Arrowverse || Kanvers || A Super-Present for a Supergirl || Kanvers || Arrowverse

Title: A Super-Present for a Supergirl – If You Don't Cherish a... Corporation, You Lose It

Fandom: DC Comics / Arrowverse

Disclaimer: All rights concerning the show reserved to Greg Berlanti and Marc Guggenheim, all rights for the comics reserved to DC. This fanfiction on the other hand is entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.

Warnings: f/f, oblivious Kara, protective Kate, grand gestures

Main Pairing: Kate/Kara

Supergirl Characters: Kara Danvers, Alex Danvers, Nia Nal, Lena Luthor

Batwoman Characters: Katherine 'Kate' Kane, Mary Hamilton

Summary: Kate Kane comes to Earth-38 specifically for five reasons. One of them is to buy CatCo.

A Super-Present for a Supergirl

If You Don't Cherish a... Corporation, You Lose It

"On the risk of sounding like I want to see her, but... where's Andrea?"

Her office was empty. And not just empty because she wasn't there, it looked as though she hadn't been all day. And while she wasn't always in the office personally, it still seemed rather suspicious. Kara just wanted to make sure where she was. In her experience, it was better to know.

"Haven't you heard?", asked Nia surprised and looked up. "She sold CatCo."

"...What?", asked Kara very slowly, sitting down on Nia's desk.

"Yes. It's all over the news", stated Nia amused. "We are the news, Kara. You... Are you okay?"

Admittedly, she wasn't. The Crisis barely laid behind them, only about two weeks. The planet had been restored, just like that. The people who had been erased by it, restored with no memories of it. Everyone thought it all had been a big hoax, the evacuation. After all, nothing had happened.

Something had happened. And Kara had been in the middle of it all and she was so relieved she had her super friends at her side, because without them, she would have never managed. Somehow, despite how awful it all had been, it had been good. It had been good having all these heroes at her side, knowing she could rely on them. Having Kate on her side... It had been a while since Kara had felt that... supported, not outside of Alex, and still it had been somehow different.

Sometimes, Kara felt lonely, especially nowadays. Yes, she had Alex – she always had Alex, Alex was her one constant. But her best friend in the world, Winn, had left, was still in the future, was still gone. And now James, one of the original three that Kara had trusted with her secret, part of her original team, had also packed up and left. And then she looked at Oliver, who still had Diggle, right at his side, strong and constant and true, and who was happily married to Felicity, talking about her in that soft, proud way, about how she couldn't help them because she was taking care of their infant daughter. And then she looked at Barry, who had Cisco and Caitlin at his side at all times during the Crisis, his oldest friends never leaving his side. And then she looked at herself, the only one who had lost the other two third of her own Golden Trio – her and Barry, they had joked about that, back when they had first become friends, talking about their origin stories, how Kara, James and Winn were a Golden Trio, how Barry, Caitlin and Cisco were a Golden Trio.

It wasn't as though Kara was alone. She literally just had to turn her head to look at Nia's concerned face right now and she truly did cherish Nia as a close friend. The same went for Brainy. And J'onn was a constant, fatherly presence in hers and Alex' life too. Making new, good friends did not heal the ache of losing old, good friends though. She knew Winn and James had made decisions for their own good, she knew they were being heroes in their own rights, but... Kara missed them.

And it wasn't just them either. Clark, while not living right next door at least always had been just a few cities over. Now he was living on Themiscyra with his wife Diana, raising their infant son. Themiscyra was not exactly right over and especially with baby Jon, Kara felt even less like simply visiting and asking for help. Just like James and Winn, Clark had moved on and moved away.

And especially in recent months, Kara also missed Cat Grant a great deal. She had always admired the older woman and she had always admired what Cat Grant and CatCo stood for. She had missed Cat when Lena took over, but ever since Andrea had taken over...? What that woman was doing to CatCo was horrible, it slaughtered what the paper stood for! Knowing what she knew now, Kara wondered if Lena had... done it on purpose. Not just selling CatCo but specifically selling CatCo to someone set on running it into the ground. Just to... hurt Kara.

