Kara Zor-El’s first week on the planet known as Earth was probably about as welcoming as she could have realistically hoped it would be. While she still struggled to come to terms with the fact that her entire planet and most of her family were gone, it helped to know that her cousin was there to support her, and that her new life on Earth came with many wonderfully exciting prospects. It was more than enough to keep her mind from dwelling on the loss, at least for now.

After spending her first night at the Hall of Justice, Kara had been informed that the woman known as Diana had left early to inform her people that Kara would soon be coming to live with them. That had helped to distract the young teen from thinking too much about all that she had lost. Nothing could stop her from being excited at the idea of visiting an island paradise filled with beautiful, strong female warriors.

After two more days of living in secret in the Hall of Justice, Clark had decided to move Kara to a new place to stay. Somewhere he called his “Fortress of Solitude.” 

________________________________________________________________

It had been a long quiet trip in Batman’s strange black aircraft. Kara, Clark, the Batman, and J’onn the Martian to help them to communicate, all travelled to a vast frozen tundra, even more barren looking than the place Kara had crash landed. She had worried for a moment, thinking that this inhospitable landscape was maybe the site of a great prison colony, but her concerns vanished when she saw the Fortress.

Crystals! The entire fortress was made of glistening, beautiful, Kryptonian crystals! It was as if she had found the home of a long lost friend in this cold, desolate wasteland. She fought to keep back the tears as memories flooded her mind. Everything from the grain of the stone to the light glittering off it, was welcoming and familiar to her in ways she couldn’t express. 

Kara was silent, unable to vocalise her emotions as the ship flew into the main concourse of the Fortress. The interior was almost identical to her Uncle Jor’s old laboratory, with a large crystalline computer console at the far end of the room. There were many other items of decoration and furniture, of both Earth and Kryptonian origin, that had evidently been added over the years.

She also spotted the space-pod that had brought her to Earth in the first place, along with a more sleek, if somewhat weathered ship, which she assumed was the pod that had brought her cousin to Earth years before. Kara still couldn’t quite comprehend what had happened to her in between leaving Krypton and arriving on Earth. To her, it had merely been a few hours of stasis-induced sleep, but to everyone else, she had been floating through space for the past 27 years!

“Do you like it Kara?” Clark asked softly, after he had allowed his cousin a moment to take in the scale of the facility. “My father sent all of this to Earth with me. I still haven’t managed to figure out how everything works, but you are welcome to everything here.”

Kara was broken out of her reminiscences and stared at her cousin in disbelief. “What do you mean you haven’t figured out how they work? I’ve been using them since I was a child.” She walked over to one of the dormant consoles and pressed two buttons on the sides, bringing the Kryptonian machine to life. 

These computers had been fairly standard appliances on Krypton. Uncle Jor must’ve programmed the fortress to have more beginners' technology, so that his son would have an easier time learning how to use them. It was almost adorable that Clark still struggled with such simple tech.

Clark deflated a little, reminded of the time he had to help his dad set up his new VCR and how confused Pa had been by it. He was too young to feel this old. “Maybe you can help me learn how all of these work then.” He said, begrudgingly accepting his fate, yet still glad his only friends here to see this were both too stoic to actively mock him for it.

Kara smiled wider. “It should be easy to teach you. This first unit is a language software.” She held back a laugh as she looked at the information on the console screen. “Is this what you’ve been using to learn Kryptonian, Kal? You’ve had it stuck in beginners mode! No wonder you’re so rusty!” 

She tapped a few keys, and quickly had the program working properly. “There! Should work a lot faster now!” 

Deciding to test the software out, Kara spoke into a small receiver to the side of the screen. “My name is Kara Zor-El.” She spoke in her native Kryptonian. The machine played a synthesised clip of Kara’s voice, repeating her words back to her in Earth’s English.

“Impressive…” J’onn remarked in his deadpan voice, floating up behind Kara to admire the computer. “I surmise that, with the combination of our psychic link and this technology, we should have you speaking fluent English in no time.”

“Yeah!” Kara smiled up at the strange green man. “I bet I could learn Earth talk pretty quick! Then we wouldn’t even need the mind link anymore!” She paused as she considered her words. “Oh... No offence J’onn.”

The Martian Manhunter didn’t seem to be offended, but it was honestly hard to tell, as his face showed very little emotion. “Do not worry Kara Zor-El. It is good to know that you should be able to learn Earth languages at a much faster rate than we had previously hoped.”

“Hmm.” The Batman grunted from over in the corner, making Kara jump slightly. She had forgotten he was there, despite his all black attire in such a bright environment, he really did fade into the shadows surprisingly well. “That’s not the only thing you’re going to have to learn in order to live on Earth. Have we forgotten that she nearly incinerated both Kid Flash and Robin yesterday?”

“That’s enough, Bruce!” Clark said sternly. “She doesn’t need to hear that right now.”

Kara looked down at her feet, blocking out the adults’ words. She still felt guilty, and a little scared, about that particular incident. She still hadn’t fully processed the fact that she had developed incredible superpowers under Earth’s sun. Unlike Clark, who had gradually learned to control his powers as they had developed, Kara had awoken from over 25 years of status-sleep with her powers fully developed! 

So far she had discovered that her physical strength and endurance, along with her hearing, had increased to unbelievable levels. She had also, as the Batman had just reminded her, discovered the ability to project red-hot beams of concentrated solar energy from her eyes! This ability scared her the most.

