"Anyone can have a child and call themselves 'a parent'. A real parent is someone who puts that child above their own selfish needs and wants."
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"I know you are scared," Kara said, pacing back and forth in front of a line of her friends, "I know some of you have never done this before," she walked past James, then Alex, then J'onn, then Myr'nn, Winn, Iris, and finally — Barry, "I know some of you are ready to get out there and prove yourselves. But just remember why we do this," she and Barry stared right at each other, "We do this for the people," and then Barry held out a karaoke microphone for her, and she took it with a smile.
———
In National City, at the Alien Dive Bar — it was Karaoke Night. Kara was up on the stage, completely in her zone, jamming out while everyone in the bar cheered for her, while her friends and family sat front row.
"♪ Well, now, don't you tell me to smile. Maybe stick around. Maybe it worth your while. Got numbers beyond what you can dial. Maybe it's because we're so versatile! ♪" — she crossed her arms while leaning to the side, smiling — "♪ Style profile, I said. It always brings me back, when I heard 'Ooh, child.' From the Hudson River to the Nile. I run the marathon, to the very last mile ♪" — she then began to horribly dance while Barry cheered and hollered for her.
At that moment, Mon-El walked into the bar looking for Iris when he found out she was there — but when he did. Wow. She was up front, cheering on her best friend/sister-in-law, but she looked so free. So...happy. Her smile gleamed and completely brightened the room.
He had to pull his eyes from her, remembering why he came to find her in the first place.
Kara walked up to Barry, handing him the Karaoke microphone, and he took it, walking up onto the stage. And when the song started playing, Kara internally rolled her eyes while everyone began hollering for Barry.
He dramatically turned towards everyone once the verse started, looking right at Kara with a mischievous look in his Kryptonite eyes — "♪ So we back in the club. With our bodies rocking from side to side, side-side to side. Thank God the week is done. I feel like a zombie gone back to life, back-back to life. Hands up, and suddenly, we all got our hands up, no control of my body ♪" — and everyone waved their hands up while Kara suck down in her seat, smiling embarrassingly — "♪ Ain't I seen you before? I think I remember those eyes, eyes, eyes. Eyes, eye-eyes. Cause baby tonight ♪" — Barry then froze, pointing at Kara — "♪ The DJ got us falling in love again. Yeah, baby tonight. The DJ got us falling in love again ♪" — he then began to crack out dancing like a manic — "♪ So dance, dance, like it's the last, last night of year life, life. Gon' get you right, cause baby tonight, the DJ got us falling in love again ♪"
Once he was done, he handed the microphone to James, who took and got up on stage while Barry took a seat back next to Kara.
"♪ What went wrong! ♪" — everyone stared at him surprised at his singing voice they did not know he had — "♪ Baby, seemed like we were going to take this further. Same old song, and the juice we got from the squeeze wasn't worth it—
"Take your shirt off!" Winn yelled out into the crowd, causing all their friends to bust out laughing.
Next was Alex, but she sat on a stool as she sang, a glass of beer in her hand, and while she sang — everyone wasn't sure if she was on the verge of tears...or her voice was cracking.
"♪ No one can move me the way that you do. Nothing erases the feeling between me and you—
"Oh, who let her pick this song?" Kara asked as Iris tried to not cringe to herself.
"♪ I drove all night to get to you ♪" — she took a moment and gulped down a large portion of her beer, and everyone was really trying to not get her off stage.
Next was J'onn. Who was very dull with his singing.
"♪ I get so emotional, baby. Ain't it shocking what love can do ♪ " — he stopped himself from going any further, gesturing for his father to come onto stage instead, "Come on, Pops! Pops, come on!"
"♪ Don't you know, we're caught in a trap. I can't walk out, because I love you too much, baby ♪"
Meanwhile, off to the side, James and Mon-El were catching up, walking away from their friends, who were cheering Myr'nn on. "So, Imra's telepathic?" James asked.
"No, it's kinetic. She moves stuff, not read minds," Mon corrected as they headed towards the end of the bar to talk.
"Oh, that's a cool party trick. Can she move you?" James asked before laughing, which Mon-El let out a soft chuckle.
