Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

There was another crisis.

Kara was beginning to learn that there was always another crisis when working at the DEO and at Catco. Granted, she was no longer Ms. Grant’s assistant, so there were far fewer responsibilities and other people’s schedules to manage, but it was still a lot for one girl, no matter what super powers she had. So, when Alex called her in for help with a metahuman who was robbing a bank, Kara ran from her office, sending Cat a text (things were so much easier now that Cat knew her secret) and took off from the roof to save the day.

Unfortunately, when Kara arrived, she’d found the metahuman, a woman who could apparently control the freaking elements , was actually no longer at the bank, now moving on to terrorize local schools and shopping malls. No matter how fast she moved, Kara always seemed to be one step behind her. Finally, she caught up with the villain in the air above a park.

“Stop!” Kara shouted. The girl, a young adult no older than Alex with blonde hair and green eyes, just laughed. “You don’t have to do this! We can help you!” The villain just rolls her eyes, blasting Kara with a blast of wind, forcing her to tumble backwards.

“Looks like even Supergirl is susceptible to the wind,” she cackles. Kara knew all she had to do was stall until the DEO could catch up.

“What’s your name? I can help you, you know. I understand… what it’s like to be different,” she offers, shouting to be heard over the roaring wind. There’s a crackling in the air like electricity and Kara just knows that this girl can control the electricity, too. Great. Just great. She can still remember what it felt like when she had been blasted by lightning while trying to save Leslie Willis.

“Oh, shut up. I’m so sick of your good girl schtick. Grow up, and get a life, Supergirl,” she sneers. If Kara had been paying attention, she’d have noticed that this girl was waiting for something, looking around and listening to an ear piece. Unfortunately, all Kara was listening for was the approaching sounds of DEO vehicles, only three blocks away now.

While she was trying to figure out how to take down today’s latest villain, a helicopter approached. Kara didn’t think much of it. Sometimes, news helicopters tried to get close to get the story, but most kept farther away after the whole Livewire incident. As it kept approaching Kara turned to find it was actually a Lord Tech helicopter. Someone leaned out the side door, pointing something at her. Kara tried to fly away, but the metahuman girl’s control over the air kept her locked in place. The DEO pulled up just in time to see the helicopter flying away as Supergirl fell more than fifty feet.

“No!” Alex shrieked, sprinting out of the van before it even came to a complete stop. She watched as her sister slammed into the ground, making a crater in the Earth. She ran up to her, gripping her sister by the shoulders, shaking her. She really hoped that Kara had retained her powers enough that the fall would not have hurt her- or even worse, killed her.

“Kara, please. Kara, wake up, please,” she begged, turning her over. “Ow! Damnit,” she murmurs, pulling her hand away to find a glass blowdart shattered between the ground and Kara’s body. “The fuck?” she murmurs.

“Agent Danvers, do we need a medic?” Hank asks over her ear piece. Alex is about to respond when a shimmering light envelopes Kara.

“Uh, director, we need something… Something is… happening to Supergirl. I don’t… Holy hell!” As she’s speaking, the light grows brighter until Alex is blinded. She has to look away, and when she looks back to Kara, she has to do a doubletake. Because the girl in this crater wrapped in Supergirl’s uniform and cape is not Kara Danvers. She’s a toddler, maybe two years old at most.

“Hank, Hank we have an issue, here,” she shouts, panicking. He comes running over and she wraps Kara in the cape like a blanket. “Get us back to the base. We need to figure this out,” she hisses at him, shoving the other agents away. Hank’s eyes widen when he sees the toddler in the cape. He changes form, grabs the Danvers sisters and flies away from the wreckage.

“I just… I don’t understand,” Alex exhales. She paced while watching the medics examine the toddler underneath the sunlamps. The girl was still unconscious, but the more Alex studied her, the more she realized it really did look like a younger Kara. She was reminded of those first few months after Kara’s pod landed. She was so nervous and unsure, looking around at everything with wide eyes and a trembling lip. She had the same look on her face now, in sleep. Her cheeks are rounder and her hair is shorter, has more red tints in it and curls easier. Her fingers are shorter and chubbier. Everything about her makes Alex wants to protect her, shield her from everything. “How did this… What is this?” She looks to J’onn, who had once again assumed the form of Hank Henshaw.

“There weren’t enough trace elements from the glass vial to figure out what it was. We have to believe it’s some kind of synthetic kryptonite solution,” he sighs.

