"Pen Pals"
Clara sat at a desk by the window in the living room. She looked outside and
listened as her parents watched the evening news. She liked to know what was
going on, but she couldn't stand looking at the TV set and seeing those
annoying dots of colored light fly at her. One of the few drawbacks to her
vision powers and quick reflexes was that she couldn't enjoy TV like humans
could. She listened to the soothing sound of the anchorman's voice as she
watched a squirrel jumping from limb to limb in a tree half a mile away.
The anchorman said, "… the submarine is wedged in a rift in the ocean
floor in the mid
Clara said, "Mom, can I borrow your swimsuit?"
Martha answered, "Mine would be too small for you. We can get you one at
the store tomorrow."
Clara said, "I can't wait until tomorrow."
Jon said, “You don’t need a swimsuit to go swimming in the pond.”
Clara said, “I’m not going to swim in our pond.”
Jon asked, "Then where are you going in a swimming suit?"
Clara said, "The mid
Martha said, "Go ahead and use my suit, … but be careful how you move
while you’re wearing it. It's a little threadbare and it will more than likely
tear when you get into it."
Clara said, "Thanks, Mom!" In five seconds, Clara was back
downstairs, wearing her Mom's white, one-piece swimsuit with low-cut front and
the plunging backside.
Jon said, "No way are you going out in that! Martha never leaves the farm
wearing that suit -- and it FITS her. Your butt cheeks are hanging out!"
Clara ran the index finger of each of her hands along the leg openings to
adjust the suit to cover more. She smiled for a second, but then the fabric snapped
back to where it had been. Clara said, "Dad, I don’t like going out like
this, but what choice do I have? This is a matter of life and death! I'll be so
deep underwater that nobody will be able to see me. The only people that will
ever see me dressed like this are you and Mom. Speaking of which, … Dad, … STOP
LOOKING AT ME! GEEZE!!"
Martha said, "Go on, Honey. Be careful!"
Clara was gone before Jon could say another word.
======
Soon Clara was flying over the
Clara vibrated through the hull and into the compartment. The men turned in
shock to see her there. She ignored them and waded into the water. She concentrated
and began generating strong electrical field rather than discharging her energy
as heat. The water rapidly broke down into oxygen and hydrogen. It wasn't until
most of the water was gone that Clara heard the cheering and wolf whistles. She
looked up to see that one of the men was snapping photos of her. She looked
down and found to her horror that the cold water and tight swimsuit had given
the men quite a show. She turned her back to them, and heard more whistling.
She tried quickly, but in vain, to adjust the bottom of her Mother's swimsuit
to cover her more. She pouted her lip and looked back at them. Now two more of
them had managed to find their cameras. She mumbled, "Daddy is going to be
so mad!" She got angry and turned again to face them. She said,
"That's not very nice!”
One of the men said, “Well it looks very nice from where I’m standing … VERY
nice indeed!”
One of the men taking pictures said, “How about a little smile, Honey? It’s
your patriotic duty! We have been down here a LONG time serving our country and
we work VERY HARD to protect your right to dress like that. You know, in Muslim
countries, they'd force you to hide that beautiful body of yours. But thanks to
us you have the right to show us as much of it as you want to!”
Clara said, “I came here to help you guys, and you're taking advantage of
me!"
One of the men said, "If you think this is taking advantage of you, come
on over here and let us show you what that REALLY means! We’d be happy to
educate you all night long. It’s not like we’re going anywhere. You look
awfully cold. We could help warm you up."
Clara frowned and said, “The cold doesn’t bother me at all, but I don’t have to
get anywhere near you to heat up.” Clara released enough heat from her body to
warm the compartment twenty degrees. She said, “As pleasant as this has been
chatting with you … and even though you almost convinced me to leave you all
down here, I’ve got a job to do outside.”
As Clara vibrated out through the wall of the sub, she heard one of the sailors
shout out, “Please marry me! I want to have your babies!”
Clara examined the outer hull and welded shut any leak she could find with her
heat vision. Then, being careful not to jar the sub too much, Clara began
breaking loose any rocks from the sides of the fissure that were in contact
with the sub. When the sub was clear of the rock walls, she positioned herself
in front of it and extended her aura over its nose to make it stable enough for
her to push against. She began pushing gently and slowly increased the force
she exerted until the sub moved back far enough to be free of the rift and
floating in open ocean. She went to the aft of the sub and bent the rudder back
into its original shape. Then she spun the screws to make sure that they would
turn freely so that the sub could go on its way. Then she went to the side of
the side and tapped out a message in Morse code, “Try to see if you can move
under your own power.” She repeated the same message 3 times. Soon the screws
were turning and the submarine headed for the surface.