"Yeah, she's, uh, pretty impressive," he said before they sat down, but when they did, Mon-El realized he was in Iris's sights from across the way. She, of course, didn't see him, having too much fun with her family and friends. But James noticed him staring at her.
"Well, she's gotta be. You never were into wallflowers," he said before he himself pulled out his phone as Mon-El turned back to him.
"So, what about you?" He asked as James put his phone down, "Huh?"
"You know, same old same. You know, work is work," James said.
"You seein' anybody?" Mon asked.
"No, not really," James said.
"Why are you checking your phone ever fifteen seconds then?" Mon asked and James chuckled.
"Fair point," he said, "Yeah, there's somebody. But we haven't, like, you know, really figured out what we're doing yet, so..."
"You happy?" Mon asked.
"Working on it," James said and Mon-El smiled before he held out his beer.
"To working on it," he said and James clinked his bottle with Mon-El's.
"To working on it," he said.
Once the song ended, everyone stood up, cheering while Myr'nn stepped down from the stage, hugging his son. All while Winn got up, pulling Iris towards the list of songs. "Come on, help me pick a song," Winn told her.
Once J'onn and Myr'nn broke their hug, they turned to Alex, "See, I told you, you had nothing to worry about," J'onn said as the two sat down.
"Karaoke is not for the weak. It requires either great courage or a complete lack of shame. But I like it," Myr'nn said.
"You do a killer rock star," Alex said.
"I listen to it sometimes while I look after the apartment," Myr'nn said.
"Oh, yes, yes. You have a stunning apartment, that I haven't been invited to yet," Alex said before she gave J'onn a look.
"Oh, we're still getting it together," J'onn said.
"It's been three months," Alex argued, "I think it's time for a housewarming party."
"I don't think so," J'onn said.
"Yes," Myr'nn said and they looked at him, "The house's temperature is quite comfortable."
Alex then slowly looked at J'onn, giving him a knowing look, "Well, we could do dinner," he said and Alex smiled.
Just a couple feet behind them, was James, his phone up to his ear, calling the one person he wanted to talk to more than anything. But she wasn't answering.
"Lena Luthor's personal phone. If you have this number you must be important."
BEEP!
"Hey, you, it's me. Uh, just checkin on you, seeing how busy you are. Maybe, uh, you're interested in a hand-delivered dinner tonight. Give me a call. Bye," he then hung up the phone and walked back to get his drink.
By the bar, Iris and Winn were going through a book full of songs he could sing. "Ohhh, you know me well," he said before he gave the Karaoke Man the book, "Yes, that's the one. Here we go," he then ran off to the stage as Iris giggled.
"It's gonna be so good," she muttered as Mon-El slid up behind her.
"Hi," he chimed and she swung back behind him.
"Hi," she said, a smile on her.
"So what have you been up to?" He asked, and she gave him a confused look, "I mean, besides the last time I saw you."
"I, um, actually," Iris stammered, a giddy smile on her, though the situation was not happy at all, "You are now looking at the new legal guardian of Ruby Arias until her mom gets better."
"Wow," Mon smiled, "Since when?"
"Since this morning," Iris said.
"That's great. I mean, it's not great, but it's great for you- I mean, you seem brighter, and I think that's Ruby's doing. This will be great for the both of you. Ruby will have the best legal guardian," Mon told her and a smile stammered onto her lips.
"Thank you, Mon-El," she said and he almost just started gazing at her addicting smile — but he couldn't.
"So, um, can we talk about something? Real quick? It's, uh, kinda important," Mon said as Iris saw Winn was about to start singing.
"Yeah, of course, but just in a second. Winn's about to melt our faces off," Iris said as they both faced Winn.
"I- Right," Mon muttered.
"Ruby is at a sleepover tonight, so we can go to my apartment later to talk?" Iris said.
"Sounds perfect," Mon told her and she nodded a smile.
"Waitstaff, yes, you are appreciated," Winn said, "Fellow drunks."
"Yeah!"
"There it is," Winn muttered before turning to the man behind the bar, "Mr. Karaoke Man, if you please. Thank you very much."
Take On Me began to play, while Iris and their friends cheered, Winn grooving out until the verse started. But he slowly stopped what he was doing when he saw the nearby tv.
