open. “I’m so glad you showed up today. I’m truly one of your biggest fans. I know everything about you.”
 
Lena nodded and smiled as she stepped through the doorway and murmured, “Apparently, not everything.”
 
“What was that, Miss Luthor?”
 
“I said I’m starving, and I wouldn’t mind getting off my feet for a few minutes. Then, I’d love to see the heart of this operation.”
 
“The heart?”
 
“Please, Dr. Bradley. I may not be up to speed on everything, but I keep a close eye on the Supers. Tracking her was child’s play, especially once I realized what you… what
we
had used my satellite to do.” Lena sat, shaking out her napkin and placing it into her lap. “Is she still alive?”
 
“Oh, very much so,” the doctor chuckled. “She’s… marvelous.”
 
Lena relaxed at his words and then immediately stiffened again at his tone. “Well, I’d love to see what you’re doing with her. Keeping a Kryptonian under wraps for a whole multiple days isn’t easy. How are you doing it?”
 
“I’d rather show you.” He took a sip of his water, light dancing in his eyes. “We should go to the labs. I have an assortment of interesting creatures here. You’ll be amazed at what we’ve done to them.”
 
Lena forced a smile to her lips, eagerly looking away as a waiter appeared with a tray.  He placed a covered plate in front of each of them, uncovering her salad and then the doctor’s steak… bloody and rare. It looked as if it had been cooked by showing the cow’s mother a picture of the sun.
 
As he eagerly cut into his food, Lena said, “You certainly do like your steak rare.”
 
His smile just grew as he popped a piece into his mouth. “I like it screaming.”
 
Luckily, the waiter appeared again with two glasses and a bottle of wine. It wasn’t a bad year, and Lena nodded her approval as she took a sip. The waiter poured them both a glass and then disappeared out of the room again leaving the bottle on the table.
 
“Let’s toast,” the doctor said, holding out his glass. “To science, the future, and protecting our world.”
 
“Yes, to our world’s protectors,” Lena said clinking her glass lightly off of his, “may they never fall.”
 
They both drank and fell into quiet conversation over their meal. Lena sipped her wine slowly, less than a half glass in when the doctor refilled his. They talked about science, the future, his total disrespect for anyone not human, and some specific theories he had about mind control and interdimensional travel. It would have been a lovely meal and conversation if not for the rabid and dangerous xenophobia. Oddly, it reminded Lena of home.
 
“Now, I’ve been dying to pick your brain about that portal that you created. I know those damn aliens took control of it, but what was your original purpose?”
 
“It was created for humanitarian purposes,” Lena explained. “I wanted to be able to bring food, medicine, and other supplies all around the world. We could do so much for everyone, humanity I mean, with that sort of transport.”
 
“And aliens ruined it all again.”
 
“They certainly did.”
 
Their conversation died out for a bit, and Lena was about to try and press for more information when she felt like she was being observed. She looked to her left, and out in the hallway, gloved hands pressed against the window, one of the guards was staring in at her. Lena couldn’t see his face through the shaded visor of his helmet, but she’d have bet a sizeable sum that he was looking directly at her. Perhaps it was another xenophobic follower of her mother’s who knew she was a Luthor and was feeling a bit star struck. She could only hope it wasn’t one of her mother’s people that she had met in the past under less than ideal circumstances or Lena might be brought to the Supers in a way she hadn’t wanted.
 
The soldier in question raised a fisted hand, and then an alarm went off. It blared through the room making the doctor look up and frown. He pulled out a radio he had at his side to ask for a status update.

“We’re under attack, Sir.”

“Attack from whom?”

“Military of some kind, maybe special ops. They tried to slip in quietly, but a security sweep caught them. We’ve backed them into L-7, and we have people cutting off their retreat. We’ll have them caught soon.”

“Excellent. Capture instead of killing them if possible, and bring them to the prisoner cells. I’ll want to question them myself when I’m done escorting our guest through the facility.”

“Yes, Sir. Understood.”

“Something wrong?” Lena asked.
 
“Nothing my men can’t handle,” the doctor assured her as he rose and typed a code into a console, shutting off the siren. “Now, where were we? Ah, yes. You were going to tell me how you replicated the alien elements that you needed to make the portal work.”
 
“Oh, I was, was I?” Lena quirked a brow at him.
 
“Please?”
 
She laughed. “A lady needs to have some secrets, don’t you think?”
 
He laughed too, and when she glanced out the window again, the soldier was long gone.
 
……………………….
 
As secret bases went, this one sucked. It was all white walls and metal and it was boring as hell. For the past few hours, Lois had been wandering around with absolutely no idea where she was even going. Every corridor looked the same as the last, and she was pretty sure she’d been going in circles and getting absolutely nowhere. 
 
Until she came upon the window that she hadn’t seen before, which revealed some sort of dining room beyond.
 
Giving a casual glance into the room as she passed, Lois did a double take, then backtracked to see inside properly this time.
 
“Uh! What gives, Luthor? You get to sit down, relax, eat food and have idle chit chat? I’m the starving one!” 
 
She was about to bang on the window with a fist, when from somewhere overhead, a klaxon began to blare and had Lois not just nearly died of shock, she might have heard the pounding footsteps and been able to get out of the way in time.
 
As it was, the guard ran straight into her and knocked them both flying, landing in a heap on the floor.
 
“Dude! What the hell?!” She snapped at him as they both untangled themselves and scrambled back to their feet again.
 
“You deaf?” The guard snapped at her. “We’re under attack.”
 
“From what?” Lois frowned. “From who?”
 
“Fuck if I know,” the guard shrugged, already breaking into a jog as he carried on down the corridor, expecting her to follow. So she did. “Some sort of military breach.”
 
“Military?” Lois repeated as she picked up the pace, first jogging, then breaking into a full on sprint. “Now we’re talking!” 
 
……………………….

Hands cuffed behind their backs and weapons confiscated, Alex and Vasquez were escorted down two levels to what were obvious prisoner cells.  A few housed dejected looking lifeforms, hollow eyes looking up with little hope. Up in the arctic, it wasn’t likely anyone would be coming to your rescue unless they knew where to look.  At the end of a hallway of identical cells, Alex and Vasquez were led and pushed inside. On their wrists, Alex and Vasquez’s kryptonite detectors started to chirp in response to low-levels of the radiation.  Around the room were dents in the walls, fist-sized dents, and finger-sized burrows appeared in the bars in several places.
 
As he slammed the cell door closed and locked it, one of the guards said, “Get comfy, ladies. You’ll be here for the rest of your lives.”
 
The other guard snorted. “That might not be that long.”
 
They chuckled together, raising Alex’s hackles. “You boys better not get too comfortable either because we won’t be staying. Much better than you have tried and failed to keep the DEO down in the past.”
 
“Really?” One of the guards moved up to the cell then lashed out, poking a shock-stick between the bars and hitting Alex with thousands of volts of electricity.  As she spasmed and fell to her knees, he laughed again. “I don’t think so.”
 
The guards took up position on either side of the cell, far enough away as to be out of the agents’ grasps, as Alex shook off assistance from Vasquez to stand again.  After several minutes, another guard appeared from the end of the hallway. They raised a hand, waving at the soldiers guarding the prisoners.
 
“Wow, hey, there you guys are. Been looking all over for you.” The guard jogged down the hallway towards them and stopped a short distance from the cell. “Change of plans. The, uh… the Big Boss Man sent me down here to fetch them two. You’re relieved of guard duty.”
 
One of the guards tilted his head, an obvious sign of confusion and curiosity even through the full mask and helmet.  “Big Boss Man?” He looked over at the other guard who just shrugged before returning his attention to the new guard. “We didn’t receive any orders. Why do you need them?”
 
The new guard, shorter in stature than the other two, but not by much, tilted a helmeted head in return and shrugged. “I’m just the new guy. Don’t shoot the messenger. Take it up with the Doctor.”
 
“Doctor who?” One of the guards asked, the confusion evident in his voice. The newer guard let out an involuntary laugh. 
 
“Doctor Who! Good one! You guys crack me up. So, about the prisoners…?”
 
The second guard ticked his head back, speaking to his compatriot. “Hey, we should probably check in with command and see what this is about.”
 
The new guard sighed. “Look, all I know is,” A hand waved through the air, fingers waggling. “These aren’t the Agents you’re looking for.”
 
For a moment, no one moved.  Then the guards glanced at each other before one of them took a step closer to the newcomer. “What?”
 
“Hold on,” the newest guard tilted a helmeted head again. “No, wait sorry, it’s ‘these aren’t the

droids

you’re looking for. Ah well, worth a shot.” A hand reached down to a holster and a tranq gun was grabbed. Two quick, successive shots later, both guards in front of the cell had hit the deck, bright red darts sticking from the sides of their necks.
 
Reaching down, the guard brandishing the tranq gun fumbled about for the keys for a moment from the pocket of one of the sleeping guards, and then stood back up, holstered the tranq gun and unlocked the cell door.
 
Alex and Vasquez looked on in disbelief as the cell door was opened.  Alex stepped forward, squinting as she stared at the newcomer. “Who are you?”
 
With a flourish, the guard reached up and whipped off her helmet, to reveal vibrant violet eyes and a huge grin. “I’m Lois Lane. I’m here to rescue you.”
 
There were a few seconds of shocked silence before Alex groaned. “Are you quoting Star Wars?”
 
Lois’ answer was a dazzling smile.
 
Alex sighed. “I hate you.”
 
“If you’re going to be like that,” Lois twirled the cell keys on one finger. “Then I could just shut this door again and walk away?”
 
“No, no, we’re grateful,” Vasquez said stepping through the cell door and beginning to search the guards. “Say thank you, Alex.”
 
“...I’d rather stay in the cell.”
 
“Fine by me,” Lois shrugged. “I’m off to find me some Supers.”
 
“Wait, hold on.” Alex stepped out, a hand on Lois’ shoulder. “Have you seen them? Can you confirm they’re still here?” Alex gestured back toward the cell. “It seems pretty obvious they were recently, but…”
 
Lois sighed and shook her head. “No and no. I wish I could, but I haven’t physically seen them. We’re in the right place though. I’d stake my Pulitzer on it.”
 
Alex nodded and crouched down, opening the uniform vest of one of the guards.
 
Lois raised an eyebrow. “Uh… what are you doing?”
 
“We’ll have an easier time searching the facility if we’re all in their uniforms.” She pulled off the vest, turning to Vasquez who was doing the same to the other guard. “We should switch vests. This guy is smaller.”
 
“Which is why I suck at espionage,” Vasquez said as she tossed Alex a vest, receiving one in exchange. “There aren’t a lot of 115 pounders for me to impersonate.” She tugged off her guards helmet, wiggling her hands inside it. “I’m going to need to make a head wrap out of this guy’s t-shirt. My skull is going to swim in this thing.”
 
“Yeah, same,” Alex agreed as she tugged off the other guy’s shirt. “At least it’s chilly up here. I don’t need to have some sweaty guy’s shirt on my head.”  As she patted down the man’s pants pockets, she pulled out something, holding her hand out to Vasquez. “At least we still have our comms, but these bastards took our weapons. I’m getting mine back before we leave here.”
 
“Of course, you are.” Vasquez slipped her comm into her ear, doing a quick check to which Alex nodded. “You and that sidearm have been through a lot together.”
 
“Right? It’s a relationship. No firearms left behind.” Alex tapped at her own comm. “This is Agent Danvers. Do you read me?”

“Alex, thank God. You and Vasquez went silent. We thought we lost you.”

“Vasquez is here with me. We’re both good. What about the rest of the squad?”

“Johnson got them up a level and found a room to lie low, but the guards here are doing sweeps.”

“Can you lead us to them?”

“I wish. I’m trying to hack the place to get a schematic, but so far no luck. This place has a firewall you could melt Sauron’s One Ring in if you know what I mean.”

Alex fidgeted with the head wrap, finally pulling it off, slipping it into her belt, and clipped the helmet by it. “I never know what you mean. Let Johnson know there are three of us dressed as guards. They should try to do the same once things calm down in their section.”

“Three of you? Did you find Supergirl or Superman?”

Alex eyed Lois warily. “Definitely not. We have a civilian, and there may be one more on site. Just… tell him to try not to kill any friendlies.”

“Can do. Anything else?”

“Radio silence until someone contacts you. They may be able to trace this signal.”

“No way, but there is someone else sniffing around in their system who might be able to.”

“Who?”

“No clue, but they’re good. They’re half the reason I haven’t gotten through the firewall yet. They’re leaving little traps all over the place.”

“What do you mean traps? You’re still in NC, right?”

“Yeah, but, you see, the person’s—”

“Stop. I’m less interested in hearing your technobabble than usual. If you get in and can lead us to Johnson or lead the troops to us, let me know. Otherwise, not another word until you hear from me, understood?” There was no response. “Are you still there? Can you read me?”

“You told me to be quiet.”

Alex sighed. “Just try to get in. We’re flying blind here. Danvers out.”
 
“Who was that?” Lois asked.
 
“Don’t worry about it,” Alex said dragging her guard in to lay, unconscious, next to the one Vasquez had dragged in. She stepped outside, closing the cell. “Okay, so tell me everything you’ve been holding back on us so we can find the Supers.”
 
“If you’d been doing your jobs and following the clues, you’d already know everything,” Lois shrugged. “Just saying.”
 
“Maybe if I hadn’t spent half my energy trying to locate one MIA nosy reporter, I’d know everything.”
 
“I’m an investigative journalist. Clue is in the name,” Lois shrugged. “I investigated.”
 
“You’re a hazard with legs who’s interfering in an investigation. This is a matter of national security. It should be left to the professionals… not professional busy-bodies.”
 
“And yet who worked out that we had to come up here? Who told whom where to go, huh? Would you have worked out where to go without me? I think not.” Lois smiled proudly.
 
Alex stepped closer, her face only inches from Lois’ “Maybe if you hadn’t been such a—”
 
“Hey, hey, enough already,” Vasquez said, a hand on Alex’s shoulder as she tugged her away from the other woman. “Why don’t we reschedule this fight for when the Supers are home and safe. Right now, you’re both tense and worried about people you love, and this crap isn’t helping them.”
 
Lois glared at Alex for a moment, then nodded, pointing to Vasquez with a thumb. “What she said.”
 
Alex was silent for a few moments before she also nodded. “Fine, but I’m not going to like it. At least tell me you left Miss Luthor warm and safe in some cushy hotel someplace.”
 
Lois squirmed slightly, biting her lip. “So, about that….”
 
Alex muttered a few barely comprehendable words, but the ones that could be made out weren’t suited for polite company. “You really are a hazard. So where is she?”
 
Lois paused, opened her mouth, closed it again, then shrugged. “We went Scooby Style.”
 
“I…” Alex looked over at Vasquez.
 
“I have no idea what that means,” Vasquez admitted, “but I’d be willing to bet it isn’t good.”
 
Lois sighed, rolling her eyes, then deadpanned. “We split up and looked for clues.”
 
“Right, you split up so you could do more damage,” Alex said with a glare, her posture softening at Vasquez’s throat clearing and own glare. “Sorry. Okay, so we’ve got two missing Supers and a missing Luthor, we’re in some sort of off the books arctic research center, and it’s the three of us versus a small army. Does anyone have any good news?”
 
“The Supers were called here by a Kryptonian dog whistle,” Lois shrugged. “If that helps at all? Oh, and I called the League.”
 
“Kara was complaining about hearing some odd high-pitched noises all week before she went missing,” Alex said. 
 
Lois frowned. “Come to think of it, so was Clark.”
 
“I’m sorry, but who’s the League?” Vasquez questioned, looking from one to the other before her eyes finally settled on Lois.
 
“Who’s the—?” Lois spluttered, pinching the bridge of her nose. “For a covert Government organisation who keeps tabs of everything and everyone, are you seriously telling me you have no idea who the Justice League are?” 
 
“Oh, that ‘the League’.” Vasquez nodded. “I guess we’re bigtime now.”
 
“Should we be expecting backup?” Alex asked. “We could really use some backup, and the DEO only sent a small group of us as we’re still out there looking for the Supers. If we could get to a radio, I could call for backup, but our communications were blocked when we got a few meters from this place. All we have here is another half-dozen soldiers we got separated from when they tried to cut us off from an exit.”
 
“It won’t be the whole League,” Lois shook her head. “Just whoever’s closest and can scramble the quickest. But yes, the League will be on their way in some shape or form. Plus you’ve already got two League members here.”
 
“We have?” Alex frowned. “Who?”
 
“Superman and Yours Truly. Well I’m only an honorary member at the moment, but give me time, I’ll make it official.”
 
“Right,” Alex sighed, wondering why she’d asked. “And the comms?”
 
“I… actually, I have no idea if my comms with Lena still work, but they should do. They worked out there, so there’s no reason they shouldn’t work in here. We need to get out of here before anyone else turns up, then I’ll try and contact her.”
 
“Fine, let’s see if we can get more information on the Supers. I really hope Miss Luthor is okay. If she gets hurt in this, it’s going to be a press nightmare, and my sister will never forgive any of us. Plus, for running off and coming here on your own, I want the pleasure of killing you and Lena myself,” Alex said.
 
“Why Agent Danvers, that has to be the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me,” Lois smirked. “And don’t worry about Lena. So far only one of us has bled on this little crusade of ours, and it wasn’t her. She can handle herself. Besides she’s a Luthor. She probably flashed her ID and got the exclusive VIP Grand Tour of the place.”
 
“Her ID for what?” Alex asks. “What do you know about this place that you haven’t told us. Is Lena involved somehow?”
 
“What? No of course she isn’t,” Lois snapped. “And the next person who even dares to insinuate that she is involved in some way can expect my fist in their face.”
 
Wide-eyed, Alex looked over at an equally surprised Vasquez, both of them exchanging uncertain looks. Alex held her hands up in front of her. “Hey, relax. It was just the way you said it, it sounded like she had some sort of special access at this place. What is it with Lena Luthor that makes you and Kara so protective?”
 
“Try spending an afternoon with her, ‘Agent’ and you’ll see for yourself,” Lois growled. And then she forced herself to relax a little, knowing it wasn’t really Alex’s fault. “And Lena’s special access, as you put it, is her surname. The Luthor surname holds enough credit with every criminal organisation on the planet that they can quite literally get in anywhere, no questions asked.
That
is what I meant.”
 
“Again, you two need to remember we’re on the same side,” Vasquez reminded them. “So, what’s the plan for finding the Supers?”
 
Lois flashed another mischievous grin. “Scooby Style? Lena and I have already called shotgun on Daphne and Velma, so you two can be...” She glanced between them both, grinning.
 
“Dibs on Fred,” Vasquez said without skipping a beat.
 
“I… you… no,” Alex said crossing her arms. “Just no.”
 
“Will you do it for a Scooby snack?” Vasquez asked with a grin.
 
“I write your performance reports,” Alex reminded her.
 
Vasquez cleared her throat and straightened her back, the smile vanishing from her face. “Yes, ma’am.”
 
“Oh you big party pooper,” Lois pouted, moving to stand beside Vasquez and face Alex. “Tell you what, new plan. My buddy and I will go find the Supers, you can get all these prisoners to safety.”
 
“Again, no. We’ll leave them here and come back for them later.”
 
“And you can promise me, hand on heart, that there’ll be a later to come back to?” Lois asked, all joking aside in a single moment as she became suddenly dead serious. Innocent victims needed their help, and she was someone with the ability to do that. Therefore she had a responsibility to do that.
 
Alex sighed. “Look, Lois, I get it. We’re on a mission, though. Getting sidetracked on a mission never ends well.”
 
Lois folded her arms. “Something the General taught me, Agent Danvers. Leave no man behind.”
 
“I’m not trying to argue with you,” Alex replied, her voice rising slightly in volume. “The Supers need to be rescued or who knows how many lives will be lost in the future. I’m prioritizing. It’s one of the least envied and most necessary parts of command.”
 
“Right,” Lois nodded. “Good luck with that.” She turned and took the keys that she’d stolen from the guards, moving to the next cell along. “In the meantime, I’m going to completely ignore you because we are not leaving anyone behind. If the bastards who run this place catch wind that we’ve rescued the Supers, what’s to stop them from blowing this place to the moon, and taking everyone inside with it? You might be willing to take that risk, but I’m not.”
 
“And if you get caught trying to sneak them out, we could lose the Supers. We could all get caught and get these people killed. Like I said, we need to do this the right way.”
 
“Saving lives
is
the right way, Agent. And besides, you forget that I have two very vital pieces of insurance up my sleeve.”
 
Alex gave Vasquez, who only shrugged, an inquisitive look before asking, “What insurance?”
 
“The Luthor in my pocket and the League in my phone book,” Lois smirked as with a loud clang as the key turned in the lock of the cell door, she swung it open triumphantly, and a rather dazed, forlorn looking inmate stepped carefully out, unsure what was going on. “It’s alright,” she told him quietly. “My friends and I, we’re going to get you all out. I promise you.”
 
As an actual growl rose in the back of Alex’s throat, Vasquez stepped forward, placing her hand on the keys in Lois’ hand. “I’ll get them out.”
 
“Agent Vasquez—”
 
“Agent Danvers, you know I have a better chance of sneaking them out than she does, and she’s right.  I mean, you’re right, but she’s also right. These people need help, you’re the best tactician here, and Miss Lane has some pretty high up contacts if you two get in trouble. At this point, I’m the one who’s expendable as far as the mission goes.”
 
“You’re not expendable,” Alex argued.
 
“I’m just saying you can finish the mission without me. Go save the Supers and let me do this.”
 
There were several moments of silence, and then Alex sighed heavily. “Fine, but you find yourself a safe place near the exit to hide. We don’t have backup outside, and these people won’t survive the cold.”
 
“Lena and I came with transport,” Lois piped up at last, as she handed over the keys to Vasquez. “East exit, head across the compound and there’s a hole in the fence. Over the ridge beyond that, you’ll find two snowmobiles, a sled with dogs, and three men with supplies waiting. There’s also a jacket and some bits in the security room just beside the exit that you can use to wrap up the more vulnerable against the weather. Tell the men who are waiting that Lena and Lois sent you, and they’ll help.” She turned to head down the corridor, then turned back again. “And… Vasquez, was it?”
 
“Yes, ma’am.”
 
Lois smiled and nodded, placing a hand on Vasquez’ arm. “Thank you, Vasquez. Really. I mean it. Thank you.”
 
Vasquez nodded and took the keys. “Just watch Agent Danver’s back, and get the Supers out of here safely. That’s all the thanks that I need.”
 
Lois snapped off a salute with a grin. “Yes Ma’am.”
 
“Okay, so where to now?” Alex asked as Vasquez went down the line opening cell doors. “You don’t happen to have a map with an X on it that says, ‘Supers Here’, do you?”
 
Lois made a point of patting down the pockets of her stolen uniform. “Ah, damn. I knew I was forgetting something when I left the house this morning.”
 
“Right, me too. So, how much of a look around this place have you gotten? We’d only checked out a few rooms before a guard showed up. We took him out, but not before he set off the alarms.”
 
Lois started to walk back down the corridor. “Honestly, I have no idea. Every hall looks the same. I literally could have walked in circles and not realised.” She reached the end of the corridor and looked first left, then right. “It’s this way.” She started down the left path, took ten paces, then stopped and turned round again. “Sorry, this way.” And she doubled back, heading down the right path instead.
 
With a heavy sigh, Alex said, “We’re fucked,” and followed after Lois into the unknown.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

“This way, Miss Luthor,” the doctor said as he opened a door. 
 
“What are we going to…” Lena’s voice fell off as she looked around the room. 
 
It looked like a battleground. There were broken and bent metal tables and girders scattered about, one actually sticking out from where it had been smashed partially through the wall. The wall was dented and torn, riddled with damage and smeared with colored, sticky-looking fluid. The spectrum was varied enough to look like paint, but the non-human handprints wiping through it told a different story. There was acrid odor in the air, a vast change from the sterile environment they’d left behind.  If it were possible for pain and death to have a smell, this would be it.
 
“What the hell is this?”
 
“Ah, the testing chamber. Yes, here we run experiments of varied natures, but what I want to show you is this way,” he said gesturing toward a door he was still walking toward, the only other door in the room. “Watch your step. Trip hazards, you know.”
 
Lena looked around before hurrying after him, not to be left alone in the room when the doctor left. Behind the door was a set of stairs up, and at the end of them was another door that led into a small room. It had a desk set all the way forward, two chairs, and two monitors. There were an array of buttons and switches, the sizes and colors of which varied. Sitting at the desk gave you a clear view through the plexi-glass looking window that revealed the destroyed room below.
 
“This is the control room,” he said as he sat and powered up the systems, one display lighting as he punched in his password and then the other screen lighting up as the system initiated. “Here we can control all of the goings on below.”
 
“The goings on.” Lena looked down at the room. “What exactly happens down there?”
 
“Oh, you know… tests. Here we run through multiple tests to find the parameters of the strengths and weaknesses of our subjects.”
 
Lena stepped around the desk and up to the window, pressing her hand to it as she studied the scene below. “You mean aliens.” 
 
Doctor Bradley smiled as he continued to type. “This facility is spectacular for testing our specimens. We’ve been able to gather so much information on their strengths and weaknesses. It will make killing them all that much easier.”
 