Clara started to swim away then got a sick feeling that someone was watching
her again. She adjusted the swimsuit and left her hands covering herself where
she felt most exposed. She looked around carefully and saw nothing but a few
large fish. She spotted a 12 foot long marlin and was suddenly no longer
self-conscious. It reminded her of the book "The Old Man and the
Sea." Clara didn't like killing any living thing, but her Father had
gotten her used to fishing … and he certainly would like THIS fish. She thought
that it might even lighten his mood in case he somehow found out that she had
been seen in her Mom's swimsuit – by a group of horny sailors. She swam over to
the marlin, put her arms around it and headed for the surface.
A sailor aboard a Navy ship watched as a huge marlin appeared to leap out of
sea and fly into the sky. He never saw it return to the water. He almost hold a
shipmate what he had witnessed but decided that it was best not to tell
anybody.
Below the ocean, someone in an invisible, miniature submarine considered what
to do, if anything. A woman who could effortlessly break rock and bend metal
with her bare hands AND survive at that depth without any kind of protection or
breathing apparatus could either be a powerful ally ... or a dangerous enemy.
This woman was far more powerful than earlier reports had indicated.
======
Clara came in the front door and said, "Daddy, I'm sorry about getting
loud with you earlier, so I brought you home a fish from the ocean for dinner.
Remember our deal: if you catch it, I clean it; if I catch it, YOU clean
it."
Jon said, "Yep, that's the arrangement."
Clara said out loud, "Well, I caught it." Then she said to herself,
"And if Daddy finds out about those sailors, I'm sure to ‘catch it’ later,
too!"
Jon asked, "Where is this fish of yours?"
Clara said, "It's on the front porch. You can't miss it."
Jon asked, "Why did you leave it out there?"
Clara said, "If I told you, you accuse me of telling a tall fishing tale.
But this one didn't get away. I'm going to go change into something a Muslim
woman wouldn't be embarrassed to be seen in. I don't like being this over
exposed."
Martha said, "Jon, hurry! There's a news flash about the submarine!"
The anchorman said, "This just in! The submarine was miraculously freed
from the ocean bottom and has returned to the surface. Crewmen took pictures of
a mysterious woman with their digital cameras. Ten men swear that this woman,
who they have affectionately named "Power Girl," entered the
submarine through a wall without damaging it, evacuated the water that was
flooding one compartment and then left after posing for the photographs and
flirting with the sailors. They believe that this woman must be responsible for
freeing the submarine so that it could resurface. Hand prints embossed into the
solid steel rudder and photos taken by the robotic drones seem to verify these
accounts. Here for you now are pictures of the sultry, mysterious and beautiful
Power Girl!"
Jon's jaw dropped when he saw the images. Areas of the photos had been blurred
out so that they could be shown on the network television. Jon yelled,
"POWER GIRL, get down here! NOW! … CLARA!"
Clara shouted down, "It's okay Dad. I was just joking about the fish. I'll
clean it."
Jon shouted, "It's not about the fish! I SAID I'd clean it. Get down
here!"
Clara shouted, “I'm in the shower. I’m washing the salt water out of my hair.
I'll be down in a minute. If I came down now, you'd be seeing a lot more than
just my butt!"
Jon shouted, "I wouldn't be seeing anything that the rest of the world
hasn't already seen on the evening news!"
Clara said, "What are you talking about?"
Jon said, "We'll talk about that when you're through with your shower. In
the meantime, I'll be cleaning that fish." Jon went out on the front
porch. He blinked a few times to make sure he wasn’t seeing things. He came
back and slumped down into his easy chair. He said, "Martha, I think
you're going to need a bigger frying pan … or I’ll need a bigger mantle."
=======
Martha heard muffled cries from inside the bathroom. She rapped lightly on the
door. When she got no response, she slowly opened the door. She pulled open the
shower curtain and found Clara lying fully clothed in the bath tub. Clara
looked frightened. She was holding herself and trembling. Martha said, “Clara,
what are you doing in here? You never close the bathroom door or the shower
curtain!”