However, it wasn’t just fear and uncertainty that she felt as she thought about her new powers. She had been very excited to learn that, if she truly had developed all of the same powers as her cousin, then she would have also gained the ability to fly! Since learning this, she had been very eager for Clark to start giving her some basic lessons in controlling her powers.

“I’m happy to learn about my powers while I’m here!” said Kara, before her cousin argued any further with Batman. “We can do a little practice here before Themyscira, right?”

“Hmph…” Batman grunted as he exchanged a look with Clark, before turning and heading back to his ship.

“Don’t mind him.” Clark said, smiling at Kara. “Once he’s gotten to know you, he’s actually a really nice guy. Just takes him a while to trust most folks.”

“I guess…” Kara said sadly. “I mean… I don’t think almost blasting his kid was exactly the best first impression.”

Clark gave her a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry about that. Dick’s an excitable kid, and much sturdier than he looks. Not to mention he’s quite the fan of mine!” Clark chuckled. “If anything, he’s probably honoured to have been there when you first discovered your powers.”

Slowly, Kara smiled back at Clark. “Seriously? You have fans?”

The two children of Krypton burst out laughing. It was the most Kara had laughed since her arrival on Earth, and Clark was determined to keep her spirits high.

“C’mon cuz!” He said, offering Kara his hand. “Lemme give you an exclusive tour of the place…”

________________________________________________________________

Clark and Kara spent the next hour touring around the Fortress of Solitude. Initially, Clark had been the one giving Kara a tour of his home-away-from-home, but the tables had soon turned as it became clear that Kara knew more about most of the Kryptonian technology there than Clark did. After a while, it started to become unclear who was giving the other a tour.

J’onn chose to stay in the main foyer, meditating, so that the telepathic link remained active. Batman, on the other hand, had left in his ship to return to his home city of Gotham. Kara didn’t mind too much. Being around the Batman had made her nervous, even before the incident with Robin.

After returning to the foyer from the trophy room (Clark had wanted to maintain his pride by showing Kara something that she would be unfamiliar with), the cousins noticed for the first time in hours that the Martian Manhunter was still there, meditating in midair.

“Oh, sorry J’onn!” Clark said, though his friend seemed unperturbed. “We got a little distracted. You don’t have to stick around if you don’t want to, now that we’ve got the translator working.”

The Martian opened his eyes and gave a very small smile. “Oh it’s quite alright, my friend.” He spoke softly. “I’m grateful that you allowed me to meditate in your home. The Fortress reminds me more of Mars than most other places on Earth.”

Up until that point, Kara had been a little distracted by Superman’s trophy room, but she couldn’t help overhearing J’onn’s casual mention of his homeworld. “J’onn…” She asked cautiously. “Could I ask what might be an… indelicate question?”

The green man turned to face her. “You want to know how I came to be on this planet.” It was a statement, not a question.

“I… yes. Did you read my mind to find that out?” Kara got a little nervous about what else he might have been seeing in her head.

J’onn’s expression, once again, gave the tiniest hint of a smile. “I do not need to read your mind to know. Everyone asks me that question. And as a fellow visitor from beyond the stars, I have more reason to give you an answer.” 

He used his powers to pull a chair across the floor and sat down. “As I said previously, I am a native of Earth’s neighbouring planet; Mars. I was unexpectedly taken from my home when my teleporter signal was unintentionally intercepted by an Earth scientist named Dr. Saul Erdel. With me being out of communications range with Mars, and Earth not yet having developed teleportation technology, I was stranded here. To make matters worse, Dr. Erdel perished not long afterwards, meaning that the data originally used to bring me here was lost along with him.”

That was sadder than Kara had expected, J’onn’s emotionless voice and barebones explanation notwithstanding. “I’m sorry, J’onn,” Kara said, taking a seat with him. “But don’t lose hope. I’m sure Earth will have teleportation before you know it!”

“I doubt it.” His brow fell a fraction of an inch, which might have been as sad as he could look. “Batman is one of the richest and intelligent men on the planet. He has near-unlimited resources. Even he thinks it could take years for Earth to develop a functional global teleportation network, let alone an interplanetary one.”

“You’re… You’re joking right?” Kara looked up and called to Clark, “Just how behind the times is this planet?”

“Did Krypton have teleporters?” Clark asked with excited curiosity.

Kara rolled her eyes. “Uh yeah! For about two generations, at least for getting around on the planet.” An idea struck her and she got up and began looking over all of the terminals in the fortress. “Don’t worry J’onn. I think I might be able to find you and Batman a shortcut somewhere in these files!”

________________________________________________________________

Kara felt a brief sense of purpose fixing and diagnosing the decades old technology of her own planet. She had never been the most technically minded girl back on her home planet, but she was glad to have something so familiar occupying her mind and her hands, as she poured through the encyclopaedic entries left by her Uncle Jor.

First, she identified for her cousin what all of the machines were used for. None of them were weapons, as that wasn’t Jor-El’s way, but many great tools of learning and science. With her own knowledge limited, Kara put the majority of her efforts into learning the English language through the linguistic terminal (With a little help from her new Martian friend to speed things along). Once that was done, she would be able to better explain what the more complicated machines were meant for.