Lena ticked her chin up and steeled her face before turning to face the doctor. “And the Supers are among those you’ve tested?”
 
“You mean the Kryptonians? Yes, we have two of their species, a male and a female, and we’ve run tests on them both extensively. The results have been,” he turned his smile on her, sheer glee in his eyes, “enlightening.”
 
Lena swallowed hard. “I do hope they’re still alive. I didn’t come all this way to see testing on less spectacular species.”
 
“You’ll be happy to know they are, but not for much longer. I think we’ve learned all that we can from them. Their lives are basically valueless now. I’m just waiting for the approval from Mrs. Luthor to terminate them, although I think she might possibly have other plans for them, which would be a pity if she did.”
 
“You’re going to kill Superman and,” Lena cleared her throat, “Supergirl?”
 
“Well, let them kill each other. Out here in the far north, our people have little to do in the way of entertainment. Watching two Kryptonians tear each other apart should make for a lovely afternoon, don’t you think?” He rose, heading toward a filing cabinet. “Speaking of terminating the Kryptonians, I’d like to show you the progress we’ve made with some of the specimens here.”
 
As he turned to face her again, Lena plastered a smile onto her face. “Please do. I’d like to know anything you can tell me about the aliens you have here… all of them.”
 
……………………….
 
Lois raised a gloved hand to the helmet she’d pulled back on, to preserve her identity, shortly after rescuing the two agents. Fumbling about on both sides, she tried to feel for anything that might cancel the noise of Alex’s whining voice as she droned on and on about…something. Lois wasn’t paying attention any more. It wasn’t words as such. Just an annoying buzz of sound that was incredibly irritating. 
 
Eventually, she gave up and with a sigh, turned back to Alex, cutting her off mid-rant. “You’re not the FBI are you.” It was a statement, not a question, but she waited for an answer, regardless.
 
Alex froze momentarily before shrugging.  “Does it matter?”
 
“Maybe,” Lois also shrugged. “Maybe not.”
 
“Fine, I’m not in the FBI, but I am an agent for the American government. I’m one of the good guys.”
 
“In my experience, anyone who needs to insist they’re one of the good guys, usually isn’t.”
 
Alex’s expression further soured, a touch of anger added to her anxiety. “You always think you know what you’re talking about, but sometimes, you don’t. Sometimes, a banana is just a banana.”
 
“Have you got any? I’m starving. I haven’t eaten since breakfast.”
 
“Sorry, I had a full four-course meal in my pouches, but the guards confiscated it when we were caught. I guess you’ll have to hold on until we get my sister back… and your fiancé.”
 
“And let them eat all the food before I’ve even had a chance to? No thanks. We should find the canteen. Or the kitchen. Or the mess room. Whatever they have here to feed everyone. I don’t think well on an empty stomach.”
 
Alex snorted. “You don’t think well at all.” 
 
“Ouch, Agent,” Lois smirked. “You might want to put your claws away before you hurt yourself.”
 
Alex stopped suddenly, taking a step in front of Lois. “You shouldn’t even be here, lady. If anything happens to you, I’ll never hear the end of it from Clark which means I’ll never hear the end of it from Kara. If I could have gotten you out of here with the rest of the civilians, I would have.” She ran one hand through her hair. “I can’t believe you dragged Miss Luthor into this. If anything happens to her, I’m just gonna let Kara deal with you, and it won’t be pleasant.”
 
“Kara loves me,” Lois shrugged. “And you should put your helmet on. Don’t want anyone recognizing you.” She tapped her own helmet with one hand in demonstration.
 
“Kara may love you, but she has a weird affection for Lena that I don’t understand,” Alex replied while pushing her own helmet on and strapping it into place as tightly as possible, though it still wiggled due to its size.
 
“Love is not weird, Agent. It’s beautiful and varied, and it doesn’t discriminate. Unlike you. Who seems to think I’m just a civilian who would accept being marched out and told to sit nicely and wait for the grown ups to finish talking.” Lois’ tone had become less playful now, and more serious. “So if you think that would ever, in a million years, be a distinct possibility, then here’s some news for you. Dream. On. You send me out, I’m walking right back in through the front door again.”
 
“I know. Why do you think I didn’t try to get you to leave with Vasquez? You’re like a migraine, an unending pain between my eyes that I can’t get rid of without extreme measures.”
 
“Extreme measures? Such as?” Now Lois had perked up again, intrigued by this idea.
 
“Locking you in a cell and throwing away the key.”
 
“You know I’d just pick the lock and escape.”
 
“Not if it was a cell without any doors or windows,” Alex growled.
 
“Then how would you get me in the room in the first place?” The level of smug in Lois’ tone was infuriating.
 
“I’d have the damned thing built around you!”
 
“How would you keep me still long enough to do that?”
 
“Drugs, lots of drugs!” Alex looked around the corner before starting into motion again. “Speaking of, I could really use something when dealing with you. I’d say Clark deserves to be a living saint, but I think it’s the alien thing that lets him deal with you on a regular basis.”
 
“That must mean Lena’s an alien as well,” Lois shrugged. And then she considered. “Do you think she is? Would explain a lot.”
 
Alex did a double-take. “An alien Luthor? You gonna start writing for the National Enquirer?”
 
“Pfft, that garbage? I’d rather gouge both eyes out with a spoon than even consider such a horrendous act of career suicide.”
 
“I’d rather gouge out my eyes with a spoon than read it, so mark this day on your calendar. We finally agree on something.”
 
“Hold on, does that mean Hell has finally frozen over?” Lois smirked, then she held out her fist. “Dude, that’s awesome. Come on, don’t leave me hanging.”
 
“Hell has definitely frozen over. Being here with you in this situation is my personal hell.” 
 
Lois’ extended fist turned into a single extended digit as she prodded Alex’s shoulder playfully. “Very good. I see what you did there.”
 
Alex adjusted her helmet and mumbled. “My God, I can’t believe I ever had a crush on you.”
 
Lois completely missed a step at that, stumbled and flailed for a moment, doing a couple of odd little hopping skips before she righted herself again quickly. “Say what?!”
 
“Shhh. Keep your voice down. What’s wrong with you?”
 
“This helmet’s heavy,” Lois exclaimed, to try and cover up her embarrassment. “I can’t breath, and with this blast shield down, I can barely see a thing.”
 
“Same, hold on.” Alex tried two door handles before finding one that turned. The room inside was dark and quiet, seemingly empty. “This way. Come on.” When Lois followed her inside, Alex searched around for a moment before finding a light switch. As she flicked it, lights flooded the room. 
 
The room was revealed to be a storage area.  Boxes and crates of all sizes were stacked up in what was likely a sensible order to someone but looked like disorder to the casual observer. Alex made a beeline to a clipboard hanging from the side of one of the shelving units, frowning as she read it.
 
Lois, meanwhile, had flipped up her visor and was studying several wooden crates that had been stacked in the centre of the room and covered with a tarpaulin sheet. Only the sheet didn’t quite cover the crates completely, and the bottom few were left exposed. Lois was crouching in front of one of these now, her fingers tracing the image on the side of the crate.
 
 
Alex followed after her, a scowl on her face. “Hey, don’t run off. You could get yourself…” She paused, studying Lois’ face while Lois studied the crates. “What is it?”
 
“I know this,” Lois tapped the picture on the side of the crate with a finger. “I’ve seen this before.”
 
“You have?” Alex was surprised, and suddenly the anger was replaced by concern, and perhaps the slightest flicker of hope. If Lois knew the symbol, then she’d know who it belonged to. Which could give them the answer as to who owned this facility. Once they knew who owned it, they could narrow down the reason for it being here in the first place, and by extension they could work out if they were even looking in the right place or barking up completely the wrong tree.
 
“I know this,” Lois muttered again, more to herself this time, however. Deep in thought, she tried to place where she’d seen the image before – on a building, above a doorway… a shady lab she’d investigated as a teen… her first front page article for the Daily Planet when she was 16.
 
She glanced back to Alex. “Who’s on the other end of your comms? Anyone intelligent? Or at least anyone with access to the internet?”
 
“Definitely the latter.  Hold on,” Alex nodded, not wanting to interrupt Lois’ train of thought by arguing. Clearly the woman was on to something. 
 
With a few quick muttered words to Winn, Alex nodded at Lois and Lois heard a brief moment of static in her earpiece before Winn’s voice came across loud and clear.

“You’re not going to hurt me, are you?”

He whimpered.

“I didn’t tell anyone about you and Lena breaking into my apartment, I swear! Please don’t rearrange my face!”

Alex raised an eyebrow and Lois groaned. “Way to go, Schott!”

“I’m sorry Lois, please don’t—”

“Shut up and listen. Does the name Ismenios mean anything to you?”

“Ismenios?”

Winn repeated, even as she heard keys clicking in the background. He was typing away at his computer.

“As in the dragon Ismenios? Giant serpent in Greek mythology who guarded the sacred spring of Ares near Thebes.”

“That’s the one,” Lois nodded, studying the crate again for a moment, one finger tapping on the image still as she racked her brains, trying to remember something that had happened over a decade ago. “That’s him, on these boxes. Ismenios. But I don’t get it. Ismenios Laboratories was shut down after the whole Mayor Worthington and Boss Moxie thing. I made sure of it with my article for the Daily Planet. No way they could have stayed in business after that. Unless this isn’t an Ismenios lab, but a sister company, or they were always just a subsidiary of a much larger company who - holy shit!”
 
“What?” Alex and Winn asked at exactly the same time.
 
“You wanted to know who this place belonged to,” Still crouched, Lois angrily pounded her gloved fist into the crate. “There’s your answer. We’re in the right place! I’d stake every single Pulitzer I’ve ever won on it, in fact.”
 
“Ismenios?” Alex frowned, not understanding. “Who the hell is Ismenios?”
 
“Not the dragon,” Lois growled. “The guy fighting the dragon. Winn, care to do the honors?”

“Just one sec.”

More keys tapping and then a loud gasp.

“Holy shit!”

“Will someone please tell me what the hell’s going on?!” Alex snapped, the suspense killing her.
 
“Cadmus,” Lois growled, slamming her fist into the box again. “The guy who fought and defeated the dragon Ismenios in Greek mythology is Cadmus! That’s who this place belongs to!”
 
“Fuck,” Alex muttered. “Of course, it is. Fuck!” she yelled, kicking out and slamming her booted foot into one of the crates with a resounding thud. “That means Cadmus has Kara and Clark.”
 
“And yet you sound surprised,” Lois growled as well, pulling down the corner of a tarp she had lifted. “Want to place a wager that a Luthor is in charge as well?” Then she held up a gloved finger to Alex. “Not
that
Luthor, though. She’s one of the good ones. So don’t even think of contradicting that.”
 
“What is it with you, my sister, and Lena Luthor. Does she hypnotize you?”
 
“It’s my feminine charm and delicate personality. She finds it irresistible.” Hands on her knees as she crouched, Lois was looking around the room again. “What’s in all these boxes?”
 
“I’m not going to dignify that with a response. Your feminine charms I mean, not the boxes.” Alex pulled up the clipboard in her hand, studying the list and flipping pages as she read. “Ah, looks like a bunch of electronics. I’m not sure what most of them are, but I bet they’re expensive. Hold on,” she tapped at the page, “some of these I recognize from the list of components stolen from the L-Corp warehouse.” 
 
There was a loud metallic clang and thudding noise, followed by an exclamation. “Son of a bitch!” Lois staggered back a step, holding onto her helmet and glaring up at the offending item. Something was overhanging from one of the upper shelves and she’d misjudged the gap beneath it as she’d stood up again, having not factored in the extra height from the headgear she was wearing.
 
“Yeah, watch your head,” Alex said with just a glance before returning to the sheets. “Whoever put this place together has a number of OSHA violations awaiting them.”
 
“Bless you,” Lois replied as she walked past in the other direction, making a point of ducking low to avoid any more overhanging hazards.
 
Alex unsnapped her helmet, clipping it back to her belt as she began to read again. “I don’t see anything here that’s useful, but I’m not an engineer. I’m sure it’s useful to the Luthors.”
 
“Unless there’s a Super hiding in these boxes, there’s nothing useful in here, and we should get going,” Lois sighed as she also unclipped her helmet, pulled it off and then fumbled about in her pocket for something. “Damn. No food. Ah well, was worth a shot.”
 
“Nothing to eat on this list, either,” Alex said as she returned the clipboard to the nail it had been hanging from. “We might as well keep moving. You good to go?”
 
“Did you really have a crush on me?” Lois blinked innocently in Alex’s direction, and her cheeks had even colored a little.
 
“I…” Alex ducked her head, refusing to make eye contact as she mumbled, “I was a kid. I was gay and didn’t know it. I was pretty confused.”
 
“But, hold on,” Lois paused, considering. “To have a crush on someone, you have to have met them. We’ve never met before a few days ago when you showed up at the farm. I’d have remembered if we had.”
 
Alex snorted. “Apparently, not. I remember you, and when I look back on it, you were my first crush.”
 
Lois considered for a time, nodding slowly. And then she smiled broadly. “I’m a gay icon? That’s awesome.”
 
“Oh, for fuck’s sake!” Alex unclipped her helmet, slapping it soundly onto her head again. “Stop batting those violet eyes at me, put your helmet back on, and let’s go. The Supers aren’t going to rescue themselves.”
 
Lois grinned madly as she pulled her own helmet back on, then snapped off a very formal military salute. “Yes Ma’am.”
 
Opening the door on the other side of the room, Alex peeked in both directions before waving an arm for Lois to follow her. The duo continued down the hallway for several minutes, making rights whenever they came to the end of a corridor. The whole time, Alex continued with mutters, in varying volumes, about how this was no place for a civilian. Every time Lois tried to speak, Alex would interrupt and tell Lois to keep her voice down and follow orders if she expected to live through this.  At the next right turn, Alex led the way and continued her mutterings for several moments. 
 
“At least you’re finally being quiet.”  It was several more steps before Alex stopped, glancing over each shoulder in turn before turning fully to see the empty corridor behind her and Lois nowhere to be seen. “Aw… fuck. Of course, she did. If she lives through this, I’m going to kill her.”
 
><><
 
While Dr. Bradley typed into the system, Lena read through file after file on the various aliens being held and their test results. Far too many were marked with a big red ‘deceased’ stamp on their first page.  However, with a stoic expression, Lena continued to read page after page of aliens only identified by their race, gender, a general description of their exterior anatomy, and some grueling details about the sorts of experiments they’d undergone.
 
“Doctor, one question,” Lena said as she tapped at a spot on one page, “there are a number of findings here identified with a shorthand of the full words. I assume ‘Str’ is strength, given the pounds listed after it, and I’m assuming ‘Stmn’ is stamina as speed and distance is listed, but what’s ‘PT’?  My first thought is physical therapy, but that makes no sense.”
 
“Heh, no, the subjects are not receiving any kind of therapy here.  PT stands for pain threshold.”
 
Lena blinked, her face still removed of expression.  “...oh. And you ran these tests on,” her gaze shifted momentarily to the file to her right listed only as ‘Kryptonian - F’, “all your subjects?”
 
“Of course.”  He smiled eagerly at her.  “Understanding what causes them pain and what their thresholds are gives us the data we need to control them.  As you know, the ideal is to remove all non-terrans from our planet, but until that is done, being able to use some of them against the others is critical for our primary goal, protecting human life on Earth.”
 
“So you break them.”
 
“The term we use is ‘bring them to a stage of compliance’.  It’s quite fascinating. Some have proven resistant to traditional, pain-based forms of coercion, but they fall prey quite easily to psychological levers.”
 
“Psychological,” Lena swallowed hard, “levers?”
 
“Yes.  For instance, there’s a male Azurian here, they’re a heat and fire based lifeform, that we use to generate heat for this facility.  He proved to be tenacious when it came to our conventional methods of persuasion. However, after we placed one of his children outside and forced him to watch the outcome, he became completely complacent in order to protect his two remaining children from the same fate.”
 
“That’s…” Lena’s mouth twitched as she stared at the doctor before a poor reflection of a smile graced her lips, “most impressive.”
 
“Thank you, Miss Luthor.  I’m so glad you can appreciate the good works we’re doing here.”  He turned back to his computer and began typing again. “As Archimedes said, ‘Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I will move the world.’”
 
“Ummm, yes. Tell me, Doctor, is my mother aware of all of the good work you’re doing here?”
 
“Mrs. Luthor gets monthly status reports on our success rates and any areas for concern, but she leaves the details to me.”
 
“It sounds like my mother has a lot of faith in you.”
 
“I’d say I earned it with my success here.”
 
Lena didn’t respond, just turned to another page of the report where she focused her attention for more than a minute.  “Doctor, there are notes here on something called ‘the motor strip external control unit.’ The specifications seem to be for a device to stimulate and/or quell neurological function.  Would you care to expound on that?”
 
“Ah, the control unit.”  He turned to her once again.  “It’s a lovely little device of my own design.  It’s made to shut down much of the frontal lobe, the parts that control personality, judgment, speech, and self-awareness while stimulating the motor strip, the part of the frontal lobe that controls body movement.”
 
Lena frowned down at the papers in front of her.  “So it’s used for mind control?”
 
“Mind control.”  He chuckled. “No, it doesn’t control the mind so much as disconnect the specimen from certain centers of the brain while overriding and replacing signals from other centers of the brain.”
 
She looked up again, meeting his gaze.  “How is that different from mind control?”
 
He shrugged.  “It’s not magic.”
 
“Hmmm.”  Lena flipped a page, her brows furrowing as she continued to read.  “It says here you’ve seen increases to activity in the amygdala in subjects which has, at times, caused malfunctions in the control unit.”
 
“Yes, but don’t be concerned, Miss Luthor.  We’ve made adjustments to the power center of the unit, and we’re closer to finding that precise point at which we can maintain control without destroying the motor functions of the test subjects.”
 
“I’d like more information on this device.  How exactly does it
—”  Once again, the alarm blared.  A shrill noise that echoed painfully off the close walls of their room.
 
Pressing a few buttons, the doctor quieted the alarm.  He grabbed his radio once again. “I need a status update immediately.”

“Sir, we had two more intruders.”

“More military?”

“No, Sir.  It was Batman and Wonder Woman.”

The doctor paled, glancing over at Lena.  “And?”

“Sir, Wonder Woman is in custody.  Batman escaped capture, but we have troops on their way to the section where he was last seen.  We’re cutting him off. He’ll be captured soon.”

“See that he is.  I want a full update every ten minutes until he’s brought in.”

“Sir, yes, Sir.”

Doctor Bradley looked over at Lena, a sly little smile forming on his lips.  “Make sure the prisoner is properly restrained, but I don’t want anyone touching her until I get there.  My guest and I have to finish up here, but then we’ll be heading down to begin the interrogation process.  Understood?”

“Yes, Sir, understood.”

Putting away his radio, the doctor smiled at Lena again.  “I apologize for the interruption, Miss Luthor. We don’t usually have this many… visitors.  As you can see, it isn’t anything the forces here can’t handle.”
 
“What did you mean by interrogation process?”
 
“You asked about our complacency process.  I thought you would like a first-hand demonstration.”
 
Lena tensed.  “You mean torture.”
 
“We don’t use that term.  Anyway, it’s not like these are people who matter.”
 
“You mean humans.”
 
Beaming, Doctor Bradley nodded.  “It’s so easy to talk to those who understand the cause.  Others would question our methods, but they can’t see the forest for the trees.”
 
“The trees of dead aliens.”
 
“Again, we don’t speak in those terms.”  He turned his attention back to the computer screens and began to type anew.  “Now, as soon as you’re done with those reports, we can go together to examine the prisoner.  If you’d like, you can even take the controls and play with some of the levers I’ve mentioned.  It can be a most exhilarating experience to gain control over your subject and—”
 
The sound was almost a gong followed by a thud.  The doctor’s face hit the desk solidly before bouncing part way back up again.  Wordlessly, he slumped to the ground unconscious, bleeding from his face and with a rising lump on the back of his head.
 
Breathing heavily, Lena stood with a fire extinguisher in her hands, her eyes burning with hatred as she stared down at the unconscious scientist.  “You’re right. It can be.”

……………………

Batman checked the building schematics on his wrist device again, for what felt like the hundredth time, as he crept down the corridor, every sense alert and ready to intercept any danger that came his way.

“Careful, heat signatures up ahead beyond this next door. Three of them,”

a female voice spoke into his ear - the faithful Oracle, guiding him as always. Batman nodded, though it was doubtful Oracle could see, and slid up alongside the door, peering through the small circular window. Outside were three guards walking in a line, the one in the middle talking to the others. 
 
“I can’t believe it, one alarm clock malfunction and suddenly you’re demoted and sent to the back of beyond.” The middle guard complained. “When they said I’d see the world when I joined up, this was not the corner of the world I was hoping to see.” 
 
As they passed, Batman stepped out, grabbing the guard in the back around the torso while squeezing the man’s neck into silence with his other hand. The man jerked, clawing at his throat as he let his rifle dangle from its strap across his torso. His legs kicked as Batman dragged him back into the other room where a punch to the gut, followed by a karate chop across the back of the neck, left the man slumped unconscious.
 
“So, how long have you been stationed here?” The chatty guard asked as the duo continued along the hallway.
 
“Almost eight months,” the other guard replied. “Phil and I were transferred here at the same time, right, Phil? Phil? Phil?”
 
Both guards turned, staring down the empty hallway behind them. 
 
“Huh, where’d he go?” The chatty guard asked. “He was right behind us.” When there was no response, save for the sound of something striking the concrete floor behind them, the guard turned around again, finding an empty hallway stretching in the other direction with nothing but a discarded pistol as the only sign that she’d ever had company to begin with. “Holy crap. Is this place haunted?” Scurrying forward, the guard grabbed up the pistol and held it in a two handed grip, checking the safety before looking back up again. “Hello?”
 
“Goodbye,” Batman said as he fell down from the ceiling, inches from the guard.
 
“Shit, don’t hit me!” The guard raised both hands, the pistol held tightly in one and stumbled backwards.
 
“That’s not how this works,” Batman replied in his gruff tone, even as he pulled his fist back.
 
“Don’t hit me! Clark will kill you if you do!” 
 
Hand stilled mid-punch, Batman stood up fully as his arm relaxed. “What did you say?”
 
“It’s me, you idiot!” The guard flipped the visor of her helmet back to reveal her face, violet eyes flashing with something between fear and anger. “You scared the crap out of me. Again!”
 
“Lois?!”
 
“Yes, me! What are you doing here?” She scowled at Batman.
 
“You called me, remember?” He frowned, confused.
 
“No, I phoned the League. You were meant to be busy rounding up clowns and penguins.”
 
“I dealt with them then decided to head up here. I heard they had good espresso.”
 
“Since when did you gain a sense of humor, Bats?”
 
“Funny as always, Miss Lane,” he gruffed, humorlessly. “I came with the League. Question is, how did

you

get here?”

“Feminine Charm.”  As he scoffed, Lois rolled her eyes. “Yes, I do have some!”
 
“Great job protecting your short supply of it.”
 
“Why don't you give your stand up a rest, Bats, and do exactly what I tell you? That way we can find everyone else and stay alive at the same time.”
 
Batman rolled his eyes beneath his cowl. “How the hell does Clark put up with you?” As Oracle chuckled from the other end of the comm, he balled his hands into fists. “This is not funny.”
 
“What?” Lois frowned, looking his way. He shook his head.
 
“Nothing.”
 
“Why do I feel like everyone has a secret friend but me?”
 
“Why are you surprised you have a lack of friends?”
 
Lois’ eyes widened. “You’re giving

me

a hard time about making friends?”
 
Batman seemed to consider before nodding. “That’s fair. So, have you seen the Supers yet?”
 
“No, but at the rate the good guys are showing up, we’ll outnumber the bad guys in no time.”
 
“What does that mean?”
 
Lois turned, waving for him to follow. “Come on. I’ll tell you all about it on the way. We have a pair of Supers to rescue.”
 
“Lead on, Miss Lane. I’ll follow you anywhere.”
 
Grinning over her shoulder, Lois grinned back at him before slapping her visor down and doing just that.
 
…………………
 
Quietly grumbling to herself, Alex rounded a corner to see a lone guard at the other end. The guard was obviously female, by her size, and fiddling with the tranq gun in her hand. Breathing a sigh of relief, she headed for the other woman.
 
“There you are. What did I say about not wandering off by yourself? Do you have any idea how long I’ve been looking for you?”
 
The woman flipped back her visor to reveal cocoa brown skin and brown eyes. “Who are you?”
 
“I…”
 
The woman reached up, pushing gently at Alex’s helmet that shifted, even under the light pressure. “You must be new. Your uniform looks like crap. No matter what they say, these things are not one size fits all. When I first transferred in, it took them two weeks to get me a uniform that fit. I looked like I was walking around in my dad’s clothes.”
 
“Yeah, I’m new,” Alex said with a sigh of relief. “Sorry for the confusion. I lost… someone who transferred in with me. I thought you were her.”
 
“It happens. What these uniforms lack in individuality they make up for in warmth, and that’s more important up here.” The guard held out her hand. “Give me your helmet.”
 
“My helmet? Why do you want my helmet?”
 
“I have some extra helmet pads,” she said patting a pouch on her waist. “The old ones wear down, and the only way to make these fit is to pad them.”
 
