DISCLAIMER: None of these characters are mine. This story's villian (er, villianess) was loosely based on a villian in the Animated Series called Live Wire. She is not mine, the characters are not mine - just the story idea is mine. Please don't sue! I'm just a poor college student!
- - - -
Clark and Lois walked into the newsroom of the Daily Planet after getting off the elevator. Clark stormed over to the coffee maker. Lois was behind him, and just watched him get his mug, pour a cup, and begin to make his coffee. She had never seen him this upset before, but then again she’d never experienced a fight involving two super-powered relatives.
It had all started last night after Clark and Lois finished their story at the Planet and came home. Clark went upstairs to talk with Linda, but she refused to let him in her room. Clark was so upset he nearly took the door off the hinges, but Lois stopped him and convinced him to let her just be for the night; they went to bed. The next morning, contrary to what Lois had hoped, both Clark and Linda were still mad at each other, refusing to speak to one another. Before breakfast ended, Linda had announced she was going to out for the day, sarcastically asking Clark if it was safe weather for her to fly in. Clark was curt in his response, which only angered Linda more. She changed into Supergirl and left through the windows without so much of a goodbye.
“You know, I don’t know what her problem is,” Clark spoke up as he stirred sugar into his coffee, jarring Lois from her thoughts. “She has become so ungrateful after moving in with us, Lois. I don’t know what I’m going to do with her.”
Lois knew most of Linda’s behavior was because of how Clark had been treating her since she moved to Metropolis. She knew that Clark was only trying to keep Linda safe, something she found very charming and sweet, but she knew her husband could also go a bit overboard - sometimes without even knowing it. And it wasn’t just as Linda that Clark was doing it. There were times when she had seen Superman treat Supergirl like she was ten years old. Lois had been Linda’s age once, so she knew why Linda was so upset, but she knew that Linda was also aggravating the situation herself, but Lois didn’t know exactly what to say to how to help them fix their problem, something that she hated almost as much as seeing them mad at each other.
“Clark,” Lois said gently as she got her own cup of coffee, “have you ever -”
“Hey, Lois, CK,” Jimmy said as he walked up to the two.
“Morning, Jimmy,” Lois replied.
“Chief’s looking for you two. Oh, do you think Linda’s going to be coming by today?”
“Why?” Clark asked curtly. “Because you have a thing for her and want to ask her out? Word of advice, Jimmy: no matter how many nice things you do for her she doesn’t appreciate any of it. For your sake, it’s best just to stay away from her.” He walked off to his desk, leaving Lois and Jimmy alone.
“Still fighting, huh?” Jimmy asked.
“Yeah,” Lois replied. She sighed. “And I have no idea what to do, Jimmy. I can see both sides in this: Clark wants to keep her safe, but Linda thinks he’s acting like an overprotective father. And instead of talking with him, she only aggravates the situation by doing things she knows would annoy him.” She sighed again. “I just . . . I don’t know what to do.”
Jimmy looked sympathetic. “I’m sure you’ll figure something out. And if you need any help, let me know, okay?”
“Thanks,” Lois looked grateful as she left Jimmy’s side and walked down to Clark, who had yet to sit in his chair. “Come on, Clark.” The two walked into Perry’s office. “What’s up, Perry?”
“Oh, there you are,” Perry said. His desk was piled with papers, and he was busy sorting through them, but he wasn’t having much luck.
“What happened?” Clark asked as he and Lois looked at the messy desk.
“Anita left,” Perry replied. “This morning.” Anita had officially been one of the researchers, but after her husband walked out on her last year she had taken up the responsibility of being Perry’s personal assistant to make more money to support herself and her children - with the added bonus coming from Perry himself, without complaint. There had only been one drawback to the position, and that was Anita having to work extra hours for the money, meaning she spent less time with her children.
“Why?”
“She got an offer from a research center out in Coast City,” Perry replied. “The pay’s better, and it’ll give her a chance to spend more time with her children. I let her go.”
“That’s good for her,” Lois said.
“Yeah, it is, but I’ve gotten so used to having a personal assistant that I can’t do without one, which means I need to find someone to fill her shoes. Problem is, I don’t have time to interview people who would even be interested in this position and run this newspaper at the same time. You two wouldn’t know of anyone, would you?”
“Sorry, Chief,” Clark answered. “But if we do, we’ll let you know.”
“Thanks, Clark,” Perry replied. He cleared his throat. “Now, the reason I called you is, because I want you two to get down to Metropolis General. Traci Jones isn’t at the hospital anymore.”
“Kidnapped?” Clark asked.
“No, witnesses say she walked out of her own accord,” Perry replied.
“That’s great,” Lois said. “That means she’s better, right?”
“Well, witnesses say she was also shooting bolts of electricity out of her hands,” Perry added. “She fried her doctor, a nurse, and a security guard along with the monitors she was hooked up to.”
“How can that be?” Lois asked.
“That’s what you two are going to find out,” Perry answered. “Now, get going.” The two started leaving. “Uh, Lois, may I have a word with you?” Clark glanced over at Lois and shrugged before he left the office.