Eventually, Kara found what she was looking for; a documentation of the technological history of Krypton, authored by some of the planet’s top scientists, including her Uncle Jor. It included various schematics and theories, which Kara recognised from her old tutoring sessions, detailing Krypton’s teleportation network. It was pretty complex stuff that even Kara couldn’t make heads or tails of, but it was a step in the right direction.

Now that Kara had some conversational English under her belt, and even managed to read a little, J’onn went home to the Hall of Justice, but not before thanking his young friend for giving him renewed hope of seeing his home again. The data they had recovered would need to be translated and transferred onto the Justice League’s Earth software before it would be of any use, but there was no denying that significant progress had been made.

________________________________________________________________

Kara spent the next few days living mostly within the Fortress’s walls. Clark had a life as both a hero and a civilian to get back to, which meant leaving Kara alone in the Crystalline palace. She didn’t mind too much, as the Fortress was already starting to feel like home to her, and Clark still visited several times a day. He even gave Kara a special JLA communications device that she could use at any time to call him if she needed to. 

 
Clark also began providing Kara with Earth reading material to keep her entertained and teach her about Earth culture. They were mostly simple, small books with many many pictures, possibly intended for children. The youth of Earth certainly read some strange things. Clark seemed especially fond of stories of the man known as “Captain America”, who must have been very important. People in the city of Washington had flown banners with his logo all over the place!

Of course, Kara didn’t stay inside for the entirety of her time in the fortress. Clark joined Kara for a walk in the fresh arctic air every afternoon, barely bothered by the wind and cold. This was one of the new perks of having superpowers that filled Kara with excitement for what was to come.

The cousins spent most of their outdoor time learning about Kara’s new abilities. Kara excelled in smashing and lifting whatever heavy objects they found out in the frozen tundra, to the point where she even began to wonder if she was stronger than Clark. With hardly any effort, Kara lifted and smashed rocks, boulders, icebergs, and even an old shipwreck that Clark fished out of the ocean! 

Unfortunately, this was about the only area of superpower training that Kara felt she was any good at. The meditation sessions where Clark attempted to help her focus her super-hearing proved difficult. Kara had never really been one to sit and try to take in the surroundings. She was more of a girl of action, after all. 

Kara also refused to test out her new x-ray and telescopic vision, out of fear of her accidentally causing more damage with her heat vision. Luckily, Clark understood that this could wait. Kara was still new to all this. No need to unnecessarily stress her out by focusing on the ability that scared her the most.

Kara was most excited to learn how to fly, but Clark had chosen to leave those lessons alone for the time being, until the younger Kryptonian had some more basic control of her abilities. Her super strength was impressive, but undisciplined, normally breaking more than she intended to. Clark didn’t exactly want his cousin repeatedly crashing to the Earth and leaving giant craters dotted around the place.

After a few more days of practice, learning, reading and talking alone, Kara’s understanding of Earth’s culture and language had come quite a long way. Clark decided it was time that Kara had a practical test of what she had learned, as well as some socialisation for the young girl. 

One day Clark brought an older man and woman to meet her, who he introduced as his Earth parents; Jonathan and Martha Kent. They were quiet, simple people, but very welcoming to Kara, and were the epitome of kindness itself once they got over the shock of finding another person like their son. Martha Kent and Kara quickly formed a dangerous alliance talking about different embarrassing stories from when Clark had been a baby.

Not long after the Kents’ visit, Clark brought a pretty woman about his own age. Lois Lane, his girlfriend! Lois knew a lot about the world and patiently answered all of Kara’s questions, also providing her with stories of the many adventures she and Clark had shared over the years.

Kara felt more welcome with every new person that she met, and yet she didn’t feel like she was home. No matter how nice her visitors were, or how familiar the fortress was to her senses, Kara knew she couldn’t stay here forever. If she was ever going to feel at home on this planet, she would have to get out into the world on her own, and not just hear about it from others. Once she felt that she had explained to Clark, J’onn and the Batman how all the machines worked, and mastered conversational English (as well as French and Greek just for fun), she asked her cousin to contact Diana. She was ready to truly begin her training.

________________________________________________________________

Diana Prince, better known to the world as Wonder Woman, came the next morning in her iconic Invisible Jet as she had called it. Clark and Kara waited outside the fortress doors as the vessel landed in the snow. 

The tall woman with her long dark hair and sparkling red, blue and gold armour waved warmly at the Kryptonians across the field of ice before turning back to the ship and calling to someone. It seemed she wasn’t alone.

A smaller figure stepped out of the plane wrapped in a massive red coat with a furry hood. Whoever this newcomer was, they stood a few feet back from Diana, giving an occasional shiver from the cold that the other three felt less intensely. Someone human then? Kara wondered, trying her best not to stare.

“Hello again Kara!” Diana spoke a little slowly for the Kryptonian, still managing to sound friendly rather than condescending. “How have the language lessons been coming along?”

“So far so good.” Kara responded, glad that they no longer needed that strange magic rope or the mental link to talk. “I think I’m pretty good at English now, though I could always use more practice.”

Diana smiled with delight, “Bless Athena, you are a fast learner!”

“What’s an Athena?” Kara asked, earning a small musical laugh from the bundled up companion.

Diana smiled, not taking any offence at the question, “Just an old friend of my people. I can tell you about her later if you want.” She turned her attention to Clark then, “Sorry that we can’t stay around, Clark. But you know where to find us if you need to talk to either of us.”