Hesitantly, Alex pulled off her helmet, one hand balled into a fist as she watched the other guard. The other woman’s smile never faltered as she met Alex’s gaze and took the helmet, holding it in the crook of one arm as she put pieces of peel-and-stick foam against the interior of the helmet at strategic places.
 
“Hey, Morgan!” Another guard called as he approached from behind them.
 
“Hey, Nickowski,” the woman with Alex’s helmet responded. “What’s the good word?”
 
“Wonder Woman.”
 
“Those are not good words when put together,” she said, pausing in padding Alex’s helmet. “What about her?”
 
“She’s here.”
 
“Where?” The woman nearly dropped Alex’s helmet as she spun, her sidearm in her hand.
 
“Relax,” Nickowski said. “We captured her.”
 
“You captured Wonder Woman?” Alex asked, making both guards turn toward her.
 
“Who are you?” Nickowski asked.
 
“New recruit,” Morgan answered for Alex. “Want to show her what happens to ‘draftees’?” 
 
“Draftees? What happens to draftees?” Alex asked, her gaze shifting back and forth between the two guards.
 
“Come on. We’ll show you,” Morgan said as she and Nickowski headed off with Alex trailing behind them.
 
They’d made several turns in the maze-like corridors when a voice crackled in Alex’s ear.

“Agent Danvers, do you read me?”

Alex nearly stumbled, pressing on the comm in her ear as she slowed to drag several feet behind the guards and whisper, “Who is this?”

“Good, you can hear me. I found your team’s frequency, found you were out in the facility somewhere, and have been trying to lock in on you. I’ve lost contact with Wonder Woman. Her comms have gone silent. Have you seen her?”

“I’m headed there now. How do you know my name?”

“Oh, I looked through the DEO database for the specs on this mission and saw you were in charge.”

“Through the…” Alex clamped her hand over her mouth, keeping her voice quiet. “I don’t know who you are, but you’ve broken at least a half-dozen federal laws by this point.”

“Oh, you’re adorable, just like your sister.”

“Like my… Who are you?”

“A friend, and as soon as I clear this static and pinpoint your location, I’m going to send your location to other friends. Be on the lookout for them.”

“For who? What the fuck is going on?”
 
“Hey, you coming!?” Morgan shouted from up ahead.
 
“Yeah, I just had to… my boot.”
 
“Well, hurry up, or we’re going to miss the—” Morgan’s words cut out as she turned to the right. “Who’s that?” A dark figure appeared from seemingly nowhere and slammed into her before slamming an elbow into her face through the open mask.
 
As Morgan dropped, the figure spun and kicked Nickowski before delivering two quick punches to the guard’s throat. Then he was grabbed around the neck and choked out to fall unconscious to the floor.  The figure turned, eyes through his mask narrowing on Alex as he ran toward her.
 
“Holy, fuck. You’re Bat—” 
 
Alex was knocked back several feet by a fist to her face. She partially rolled with it but still hit the floor hard, dazed and slightly confused. She shook her head, barely rolling away from the booted foot that was set to slam down on her head. She sprung to her feet, fists raised to block the next strike that came at her and squared off against the Dark Knight.
 
………………….
 
Five minutes earlier...
 
“Do you mind not pointing that thing at me?!” Batman grumbled as he and Lois continued their way through the facility, peering into every doorway to see what they could find. 
 
“For God’s sake, Wayne, I'm not aiming at you!” When Batman looked over at her, not convinced, she huffed. “What? I'm not. Besides, it's only your kneecap.”
 
“I need my kneecap!”
 
“Are you telling me this tin can’s not bulletproof?” Lois knocked experimentally on the side of his cowl. “Wait, this thing’s rubber?!”
 
“Hey!”  He pushed her hand away.
 
“Look I know that you’re nervous, Sir Broods-a-lot, but you gotta remember I grew up around green berets and navy seals, not rich folks and fast cars. You stick with me, I’ll protect you. You’ll be fine.”
 
“I don’t need protecting,” Batman grumbled. “And I’m not nervous of anything, except that gun in your hand.”
 
“For what it’s worth, I can’t stand them either, but in this instance they’re a necessary evil. Just keep an eye out for Lena, and let me worry about everything else.”
 
“Lena’s here too?! As in Lena Luthor?”
 
“How many other Lenas do you know?” Lois retorted. And then she held up a finger to him. “Wait, don’t answer that. I don’t need to know how many skirts the billionaire Bruce Wayne has ruffled.”

“This is why I like her,”

Oracle chuckled in his ear.

“I’m starting up a petition to make Lois Lane your new sidekick. She could be the new Robin?”

“Actually I heard it was Batgirl who needed a sidekick these days.”

“Uh…”

There was silence, followed by

“Actually, on second thoughts, I’m good. We’re good. Everything’s fine.”

Batman blinked as he looked around suddenly and noticed something. Or rather, a lack of ‘someone’. “Oh no.”

“What’s wrong?”

Oracle asked, and Batman groaned.
 
“Lois is gone.”

“She can’t have gotten far.”

“This is Lois.”

“Well, there’s heat signatures up ahead. She’s probably run into some trouble.”

“It’s Lois. Of course, she has.”
 
Following Oracle’s directions, Batman turned the next corner to nearly spill out into a corridor with three guards, one lagging behind the others. He pulled up short, but the one who was speaking turned to him, eyes widening as she saw him. With no choice left, Batman surged forward and quickly rendered the guard unconscious before she could call for help, then jumped on the second guard. When he slumped unconscious to the ground, Batman turned to find the last guard still staring at him.
 
“Holy fuck. You’re Bat—” 
 
He jumped forward, slamming his fist into her face though she pulled back at the last moment and rolled with the punch. Still, she hit the ground obviously stunned for a moment. Batman lifted his leg intent on slamming her head into the floor with one stomp, but she rolled out of the way at the last moment, leaving him to connect with the floor with bone-jarring force. 
 
The redhead flipped to her feet, blocking the next punch he threw at her head. When he kicked, she raised her leg in a block and slammed her torso into his, forcing him to stumble back several steps.
 
“You’re better than the rest of the guards here,” Batman begrudgingly admitted.
 
“That’s because—” 
 
He caught her leg as she kicked and tossed her up, but she managed to flip completely over and land on her feet again, fists raised and ready.
 
“Much better,” he added.
 
“That’s because I’m not—”

“Agent Danvers, I have your location narrowed down to one section.”

“Little busy, right now,” Alex responded. “I’m trying not to get my ass,” Alex grunted as Batman slammed her against the wall and she had to duck down and roll between his legs to escape, “kicked.”
 
“I’m well aware. Who do you think is kicking your ass?” Batman said.
 
“I’m not talking to you, I’m talking to… Actually, I don’t know who I’m talking to.”
 
“You can talk to my fist,” Batman said sweeping Alex legs out from under her and grabbing her wrist as she fell. He leaned forward, one fist raised and ready to crash down on her.
 
“You know, I swear all these damned corridors look the same as each—” Lois strolled into the hallway, took one look at the situation and yelped. “No! No, no, no, no! Bad Bat! Bad! Put her down! Drop! Drop her! Bad Bat! I said drop her!”
 
“Lois?” Batman and Alex said at the same time before turning back to each other with obvious surprise.
 
“For goodness sakes, put her down!” Lois strolled forwards and pointed at Alex, then at Batman. “What the hell are you doing, you idiot?! One minute you’re behind me, and then you’re gone, and then I come round the corner to find you kicking the crap out of Kara’s sister?! Seriously?”
 
“Kara’s sister?” Batman blinked down at Alex before releasing his grip but leaving his hand down at her, fingers extended and palm open.
 
“Thanks,” Alex said as she let Batman pull her to her feet. She rubbed at her chin. “Man, you hit hard.”
 
“That’s the point,” he rumbled back.
 
“Okay,” Lois looked between one and the other, decided that they were going to play nicely from now on and nodded. “Great. So introductions. Agent Grouch, this is Sir Broods-a-lot. Sir Broods-a-lot, this is Agent Grouch. Everyone friends? Wonderful! Now let’s get back to finding these Supers, shall we?”
 
“I had a lead on Wonder Woman, but,” Alex gestured toward the guards on the ground. “Hey, maybe the person on my comms can help.” Alex reached to her ear, but the comm in question was gone. “Oh, crap.”
 
“You hearing voices in your head, Danvers? Don’t you know that’s the first sign of madness?” Lois smirked. And then she paused. “No, wait, that’s talking to yourself. I think.”
 
“Says the subject matter expert,” Batman said as Alex searched the floor. “We need to keep moving. If Wonder Woman is nearby, we should rescue her. She’ll be instrumental in recovering the Supers.”
 
Lois sighed. “Look, can you please give your stand up a rest? It’s getting quite old, quite fast now. And Alex, honey, what are you doing on the floor? Get up before you get hurt.”
 
“I lost my comms in the fight. It must have been knocked out when,” she pointed at the quickly spreading bruise on her jaw. “I can’t contact my team without it.”
 
“Forget it,” Batman said. “We have no time to look for it. Standing around is going to get us caught.”
 
“Fine,” Alex growled. “We should head that way. It’s the direction the guards were leading me. Wonder Woman can’t be far now.”
 
Batman nodded, then turned and looked in the opposite direction. “Lane? Lane!” 
 
“What?” She snapped, turning to him. He raised a gloved hand and pointed in the direction Alex had suggested, and with a roll of her eyes, Lois spun on her heel and marched back in that direction, storming past them. “I knew that.”
 
…………….

Alex led the way, checking at each intersection before gesturing for Lois and Batman to follow her. They’d been walking for about five minutes when she held out a hand to the duo behind her and scurried back their way.
 
“Okay, there’s a group of guards stopped just outside a door, and they’re all talking. That’s probably where they have Wonder Woman. Want me to go ahead and check it out, or do you have a better plan?” Alex asked.
 
“Actually, I have a great plan,” Lois nodded, even though Alex wasn’t actually looking at her.
 
As Alex snorted, Batman said, “I doubt that.”
 
“Okay, fine, go ahead and get yourselves caught. I’ll just wait here to say ‘I told you so’,” Lois shrugged, turning to lean up against the wall, one foot raised to lean against it as she folded her arms across her chest.
 
“We might as well listen to her plan,” Alex said. “It’s not like we can leave her here unsupervised.”
 
Batman grunted in what might have been agreement.
 
“So, what’s the master plan?” Alex asked.
 
Lois waited a moment to make sure they were actually going to listen and weren’t just toying with her. Then she smiled. “Operation Wookie.”
 
“I hate it,” Alex said. “What is it?”
 
“How can you hate something when you don’t even know what it is?” Lois frowned in confusion.
 
“You want me to answer this one?” Batman asked Alex.
 
She shook her head, returning her attention to Lois. “Just explain it so I can say no and come up with a good plan.”
 
Lois pointed to Batman first. “Wookie.” Then she pointed to Alex. “Luke.” Finally she pointed to herself. “Han.”
 
“No,” Alex glared as she stepped closer to Lois. There was a moment’s pause, and then, “I get to be Han.”
 
Lois opened her mouth to argue, paused, then shut her mouth again and held out her hand instead. “Deal.”
 
Smiling back, Alex grasped the hand and shook.
 
“What did you two just agree to?” Batman asked.
 
“You’re our prisoner,” Alex explained. “We’re going to take you in there, assess the situation, then get Wonder Woman out.”
 
Batman seemed to consider that before blinking at Lois. “Actually, that isn’t too bad.”
 
Lois raised an eyebrow with a smug smile. “I told you so.”
 
“No you didn’t,” he replied. “Agent Danvers?”
 
“I didn’t hear anything,” Alex said as she pulled handcuffs from a pouch and held them out to Batman. “Here.”
 
“And we’re back to you two being douches,” Lois sighed as Batman slipped the cuffs round his wrists and positioned them to give the illusion that they were fastened.
 
“Great, let’s go,” Alex said. “I don’t know what they’re doing to her in there, but it won’t be good.”
 
The trio headed down the hallway, Alex and Lois flanking Batman, to arrive at the door and two very surprised guards.
 
“We didn’t even know he was caught,” one of the guards said.
 
“Yeah, our comms were damaged in the fight. It seemed more important to bring him in and get him secure than get replacements right away.”
 
“Good plan,” the guard replied as he typed a code on the door and let them inside.
 
Within were close to two dozen guards. Wonder Woman sat strapped down and slumping in a metal chair in the middle of the room.
 
“Crap, she’s unconscious,” Alex whispered. “Anyone have another plan? Not you, Lois.”
 
“You take the dozen on the left, I’ll take the dozen on the right?” Batman suggested.
 
“What about me?” Lois argued.
 
“Don’t get shot,” Batman replied. “If you two can hand me off to some other guards and head toward the perimeter of the room, I’ll break free and cause a distraction. You’ll probably be able to take a few down before they realize you’re not on their side.”
 
“Sounds good. You up for this, Lois?”
 
Lois had pulled the tranq gun from its holster at her hip and stowed the pistol in its place as she was surreptitiously eyeing up her first target. “Shoot people, don’t get shot. Got it.”
 
Alex nodded then raised her voice. “Hey, can I get a hand over here? We need to secure this prisoner.”
 
Immediately, four guards came over and took Batman off their hands, allowing the girls to escape to either side of the room. 
 
Lois positioned herself behind a guard, one hand poised to swipe his own tranq gun from his holster, then nodded to Batman.
 
Batman glanced in either direction, making brief eye contact with both Lois and Alex, and then pulled his hands apart, the cuffs falling to the floor. He grabbed two guards, slamming their uncovered heads together before pulling another’s face down to meet his quickly rising knee. Then all hell broke loose.
 
Lois darted forward, placed the tip of her tranq gun against the back of the guard she’d singled out and shot a dart into his neck, swiped his tranq gun from his holster and held both weapons out, arms extended in either direction as she let out two more darts, then turned both forwards to take out two more. 
 
Alex had grabbed one guard and slammed his head into the wall before turning the next guard toward her, slamming knuckles into the bridge of his nose. She had a scissor lock on the next, flipping him over her and soundly into the ground where she finished up with a punch that slammed his dizzy head into the ground. Two guards turned on her, and she jumped, coming down with a fist into one man’s neck, before sweeping the feet out from under the next and following up with a reverse crescent kick to his head.
 
In the center of the room, Batman had taken out two more men and held another by the neck. More guards were rushing toward him, but two fell and then two more as darts struck them. A shot was fired by one of the two remaining guards, a bullet meant for Batman, but Alex tackled the man taking the shot off course. The bullet connect with Wonder Woman’s bracer, bounced off, and took out the only other standing guard. In less than two minutes, the entire room was down except for the hero, the agent, and the reporter, an unlikely but oddly successful group.
 
“Is Wonder Woman alright?” Alex asked, shaking out her fist.
 
Batman crouched by Wonder Woman, tipping back her head to see her face. “Diana, can you hear me?”
 
A moan was her only response.
 
“She’s alive, but whatever gas they hit her with must be powerful.” Batman reached into one of his pouches, pulling out a syringe. “I have a stimulant. Let’s see if this helps.”
 
He held the needle up, putting slight pressure on the plunger until a bit of liquid dripped out.
 
“Are you a doctor?” Alex asked.
 
“Are you?” Batman shot back.
 
“Actually, yes.”
 
Batman regarded Alex for a moment before holding out the syringe. “Here.”
 
“Hold on.” Alex quickly unlaced the boot of one downed guard, taking the lace and wrapping it around Wonder Woman’s upper arm near the elbow. She pulled it tight and twisted it twice. “Lois, hold this?”
 
Lois nodded, taking the lace and keeping pressure on Wonder Woman’s arm.
 
“What is this?” Alex asked as she examined the dosage on the syringe.
 
“Epinephrine.”
 
“Epinephrine?” Alex shook her head. “This dose is way too high for her. I’m going to—”
 
Batman grabbed her wrist. “It’s fine. She’s a goddess.”
 
Alex glanced at Wonder Woman who leaned back in the chair, her hair rumpled and tiara slightly askew. Though slightly pale, the woman’s strong features stood out stunningly, like a statue in respite carved from marble.
 
“I agree,” Alex said, “but the dosage is too high.”
 
“No, I mean she’s literally a goddess. She was made by Zeus.”
 
“Zeus? You mean

the

Zeus?”
 
“Is there more than one?” Lois asked.
 
Alex shook her head and sunk the needle into the vein at the crook of the elbow in Wonder Woman’s arm. “Given what my sister can do, why does any of this stuff still surprise me?”
 
“Now that’s a better question,” Lois said with a grin.
 
Slowly, Wonder Woman moved, her eyes blinking several times as she tried to focus.
 
“Diana, it’s me, Batman. Can you hear me?”
 
“Hmmm?” After several tries, her bleary eyes focused on him. “Batman?”
 
“Can you stand?” Alex asked.
 
With help, Wonder Woman got unsteadily to her feet, but more of her weight was on Batman than she supported. 
 
“What happened?”
 
“Some kind of knockout gas,” Batman replied. “I had my rebreather, but I couldn’t get to you before our position was overrun.”
 
“Have we found Superman?”
 
“No, but Lois Lane and Kara’s sister, Alex, are with us.”
 
“Right, we’re finally getting the gang together,” Lois said, “Things are looking up.”
 
Just then, the door opened and a half-dozen guards stopped mid-entrance, staring at them. “Hit the alarm!” one of them yelled before a blaring alarm filled the room and hallways. 
 
Alex glared at Lois, her mouth a fine line of anger.
 
“Don’t say it,” Lois sighed, rubbing her face with one hand. “I already know.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Alarms blaring and shots bouncing off the walls, Alex, Lois, Batman, and a very groggy Wonder Woman ran for their lives. They’d stop long enough to return fire from time to time, but they were outnumbered, outgunned, and running out of ammo - Lois having used up her supply of tranq darts some time earlier had now resorted to using her pistol instead, though she was trying to use non lethal shots wherever possible to take men down.

“Lois it’s me,”

a familiar voice crackled for a moment in Lois’ ear, then became clear.
 
“Lena! Where the hell have you been?!”

“Investigating. Do you want the good news or the bad news?”

“We're in the bad news! I'm living the bad news!”

“What the hell happened?!”

“We found out who’s running this place! Lena it’s—”

“Cadmus, I know.”

Lois almost tripped in surprise, stumbled a few paces and for one horrible moment she thought she might fall. But then Alex’s arm on her elbow helped her to steady and find her centre of balance once more, and then she and the other woman picked up the pace as bullets began to ricochet off the walls to either side.
 
“How do you know that?!”

“I asked the man in charge.”

“Can she do that?”

Winn asked curiously.

“Good evening, Mr. Schott. I didn’t realise you were joining us for this conversation.”

“Gah!”

Winn exclaimed, horrified that Lena was addressing him directly.

“Don’t hurt me!”

“Winn, shut up,” Lois said, “Are you safe?”

“I’m fine, just worried about Alex. I lost her comm signal. Have you seen her?”

“I said shut up, Schott, and she’s fine, dandy,” Lois yelped when a bullet whizzed by her ear, “hunky-dorey even. Now be quiet and let the adults talk. Lena, are you alright? I saw you wining and dining some guy earlier. Was that Doctor Frankenstein?”

“Dr. Bradley, yes, but to be clear, I was being wined and dined.

He was incredibly helpful once I identified myself and offered to put in a good word for him with my mother.”

Lois looked across at Alex with a smirk as the two women ran side by side. “See, told you she flashed her ID.”
 
“What are you talking about?” Alex asked as she fired three shots behind her, taking out two guards.
 
“Lena,” Lois pointed to her ear. 
 
“Thank God, she’s alright. Is she alright?”
 
“Better than us,” Lois replied returning fire herself at another guard and grinning triumphantly as she dropped him with a non lethal thigh shot. 
 
“Where is she? Anywhere has to be better than this,” Alex said.
 
Lois nodded. “Hey, where are you? Is it someplace safe?”

“I’m in the main lab at the very center of the facility. There’s something here I want you to see.”

“She says she’s in the main lab, middle of this place.”
 
“Can she lead us there?” Batman asked as he worked to keep up with the others, Wonder Woman half laying on him as they ran.
 
“Hold on,” Lois replied. “Lena, can you give me directions?”

“I’m not sure. I can’t lock on your signal here. I feel lucky to have been able to connect to your comms. I’ve tried several times. You must be close so… hold on. My, there seem to be a large number of guards converging three corridors south of the lab and, I think, a floor below me.”

“No shit, Sherlock. That’s us.”

“Oh, then head north, go up a level, and you’ll find me.”

“Which the fuck way is that?” Lois grumbled as she fired off two more rounds.

“It’s the opposite of south.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Lois growled. “Do you think I didn’t know that?”

“Actually, yes.”

Lois opened her mouth to reply but shrugged. “Yeah, that’s fair. Hold on. Hey, Bats, you have a bat-compass in that fancy suit of yours?” 
 
“In my utility belt. What do you need?”
 
“We need to head north.”
 
“This way,” Alex said taking a right at the next corner.
 
“How do you know that?” Lois asked.
 
“I’m a direction gay. I have no idea what time it is, but I always know where I’m going. I’m also a good driver”
 
“That’s not a thing. Is that a thing?” She tapped at her comms again. “Lena, is a direction gay a thing?”

“Certainly. I always know what time it is, and I excel at math. I’m a rare gay.”

Lois glanced over at Alex. “Okay, you two are teasing me, and this isn’t the time for it. Are gays not good at math?”
 
“Better than we are at sitting properly in a chair,” Alex replied.

“True, that one took years of private school training.”

A
s another bullet bounced overhead, Lois ducked. “These guys are really starting to piss me off now! I still don’t get why you get to carry the shield.”
 
“Because I’m not a civilian,” Alex replied firing over the shield in question while bullets bounced off of it.
 
“Exactly! So I should have it because I am!” Lois pouted, almost losing her footing as she took a corner too tight and skidded on the shining, heavily polished floor.
 
“Argue later, ladies,” Batman said as he pulled a still hazy and stumbling Wonder Woman closer. “Right now, we need to find someplace to regroup.”

“Did someone ask for an empty room?”

Batman nodded. “Wonder Woman isn’t fully free of the drugs yet, so we need someplace safe she can recover. Do you have our location?”

“What am I, an amateur? Take your next right, then a left. At the end of the corridor, there will be a door. Go in there. It’s unoccupied, and there’s only one other point of access which is a dead end. You’ll only have to defend from one side.”

“I’m four steps behind you, you idiot!” Lois glared at the back of Batman’s head. “What the hell are you asking if I’ve got your location for? I can literally see you right there!”
 
“I don’t think he’s talking to you. He’s talking to,” Alex squeezed off a few more rounds, emptying her clip, “her.”
 
“Her?” Lois glared again, but this time at Alex. “Now you’re not making sense either.”
 
Alex released the empty magazine clip to clatter on the floor and be left behind as they continued down the hallway. She pulled another one out of the many pouches on her belt, slapping it into place before chambering a round. “On the comms.”
 
“Oh, you mean Oracle?” Lois nodded, and then she tripped and almost fell again before she rounded on Alex sharply. “Wait a minute, you can hear her too?!”
 
“When I had my comms, sure.”
 
Lois was about to retort with something no doubt witty and colourful when a hand grabbed her arm and dragged her forwards again. “Less chat, more movement, Lane,” Batman growled. “Door up ahead, need you to open it.”
 
“Can’t your little BFF do it for you?” Lois grumbled. “Because apparently, I’m not invited to this little party.”
 
“Oracle, is the door unlocked?”

“Yes, it doesn’t actually lock from the exterior, so you’ll have to hold the door once you get in there.”

“It’s unlocked,” Batman said. “Just go pull it open. Oracle says the room inside is clear.”
 
“Yes boss,” Lois’ sarcastic reply ended in a high-pitched squeak as a bullet dug into the wall about a foot in front of her face. Ducking her head, she ran forward, lowered her shoulder and charged into the door, only to rebound seconds later howling in pain. “Thought you said it wasn’t locked?!”

“Pull, not push.”

“
Pull
the door open, Lane!” Batman yelled as the trio neared.
 
Lois fumbled for the handle with one hand, even as she massaged her shoulder with the other, then yanked the door open. “That wouldn't have happened if I had the shield.”
 
Nearly on top of each other, Batman, Wonder Woman, and Alex barreled in, sweeping Lois up in their path and pushing her through the door. 
 
Inside was what looked like the remnants of another battle.
The metal and concrete walls were scarred and dented, at places whole chunks crumbled to debris on the ground. There were steel girders lying around the room, heavy looking and thick, and many of them were twisted around like pretzels or into perfect circles. Lengths of chain in various sizes and thicknesses also lay in pieces as if they had been snapped or pulled methodically apart, link by link.  A few tables, thick metal ones, teetered on now crooked legs or lay on their sides, some folded in half and others crinkled like an accordian. Two, though far from still serviceable, only bore dents and a few imprints that were clearly from gripping fingers.
 
But even more concerning than all of that were the various smears on the walls, many made with handprints - all of which were obviously not human. Some were green, some pink, one a bright enough orange that it almost looked like fluorescent paint, but most were that shade of red-turning-brown that looked distinctly like drying blood.
 