“Is that really… Is that Kara?” Alex asks. She knows it is. She saw the DNA test- it had been the first thing the medics had done. Before J’onn can respond, her tablet pings with the results of all of the tests. She scans over them. Yes, it is Kara. Yes, there are traces of some form of kryptonite in her blood but there’s not enough to actually help them figure out what it is yet. No, she isn’t sick. No, she doesn’t seem to have her powers. Alex is just finishing up reading through the results when she hears a muffled crying from the sun lamp table.

“Alex, be careful,” J’onn warns her as she lunges toward the room. She shakes off his hand and opens the door to find the toddler squirming around on the table. The little girl was naked, covered only in a sheet. Alex is angry for a moment- who the fuck leaves a toddler alone on a tall metal table with nothing on her?- but then she remembers this is a secret government facility, not a daycare. As the little girl- Kara, she reminds herself- shifts, rubbing at her eyes with little fists and yawning, Alex has a moment of panic. She was never good with kids. As a teenager, she made her money by tutoring other kids her age, not babysitting. When the little girl's eyes open, Alex knows in that instant that this really is Kara. It's the eyes, she decided. Wide, deep blue eyes that were shining with tears.

“Hi, little one,” Alex whispers nervously. Kara whimpers, sticks her thumb in her mouth. Alex smiles, remembering how Kara had done the same thing when she first landed, but only ever after a nightmare. At the time, Alex mocked her and called her weird. Now, she's glad to see it again. “Hey now, you're okay.” Kara says something in kryptonian and Alex squints, trying to remember the words Kara had once taught her. Her heart breaks a little as she remembers it's the Kryptonian equivalent of ‘mommy’.

“ <Mama?> ” Kara repeats the word, looking at Alex. Alex smiles sadly, shaking her head. She responds in broken Kryptonese, thankful that she had bothered to learn these words.

“ <No, Kara. No mama. Sister. Alex.>” Kara’s little face crumples in disappointment and confusion and the tears start to fall. Alex just scoops her up and cradles her to her chest, bouncing on her toes and shushing her. “Oh, Kara, it's okay. You're okay. You’re safe now. Shhh,” Alex whispers. J’onn comes into the medical bay.

“Everything alright?” He asks. Alex doesn't even know how to begin to answer that.

“I don't know if she's confused or what but Kara has no idea where she is or what's going on. She called me mom. I think… God, J’onn, what do I do about all of this? How do we get her back? What if we can’t? Do I… Do I have to raise my little sister? My little sister with superpowers? ” Alex knows she’s spiralling into panic now, but she can’t make herself stop. Kara is still crying and all Alex can think to do is bounce back and forth, rubbing circles on her back.

“May I?” He holds out his hands and Alex hands him Kara, if somewhat reluctantly. Kara whines, clings to Alex’s shirt and J’onn puts her right back.

“J’onn, I can’t do this,” Alex hisses.

“Relax,” he urges her. “She’ll respond to your anxieties. It makes it worse if you panic. Just… Take a deep breath.” Closing her eyes, she does as he suggests. “Soothing a crying child is not easy,” he admits. “But, each one is different. You must figure out what works best for Kara , not what TV or movies show you. Now, my girls liked to be left alone. They hated being touched when they were already upset. They needed space and time, darkness and quiet. But Kara… She seems to need the contact. You’re her sister , Alex. You know what she likes. You know what she needs. Use your intuition. How would you calm the adult Kara?” Alex sighs. How could she have not thought of this?

“Okay, okay. Um, I need you to find me some clothes for her. And, like, a diaper, I guess? I am taking her… I know what to do now.” J’onn nods once, taking the instructions and turning on his heel. People stared as Alex carried the sobbing superhero through the DEO, but she didn’t care. She just held her tighter.

“Alex!” Lucy shouted, running from the underground parking garage to the grassy knoll where Alex was seated. She was lying back on the mound, eyes closed as she soaked up the sun. Lucy’s eyes widened when she saw the smaller figure lying on top of her. “Alex what the-” Alex cuts her off with a finger pressed to her lips. As Lucy comes closer, she sees the small, blonde toddler is sound asleep on Alex’s chest wearing nothing but a diaper. She blushes, realizing Alex has no shirt on either. She focuses strictly on the agent’s face when she asks, “so it’s true? The metahuman- Gracie Clark, by the way, we finally caught her- really did something to turn Supergirl into a baby?” Alex nods.