Kara looked between the adults, her cousin only nodding his head in response. “You aren’t coming with me?”

“I’m sorry, Kara.” Clark said with a sad smile. “It’s the law of Themyscira, men aren’t allowed.” He placed a friendly hand on his cousin’s shoulder, “But don’t worry. I will fly over every few days to check on you, and Diana can send for me if you have any problems. You’re such a fast learner, I know you’ll be done training before you know it.”

There was silence between the cousins for a moment. Just two lost children of a dead world. Having found each other, they were reluctant to part, but they knew this was necessary. They both embraced, holding tight long enough for a light layer of the snow to gather on their shoulders.

“I’ll see you soon, Kal.” Kara said softly, finally allowing herself to let go. With one last look back at the fortress, and her last living family, Kara turned and followed Diana and her friend back inside the plane.

Once the door closed behind them, Kara stared out the window for a few seconds. “Are you ok?” A voice asked from behind her.

Kara turned around and froze mid response. The mystery companion had taken off their hood, and Kara found herself staring at a very pretty girl about her own age, with her long black hair tied back in a ponytail. 

“Hi…” said the girl, giving a cute awkward smile. “I’m Wonder Girl… but you can call me Donna.”

“Oh…” was all Kara managed to say, as her befuddled brain slowly came back online. Of course, it made sense that Diana, AKA Wonder Woman, would have a young sidekick as well, and said sidekick would obviously be a girl. “You’re a… sidekick?” Kara prayed to Rao that she was pronouncing the word correctly.

Kara internally cursed herself for not spending more of the past week researching the people who she was going to be living with for the foreseeable future, though there had been quite a lot of other information she had needed to study about Earth languages and culture.

The girl named Donna nodded, “Yeah, but I haven’t gotten out as much as Robin or Kid Flash. Diana is my big sister too… sort of… long story.” Her face briefly fell but she didn’t let that stop her from caring for her guest. She patted the seat next to her as the plane started taking off. “Diana asked me to help  you get settled on Themyscira once we get home.”

“Oh yeah?” Kara asked, taking the seat and trying her best to not be close enough to touch Donna. “What’s your home like?” She tried to keep her mind occupied by other things. Why was she feeling so flustered just talking with a cute girl? Sure, she had been aware enough of these sorts of feelings on Krypton, but she had been able to function! Was this from the sun supercharging everything? Or was this Wonder Girl just that cute? Donna smiled and her cheeks dimpled. She was that cute! Uh oh!

“It’s a wonderful place! Some call it Paradise Island,” Donna continued, “White sands, blue waters, clear skies. No loud noises like the big cities, and everyone is so nice!”

“And is it true everyone there is a woman like you and your sister?” Kara asked.

Wonder Girl nodded, “Yep. Well, more like Diana than me… Part of that long story I mentioned is that I wasn’t born on the island. But it’s not just adult warriors, there are women of all ages living there.”

Kara nodded, wanting to learn as much as she could about Themyscira as she could. “Are all Amazons like Diana? Do you have powers too?”

Donna chuckled at Kara’s enthusiasm. “Yeah, I have powers. But don’t ask me to explain how all of Themyscira’s magic works. Even after most of my life on the island I can’t understand all of it. I’m still not entirely sure how Diana was sculpted from clay as a baby.”

“I’m sorry, what?” said a bewildered Kara. Maybe her English wasn’t as good as she had thought, “Your sister is made of clay?”

“Yet another long story.” Donna gave an apologetic shrug. “I promise, I’ll explain more of everything once we get there.”

The pair chatted casually on the flight, keeping their topics light and simple, which Kara was thankful for. The Kryptonian teen wasn’t ready to talk about her old life before, and she felt Donna was aware of that, avoiding personal topics. And yet the Kryptonian was a little surprised that the young Amazon seemed just as ready to avoid answering any personal questions herself. That “long story” that she mentioned about not being born on the island… Perhaps Kara’s new companion had a history of her own...

“We’re here!” Diana called from the cockpit. Both girls looked out the window, Donna beaming, Kara… confused.

“All I see are clouds.” remarked Kara. “Where’s the island?”

“Just wait for it….” Donna’s smile grew wider and wider as she watched out the window. Then, the fog vanished as quickly as it had appeared and Kara beheld a beautiful sight! A massive island splendidly adorned in vibrant greens, brightest blues, sparkling seas and cloudless sky. 

The isle of Themyscira, all the more beautiful after days of blinding white and colourless crystal. “By Roa…” Kara whispered breathlessly as Diana brought the ship in for a landing.

The landscape was slightly marred by a tiny slightly shoddy-looking structure at the far end of the beach where the ship landed. It caught Kara’s eye as the three women stepped out of the ship. “Do your people live in homes like this?” She asked, enjoying the give of the soft warm sand under her feet as she followed Diana uphill towards the structure.

“No, the city is much nicer.” Diana said with a smile. “This building is our customs checkpoint and embassy. We don’t really get many visitors here, and it was built in a rush, but some of my sisters like it this way. If invaders see that first, they won’t expect the true size of our force.”

“That’s not a bad way of thinking. How often do you get invaders?” Kara asked, remembering some news reports Clark had shown her, showing how much humans seemed to enjoy fighting with each other.

“Less often than we get visitors.” Donna said with a sigh. “For the sake of formality we still need to bring you there first.”