As Alex turned to fire back through the door at their pursuers, Batman helped Wonder Woman to sit down on one of the girders, then went to help Alex hold the men at bay. Lois was looking all around the room in equal parts dread and awe. 
 
“What the hell is this place?!”
 
“Never mind that, help us find something to brace these doors shut!” Alex snapped as she dropped another empty magazine from her gun and reloaded with the fluid ease of a well practiced soldier.

“Lois,”

Lena’s voice in her ear again caused Lois to jump. She pressed a hand to the earpiece at her ear quickly, even though it was still connected and she didn’t need to.
 
“Lena, we found a room, but we won’t be safe long. Are you still okay?”

“Better than all of you from the looks of things. I’m up here.”

Lois’ eyes turned upwards, but it took her a few moments as she turned on the spot before she found the viewing platform. Lena waved at her from the window.
 
“Hey!” Lois beamed, waving back.

“I’m in some sort of control room, though I have yet to ascertain what it actually controls.”

“Never mind that, can you see the controls to lock this door?”

“One moment.”

Lena vanished from the window. A loud crash from behind Lois caused her to spin on the spot quickly, seeing Alex go flying backwards. It was the sound of the shield falling to the floor that had alerted Lois. Wonder Woman was trying to stagger back to her feet, but she was still far too unsteady so Lois placed a hand on her shoulder.
 
“Not yet, Diana. We’ve got this.”
 
The Amazonian didn’t like it, but considering the room was still spinning, she could only nod and sit back down again to wait for the nausea to subside. 
 
Lois was about to run and grab the shield for herself to help the other two push the attacking force back when Lena’s voice behind her caught her attention. Mainly because it was Lena’s actual voice, not her voice through the earpiece. Lois spun on the spot to see the other woman running towards her. Bullets were still flying into the room, so Lois did a u-turn away from the door and ran towards Lena instead, grabbing her up into a fierce hug - or at least that was what it seemed like at first, until she kicked out her foot, overturned one of the two tables and pushed Lena down behind it. Then she ducked down behind it as well, the pair of them flinching as a bullet dented into the tabletop from the other side.
 
“What the hell are you doing here?! I thought I told you to look for a way to lock the door?!”
 
“Unfortunately, it seems to have been created so it only locks from the inside. Whoever set this up was far more concerned about someone or something getting out than in.”
 
“So you decided to come down here and get your head blown off by a stray bullet instead?” Lois chastised as more bullets dinged and dented their makeshift barricade. 
 
“I came down here to keep you from getting your head blown off. Also, I was hoping there might be some control in the room, something separate from the control room, that I could use to lock the door. Have you seen a circuit panel we can access?”
 
“Have I seen—? Luthor, have you seen the warzone we’re in right now? I didn’t have time for any sightseeing!”
 
“Fine, fine, you’re right. Look, if we want to get that door locked, we’re going to have to do a search of the perimeter of the room… carefully.”
 
Lois considered for a moment, then nodded. “Okay, hold on.” Peering her head up very, very slowly and carefully over the top of the table, she called to Alex and Batman, “Can you guys get that door closed? We need to search the room and we can’t risk doing that with bullets flying.”
 
“Agent Danvers,” Batman called to her as he kicked the shield back in her direction. It bounced off her foot, now back within her reach again.
 
“On it.” Alex scooped up the shield and thrust her arm through it again before charging the door. She ducked behind the shield as she advanced, bullets ricocheting away as they struck it. Once in the doorway, she slammed her body against the push bar across its center, releasing the mechanism that held it open so it slowly closed toward her. Dropping another clip, she grimaced as she dug around in a pouch and finally pulled out another, slamming it into her pistol.“There are a lot more of them than there are of us, and I’m running out of ammo. We need to find a way to keep this door closed.”
 
“Miss Luthor,” Batman said, “are you sure there’s no way to lock that door from the control room?”
 
“I’m certain of nothing in this place, but in my best estimation, it is designed to only lock from the interior. Unless we can find some way to override that, I fear we’re in trouble. We could retreat to the control room, but it’s rather small, and there’s nothing to use for cover. I don’t believe we’ll last long there.”
 
Lois, meanwhile, had pulled off the vest of her stolen body armour, and was ripping open the top half of her jumpsuit (in a strikingly similar fashion to the way the Supers revealed their uniforms beneath their civilian clothes). Unlike the Supers, however, Lois merely needed access to the pocket of her jeans, having only just remembered something.
 
“We can use this!” She said with a broad smile as she held her hand out a moment later, a small white tube bearing the L-Corp logo in her hand.
 
There was a loud gasp followed by an exclamation from Lena. “You thief!” 
 
“You’re welcome!” Lois replied, still grinning.
 
“That is not an appropriate response to that accusation!  Lois Lane you… you… You stole from me!” Lena finally sputtered out.
 
Examining the tube, Lois noted the top of the lid was indented and held a sharp point.  “Think of it as me stealing for you, and since I stole from you and for you, there wasn’t really any stealing.” Because of the momentary break from heavy gunfire thanks to the now closed door, Lois stood up and threw the glue to Alex, shouting “Incoming!”
 
Alex, who had set the shield down against the wall, caught the glue quickly, then examined it.  “Superglue?! What the hell is going on, and how the fuck is superglue going to help?”
 
“What’s going on is that Miss Lane may actually be a relative of mine given that she has stolen from me. And right under my bloody nose, too! If she tries to kill me before the week is through, I’ll add her to my will,” Lena explained, also standing up from behind the makeshift barricade at last.
 
“Gee, thanks,” Lois said with a smile. “That may be the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”
 
“That wasn’t a compliment!” Lena snapped. “Additionally, that isn’t superglue. It’s another piece of proprietary technology from L-Corp. It bonds on a molecular level. Don’t touch it, Agent Danvers, or you and anything else you come into contact with will become a permanent part of one another’s anatomy.”
 
“What, seriously?” Alex looked back and forth between Lena and the tube of glue.
 
“Stay on task. We need to find something we can use for a barrier on the door,” Batman suggested, trying to remind everyone about what they were really supposed to be doing - which wasn’t having a discussion about the properties of some experimental glue.
 
“Oh! Big red button!” Lois suddenly gasped, pointing across the room. “There’s a big red button!” And she was off, vaulting the various bits of debris that got in her way, on her mad-dash crusade to press the far too inviting big red button.
 
“No!” Everyone else yelled at once, Wonder Woman even struggling with a weaker negative cry in her still drugged state.
 
“Oh come on!” Lois whined as she skidded to a stop. “It’s a big red button! It has my name all over it! Well… not literally. But give me time. And a crayon.”
 
“Lois, we have no idea,” Alex turned briefly to fire off one shot and hit someone who had begun to pull the door open, causing it to close again, “what the button will do. It could make things worse.”
 
“To be fair,” Batman gruffed as he lunged forward and punched another goon in the face as he also tried to pull the door open. “This situation can’t get much—”
 
“Ah!” Lois snapped, holding up a finger to silence him. “Don’t do it. You say those words, you can guarantee the universe will find a way to make it happen. Always does, trust me!” She’d been walking backwards as she was talking, tripped over a bit of debris behind her and fell against the wall. Then she realised what she’d fallen against and why it didn’t feel like wall. “Uh… oh… I swear, I didn’t do it on purpose! It probably looked like I did, but I didn’t!”
 
“My worst fear realized,” Alex said with a heavy sigh. “I’m going to die, and it’s all Lois Lane’s fault.”
 
“Told you the Universe would find a—” Lois’ voice trailed off as a panel in the wall slid down to reveal two glass pods, which slowly emerged from within the wall, out into the room. “Holy shit!”
 
“Oh, my God, you found them,” Alex breathed as her gaze locked on the form of her sister, barely breathing, still, practically lifeless. “We’ve got to get them out of there!”
 
The pods were separate from each other, each standing over eight-feet tall and covered with what looked like a thick glass. The rest was metal, shiny and solid, with a series of colored lights running down one side. Between them was a display showing body outlines, one male and one female, with colors and numbered lines highlighting different parts of the body. Within the pods both Supers lay unmoving. Cuts and bruises showed wherever flesh was visible. They looked more like a collection of dried blood and bruises than the heroes the world knew. Their uniforms had seen better days, torn and pulled out of shape, and they each sported a headband complete with the symbol of the House of El.
 
“Oh Clark,” Lois muttered quietly as she stepped forward and placed her hand, palm flat against the glass over the ‘S’ symbol on his chest. Her eyes travelled up over his battered and beaten body, to his face. And then the headband. Her hand clenched into a fist and she pounded the glass furiously as her face contorted in absolute rage. “BASTARDS! Those… those… utter… bastards!” She pounded the glass again and again, then threw in a kick for good measure. “When I find out who did this, I’ll gut him with my bare hands!”
 
“Lois,” Lena said quietly as she reached out and laid a gentle hand on the other woman’s arm, “We’ll fix this. It’s going to be alright.”

“Alright?!” Lois punched the glass one more time then bit back an angry cry of pain as her knuckles split under the impact, leaving a bloodied smear when she took her hand away. “That… that THING is not alright! That’s a violation, it’s… it’s… I can’t even tell you how mad I am right now!” She was pointing furiously to the headband that Superman was wearing.
 
“I…” Lena’s gaze followed Lois gesture before returning to the woman in question, “I don’t understand.”
 
Lois took several deep breaths, visibly forcing herself to calm down enough so that she could speak again. “The headband is a symbol in Kryptonian culture. A symbol of freedom!”
 
“Alright so…” Again Lena glanced away, wincing with sympathy as her gaze fell on Supergirl’s battered form. “So it’s a mockery? I’m sorry, Lois, but what I know about Krypton could fill a thimble.”
 
“Remind me to give you a lesson sometime,” Lois sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose and squinting her eyes closed for a moment. “Because this? It’s more than just mockery. It’s insulting. It’s a violation of… of their very culture and their heritage. Headbands were the symbol of free men and women on Krypton. Do these two look free to you?”
 
Lena offered up a sad attempt at a smile. “Let’s fix that.”
 
Lois nodded and turned to the others. “Any ideas?”
 
Alex used the edge of the shield to clip one guard under the chin, sending him staggering back out of the room. “You have the brain trust with you. Why are you asking us?”
 
“We also have to, ugh,” Batman elbowed another invader out of the room before tossing a gas grenade into the hallway and pulling the door tightly closed, “find a way to keep ourselves safe or we won’t be able to help them. Wonder Woman, how are you doing?”
 
She pushed up onto unsteady legs, trembling even though she leaned against the wall. “I’ll manage.”
 
“Alright fine, you guys deal with the door,” Lois pointed to the door in question, then thumbed between herself and Lena. “We’ll deal with the Supers.”
 
“Luthor, you said molecularly bonded.” Alex patted the tube of glue that she’d stuck in one of her many pockets. “Do you think it could hold one of these girders in place?”
 
Seemingly startled into awareness again, Lena pulled her attention away from the pod containing Supergirl. “What? Oh, certainly. The object will break before the bond will give.”
 
“Great, then let’s try gluing one of these,” Dropping the shield again, Alex grabbed a girder and tried to lift it, “Fuck, these are heavy. A little help?” Suddenly, the girder rose, and Alex turned to find a still shaky Wonder Woman holding it out in front of herself with one hand.
 
“Where are we putting this?”
 
“Uh… over by the door. If we bond it with the push bar and cross over the door frame, they won’t be able to pull it open.”
 
Holding the girder across the door so a flat side was up, Wonder Woman watched as Alex - ever so carefully- placed several dots of the glue along its surface until the small container was empty.
 
“Hey, Luthor, how long does this thing take to bond?” Alex asked.
 
“Press and hold it for a five count. That will be more than sufficient.”
 
At Alex’s nod, Wonder Woman pressed the girder into the bar, either of its ends across the door frame. There were several seconds of silence, and then Wonder Woman let go, and they both stepped back. When the girder merely stayed in place, Alex gave it a tentative tug and then another, finally pulling back and putting all of her weight into it.  The girder didn’t budge.
 
“Shit, that’s some good glue,” Alex said.
 
“Impressive,” Wonder Woman agreed.
 
“Wanna hear what’s also impressive?” Lois piped up after being suspiciously quiet for far too long. “I’ve found the way to open these pods.” She pointed to the control panel at the side of Superman’s pod. When no-one immediately said anything, she huffed. “

Well done, Lois! Good job, Lois! Great work, Lois!

You’re welcome, guys.”
 
“Don’t hurt yourself patting yourself on the back, Lane,” Batman grumbled as he checked the dwindling supplies in his utility belt, “just get them out of there. We can only hope they’re in good enough shape to help us fight our way out of here.”
 
Crouched down, Lena examined a matching control panel on Supergirl’s pod.
 
“Talk to me, Luthor,” Lois said as she moved in front of Superman’s control panel. “How do these things work?”
 
“I believe the buttons on the far left are for atmospheric control. That means don’t touch them. The two middle rows are individual triggers for stimulating a specific part of the body, doubtless negative reinforcement. On the right there’s a slider. If I’m understanding this properly,” Lena glanced over at Lois and shrugged, “It should trigger the subjects neural functions. Then, we have the green button on the bottom. That’s for opening the pods. Do you understand?”
 
“So the slidey things wake them up or send them to sleep, and the green button unlocks the door?” Lois repeated as she studied the panel. “And don’t touch the other ones.”
 
“Remarkably comprehensive. Yes, slowly move the slider up. It will click into several positions. Stop at each click, and wait for the light to turn green. Once we have all green on the display, press the green button to open the pods… At least, I’m fairly certain that’s how it works. I’d prefer to have a few hours to run diagnostics and study the system but…” She shrugged again.
 
Lois had already started moving the slider up, pausing at each click to check the lights and their colours. When she reached a point and green suddenly lit up across the panel, she punched the air in triumph. “Done it! Now what? Just hit the button?” 
 
She’d been so focussed on the actual buttons and the panel itself that she’d failed to take notice of what was happening inside the pod.
 
At each level, vigor seemed to return to Superman. He breathed more deeply, and the state of total relaxation left his body. Next to him, Supergirl followed a few seconds behind as her pod was also activated. Finally, the two heroes stood, obvious strength flowing from their forms.
 
“It’s all green?” Lena asked tearing her gaze free from Supergirl’s display to check the other pod and nod. “Yes, press the button. I believe that will stimulate him to wakefulness if my theory is sound.”
 
“Right then, Smallville, time to wake up and come home,” Lois told him as she hit the green button to free him - assuming Lena’s theory was correct. There was a hissing sound, and his pod slowly started to open.
 
Next to Superman, Supergirl’s pod let out a hiss, and the cover slowly rotated into the metal outer layer, revealing the hero within. It was several heartstopping moments before eyes began to flutter open.
 
Stepping between the Supers and the humans, Wonder Woman placed a hand on Lois’ shoulder. “Back away, you two. We have no idea what they have endured and how they’ll react. It’s best to be safe.”
 
“Oh come on, it’s Cla
—”
Lois barely caught herself in time. “It’s Superman and Supergirl! They’ll know us. The thing they need right now is friendly faces!”
 
“And mine isn’t friendly?” Wonder Woman smiled, answering her own question. She held out her shield to Lois. “Please, Miss Lane, escort Miss Luthor to safety. We must put the needs of the civilian over our own desires.”
 
“Now I’m the needy civilian?” Lena complained. 
 
Lois blinked at the shield that had been placed in her hand, overcome with awe momentarily. “Does this mean I’m a fully fledged member now?”
 
With a chuckle, Wonder Woman replied, “We can discuss that later. For now, let us—” She was halfway to turning back to the pods when Superman’s hand struck out and connected with her face, sending Wonder Woman hurtling across the room to slam
into
the far wall with a painful sounding thud.
 
Lois threw up the shield in front of her face instinctively, then grabbed Lena’s arm and pulled her behind it as well. “Something’s gone wrong! Move!”
 
“You think?!” Lena scurried away under Lois’ protection. “Was it something I did wrong in opening the pods?”
 
“I don’t think so,” Lois shook her head as she directed them towards the doorway that Lena had come through earlier from the control room and observation deck. They had to duck down behind the overturned table briefly as a chunk of wall sailed over their heads. “Look about the room - actually don’t look now but later, when we’re not in a missile warzone. Those bars didn’t bend themselves into perfect shapes, and the Supers wouldn’t have done it for kicks. If they were themselves, they’d have been trying to find ways to escape, not ways to bend a girder into a pretzel.”
 
She raised the shield up over their heads as debris rained down from above as something slammed into the ceiling.
 
“I should have thought of that before trying to get them out of the pods. I’m sorry, Lois.”
 
“Oh, get over yourself. I should have thought of a lot of things before I actually did them, but now is not the time to think about any of that! You’ve got to get back to that control room.”
 
“You’re right. I’m sorry.  Let’s just,” Lena ducked a bit lower as pieces of ceiling rained down on them, “fix this before it gets any worse.”
 
“Right, here’s the plan,” Lois nodded as she briefly peered up over the table to take stock of the situation. Superman and Wonder Woman were in an all out brawl, no holds barred, over on the far side of the room (beside the Diana shaped indent in the wall). 
 
Supergirl, on the other hand, was using her heat vision to shoot at the quickly and barely dodging targets of Alex and Batman. Indeed, the Caped Crusader’s cape had more than one hole burnt into it.
 
Lois winced and ducked back down again. “It’s not safe for either of us in here at the moment. You’re a technical whiz kid, so you need to go and get whizzy on that tech up in that room. They’re being controlled somehow, my Pulitzer’s on the headbands. We need to find a way to stop them.”
 
“I trust your instincts. Run for the door on three?”
 
“On three,” Lois nodded. “One, two… go!” She gave Lena a light shove, then held up the shield to protect her friend. 
 
Lena was on the run, moving toward the door to the control room with only once glance over her shoulder. She hit the stairs, taking them two at a time, something she’d never have been able to do in heels. Breathless yet filled with adrenaline, she arrived at the room and stopped, fingers splayed as her hands rested before dozens of controls.
 
Lois’ own retreat, meanwhile, had been temporarily halted when she’d tripped and stumbled over a bit of rubble, causing her to fall behind the other woman. When one of the Kryptonian pods smashed into the doorway up ahead, she shrieked, and her retreat was cut off completely. “Fuck! Who did that?!”
 
Behind her, Superman picked up a steel girder and swung to the side, bending it as it struck Wonder Woman’s protective forearms and slamming the woman back into the wall again. With a growl, she dug herself out, pulling her lasso from the clip at her belt. “Superman, I do not wish to hurt you,” the girder struck her again, knocking her back a few feet, “but I see you have no such compulsion with me at the moment. If you can hear me, Kal-El, please surrender.” This time the girder caught her under the chin, making her stumble back and shake her head to regain her composure. “I’ll take that as a no.”
 
Wonder Woman twirled her lasso for a few moments before releasing it at Superman. He lifted one hand, blocking it from covering his body and instead wrapping around his wrist. He gave a tug, pulling her in close where they both panted and huffed, determination painting Wonder Woman’s face while Superman’s stare remained oddly blank.
 
“Kal-El, I don’t think either of us is in a condition for this right now. Can I have a… ugh… a raincheck?” A fist to the face was her only response.
 
Suddenly, there was an explosion at the door, blowing it in and causing more rubble to rain down on the group fighting inside. While Batman ducked down and threw his cape over himself for protection, Alex was thrown several feet across the room from the force of the explosion. She landed and lay, barely moving but groaning. That’s how she was when Supergirl kicked the Agent over with a nudge from a booted foot, grabbed the woman by the throat, and lifted Alex into the air to dangle and choke. Pulling on Supergirl’s unyielding fingers wrapped around her throat, Alex kicked her feet and gurgled, her eyes growing wide with fear as the blue eyes staring up at her glowed yellow with energy.
 
There was a flash as a laser struck Supergirl in the face, distracting the hero who dropped Alex to the ground. The agent landed hard and clawed at her throat as she sucked in precious air in deep gasps. Her prey seemingly forgotten, Supergirl’s attention now moved to the ceiling where several panels had opened. Out of each, a laser appeared. Eyes glowing once more, Supergirl hovered in the air before rushing one of the lasers and destroying it with a single punch.
 
Without a word, Lois rushed the door and slammed the shield into the first guard through. As he dropped to the floor, she stepped over him and met the next guard with a roundhouse punch to the jaw, shaking out her stinging hand as he too crumpled to the floor. When he groaned and tried to move, he was met with a booted foot that turned out the lights. When a third guard tried his luck and managed to grab her by the shoulder, she drove her knee sharply upwards between his legs. His gun slipped from his hand, she grabbed it up, holding it by the barrel, and smashed him in the face with the butt end.

“Lois,”

Lena’s voiced chirped in her ear,

“what in the hell are you still doing down there? I thought you were right behind me.”

“I was, but someone down here threw a pod into the door. You’re on your own up there, so hurry up and do something!"

"I am doing something!"

Lois swung out, clipping the next guard’s jaw with the shield and sending him wheeling away. "Well do something faster!"

“I’m trying, but all of the controls I’ve found are for weapons in the room. I read through some emails, and I think you’re right, the headbands are controlling them, but it looks like headbands are controlled by a remote, and it’s not up here.”

Lena yelped as Wonder Woman, tied up with a steel girder like a Christmas package, flew past Lois, narrowly missing the reporter’s head.

“For God’s sake, get behind some cover! You’re not safe there!”

“My whole life is spent wearing flak jackets in warzones and being rescued by super heroes! I’m never safe!” Lois snapped as she threw the shield up in front of her. A hail of gunfire rained bullets into it, each one bouncing harmlessly away. As soon as there was a pause whilst the guard reloaded his semi-automatic, she threw up the stolen pistol and let off a few rounds of her own, catching him in the shoulder. It didn’t kill him, but it certainly rendered him incapable of rejoining the fight. 
 
Meanwhile, at the ceiling, Supergirl was destroying device after device that was used against her, causing more debris to clatter dangerously to the floor below. She’d destroyed all of the lasers with her own heat vision and was using a flamethrower she had ripped from the ceiling to knock away over-sized cattle prods that were supplying thousands of volts of jarring electricity.
 
“Alex, go low!” Batman yelled.
 
In response, she threw her shoulder into the back of Superman’s knees even as a gas batarang exploded in his face. Then Batman charged, both of his booted feet striking Superman in the throat and causing him to stagger back and fall over Alex. It was a stalling tactic at best, and Alex threw out a gloved hand toward a girder which shot along the floor toward her magnetic pull, then struck Superman in the face just as the hero turned to rise again.
 
Rising and backing up, Alex turned to Batman. “Any ideas?”
 
“Just one, unfortunately.” He slid his hand into a pouch, pulling out a pellet that glowed slightly with an eerie green light.
 
“Is that a…”
 
Batman nodded once. “Yes, it’s a kryptonite bullet. It’s a last resort option.”
 
Alex curled her hand over his, covering the chunk of green in his palm. “We’re not there yet.”
 
“I hope you’re right,” he replied as he dropped the bullet back into his pouch.
 
“Me too,” Alex muttered as Superman rose and turned his attention on them, “because this is gonna hurt.”

“Here comes the cavalry.”

“Oracle?” Batman turned his head slightly, splitting his attention between the dangerous alien in front of him and the fight in the doorway. “Update me.”

“I’ve led the DEO to you folks. They seem to have brought a few men that work with Miss Luthor with them. Sorry, it’s not League members, but the locals will have to fight on two fronts now, and they’re losing ground.”

“We’ve got backup,” Batman said.
 
“Thank fucking God,” Alex said as she walked backward away from the Kryptonian who grew closer with each step. “Hey, Superman, remember me?” When a fist came toward her head she dropped and rolled to the side.
 
“I hope that wasn’t a yes,” Batman said, pulling out some capsules from a pouch and throwing them at the other man’s head. They hit and expanded, a quick-drying foam that obscured his whole face. “That won’t hold him for long. We need a solution, and we need it now. Oracle, do you have any idea what’s controlling the Supers? Can you shut them down?”

“Hold on.”

There were a few moments of silence before Oracle spoke again.

“I can’t find the controls for anything that’s directly affecting the Supers. If they’re being influenced by an outside force, it’s not part of the main system. I’m… I’m sorry.”

“Not as sorry as I am,” Batman replied right before the air whooshed out of him as Superman’s hand connected with his torso. Batman was thrown across the length of the room to smash off the wall about a foot from Lois, and Superman followed with long strides as he crossed the room after his downed foe.

“Lois, I have an idea.”

“I love it! Whatever it is, I love it, but hurry!”

“I believe the headbands are what the doctor called the control unit. It affects the frontal lobe, shutting down the parts that control speech personality, judgment, and self-awareness while stimulating the motor strip. He also admitted that they’re having a problem with increased activity in the amygdala in subjects which can cause the unit to shut down.”

As Superman drew nearer to Batman, Lois’ eyes widened. “Lenny, you know I love you, but for once, just this once, would you fucking speak English.”

“I thought I was. Strong emotions, Lois. The amygdala is the emotion center of the brain. Flood them with emotions, and you may short circuit the headband.”

“May?”

“I’m ninety-percent certain. Well… at least eighty-percent.”

Lois jumped in surprise as Batman slammed next to her. The two shared a moment’s eye contact, and then Lois threw down the shield and turned to Superman, facing him properly, for the first time since he’d woken.
 