It wasn't that Kara wanted to believe that, she truly didn't. She wanted to believe in the good in Lena, wanted to cling onto hope that Lena would come back to her. She truly wanted that, but hope did not make her blind, or stupid. Just because she had hope that Lena would come to her senses didn't mean she didn't see the awful things Lena had done. If the woman was willing to use Kryptonite on Kara, on the mere grounds of knowing Kara would morally object to her plans, just to get her will, if she could pretend to be friends with Kara for months even though she had already cut her losses months ago, then who knew what Lena's true intentions in selling CatCo to Andrea truly were. At this point, it was not really a wild guess to assume she had done it to hurt Kara.

And it was so exhausting. Yes, Kara had lied to Lena, yes, Kara could see that Lena was hurt by it and she understood why Lena was hurt by it – but Kara had told her. Kara, on her own account, had told Lena. That a third party had revealed the secret before Kara had gotten to it didn't negate that! Kara had told Lena the truth and yet Lena continued to act like she was somehow entitled to Kara's secret, that Kara had owed her to tell it to her earlier. But... it was... Kara's secret, Kara's identity, and it was her choice when and how to come out to someone about it. Right?

She wished, deeply from the bottom of her heart, that Lena would see that, would understand that. That it was Kara's secret and Kara's right to share when she was ready. That it had never been hidden to hurt Lena, that it had been hidden because Kara was not ready.

And it just, among all the people who had moved on with their lives, hurt all the more to lose Lena like this. Cat, Winn, James and Clark all had moved on with their lives and Lena had decided to leave too, in her own way and for her own reasons. Only Kara felt stuck.

Kara was clinging onto something and she wasn't entirely sure what it was. She was clinging onto CatCo, even with what Andrea had done to it, even after Cat, Winn and James had left it behind them. She was clinging onto Lena, even though... Lena didn't want her clinging on anymore.

And even though Kara was by far not alone – she had Alex, Nia, Brainy, J'onn, even when he was now with his family she also still had Clark, she had Oliver and Barry and... Kate... on the other Earth, she knew she wasn't alone – it still felt that way, at times. When she looked into Andrea's office and saw her in there, not Cat, not James. When she looked over at Winn's old desk and he wasn't there to smile at her and offer a silly joke. When she had the impulse to call Lena, to talk to her, just to remember that Lena didn't wish to speak with her. She wanted... very selfishly did she want it all, them all. She wished, in some alternate timeline, that she could have them all. That she didn't have to lose people – one way or another. She was... so tired of losing people.

Hadn't she lost enough when she had lost everyone from her home-planet? And while yes, she... had her mother back now, on Argo City, she had spent so many years thinking she had lost them all. And the majority of their people and their planet were still gone.

Would she ever stop losing people...? Couldn't she just... get to keep them, just for once?

She wondered, was this her losing something again? Whoever Andrea sold CatCo to, Kara doubted it was going to be good news. Was it just going to get worse from heron out?

"I'm afraid to ask who she sold it to", sighed Kara, staring into the empty office.

"I'm... not sure either", admitted Nia, her eyebrows drawn together. "It's someone named Katherine Kane, a 'reclusive billionaire' or sorts, apparently? Never heard that name before."

Kara choked on air. Kate?! But... how and why? This wasn't even Kate's Earth!

/break\

Kara came to rationalize that this must be Kate's doppelganger. After all, just because Batman and Batwoman didn't exist in this world, didn't necessarily mean that Bruce Wayne and Kate Kane didn't exist either. Maybe Bruce's parents had survived and he had never donned the mantle of Batman and, consequently, Kate would have never become Batwoman. So Kara braced herself to meet a doppelganger of her friend, someone who had never met Kara before.

"Kara. It's good to see you, without the multiverse ending."

...Or not. Kara stared surprised at Kate Kane, lounging in Cat's former office, on the chair like it was a throne and she was a king. Not a queen, because there was always something timid and dignified about queens, but Kate sat sprawled out on that chair, hand on her chin, impish grin on her lips. Kara also really liked Kate in civil clothes that showed off some of the tattoos.

Kara fought her blush. So there may be something else aside from friendship that Kara sought from Kate? She had developed a fast crush last year, when they had first met – the tattoos made her weak, so weak she had to use her x-ray vision to check and oh that had been a naughty, bad idea (and it had also been very good). And then the Crisis had happened, just when Kara had felt so hopeless, so lost about Lena, about her best friend whom she thought she could trust, who she thought would have her back. To especially during that time have Kate there and have her back, no questions asked, just unconditionally supporting Kara, listening to Kara and giving her hope again.