As they neared the sad little embassy, Kara saw only one guard; a woman sleeping against the wall of the building with her helmet ascue. 

Diana smiled mischievously at the girls before screaming out like a drill instructor as loudly as she could, “Officer Calanthe! What is the meaning of this!”

The woman cried out as she fell out of her chair with a loud crash of armour. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I- oh! Princess! Don’t scare me like that! I thought it was the commander! She’d have me mucking out the stables all month if she caught me!”

Diana smiled, reaching out a hand to the flustered woman to help her to her feet, “Just don’t make a habit of this Cala, or I might just tell the commander myself. I know this post is boring, but you are still a sentry. This job is important. Now look alive, I have work for you.”

“Work?” She asked, finally noticing Kara trying to stand out of the way. “Oh! Hello there!”

“This is Kara, a cousin of a friend from my work.” Diana explained with a gentle hand on the Kryptonian’s shoulder and pulling her forward, “She is going to be staying with us for a little while.”

“Just a visitor then? Not moving in?” Calanthe asked in a much more professional tone as she pulled a dusty scroll from a pile inside the shack and began writing on it with a feather quill pen. 

“Uh, no I’m just here to train for a little while.” Kara said, curious just what was being written about her. Her conversational English was good, but her reading was a little rougher. In fact, she wasn’t even sure that was English at all written across the page.

“Country of origin?” Cala asked without looking up.

“Um… Krypton?” Kara wasn’t sure what else to say for that question.

Cala nodded and wrote it down. As a lifelong resident of the island, she didn’t question the name. She knew she had heard of Krypton somewhere, but she couldn’t place it. Countries in the patriarch's world could have some strange names. She presented Kara with the scroll and the quill, pointing to a line at the bottom. “Sign here and you are all set.”

Kara looked at the page for a few seconds before endorsing the document the way she would have back home, with the family emblem; a Kryptonian symbol for hope, which was represented by a winding river inside a shield. 

Over the past week, Kara had learned that the House of El’s emblem coincidentally resembled the letter “S” in Earth’s Latin alphabet, hence why humans called her cousin “Superman”, and why the symbol was so widely recognized by earthlings.

“Enjoy your stay.” Calanthe said with a smile to Kara and a salute to Diana and Donna before returning to the spot she had been asleep, now sitting rigidly at attention. 

“Come on Kara.” Donna said, taking her new friend by the hand and pulling her along the path inland, “I’ll show you where you’re going to be staying!”

Kara followed, allowing herself to be pulled wherever the cute girl led her.

As the party moved away from the beach, Cala took another look at Kara’s signature. Her eyes went wide as she recognized the symbol. She knew who Kara was! 

“Holy Hera!” She muttered to herself, looking at the backs of the retreating women. “Things are going to get interesting around here…”

________________________________________________________________

A little ways in from the customs point and past a dense line of trees, the Amazon city lay in all its glory. Though smaller than the city of Washington, Themyscira still buzzed with activity. The gurgling of fountains, the ring of hammer and tongs, and the clash of sword on sword rang out through the air like a song. And then there were the voices! So many beautiful, musical voices, all from dozens of beautiful women in a myriad of languages!

Feeling her increasingly enamoured heart start to give out from an overload of hormones, Kara tried her best to find anything else to think about. “The buildings are nice…” she decided on, rather lamely, “They look a lot like the ones in D.C. Do all humans use these big columns of white rock?”

“Oh no, our ancestors started the practice. If you see buildings like these in America, it’s because they liked our work and wanted to emulate it.” Diana explained as she waved warmly to a pair of older women sitting snuggling together on a bench.

“We were doing it before it was cool.” Donna added with a giggle. When Kara only responded by staring in confusion, Donna said,  “Earth inside joke. Don’t worry, I’ll teach you what it means.”

“Right…” Kara wasn’t too concerned with the meaning of the joke at that moment. The other women out and about had caught sight of her walking with Diana and Donna, and they were starting to stare. She could feel more and more eyes following her the deeper they went into the town. “Donna… What do people around here know about me?” She spoke quietly, trying not to excite even more attention.

Donna too had sensed the lingering gazes around them. “Just that you are Superman’s cousin, but that’s more than enough to get them curious. Even out here, we know how powerful Superman is.”

“So they just want to stare at the weird alien girl, is that it?” Kara said, louder than she meant to, making several of the nearer Amazons look away in embarrassment.

Donna put a hand on her shoulder, “No! Never that. All women are welcomed and respected here, if they come in peace.” She tried to think how best to calm her new friend. Robin had warned her what happened the last time Kara had gotten angry,

“Our sisters in arms are warriors by nature, and many of them won’t ever get a chance to see your cousin fight in person.” Donna explained. “I think they see you and see your limitless potential and wonder what you might be capable of! You’re the only chance most of them are ever gonna have to see a Kryptonian in action.”

“I hope I don’t disappoint them…” Kara felt a bit calmer, but now she was nervous, both from the expectations and Donna’s hand on her shoulder, “It will take a long time until I am as strong as Kal.”