He didn’t react at first, too focused on Batman, but when she stepped into his line of sight, he faltered, one foot still hanging mid-air. Slowly, he set it down as his hands balled into fists and he fixed her with what she could only describe as a dead gaze - void of all emotion. His head tilted slowly to one side as he studied her, and although every instinct was telling her to get the hell out of there, she stood her ground, her own hands clenching into fists so that they wouldn’t visibly tremble.
 
“I know you,” the Kryptonian spoke at last, his voice deep and gravelly and also eerily void of emotion.
 
Lois nodded slowly and took a tentative step forwards. “Yes. Yes you do.”
 
He studied her again, then looked away, his hands clenching and clenching as he seemed to be fighting some kind of inner conflict with himself. Lois took the opportunity to briefly glance back at Batman to make sure he was okay. Seeing him pulling himself slowly back to his feet again, she held out a hand to him. “Stay back, I’ve got this.”
 
“I should kill you.” Superman’s voice - the voice of the man she loved - suddenly filled her with a sick feeling of dread that sent an icy shiver down her spine. She spun back to him and rapidly threw up her hands.
 
“Clark, listen to me. It’s me. It’s me, Lois! You know me! Come on, Clark, think. Think. This isn’t you. You’re stronger than this. You can fight this. Come on, Clark, please? Please!”
 
He rose a foot or so into the air and slowly hovered towards her, but she once again stood her ground.
 
“Is that meant to frighten me? Because let me tell you, I’m already bloody terrified! So you don’t scare me! You can’t scare me any more than I already am right at this very moment!”
 
Again he faltered and slowly dropped back to the ground once more. His gaze softened, just a little, and she knew that finally, she was getting through to him. So she took another tentative step forward, putting herself in danger as she finally came within arm’s reach of him.
 
“Clark, please,” she whispered. “I know you’re in there. The man I love… he’s still in there somewhere. Come on, fight it! For me! Fight it for me, Clark! Come on, you can do it, I know you can!”
 
“Lo… Lois?” He stuttered, blinking, the first signs of any emotion at long last.
 
“Yes! Yes it’s me! It’s me!” She tried not to get her hopes up too much just yet. They still weren’t out of the woods, but at least now he was making a visible effort to fight back. Reaching out very, very slowly, making sure her actions were slow and deliberate so that he could clearly see them, she held out a hand to him. This would go one of two ways now. Either he’d hold her hand, or he’d rip it off. She was quite attached to her hand. It was the one she wrote with, after all. 
 
He studied her outstretched hand for several tense seconds, then slowly raised his own. Lois bit her lip to stop it from trembling. “Come on Clark,” she whispered under her breath. “Come on Clark, you can do it. It’s me, Lois. Come on. Come on, please.”
 
His large, calloused hand wrapped around hers and he held on gently, no hint of pressure or force or even the slightest hint of danger to his touch. “Lois?” he repeated again softly, his voice back to the familiar tone that she would recognize anywhere. When she looked into his eyes, she could see her beloved fiancé looking back at her, scared and confused. He’d come back to her!
 
“Hey, Smallville,” she dared to smile, giving his hand a gentle squeeze, though she didn’t let go of the breath she was holding just yet. Not until she’d reached up with her free hand, to the headband nestled into the curls of his jet black hair. Tugging on it gently, she looked back at Clark, who seemed to catch her meaning and bowed his head for her. She pulled the band free with a flourish, then dropped it, crushing the device beneath her heel with a small shower of sparks. 
 
Clark let out a shuddering breath, falling into Lois’ waiting arms as the two of them hugged one another as if their lives depended on it, Lois fighting back tears of joy as he clung to her like a life-raft in a hurricane.
 
Across the room, Supergirl, who had finally destroyed all of the weaponry from the ceiling, dropped down to land a few feet back from Batman. Eyes widening under his cowl, he pulled out his grappling hook and fired it for the ceiling, but instead of pulling him upward, it started a near-avalanche of pieces that collapsed on top of the Kryptonian. 
 
As Alex moved into her view, Supergirl’s attention shifted. Eyes hollow, she moved toward the other woman who retreated but quickly struck a wall.
 
“Supergirl, it’s me,” Alex begged as she ducked under her sister’s steel fist and rolled to the side. She didn’t get very far as Supergirl grabbed a boot and tossed Alex into the corner to slide down the wall, one of Alex’s hands wrapped around aching ribs. “For God’s sake, sweetie, recognize me.”
 
“I’m sorry,” Batman said, pulling the piece of kryptonite out of his belt again and grabbing a small gun-like object from another pouch.
 
“No!” Alex screamed at him.
 
In the control room, Lena began hitting buttons and flipping switches almost at random. “No, nonononono!” Finally, desperate, her hand slammed down on a large red button, a la Lois Lane style, and her next,

“No!”

resounded through the speaker system in the room. Even as Alex choked under her sister’s boot pressing down, and Batman frowned heavily as the poisonous bullet snapped into place, Lena yelled out,

“Supergirl!  Supergirl, don’t!”

The bullet was chambered in a sound that echoed through the room.

“KARA!”

Everything stopped. At her name, Supergirl stiffened and the pressure she was putting on her sister’s throat lessened. No one else moved. Slowly, ever so slowly, Supergirl took a step back and a sense of awareness seemed to come to her eyes. “Al… Alex?”
 
Rising to hands and knees, Alex looked up and garbled out, “Kara.”
 
Energy spent, Supergirl collapsed to her knees. “Help… me…”
 
“I don’t know how,” Alex whispered, her voice close to breaking. She was absolutely helpless. She didn’t know what to do or how to solve it. “I’m sorry, Kara, I’m so sorry.” 
 
“Alex!” Lois called out. As Alex’s gaze shifted her way, Lois kicked over Clark’s headband which had been ground under her boot and flickered, tiny sparks shooting from it, no longer controlling anyone.
 
Finally understanding, Alex surged forward, yanking the headband off her sister’s head and throwing it to the ground where it was crushed under Batman’s boot.
 
“I’ve got you. I’ve got you,” Alex repeated again and again as she pulled her sobbing sister close.
 
Only Batman looked up when Vasquez pushed through the doorway, gun drawn and eyes wide as she took in the destruction, whilst off to the side, still wrapped up in a steel girder, Wonder Woman struggled to rise. “A little help over here? Anyone?”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

*One week after returning from the arctic*

At first, when Kara stepped out of the elevator at the top floor and looked along the corridor that led to Lena’s penthouse suite, she wasn’t even sure the young CEO was at home. There were no lights shining from beneath the door, no sounds of movement from inside. After a momentary pause as she tried to figure out what to do next, Kara dipped her glasses down the bridge of her nose and looked through the door. Just to make absolutely sure no one was home.
 
Scanning the place quickly to apparently confirm that this was indeed the case, she was about to turn and step back into the elevator again - perhaps Lena was at her L-Corp office? - when a movement inside the penthouse finally caught her eye. 
 
Frowning as she slid her glasses back up her nose and resumed her guise as Kara Danvers again, she walked over to the door and tested the handle. To her even greater surprise, the door wasn’t locked, and she was able to step inside, to find Lena in the living room, curled up on the couch with a glass of wine in hand. Sitting in the dark, not even a tv or laptop for company. Kara knew immediately that something was off. Only the dim lights of the city, streaming from the wall to ceiling windows in the living room, providing any illumination.
 
“Lena?” She asked anxiously, hurrying forward, only to be stopped short when she saw the look on Lena’s face. Or rather the lack of one. Void of all emotion and impossible to read.
 
“I see you decided to use the door,” was the greeting she was given in return after a moment of awkward silence. Lena’s eyes drifted to the left, over toward the skyline and the small amount of light that danced in from the surrounding city, before she turned back to the blonde. “I thought you were more of a balcony woman.”
 
Kara hesitated, not sure how to take Lena’s level tone.  She bit her lip, taking a hesitant step forward, then one more, before smiling awkwardly, and gesturing down at her slacks and sweater. “Casual dress.”  When there was no response, the smile fell off of Kara’s face and she said, “I came over to check on you.”
 
“Oh, did you.”
 
“Uh… yes?” She hesitated for a moment. This was unnerving that she couldn’t tell what Lena was thinking. So she attempted something of an upbeat, cheery tone to try and lighten the atmosphere. “Yes I did. So how are you?”
 
Lena shrugged once, before responding. “I’m a Luthor.”
 
Kara’s brow furrowed. “Does… that answer my question?”
 
“Doesn’t it?”
 
Sliding a little closer, Kara realised that upbeat and cheerful wasn’t working. She needed to try a different tactic. “People are worried about you.”
 
“I doubt that.”
 
“It’s… it’s true.”
 
“True?  You know what’s true?”  As Kara opened her mouth to speak, Lena said, “I doubt that too. Or maybe it’s just me that I’m doubting.”
 
“You’re upset.”
 
“No.”
 
“I…”  Rubbing her hands together, at a loss for what to say or do, Kara sighed. “James said you were upset.”
 
“Again, I doubt that.”
 
Arms lifting and falling to slap against the sides of her legs, Kara let out a frustrated sound, though it was barely audible - but in the otherwise silence of the apartment, it echoed so loud that Kara actually flinched at herself, then quickly carried on before she could lose her nerve. 
 
“Lena, I don’t know what I’m doing wrong.”
 
Pushing up and turning until she sat upright on the couch, Lena nodded. “See, now

that

I believe.”
 
Taking the empty seat as an invitation, Kara carefully sat down. “A lot has changed in your life in the past few days. If you were upset or even angry, no one could blame you.”
 
Lena slowly twirled the remaining half a glass of wine, studying it as if some answers might be found within. Finally, putting the glass down without drinking any more, she said simply, “

I

blame me.”

Kara leaned forward, trying to catch Lena’s gaze. “For being angry?”
 
“For being…”
 
When the CEO didn’t continue, Kara suggested, “Angry, upset… um disappointed? I kind of hope it’s not disappointed. Disappointed is the worst one.”
 
With a sigh, Lena stood and walked away. “For being.” She walked halfway to the balcony before turning back with a shrug. “That’s it, Kara, for being. I blame myself for just existing. For being here right now. It’s…” Tapping on her forehead with one finger to emphasise her point, she carried on. “Right there. Her voice, right there. And no matter what I say or do, it won’t go away. It’s always there. A constant reminder.”
 
Kara frowned. “What are you talking about?”
 
“It doesn’t matter. What is it you want, Kara? You’re interrupting my dinner.”
 
“Uh…” Kara stood, looking around the penthouse apartment, sliding her glasses down just a bit so she could peek through the wall and into the kitchen and verify there was nothing set out in the way of food. “Were you going to cook something?  Did you want to order out because—?”
 
“This is dinner,” Lena said with a gesture at the mostly empty glass on the coffee table. “If I finish that, I’ll get a nice glass of dessert merlot.”
 
“Lena.” Just that one word from the blonde was heavy with so many emotions. “Whatever you’re feeling about what happened, don’t take it out on yourself. Talk to me. Yell at me. Scream at me if you have to but not this. Please don’t do this.”
 
“I’m not going to yell at you, Kara.”
 
“Are you sure? If you do, I wouldn’t blame you.”
 
“Oh, the thought’s crossed my mind. Really though, what’s the point? I don’t understand why you did it. I thought I knew, but in the end, I let myself be made a fool. I did that.” Walking back to the couch, Lena slid into her seat, head in her hands. “I’m such a fool.”
 
“No, Lena!” Kara assured as she rejoined her on the couch. “You’re many amazing things, but you’ve never been a fool.”
 
Lena looked over at the blonde, holding the hero’s gaze for several moments before she said, “I don’t have to ask about Alex, she’s your sister so it’s only natural she would know. But your sister’s ex, Maggie, she knows, doesn’t she?”
 
“I…” Not breaking eye contact, Kara hesitated for a moment, then decided that in this particular situation right here and now, honesty would most definitely be the best policy. So she nodded.
 
“Mr. Schott knows. When Lois and I went to get information about Supergirl, he said we were there looking for you. Not Supergirl. You. Until he caught himself and covered it up. I let it slide, didn’t react, but it was yet another confirmation in a steadily growing list of confirmations about who knew.”
 
Kara didn’t deny it. There was no point. So she just nodded.
 
“And let’s see who else knows. Mr. Olsen knows. I asked him about an article, said I’d have to call you for information, and he offered to do it. Then he did. He called and supposedly spoke to you while Supergirl was in the arctic.” Lena watched Kara swallow hard. “That must be one hell of a cell phone plan he has. Pity it wasn’t able to make his lie more believable. But again, I chose not to question it.”
 
Kara didn’t comment, she just watched as Lena seemed to wind up slightly, a touch of the calm eeking away.
 
“I know Lois knows. Hell, she’s been down this road, hasn’t she? She lived in the dark for so long, I’m surprised the woman doesn’t have mushrooms growing on her. So, it’s just your sister, her ex, your cousin and his fianceé, and your two friends who are in the know?” As Kara opened her mouth to reply, Lena said, “Oh, and don’t forget Director J’onzz, we’ll assume here that he knows too. Your sister works for him at the FBI, after all. And speaking of the FBI, that’s where Agents Vasquez and Johnson work, as well?” Noting Kara’s surprised expression, Lena carried on. “Yes, did you know they also spoke to you while you were taking care of your mother? Damn, everyone has a better calling plan than I do. I wonder what carrier they use. I should invest. Maybe I should see if I can buy it.”
 
“Lena, I—”
 
“It’s not the FBI, is it?”
 
Kara waited to see if she was going to get a chance to answer. “No. I… I’m not sure I’m allowed to tell you who they really are.” 
 
“Like you weren’t allowed to tell

me

who

you

were?”
 
“Please Lena I wanted to. Really, I did, I just—”
 
“How many?” Lena cut across her sharply, and Kara winced again. 
 
“How… how many… what?”
 
“How many people know?”
 
“Oh. I… I, um… I’m not exactly sure.”
 
“You’re not…?!” Standing again, a hand running through her hair as she walked around, Lena shook her head in bewilderment. “That’s more than I thought. That’s a lot more than I thought! You know, Kara, I was fine with you not telling me. I mean, you have a right to your secrets. We all have a right to our privacy. There are things you don’t know about me, and I have a right to them, don’t I?”
 
“Absolutely,” Kara agreed, also on her feet again. “Lena, I would never expect you to share anything about yourself you weren’t comfortable sharing.”
 
“But I did though, didn’t I. I thought I had your trust. I told you stuff I’ve never told anyone else before. And all that time - all the time, I thought you were my friend, you were keeping this from me! How many times did I give you the chance to tell me? How many openings did I offer you, and you never took them!”
 
“You did?” This was news to Kara. She blinked in surprise. “When?”
 
“It doesn’t matter. All that matters is that this… this thing, Kara, it crossed a line. Do you understand that?”
 
“But… it’s still my thing.”
 
Slowly Lena nodded. “Alright then, answer me this. What if I had come to you, come to Supergirl and befriended you, told you my name was, I dunno, Tess Mercer or something? And it was a year and a half later, maybe two years later that you found out I wasn’t the person I’d been telling you I was, and that I was secretly the sister of Lex Luthor. I was a Luthor, and I’d never told you. What if I’d known who you were the whole time, but I’d been the one lying to you. Would it just be my thing?”
 
Mouth opening and closing, Kara didn’t answer.
 
“Doesn’t feel so good, does it?”
 
“That’s not fair, Lena. I am Kara Danvers. That isn’t a lie. You got to know both Kara Danvers and Supergirl. I just didn’t tell you they were the same person, but I didn’t lie to you about my intentions either.”
 
“Oh, didn’t you?”
 
“No. I… I just wanted to be your friend.”
 
Arms crossed, Lena lifted an eyebrow. “So you came to me because you wanted to be my friend? That was the foundation of our relationship?”
 
“I…” Kara hesitated, carefully waiting for the trap that should have been obvious before she nodded and said, “Yes.”

“I’m just tagging along

.”
 
“What?”
 
“That’s what you said, the day you and your cousin came to me to ask me about the explosion on the Venture. It wasn’t about an article, though I’ll admit you were both very convincing. It was two Supers coming to investigate a Luthor. You heard my name, and suddenly, I became your number one suspect.”
 
“No, it wasn’t like that—”
 
“At the time, you weren’t even a reporter. You were only there to… Well actually, what were you there to do? Use your super-hearing to hear my heartbeat change when I told lies? Catch the strain in my voice? Please don’t tell me you were using your x-ray vision in my office to look for evidence.”
 
At the startled look on Kara’s face - a rabbit caught in headlights, Lena rolled her eyes and threw up her hands. “Unbelievable! That’s just insulting! Even if I were evil, Kara, I’m not stupid. Did you honestly think I’d leave evidence lying around in my office, knowing full well a Super flew the streets and would more than likely do exactly what you and your cousin did, and come investigate me?! No, Kara, that moment was the foundation of our relationship, and it’s all been built from a lie. One huge lie, with a million smaller lies stacked neatly on top.”
 
Kara inhaled, searching for words to defend herself.  Staring into Lena’s green eyes however, the Kryptonian deflated. “You’re right, Lena. I’m sorry.”
 
“And that, Kara, may be the first truly honest thing you’ve said to me.”
 
As the silence stretched out between them and became painful, Kara rubbed a hand across the back of her neck. “How do I fix this, Lena?”
 
“Fix it, because we’re broken?”
 
“Aren’t we? The way you’re looking at me is breaking me right now.”
 
One eyebrow rose slowly in that perfect, imperial arch that only Lena Luthor seemed to be able to accomplish. “And how exactly am I looking at you, Kara?”
 
“Like you don’t know me?”
 
“Interesting. Because I was thinking I was looking at you like, for the first time, I knew you. The

real

you.”
 
“Damn it.” Head falling forward, Kara pressed a thumb and a finger against her eyelids. Tears burned at the backs of her eyes, and she struggled to keep them in. It was close to a minute later when, feeling more in control, she lifted her head again. “Just tell me what to do, Lena. Please, tell me what to do.”
 
“I don’t know. I don’t understand how we got here, Kara. I don’t understand how you befriended me, but lied to me. I don’t understand why—”
 
“Because you think I’m Toby!”
 
The ludicrousness of the statement pulled Lena out of her wine-fueled state that was half-confusion/half-anger. “I think you’re… Does that make sense on your planet, or are you about to reveal a whole other secret identity to me?”
 
Head shaking, Kara tried her best to explain. “I’m Chandler, but you think I’m Toby.”
 
Mouth agape, Lena stared for several seconds before walking past Kara, grabbing her glass from the coffee table on the way and heading into the kitchen. 
 
“Do I even want to know?” she asked, not looking Kara’s way, but Kara would either have been be able to hear her or would have followed her out to the kitchen anyway. Pulling a bottle at random from the wine rack, eyeing it critically, then putting it back and pulling out another that was apparently more to her liking, she put down the bottle on the kitchen island and began to dig through a drawer. “Seriously? Where the hell did I put it? I only used it an hour ago.” She slammed the drawer shut and was going through another drawer when a popping sound made her turn.
 
Standing sheepishly with a wine bottle in one hand and the cork in the other, Kara held out the bottle. “I also do windows.”
 
Lena didn’t say anything, but she did nod her head a little in acknowledgement of the action - it was as much of a thank you as Kara would get at the moment, however. 
 
Taking the bottle and draining her glass into her mouth before refilling it with the new beverage, she leaned against the counter. “So Toby… explain.”
 
“Okay,” Kara pushed her glasses a little further up her nose as she tried to think where best to begin. “Well… Have you ever watched Friends?”
 
Taking a sip of her wine, Lena shrugged. “Was it a TV Show?”
 
“Lena.” Kara’s face and voice vied for the most disappointed. “How did you never watch Friends?”
 
“You don’t honestly think that was deemed acceptable viewing in the Luthor household, do you?”
 
“None of them were aliens.”
 
“Good point,” Lena conceded, taking another sip of wine. “Okay, so one of them was called Toby?”
 
“Actually, none of them were.”
 
Lena rubbed her forehead with her free hand. “I’m either not sober enough or not drunk enough for this conversation.”
 
Picking up the wine bottle, Kara refilled Lena’s glass. “Well, I can fix one of those things. So anyway, I’m Chandler. He’s the funny guy who ends up married to Monica, who is this really pretty brunette who is a bit high strung and very organized. She has kind of a tough relationship with her mom who prefers the brother for, some reason, and she owns her own business and…” Realising the sudden comparison between Monica and Lena, Kara’s voice trailed off.
 
For a moment there was silence, and then rather impatient now, Lena lowered her glass from her lips. “Kara. Who. Is. Toby?!”
 
“What? Oh, sorry, my mind just…” Kara spun her hand in a circle and away from her head. “Sometimes it’s easier to think in Kryptonian, and I just stop talking because no one speaks my language here. Then I try to translate what I’m thinking, and I stutter and babble, and it’s this rush of words and a huge mess like an awful gibberish word soup gunk. You know?”
 
Lena took a deep breath, closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them again, obviously, forcing herself to keep calm. “Who is Toby?”
 
Slapping her palm against her forehead, Kara said, “Right, right. Word soup. So, Chandler met this guy who worked on another floor at his work who called him Toby. No big deal, but then the next time the guy met him, he called Chandler Toby again, but it was like, ‘Hey, Toby, you want some doughnuts?’ Lena, you know how much I love doughnuts. So Chandler didn’t say no to doughnuts. Suddenly, this guy would see Chandler in the elevator and just call him Toby. It went on for so long, Chandler just went with it. Do you get it?”
 
Sipping her wine, Lena nodded over the lip of the glass.
 
Kara smiled, encouraged. “So then this guy was up for a job on the same floor as Chandler, in the same department. They’d be in meetings together if the guy got the job. Chandler told his boss he didn’t think the guy was ‘seventh floor material’, and the guy didn’t get the job. The guy found out and went to confront Chandler and found Toby.”
 
“Oh. So Chandler had to come clean? It’s like…” Lena waggled one finger back and forth between her and Kara.
 
“Uh… no,” Kara admitted. “Actually, the guy thought that Chandler was Toby, so he told his friend Toby what happened, and Chandler just played along like this Chandler guy was a jerk. Then the guy started to trash Chandler’s office so Chandler, pretending to be Toby, helped him.”
 
Squinting, forearms pressed on the island, Lena tilted her head to one side as if trying to judge Kara’s words. “You’re kidding, right?”
 
“That’s what happened. It was a really funny episode. You should watch it… you know… someday when you have a spare few moments.”
 
Lena wasn’t convinced. “So this Chandler guy lied for… years?”
 
Kara nodded, slowly.
 
“You’re telling me that Chandler lied for years about his identity, got found out, and it all ended badly for him. You were aware of this. You saw parallels of us in this show, and still you did nothing?”
 
“Well, I wouldn’t say—”
 
“No, Kara, no, I can see what you’re saying. You’re this Chandler/Toby guy, and I’m the other guy who got screwed over. So, now I get revenge on you, and you’ll help me.”
 
“That’s what you got out of that?”
 
Lena shrugged. “What I got was that you lied to me because telling me felt awkward. Is that what you meant? You can face armed robbers, bombs, alien invasions, and even being stranded without your powers on another planet, but you can’t face an awkward situation with the person you claimed was your best friend because it was beyond your abilities?”
 
“Lena, I’m so, so sorry.”
 
“So you’ve said, and I haven’t disagreed with you.” Tipping her glass back, Lena drained it and turned, one arm on the island while she exhaled heavily, looking away from Kara. “Kara, I’m tired. I ignored both of my businesses for days while I searched for you.”
 
“Lena I—”
 
“Don’t.” The CEO held up her hand, her elbow still on the island. “I don’t regret it in the least. I’d make the same choice right now if I had it to make all over again. No matter our relationship, this city, this world, needs Supergirl. We may be at a momentary impasse, but you’re where you should be. I’m glad you’re home. And I’m glad you’re healed. I won’t lie - seeing you broken like that was… disheartening to say the least.”
 
“So this is just momentary?” When there was no reply, Kara sighed. “You know, I’ve always been scared when people have found out because of what they could do to me, but I‘ve been scared of you finding out because of what it could cost me. I didn’t want to lose you. I knew you’d never hurt me the way Max Lord tried to when he found out, but the idea of losing you hurts so—” Kara jumped when the wine glass hit the floor and shattered. “Lena?”
 
Slowly turning, Lena’s eyes were narrowed to slits, and her mouth was an incredibly fine line.  When she spoke, her voice was ice. “Max Lord knows?”
 
“I didn’t tell him,” Kara replied immediately, holding up her hands defensively in front of her.
 
“But he knows?”
 
Kara stood frozen under Lena’s gaze for several seconds before she swallowed hard. “He bugged Alex.”
 
“Max Fucking Lord?!” The calm was gone in an instant. “For fuck’s sake, Kara! Why don’t you just take out a fucking billboard!?”
 
Kara winced at the tone, the volume, and in particular Lena’s very colorful choice of words. “Ok, now you’re angry.”
 
“No shit, Sherlock!” Lena crouched, scooping broken shards of glass with one hand and depositing them into her other. “Max Lord is a despicable… biped! Let’s not even bring his species into this. You walk around every day with Max fucking Lord knowing your identity, but somehow

I’m

the security threat?” A growl rolled through her throat.
 
“Let me help you,” Kara said quickly, kneeling next to Lena.
 