WINSLOW "TOYMAN" SCHOTT SR. FOUND DEAD IN PRISON
Iris noticed his dropped expression and looked towards the tv, causing her expression to drop as well. "Oh, no. That's Winn's dad," Iris said before she looked back at Winn to find him drop the mic, and run off.
Immediately, Iris ran after him, with James following and while Mon-El wanted to shout out to her, for her to stay so they could talk — he didn't. He knew she wouldn't listen anyway, because when a friend is in need, that's all she focuses on.
When Iris and James found Winn, it was out the back area of the bar, and he was pacing back and forth, trying to figure out what he was feeling. "Okay," he muttered but when he saw Iris and James, he put on a strong front, "Hey, I'm okay. It's just..."
"Do you mind if we stay out here for a second with you?" James asked.
"Like, he's just gone, right? That's all. I mean, it's not like anything's gonna change. I never talked to him, I never saw him, I-"
"That doesn't mean you never felt him," James said.
"What's that...I'm supposed to be feeling something, right? I don't feel anything. I don't think. Um," Winn stammered before looking back at Iris and James, "Just go inside. I'll be fine."
But Iris placed her hand on his shoulder, causing him to look at her, "I'm not going back in," she said and he stared at her for a moment, shaking from the light rain pouring down on them and from the news he just got.
And he let in the feelings he felt and crashed into Iris's arms, holding her tight, and she hugged back while James placed his hand on Winn's shoulder.
National City Cemetery
The next morning was the funeral. Winn, Kara, Barry, Alex stood on the left side of the grave while J'onn, James, Mon-El and Iris stood on the right side. Ruby was there as well, but she stood in front of Iris, her back against Iris's front, while Iris held her close.
And standing in the middle of them, was a pastor of some kind. "Winslow Schott Senior. Was a man with many demons. As we lay him to rest, we may not celebrate his life, but we can examine it, and perhaps forgive a troubled soul its transgressions. Would anyone care to speak on behalf of the deceased?"
Everyone turned to Winn, who didn't budge. Kara placed a hand on his shoulder before looking at the pastor, nodding her head, indicating that they were ready. He nodded before he pressed down on the lever holding the coffin, and then the coffin was slowly placed down into the ground.
Winn stepped to the side, grabbing a hand full of dirt, and yanked it onto the grave in pure spite. He then turned around, staring out into the distance when a woman approached him. "Winn?" She asked and when he looked at her, he stared at her in utter surprise, "Do you recognize me? It's been a while."
"I know how long it's been," Winn said as all his friends looked at the two, wondering who that woman was, "You just missed him."
"Oh, I wouldn't say that. I never missed him. I'm not here for him," she said.
"Oh, you're here for me?" Winn asked, almost laughing, "Wow, Mom, it's a little late," and his friends now looked at her shocked to say.
"You have every right to be furious with me-"
"Oh, thank you. Thank you for your permission," Winn said.
"But I am so happy to see you. Honey, you don't understand it yet, but we're finally safe," she said and Winn looked at her confused.
Right then, a very quick chiming tune sound boomed from inside the coffin. Everyone looked at it confused, but as the tone quickened, everyone knew what it was. A bomb.
Kara flew off and back in her Supergirl suit, grabbing Winn and his mother, "Everybody, get down!"
She pushed the Schott's away from the grave, Barry grabbed Alex and zoomed them a couple feet away, J'onn grabbed the pastor and James, Mon-El grabbed Iris, who was holding Ruby tightly, and whooshed them a couple feet away.
Right then the coffin exploded, everything blowing into little pieces. Iris let out a heavy breathe once she knew it was safe. She felt Mon-El's hand on her back, him making sure she wasn't hurt while she made sure Ruby was alright. "Are you okay?" Iris asked the girl and she quickly nodded.
"That's what we get for living in National City," Ruby said and Iris let out a forced chuckle.
By Supergirl, Winn and his mother slowly looked at her before looking at the blown up grave. "Bastard always wanted to go out with a bang," Mary said.
The DEO
That night, Mary sat in the med bay while Alex checked for any head injuries. Once she knew she was fine, she helped the woman out of the med bay while, in the distance, Winn watched. He then began to walk towards the stairs when Supergirl began to walk with him. "I hate to ask, but I have to-"
"He's dead, Kara," Winn sternly said.