“She woke up about an hour ago with no memory of anything except her name. She started crying and panicking, and I finally remembered. Whenever Kara has panic attacks, she likes skin to skin contact and tight hugs. And, you know, she just really like the sun in general. Helps her feel better,” Alex shrugs, blushing as she tries to pull her discarded shirt over the two of them like a blanket.

“This is… insane,” Lucy half laughs. She takes a seat next to Alex, lying back. The sun feels nice on her skin.

“When I was fourteen, I got an alien foster sister who had superpowers. Insane kind of lost its meaning after that,” Alex smirks, closing her eyes and relaxing into the sun.

“Yeah, that would do it,” Lucy smiles. Shifting, she grunts in pain.

“Hey, you alright?” Alex asks, peering over at the younger Lane. “Are you… did you get hurt?” Lucy tries to shrug but it causes an ache in her shoulder. She hisses out a string of curses under her breath.

“I’m fine,” she insists. Alex sits up, letting the shirt fall away as she stares at Lucy. Clutching the still sleeping Kara to her chest, she punches Lucy’s shoulder.

“Shit!” Lucy screams, immediately clutching at her injured shoulder. “Alright, you asshole, so it’s dislocated! No need to be a jerk,” she grunts. Kara stirs sleepily.

“Oh, see what you’ve done?” Alex mumbles. She shifts Kara as the toddler begins to fuss quietly. “Hi, sleepyhead,” she whispers.

“Alex,” she whines, startling the older brunette. “Alex, hurts,” she mumbles, patting her belly. Lucy looks concerned. Alex is about to drag both of them down to the medical bay when Kara’s stomach growls. She smiles.

“You hungry, munchkin? Want food?” She repeats the Kryptonese word for food. It had been one of the first things she had learned from Kara. Kara nods, rubbing her eyes and yawning.

“Well, aren’t you quite the little mommy in training,” Lucy snickers. Alex just growls at her.

“Shut up, Lane. On our way to get food, you’re going to med bay if I have to drag you there kicking and screaming,” she threatens. Kara balances on Alex’s knees while the elder Danvers pulled her shirt back on, ignoring Lucy’s pout.

It had taken some time to get Kara the food she needed. Kara turned her nose up at everything in the DEO cafeteria and Alex had to go on a hunt to find adult-Kara’s stash of snacks. She eventually found them hidden in the floor beneath Alex’s desk. It felt wrong feeding a baby a collection of chips, crackers and brownies with no source of protein or nourishment, but Kara seemed to love it.

“Now, was that so hard?” Alex asks. Kara was just finishing off the supply of snacks when Lucy came in, arm in a sling. She sneered at Alex.

“Shut up, Danvers. I come bearing some presents for Kara.” She brandishes a backpack and Kara cocks her head to the side. Alex smiled, running a hand through her blonde curls fondly.

“Presents?” Kara asks around a mouthful of cookies. Alex wondered how she seemed to be picking up on English so quickly. Lucy just giggled, putting the backpack on the desk. Alex just leans back in her desk chair, keeping one hand on Kara as the girl leans forward off her lap looking towards the bag. Lucy makes a big show of pulling out the first item. Kara pouts when she sees it’s only clothes. Alex is relieved she no longer has to carry around her half-naked suddenly-a-toddler alien sister in her workplace.

“Look at these nice clothes, Kara. Can you say thank you to Lucy?” Alex says immediately. She feels very much like her mother, remembers hearing those exact words at family birthday parties. Alex shudders.

“Th-thank you, Lucy,” Kara stutters. Immediately, she puts her thumb in her mouth.

“Oh, I didn’t just get clothes. I brought… some more snacks!” Kara giggles around her thumb when she sees Lucy pull out big boxes of Gerber brand baby snacks. She had just eaten more food than Alex could eat in one sitting and she still seemed starving. Alex was both envious of and mystified by the Kryptonian metabolism. Kara claps happily and pulls the snacks towards her. Alex takes it, pouring out only a small serving before giving them back to Lucy, out of reach.

“Relax, peanut,” Alex laughs when Kara turns to pout at her.