Clara said, “It’s not fair, Mom. How come she can do it and I can’t!”
Martha said, “Who are we talking about?”
Clara said, “HER! That … that … Power Girl person!”
Martha said, “But that’s you.”
Clara said, “Kind of … but not really. She went into that submarine and it was
small in there but she didn’t care. Then those men were staring at her and she
might as well have been naked but she didn’t run and hide like I would have.
She just stared them down and did what she had to do. Why can she do those
kinds of things when I can’t?”
Martha said, “Maybe you can.”
Clara said, “Can I? Look at me! I’ve lived on this farm for years and I know
it’s a safe place for me. I always come in this room to shower so I should know
that nothing is going to hurt me in here. But I’m TERIFFIED! I’ve only been in
here a couple minutes and I think I’m going to puke! I can’t stand this. When I
realized what she did the other day, I thought I could do it too, but I CAN’T!
I want to but I CAN’T!”
Martha said, “You CAN when you HAVE to … and some day, you’ll be able to when
you WANT to as well. We would have gotten help for you long ago but anyone you
could talk to about it would insist on knowing why you’re so frightened … and
we can’t trust anyone enough to tell them.”
Clara said, “I’m so jealous of her. Maybe, someday, I’ll be her all the time.”
Martha said, “I hope not. I wouldn’t have even recognized you if I didn’t know
where you were going and what you were … almost wearing. That … Power Girl …
looked pretty stern – almost frightening. I’ve only seen you look like that a
few times. Maybe those times it was just Power Girl peeking out. I prefer my
sweet baby. I want you to grow up and get over your fears, but I want you to
always be the gentle, loving, intelligent lady you are rather than an
over-confident, fierce, warrior woman.”
Clara said, “Thanks, Mom. I’m glad that I can talk to about anything.”
Martha said, “I noticed that you’re a little edgy. It is your time … you know.”
Clara turned her face away. Martha said, “You don’t have to be embarrassed.
It’s just that I’m heading in to town and I thought I’d ask in case you needed
some supplies.”
Clara said, “I’m fine, Mom. I have plenty to see me through this month.”
Martha said, “Good. Well, I think you should end your little experiment here
for now. You’ve had enough for the day.”
======
Clara was surprised to get a personal letter addressed to her. She saw Lex all
the time so there was no reason for him to write her. And he couldn't send a
letter to the farm without Jon or Martha getting suspicious. She had no other
close friends. Even if she did, this was the age of e-mails and instant
messaging. People rarely put pen to paper anymore for the sake of
communicating. It was kind of a special treat to get mail, but it made her a
little nervous too. The return address on the envelope was for an embassy for
some country Clara had never heard of before. And Clara had memorized the globe
before she was seven years old. But the face of the world was changing so
rapidly that even she could barely keep up with it. She took the letter up to
the barn loft and sat with it for while before carefully opening it.
The letter read:
"Hello Clara,
You don't know me, but I would like to get to know you better. I may be moving
to United States in the future. I decided that the best way to learn about a
country is to learn about a person who lives there and make a connection with
her. I hope you will be open to this arrangement and write me soon. Write about
whatever topic you want to. I will be interested in anything you might have to
say. I am especially interested in your opinions on how an individual can use
the gifts they are born with make the world a different place. I am hoping that
we are a lot alike and that, in time, we can become like sisters.
I don't want you to tell me anything that you would be uncomfortable sharing
with me. We are all entitled to our secrets. I have a few of my own. One of
those secrets is how I picked you to be my special American friend.
Please write!
I hope to hear from you soon.
*~Di~*”
Clara was thrilled that someone wanted to know about her. But she was worried
about what she could safely say … and about whether or not Di had a hidden
agenda. She had almost decided to put the letter away and forget about it, but
then she caught a whiff of the gently scented stationery. She held it to her
nose and breathed in deeply. She gasped in delight and she decided that she
must know the name of the plant that the scent came from. She walked to the
house to ask her Mom for some stationery suitable for writing to her new pen
pal.
Clara's first letter to Di was guarded and cautious. But over the next few
months, Clara gradually became more open with Di and even wrote about such
topics as her life as a social misfit, her claustrophobia, her guilt over
having such a wonderful family when everyone she knew as a child had died
tragically, her secret love and her greatest fear -- that her ‘special’ friend
would reject her if he ever learned the whole truth about her. In their
letters, they discussed philosophy and politics and literature and the state of
the world.