“Strength comes in all forms Kara.” Diana said, as they passed a grand stone hall. Inside there were rows of pillars topped with all kinds of strange items. “This is a museum of a few of our peoples' treasures. Memories of our friends and sisters in arms…” 

Diana pointed to an odd item in a clear place of honour. Not a gleaming sword, or a polished shield, but a small, badly dented metal box. “That belonged to a dear friend of mine, named Etta. Many only saw her as just a small plump woman, with no special powers at all. Yet she saved my life countless times, and was one of the bravest, kindest spirits I’ve ever known.”

“She saved your life with that little box?” Kara asked, trying to examine it more closely. It seemed like an odd choice of weapon.

Diana laughed at the memory. “Many years ago, in a time of global war, a nazi soldier shot at me, before I even had time to react. Etta jumped in front of me, deflected the bullet with that silly tin of chocolates, and smashed the culprit over the head with it before he could fire again!”

“Huh… Humans must be tougher than they look.” Kara said, smiling at the mental image of a small round woman bashing a huge brutish soldier repeatedly in the head.

“Yep! Even without powers we can put up a real fight!” Donna got an idea and ran over to a little cart on the side of the paved stone street and returned with three odd cones with white balls stacked on the wide mouth. “Ice cream cone?” Donna offered one each to Kara and her sister.

Kara accepted it, knowing ice cream was a sweet food from what she had read, but not sure how best to eat it. “Uh… thank you.” Unsure what else to do she took a large bite of the white ball. It was very tasty, but extremely cold! “Gah!” She winced, clutching her head with her free hand as a sudden pain filled her head, calling out a word in Kryptonian, not knowing its equivalent in English.

“I’m sorry! I should have warned you!” Donna let her ice cream hit the ground as she moved to comfort her friend. “You need to either take small bites, or lick the ice cream. What you’re feeling is called brain freeze. It happens sometimes when you eat cold things too fast.”

“Brain freeze?” Kara asked, still wincing as her mouth resumed its normal temperature.

Diana laughed before she could stop herself and quickly covered her mouth. “I’m sorry! I don’t mean to laugh. It’s just, almost every Amazon, including myself, has done that at least once. Ice cream is one of the few inventions from Man’s world that we Amazons have adopted in quite some time, and some are still getting used to it.”

It was then that Kara noticed Donna’s treat in pieces in the paving stones and tentatively offered her own cone to the brunette, “I’m sorry you dropped yours Donna. Do you want mine?” She asked, unsure if Earth etiquette allowed something like this.

Donna smiled wider and gently pushed away the offered hand. “Thank you Kara, but you need that more than me. Maybe we can go out for ice cream another time?”

“Ok sure!” Kara hummed tunelessly as she walked with her guides, eating the sweet treat in the slower, suggested method. A pause came in her song when her brain had thawed enough to reach a dawning realisation. Donna had just asked her out! Had Donna just asked her on a date?! She tried to focus on the ice cream rather than think about it and found herself eating both the strange crunchy cone and the paper it was wrapped in. She was fairly certain she wasn’t supposed to eat one of those.

“Here we are.” Donna said, cutting into Kara’s thoughts as they came to a large entryway into what looked like the grounds of an enormous palace. Kara had been so distracted by her own thoughts, that she hadn’t even noticed where Diana had been leading them.

The palace practically glowed in the warm bright daylight. While it mostly bore a resemblance to the other white columned buildings around the island, as well as those back in Washington, Kara couldn’t help being reminded of Kryptonian architecture, with how much it shone in the sun. She had felt a similar sense of awe when her father had first taken her to the capitol building of Kandor, when she was a toddler.

The grounds were filled with colourful flower arrangements, along with incredible statues of Amazon warriors, who radiated their own power and beauty. However, Kara’s attention was mainly drawn to the palace guards stationed around the surrounding area, all wearing ceremonial gold armour, and looking every bit as powerful and beautiful as the statues. 

As Diana and Donna led Kara towards the palace, two guards marched up to flank them from either side, like some kind of armed escort. 

“This way, Kara Zor-El.” Diana said, sounding a bit more formal than before in the presence of the soldiers. “Queen Hippolyta desires an audience with you.”

“The Queen?” Kara was going to meet the ruler of this island, right now? She nervously whispered to Donna as they walked behind the soldiers, “Are there any… customs to avoid in the presence of the Queen? You know, if I don’t want to be thrown in a holding cell.”

Donna took her hand for comfort as they walked, making Kara trade out nerves for butterflies (a lateral move if anything). “Don’t worry about mom. She’s really nice. I promise.”

“Mom?” Kara asked, trying not to sound surprised. She should have realised earlier. If Diana was the princess of Themyscira, and if Donna was her sister, then of course their mother would be the queen!

“Well, technically she adopted me…” Donna explained. “My real mom died when I was little, and my dad…” She stopped suddenly, and her smile faded as she looked away. “I… I’m sorry. You don’t need to hear that…”

Kara wanted to protest that she wanted to hear all about it if Donna was ready to talk. She hated to see her new friend so sad, even if it was only for a moment. But the words of comfort never had the chance to leave her mouth. 

The guards had come to a halt in a new chamber with a high ceiling covered with murals of strange people in robes. Perhaps a portrait of heroes? Former rulers of the island? Or maybe even gods? 

“Presenting!” One guard called out loud enough for her voice to echo through the hall, “Princess Diana! Princess Donna Troy! And Kara Zor-El of the planet Krypton!” Her announcement made, the guard and her partner stepped out of the way, leaving the red carpeted path to a massive marble and gold throne clear before Kara and her escorts. “Behold, Queen Hippolyta of Themyscira!”