“I’ve got one more present for you, Kara. Look at this… A teddy bear!” Kara makes grabby motions as Lucy pulls out a dark brown teddy bear almost as large as Kara herself. She squeals, hugging it to her chest. “Oh, that’s cute,” Lucy murmurs. Alex nods. “J’onn went out to get a few necessities. I guess Johnson, that guy down in the little office near the training center? When his girls were little, he kept extra clothes and diapers in his car, so J’onn borrowed them and handed them to me when I left med bay. He was on his way to go talk to Gracie Clark about what happened to Supergirl. I also have her cell phone. It’s… been ringing for a while. Winn, James, and, uh, Miss Grant.” Alex sighs, pinching the bridge of her nose. She doesn’t particularly feel like dealing with three separate phone calls, and this isn’t something that can be easily explained in a group text.

“Alright, Kara. Finish your snack. We have some errands to do in town,” Alex sighs. The baby Kryptonian just whines, shoving the last of her crackers in her mouth. “I guess we… are making a trip to Catco,” she sighs at Lucy.

Chapter Text

Alex never realized how difficult it was to get a squirming toddler dressed. As she tugged the blue shirt with the House of El logo on her chest (J’onn had a sense of humor, apparently), Alex made a mental note to call and apologize to her own mother. That was another person she needed to tell about Kara. She didn’t even know how to begin with that. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she focused on getting the stupidly tiny, very cute little red sweatpants onto Kara’s equally tiny little legs.

“Alex, Alex, we go now,” Kara begs, bouncing as Alex tries to get socks and shoes on her feet. “We go now!” Alex bites back a smile. It was just like when Kara was a teenager having first landed; she picked up on English quicker than Alex could blink. The more she heard, the more Kara was able to understand.

“I have to put shoes and socks on, first, munchkin. Now, come on. Time to run errands,” she smiles, clicking Kara’s shoes together now that they’re strapped onto her. Kara giggles, bounding off the office chair and running to the door. Alex just smiles, glad that Kara doesn’t seem to have her powers. She’s already tired enough without having to deal with chasing around a superpowered little girl on a sugar rush.

The drive to Catco had been… interesting to say the least. Since there wasn’t a car seat available, Alex took a tactical van and strapped Kara into the back seat with the twelve different buckles. She had just giggled, swinging her legs and kicking the seat. Lucy, thankfully, took pity on Alex and decided to come along on the trip to keep an eye on Kara in the back seat.

“We go?” Kara squeaks. Alex smiles in the rear view mirror, making eye contact with Lucy. “Where we go?” She slurs the r’sso it sounds more like “wayuh” and Alex bites back a giggle. She’s been clutching her new teddy bear to her chest all afternoon and was now making it dance on her lap.

“We are going to visit some new friends. Do you like making new friends?” Kara bites her lower lip, letting the bear fall to her lap. Lucy squeezes her knee reassuringly.

“I… make n-new… fends?” she stammers nervously.

“It’ll be fine, little one,” Alex assures her, peering at her in the rearview mirror. “Does your teddy bear want some music to dance?” Kara beams, nodding eagerly as Alex turns on the radio- a rarely used piece of machinery in the tactical vans- and makes the bear dance again.

“Uh, Agent Danvers, Major Lane, you can’t- Ms. Grant doesn’t appreciate unexpected visitors- or children!- in her office,” the first floor security guard shouts after them. Alex and Lucy just flashed their badges again, brushing by him and running upstairs. Kara just giggled, burying her face into Alex’s shoulder. The snuggly little toddler had insisted on being carried as soon as she saw all of the people rushing around. A few people in the crowded elevator tried to smile and talk to Kara, but she just clung tighter to Alex’s jacket. As they crossed through the bullpen on Cat’s floor, a hush settled over the reporters. Winn and James leapt out of their seats to approach the women.

“Alex, Lucy! Where’s Kara? Who’s this kid? Ms. Grant doesn’t really like kids, she shouldn’t be here- fuck! Is this Kara?” Winn hisses nervously. The blonde just makes a little mewling noise at the sound of her name.

“Scully Danvers, Lucy, what are you doing here? And with… a toddler, no less?” Cat calls, striding out to lean on her glass office door. She sighs, crossing her arms over her chest. “Though seeing you is always a treat, Scully, I was actually looking for the Sunny Danvers. Where can I find my former assistant?” Alex hitches Kara higher on her hip.

“Yeah, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about. Is there somewhere… private?” Cat peers at Kara, who has deemed now a perfect time to poke her head up and turn to make eye contact with her boss. Cat just turns on her heel and goes out to her balcony, fully expecting everyone to follow. Alex takes Kara first while Lucy glances back at James and Winn.

“You guys come too,” she declares. With a nod of her head, James and Winn jump to follow. Lucy has to bite her lip to hide her smirk. She loves when people jump to follow her orders, even in civilian attire.

