Chapter Text
Alex starts her morning like she has every morning for two years. She spends too much time pulling her pillow into her chest, burrowing her head into it for as many extra seconds she can spare, followed by a deep stretch of her tense muscles, sore from her previous day of chasing ill-intentioned aliens around National City. Once she finally decides it’s time to escape the comfort of her queen-sized bed, she first turns to the body lying next to her, pressing a quick kiss to the top of the red bundle of curls.
“Hey,” the redhead mumbles. She rolls over into Alex, reaching her hand into Alex’s short bob, pushing her fingers beyond Alex’s ear, tracing circles there. She pulls Alex’s head down into a slow kiss. Alex hums, perfectly content.
“I’m gonna start a pot of coffee,” Alex murmurs into the woman’s mouth. The woman nods and curls back into her pillow. Alex sits up, pulls on her pyjama bottoms, and slowly makes her way into her kitchen.
For two years, Alex had been seeing Julia. Alex was caught off guard by the redhead when they first met through a mutual friend’s birthday dinner. During dinner, the pair took turns stealing glances at one another, nurtured by the intimate setting. Alex had butterflies fluttering in her stomach all night, which only worsened when Julia offered to share a ride with her when the party left the restaurant. Alex was fortunate for Julia’s forwardness, though, as they pulled up to Alex’s building. Julia asked for the brunette’s number, and Alex had smiled, fumbled with her phone, then left the cab with a massive smile across her face. After that evening, the pair dated quietly for weeks, when finally Julia pressed Alex to be a full-fledged couple. Alex had laughed, trying to remain aloof about the fact that she never had the intention of seeing anyone else from the moment they met, and failed hopelessly. Julia had kissed her for what felt like hours after that, and since then they’d been happier than ever.
Alex finally felt comfortable. She felt wanted — needed, even — and she wanted Julia in return. Their lives were less-than traditional, with Alex’s agency at the DEO being more demanding than ever, and Julia’s client-load ramping up in the past year. Julia had been successful in starting her own firm, and with that came long hours and late nights. Alex didn’t mind, as she had been used to a similar schedule for nearly a decade. Their lives aligned so perfectly at times, Alex couldn’t ask for much more.
Except for… well, Alex didn’t think about that anymore. Alex hadn’t thought about that for nearly two years. She had pushed the sweet, caring, gorgeous woman out of her mind for good, mostly to preserve her emotional health. She had spent an entire year waiting, hoping, that something would change. Then that miracles could happen. And then she met Julia.
Alex prepped the coffee maker, placing a filter into the funnel, scooping the pre-ground coffee from its bag into the maker, and filling the small container with water. Soon, the deep aroma of a fresh brew filled her apartment. Julia padded out into the kitchen, coming up behind Alex, and wrapping her arms around the brunette’s waist.
“You working today, Al?”
“Yeah, I’m going in a bit later than usual, though.”
Julia rests her head on Alex’s shoulder, watching Alex pour coffee into two mugs, stirring in sugar for both, plus cream for Julia. Alex picks up the mugs and turns in Julia’s arms, handing the redhead her cup.
“Thanks.” Julia takes a sip of her coffee, but holds Alex’s gaze.
Alex smiles, and takes a gulp from her own mug. She leans against the counter behind her, watching Julia watch her.
“I’ve gotta get ready,” Julia sighs, setting her mug on the counter behind Alex. Alex breathes in Julia’s scent as she leans over Alex, hair brushing against Alex’s cheek. Alex leans in slightly, and as Julia moves back, she kisses Alex. Alex holds Julia close, a hand on the small of Julia’s back. Julia breaks the kiss, brushing the hair out of Alex’s face, and retreats back into the bedroom.
Each of them move from the bathroom to the bedroom, commencing their morning routine, with Julia urgently pulling herself together.
“I’ve got a court date today, babe. I shouldn’t be home too late, but don’t wait up.”
Alex nods. She sits on the end of her bed, watching her girlfriend slip into a pair of black heels and apply a thin coat of lipstick to her lips. Her red hair is pulled into a neat up-do, a few curls escaping to frame her face. Julia turns and places a quick peck on Alex’s lips, grabs her briefcase from the corner chair, and exits the apartment.
An hour later, Alex ties up her boots and tucks her motorcycle helmet under her arm from its spot beside the apartment door. Her phone buzzes in her pocket. It’s J’onn.
Be here in 10. Got a tip this morning.
Alex locks up and hurries down the building’s three storeys and into the parkade. She pulls on her bike helmet, straddles her bike, and revs the engine. Hope it’s a good one today, she thinks. Need to keep busy.