Sitting on the throne was a tall beautiful woman clad in purple robes, very much like Diana. While distinctly older than Diana in appearance, Hippolyta radiated sheer beauty, wisdom and power. There was no questioning who was in charge around here.

The queen had little adornment. A bead necklace, a plain golden circlet for a crown, and a long winged staff held one hand. She seemed to be wearing armour under her robes, similar to her guards. However, unlike her stoic protectors, Hippolyta’s expression seemed warmer. Kinder, much like her daughters.

“Approach the throne.” The queen called, her voice easily carrying through the hall. Still holding Donna’s hand, Kara followed the sisters, staying a step behind the princesses for respect in such a regal place.

“Hail mother!” Diana said, inclining her head and stepping forward to speak for the group. “I have returned from the world of man with another sister in arms in need of our help.”

“So I have heard.” The queen looked at the new arrival, not as if appraising a potential warrior, but more looking for ways of how she could help. There was almost pity in the gaze, and Kara wondered once more how much of her history had been told to everyone on this island.

“Daughter of Krypton. Come closer.” Though Queen Hippolyta spoke quietly, every word was distinct and clear. Kara reluctantly let go of Donna’s hand and approached the throne. “Know this lady Zor-El. Our island will always be called home to daughters, mothers and sisters of any nation. You may stay with us for as long as you want, or as long as you may need. But know this; our laws are ancient and absolute, given to us by the gods themselves long ago. You will learn them in time, and you must live by them, lest you wish to be banished from our shores. Do you understand my child?”

Kara inclined her head in a bow. She wasn’t sure how she felt about being called a child. Lady Zor-El on the other hand… but there was time to think about that later. “Yes, your highness. Thank you for this… this opportunity to learn from you and your people. I am honoured to be among you.” Perhaps a little too formal a response, but the young alien felt it was better to go too far rather than be disrespectful. 

The queen smiled and nodded to someone behind the blonde, “Donna my child. If it is to your liking, I will give Kara the vacant suite next to your room. Please show our guest anything she would like. Teach her our ways. Help her get comfortable.”

“Of course, mother!” Donna nodded and gave a bow of her own, making Kara smile and feel like she had done the right thing. 

“See to her then, my dear. I wish to speak to Diana alone before dinner.” Hippolyta struck her staff against the stone floor and a different set of doors opened. “Welcome to Themyscira, Kara Zor-El,” the Queen said before Donna led her off. “I hope you will find your new home to your liking.”

________________________________________________________________

Out of the throne room and down the hall, Kara was shown her way to the royal living quarters. A pair of guards stood blocking the largest, most ornamental doors; clearly the Queen’s own bed chamber. Several other doors were unguarded a little further along.

“That one is Diana’s,” Donna commented, pointing towards a door just before the Queen’s. “She doesn’t sleep at home very much anymore, since she joined the Justice League. 

Feeling a bit mischievous, and checking if the guard was anyone who would care enough to stop them, Donna opened the door to Diana’s bedroom and stepped aside for Kara to look in. Though there was a very comfortable looking bed and an elaborate vanity, the room seemed to be more of a holding room of odd trinkets and trophies than any kind of living space. A collection to rival the museum she had seen earlier. Kara saw a massive plumed helmet, an old leather jacket draped carefully over a chair, a piece of armour badly damaged by animal claws, and a beautiful pendant necklace among other equally curious things. 

“Look at these. They’re Diana’s treasures,” Donna said, going into the room, Kara chose to stay standing in the door. “Each is either from a memorable fight, or an old flame.” Her gaze held on the clawed armour for a moment, “Some of these count for both. But this is my favourite.” She held up the pendant necklace for her new friend to get a closer look. 

Kara took it delicately in her hands. Even by her limited knowledge of Earth, the metal work and stones seemed unusual and unique. “It’s beautiful.”

Donna smiled and took it back. “It’s from Diana’s Atlantean girlfriend, Mera. She’s great! They've been together for years, but she’s not around very much.”

“Atlantean? Is she human?” Kara asked, “I remember Martha talking about a city called Atlanta.”

Donna laughed, “No no, she’s from the nation of Atlantis. Very different. It’s a big city at the bottom of the ocean.”

“You mean like underwater?” Kara asked, wondering just how many strange secret countries and cities were hidden away on this planet. 

“Yep. Great swimmers and magic users. Some are part fish. The Atlantean women visit us now and then.” She took the necklace back and returned it to the proper place. “When you were staying with Superman, did he tell you about a teammate named Aquaman? He’s the king of Atlantis, and Mera is the queen.”

Kara hadn’t met the man, but she did remember pictures of a wild-looking bearded man with long hair and a multi pronged spear that Clark had called Arthur. “Diana is dating a teammate’s wife? That seems… unlike her.”

“Hm?” Donna paused as she closed the bedroom door behind them before realising the implications of the comment. “Oh! Oh no, it’s nothing behind his back. Mera just has enough love for both of them. It’s what Earth folks call a polyamorous relationship. It’s actually really cute.”

Kara took a moment to imagine a woman with Diana on one arm and Arthur on the other, laughing and having a good time. It was oddly wholesome. “This planet of yours can be very strange, you know that right? Wonderful at times, but strange.”