“I can do it,” Lena snapped.
 
“You could cut yourself.”
 
“Then I’ll heal!” Head whipping to the right, Lena glared at the blonde. “I’ve been taking care of myself since I was quite young. Once Lex went off to college and my father died, I was on my own, and I’ve been on my own ever since. I live here by myself, I have no servants, and the only person I’ve ever had in my life was Jack. But now he’s…” Pushing up to her feet, Lena turned to lean against the island again. “Jack. I killed him to save your life.”
 
“I know Lena. I’m so sorry.”
 
“For fuck’s sake, Kara, stop saying that!” One hand curled around broken glass, Lena rubbed her forehead with her other hand. “All I can hear now is you apologizing and my mother telling me I’d never be good enough. I’d never be smart enough. I’d never be worth loving.”
 
“Lena, no—”
 
“Maybe I never wanted to be a good person. Maybe I was never destined to be. Maybe all this time I just wanted for her to be wrong.”
 
Kara nodded, staring down at her hands. “I wanted her to be wrong, too. She said you’d hate me when you found out.” At Lena’s quick intake of breath, Kara’s head snapped up. It was then that she realized what she’d said. “Oh… Rao.”
 
Lena’s face had transformed into a positive snarl of anger now. “My mother?
My mother
knows, and still I wasn’t deemed
worthy of your trust?!!!
”
 
“Lena, I swear, it wasn’t like that. I promise. She, I mean I, I mean—”
 
“Do you know what? Shut up! I am so sick of listening to you!”
 
“Lena, please—”
 
Eyes wide and glistening with unshed tears, one hand rising with a tremble, Lena pointed past Kara towards the door. “Get. Out.”
 
“I can explain.”
 
“I didn’t ask for an explanation. I asked for your absence. So get out.” Lena’s voice was a warning on the edge of something dangerous. “You are not welcome here. Leave.”
 
Kara’s gaze drifted from the other woman’s to red droplets that fell from Lena’s other hand, which curled and shook. “Your hand. Lena, oh, Rao, your hand! Let me—”
 
“Get out!” Lena stepped forward quickly, her whole body shaking now. “Get the fuck out of my home! Do not make me ask you again!”
 
“You’re hurt. You need to go to the hospital,” Kara argued, trying her best to take Lena’s wounded hand, but Lena snatched it back out of her way, dropping the shards to the floor again in a bloodied mess of tinkling glass.
 
“Then I’ll go to the fucking hospital, but I don’t require your presence to do that. Do you need me to call security to escort you out of here?”
 
With a quick head shake, Kara replied, “No.”
 
“Good. Now get out and don't come back. You go away. Okay? You go a

long

way away.”
 
Eyes closed, Kara nodded quickly and turned on her heel. She stopped by the archway to the living room, almost apologizing again, but then continuing on saying nothing. She grabbed her purse from where she’d left it near the couch, looking back through the wall to see the CEO slumped over the island. It took everything in Kara to leave and head downstairs.
 
On the ground floor, Kara stopped by the man at the front desk and said, “Miss Luthor needs to… a doctor or… Will you check on her please?”
 
“What’s wrong?”
 
Kara shook her head, looking toward the ceiling as she tried to keep in tears that fell anyway. Turning her head to the side, she said, “She cut her hand, and I had to leave. I think she needs stitches. She…” Unable to continue, Kara walked briskly out the front door, down the street, and into an alley a block away. She pulled out her phone, going straight to her contacts. The phone was answered quickly. “Clark! Clark, are you still at the hotel? Please say you are… Okay I’m coming over. No, I’m okay but… I’m not okay. Clark, I screwed up. Please, can I—? Thank you. I’ll be there in a minute.” 
 
Disconnecting, Kara shoved her phone back into her purse and took to the air, not even stopping to change into her alter ego attire first because right then she didn’t care who saw her. It paled in significance to the fact that she’d just screwed up and made possibly the biggest mistake of her life. She needed the wisdom and advice of someone who had been in this position before and would know exactly the right thing to do to fix it.
 
<><>
 
The knocking on Lena’s door was incessant.  Sitting back on her couch with a tumbler of vodka in hand, her other hand wrapped with a few layers of gauze, she ignored it at first.  Whoever was there was persistent and seemed not eager to leave Lena to get blind-drunk in peace.  
 
When the knocking sounded yet again, Lena put her glass on the table with a bit too much force, marched to the door, and pulled it open without looking.  Lungs full of air, she froze in preparation of giving this intruder a piece of her mind when her gaze fell on Lois Lane who was already mid-rant about… something.
 
“That fucking, ignorant, pig-headed arse of a Kryptonian has put his stupidly oversized alien foot so far in it this time, the shit is right up to his perfectly sculpted jawline which I am so very, very, very tempted to punch right now that only the thought of me not being able to write any articles for four weeks after because of my broken hand is stopping me!” Lois marched straight on past Lena and into the apartment without even waiting for a signal that it was ok for her to do so. Her hands were waving about and gesticulating wildly as her tirade continued. “What the fuck did he think I was doing all fucking week while he was gone?! Sitting writing fluff pieces on… on… candy floss and kittens?! And then he has the nerve - no, the
audacity
to say that what Kara did was okay, and he hasn’t a clue what the fuck he’s talking about right now, which just infuriates me even more, because he’s so stupidly blind, even with those fucking glasses of his, which, FYI, are just bits of glass, lead, and fuck all else! Seriously, if he wasn’t a solid mountain of steel, I’d have given him one of these to chew on by now!” She held up a fist in demonstration as she marched even further into the apartment.
 
Lena stood wide-eyed, watching and listening to Lois’ tirade. Several times, she opened her mouth to interject, but Lois seemed capable of speaking continuously without taking a breath.
 
“Yes, I know he’s been through a lot, and so has Kara, and it was a huge ordeal for them, being captured and controlled like that, but has he ever stopped to think what the hell it was like for us as well? Being left behind and not knowing where the hell they were all that time? No! He has not! Not once has it even entered that thick melon of his, yet according to him, I’m the one who’s overreacting?! Ha!”
 
As Lois seemed to finally wind down, Lena took a hesitant step forward. “What can I do?”
 
“I just….” Lois ran a hand through her hair, her voice faltering as she began to pace back and forth. “I don’t know, Lena. I just don’t know.”
 
Grabbing Lois by the shoulders and squeezing gently, Lena said, “What you need is to sit down, relax, and have a glass of water.” She smiled reassuringly, then walked with Lois over to the couch, sitting the other woman down. “Stay put. I’ll be right back.”
 
Lois sat, obediently enough, but her angry tirade started up again shortly after as she seemed to remember even more reasons why she was so wound up in the first place. “You know, Clark says that Kara was right to do what she did! He agrees that keeping the secret from you for so long was the right thing! What a fucking hypocrite! He told me that keeping his secret from me was the hardest thing he’d ever done, and yet, he condones Kara doing exactly the same to you!”
 
Lena hummed in agreement as she filled a glass with water. With glass in hand, she returned to the living room. “I don’t know about you, but I’m finding it hard to give Kara any sympathy for having to lie…” As her gaze fell on Lois with the glass of vodka to her lips, which she had mistaken for the water that Lena had mentioned, Lena dropped the glass in her own hand and rushed forward, swatting the one in Lois’ hand to the carpet. “No!”
 
“Uh...what the hell?” Lois frowned. “Do you mind?”
 
“I’m sorry, but there was vodka in there, and in your condition…” The rest of the sentence died on her lips as she stared at Lois.
 
Lois inhaled sharply, her lips pressed tightly together as she stared back at Lena for what felt like an eternity before she exhaled slowly and appeared to visibly deflate. “You know.”
 
“No, I… I…” Exhaling heavily, Lena could only nod.
 
Lois nodded as well. Slowly. Then she sunk back into the couch cushions. “How long?”
 
“It was an accident.” Lena cringed at her own word choice. “Right before we left for the arctic, I was cleaning up the paper city you built. I was putting things into recycle, and there was a box poking out of the trash. I was only trying to move it to the right container. I didn’t mean to peek.”

“Ah,” Lois nodded again, and the slightest hint of something tugged at the corner of her mouth. It would have been optimistic to call it a smile, but it was a start. “You sure you don’t want to reconsider Luthor and Lane, Detective Directives?”
 
“You’re not mad?”
 
“Mad?” This time Lois really did smile. “The only one who’s mad is your brother. Of course, I’m not mad. In fact, I’m relieved. You have no idea how hard it’s been for me to keep quiet. Seriously, it’s been torture!”
 
“Oh, thank God. I’ll be right back.” Lena left for the kitchen and returned with a glass of water for Lois and a roll of paper towels. She handed over the glass and then began to sop up the moisture from the carpet. “I feel exactly the same way. I’ve been wanting to say something since I found out. It feels like I’ve been dancing on eggshells around you. So, not to be too nosey, but was this planned? I just mean, you know… Clark.”
 
“What happened to your hand?” Lois asked suddenly, frowning at the bandaged hand that Lena was being very careful with.
 
“What?” Lena looked at the hand holding the paper towels and then the other one that she was rather gingerly resting on the coffee table. “Oh, this? It’s nothing.”
 
“Well, it’s certainly not a fashion statement either. What did you do?”
 
“It was just a clumsy accident.  Kara said…” Lena closed her eyes, shaking her head before returning to her cleaning. “It’s nothing.”
 
“If I’ve learned just one thing about you, Lena Luthor, it’s that you’re anything but clumsy. Want me to take a look?”
 
“I’m sure it isn’t anything major. It was just a bit awkward to bandage my right hand with my left.”
 
“Then let me help you. It’s the least I can do after all you’ve done for me.” Lois sat forward and held out her hand, palm up, inviting Lena to let her have a look.
 
“Fine, but it’s nothing,” Lena said as she took a seat on the couch next to Lois, placing her bandaged hand, palm up, on top of the other woman’s. “I just dropped a glass and wasn’t paying attention when I was picking it up.”
 
Lois shuddered involuntarily at the mention of glass, and her free hand momentarily rubbed her thigh, tenderly, as if the memory of her own glass-related injury had caused a surge of pain from said wound. Then taking a moment to compose herself again, she carefully unwound the bandage to have a look, sucking in a breath when she saw the neat slice across Lena’s palm and a few more, smaller slices up near the creases of her fingers. The main concern was the large one on her palm. The others would heal in time, but this one was fairly deep.
 
“This could still have some glass in it. Might need stitches too. You sure you don’t want to go get it checked out?”
 
“You sound like my mother, though she’d be more concerned I needed a plastic surgeon. Appearances matter, after all.” With a slight growl, she repeated, “my mother.”
 
“Appearances mean fuck all,” Lois frowned as she studied the bloodied mess that was Lena’s hand. “I’ve got scars, and I’m proud of them. Each one is a reminder that I need to be more careful next time.”
 
“Oh, believe me. I’m going to be more careful about my choices from now on.”
 
“So… your mother did this to you?” Lois paused.
 
“What? No. All of the scars I have from my mother were emotional. Kara and I were talking and… When Clark told you who he really was, was there anyone else who knew that you thought was unreputable?”
 
“There were other people who knew before me, sure. Your brother was one of them. I’ll let you decide if he was unreputable or not.”
 
“Perhaps being a poor judge of character is inherent to their race. Kara admitted to me that my mother knows about her alter-ego.”
 
“Ouch. Before you? Yeah, I’d be pissed at that as well. Thankfully for me, my father has no idea who the Supers are. There’d be World Wars five, six, seven and eight if he ever did.”
 
“My mother has literally tried to kill every alien on this planet, and somehow her knowing wasn’t an issue, but my knowing was? Oh, and do you know who Max Lord is?”
 
“Heard the name. He’s some rich douche who was friends with Cat Grant, right?”
 
“Yes, that is an appropriate description of him. He also knows Kara’s secret identity.” Lena winced slightly as Lois wrapped her hand. “Now I’m wondering if there’s anyone she left out. Does my brother know? Does Morgan Edge know? Was it a full-page spread ‘Announcing the Secret Identity of Supergirl!’ in Catco magazine, and I just missed that issue?”
 
“I very nearly wrote an article exposing Clark once,” Lois admitted, quietly. Sheepishly even, as if she was ashamed.
 
“Anyway, that’s what caused my distraction and my injury.” Lena opened and closed her newly wrapped hand. “Thank you, Lois. However, you never answered my question.”
 
“Yes, I did,” Lois ducked her head on the pretence of looking for some imaginary item that she’d dropped. “I’ve answered several of your questions over the last few minutes, in fact.”
 
“True, but not the one I asked about Clark. Does he know about the baby?”
 
“Oh

that

question…” Lois started, and then she stopped and sighed, shaking her head. “No. Not yet. We started to talk about everything, and then he infuriated me so much, the way he was defending Kara, that I stormed out. I haven’t told him, and I’m sure he’s far too preoccupied to have worked it out for himself.”
 
“You’ve both been through a lot, but this,” Lena gestured toward Lois’ abdomen, “is what’s important.  Right now, you need to take care of yourself so you can take care of… them. I mean them as in non-gendered singular pronoun, not multiple thems.  Do twins run in your family?” As Lena spoke, she picked up the wet paper towels and took them to the trash in the kitchen.
 
“I have no idea,” Lois chuckled. And then her face dropped, as realisation dawned and amusement turned to horror. “Oh my God, what if it’s twins? What if they both end up Super babies? What do I do then?! I can’t chase two flying babies round all day long! They have a completely unfair advantage!”
 
“Lois, Lois, take a breath and relax.  That’s it, just breathe.” Lena took a seat on the couch next to Lois and practiced calm breathing with the other woman. “Only about one in thirty births in the country leads to twins, but that number has nearly doubled in the last thirty years due to artificial insemination. Statistically speaking, you’re only going to have one baby.”
 
“Lena,” Lois sighed. “This is a Krypto-human hybrid. First of its kind, as far as Clark and I are aware. I’m not sure the statistics count in this instance.”
 
“You’re right.” Lena’s brows furrowed in concentration. “I could easily get an ultrasound machine. We should do your bloodwork. You have no idea of how taxing a non-human pregnancy will be on your body. We need some baselines and regular mapping… say once a week. I’ll make some calls.”
 
“Look, if you wanted me around the place more often, all you had to do was say,” Lois smirked. “Besides, I’m not being anybody’s guinea pig. If you want to do the tests, you’ll just have to have your own Krypto-human hybrid and do them on yourself.”
 
“I… pfft…” Lena stuttered as her face heated up.  “Lois!”
 
“What?” Lois asked innocently. “You mean you and Kara haven’t talked about that yet?”
 
“Kara and I… there’s…” Lena exhaled and visibly calmed herself, smoothing out imaginary wrinkles in her slacks. “It’s not like that with Kara and I, and you know that. At this point, I don’t even know if I can call us friends. Anyway, the technology for two women reproducing is years away from being viable, and that’s with humans.”
 
“But you’re a genius. You’ll work it out long before anyone else even comes close,” Lois shrugged.
 
“There have been encouraging results with the testing of female mice in China. It will depend on the viability of the embryos and subsequent lifespan of the offspring. Did you see the whitepage Dr. Xang published?”
 
“I must have missed that one,” Lois blinked, shaking her head. “It sounds… erm… yeah.”
 
“It’s a riveting piece that goes into great lengths about the extraction of the chromosome to make a female skin cell a viable source for fertilization. I’ll get you a copy.”
 
“Perfect,” Lois smiled sweetly, but there was a twinkle in her eye. “At least then I’ll have something to bore me to sleep one night if I’m having trouble falling asleep by myself.”
 
Lena frowned. “With that attitude, this baby won’t be the only one to kick you.”
 
Lois mock-gasped. “You wouldn’t kick a pregnant lady! Ooh, you really are a Luthor, aren’t you.”
 
“What? No, Lois, I was only jesting. I would never hurt you or your child. I was just…” Lena squinted as Lois’ smile grew. “Why do you keep getting me on things like that? I’m absolutely not naive.”
 
“No you’re not naive at all. You just haven’t met anyone else like me, is all,” Lois beamed proudly.
 
“Yes, when they made you they broke the mold, and I don’t think it was an accident.” Rising, Lena headed toward the kitchen again. “Since I’m going to be drinking for two, I need to get back to it.”
 
“You realise I’m going to require your constant presence at every social function, gathering, family dinner, and every other occasion that requires the consumption of alcohol on my behalf?”
 
Returning with a tumbler in her hand, Lena beamed. “I knew there was something positive about our friendship. Lois, I hereby vow to be your designated drinker. I can supply references if needed.”
 
“None required,” Lois grinned as she picked up her glass of water and held it out to Lena to clink against hers in a toast of sorts. “You’re hired.”
 
“What does the job pay? I’m a Luthor, after all.”
 
“Aside from unlimited supplies of alcohol? How about good company - no make that excellent company, provided by yours truly, of course. A Super bodyguard, backstage passes to all the best locales in town… and did I mention the free drinks?”
 
Lena smiled and sipped from her glass. “It’s the best offer I ever had. You had me at ‘excellent company’.”
 
“Oh, speaking of company, there’s this really great guy I want you to meet at some point,” Lois sat up with a big grin. “His name’s Peewee. You’d love him.”
 
“Peewee? Is that his given name?”
 
Lois opened her mouth to reply, then paused. “Huh, I’m not actually sure I ever asked him that.”
 
“It sounds more like the kind of cruel nickname children give each other in the school yard. At any rate, if he’s a friend of yours, I look forward to meeting him. My social schedule is quite suddenly open.”
 
“He owns a pet store, too. I think. Or something to do with animals,” Lois considered. “We might be able to find you a Krypto of your own.”
 
“A what?”
 
“Oh, sorry, Krypto. He’s Clark’s dog. A Super dog if you like. He was the dog I hit with my car that time. See,” Lois beamed. “Now you know it was two Supers I hit, doesn’t make it so bad, does it.”
 
“You have a non-terran dog?”
 
“Clark says he comes from Krypton, but I think he’s just a normal dog that got hit with some kryptonite that gave him powers. The jury’s still out on which of us is right.”
 
“Well, have you done any testing on Krypto? I have an extensive lab, and we could do some geno-testing that would likely answer that debate.”
 
“Enough with the testing, you… you… nutty professor, you!” Lois exclaimed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Not everything can be dissected and analysed and scanned and… whatever else it is that you want to do with them…”
 
“I just… collecting data is a critical piece of how any species interacts with its surroundings and other species. As a reporter, I would think you’d be curious as to the exact nature of those with whom you interact.”
 
“Trust me, Luthor, you’ll soon learn there’s some parts about Kryptonians that you don’t
want
to know about.” Then she turned away under the pretense of putting her glass back on the table, but muttered under her breath at the same time, “X-ray vision for one thing.”
 
“Oh, I hadn’t actually considered that in reference to your current condition. Clark doesn’t regularly x-ray you or things in your vicinity, does he?”
 
“He’s a man who has the ability to see through a woman’s top. What do you think?” Lois scowled, clearly not amused by this. “I always know though. His ears go bright pink.” Then she sat up a little straighter and cleared her throat in an effort to change the subject slightly. “And don’t even get me started on his metabolism.”
 
“There are certain aspects of your relationship I don’t envy. I’m happy for you that you’ve made it work, but it sounds challenging.”
 
“All relationships require work. All relationships are challenging,” Lois shrugged. “Just wait until you realise how much your food bill’s gone up when you start having to feed Kara 24/7.”
 
Lena blinked and jerked back her head. “Why would I have to do that?”
 
“Because that woman can eat. And eat. And eat. And eat. And eat. And eat. And eat. And eat.”
 
“I understand that, but how does that affect me?”
 
“Oh come on, Lena,” Lois sighed. “Give me some credit. When we were hunting for the Supers, I had my own little sideline investigation going on. You’re into Kara just as much as she’s into you.”
 
Lena’s mouth hardened into a tight line. “It doesn’t matter, not that I’m saying it’s true, but if it was, it wouldn’t matter. I think it will be a long time before just my friendship with Kara rebuilds if it ever does.”
 
“I think I’m about the only person on this entire planet who’s qualified to say this right now but trust me. It will get better. You’re mad. I get that. Believe me, I do better than anyone. I’ve been where you are, remember? But Clark and I made it work in the end. Why does there have to be a reason why you and Kara can’t make it work as well?”
 
“Because I was raised by liars. They lied to me about who they were and about who I was. Any time they opened their mouths, I had to run a million scenarios through my mind as to what they actually meant and what they wanted from me. Trust is not something I give easily, and Kara knew that when I gave her mine. I’ve spent so much time running back through every conversation she and I ever had, looking for the hidden meaning and her ulterior motive. No matter what other feelings I may or may not have for Kara, right now, the overwhelming one is distrust.”
 
Lois listened quietly, sighed then nodded. “I hear you. I’ve been where you are right now. I know how much it hurts and how you feel betrayed by the one person you trusted and felt safe with, the one person you never thought in a million years could ever hurt you.”
 
She sat back into the couch, her hands folded gently across her stomach. But she didn’t say any more, seeming to have folded back in on herself in her own ruminations on her situation with herself and Clark. It was perhaps the stillest she’d been while conscious in a very long time.
 
“You’re right. The last time I gave someone my trust, that didn’t turn out well either.” Lena sniffed. “He tried to kill your fiancé. Maybe the problem is my judgment.”
 
Lois blinked for a moment, then slowly her gaze shifted to Lena. “The last person you trusted was your brother? Gee thanks a bunch, bestie!”
 
“I… I apologize, Lois. That wasn’t fair to you. You’ve been nothing but trustworthy. I suppose I’m just feeling a bit sorry for myself and a lot like an idiot. I have no idea how to move forward with Kara from here. I’m not sure I want to even try.”
 
Lois leaned over and wrapped an arm about Lena’s shoulder, pulling her in close. “I was having you on. You really are naive if you trust me. Although I didn’t scratch your car, so maybe you have a point. What you need right now though is a hug.”
 
Relaxing into Lois’ embrace, Lena sighed. “I’m grateful to have you through this. You really are the only person on the planet who knows how this feels.”
 
“Think yourself lucky you’ve got me. I had no one,” Lois smiled as she hugged the other woman, and then she paused and considered. “Well, no, I had Mrs K., but it’s not the same.”
 
“Well, I’m grateful.” Pushing away from Lois, Lena sniffed again and wiped quickly at her eyes. “There is no Mrs. K in my life.”
 
“Then we need to rectify that as soon as possible,” Lois nodded, a look of determination creasing her features as if this was something of grave importance that needed to be dealt with straight away. “And in the meantime, why are you crying? I’m the hormonal one!” She nudged Lena lightly with her elbow in a playful gesture.
 
“You’re right. I’m being silly. This is the problem with having feelings for the person you considered your best friend. When things go south, you lose more than a crush.”
 
Lois thought again for a moment, and then smiled slyly. “Remember when I told you that I had a thing for Superman? Back when I very first met him and Clark, I fell for Superman, head over heels, pretty much from first sight. But Clark? I couldn’t stand the bumbling buffoon. He was always getting in the way, bumping into things, and tripping over them. And he was very ‘gosh, golly, gee whizz’... I mean, who says that?! So imagine how awkward it was for me when I found out they were one and the same. At least you had a head start in that you actually liked both sides of Kara’s persona.”
 
“Golly gee.” Lena chuckled and examined her hands. “Yes, that sounds like Kara. She and I have always gotten on much better than Supergirl and I have. I admired Supergirl, but we’ve had some hurdles to overcome with who my family is and hers. She always seemed fair, and I respected that, but Kara… Kara was the kindest person I’d ever met. There was no baggage between us… or so I thought. With Kara, I thought my last name didn’t matter.” She met Lois’ gaze again. “I was so very wrong.”
 
“You want to know when Clark can truly be free to just be himself? No disguises or uniforms or duties or secrets? It’s when he and I are on the Kent Farm. Together. Just the two of us. When he can be both Kal-El and Clark Kent at the same time. He doesn’t have to be one or the other. He can be both. The Super suit is a uniform. It’s a symbol of hope, but it’s also a restraint. Likewise the glasses and the bumbling, clutzy natures are a restraint as well. I’m guessing that Kara is happiest and the most relaxed when it’s just you and her, right? Just the two of you on your own?”
 
“Honestly? I don’t know. She has other friends, and she has Alex and Eliza. With them, she’s able to be honest. With me, well, I’m not sure who she really is. I suppose, I haven’t even met the real Kara, no uniforms or restraint, yet. I don’t know her.”
 
“Then… just a suggestion,” Lois shrugged, trying to act nonchalant. “But wouldn’t it be better if you did get to know her first? The

real

her. And reserve your judgement until after?”
 
“As a scientist, I agree with you, but as a woman, I’m struggling with my emotions. I know you’re technically right, but I don’t know how to let myself get there.” She rubbed her hands over her face. “Ugh, I can barely even think clearly right now. What do you think?”
 
“I think,” Lois started carefully and gently as she watched her. “I've seen this look before.”
 
“Doubtful. This is new for me.”
 
“No, not on your face,” Lois shook her head, still using that gentle, compassionate tone - one a mother might use when speaking to her child. “On mine.”
 
Lena paused, studying Lois for a moment. “What happened?”
 
Lois paused, and then said sadly, “Same as you. I discovered I was in love with an alien.”
 