Alex had been pushing every possible thought of the significance of the day out of her mind. Two years with Julia also meant three years since… since she had been left alone. Since she had had her heartbroken once again. Since she felt like she would never find another person that understood her, that cared for her, the way Maggie Sawyer did.
Three years ago, Maggie had left National City to pursue an ongoing investigation in Gotham. The Deputy Commissioner had recommended her to the sister precinct, and Maggie had had no reason to remain in National City. She had no ties, no family, no girlfriend keeping her there. So she left, on a mission unknown to Alex, in the roughest city in the country. Three months later, Maggie had been declared dead by the NCPD.
Alex had spent the better part of the year switching between mourning, loss, and a broken heart. She would take rejection a million times over to prevent the gut-wrenching feeling of loss again. She struggled to keep her head above water, to keep herself from sinking into a spiral of depression and loneliness. Kara had spent endless nights in Alex’s bed, stroking her hair as she cried herself to sleep. Four months after the announcement, Alex finally returned to work, returned to her normal routine, returned to her friends and family. Then, a couple months later, she met Julia. Julia was easy, fun, and reminded Alex of what it was like to love again. She promised herself that she could no longer think of Maggie, that it was energy she couldn’t expend any longer, and she was moving on.
Until today. The three-year anniversary of Maggie’s departure from National City. The last time Alex saw Maggie, breathing and beautiful as ever.
No. Alex squeezes her eyes shut briefly, trying to concentrate on the road. Three years is long enough. No more.
Alex arrives at the DEO within eight minutes of leaving her building, flipping the kickstand down from her bike and removing her helmet. She jogs inside, showing her badge and ID to the security officers on the way in. She searches for J’onn, and spots him pacing in his office, through the glass walls. He notices her and gestures for her to come upstairs.
“Hey, what you got?” Alex asks once she’s inside as she shuts the door behind her.
“We don’t know definitively yet, but the tip was a sighting of a Valeronian, apparently with a firearm. We’ll be sending you and a team down to the site soon.”
“Perfect.” Alex rolls her eyes. Maybe I shouldn’t have asked for a busy day.
“You should check in with Kara before you get suited up,” J’onn says. “She’ll be sitting this one out, but she knows about Valeronians better than any of us.”
Alex nods and turns to leave.
“Hey,” J’onn stops her.
Alex looks back, hand on her hip.
“Are you doing okay?” J’onn asks. “You know, because, if you need the day —”
“I’m fine,” Alex states, looking intently at J’onn. “I’m more than okay, I promise.”
J’onn nods, dropping the subject. He sits down behind his desk, watching Alex leave.
— —
Alex walks into the training room and sees Kara wrestling with a robotic dummy the DEO had crafted for her. After losing the Kryptonite room, J’onn had proposed this as the next best thing to keep Kara in shape without harming any other agents. The dummy was able to keep up with Kara’s speed and strength using programming Winn had coded, in addition to a resilient outer coating of intertron to hold up against Kara’s forceful blows. Kara had managed to keep it in decent shape for a while, up until last week when she accidentally beamed one of the arms off with her heat vision.
“Hey, Alex, glad you’re here!” Kara grinned wide at her sister, throwing the dummy onto the floor and wiping some sweat from her forehead.
“You know about the Valeronian sighting?” Alex asks, wasting no time with her younger sister.
“Yeah,” Kara nods. “I have to get back to Catco, so I figured that I’d give you a couple pointers before you go.”
Alex waits for her sister to continue, watching the Kryptonian wrap a towel around the back of her neck and sit down on a bench against the wall.
“The last time we dealt with one was back when I first started doing the Supergirl thing, remember? Vartox practically killed me that day.”
Alex nods, impatiently tapping her foot on the ground.
“You should be more than fine if you wear your Kryptonite suit. The Valeronians always try to go for the strongest one of the pack, so lure him in with your suit and let another agent stun him while he’s distracted. Do you have a good team going with you?”
“Yeah, J’onn has five other agents suiting up right now. Vasquez is coming, too.”
“Good. If you need help with him, don’t hesitate to ask. But I have faith in you, big sis.”
Alex smiles at Kara. Her sister never fails to make her feel like she’s an even bigger hero than herself, always letting her know she’s more than capable of defeating all the aliens herself if she wanted to. Alex prefers to let Kara do all the heavy lifting, but in this case she doesn’t have much of a choice.
“If I’m caught between a Valeronian and a hard place, you’ll be the first to know.”