Kara Danvers may just be a tiny little bit in love with Kate Kane.

"What are you doing here?", hissed Kara wide-eyed, hastily closing the door behind her.

"I bought the place, figured I should check it out myself", offered Kate, spinning in her chair.

"Here, on this Earth!", clarified Kara with only an edge of distress.

Which only seemed to amuse Kate all the more. That glint in her eyes, that crooked half-grin, they did things to Kara, oh, this was not ideal... Fidgeting with her glasses, Kara approached, a slightly chiding look on her face. Kate's half-smile turned into a full one as he sat up straighter.

"You talked so much about this place, about how much it means to you and what this Andrea person did to it. I am a billionaire. What good is all that money if I can't use it to help one of the very few friends I have, Kara? And Andrea was more than happy to sell it, she seemed eager to leave this place and this city behind. Besides, I... could really use a vacation, so I thought, why not buy CatCo and come stay on Super Earth for a little while..."

"Batwoman can just take a vacation like that?", asked Kara skeptically.

"Eh, my nephew's filling in", shrugged Kate casually. "Bruce's oldest, Dick. He moved out of Gotham years before Bruce disappeared, made a name for himself in a different city. Apparently, he heard of Batwoman and got curious so he returned to the Bat Cave and we... talked a bit. He wasn't too happy about filling in, but... he understands I need a break, after everything and then saving the multiverse on top of that. You know, saying 'I saved your life and the entire multiverse' really does give you some free favors with certain people. You should try it sometime."

"You just... decided to take... a vacation? Here? And buy CatCo?", sputtered Kara. "Why?"

"Like I said, I don't have many friends. There is kind of only Luke and you", shrugged Kate. "And me and Luke are spending too much time together as it is. Fair warning, I didn't come alone."

"...What?", asked Kara softly, just to be interrupted.

"THIS IS AMAZING! Everything about this is amazing, Kate! Oh my god, this whole city, I-"

Startled, Kara turned around to an enthusiastic young woman storming into the room. "Kara, meet Mary. My sister. Mary, this is Kara Danvers, the friend I told you about."

"Friend, or friend?", asked Mary curiously and got up close with Kara. "Because I'll tell you, buying a whole entire newspaper is kind of huge. Or super-friend?"

Kara's eyes widened as she tried to take this very intense person in. She liked her.

"I... uh... Super-friend?", offered Kara reluctantly, fidgeting with her glasses.

What was the harm, after all? Mary was not from this world, and if Kate trusted her with her secret identity, then this was probably safe. Mary made an excited sound at that and whirled around again.

"I figured if I'd take her on a vacation to another Earth, she may feel more inclined to forgive me for not telling her the truth sooner and for overall being a relatively crappy sister in the past ten years."

"There are aliens in this world. Actual, real, living aliens, just living among humans. This is amazing. This world totally makes up for that, yes, yes."

Kate was smiling fondly as Mary ran over to the window to look at the foreign landscape. It wasn't just that this was a different city, after all. National City as a whole didn't exist on Prime Earth – Kara had checked that before. And it figured, somewhat. That different settlements developed differently on different Earths, some formed cities, some got different names, some never happened.

"How... long will you be staying here?", asked Kara softly, maybe a little hopefully.

"Three weeks or so?", guessed Kate thoughtfully. "Bought a nice apartment nearby."

"...Bought...", muttered Kara and shook her head.

"Well, yes. So I can come visit more often", shrugged Kate with a smile. "Thanks to this practical little device from Barry's friend with the fancy hair, it would be so easy to visit you."

"Cisco would appreciate being remembered as the one with fancy hair", laughed Kara softly.

"Oh, are you going to join us for lunch, Kara?", asked Mary as she turned around again. "Since... we have never been on this Earth before and you live here, you must know where we can get something good to eat. I wonder if there is food on this Earth that doesn't exist on ours..."

"...That is a good question", hummed Kara curiously. "Uhm, I mean... I guess we could... I'm meeting my own sister for lunch, you two could tag along?"

"Yes!", exclaimed Mary before Kate could say anything. "Kate said you have a lesbian sister too."