For fun, they wrote each other in many foreign languages. As a joke, Clara
wrote a letter to Di in Kryptonese. Clara was shocked when Di responded in
Kryptonese. Because Clara never imagined that Di could have translated or
understood what she had written in that letter, Clara had told Di many things
that she had never intended to tell anyone. The thought that a human being now
knew her darkest feelings horrified Clara. She couldn’t believe that Di had
read and understood the letter and didn’t respond by calling Clara a horrible
person and washing her hands of Clara for good. She couldn’t believe that
someone could know that she wasn’t perfect and not reject her. She wrote Di
asking her how she knew that particular language. Di responded that it was just
one of many ancient languages that she was familiar with. After that, Clara's
letters became much more cautious for a while. But Di was always very patient
with Clara never pushed her to reveal anything or answer any hard questions.
She was never judgmental of Clara’s opinions but felt free to present opposing
arguments to any issue they wrote about. Eventually Clara relaxed again and
came to trust Di.
One day, Clara was feeling particularly depressed after visiting with Lex and
she wrote Di this letter:
"Dearest Di,
My special friend started talking today about all the children he wants to have
… and I smiled at him, but I wanted to cry. I don't think I can have kids. I
would talk to my Mom about it, but she can't have children either. I think Mom
is expecting grandchildren. It’s going to break her heart when she finds out
that I can't give her any. My Mom and Dad know how to handle their own grief,
but they can't stand to see me suffer so I usually put on a brave face for
their sakes. They wanted to have a lot of kids and they can’t hide that truth
from me. My Mom is not a jealous woman in most ways, but when she sees someone
pushing a stroller …. Their problem is probably the most sensitive issue in
their marriage. I’m scared of what they will go through if they have to see me
facing the same problem. I NEVER want to put them through that just because I
have something wrong inside of me. When the issue comes up … and it WILL come
up, I will probably just lie some more and tell them that I just don’t want
kids.
It really kills me every time I hear the other girls at school complaining when
their time the month comes. I am SIXTEEN years old and that has NEVER happened
to me. I LIE to my Mom and say that it does. She spends her money to buy
supplies for me and I sneak off and donate them to a battered women's shelter.
I HATE lying to her, and I HATE having no one to talk to about it. Maybe my
body is different from other girls my age, but I don't have my birth Mother to
explain those things to me or re-assure me. I can't go to a doctor either ...
and I can't tell you why. I wish I could but that’s the one secret I can never
share.
I'm sorry. This isn't a very happy letter. I shouldn't send it, but I feel so
alone because I can't talk to anyone about it. And I'm so tired of having only
a stupid stuffed toy ….
I'm sorry. I promise my next letter will be a happier one.
Love,
CJ,"
========
Clara came home from school and called out to her Mother. Martha said,
"Come back to the kitchen. We have a visitor."
Clara walked towards the kitchen saying, "Oh, I didn't see a car
outside." She walked into the kitchen. There was a woman with long black
hair with her back towards Clara sitting across the table from her Mother and
Father. The woman gracefully stood up and pivoted to greet Clara. Clara was
amazed by how beautiful she was. She was almost as good looking as her Mothers
Martha and Alura. Clara grinned when she saw how hard her Mom was holding onto
her Dad’s arm. Their chairs couldn’t have been moved any closer together than
they were. Clara took a deep breath preparing to face whatever this visit might
mean to her. The woman's fragrance smelled very familiar.
The woman smiled brightly. Her face glowed and she had a tear in her eye when
she said, "I am SO glad to meet you in person at long last!"
The woman took Clara's hand and squeezed. Clara squeezed back. The woman
squeezed harder until Clara's eyes opened wide in surprise. The woman’s grip
was almost enough to hurt Clara's hand. Clara thought, "Who is this woman?
And what is her game? If she grabbed my Mother's hand like this, she would
break it."
The woman said, "CJ! It's me! I'm Di!" Clara's mouth fell open in
shock. Di embraced her in warm hug. Clara returned her embrace. Di whispered in
her ear, "Sister, after your last letter, I just HAD to come see you. We
need to talk."
A couple tears rolled down Clara's face. She said to her parents, "I want
to show Di the farm."
