Lara spent the next few days after her birthday mostly relaxing at home, enjoying her summer vacation. While she would occasionally go out for some quick Supergirl time with her dad, she tried her best to avoid getting too excited for all that was coming up.

 

Her time was mostly spent at home, trying out the various new outfits she had been gifted, practicing with the makeup kit that she had gotten from Cass and Harper, or else enjoying the many other presents she had received from friends and family members.

 

These blessed few days of peace and quiet were just what Lara needed after so much excitement, but it wasn’t long before something big and very exciting loomed on the horizon…

 

After a relatively quiet week, Clark and Lois came into Lara’s room to tell her that Doctor October had arranged a date for Lara to receive her first dose of puberty blockers. Even though Lara had been anticipating this for some time now, the news still made her ecstatic!

There was only one minor condition; Due to Lara’s unique human-kryptonian DNA, the good doctor had required the assistance of the other S.T.A.R. Labs scientists to create effective blockers. Since most of Victoria’s co-workers were unaware of Supergirl’s secret identity, this meant that Lara had to come to the labs for her treatment, in full hero mode.

 

This wouldn’t have been such a problem had word not gotten out that Supergirl would be starting her medical transition at S.T.A.R. Labs, and triggered another media frenzy around the event. Lara’s hopes of a quiet and private doctor’s visit were looking fairly improbable.

 

Nevertheless, this did not dampen the Girl of Steel’s spirits! If she was able to go toe-to-toe with Bane, she was more than capable of dodging a few paparazzi. Besides, Dr October had managed to arrange a deal that only one reporter would be allowed into the actual building to document the event, and she had mercifully picked the finest reporter in all Metropolis; Lois Lane herself!

Everything was planned out in a way to make things go as smoothly as possible for Lara. She’d be in and out in less than an hour, avoiding the noise of the crowds, and would only need to answer a few pre-planned questions from her mom. Her dad was even planning to accompany her throughout the experience. It was all so well planned out that something inevitably had to go wrong…

 

The day of her treatment arrived, along with news of a televised threat from Ultra-Humanite. Lara didn’t quite catch all the details, but she knew it meant her father was going to be too occupied to accompany her to S.T.A.R. Labs, and with Lois going professionally, her mom couldn’t escort her there either. Lara wasn’t sure if she was prepared to go alone, and with her upcoming trip to Themyscira, there wasn’t much time to rearrange her appointment.

Mercifully, help arrived in the form of Conner Kent! Lara’s older brother had been planning to stop by later that afternoon after the visit to the doctor’s office, but with Clark now heading off to parts unknown on Justice League business, Conner had decided to move his visit to the morning, so that he could be there to support his little sister.

 

“How’re you feeling?” Conner asked, shortly after they had left the Kents’ apartment. The siblings floated from rooftop to rooftop at a steadier pace than usual, Lara flying and Conner jumping, taking their time as they made their way towards the Labs. “This is the quietest you’ve been in a while, SG. Nervous?”

 

“A little…” Lara said, though she was grinning from ear to ear. “It’s just… A lot to take in, y’know. I have to keep telling myself not to get too excited, even with how awesome everything’s been so far!”

 

“Hey, you deserve it, Supergirl! I’m glad I get to be here to help you through it!” Conner smiled, putting a hand on her shoulder. He could tell that she had wanted their dad to be there, before League business had called him away. At least Lois would be there, as part of her Daily Planet assignment.

 

Conner decided Lara could use a distraction to calm her mind. “The rest of the Titans say hi, by the way. All of them wish you the best of luck. Vic and Gar wanted me to ask if you’d be up for appearing on their show. Reckon you’d be up for that?”

 

Lara smiled at the thought. Victor Stone and Garfield Logan were the hosts of ‘BB-Cy Radio’, a weekly podcast discussing news and events in the superhero community. They frequently had members of said community showing up as guests, which had over the years included Conner, Kara and even Clark at one point for their 100th episode special. Lara had figured for a while that it would only be a matter of time before she was invited on the program.

 

“Heh… maybe?” Lara said, contemplating what kind of interview questions she would get from the likes of Cyborg and Beast Boy. “My schedule's a little packed at the moment though. Not sure when I’ll have the time.” 

 

Conner nodded his understanding, “Well show or no show, the entire team wants to get a chance to see you before too long. Lots of things that they’ve all wanted to say to you for a while.”

 

“We’re almost there. Reckon there’ll be a big crowd?” Lara asked, as they were coming upon the Science District, where the Metropolis branch of S.T.A.R. Labs was located. “I mean… This isn’t gonna be as big as when I first came out, right? It is still pretty much just a doctor’s visit.” Her nervous energy was starting to really come through in her voice now that the big moment was in sight.