"I do. And I am", laughed Kara, adjusting her glasses a little.

"And you are?", echoed Mary confused, blinking slowly.

"The lesbian sister", elaborated Kara. "We went two for two there, you see."

"...Huh", whispered Mary, eyes wandering to look at Kate with thoughtful contemplation.

/break\

Alex was surprised when Kara came trailed by Kate and another woman, even though Kara had sent her a text about it. Still, seeing it...? What had brought Batwoman to this world? It was never just a friendly visit between those super friends. Barry never came over just for tea, Oliver had never been on their Earth at all. Kate smiled at her as the two hugged, before Alex was also being pulled into a hug by the very excited stranger. Kate's sister.

"Alex, Mary. Mary, Alex", introduced Kate as the four of them sat down together.

"It's good to see you again, Kate. I hope... no world is ending...?", asked Alex tentatively.

"No world ending. I just... came to this Earth for a little... investment", replied Kate.

"She bought CatCo", clarified Kara, with no little amount of distress.

Alex raised her eyebrows and turned to look at Kate for a slow, long moment. She had met another billionaire before who had bought CatCo for Kara and look how that had turned out. This woman may be Batwoman but at this point Alex was fully prepared to throw hands with the next person who was going to hurt her sister. But then she saw the way Kate looked at Kara. Like she was the center of the universe. There was so much softness in Kate's eyes, her mouth open a little, pulled into just the smallest of smiles as she looked at Kara like the rest of the room didn't matter.

"This means a lot to you, Kara. And it's... money I can spare. Besides I am going to make quite the profit with this myself", argued Kate after a moment. "It's a win-win. And with the new editor-in-chief, I'm sure CatCo is going to turn around."

"Who's going to be the new editor-in-chief? Don't say William, we may get along better now but-"

"...It's you? It's like so obviously you", supplied Mary startled. "She bought this for you, after all."

"I... Yes", nodded Kate, looking nearly flustered. "I mean, I don't know the people working at CatCo. You do. You know how it's supposed to run, who is qualified for what. I want you to turn CatCo into what you think it should be, what it ought to be."

"...Oh", whispered Kara, looking as flustered as Kate.

Alex observed how even Mary looked between them like a light-bulb was going off in the young woman's mind. Those two were being truly very obvious, if only they could see past their own crush to see the other's crush. Sighing, Alex shook her head and rested her chin on her hand.

"I just, you know. It'd make for a nice... Hanukkah present", continued Kate. "Or, well, I think you mentioned you celebrate Christmas so... Merry Christmas."

Christmas was still about two weeks out, but everything was already decked out in decorations. The restaurant looked pretty like this, but Alex had to admit she hadn't had much time to pay any mind to gifts and such. The Crisis had been very exhausting and even in the aftermath of it, Alex had a lot to take care of. Oh dear, she still needed something for Kelly, something special. And Eliza was going to come over for Christmas and Alex hadn't cleaned up and prepared anything either and-

"Oh Rao", whispered Kara in such a crestfallen way, it immediately distracted Alex.

And right. This was the restaurant they used to go with Lena oh-so often... Still, the timing was truly awful. While Alex had come to realize that there was no going back for Lena anymore – she had realized it when Lena had launched Myriad already, but Kara's unwavering hope had her hopeful too, until the Crisis and the two of them had worked together and when even then, at the brink of the end of the multiverse, Lena couldn't find it in herself to forgive them, Alex understood. It was time to cut their losses. Lena was done with them and as much as that pained her, as much as it felt ridiculous to Alex, considering how much things were being blown out of proportion here, Lena's decision seemed final. And they should respect that. Lena had moved on, they should too.

Out of the corner of her eyes, Alex caught sight of Kate and how she furrowed her brows as she watched Lena Luthor walk past them. It looked like Kara was very much willing to move on too. And Alex was glad for it; the heartbreak that Kara had suffered had been so immense. She had loved Lena so deeply and to learn that for months, Lena had only pretended to be Kara's friend to use her, it had shattered Kara's heart. That just then, Kate Kane would come back into Kara's life, a woman Alex knew Kara had developed a crush on last year already. Alex thought it may be fate, because Kara deserved to be happy and to heal from what she had been through – and the way Kate looked at her suggested that the woman was ready to move heaven and Earth for Kara.