“No I… I’m not… I… I can’t keep doing this. She lied to me, and I let her. I knew. Part of me knew, but it was so much easier for me to pretend like it wasn’t happening, to smile every time she had to dash out from lunch because Alex lost her keys, for the fifth time that month, or everytime she made some ridiculous excuse like that she’d flown to my office on a bus.” Lena stared at Lois for a moment, letting that sink in. “I know I partially did this to myself, but you know what? I'm done. I am finished with it. I… I'm done. It's over. I'm finished with her, and I told her that… What is that face for? Why don't you believe me?”
 
Lois smiled knowingly. “Because you're still angry. You can never finish with anyone while they can still make you angry. Tell her when you're calm, and then tell me.” 
 
Lena opened her mouth, protest written all over her face, but then leaned closer, wrapping her arms around Lois and resting her head on her friend’s shoulder. “When did you get to become so wise?”
 
“Same way as anyone else,” Lois replied sadly as she hugged Lena back, giving her a comforting squeeze to let her know she wasn’t alone any more. “I had a really bad day. And a Super was involved.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The next few days were a whirlwind for Lena. With Lois off in Metropolis doing… well, who knew what Lois Lane was doing. All that Lena knew was that Lois was out of town, so the youngest Luthor threw herself into her work and ignored the rest of the world.
 
To be fair, Lena had neglected both her companies for several days, and that concept was anathema to a Luthor.  As her father once told her, Luthors don’t call in sick, they only call in dead. Sixteen hour days while eating granola bars at her desk for sustenance may not have been strictly necessary, but it would have made her father proud. It was also incredibly convenient when you were dodging call after call until your voicemail was full, leaving every text unread though they made your fingers twitch.  Kara’s forced absence was proving to be as real as her presence.
 
“Miss Luthor?” The door popped open at Lena’s response, and Jess entered with a box in hand. “This came for you. Security already scanned it.”
 
Lena took the box, turning it in her hands with a bit of resistance due to the weight. “There’s no return address. Did it come with a note?”
 
“No ma’am. Perhaps it’s in the box.”
 
“Perhaps,” Lena agreed as she took out a letter opener, slicing into the tape as Jess retreated.
 
The contents were packing peanuts covering bubble wrap, something heavy and metallic buried below it all. There was a note, a small one that simply stated, ‘In recognition of what you’ve done for the aliens of National City.’ That sounded especially promising for a Luthor, some progress made at last, but snipping scissors revealed what proved to be the ultimate letdown. 
 
On a black circular base stood a symbol, heavy, metallic and shining. It was a beautiful gesture, equally as beautifully made, but the time was about a week too late. In Lena’s hands sat the symbol of the House of El, the infamous ‘S’ that was emblazoned across the chest of one of the people she’d once most admired, once most respected, once… But not any more. All of that was in the past. 
 
Now it was just a cruel reminder that sometimes the wizard behind the curtain could be more than a disappointment, he could be a devastation.
 
Dumping the statue back into the box to rest on the packaging material, Lena pushed it to the side and went back to her work, even more annoyed than earlier. About fifteen minutes later, her heels clacked a warning to her assistant who was already standing when the CEO stepped outside her office with a pile of papers in hand.
 
“Jess, is that spreadsheet ready for my meeting with the board at two?”
 
“Not yet, Miss Luthor. I only got the numbers from marketing a few minutes ago. I’ll have it ready with time for you to review.”
 
Lena nodded, never missing a step as her assistant half-jogged to keep up. “Excellent. Have you been in touch with the caterers for the gala benefiting the children’s hospital?”
 
“I have a call scheduled with them in ten minutes. I sent them the pricing I received from a competitor and told them that if they couldn’t come down on the cost of their canapes, we’d go elsewhere.”
 
Finally, Lena cracked a smile. “Good work as always. Remember, it’s imperative that we need to have kosher options.”
 
“And vegetarian and vegan. I know, Miss Luthor. I sent them a list of acceptable options.”
 
“Did you remember—”
 
“No nuts and that also means peanuts.” Paused at the door to the conference room, Jess tilted her head to the side.  “You know this isn’t the first gala I coordinated, don’t you?”
 
With a gentle smile, Lena nodded. “You’re a godsend. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
 
“Let me do my job, and you won’t have to. Is there anything else?” 
 
“Yes, I’m expecting Miss Storm for a one o’clock meeting, but this may run long. Please see her into my office and make sure she’s comfortable.”
 
“Of course, Miss Luthor.” She pulled the door open. “Knock ‘em dead, Miss Luthor.”
 
“This is a finance meeting. Likely only one of us is coming out alive.”
 
As she closed the door behind Lena and headed back, Jess smiled. “My money is on you, Miss Luthor. The smart money is always on you.” 
 
When Jess returned to her desk, there was someone waiting there, short in stature but more than making up for it with the bright and bubbly nature she seemed to exude. She stood humming a tune, one hand tapping out the tempo, piano-style, on the leg of her burgundy trouser suit, her silver and blue charm bracelet jingling lightly with each movement of her hand. Her suit jacket was draped over her other arm and her tie fashioned in a very loose, almost casual style around her neck. It was both formal yet not too formal. Someone you could take seriously when talking about business, but not too seriously that she wasn’t up for a little fun as well.
 
“I apologize. I was away from my desk and didn’t get a call for you Miss…?”
 
“Oh hi!” The woman flashed a bright smile, her British accent as jovial and light as her mood seemed to be. “Sorry, I’m Abby Storm. I have a one o’clock with Miss Luthor?”
 
“Of course, Miss Storm, but it’s only,” Jess glanced at the time on her cellphone, “five off noon.”
 
Abigail blinked, then pulled out her own phone, checking the time and then going into settings, her smile dropping in an instant as she realised her mistake. “Ah… oops. I must have set the wrong timezone. That’s embarrassing.” 
 
She bit her lip for a moment, sheepishly fiddling with the settings on her phone a bit more, and then she sighed and glanced back up. “So… I don’t suppose there’s a good cafe, or coffee shop or something nearby? Seems I’ve got some time to kill.”
 
“Please, if you’ll follow me.” Jess led the way to Lena’s office, opening the door and waiting. “Miss Luthor’s in a meeting, but she asked that you be brought to her office when you arrived. I’d be happy to get you something to eat and drink while you wait. What would you prefer?”
 
Abigail hesitated a moment, then smiled a little awkwardly. “Please don’t take this the wrong way or anything, but… how do you make tea? I mean, obviously I know how to make tea, I just meant… how is it made over here?” She paused and ran a hand across the back of her neck, feeling even more awkward and embarrassed than she had done a moment earlier. “Sorry, that’s probably really British of me, isn’t it.”
 
“Not at all, Miss Storm. I can get you a pot of tea. Black or green tea, and do you prefer loose leaf or bag?”
 
“Uh…” Abigail blinked. “Bag with milk and two sugars, please?”
 
Jess smiled and nodded. “If you’d like to have a seat in Miss Luthor’s office, I’ll have it brought up right away. While you wait, do you need access to a laptop or iPad? Miss Luthor will be a while, unfortunately. I can get you something from our IT Department if you need it?”
 
Abigail smiled. “Thanks, but I came prepared just in case.” She reached into her bag and pulled out a copy of Gregory Maguire’s “Wicked”. She tapped the cover lightly. “I love this show. Seen it three times now.”
 
Smiling, Jess left Abigail alone and returned to her desk where she made a call.
 
Abigail set her bag down in the chair opposite where Lena would have sat, placed the book on the desk then decided to have a quick look around the office. Lena had a few well-placed and tasteful decorations after all, that caught her eye.
 
As she walked over to the window Abigail couldn’t help but marvel at the sights beyond. London was stunning in its own unique way, with its mixture of medieval, Victorian, and modern architecture amongst other styles as well. But this? This was something new and utterly breathtaking on a whole new level, with skyscrapers that reached up to the clouds, putting the Shard - London’s tallest building - to shame.
 
As she was gazing out at the horizon, a bright, cheerful tune erupted into the office from the direction of her bag. Hurrying back round, she knocked her bag flying in her haste to grab it, and the contents spilled under the desk.
 
“Ah, crap.” Grabbing her phone first, she hit the answer button and pressed it to her ear with one hand, even as she continued to rummage about and gather up all the other spilled belongings. “Trish, hi!”

“Hey Abs, is now a good time? I can’t get my head round the whole time difference thing.”

“Me neither, apparently,” Abigail laughed lightly as she continued to stuff bits and pieces back in her bag. “I turned up for my meeting an hour early. Had my phone set on Denver time, not National City time.”

“Denver? You daft mare,”

Trish Hollyman, Abigail’s best friend, laughed as well and Abigail could well imagine the look on Trish’s face, even as she spoke.

“Alright well, is now a bad time, or can you talk?”

“You’re a perfect distraction,” Abigail grinned. And then she paused, sure she’d heard someone say something and assuming it was Trish. “What?”

“What?”

Trish repeated, confused.
 
“What did you say?”

“I said to fill me in on everything.”

“No, no, after that.”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“Oh, must have been someone outside then.” Abigail stood back up, but lost her balance slightly as she did so and knocked into the desk. There was a loud thud behind her, and she winced.

“What was that?”

She glanced behind her to see a cardboard box on it’s side, on the cream rug. “Oh you know, just being me.”

“Wrecking the joint then?”

“Pretty much.”

“Alright, well don’t break too much. I hear that Luthor woman’s a billionaire. Means everything will be expensive.”

“Yes, Mum,” Abigail grinned as she set the phone on loudspeaker, then set it on the desk so that she could bend down to pick up the box. 
 
Hand inches from the box, Abigail froze. Her brows furrowed and she turned her head slightly, an ear turned toward the shiny House of El symbol that now decorated Lena’s carpet.

“Uh oh, you’ve gone quiet. You didn’t really break anything, did you?”

Abigail glanced up at the phone, tension leaving her body as she smiled. “I hope not. You know the old saying, you break it, you bought it? Well, I don’t think I can afford to buy anything in here.”
 
Even as they both chuckled, Abigail reached out blindly and grasped the symbol on the floor. A piercing noise burst through the air and ripped into her skull. She dropped the sculpture, her hands slapped to her ears in a feeble attempt to stave off the audial attack. Crumbling to her knees, she keened and rocked as she tried to hold her head together from what felt like an assault designed to split it in two.

“Are you alright? Abby? Abs? Is that you?”

Deaf to her friend’s words, Abigail fell to her side and then rolled over, her eyes going from scrunched tightly closed to flashing wide open as another sound overcame the tone. It was sounds, actually, the sounds of multiple voices.

‘This tribunal finds the defendants guilty on all counts. Due to the abhorrent nature of their crimes, they will be punished to the fullest extent available under our laws.’

‘You’ll pay for this! Mark my words, you’ll all pay!’

‘Take them away!’

‘When we get out—’

And then a much louder, clearer voice cut across all of the others.

“Abigail? For God’s sakes, woman, answer me! What’s going on?!”

Hearing Trish’s voice, Abigail’s hands fell away from her ears as she lay on the floor, and the wild look of fear and pain left her eyes. In their stead, a fierce determination remained.
 
“Now I remember.”

“Remember what? What are you talking about? What happened?”

The only answer Trish received in return was the sound of exploding glass.
 
<><>
 
A tray with tea and cookies in her hands, Jess nearly collided with Lena as she stepped off the elevator.
 
“Oh, Miss Luthor. You’re out of your meeting early. What… Are you alright?”
 
“No,” Lena replied firmly, her attention half on the phone in her hand. “I’ve just received word that Miss Arias was taken to the hospital via ambulance. I need to check on her and arrange child care for Ruby after school.”
 
“Oh, my God. Please, let me know if there’s anything I can do.”  Jess placed the tray on the corner as she spoke to Lena.
 
Lena nodded, stepping onto the elevator and pressing a button, but before the door fully closed, her arm jetted forward stopping it. “Oh, Jess,” she said as the doors reopened, “would you please call Miss Storm and let her know I’ll have to reschedule? Send my apologies.”
 
Jess glanced up from the floor where she was just picking up a silver charm bracelet from where it had fallen beside the desk. “Uh… She’s in your office.”
 
“Miss Storm?”
 
Jess nodded. “She mixed up time zones and arrived an hour early. I can tell her

—”

“No, it’s fine. I’ll let her know what’s going on and give my apologies myself.” Lena headed to her office, continuing to speak over her shoulder as she went. “Jess, you should have a contact for Ruby’s nanny. Would you mind giving her a call to see if she’s available? If not, would you please

—”

As she stared into her office, words died on Lena’s lips.
 
The interior of the office looked like a battle zone. Broken glass littered the carpet and even more was on the balcony. The glass balcony doors were now little more than a memory, one twisted piece of metal laying around that could have been a remnant. Even a piece of the wall near the balcony was torn out.
 
“Jess!” Lena stepped further into the office, her gaze shifting left and right to take in the full destruction.
 
“Yes, Miss Luthor, how can I… Oh. My. God. What happened?”
 
Lena’s brows rose. “How long were you away from your desk?”
 
“Ten minutes? Maybe less.”
 
Lena nodded and released a long sigh. “My assassin of the month seems not to have had my schedule. I don’t have time for this now.” She turned, making her way back to the elevators, but she didn’t get far before something that really should have dawned on her from the very start only now made itself known. Turning rapidly, she ran back the way she’d come as quickly as her three inch heels would allow. “Oh, my God! Miss Storm! Miss Storm?!”
 
A quick examination didn’t reveal anyone and confirmed her suspicions.
 
Finally, Jess glanced at Lena with a worried expression. “She’s… gone?”
 
Both of their gazes fell on the missing balcony doors and the wind that blew through them.
 
“Fuck.” Lena pulled out her phone, dialing furiously. “Jess, you’re in charge of checking in on Sam and making sure Ruby has adult supervision. Call an on-call nanny agency if you need to. Just make sure she’s alright. I’m going to call the FBI.” She looked up, meeting Jess’ wide-eyed gaze. “It looks like we have an abduction of a most unusual nature.”
 
<><>
 
Lena was waiting outside her office when Alex Danvers arrived. Arms crossed and spine stiff, she met the redhead’s steady gaze.
 
“You said someone was abducted?”
 
“In here,” Lena pushed open the door to let Alex go past, “but be careful of that first step. It’s a doozy.”
 
Alex didn’t disagree as she fought off the surprise that flashed across her face for just a moment. “Were you in here when this happened?”
 
“No, I was in a meeting elsewhere in the building.”
 
“Any witnesses?”
 
“No, my assistant was away from her desk getting refreshments for our guest, but I do have internal surveillance here, and security will bring that up shortly. I had an emergency call saying Sam had been taken to the hospital, and—”
 
“Sam’s in the hospital? Is she alright? Where’s Ruby?”
 
“As I was saying, Agent Danvers, I received a call about Miss Arias, but before I could go check on her, I was told I had a visitor. I went to give my apologies and found…” Lena gestured across the office. “I don’t know Sam’s status, but I’ve left word at the hospital, and I have some pull there. My assistant went to the school to pick up Ruby and bring her home until we know more.”
 
Alex nodded. “Keep me in the loop, would you?” When Lena just raised a brow, Alex continued, “So, what’s the name of the missing person?”
 
“Abigail Storm. She’s a business associate.”
 
“But no one actually saw her get taken.”
 
“Well, I don’t think she accidentally destroyed my office and then slunk away. She isn’t an under-stimulated dog ripping up a couch.”
 
Alex walked over to the balcony, careful not to step out onto it. “No one broke
in
. Someone or something broke
out
of here.”
 
“What do you mean?”
 
Alex pointed to the glass that littered the balcony. “This was all pushed out from an inside source. Sure, there’s glass on the carpet, but there’s much more on the balcony. Plus, when I drove up, your maintenance people had cordoned off a chunk of the sidewalk which was covered in what I can assume was your balcony doors.”
 
“Huh. But Abby was the only one here… I think.”
 
Alex crouched, picking up a piece of glass and turning it over in her hands. “This Abby, she’s human?” When Lena didn’t respond, Alex dropped the chunk of glass and stood, turning to face the CEO. 
 
“I’m hardly a subject matter expert on knowing who is and who isn’t human. She looks and acts completely human, but…” Lena’s eyebrows rose.
 
“Right. Well, for now we should assume someone took her. Have you gotten in touch with her employer?”
 
“Not yet. I’ve been putting out fires here, not literal fires but close.”
 
Hands on her hips, Alex rocked back and forth as she stared down at Lena’s desk. “This yours?”
 
“Is what… oh. No, that’s not my phone.”
 
Putting on latex gloves, Alex lifted the phone and pressed the button. “It’s locked. I can have my IT folks try and crack it.”
 
“Letting me do it would likely be faster.”
 
“But not procedure.” She and Lena locked gazes for several awkward moments before Alex pulled a ziplock bag out of her pocket, dropping the phone inside before handing it over to Lena. “Just make sure you let me know the moment it’s unlocked. Remember, you called me here. This is a federal matter now.”
 
“Thank you, Agent Danvers. Oh, Miss Storm isn’t American. She’s British.”
 
“Like a British citizen?”
 
“I believe so.”
 
Alex grumbled. “You never call me for the easy ones, do you?”
 
“We never seem to have any easy ones.”
 
Alex nodded. “I’ll call the state department, let them know we have a foreign citizen that we believe has been kidnapped. I’ll let them deal with the embassy. I’ll need the name and number of her employer.”
 
“I have a card in my desk if it’s alright that I…?”
 
Alex nodded, wandering around the office a bit as Lena carefully walked over broken glass in four-inch heels. Frowning, Alex tilted her head as she stared at one of the walls. “You let Ruby write on your wall?”
 
“Hmmm?” Handing the business card over to Alex, Lena replied, “No, that was Lois.”
 
Alex nodded. “That makes sense.”
 
“My ears are burning,” the very lady in question announced as she walked into the office and then stopped. “Damn, Luthor, you take extreme makeovers to a whole new level.”
 
“Lois, I thought you were in Metropolis.” Lena tried to fight back a smile but failed. She never, ever in her wildest dreams would have believed it, but Lois Lane was most definitely a sight for sore eyes right now.
 
“I was,” Lois shrugged as she stepped a little more carefully into the office to examine the mess. “Now I’m not. I got hungry and figured you’d take me to lunch.”
 
Alex’s gaze shifted back and forth between the two women, saying nothing.
 
“Well, unfortunately for you, your timing is perfect,” Lena said. “And by that, I mean I’ll have to take a rain check on the lunch because Sam’s been taken to the hospital, and Abigail is missing. She was in my office, and I came back to this.”
 
“Abigail?” Lois frowned. “Abigail? Do I know an Abigail?”
 
“You met briefly at Catco when you and I first…” Lena shot a look at Alex before continuing. “I don’t know if you remember her. British woman, petitie?”
 
“Oh! Abby!” Lois’ eyes lit up in recognition as she held a hand up at about shoulder height. “Tiny woman, English, really strong grip? Left that message for you that time? Works for Lord Pepper Pot or… no, wait… Lord Vinegar? Lord Coffee? Lord Cream? Lord… oh, what was his name? It was something stupid.”
 
“Sugar, yes, that Abigail. I’ve called Alex here to have the FBI assist in her recovery.”
 
“Still using the fake three letter stuff, huh?” Lois raised an eyebrow at Alex with a smirk. “Why don’t you just use the real name in this company?”
 
“You mean BMA? Bite. My. Ass,” Alex replied.
 
“Nice,” Lois nodded. “Did you know I was president of a club a bit like that when I was a kid? It was called the FU2 club. Take a guess what those letters stand for.”
 
Even as Alex opened her mouth, Lena took a step to come between them. “Ladies… and I feel I’m being generous at this time with that label, we have a missing woman. Perhaps you could save up your insults for later. Now, Agent Danvers, can you and whatever you want to call your organization help me, or should I call the FBI’s local field office?”
 
“I can help you, Miss Luthor. I can act with the full authority of an FBI Agent.”
 
Lois, meanwhile, had wandered over to the desk area. After a brief visual search with her eyes, she reached out and picked something up. “Huh, Wicked?”
 
“I’m sure I’ve probably been called worse.”
 
Lois rolled her eyes. “No, idiot - which I mean in the nicest possible way, of course. I meant are you a Wicked fan?” She held up the book for them both to see. “I love this show, but Clark still hasn’t seen it yet. I won’t say no to going again at some point though, if anyone’s interested?”
 
“Hey, hands off the evidence, Lane. I need to process—” When her phone rang, Alex pulled it out and frowned before stepping toward the exit. “Excuse me.”
 
Lena watched Alex leave, then returned her attention to the book in Lois’ hand. “Oh, yes I’ve heard wonderful things about it, though like Clark, I have yet to see it.” She shook her head. “The book isn’t mine.”
 
“Huh, must belong to Abby,” Lois nodded, turning it in her hand and examining the spine. “It’s well-read. Creased in a few places… here especially. Let’s see what’s so interesting about that particular page.” She let the book fall open in her hand, the natural wear and tear of the book letting it open at a page that it had clearly been open at several times. “
It isn't hard to find evil in this world. Evil is always more easily imagined than good, somehow.” 
 
“Excuse me?” Lena blinked.
 
Lois pointed to the page. “It’s a quote from the book. It’s been underlined. Though
there’s nothing much else on this page. It does look like something was kept in here at some point though. Bookmark maybe?” She sniffed loudly. “Oh man, that’s just heavenly. Don’t you love the smell of books, Lenny?” Without waiting for Lena to answer, Lois set the book back on the desk again and glanced down as her foot accidentally kicked something. “I’m guessing this isn’t yours either?” She gestured to the handbag that was resting against the chair leg.
 
“You’d be correct. If I’m not mistaken, that’s part of the Zoe Darling collection, one of their totes,” she lifted it, “medium-sized.”
 
“It’s a bag,” Lois shrugged. “It’s probably got clues in it.”
 
“Don’t you think we should wait for—” When the bag was snatched from her hands, Lena just sighed. “I’ll take that as a no.”
 
“Better to ask for forgiveness than permission,” Lois dived right on into the bag to see what she could find. “If we’d waited for permission before going after a certain pair of flying monkeys, we’d probably still be waiting now, and they wouldn’t be back out there saving the World from itself.” After a few minutes of rummaging, she pulled out foil-wrapped roll and studied it. “Polo mints? Huh, is that what they’re called over there? Odd. Oh, spearmint?” She held the roll out to Lena. “Want one?”
 
“Certainly not. Lois, the woman is missing. Don’t loot her bag.”
 
“I’m not looting. Looting implies keeping. I’m simply having a look and - here we go. Purse.” Lois set the bag down and took out the purse. Then she popped it open to have a look inside. “Yep, British. Sterling notes. Hey… why are they plastic? What gives?”
 
“Alright, we know it’s Abigail’s. Now put it down.”
 
Lois wasn’t listening. She was fascinated by the £5 note she’d pulled from the purse. “Seriously, it’s plastic! Look!” She crumpled it in her hand, and the note slowly unfolded and uncrumpled again in her palm. Then she tried to rip it, but it wouldn’t give. “Huh…” She tried even harder, and even bit it to try and tear it. “Indestructible money? I bet I can destroy it.”
 
“I’m surprised you haven’t permanently broken Clark yet,” Lena muttered before grabbing the note from Lois’ grip. “They’re polymer so they last longer and are harder to fake. Now please, can we stop going through the poor woman’s things? Doesn’t this feel wrong to you?”
 
“If you were to put one of these notes in the wash, would that make it laundered money?” Lois wondered.
 
“I used to think my family was the most depressing thing about me, but right now, the most depressing thing is that you’re probably the best friend that I have at the moment.”
 
“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” Lois frowned as she finally turned her attention back to the bag. “What else do we - I wasn’t touching anything! I didn’t do it!” She held her hands up as Alex walked back in.
 
“That sounds unlikely.” Alex patted her pocket. “That was Supergirl. She found out I was here, and she’s going to—”
 
“I don’t want her here,” Lena interjected.
 
“And I don’t want to be in the middle of this argument, or whatever, the two of you are having, but here we are. She’s on her way over.”
 
Arms crossed, Lena said, “I’m a private citizens, and this is private property. I do not want that woman here.”
 
“You invited the FBI in, and this is an active crime scene,” Alex replied and then her face softened. “Anyway, she can see things we can’t. She could help find your friend. Can’t you two just put your differences aside for a few moments for that?”
 
“She has a point,” Lois muttered to Lena quietly. “Though if it makes you feel any better, I’m not that keen on seeing my own Super at the moment either. But if you’d rather he was here instead, maybe Alex could give him a call?”
 
“No, Agent Danvers is right. My personal feelings don’t trump someone’s well-being. She can be here, but just to assist with the case. I expect her to behave completely professionally.”
 
“What exactly is going on with you two?” Alex asked. “Look, I understand Kara didn’t get around to telling you… Well, you know, but it’s not like everyone knows. She had a right to her privacy.”
 
“Oh, everyone knows,” Lena replied in an obvious snit.
 
“Only a few people know, and some of them she didn’t even tell.  She was trying to protect you. Just because Winn—”
 
“And Maxwell Lord.”
 
“Oh, yeah, but she didn’t—”
 
“And my mother!”
 
Alex winced. “She told you that, huh?”
 
“It came out, yes.”
 
