Super Volume 2

Mothering

Aurelia's POV
I had the day off, and I was just praying that no super villains attacked so that I could rest. Unfortunately, villains weren't the only thing I should have accounted for. "Aurelia? Could I ask you a question?" I heard. I took a deep breath and sighed. "Fuck... children. Yes! What's the matter?" I turned around to be met with Zephyr. "Shouldn't you be at school?" I asked. "Yeah, that's not my biggest concern right now. How did you get my dad to like you?" She asked. I raised an eyebrow. "Your dad doesn't like me." I replied. "But you tolerate each other. Why?" She asked. "Uh... because I'm married to Heather? She's the buffer between us. We only tolerate each other for her sake." I explained. "Because she's someone you both care about?" She asked. "Yes? Why are you asking me that?" I asked, confused. "Dad hates my girlfriend, and Santana suggested that it's because she acts like you!" She explained. My eyes widened. "I'll talk to Gabe. You shouldn't have to suffer because of this." I said. "Thank you, Aurelia." Zephyr smiled. "Of course." I replied.

I marched into Matrix Technologies, and right into Gabe's office. "Hey!" I snapped. He and Arc looked over at me. "What are you doing here? Is something wrong?" Arc asked. "Yeah! Why are you giving Zephyr shit about her girlfriend?!" I snapped, pointing at Gabe. Arc glared over at him. "I told you to stop that!" He huffed. "She's a bad influence!" Gabe exclaimed. "Is she? Or do you just hate the girl because she reminds you of me?" I asked. Gabe raised an eyebrow. "Not everything is about you, Aurelia." He spat. "No. It's about your daughter. It's because of you that she doesn't feel safe enough to be in a happy relationship. I understand that you're scared of her getting hurt, but you can't shield her forever. She has to make her own mistakes, and regardless of that, you don't get to dictate who she dates." I snapped. "Why do you care so much about how I'm raising my daughter?" Gabe groaned. "Our daughter!" Arc snapped. "Because I failed with Santana. We tried so hard to give her everything and to protect her that it just pushed her away! And look at her now. Trying to have a conversation with her is harder than fighting a dinotron solo. I don't want you to have to deal with that too." I explained. Gabe rolled his eyes and looked away. "We'll talk to Zephyr. Thanks Aurelia." Arc smiled. "Kick his ass." I smirked. "I plan on it." Arc glared over at Gabe.

As if that wasn't enough, when school got out, Blaire came home with Santana. She went to her room and Blaire hung back for a second. "Aunt Aurelia? Can I ask you something?" She came around the couch. I sighed and looked over. "Yeah?" I asked. "Um... did you know that my parents have been fighting lately?" She asked. My eyebrows shot up. Lydia did tell me that Lea was having trouble with her new job offer, but I should have guessed that meant fighting. "I know a little, yes. I'm sorry you have to hear that." I said. Blaire sighed heavily. "I was hoping that maybe you could talk to my mom? You're such close friends and I just... I'm worried." She admitted. I stood and walked over to her. "Blaire, there's nothing I can do. Your moms have to settle this themselves. I know it's worrisome to listen to, but I promise, nothing is going to happen, ok? Your moms love each other more than anything. Something as silly as a job isn't going to split them." I assured her. Blaire sighed sadly. "Ok. Thanks." She walked away.

When Heather got home, she was wearing a space suit. "Since when do they have you put that on?" I laughed. She groaned and magically changed her clothes. "Khloe was using me as a living mannequin to show off all the different types of suits." She explained. I giggled as she sat down beside me. "Sounds fun. I got to yell at Gabe today." I smiled. "Oh yeah? What was it this time?" Heather asked. "Zephyr came to me upset because Gabe hates her girlfriend. And Blaire just came to me with another question. I feel like I got off work just to be the teen babysitter today." I groaned. Heather smiled and gently kissed me. "You're amazing, babe. That reminds me. I need to talk with Santana. Is she here?" She asked. "She should be. I never saw her leave." I shrugged. "Perfect!" Heather stood up. "Be careful what you say, honey." I warned her. "Oh I know. Trust me, I know." She sighed and walked away.