"I feel like I'm missing something. What am I missing?", asked Mary confused.

She looked at the angry face her own sister was making as Kate watched the regal, dark-haired woman walk past them, the pained expression on Kara's face as she also watched. Alex smiled thinly and reached out to gain Mary's attention while the other two were busy staring.

"That's... a former friend of ours. The fallout hadn't... been pretty", explained Alex softly.

"Oh. I'm... sorry to hear that", offered Mary gently after a moment.

"Now. What do you do? Are you also a superhero, like your sister?", asked Kara, clearing her throat and turning back toward the table conversation. "You know Kate, she's not really a talker."

"Oh, I'm no-", started Mary with a nearly modest laugh.

"She's a hero", interrupted Kate, causing Mary to stare at her in surprised wonder. "Not a superhero, but she's a med-student, running her own clinic for those who can't afford it."

"That's very admirable", noted Alex, raising her eyebrows.

Mary smiled nearly modestly at that and tucked her hair behind her ear. When dinner arrived, the four women were so engaged in conversation, catching each other up on their lives and getting to know each other properly. It was nice, for Alex, to have a chance to get to know Kate herself, and not just through Kara's love-sick retelling of things, as adorable as they were.

/break\

It was after dinner when Kate excused herself for a moment – well, after dinner meaning that Kate and Alex were done; Kara, with her higher metabolism was on her fourth burger and Mary was enjoying a piece of cheesecake. Alex' eyes were keenly following her, while the other two were busy eating, but Kate didn't mind. From what she's seen, Alex was a fiercely protective older sister, exactly what Kara deserved to have in her life. And Kate figured that Alex wouldn't mind this.

"It's so good to finally put a face to the name."

Kate smiled as she sat down opposite Lena Luthor. The other woman looked startled for a moment.

"I think you have the wrong table, Miss...", drawled Lena, face schooled into a polite smile.

"Miss Kane. Kate Kane. New owner of CatCo Worldwide Media", offered Kate, holding out her hand and shaking Lena's. "Thought I'd say hello to the previous-previous owner."

"I... was not aware Andrea sold it", admitted Lena, her jaw setting tight.

"She did", confirmed Kate, smiling her best business-smile at Lena. "And I suppose, I simply wanted to inform you that you needn't worry. CatCo is in good hands now. I will take very good care of CatCo. See, you didn't so much sell CatCo because you grew tired of it, you lost CatCo because you didn't treat it right. I can promise you though, I will treat CatCo right. The way this very impressive, honest and powerful... corporation... deserves to be treated."

Lena narrowed her eyes at Kate and it looked like she put an additional guard up. So the woman knew they weren't talking about CatCo then. Good. Kate smiled, very innocently and very fake.

"I would like to threaten you with bodily harm if you ever hurt her again, but I know you still mean a lot to her and it'd hurt her if you would be harmed, so you are... very, very lucky."

With that, Kate got up and left again, because the Luthor could say anything else. Kate had heard all about it, about Kara trusting Lena to take her to her most sacred sanctuary, the only place on Earth that is Kryptonian, and Lena using Kryptonite and that place's very defense against Kara to get what she wanted. Kate couldn't imagine being attacked by the Bat Cave, much less what Kryptonite must feel like for the Kryptonian – she had seen the raw fear and anguish in Kara's eyes when Kate had revealed she was in the possession of Kryptonite. And that had really been the last confirmation for her to know that handing it over to Kara was the right thing to do. Just like... Kara had made the right call by insisting that Kate keep it. Something could always happen, after all, even against Kara's will she could be controlled, her cousin Clark could be controlled, and someone needed to have the means to stop them, if that ever happened.

"Kate. You took too long in the bathroom. I accidentally ordered another burger."

Kate laughed softly as she saw Kara, cheeks stuffed like a hamster, looking up at her like a startled deer. It was so... utterly adorable. Oh, why was Kate so weak to this sweet, beautiful blonde...?

"That's alright. We're not in any hurry", assured Kate. "After all, you're the boss now so you decide just how long your lunch-break is going to last and Mary and I have nowhere to be."

"I mean, I do have everywhere to be. I want to see at the very least this city. Even though I have so many questions about what's different in this world compared to ours", argued Mary.