 

“Eh… Never underestimate our adoring public.” Conner grinned, adjusting his sunglasses and straightening his jacket as he tried his best to ease her tension. “Some folks just can’t get enough of us. Heck, the crowds could even get bigger and louder when they realize I’m there too!”

 

Lara giggled. “Yeah, the crowds do love you! Especially the older ones who like being reminded of mid-90s fashion trends.”

 

“Hey! Don’t diss the fit!” Conner laughed. “I heard about you flying around in a tutu the other day. You have no right to judge my look.”

 

“The tutu is cool and you know it!”

 

The two siblings continued their banter for a little while longer, eventually landing in a quiet alley, about a block away from the labs. They would have to approach the building from ground level. Since Bane’s attack on the labs, security had been increased and flying in through a window would be seen as a bit of a disruption.

 

As Lara and Conner made their way out of the alley, they both recognised the unmistakable noise of a bustling crowd coming from the direction of S.T.A.R. Labs. They turned the corner, where they could finally see the labs just ahead, as well as a large crowd of people who seemed more angry than celebratory…

 

“Ah crud.” Conner grumbled.

 

On closer inspection, there were actually two crowds positioned either side of the entrance to the main building. The larger crowd cheered when they noticed the arriving Super-siblings, indicating that they had come out to praise and support Lara on her big day. Many of them waved trans-colored pride flags, and wore bright eccentric outfits. Lara assumed that most, if not all, of this crowd were trans, non-binary, or at least some flavour of LGBTQ+ from how much support and enthusiasm they showed for the new Supergirl.

 

But there was also a very loud and vocal cluster standing closer to where Lara and Conner had emerged from. Despite their fewer numbers, this group was making a surprising amount of noise. They booed and jeered as Lara and Conner approached, waving the cardboard signs that they held. Signs with slogans such as, “Brainwashed Superboy!”, or “Trans kids = Child Abuse”, and even one reading “Superman supports poisoning kids!”

 

“What the heck?” Lara asked, not fully understanding what these peoples’ deal was. Were they stupid enough to think that her being ‘brainwashed’ was somehow more likely than the simple reality that she was trans? 

 

“Well now…” Conner stood a little straighter and cracked his knuckles, “This looks like it could get messy.” He looked down at his sister. “You sure you don’t wanna fly in through a window, so that these idiots can’t bother you? I’m sure I could explain it to security.”

 

Lara sighed as she gazed at the crowd. Of course, she had known that there would inevitably be plenty of naysayers, party-poopers and bullies who would try to get in the way of her transition, but she had been lucky enough to avoid most of them up until this point. Now, it seemed as if her luck had run out.

 

But was that really the case? Did one crowd of bigots really indicate that everything was immediately going to get harder? Was Lara Ella Kent, the Girl of Steel, Supergirl herself, going to let these backwards entitled jerks intimidate her?!

 

“No.” Lara said defiantly. “I don’t want anyone to think I’m scared of a few bullies. I’m Supergirl, and nothing they say can change that!”

 

“Atta girl!” Conner smiled and fist bumped her. With that, the brother-sister duo began striding confidently up towards the labs, with Lara leading the way.

 

There had been a brief pause from both crowds when Conner and Lara had started making their way towards them, but as the two of them got close enough, the noise started up again. It was comforting to hear the supporters cheering first, before the other crowd got a chance to start yelling again. 

 

Lara noticed one particularly angry-looking woman in the crowd who had had the audacity to wear a Wonder Woman themed t-shirt. As soon as she made eye-contact, the woman started screaming. “I don’t care what those crackpots have told you, young man! Wearing that outfit does not make you a girl!”

 

Lara stared at the woman in disbelief. The sheer gall this woman had was so baffling that Lara couldn’t even find the energy to be offended. How was it possible that this grown woman seemed to have a more immature concept of gender than a literal 12 year old?!

 

The woman continued her delusional ranting. “You’re making a mockery of real women! Don’t you understand?! Wonder Woman didn’t fight for all those years just for boys like you to pull nonsense like this!”

 

That almost made Lara angry. If she hadn’t had the emotional love and support she had had throughout her transition up to that point, she might have actually snapped. But instead, all Lara could do was laugh at what the woman had said…

 

“Wonder Woman?” Lara chuckled, floating up the woman’s eye-level. “You mean Diana, Princess of Themyscira? The superheroine who, when I came out to her, said she welcomed my sisterhood in the fight against injustice? Whose mother, the Queen of Themyscira, has personally invited me to train on the island exclusively populated by women and girls? Is that the Wonder Woman you’re talking about?”