Once everyone was settled on the balcony, Alex opened her mouth to speak.

Naturally, Cat Grant had to interrupt her. “So, what is this about, Agent Scully?” She taps her foot like this is inconveniencing her. Alex has to roll her eyes, scoffing. She leans in to whisper in Kara’s ear.

“Little one, can I put you down? You can give all of my friends your big girl smile and tell them your name for me,” she whispers. Kara nods, but her thumb goes right into her mouth as Alex puts her on the floor. Alex kneels down next to her, pulling the thumb out, ignoring the way James, Winn and Cat gawk.

“Hi,” Kara smiles shyly. “I’m Kara.” She mispronounces her r’s in the adorable way that toddlers do and clutches her teddy bear to her chest, swaying back and forth.

“Kara Zor-El Danvers,” Alex explains. “Supergirl ran into a little… issue today while fighting a bad guy. She had to go away for a while and our friend Kara is here to stay.” She giggles, jumping up and down when Alex tickles her.

“Why don’t I take Kara for a minute to… find some markers, or something?” Lucy suggests. “Then the adults can… chat.”

“Um, my old assistant keeps markers in her new desk, I believe,” Cat says breathily. “You can… take her into her office. Alex’s sister’s office,” she clarifies. Lucy nods, taking Kara’s hand and leading her down the hallway.

“So, uh, any questions?” Alex asks. James scoffs, Winn sputters and Cat just clucks her tongue.

“What in the hell happened, is my question,” Cat snorts. “Of course we watched the coverage of Supergirl’s fight, but after they took to the skies and started throwing around lasers and things, most of the camera coverage stopped. Some bystanders claimed a nondescript helicopter shot her and she went down. Was it kryptonite?” she continues. It’s moments like these that remind Alex exactly how the media mogul got her empire.

“Not exactly, we don’t think. We’re trying to track down the helicopter, but our reports said it was the metahuman. We got a small blood draw that showed it might be some kind of synthetic kryptonite, but a few seconds after she was hit, she just… passed out and turned into a toddler. When she woke up a few hours later, she had no memory of… anything at all. She asked if I was her mom, and she woke up speaking Kryptonian, but the more she’s listening, the more English she’s getting. I mean, I know Kara learned English quickly when her pod first landed, but this is insane. She’s two! Sort of,” Alex rambled, pacing the length of the balcony.

“Well, how long is she going to be like this?” James asks. Alex shrugged helplessly, biting at the skin around her thumb.

“Until the scientists can figure out how to reverse the effects of whatever hit her?” she sighs.

“And what about the people who did this to her? If it was a menacing black helicopter, who was in it? What was their goal? Were they trying to incapacitate Supergirl so they can carry out some nefarious plot? If so, is your government organization prepared to handle the threat? How can you keep the citizens safe?” Cat fires off the questions one after another, not giving Alex a chance to even formulate a response.

“Ms. Grant,” she says, careful to keep her voice measured and even. “Our association is more than capable of handling threats. We did just fine before Supergirl came around.”

“Well, what about Kara? Who’s taking care of her?” Winn asks. Alex raises an eyebrow.

“Uh, me?” she scoffs.

“You’re going to carry around a toddler on your hip while you fight aliens?” Winn raises one eyebrow. Alex rolls her eyes.

“No, I’ll… Take a break from the DEO. Do desk work. I don’t know.” She runs a hand through her hair, flustered and overwhelmed.

“Do you have the things you need?” Cat asks, gentler now. Alex just bites her lip. She doesn’t even know what she needs. Cat, sensing this, begins to prompt her. “Clothes, a car seat, a place to sleep, appropriate snacks, toys, diapers? Any of this?” Alex shakes her head. She begins pacing again, her steps quicker and more harried.

“This just happened… a few hours ago! I-I-I’ve never even babysat before today! And I just… I could barely deal with a crying fit earlier. What do I… Oh my God, what am I supposed to do?” Alex exhales noisily, sinking onto one of the chairs. With a nod of her head, Cat dismisses Winn and James. James squeezes her shoulder reassuringly as he passes and Winn opens his mouth as if to speak, but then closes it and walks away. Alex drops her head into her hands as everything hits her. They have no clue who did this, or why, or how. She has no clue how long she’ll have to deal with toddler Kara and- oh God, what if she develops her superpowers?