Kate smiled amused at her sister. She was glad she had made this call, not just for Kara. It was also good for her and Mary, especially after Catherine's death – yes, Kate was still angry and bitter about the lies, but this had been Mary's mother and she had just lost her. Mary needed to get out of Gotham, needed something new, something that could take her mind off. And the two of them needed the time together, to bond. They were barely starting to really get to know each other.

/break\

"So—o. How long have you been in love with Kara?"

Kate paused to stare at her sister. The two were back in their apartment, redecorating a little (Kate had bought it pre-furnished, to save time, but Mary had opinions). Mary smiled knowingly while unfolding the blanket they had bought on their way back – they had taken a detour to go shopping with Kara and Alex, giving Kara the time to have a meltdown about being boss and come up with a motivational speech to hold when she returned to CatCo.

"...It started out as a crush but has been growing stronger over the months of us talking, especially when Sophie... and I grew apart. Seeing her happy with her husband made it... easier, to move on. Having Kara there... made it even easier", admitted Kate after a long moment.

"But you two... aren't dating yet, right? There was so much pining at that dinner table, there's no way you two actually confessed to each other yet", continued Mary.

"There hadn't been the right moment yet", confirmed Kate, crossing her arms over her chest. "The last time I got to see her in person, the multiverse was kind of ending. But... yes... that's... why we're here, among other reasons. So I can tell her, in person."

"Thank you", whispered Mary softly, a sincere expression on her face. "For... telling me this, for introducing me to her, for... taking me to this other Earth. I... It means a lot, Kate."

Kate approached her, a small smile on her lips as she wrapped an arm around her. "You're my sister. There's no one else I'd have rather taken with me."

And it was true. Yes, Kate still mourned Beth, Kate still hoped against hope that Alice could return to being the sister Kate once knew. But as her life was right now? Mary was her family, Mary was the sister who was here, who needed her, wanted her around. Mary was kind and sweet and she deserved better than how Kate had treated her in the past. Unfairly so, but a part of Kate had always felt like Jacob had simply replaced her mother and sister with the Hamiltons.

/break\

"Looking good in that chair, Danvers. Though the office needs some redecorating. If you want, I'm sure Mary would love to help with that. She... seems to enjoy redecorating."

Kara looked up from her laptop and smiled as Kate entered her new office. Everyone had taken it surprisingly well that Kara was in charge? She had even received a text from Cat, saying that she was 'pleased' with this turn of events and that it saved her the trip to come and fix CatCo up herself.

"I think I'll take her up on that offer. Hey, Kate. What... can I do for you?"

"I... was wondering if I could take you out for lunch. Without our sisters. As a date."

For a long moment, Kara simply stared at Kate. A date? A date date? Kate offered her a patient smile as though she knew Kara was processing this still. Blushing, she adjusted her glasses.

"I... I guess I could... take care of this later. A... lunch date, huh?", asked Kara softly.

"And tomorrow a dinner date", shrugged Kate with a grin. "And the day after, whatever you like."

Slowly, Kara approached Kate, biting her lower lip as she did. This was... a bit unexpected, but then Kate wasn't the type to play around or pine from afar; she knew what she wanted and went straight for it. Smiling up at the other woman, Kara pulled Kate into a very brief kiss.

"Wo—oh! J'onn owes me fifty bucks now", exclaimed Nia from outside.

Kara and Kate were equally flustered as they turned toward the glass-wall of the office. Kara leaned against Kate's shoulder, closing her eyes. Now this was... an even better present than CatCo.

~*~ The End ~*~

Author's note: It's like 1AM but that counts as it being Wednesday and since I gotta leave hella early for Christmas-y reasons tomorrow and will be gone all day, you're getting your Christmas Wednesday Oneshot early today! This one's based on a tumblr post I made a couple days ago that I couldn't shake and had to write - what if Kate bought CatCo. I HAD TO. :D So, happy holidays to everyone, I hope you enjoyed this!

(Also, in case you were wondering what Kate's other in-the-summary-mentioned reasons are; 1. Buy CatCo, 2. Woo Kara, 3. Bonding time with Mary, 4. Visit an alternate Earth without the worlds ending around them, 5. Meet and threaten Lena Luthor)