“Oh yeah, we’re well aware of that.” Donna laughed, as they left Diana’s room and continued down to the next door along. “Strange is the best way to be!” She opened the new door and bowed for Kara to enter first. “Welcome to Casa de Troy!”

The room was similar in size to Diana’s, but there was much clearer evidence of life here. The bed was messy, the closet door was ajar and personal touches were on every wall. Photos of both Donna and Diana posing with people they had presumably rescued, along with other photos of Donna posing with other heroes. 

Kara smiled, the space feeling much more warm and inviting than Diana’s trophy collection. She even recognized a few of the pictures along the walls. “Oh hey! Robin and Kid Flash! I met them the other day.” She said, trying to be casual and not feel the nerves from being in a cute girl’s bedroom. 

“I know. They told me all about it. You’ve made a very effective first impression on the boys.” Donna laughed, taking a seat on the bed and patting the space beside her for Kara to sit. “If you were a redhead, Robin would have probably asked you out on the spot.” 

“He’d have been disappointed then.” Kara said with pink cheeks as she sat down on the bed, a little further away than Donna had indicated. “Earth boys... Boys of any planet… I’ve only ever had minimal interest, if you understand.” 

“Oh absolutely. You aren’t alone on this island in thinking that way. There are more Amazons that like women, than those who like men. I’m more like Diana and go either way. Boys or girls, it depends more on the person.” Donna said, turning away to try to find something on her bed side table.  

Kara tried to contain her excitement upon hearing that Donna liked girls too. Sure, she knew she had a real chance now, but Donna probably had dozens of boys and girls that were lining up to date her! “Anyone you are going… “either way” with, right now?” Kara tried to ask in a tone fitting the nosey popular girls from her old school, attempting to sound like she was asking for gossip instead of opportunity. 

Donna’s exploring hands stopped when she found a small silver locket in one of the drawers. “Not exactly. I don’t get out enough to meet many boys, and as the princess of the island, I intimidate most of the local girls.”

Kara let out an internal cheer upon hearing her new crush was single. Maybe there was hope after all! “I’m sorry to hear that…” She tried to change the subject before she started grinning like an idiot. “That’s a very lovely pendant you have there,” She settled on, rather lamely. “Was it a gift from your mother?”

Kara regretted her question right away as she saw Donna’s hand clench tightly around the charm. “My father actually…”

“Oh… I’m sorry…” Kara trailed off, realising her mistake. “We don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”

“No, no I want to...” Donna said with a breath. “I’d like my new friend to know who I am after all.” She pressed a small button on the side of the locket and a little door opened in the metal. Donna stared at it for a long moment before handing it to Kara. The blonde saw one side held a picture of a rather young man with dark hair, while the other half had been left empty. 

“I was seven when it happened…” Donna began. “My birth mom died when I was really little… I can’t remember much about her any more. Dad raised me on his own. He was a good man, kind and funny… It was a simple life, but a happy one… until the fire…” 

Kara held out her hand and Donna took it, squeezing it tight as she continued. “I don’t think we ever found out how the fire started. Diana rescued me and many others from our building, but… It was too late for dad… I was alone in the world, with no family. I would’ve been tossed in an orphanage if Diana hadn’t taken me back here,” Donna gave a small bittersweet smile at the memory.

Kara didn’t want to interrupt, but something stood out to her. “Um… so if it was Diana that saved you and took you in, why do you call the queen your mother? Wouldn’t Diana be the one who adopted you?”

Donna actually laughed at this. She wiped the corners of her eyes. “That all started from a mistake on my part. You’ve probably seen that Diana calls most women “sister” right? So when she called me, “little sister,” my little kid's way of thinking took it a bit literal. When I was introduced to Queen Hippolyta, I asked her if Diana was my sister, was she my mother? I must have made a good impression. Once she and the guards stopped laughing, she said she would happily be my new mother. None of the Amazons questioned or complained about how or why they suddenly had a second princess out of nowhere!” 

“Of course! Why would anyone complain about a new beautiful princess?” Kara froze, her enthusiastic support making her say too much. “I… I’m sorry!” Her face was turning as red as her cape with embarrassment.

Donna’s own cheeks were pink, but she laughed about it, hugging her embarrassed new friend. “Don’t worry about it Kara. In fact, I’ll happily take the compliment.” She seemed ready to say more, but paused upon hearing a loud low horn called out through the palace. 

“What’s that?” Kara cried out, briefly experiencing sensory overload from the unexpected noise. Super senses take a lot to get used to while you are still learning. “Are we under attack?” She asked, worried that the sound was a sort of alarm.

“No no, it’s just the chef telling us it’s dinner time.” Donna said, getting up from her bed and helping the blonde to her feet. “Come on, Kara. A nice warm meal, and maybe a walk under the stars and you’ll be all set for bed. You’ve had a big day, and another big one is coming tomorrow.”

Kara hesitated for a moment before accepting Donna’s hand. Not long ago she had been a confused lost child on an alien planet, without a friend in the universe. Now she had not one, but two families warmly welcoming her, reaching out to her… expecting great things from her… It was a lot of pressure on a teenager, but Supergirl could take it. 

But that was a matter for tomorrow. Tonight, Kara Zor-El was just a girl getting to know her new home, glad to spend time with her new crush. “Right. Don’t want to keep them waiting.” She smiled and walked from the bedroom, hand in hand with the princess. 

Supergirl’s adventures had only just begun…