“Yeah, okay, that sucks. Lena, I really believe she wanted to tell you. I think she just missed her window.”
 
“And if we hadn’t found her, if Supergirl never came back, would someone have told me, or would Kara Danvers have just sent in her notice and never contacted me again?”
 
“Ouch,” Lois whispered.
 
“I… Look, I’m sorry, Lena. Hindsight being 20/20, you shouldn’t have had to find out the way you did or figure it out, I guess. She’s spent her entire life on Earth hiding her existence from everyone.  Her lying to you wasn’t intention, it was reflex. But when do you think the right time for her to tell you was?”
 
“Somewhere around the best friend stage?” When they both turned to her, Lois smiled weakly. “Sorry.  Carry on.”
 
“Lois has a point,” Lena said. “Knowing who I was, Kara didn’t have to become my friend. I’m more than familiar with people avoiding Luthors. I wouldn’t have questioned why some cub reporter didn’t want a personal relationship with me.”
 
“She couldn’t exactly tell you before becoming your friend. That would have been putting the cart before the horse,” Alex said.
 
“But she didn’t tell me after becoming my friend either. I have never been a threat to Kara or Supergirl, yet she lied to me daily.  Why?”
 
“She has a right to her privacy,” Alex replied.
 
“Does Lena? Sorry, I—”
 
“No, no, go on, Lois. I value your opinion.”
 
Managing to smile at Lena’s words, Lois continued, “What if Lena had known who Kara was? What if the world knew who Kara was, and that constantly put her in danger? Then Lena shows up, hiding her identity and using a pseudonym, and befriends your sister. Some of the people who are the greatest threat to Lena find out who she is, but she still doesn’t tell Kara. Then, when Lena is kidnapped, Kara rescues her and figures out the truth. Even if Lena had every good intention in hiding her true identity from Kara, would you trust Lena?”
 
“That… is a very interesting question,” Lena said.
 
“Yeah?”
 
“Honestly, you had me at pseudonym.”
 
“Right?” Lois grinned. “That could be your secret identity name, and you could have a big S on your chest too.”
 
“An S for…?”
 
“Pseudonym,” Lois explained.
 
Lena stared at Lois’ eager face for several seconds. “I’m buying you a dictionary for Christmas. Now, Agent Danvers, Lois’ spelling aside, she’s posed an interesting question. Would you care to answer it?”
 
“Why am I in the middle of this?” Alex mumbled while pinching the bridge of her nose. “There’s a big difference between those two scenarios. Kara’s family didn’t attack yours. Your family attacked Kara’s. Kara is hiding to protect herself and her loved ones.”
 
“And Lena is perfectly safe every day with people knowing who she is? And what does Lena’s family’s actions have to do with her? Does Kara being a superhero make you one?”
 
“I…” Alex frowned and asked Lena, “Why am I having this conversation with her instead of you?”
 
“Think of Lois as counsel for the prosecution.”
 
“Really?” Lois smiled brightly. “The General always said I’d be a kick-ass lawyer because I argued with him like it was my job.”
 
“Then why am I having this conversation at all?  If you and Kara have a problem, you should talk to—” When her phone rang, she pulled it out and checked the caller ID. “Speak of the alien. Hold on. Kara, when are you going to get here? I’m getting double-teamed by Lois and Lena and not in a good way.”

“Alex, I can’t get to you. Something is keep me away.”

“Like an alien attack?”

“No, like a noise. It kept getting louder the closer I got to you. I tried going around it, but it seems to be emanating from somewhere near you. Alex, when I flew to close, my ears started to bleed.”

“Your ears started to bleed?”
 
“Her ears started to bleed?” Lena and Lois asked at the same time.
 
“Hold on. Lois and Lena are asking me questions. I’m going to put you on speaker.” Alex laid the phone on the desk and pushed the screen. “Okay, Kara, you’re on—”

“Ahhhh! Alex, stop it! Turn it down!”

“Kara, what—” Alex grabbed the phone, poking at the screen three times before she managed to turn off the speaker. “Kara? Are you okay?” There was no response. “Kara!”

“Alex.”

Kara’s voice sounded weak over the line.

“That was the noise. It was right there with you, in the room.”

Alex immediately turned on Lena. “What did you do?”
 
“What… I… nothing. I don’t even know what’s going on.”
 
“Why is your first response to blame her?”
 
“Okay, enough. Kara is in pain. She said something in this room is hurting her. What is it?”
 
“I,” Lena glanced around the room, “have no idea. Maybe it’s something that was left behind by the person who took Abigail?”
 
Alex nodded. “Kara, we’re going to search the room. Hold on.”

“Okay.”

The trio split up and started to search the office. Lena checked out the couch and bar area, Lois around the desk, and Alex the shelves.
 
“What about this?” Alex asked.
 
“I got that in China ages ago.”
 
“What about this?” Alex asked holding up an award.
 
“It says 2016 on it. By definition, that isn’t new.”
 
“What about—”
 
“Alex, all of those knick-knacks and trophies have been here when Kara has been here. It’s not those.”
 
“What about this?”
 
Lena turned to see Lois standing with the House of El symbol in her hand. “That… Actually, someone sent that to me today with no note and no return address.”
 
Slowly, Alex and Lena approached Lois, their heads turned and hearing strained, until they both stopped, ears pressed against the symbol.
 
“I don’t hear anything.”
 
“Me neither.”
 
“I’ve got an idea,” Lois said, shoving the symbol under her arm and heading for the door. “Give me one minute.”
 
“Where are you—”
 
“How did you manage to work with her without losing a finger or at least your eyebrows?”
 
“Lois is… Okay, I won’t pretend she isn’t a safety hazard with legs, but she’s brilliant and kind.  I don’t know if I would have located the Supers without her, but I definitely wouldn’t have done it as quickly. If not for her, I wouldn’t have even known they were missing.”
 
“Right, sorry about that. It was a matter of national security.”
 
“It was Kara.” Mouth a tight line, Lena stared Alex down. “Even if Lois weren’t the best things humanity had to offer, I still would have worked with her. Hell, I would have worked with my brother if that’s what it took to get Kara back.” Before Alex could reply, Lena’s cell phone rang. “Hello?”

“Hang up and have Alex put Kara on speaker phone again.”

“Lois? Where are you?”

“In the elevator.”

“Why are you in the elevator? Lois? Lois?” Looking at her phone, Lena sighed. “She hung up.”
 
“What did she say?”
 
“She wants you to put Kara on speaker phone again.”
 
“Are you sure?”
 
“Lois said to, and I trust Lois,” Lena replied.
 
“I wonder how many careers ended with that statement?” Alex mumbled. “Kara, Lois took something out of the room, and we’re going to put you on speaker again and see if that works. Are you ready?”

“I’m not getting any readier. Go ahead.”

Phone on the desk again, Alex pressed the speaker button. “Are you okay?”

“I can still hear it, but it’s much fainter, muted. Whatever Lois moved, that was it.”

“I still need you to survey the scene, but I’m going to take the device to the DEO with the rest of the evidence that’s been collected, and see what I can find out. Why don’t you leave the area. I’ll call you when I have it under wraps.”

“Thanks.”

There was a moment’s pause.

“Alex, is Lena okay?”

“Lena’s fine, and I can hear you.”

“Oh, hey, Lena. I just wanted to make sure that… I… I’m going to go now.”

Alex picked up the phone as the line disconnected. “Glad you two are talking.”
 
Lena folded her arms and glared.
 
“I want you and Lois to stay here until Kara arrives. I’ll have some agents sent over to secure the scene.”
 
“FBI agents?” Lena asked with a raised brow.
 
“Wrong Danvers sister. I’m not fighting with you. Just stay put, and try to keep Lois out of trouble. I’ll call as soon as I have any information on the symbol.”
 
“We could examine it in my lab.”
 
“Nope.  This thing has to be out of here before Kara shows up, and you need her here whether you like it or not.”
 
“I don’t like it.” 
 
Alex grinned as she walked back to the door, one hand a finger gun. “Remember what I said about Lois and good luck.”
 
With Alex gone, Lois soon returned sans House of El statue. She took the opportunity, as they waited, to catch Lena up on her trip back to Metropolis which apparently involved a detour to Gotham on the way in order to pick up the soldier with PTSD they’d met. Bruce Wayne had been paying for him to stay in a hotel until Lois could arrive to escort him safely to Metropolis.
 
After some string-pulling, name dropping her father and sister several times, and likely using more theatrics than she’d mentioned, Lois had gotten him into a facility for vets.
 
“It’s short-term, though. They can only keep him for six days, and then I’ve got to find him a new place to stay. I hate this. He’s being treated like a stray dog that no-one wants.”
 
“I’m sure he’ll find something,” Lena replied as she stared out through the spot left by the missing balcony doors.
 
“Most don’t.” When Lena turned, Lois continued with a sigh. “Most end up back on the streets. It’s a shitty way to treat the service men and women of this country. What he needs is somewhere he can feel safe and someone who can get him on a stable regimen of meds, plus a place where he can get some therapy.”
 
“I see. Well, if there’s anything I can do, let me know,” Lena said as she turned back to stare out at the city.
 
“You mean that?”
 
“Hmmm?” Brows furrowed, Lena faced Lois once again.
 
“You said if there was anything you could do, I should let you know.”
 
“Well, I meant like open a shelter for veterans, make a large charitable donation. Anything like that.”
 
“Oh, like a Luthor thing.”
 
Lena sighed. “I get the feeling you had something else in mind.”
 
“His name is Jayson. Jace for short. Really, really great guy when you get to know him. He needs a place to stay and a job.”
 
“A job. In what is he trained?”
 
“Um, being a soldier? Maybe he could do some security work for you.”
 
“Lois, he can’t even hear something that reminds him of a gunshot without thinking he’s in the war again. I couldn’t possibly have him in a situation which could involve actual guns or explosives.”
 
“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” Lois pulled her lower lower lip between her teeth several times, a look of concentration on her face. Then she snapped her fingers, smiling. “I’ve got it. He was a mechanic before he enlisted. And he was a mechanic in the army before he ranked up, too.”
 
“A mechanic. Was he any good?”
 
Lois shrugged, making a noncommittal noise. “No clue. I do know he specialized in antique American cars before enlisting. Guess it was all tanks and jeeps after that.”
 
“Antiques?”
 
“You know, muscle cars.”
 
“Really.” Sitting on the corner of her desk, Lena folded her hands over her lap. “I have several vehicles that need restoring. I’d been working on them myself, but since all of this happened,” She gestured around the room, “taking over the company, I mean, I’ve barely had a free moment to myself.”
 
“You didn’t just hire someone to do it?”
 
“They were meant to be projects. If I wanted fully-restored cars, I would have bought them. But I don’t want them just sitting around rusting, and I no longer have the time to deal with them myself, either.”
 
Lois crossed the remaining space between them, pulling Lena into a fierce hug. “Lenny, you’re the best.”
 
“I’m not saying I’m hiring him, Lois. I still need to see that he actually knows the difference between a carburetor and a manifold.” 
 
“Yeah, yeah, car stuff,” Lois said as she stepped away. “He fixed stuff in the army, and it got him promoted. Probably. He knows his stuff, and this is going to be great! I’m going to call the shelter and let them know he has a job and a place to stay. Oh, where is he going to stay?”
 
“I have a house outside town where I garage my project vehicles. The only permanent staff are one housekeeper and the chef, so it shouldn’t be too stressful for him. I’ll call my therapist and get him a doctor that specializes in PTSD for soldiers.”
 
“You really are the good Luthor. I’ve got to make a call. I’ll be right back.”
 
No sooner had Lois left the room when the tell-tale thud of boots on the balcony caused Lena to stiffen. Standing there, looking sheepish, was an amalgamation: Supergirl’s uniform and Kara’s face, strong muscles standing out from a gentle posture, the knowledge of another world behind eyes that stared out innocently.
 
Lena ticked her head back and squared her shoulders, bracing herself for a storm of emotions. “Supergirl.”
 
Supergirl seemed to shrink in on herself at her name invoked with obvious disdain. “May I come in? Alex called and asked me to examine the, uh, crime scene.”
 
Lena turned one hand up and gestured from the balcony to further in the room. “I haven’t gotten anything new except for the statue your… that Agent Danvers took, and nothing seems to be missing. Nothing but the balcony doors, that is.”
 
Kara nodded, deep concentration painting her face as she examined the bits of glass near the elevator and the wall. She leaned in, frowning as she moved even closer. “Did you see this?”
 
“The destruction of my office? First thing I noticed when I came in.”
 
“No the,” she glanced back at Lena, “the scorch marks here.”
 
“Scorch marks?” Lena stepped closer to examine the spot Kara was pointing out. “You see scorch marks there?”
 
“This spot, right here. This little spot.”
 
Lena peered closely again before sighing heavily. “I can’t see it. Maybe I should get my microscope.”
 
“No, it’s fine. Let me just…” She stepped out onto the balcony, letting her gaze slowly drift over everything. “Here, right here. You should be able to see this.”
 
Gingerly, Lena teetered across the shards of broken glass to reach the balcony proper. She reached out, hand almost grasping Kara’s bicep before she quickly withdrew it and stood, a bit shakily, on her heels. Kara was pointing at a small line, perhaps an inch long, that went straight through the concrete of the balcony’s top edge. The line was perfectly clean, rounded and smoothed out as if by design.
 
“It looks like something sliced through it. Maybe it was a chunk of the metal from the doors.”
 
Kara shook her head. “It’s too clean. See how the edges are rounded?”
 
Lena peered closer, careful not to put her hand on the actual balcony wall. “I suppose so. It looks more purposeful than accidental. Maybe it’s been there all along, and I just didn’t notice.”
 
“I would have noticed. This is new.”
 
With a heavy sigh, Lena nodded. “Fine, it’s new. Does that bring us any closer to—” As she stepped back, the edge of one heel slipped off from the corner of a piece of glass, and she stumbled.
 
“Careful,” Kara said, grabbing Lena’s one flailing forearm to steady the other woman and pulling her a bit closer by the action. 
 
“Do not touch me!” Lena snatched back her arm while swatting out, just short of connecting with Kara, with the other. 
 
Kara held her hands up at shoulder height. “You almost fell.” 
 
“And if I do, I will pick myself back up. I do not need
your
assistance.”
 
“Lena I…” With a heavy sigh, Kara hung her head. “Fine. I didn’t mean to offend you. I was just trying to help.”
 
“Help find Miss Storm if you want to help but keep your hands to yourself.”
 
Kara’s mouth tightened as she stared at Lena before nodding. “I think it was an explosion.”
 
That seemed to take Lena off-guard. “What was an explosion?”
 
Kara gestured toward the missing balcony. “It looks like it was blown out, and there’s obvious heat damage in a few places.” As Lena narrowed her eyes, Kara added, “Well, obvious to me.”
 
Lena’s sigh held an obvious grumble. “It wasn’t an explosion.”
 
“With the spray radius and the heat damage—”
 
“Explosions make noise. Even a complete nincompoop would know that. My security would recognize the sound of an explosion. There would have been witnesses.”
 
“Fine. I’m just saying that it looks like—”
 
“Critical thinking, Supergirl. Familiarize yourself with the term,” Lena said coldly.
 
“Is it always going to be like this with us?”
 
“I don’t know what you mean.”
 
“Bull… stuff. You’re angry. I understand that, but we need to talk about this at some point.”
 
“We have spoken. You lied to me for years. I’m intimately familiar with betrayal, Supergirl, and it’s in the past. It’s all in the past.”
 
“Lena—”
 
“Okay, soooooo,” Lois stopped just inside the doorway sharply, as if she’d suddenly run into some invisible barrier. “Ouch! Jeez you two, the atmosphere hurts like hell in here. I mean, it actually physically hurts! How is that even possible?”
 
“She’s being a—” Kara said as Lena replied, “What do you expect when—” They both stopped suddenly, glaring at each other.

“Great,” Lois nodded sarcastically. “So anyway, I spoke to the shelter, and they’re arranging for the Captain to be moved to National City tomorrow. I’ve given him directions to this place - figured it wasn’t exactly hard to miss with the huge name on the side of the building, right?”
 
“What shelter? What Captain?” Kara asked.
 
“It doesn’t concern you,” Lena shot back.
 
“Seriously, what did I… argh. Whatever.”
 
“Give me strength,” Lois muttered, rubbing at her temple. “You’re like a pair of children bickering over a broken toy! Pack it in and lets focus, shall we?!”
 
“She’s the… !” Fingers pointing accusing at each other, Kara and Lena both started and stopped talking.
 
It was Lena who, with hands wiping imaginary wrinkles from her pencil skirt said, “Fine. I’ll be here to greet that captain upon his arrival, in the meantime, let’s focus on the task at hand.”
 
“Right,” Kara agreed. “So, this looks like an explosion, but it may not have been.”
 
“Definitely wasn’t,” Lena mumbled.
 
Clearing her throat, Kara said, “So what gives off the force and heat of an incendiary device but silently and with controlled direction?”
 
“You mean aside from you and Clark?” Lois smirked.
 
“It wasn’t me,” Kara assured hurriedly before Lena could do more than open her mouth. “Clark’s still in Metropolis. Anyway, neither of us would do something like this. We don’t even know this Miss Storm, but if we did, we wouldn’t do this. I promise.”
 
Lena continued to glare, looking as if she might say something when there was a knock at the open door. A man in his mid-thirties, clean cut and with a solid but trim build, stood in the gray uniform of L-Corp security.
 
“Yes?” Lena asked.
 
“Miss Luthor, we have the recording you requested,” he said, taking a step into the room, his eyes widening a bit at the destruction and likely the company as he fished a flash drive from his pants’ pocket. “I was told to deliver it to you directly.”
 
“Thank you,” Lena replied as she took the drive and nodded in dismissal at the man. She went over to her laptop, inserting the drive and hitting a few keys. “Now, lets see what caused this
non
-explosion.”
 
Kara sighed at the obvious dig but said nothing.
 
“Should I grab some popcorn?” Lois wondered as she moved closer.
 
“Lena seems to have all the entertainment she needs,” Kara said, wincing when Lena glared again.
 
The video started up and the trio watched in silence as the image played across the laptop screen. It showed Abby entering at Jess’ direction, Jess leaving, and Abby stopping to stare out the window. At the ringing of a phone, Abby rushed back to her pocketbook, knocking it to the ground and cursing rather quietly as she tried to manage to scoop up the contents while carrying on a phone conversation. The contents of the bag returned to some semblance of order, she stood and jostled Lena’s desk, her elbow colliding with the box on the corner of the desk and knocking it to the floor. She crouched again, pausing before speaking into the phone, then reached down and grasped the toppled statue.
 
Even as Abby crumpled to the ground, Kara flattened her hands to her ears and stepped back, pain etched into her face. Both Lena and Lois turned, but the Kryptonian stood with hands over ears, shaking her head. “It’s bearable. Keep going.”
 
Hesitantly, Lena nodded, and she and Lois both turned their attention back to the screen. Abby’s face, what they could see of it, resembled Kara’s but with pain that was obviously greater. After a few moments, something shifted on Abby’s face. Those lines of pain remained, but her eyes seemed to focus and her body language changed.

“I remember,”

Abby said.
 
“Remember what?” Lena asked.
 
Seconds later, as she rose, Abby looked down at the House of El symbol and said, “Skilorodh zhehd zw kehepes shokh.” Then her eyes glowed in an eerily familiar way. The air seemed to shimmer in a line reaching from Abby’s eyes, to the symbol on the floor, then bounce across to the glass balcony doors where a fine line cut through them into the edge of the doorframe. 
 
Abby staggered forward until her hand pressed against the damaged glass. Though she didn’t seem to do more than lean, both windows crashed open, part of the damaged frame going with it. As she staggered out onto the balcony, she dragged pieces of doorframe with her, and then she leaned forward and toppled off the balcony.
 
As Lois gasped, Lena covered her mouth and whispered, “Oh, my God. She… She just…”
 
Then a wobbly Abby floated back just above the balcony, hovered for a moment, and in a flash, she was gone.
 
Lena stopped the recording. “What the fuck was that?”
 
“Someone’s pissed as hell at you,” Lois turned to Kara, her eyes wide with surprise.
 
“What?” Kara said, pulling her hands away from her ears.
 
“Kara, your ears, they’re… bleeding,” Lena said with the first note of concern in her voice since Kara had shown up.
 
“Huh?”
 
Grabbing a tissue, Lena wiped at the blood trickling slowly from Kara’s ears, first one then the other.
 
“Oh,” Kara nodded. “It will stop in a minute.”
 
Lena looked less than convinced, but she did throw the tissue into the trash. “Alright, so it seems someone is even less pleased with our neighborhood Kryptonian than I am.”
 
When Lena glanced at her again, Kara squinted and leaned in a bit closer.
 
“My question still remains. What exactly was that?”
 
“It would seem that Abigail Storm isn’t human. And she’s mad. Not mad as in Lex mad, but mad as in angry. Very, very angry,” Lois supplied after a moment. “Her Kryptonian was a little odd though. Was hard to make out, but I think I got it. I won’t ask you to play it again, because of Kara though.”
 
“Kryptonian,” Lena deadpanned, her gaze going back and forth between Lois and Kara.
 
“Did you get it?” Lois turned to Kara.
 
Kara shook her head. “Once she picked up the statue, I couldn’t even hear myself think. My ears are still ringing.”
 
“Problematic,” Lois shrugged sympathetically. “Alright, I think it was something like ‘

Skilorodh zhehd zw kehepes shokh’

.”
 
“Could you repeat that?” Kara asked, pulling at one of her ears.
 
“Skilorodh zhehd zw kehepes shokh.”
 
“Your accent is getting much better,” Kara said.
 
“Thanks,” Lois beamed at the compliment.
 
“Would someone care to translate that for me?” Lena asked. “Surprisingly, no Kryptonian has cared to share their language with me.”
 
“It means something along the lines of ‘allow speak, have truth’,” Lois looked to Kara for confirmation. “Right? ‘Skilorodh’ means ‘allow’, ‘zhehd’ means ‘speak’... admittedly not sure what ‘zw’ is but ‘ kehepes’ is ‘have’ and ‘shokh’ is ‘truth’.”
 
“Literally, you’re fairly close, but it translates more like, “Let the person who has truth speak.’”
 
“And what the hell does that mean?” Lena asked, her frustration coming through in her tone.
 
“It means,” Kara hesitated,”It’s something that you’d say if someone had spoken untruthfully against you, and you meant to clear your name. It could mean either, ‘You lied about me and now I’m going to tell the truth’ or ‘Someone has lied, and I mean to have the truth spoken.’ It could be a promise or,” Kara glanced over at the destroyed balcony doors, “a threat.”
 
“Huh.” Lena jutted her jaw out. “So she’s angry with some lying Kryptonian? I can’t imagine what that feels like.”
 
“Really? Again?” Kara asked.
 
“Oh, I never stopped,” Lena replied. “I am curious as to how there happened to be another Kryptonian in my life. Care to comment on that?”
 
“How should I know? I’ve never seen her before in my life.”
 
“Sure you haven’t.”
 
“For Rao’s sake, Lena. I lived on a planet of billions of people. How could I be expected to know all of them? Do you know every human?”
 
“No, but I know many in my life that have it out for me or you.”
 
“That’s because they’re your family,” Kara shot back.
 
When Lena inhaled, Lois put a hand up toward both of them. “Seriously? Can’t you two just...  You know what? If you two are going for round… What is it now, twelve, thirteen? I’m gonna go pee. Where’s the bathroom, Lenny?”
 
“You can use my personal one. It’s around the corner of the office there. It’s lead-lined to ensure privacy from,” Lena glanced over at Kara again, “prying eyes.”
 
“Why would you need that in your bathroom?” Kara argued. “Why would anyone?”
 
“Tell me you’ve never x-rayed my office to see if I was in here?”
 
“But not like… argh!”
 
Lois left earshot, only hearing the mumblings of arguments behind her as she escaped into the bathroom. “This damn bandage is as itchy as all get-out,” she said as she sat on the toilet and peeled back the corner of the bandage to scratch around the edges. “I’ll be happy when…”
 
Lois’ voice fell off as she peeled back more and looked at the skin beneath it. It was pink and healthy, not even the slightest reminder of the slice that had still decorated her skin just this morning. Laying across the interior of the bandage were remnants of the stitches, each looking as if they’d been neatly snipped off.
 
“What the…” Lois cautiously touched the skin, hesitant as if she might ruin the illusion, but her finger just connected with her skin, skin that looked and felt like it had never met with an unpleasant incident.  Lois sighed. “Well, fuck. I don’t know what this is, but I’m sure it’s going to complicate my life. Why can’t anything ever be easy?”
 
Knowing there was absolutely no way in hell she could tell anyone about this just yet - not with the looming threat of a rogue Kryptonian hanging over all their heads, added to Lena’s apparent need to test and dissect and investigate anything and everything to discover how it worked - Lois replaced the bandage, finished up in the bathroom, and with a deep breath opened the door again, finally ready to return to the bickering duo in the office, and if needs be, bang their heads together until they were prepared to face whatever the world had in store for them all.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

For those of you who haven't already seen it, this is the amazing video by a brilliant and extremely talented friend of mine, JensLuthor. If you haven't watched any of her other stuff, you need to. Seriously.
Thank you for making this video Jen, it's perfect!