“Alex, what happened?” And somehow, Cat using her real name, not a nickname or something, makes it more real. More serious.

“I… Cat, I can’t do this. She just… She got scared and started crying and I-I-I froze. I had no clue what to do. And whatever she got hit with had basically metabolized into her bloodstream. I’m not sure if we’ll be able to figure it out just from that. And I, oh God, I can’t handle this! I’m not meant to be a-a-a mother. I was barely qualified to be a sister!” Cat Grant is not good at comforting people. Or rather, people who aren’t her son. She hates tears, not because they’re a sign of weakness or whatever people seem to think, but rather because she’s inept at dealing with them. She settles for honest confessions.

“When Carter was a baby, he cried all the time. For no reason. It’s called colic.” Alex nods stiffly. She picks her head up and draws her knees to her chest. Cat tries not to cringe and remind her how expensive these white chairs were and how dirty her boots were. “Colicky babies are very difficult to console. It’s awful. They just scream no matter what you try. I thought I was going to go mad. I couldn’t sleep, and I couldn’t eat. I was so stressed out, and I-I fell into depression. My husband started taking Carter from me, leaving on trips. He divorced me, and then he had the audacity to try and- to take my son from me.” Alex’s brow furrows in concern as Cat seems to choke up. Even all these years later, it was hard for her to remember that time.

“My point is,” Cat croaks. She clears her throat before continuing. “My point is that no one is good at parenting right away. Even now, after all this time, I make mistakes with Carter. I make mistakes with Adam! And this is… You are a scientist, Alex. Kara speaks highly of your skills, and I know the people you employ must also be spectacular. You can figure this out. You can bring her back. Just… give yourselves some credit. Give your self some credit. You are capable. Take a breath.” Alex sniffles, wiping at her eyes. Cat busies herself with pouring them both some water and stands back, looking out over the city. Alex is grateful for the semblance of privacy as she gathers herself. She’s wiping at the last of the tears on her cheeks when she hears the high pitched giggles approaching.

“Sissy! Drawed a picture!” Kara giggles breathlessly, sprinting through the glass balcony doors to jump on Alex’s lap. Alex grunts, smiling and wrapping her arms around the little girl. Lucy runs in after her, cheeks pink.

“Sorry, I mentioned giving that picture to her sister, and she got confused so I had to try and remember some Kryptonian to explain what I meant and she realized I meant you, and then I guess the word I used was more like ‘sissy’ than sister, so… Sorry? I didn’t wanna overstep, I don’t know what you told her,” Lucy explains quickly. Alex just smiles at her, mouthing ‘it’s fine, she knew’ before turning back to Kara.

“Show me, munchkin,” she whispers excitedly. Kara squeals, uncrumpling the paper from her fists while Alex pretends to be fascinated by the multi-colored scribbles on the piece of white paper. Lucy just ambles over to lean against the balcony ledge with Cat.

“You gonna be able to handle some time without your beloved assistant?” Lucy murmurs jokingly. Cat rolls her eyes.

“She’s not my assistant anymore. I promoted her last week to reporter. I suppose I can tell people she took some time off to get her life settled before the official promotion?” Lucy knew that Cat was talking more to herself than anyone else, but she hummed in agreement. They stayed that way for a while before leaving the Danvers sisters to giggle and play on the balcony.

Chapter Text

It took ten minutes for Kara to get bored. Cat had tried to settle in and get some work done while the Danvers sisters played outside on the balcony, but before long, a child was running around her office and giggling. Cat was nostalgic for a moment for when Carter was this small and came to visit her in the office. When Alex comes running after the little girl, chasing her around the couch, Cat stands and speaks firmly.

“Kara,” she chides. “I really hope you're being a good girl for your sister.” Kara freezes in her spot and turns back just in time to see Alex scoop her up and hold her on her hip.

“Sorry Miss Grant,” she smiles tightly. “I guess we're on our way out. We just… it was easier to explain things like this. So maybe you can find a way to make it look like supergirl is still flying around?” Cat nods once.

“Agent Scully,” she calls before Alex can leave. “Don't go just yet. I have something for you before you go.”

“Oh no, you really don't have to Miss Grant,” Alex supplies quickly.

“If it makes you feel any better, you can think of it as a gift for your sister,” Cat counters, rolling her eyes. Cat grabs an envelope from her desk and hands it to the red faces brunette, tickling the miniature superhero under her chin. “A list of essentials for her, and some financials to get the more expensive things,” she explains. Alex peeks into the envelope, sees the stack of rechargeable gift cards and quickly shakes her head, trying to hand it back to Cat.