 

Both crowds had gone momentarily silent when Lara had started speaking, and were both somewhat stunned when the young Supergirl finished her speech just short of a tiny mic-drop. Then the crowd of supporters opposite the protesters broke out into thunderous applause, with Conner leading them enthusiastically.

 

It was clear that Lara’s comeback had really gotten everyone’s attention. This was the first time the public was hearing about the trip to Themyscira and it was understandably exciting the fans, and infuriating the critics. The super-siblings almost wanted to linger to hear just what people were saying, but they had more important things to do today.

 

As they made their way towards the front steps of S.T.A.R. Labs, another especially bold (or clueless) younger protester tried to jump in front of them. She brandished a sign that read “You’ll never be a real girl!”, which she waved vigorously to get their attention.

 

“Superboy!” the protestor yelled. “You don’t have to do this! I can tell you’re scared and confused, but letting these people turn you into something you’re not isn’t going to help!”

 

For a moment, Lara and Conner simply stared at the woman, perplexed. It took both of them a few seconds to realize that she was in fact referring to Lara when she said “Superboy”, and not Conner, as any reasonable person might expect.

 

Conner decided it was his turn to embarrass a transphobe, since this one was seemingly addressing him directly. “Madam, please! You have nothing to worry about!” Conner said, winking at Lara as he spoke to the woman. “I’m only here to support my little sister. I’m not receiving any life-changing medical treatments today, nor do I plan to in the near-future.”

 

The woman blinked in confusion. “What? No! I didn’t mean… What…?”

 

“You were worried that Superboy was gonna be receiving treatment, right?” Lara added, joining in Conner’s game. “Well he’s not. I’m the one who’s starting blockers today, not him.” She pointed at herself, and then to Conner to emphasize her point. “Supergirl. Superboy. You follow?”

 

“But while we’re on the subject…” Conner spoke up. “If I were to get the same treatment, are you suggesting that I wouldn’t make a hot girl? We all know that’s a lie!” He spoke loud enough for the crowd of supporters to hear, and his words received an enthusiastic cheer and a few wolf-whistles from his fans.

 

Conner glanced briefly over at his crowd of admirers and gave them a two finger salute before turning his attention back to the protestors. “Now, all of you are welcome to stay if you want me to lecture you on the basics of trans identities, or you can accept that this little rally you’ve got going on is a lost cause, and head on home!” 

 

This was actually enough to make a few protesters at the back start to make themselves scarce, some more urgently than others. The woman who Conner had embarrassed had left the fastest.

 

Lara beamed, trying not to laugh too hard at the expense of others. Sure, most of the protestors were bigoted bullies who probably deserved to be humiliated, but there may have been a few who simply didn’t know any better. With any luck, these events would serve as a wake-up call for them.

She smiled up at her big brother. “Thanks SB.”

 

“No problem, SG.” Conner smiled, giving Lara a supportive pat on the shoulder. “Now you get on in there. I think the press is waiting for you! I’ll be right out here if you need me. Just wanna talk to our loyal fans for a bit…”

 

“Take your time!” Lara said, flying over to the lab’s main entrance as her brother started taking selfies with a line of the supporters. Unsurprisingly, quite a few of them followed him on TikTok and were asking for shoutouts. Conner would surely have more than enough opportunities to keep the crowd busy and entertained… 

________________________________________________________________

 

Once inside S.T.A.R. Labs’ main lobby, Lara was greeted by her own mother, who was there professionally to report on the story. Lois was joined by the Kents’ old family friend and the Daily Planet’s award-winning photographer, Jimmy Olsen. Behind them, stood Dr. October, plus one male lab assistant Lara hadn’t met before. 

 

“Hi Mrs. Lane! Good to see you again!” Lara landed in front of the adults, always feeling a little awkward pretending she didn’t know her own mother. “Are you here for the Daily Planet?”

 

“Supergirl! You’ve been busy since the last time we talked.” Lois said, used to this game after playing it with Clark for so many years. “That’s right! Dr. October requested a Daily Planet Exclusive for this story so you weren’t overwhelmed by the media circus. It was only supposed to be me, but Olsen wanted to tag along, and Perry likes to have photos whenever you Supers are involved.”