“What’s up?” Lois asked.
“I saw Clark when you two came in. He and Linda still having their, uh, problems?”
“Yeah,” Lois said, sitting in one of the chairs in front of Perry’s desk. “And they each think they are right and the other is wrong, and that’s not the case: they’re both to blame for this . . . mess.”
“Well, you know how stubborn Clark can be,” Perry replied.
“Linda can be just the same way,” Lois added. “Believe me.”
“Must be genetic,” Perry said wryly.
Lois sighed and said, “I just hate seeing them at each other’s throats all the time when I know they care about each other. They have this special bond that I think is great, but if they keep fighting like this, I’m afraid it’s going to drive them apart before they’ve gotten the chance to really know each other. Clark is really the only family that Linda has left.”
“What about Clark’s parents?” Perry asked.
“Well, yeah, them to,” Lois replied quickly. “I just mean that . . . Linda is happy in Metropolis; this is her home. I can’t imagine her moving again after she’s just started a new life here.”
“Well, have you considered that maybe it’s time for Linda to have her own place? It has been a month. Maybe if she got out on her own, it would get rid of some of that hostility they have towards each other.”
“Uh, actually, Chief, that’s a little easier said than done.” Especially if the person in question was actually an alien with superpowers who had no driver’s license, Social Security . . . life prior to having landed in a spaceship in Smallville a month ago, she thought. “I, uh, mean, we’ve considered it, but it’s hard to move out when one doesn’t have a place to go or a job or anything like that.”
“Well, it’s just a thought,” Perry said. “Now, you and Clark get on the Traci Jones character. Find out what’s going on.” Lois got up and left the office, leaving Perry staring at the mess on his desk.
“What was that about?” Clark asked as Lois joined him at his desk.
“Well, Perry and I had a talk,” Lois answered gently. “About Linda.”
“What about her?” Clark asked, his face darkening slightly.
“Well, how would you feel if Linda moved out? Got a place and a job on her own.”
“Lois, in case you haven’t noticed,” Clark said as loud as he dared, “she doesn’t have a life. She can’t hold a job or do anything, because she’s not from this planet, remember?”
“Well, neither are you, but you managed to do pretty well for yourself.”
“I was a baby; Linda is not, though sometimes she acts like one.”
“Do you think that maybe she -”
“Lois, she’s not moving out, and that’s final. Now, we have an assignment; let’s go.” He walked toward the elevators. Lois sighed, rolled her eyes, and followed him.
- - - -
“So, there’s nothing new to report?” Supergirl asked Dr. Klein as they both stood in his laboratory at STAR Labs.
“Nothing since yesterday,” Dr. Klein replied sincerely. “How are you feeling?”
Supergirl sighed as she glanced around to make sure they were alone. “It’s becoming harder and harder to change. Same for my psycho kinesis. And I’m not doing anything really exerting with them.”
“Well, we knew to expect that,” Dr. Klein. He was referring to the tests he had been conducting on Supergirl since she had come to see him secretly after Superman introduced them. He had been running a physical on her to see the extent of her new powers, and quickly noticed that it was becoming increasingly harder for her to use her extra powers. Doing blood work on her confirmed his suspicions: those extra powers were only a temporary condition. With further studies conducted privately without Superman’s knowledge, at the behest of Supergirl, Klein was able to roughly predict the total loss of her extra powers within a few months, sooner if she exerted herself.
“You still haven’t told him, have you?” Klein asked.
“Not really,” Supergirl replied. She had been slowly and subtly making changes in her appearance to compensate for her future lack of her extra powers. She was ‘growing’ her hair out, planning on eventually going blonde permanently. To those who didn’t know her secret, it was as if she was just letting her hair grow out; she would just say she wanted to dye it back to its original color again. For the few who did know her secret, she had told them the truth: it was easier to change hair color than to do color and length; it wasn’t a total lie, but it wasn’t the complete truth either. They eye color situation was a little more difficult, knowing there was a possibility she might have to resort to glasses like her cousin, but that still wouldn’t explain her sudden change in eye color. She knew she was going to have to eventually tell Clark, Lois, and the Kents the truth, but it was too soon. “I want to know more about how this happened before I tell him anything.”
“Well, I’ve been working on that too,” Klein replied, “but you have to remember that Kryptonian DNA is a bit more complex than human DNA.” Since he figured her powers had to be affected on the molecular level, it was important to compare her DNA to Superman’s.
“But I’m making really good progress,” Klein added quickly. He walked over to a chalkboard with a series of complex-looking star maps tacked on it. “I was able to secure these from a friend of mine at the observatory.”
“What are they?” Supergirl asked.
“Well, they’re star charts. You said that part of the energy from that globe you possessed transferred to you, giving you your extra powers, right?”
“That’s right,” Supergirl nodded. “All I know for sure is that it happened between the time I left Argo City to when I arrived on Earth, but I’m just not sure when exactly.”