“Miss Grant, I really can't accept this. It's- you're- my sister is your assistant and-”

“And she's in need. I'm not a fool, I know what people say about me but make no mistake, Agent Danvers, I take care of my employees. This money is just to help you out for the time you're taking care of her.” Alex starts to protest again but Cat cuts her off. “And before you consider arguing, you should know that her diaper needs to be changed. Assuming you have more than the one she's wearing,” she points out, noting the way it sags and Kara is hiding her face in Alex's shoulder. Alex's pink tinged ears tell Cat the answer to that question.

“I have one in the car,” she defends weakly. Cat just quirks an eyebrow, amused. “Thank you, Miss Grant,” she whispers, putting the envelope in her back pocket.

“Run along now, dear. I have a business empire to run,” Cat dismisses. Alex turns and hurries away. Over her shoulder, Kara shyly waves goodbye, making her brown teddy bear- which Cat had not noticed stowed away in a bag of Lucy’s- wave as well. Cat found herself missing the little girl as soon as the elevator doors closed.

“This list is very… specific,” Lucy says carefully as they drive over towards the nearest department store. “And very expensive. Like, a good car seat is bad enough. And then there’s a stroller, and a booster seat. Then there’s clothes, and a pacifier, and a blanket, and did you notice she broke down clothes into specific items? Like she doesn’t trust you to pick out clothes for a fake toddler?”

“She gave me some money to get some of the harder stuff. And I’m grateful she gave me that whole list because I can barely remember what to buy myself, let alone a child.” Alex pauses, glancing back in the rearview mirror to watch Kara blinking sleepily. Now that she’d put on a fresh diaper and wrapped her in an oversized sweatshirt she found in the trunk, Kara was struggling to stay awake. Lucy sat across from her, watching with a small smile.

“Well, isn’t kitty Cat so nice,” Lucy coos, tickling Kara’s cheek with the end of her hair. She wrinkles her nose in a smile and yawns, her thumb finding its way into her mouth. They drive the rest of the way to the department store in relative silence.

“Can't we divide and conquer?” Alex whines- softly because Kara had fallen fast asleep again (she couldn't quite understand this lack of energy since the adult Kara could go for long periods of time without sleep). “It'll be faster.”

“No because I don't know what the hell I’m buying, so you and that magic list are coming with me.” Lucy grabs a cart and helps guide Karas legs into the seat. She slumps over slightly in the seat and Alex smiles, brushing the hair from her face.

“Fine but we better finish soon. It's almost dinner time and I'm starving.”

“Hungry,” Kara whined. They had just gotten back to Alex's apartment and she was in the process of opening the door with one hand, balancing Kara on her hip while Lucy brought in their considerable bags and purchases (she had $12.87 left from the money Cat Grant gave her). As soon as Kara woke up- ten minutes into the shopping trip while they were picking out clothes- she had begun asking for food. After fifteen minutes of whining, demanding and even begging, Lucy ran to the food court and came back with a Happy Meal for the fake toddler just to keep her quiet. An hour and a half later in the line to check out, Kara began crying for food again so they got her a bag of pretzels. Now, half an hour later and one might think Kara hasn't eaten all day.

“I am trying, Kara,” Alex says through gritted teeth. She's really trying not to get too mad at her little sister. She's been through a lot in one day.

“Sissy,” she whimpers. “Hungry.”

“Kara,” Alex barks as she gets through the door. “I am trying. Please, stop.” Kara whimpers and Alex immediately feels guilty. She turns as she sets her bag on the counter to see Kara is crying now, her cheeks pink and her eyes red and watery. “Oh, honey, I’m sorry,” Alex immediately softens. She really hadn’t meant to make the girl cry. Kara is squirming, turning away from Alex, and finally she has to let her down onto the couch before she falls and hits her head. “Kara, please-” Alex is reaching to comfort her little sister when Kara suddenly seems to fall forward, vomiting on the floor.

“Well, guess she can get sick like this,” Lucy comments drily, having just come in with some of their purchases. Alex just groans.

“Okay, so the internet says that this should just pass,” Lucy calls. Alex had just finished running a warm bath for Kara and was currently wrapping her in a towel, trying to calm her down. She had been whining and whimpering, telling Alex her stomach was hurting (now that Alex had tried to explain the difference between hurting and hungry), and Alex had no clue what to do.