 

Jimmy laughed a little awkwardly and pulled at the collar of his shirt, further upsetting his already crooked bow tie. “Hey, I couldn’t say no to an opportunity to meet the new Supergirl!” He smiled and extended his hand to Lara. “Hi, I’m Jimmy Olsen. I’m guessing your dad’s mentioned me a few times?”

 

Yet more secret identity awkwardness. Lara had gotten to know plenty of the Daily Planet staff over the years, through her civilian identity. Her parents had taken her into work plenty of times, and she had always gotten along especially well with Jimmy. He could always be relied on to regale people with fun stories of his adventures with Superman, sometimes being a better storyteller than the Man of Steel himself.

 

“You’re Jimmy Olsen?” Lara said, hoping she sounded convincing. “Yeah… My dad’s told me so much about you!” She smiled and accepted Jimmy’s handshake, all while looking him over appraisingly. 

 

Jimmy had been known for years as having some of the corniest fashion choices in Metropolis, but even by those standards, his look was noticeably odd. Pinstripe pants, a plaid button up shirt, and a novelty Superman clip on bowtie. Adding to his ridiculousness was a newsboy-style cap compressing his curly red hair, with a few strands of curls sticking out from under it. 

 

When Lara shook his hand, she noticed that, on top of everything else, Jimmy’s nails were painted! They were a rather striking shade of neon blue that contrasted surprisingly well with his darker skin tone. This was a first as far as Lara was aware, though she had to admit, it actually suited Jimmy quite well. The rest of his attire left a lot to be desired, but the nails were nice at least.

 

Lara realized she was getting distracted by tiny details. Her brain often did weird things like that when she was nervous. The confrontation with the protestors, especially with it happening before such a big moment in her transition, had certainly raised the tension somewhat.

 

Thankfully, Lois apparently picked up on Lara’s concealed agitation, and spoke up. “Hey Olsen! As long as you're here, would you mind grabbing me a cup of coffee, please?” 

 

Jimmy, ever the loyal assistant to Lois, instinctively snapped to attention and nodded. “Alright, anyone want anything else if I’m going?”

 

“Black with two sugars please.” Dr October said, speaking for the first time. She had been going over some notes with her fellow scientist, who was now heading off to prepare the lab for Lara. “My associate will have the same. We’ll all be in the lab, so you’ll know where to find us.”

 

“Sure thing!” Jimmy said, not having expected other orders but still forcing a smile. He left to get the coffees with minimal complaint, leaving Lara alone with her mother and the doctor. 

 

Once the door closed behind Jimmy, Lois rushed forward to hug her daughter. “Hey sweetie! Glad we can actually speak properly now. You excited?” 

 

Lara smiled and returned the hug. “Hey mom! Yeah, this is all so cool! I’m glad you could be here. It’s just a shame dad couldn’t make it…”

 

“Oh, he’d give anything to be here right now honey.” Lois said, letting Lara go. “But what matters is that you’re here and ready for this moment! I’m so proud of you, Lara!” She beamed at Lara, before, looking over her shoulder and frowning slightly. “What happened to Conner?” 

 

“He got caught up with the crowd outside.” Lara said. “There were a few protestors that we scared off, so I think he’s just making sure they don’t come back.”

 

“Oh those ignoramuses!” Dr. October grumbled more to herself than anyone in the room. “Sometimes people like that make me want to go full mad scientist, but I saw that you and your brother had the correct reaction to them.” She tapped on a tablet she was holding. “It would seem that your little interaction outside has gotten S.T.A.R. Labs trending online. Luckily, it’s mostly good press, but I’d expect a bigger crowd by the time we’re finished.”

 

Just then, Victoria’s assistant returned to the room, moving to a window beside Victoria and looking out. The man shook his head as he gazed out at the gradually dissipating crowd of protestors. “Oscar Wilde once said that some people cause happiness wherever they go. Others, whenever they go.” He gave Lara a charismatic grin. “Your brother is on the right side.” 

 

“I sure hope so…” Lara said, trying to think if she had met this person before on a previous visit to S.T.A.R. Labs. He had an air of casual familiarity with her, but his face was unknown to her. His voice was familiar enough that she felt too embarrassed to ask his name, just in case she had already met him and just forgotten. 

 

Jimmy returned at that moment carrying four coffees as carefully as he could with only two hands. “Got ‘em! Come and get ‘em!” He called, trying to get through the door before anything slipped. “Gah!” He called out as one of the paper cups slipped and started to fall.

 

“I got it!” Lara said, zipping forward like dad had taught her to catch the hot beverage before a single drop could hit the floor. 

 

“Thanks Supergirl! That one was mine…” Jimmy sighed with relief handing the other cups to Lois, Victoria and the assistant before taking his own back. 