"Are you sure?" Supergirl asked.
"He's dead. Look, I had the warden and two separate medical examiners sign off on the body," Winn told her as the both of them headed down the stairs, "I had them cross-check his dental records and his fingerprints, just to be sure. The dude in the box was my father. Okay?"
"So why blow himself up at his own funeral?" Supergirl asked as the two them stepped down into the computer area of the facility where Barry, James and J'onn were.
"Maybe for the headline," James said.
"Yeah. Toyman's Last Trick. Sounds about right," Winn muttered as he walked over to his desk.
"I still think we should run a full mass spectrometry on the explosive residue, Winn. It may tell us who's helping your father," J'onn said, which Winn snapped back towards them.
"No one is helping him!" He snapped, "Seriously, he was a crazy person! Crazy people do crazy things, like, oh, I don't know, mass murder!"
They all stared at him quietly as Alex approached them, "Well, I'm happy to report that Mary has a clean bill of health. She wants to talk to you," Alex said.
"Yeah, she's had twenty years to talk to me," Winn muttered before he sat behind his desk, ignoring them.
Suddenly, Myr'nn walked up to them, holding a pizza box, "My son," he started, pulling J'onn's attention towards him,
"May I borrow ten of your Earth dollars? The strike team tackled the deliveryman when he entered the lobby. I think I should tip him well."
"Deliveryman?" J'onn questioned, "But we're having dinner with Alex, Kara and Kara's husband, Barry."
"That's why I bought a tomato pie," Myr'nn said.
"Dad, we're cooking. We got the ingredients earlier on," J'onn said and while Myr'nn looked confused, Supergirl, Barry and Alex stared at him oddly.
Until Alex stepped forward, "So, we should get to your place ASAP and get that roast in the oven," she said, guiding Myr'nn away, "Don't worry, tomato pie is my favorite hors d'oeuvre."
Supergirl, Barry and J'onn watched the two go while J'onn seemed concerned, a look Supergirl took note of. "Go, go be with them," Supergirl said and J'onn looked back at her and Barry, "The analysis will take hours, we'll stay here."
"What about the Worldkillers?" J'onn asked.
"Alex has every available agent looking for them. Barry and I will just get take out like we used to do," Supergirl assured before giving J'onn a smile, "Go eat."
"Alright," J'onn muttered before he walked off after Alex and his father.
Iris's Apartment
Meanwhile, after the explosion at the cemetery, Iris took Ruby back to her apartment. And after a peaceful evening, and nice take out dinner, one that Mon-El came over for, since all three of them agreed Iris can't cook — Ruby went to bed. Iris tucked her in, making sure she was comfortable before she quietly closed the door behind her, walking back into her living room to find Mon-El was still there. He was sitting at the small island in the kitchen, waiting for her, which surprised Iris. "Oh, you're still here," she muttered, "I assumed you'd left by now."
"Well, we, uh...we never talked," Mon said and Iris slowly nodded.
"Right," she said before she walked over in front of him, across the island.
"I, um, I owe you an apology," he said which she stared at him confused.
"For what?" She asked.
"When we were together, I never really got how it must have been for you to find out I'd been lying. About being Daxam's Prince, about a lot of stuff. And I am sorry that I did that to you," He explained and Iris stared at him surprised before she sat down.
"I...thank you for saying that," she said and he nodded, looking down at his hand, a frown on him, a frown she noticed, "Are you okay?" And he looked up at her, hesitant to say what he needed, "Mon-El?"
"Um...Imra...Imra lied to me. About, um...about something big with Legion business, and Brainy was in on it too," Mon-El told her and Iris's eyebrows raised in surprise.
"Wow," she muttered.
"When your wife conspires with your best friend-"
"It feels like garbage," Iris cut in and he looked at her with a soft smile.
"Yeah...can we, uh...can we get a drink later?" He asked and Iris stared at him a bit taken back, "After all the Winn stuff is handled, and when Ruby is at school, or at a friend's house. There are some things that I think you should know."
"Yeah. Yeah, sure," Iris stammered.
"You're the best," Mon said before standing.
"I'll see you later then," she said and he looked back at her once more.
"See you later," he said before he opened her apartment door, and left, leaving Iris alone in her kitchen to think to herself.