Heather's POV
When Kara told me about Santana, I freaked out, but I've put it off for long enough. I need to help her. I just hope that I don't screw this up. I knocked on her door. "Santana? Can I come in?" I asked. "Yeah!" She called. I walked into her bedroom and over to her. She was sitting on her bed, looking at her phone. "I need to talk to you." I said. Santana looked up at me. "About what?" She asked. "You know that I'm proud of you... don't you?" I asked. She slowly put her phone down. "That's a weird question." She noted. "Santana, I worry about you, but I am proud of you. I worry about Kara just as much, and Lizz too." I admitted. "Ok?" She raised an eyebrow. "I just... I don't want you to think that I'm not proud of you, or that you're not good enough for me." I explained. Her eyes widened. "I know that you feel lesser, and I want to help you, but I don't know how." I explained. Santana just stared at me for a moment. "Mom, I don't need you to help me." She looked away. "Just tell me what's going on, Santana." I begged. "Nothing is going on!" She shrugged. "We both know that's not true!" I snapped. Then I stopped and took a deep breath. "Sorry, but you need my help and I'm not leaving until you tell me the truth." I said. Santana stared at me again and shook her head. "You wouldn't understand." She said. "But I can learn." I replied. She raised an eyebrow at me and I raised mine in response. Then she sighed.

"Fine. The truth? I'm never gonna be the perfect super heroine prodigy that you want me to be. I'm never gonna be like Kara or Lizz, because I'm afraid! I'm a coward! So yeah, I feel lesser! Because I know I will never live up to the standards you and mom have for me! Is that what you wanted to hear?!" She yelled. Santana stood up to face me and I pouted. "Standards?" I asked. "You're like forty. I know you know what that word means." She snapped. I rolled my eyes. "Santana, we never said you had to be that way. I don't care if you're a super hero! I don't care if you ever use your powers once in your life! I'm sorry if I made it seem that way!" I exclaimed. "You did, mom! And you do! Every time I say something, you get sad that I won't go out on your missions!" She snapped. "Not because I want you to be a super hero! Because I want to spend time with my daughter! You spend time with your friends and that's great! But then you come home, ignore Aura and I, and then leave to hookup with some douche." I spat. "That's... different." She took a step back. "Well since we're laying it all out, how is it different?" I asked. She clenched her fists. "I'm already not good enough for this family. I'm not perfect like Kara is! So I had to find a place to be good enough for someone. And men are fools. They give me just enough gratitude to feel good about myself for ten minutes, and I give them what they want in return... and when it's over, and I feel like a failure again, I just find another one." She explained. My eyes softened and she sat back down. "I'm not even good enough for myself. It kills me to see you all get hurt, knowing I can do something about it, so I joined the matrix, hoping it would make me feel better... but it doesn't. And I'm too scared to change it." She explained.

Santana dropped her head and I just stared at her for a moment. I took a deep breath and sighed. "You're like me." I told her. She glanced up at me, confused. "I never thought I was good enough either. Every day of my childhood was spent proving that I was good enough to be on the moon. That I could work like they wanted me to. And then I was sent here, and I had to prove that I was good enough to live up to my parents legacy. To protect the city they left behind. But in reality, no one was making me do that but me. Charlie even warned me against it... and I died! But even then, I was trying to prove that I was good enough to lead my team... and I wasn't! Your mom had to strip me of my powers to make me realize it. No one is perfect, Santana. Everyone strives to feel like they're good enough at something, but there is always gonna be someone that knows you're enough for them. You have always been enough for us, Santana. I'm sorry that we didn't make that clear." I explained. Santana was starting to tear up, and she wouldn't look directly at me. "Being the eldest daughter of Paws isn't easy. Surely you understand that." She said. "Santana. If you ever think that I'm such a perfect hero, just remember that I'm named after dog feet." I reminded her. "Pfft-" She laughed a little. "Also, don't call your sister perfect. She's one of the sloppiest heroes I've ever seen." I said. "Really?" Santana asked. "Yeah! She has no fighting skills and I swear she's never flown a day in her life." I nodded. Santana giggled and got up to hug me. "Thanks mom." She mumbled. I hugged her back. "You're welcome." I replied. "Zephyr is making me be a backup hero." She told me. "Oh there's nothing I can do about that. You joined the matrix. That's on you." I shrugged. "I know, but do you think you could help me? I don't know anything about this stuff and I've always been scared just to use my powers." She admitted. I smiled. "I will help you with everything I possibly can." I agreed.