 

“Looks like she’s started the family tradition of getting you out of trouble!” Lois teased gently as she took a sip from her drink. “First Superman, then Power Girl, now even Supergirl is starting to help.”

 

“I know right?” Jimmy laughed, unable to deny it. “Guess I just need one more Kryptonian to save me from peril and I can be officially nominated for the Golden Damsel Awards!”

 

“You can have my nomination anytime you want, Oslen. Personally I always felt they needed to diversify their nominees.” Lois knocked her coffee against her friend’s cup before turning her attention back to the experts. “Now, back to business, Doctor October...” 

 

“Of course,” Dr. October said, taking a sip from her cup before handing it to her assistant. The unknown man didn’t seem like he had drunk anything from his cup yet. “We are ready any time Supergirl is.”

 

“Then let’s go!” Lara called excitedly, her delight making all the adults smile.

 

“I'll just go ahead to double check that everything is set up.” The assistant said, resting his hand gently on Victoria’s shoulder before going ahead of the group. 

 

As the assistant jogged away down the hall, Lara considered asking Dr October who the man was, but instead she found herself staring at Jimmy Olsen once more. 

 

Her mom’s friend had finished his coffee with remarkable speed, and was now mopping his brow from the heat. As he did this, Jimmy briefly removed his hat, revealing his curly red hair to be significantly longer than Lara had seen it before, almost down to his shoulders.

As the group began making their way down the hall to the lab, Lara almost wanted to ask Jimmy about his new look. She obviously knew a thing or two about trying out new styles, so perhaps this would be a fun way to distract herself from the butterflies in her stomach…

 

“All ready in here!” 

 

A new voice, a woman’s, called from the examination room. Lara was distracted from Jimmy’s appearance by the apparent arrival of a new face. 

 

Dr October didn’t seem phased by this new voice suddenly appearing, nor by the absence of her previous assistant. She only smiled and motioned for Lara and the reporters to follow her.

 

As they turned a corner, Lara saw a young woman with short dyed-green hair and large glasses was preparing the equipment. She wore a similar lab coat to the previous assistant, and greeted the guests with a friendly smile.

 

Lara looked up at her mother, who gave a small shrug in response. It probably wasn’t too much of a stretch that Victoria had more than one lab assistant working at a time, but it still didn’t explain where the other guy had gone. Lara stared at the new assistant for a moment before taking her seat. She knew Dr. October loved her theatrics, so she was used to things being a little odd. The young hero looked up when she heard the click of Jimmy’s camera as he took the first photos of the clinical site. 

 

“Miss Lane, I might recommend you let me review those photos before the article is posted.” Victoria asked as she washed her hands and put on her gloves. “Just in case of the usual things, you know. Lab secrets in the background, reflections showing confidentiality medical data, pictures of my bad side. The normal things that I cannot allow to see the light of day.”

 

“What bad side, Doctor?” the assistant asked, pulling down her glasses to look at her boss and wink boldly for all the room to see.

 

If the doctor thought any of this was strange, she didn’t let it show. She smirked and accepted the complement before refocusing on her work. “Would you please retrieve the Krypto-exfoliator, B?” 

 

“Right away, V!” the young woman actually blew a kiss to Victoria as she got up and went to a locked lead cabinet. 

 

“What the heck?” Lara asked in a quiet whisper, officially confused now.

 

“Language Supergirl.” Lois said, holding up a finger for patience, as the small trace of an understanding smile appeared on her face. Had Lois figured out what was going on?

 

Lara watched the assistant closely as she pulled a small metal box from the cabinet. The doors closed and she could see her full face again. “...I’m sorry, but wasn’t your hair green a moment ago?” Lara asked, not caring if it was rude at this point. The woman had somehow become a blonde in the few seconds her head had been out of sight!... And her eyes were different! And her nose! Was this even the same woman?

 

“I just felt like I needed a little change.” The female assistant responded… in the male assistant’s voice.

 

“Basil darling, stop teasing the poor girl!” Victoria said with a sigh, seeing how much this was baffling the young Kryptonian and even Jimmy, whose camera had slipped out of his hands and was hanging loosely from the strap around his neck.

 

“Basil… oh!” Lara understood the moment before they revealed themself. The woman smirked and gave a little bow to the audience as their skin, hair and even clothes shifted. Within seconds, every inch of her had become sticky brown wet mud, forming into a large humanoid shape. Basil Karlo, AKA Clayface, AKA Victoria October’s significant other, had finally made their grand entrance.