“Well, I have a hunch,” Klein replied. “I talked with my friend and gave him the information you gave me about where Argo City was located in reference to Earth and the time you arrived on Earth. Now, based on the trajectory of your journey, the distance between the two locations, and the time you said you left your city - converting it into an Earth-based time - my friend was able to get star chart readings from the time you left Argo City to when you arrived on Earth.”
“And what would that show?” Supergirl asked. “What’s your hunch?”
Dr. Klein pointed to a section on the second star chart. “Do you know what this cluster is right here?”
Supergirl studied the chart and nodded. “There’s a red star right there,“ she said, pointing. “And there’s an electrical energy field around it. One that’s ten times the normal size for a star of that age and magnitude.”
Klein looked impressed. “Very good. You must have had quite a curriculum on your planet.”
Supergirl looked a little embarrassed. “From birth, children of ruling families underwent intense training to prepare for their eventual role of ruling their people. This involved aspects of sciences, languages, mathematics, and what is expected of a ruler once they take their place on the throne. I learned about star charts and planet systems when I was the equivalent of a human’s fifth year of life.”
Klein smiled a bit, amused at seeing the super heroine blushing. “Well, according to the information you provided, you left Argo City two weeks before you arrived on Earth.” He pointed to the chart again. “My friend said this this star’s energy had been fluctuating drastically for the past few months, sending out bursts of electrical energy into space. During the first quarter of your journey, your ship passed through this electrical field.” He turned to her. “It is possible that it short-circuited the life-support in your ship.”
“And because the energy globe was linked to my life-source,“ Supergirl added, “if my life-support failed, it might have transferred some of its energy to keep me alive during the journey to Earth. The life support on my ship *was* damaged; I examined it before giving it to the New Kryptonians. If that was the case, then I would have needed a large amount of energy for the journey.”
“Exactly,” Klein replied. “The energy might have surged into your body, giving you not only life but temporarily changing your molecular structure, which would explain why you can shape shift and have those psychokinetic abilities and why it’s slowly diminishing.”
“You think that’s the case?”
“Well, it’s all a theory, Supergirl. I won’t know anything until I can get yours and Superman’s DNA analyzed.”
“Okay.”
Klein eyed the young woman. “Something else seems to be troubling you.”
“Well,” Supergirl hesitated, then sighed. “You’ve known Superman for a long time, right?”
“Well, not that long, I’m afraid.”
“But you know what he can be like?”
“I guess.” He cocked his head. “You two still fighting?”
“Hey, it’s his fault,” Supergirl replied. “He’s treating me like a child instead of an adult.”
“Have you talked with him?” Klein asked.
“I try, but he can be so . . .”
“Stubborn?”
“Exactly.”
“Well, you can’t expect him to know how you feel if you don’t talk to him. He’s not a mind reader.”
“Well, actually he is, remember? We both are.”
“Oh.” Klein nodded. “Right. Well, still, I think talking to him is going to be your best option. Make him listen to you. Just because he’s Superman doesn’t give him the right to ignore you.”
“You’re absolutely right,” Supergirl replied. She held out her hand. “Thank you, Dr. Klein.”
Klein shook the offered hand. “My pleasure, Supergirl. And I’ll be sure to let you know when I have those results ready.”
“Okay.” Supergirl nodded before flying out the open laboratory window. Papers scattered in the wind, causing Klein scrambling to pick them up as a sonic boom sounded in the heroine’s wake. He gathered the last up, then glanced at the window and sighed, shaking his head.
“That is going to be one interesting talk,” he replied.
- - - -
Clark and Lois walked down the corridor of Metropolis General to the room where Traci had been staying, noticing the scorch marks on the walls. There were already police officers and detectives searching the room, including Inspector Henderson. When he saw the two, he walked up to them.
“Lois, Clark,” he said. “I had a funny feeling you two would be showing up.”
“What happened exactly?” Clark asked.
“Around eight this morning, Dr. Russell checked on Miss Jones to see if her condition had improved. They heard shouting, saw some bright lights, and heard some small explosions from her room. She came out a few seconds later, and zapped a nurse and a security guard. She left the hospital, and no one’s seen her since then.”
“Who got zapped?” Lois asked.
“Dr. Russell, a nurse, and a security guard,” Henderson answered. “They’re all alive. I already questioned Dr. Russell.”
“Did he say anything?” Clark asked?
“Only that Miss Jones seemed to have a grudge against Superman; that she seems to blame him for her condition. At this time, we’re viewing her as a potential threat; we have men searching for her as we speak.”
“Did he have an explanation for Miss Jones’ condition?” Clark asked. “I mean, a person who gets struck by lightning doesn’t normally have the ability to shoot lightning from her hands.”
“No joke,” Henderson answered. “That’s why a sample of her blood was sent to S.T.A.R. Labs. Maybe the people there can answer some questions for us.”
“Thank you,” Clark replied. Henderson left, and the couple looked at each other.
“I say we head to S.T.A.R. Labs,” Lois said.
“My thoughts exactly,” Clark replied. They left the room and walked down the corridor and left the hospital.
(End of Part 2)