Martha said, "Come back in 45 minutes and we'll have supper."
Clara took Di outside and began showing her the farm. She said, "It's not
much to see. It's just a farm. … And I'm just a farm girl."
Di said, "CJ. Sister. Do you want to talk about your last letter?"
Clara choked up a bit and said, "No, that's okay. I shouldn't have sent
it. I don't know I was thinking. I don't like being a crybaby."
Di said, “I know a very good doctor. She can ...."
Clara said, "NO! I CAN'T go to see a doctor. I told you that!"
Di said, "Why not? Is it because you can do things like this?" Di ran
across the farm faster than Clara had ever seen a human move. Di stopped by the
tractor and lifted it with one hand. Then she gently put down the tractor and
was back by Clara's side in less than five seconds.
Clara said in Kryptonese, “I can't believe it! I thought I was the only
survivor! You're from Krypton too!"
Di said, "Pardon me? What did you just say?"
Clara said, "I spoke to you in Kryptonese. You wrote me in Kryptonese so
you know that language."
Di said, "I can translate and write in many dead languages. That doesn't
mean I know what all of them sound like when they are spoken."
Clara said, "Then you are not from Krypton?"
Di said, "No. Is that where you are from? Is it an island like my
home?"
Clara said, "No."
Di said, “My people are descendants of the ancient Greeks."
Clara said, "How can you run so fast and lift such heavy objects?"
Di said, "I was given gifts by the gods. Plus I come from a race of strong
women and I train very hard."
Clara asked, "Why did you begin writing letters to me?"
Di said, "I was racing to assist a submarine trapped in a fissure at the
bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. I was trying to figure out how to dislodge it
when I was honored to witness you free the submarine with your bare hands. I
wanted to get to know you. The fact that you rescued those people said a lot
about you, but I needed to know how you intend to use the gifts you have been
given."
Clara said, "So you just wanted to make sure that I wasn’t a threat to you
… you never really wanted to be my friend?"
Di said, "I did want to be your friend … and I still do … very much!"
Clara asked, "Did you come here to take me away from my parents?"
Di said, "No. If anything, after tasting your Mother's brownies, I might
want to move in. I came today because I hurt for you when I read your letter. I
tried to write you back but I couldn’t just send you a piece of paper with ink
on it. I had to be here for you. If I can’t find any way to comfort you, I can
at least hold your hand and spent time at your side. I know that you are deeply
afraid about whether or not you're fertile. We have a doctor on my island who
can find out what's going on with you. She has the wisdom of the ages … and of
the gods, available to her. She also has advanced medical equipment unlike
anything available in your country. She is also very gentle … and her hands are
always warm."
Clara said, "I can't. People can't know about."
Di said, "We've known about you for more than a year. We rejoice in your
existence and would never dream of harming you or those you love in any
way."
Clara said, "I’m scared to have any tests done. What if the results aren’t
something I’m ready to hear? I don't know if I want to know."
Di smiled and said, "Yes you do, little sister. Yes you do."
Clara pitched her eyes shut. Di pulled her into a hug and began stroking her
back.
========
After dinner, Di got permission from the Kents for Clara to spend the night
with her. Clara and Di walked out into the pasture and Clara asked, “How do we
get to your home? Do we fly there?”
Di answered, “Yes, we fly.” Diana clapped her hands and an airplane appeared
out of thin air.
Clara asked, “Was that there all the time?”
Di answered, “Yes.”
Clara said, “I can see a lot better than most people but I didn’t have any hint
at all that something was right in front of me! So, you are flying in the plane
and I’ll follow you.”
Di said, “No, we’re going together.”
Clara said, “Well, I can carry you if you want me to, but I can’t get into that
small thing.”
Di said, “Yes you can.”
Clara said, “Why can’t I just follow you?”
Di said, “You won’t be able to see me.”
Clara said, “I can listen for your heartbeat … or for the sounds of the
engines.”
Di said, “You won’t be able to hear anything that is inside the plane.”
Clara said, “I have exceptional hearing.”
Di said, “Just get in.”
Clara said, “I don’t mind carrying you.”
Di said, “I’m not leaving my plane here. Are you getting in, or do I have to
make you?”