Kara laughs and pats her sister on the shoulder, grinning ear to ear.
“Try to enjoy yourself! It’s not every day you get to take down a Valeronian!”
With that, Alex gives Kara a quick hug and exits the training room. She makes her way down to the equipment room and straps herself into her Krypton suit. It’s been almost six months since she’s had a reason to use it, but in this case, it won’t even be used in all it’s glory. Such a shame, Alex thinks. Although, I’m glad we haven’t had any stray Kryptons visit Earth since Nonn and Astra.
Alex, Vasquez, and the team pile into the DEO van and make their way down to the pier, where the Valeronian was spotted. Half way to the scene, the van receives a patch call from the DEO.
*pfft* DEO to Agent Danvers. *pfft*
Alex shifts up to the front of the van, grabbing the walkie from the driver’s side.
“Go ahead for Agent Danvers.”
*pfft* Danvers, we’ve just had a report that NCPD officers have arrived on the scene. They’ve been ordered to remain outside the perimeter. Reroute the van to arrive on the north side of the scene, as to not blow cover. *pfft*
Alex rolls her eyes. Of course, the NCPD can never keep their noses out of DEO business.
“Will do, rerouting now.”
The van arrives on the scene moments later, pulling up behind an empty shipping container. Alex gives a quick set of orders to her team, and proceeds to sweep the scene. Not even a minute later, Alex receives a position from a fellow agent.
Movement detected about fifty yards south from your location, Danvers.
Eyes peeled, Alex draws her weapon from her back holster. Rifle in hand, she inches forward beyond her cover. In her periphery, she spots the Valeronian, crouched behind a rusted out vehicle. Pointing the rifle at the invader, she signals her support agents to circle, trapping the alien in his position.
“Hands up!” Alex shouts. “Now!”
The Valeronian startles, clearly unaware of his impending arrest. He turns, facing Alex. His face quickly shifts from a look of panic to anger, realizing his target. Suddenly, the Valeronian leaps on top of the car, towards Alex. He holds a gun similar in size to Alex’s, but coated in a sheer substance that reflects the sun onto the car.
Alex steps backwards a few paces, raising her rifle to point directly at the invader’s chest.
“Don’t move!” Alex exclaims.
The Valeronian jumps from the car, and just as quickly is thrust through the air and onto the ground. He’s hit with a stun from Vasquez’s weapon, and seizes on the ground, limbs in a frenzy. Alex breathes a sigh of relief. Clearly, Kara’s prediction was correct, in that the Valeronian would pick her out as his first and most dangerous target.
“Good work, Vasquez,” Alex says after she’s caught her breath. Vasquez nods at her, appraisal noted. Two agents handcuff the alien with intertron cuffs, lifting him to his feet and walking him towards the back of the DEO van.
*pfft* DEO to Agent Danvers. *pfft*
Alex pushes her earpiece in, pulling her collar up to her mouth.
“Go ahead for Danvers.”
*pfft* Danvers, the NCPD at the scene need to be escorted out, apparently. They’re refusing to leave until they confirm with the team on the ground that the alien has been detained. *pfft*
“Copy DEO.”
Alex removes the Kryptonite suit and stores it in the van before making her way through the maze of shipping containers to the south side of the scene where a small fleet of NCPD cars await her. Alex pulls out her identification once the unit notices her arrival. A man exits one of the vehicles and approaches her, hand hovering above his holstered weapon.
“Agent Danvers,” Alex practically spits, annoyed at the interference from the opposing unit. “The situation has been contained and the alien is in our custody.”
The man looks at her badge and ID, and waves back to his vehicle, gesturing for his partner to follow suit.
The door opens, and Alex swears she might faint right there at the scene.
Maggie Sawyer steps out of the NCPD car, bright and beautiful as ever, her dark hair wavy around her face. Her eyes are trained on Alex’s face. She pauses, hand resting on the top of the car door. She snaps the door shut, and walks towards her partner and Alex.
Alex freezes. No, Alex thinks. You're dead. You can’t be here. You can’t —
“Danvers,” Maggie nods at her, living and breathing, standing and walking, completely, one-hundred percent alive.
Alex turns and runs, sprinting for the DEO van. She doesn’t look back, can’t stand the thought of facing the woman who is supposed to be dead. She can’t.
“Danvers!” She hears Maggie call her name, and Alex runs faster. “Alex!”
She reaches the van, and the doors slam shut right after she jumps in the back. The van screeches off away from the pier, back to the safety of the DEO.