Clara said, “Make me? Yeah, right! I think I’ll just stay home. I’ve never been
to a doctor before and I don’t think I’d like someone poking and prodding me
anyway. Thanks for the invitation. I hope you write me again real soon.” Clara
turned quickly and took one step towards the house when she saw a golden rope
pass in front of her eyes. She felt the rope pulled tight around her. She
turned around and said, “That’s not funny. If you think you can hog tie me ….”
Di said, “Sleep.” Clara’s eyes closed and her knees buckled. Diana bent forward
and caught Clara over her shoulder. She easily carried Clara up a ladder to the
plane and gently put her in the passenger seat before climbing into the
cockpit. Soon the plane ascended vertically as it vanished.
=====
Clara woke up sitting on a marble bench. She turned to see Di sitting next to
her. Clara yawned and said, “How did we get here?”
Di said, “I hog tied you, remember. Then you took a little nap while we took a
little ride in my airplane. Are you angry?”
Clara said, “No. It doesn’t seem like it really happened, so it doesn’t bother
me … but you will let me fly home under my own power, won’t you?”
Di said, “Certainly, but this isn’t the time to be thinking about going home. I
want you to enjoy your visit here. I don’t want you to remember our day
together as a trip to see a doctor. I would have liked you to visit me even if
you didn’t have your concerns. What do you think of my home?”
Clara said, “It’s SO beautiful here. It’s like heaven … or Hawaii … except with
classic Greek architecture. The beach is beautiful. I finally got a swimsuit
but I didn’t think to bring it.”
Di said, “You won’t need a suit unless you’re modest. I don’t imagine you are
considering the swimsuit you wore the first time I saw you.”
Clara said, “I am modest. That day I went to help those sailors … that was my
Mother’s swimsuit. I didn’t have one and it was an emergency. If I had it to do
over again, I would have worn jeans and a couple baggy flannel shirts. I never
imagined anyone would see me like that! If anyone would have recognized me, I
would have died of embarrassment. No, … I won’t be swimming naked, that’s for sure.
I’d be embarrassed enough if you saw me like that, but what if some man came
along?!”
Di said, “There are no men here.”
Clara said, “None at all or just none on this beach?”
Di said, “None at all.”
Clara asked, “Then how do you have babies? Do you grow them in a chamber like
they do where I originally come from?”
Di said, “We live very long. We don’t need many babies. When we do, we find
suitable men then send them away when we’re done with them.”
Clara said, “I guess that’s one way to do it. I think I like the idea of having
the men around all of the time because some of them are pretty nice to look at
… but I think I would like skipping all that gross stuff and just growing the
baby in a birthing chamber. I like holding hands, kissing and cuddling with men
… well, with one man … but I don’t think I could do that with anyone else and
like it. And I don’t think I’ll like making babies the way animals do. That’s
so primitive and messy and awkward!”
Di said, “Well, the urges only come on us rarely, but when they do, all we want
to do is that awkward and messy and primitive thing you are taking about. And
what one of us wants, we all want. On this island, the women are very close and
our rhythms are in sync. We need together and we bleed together. We pray
together, we play together and many of us even lay … well, that’s enough of
that. Let me just say that, when my sisters learned that you existed, they were
all hoping that you had a lot of brothers somewhere. If you had had any, they
would have wanted them for only one thing.”
Clara said, “I did have a brother … but he didn’t even get born. We had to
leave him behind and he died before his life even started.”
Di said, “That is sad. I’m sorry. I didn’t want to stir up any bad memories.
So, are you ready to see our doctor now?”
Clara said, “Not really, but let’s get it over with.”
======
Di sat with Clara and held her hand while the doctor was going over the test
results. Finally the doctor looked up and and her expression said that she had
bad news to report. She said, “Clara, I am used to seeing remarkable women, but
you are by far the most remarkable physical specimen I have ever seen. Take
care that the gods don’t catch sight of you or they will surely snatch you up
to Olympus! You aren’t human are you?”
Clara said, “No ma’am.”
The doctor said, “So, fertile or not, you already knew that you can’t have
children with humans without resorting to some form of genetic manipulation.”
Clara said, “Humans can be altered slightly so that they can have children with
my kind. I can make a mate genetically compatible, but if I’m infertile, there
is no point to doing so … other than to make it possible to have sex. And why
would anyone ever have sex if they couldn’t get pregnant?”
The doctor looked at Clara for a moment then asked, “You really aren’t from
this planet, are you?”
Clara said, “No, Ma’am, I’m not.”
The doctor said, “Stop calling me “ma’am.” You make me feel ancient and I’m
only three hundred and four years old. Just call me “Doc.” Okay?”
Clara said, “Okay, … Doc.”
The doctor said, “Well, you have two fertile eggs.”
Clara said, “So, did this just happen? Why don’t I have a cycle like most
women?”
The doctor said, “Your eggs are as durable as you are. Your eggs are probably
five or six years old. They’ll probably stay around until they are fertilized …
if they ever are fertilized. Your body is very efficient. It will wait to make
more eggs until the ones it already made are used … or get damaged somehow.”
Clara said, “Boy is my body weird!”
Di said, “Boy are you lucky!”
The doctor said, “It doesn’t look like luck at all to me. It looks as if your
people did some genetic manipulation at some point in their history. I wouldn’t
be at all surprised if Earth humans and your people have a common ancestor.”
Clara said, “So, I’m can to have babies?”
The doctor said, “Only if you there’s a man out there who can get you to open
up and let him work his magic. Considering how hard it was to get a probe
inside of you, he’ll have to be a man of steel with the thrust of a V2
missile!”
Clara turned beet red and stammered, “I’m sorry … sorry … about the probe. I
can buy you a new one. It was … uh .. it only happened because I was so
nervous!”
The doctor said, “And you think you WON’T be nervous when it’s a man and not a
hunk of metal?’
Clara said, “But when he kisses me, my … it … um … OH MY GOD!” Clara covered
her face with her hands.
The doctor said, “Got him picked out already, do you? You don’t have to be
nervous. I’m a doctor – your doctor. I just want to be open and honest with you
… and thought you should consider all the possibilities. One little nervous
twitch and … heads will roll. You don’t want to be known as “Lady Guillotine,”
do you?”
Clara didn’t remove her hands from her face when she said, “Thank you, ma’am …
uh … Doc. I appreciate you seeing me today.”
The doctor said, “Think nothing of it. You are so cute being embarrassed over
something like this! Look me up next time you visit and I’ll look up you
again!” Diana, I haven’t seen anyone blush like that in years! This has been
fun!”
Di said, “I’d better get CJ here up to my house and get her settled for the
night. Mom has been dying to meet her.”
The doctor said, “Well, tell her highness I said hello and that she’s past due
for her physical.”
Di said, “I’ll tell Mom.”
The doctor said, “Good bye. Nice meeting you Clara.” The doctor smiled and gave
Di a wink before leaving the room.
After the doctor left the room, Clara put her hands down, but her face was
still bright red. Clara asked, “Why does the doctor call your Mother “her
highness?” Was she being sarcastic?"
Di said, “My Mother is Queen of Themyscira. The 800 plus Amazons who live here
on Paradise Island have pledged their undying loyalty to her.”
Clara said, “Your Mother is a Queen? Then you are ….”
Di said, “Yes … I’m a princess. But if you are going to start calling me
princess, then don’t call me Di … call me Princess Diana. In man’s world, they
call me Diana Prince. You won’t call me Princess Di, will you?”
Clara said, “I will if you ever call me Lady Guillotine!”
Di said, “I wouldn’t do that … but did you ever read about a Queen in a story
about a girl named Alice who went down a rabbit hole?”
Clara said, “You wouldn’t!”
Diana laughed and said, “Heads will roll!”
Clara said, “Then don’t count on me to never say Di!”
Di said, “Lighten up, CJ. Ever have a sleep-over party before? Popcorn. Girl
talk all night. I’ve got all kinds of secrets I can tell you. I even know a
friend who tells fortunes. She could come over and ….”
Clara said, “No, I have never been to a sleep over before and it sounds fun but
I don’t want to talk to a fortune teller.”
Di said, “That’s right. You already were told about your future, weren’t you?
For a woman who doesn’t think she’ll like sex, I wonder how you are going to
end up being intimate with 25 men!”
Clara said, “Stop your wondering! That will NEVER happen! People can’t tell the
future."
Diana laughed and said, “Maybe you can only be with each man once, Lady G!”
Clara pouted her lip and said, “I shouldn’t have told you about Cassandra's
prophesy! … Just my luck you knew Kryptonese.”
Di said, “Well, do you think I would have told you all about what I did with my
boyfriend Steve Trevor if I knew you could translate Sanskrit!”
THE END