“And what do I do in the meantime?” Alex asks, bouncing Kara on her hip as she reenters her bedroom. Alex pauses. “Made yourself at home, have you?” Lucy had kicked off her shoes and was leaning against the headboard, a blanket strewn over her body as she peered at her laptop screen. Lucy shifts to peer around it, raising an eyebrow and sticking out her tongue playfully.

“Always at home in your bed, Danvers,” Lucy replies easily. Alex flushes, putting Kara on the ground to put her in fresh clothes.

“Lucy,” Alex hisses, glancing pointedly at Kara, who’s clutching at her stomach with one hand, thumb in her mouth and whining pitifully.

“Oh, she has no clue what’s going on. Plus, she’s technically, like, twenty six. She’s fine.” Alex wants to argue that yes, she is chronologically closer to twenty six but right now she’s closer to two, but Alex just rolls her eyes. “Anyway, liquids, basically. It’s probably a virus, so there’s no medicines that can help. We just have to… like, wait it out.”

“Like, water? Milk? Juice?” Alex asks, smiling gently and kissing Kara’s cheek once she’s pulled up her diaper. Just that simple gesture makes Alex’s lips warm from touching Kara. She’s glad that she keeps a first aid kit with a little thermometer under the bathroom sink. After Kara’s dressed and settled, Alex will take her temperature.

“Water, or things with electrolytes. Like curing a hangover, except you have to be careful with kids. Give her little sips every few minutes and see how she keeps that down,” Lucy explains. Alex just nods, pulling an oversized Stanford shirt over Kara’s head. She had originally planned to put her in an adorable pair of supergirl footie pajamas- a great photo op, Lucy had pointed out- but now she was worried Kara would get sick again.

“Alex,” Kara whines. She holds her arms up to be picked up and Alex obliges, cradling her against her chest. Alex brought them into the kitchen and Lucy followed.

“I already washed out one of the bottle things, and I found a half-drunk Gatorade in the fridge, if you don’t mind sharing with her,” Lucy points out. She’s pulling her shoes back on, now. “I have to go, so… Let me know how she’s feeling in the morning. Feel better, kiddo,” Lucy whispers, kissing Kara’s forehead. She wrinkles her brow. “Her head is really warm.”

“You’re leaving me alone?” Alex whispers. She brushes her fingers through Kara’s hair and readjusts her grip.

“I have to, Alex. J’onn called me half an hour ago. He thinks he might have found footage of the actual attack that turned her like this. He wants to show me what they’ve found.” Alex groans and begins to bounce Kara as she whimpers.

“Okay, go, go. We want to get these guys. And, like, maybe I’ll talk to the Kents about Clark growing up. And if he had powers and ever got sick. Go, before I panic and do something stupid like beg you to stay,” Alex says in a rush. Lucy smirks at her, a quip about saving the begging for the bedroom dying on her tongue as Kara turns to pout at her with tears in her eyes.

“Wucy,” she whines. “Feels icky.” Lucy bites her lower lip, taking a step forward to give Kara an awkward half-hug, kissing her cheek again.

“I know, button. But Sissy’s gonna take really good care of you, okay? I’ll be back to check on you. Be good, okay?” Kara nods and buries her face in Alex’s neck as Lucy makes a quick getaway. Alex takes a deep breath before kissing Kara’s hairline.

“Alright, munchkin, let’s get you something to drink, huh? We’ll start with water, see how that goes.” Alex speaks softly to her as they move further into the little apartment.

Alex barely sleeps that night.

Luckily, Kara sleeps like the dead, whether as a toddler or an adult. After Kara had gotten some water down, Alex had taken her temperature only to find it normal. After a quick internet search (and a call to the medics at the DEO) Alex had figured out it was most likely just a bout of food poisoning or her stomach reacting badly to all of the junk food. But still, Alex couldn't fall asleep. She was too worried about everything happening to Kara. What would happen if they couldn't offer out who did this? Would she get her powers back at this age? How would Alex handle that? What if they couldn't fix it and Alex was left raising her sister from this age?

She spent far too much time lying awake, stressing. When she woke to the sound of her alarm, Alex figured she couldn’t have gotten much more than three hours of sleep. Whatever. She’s functioned on less before. When she turns to see Kara was not next to her in the bed, she panicked. Did she roll off the bed and hurt herself? No. The pillow barricade she made was still up. Did whoever did this to Kara come in and kidnap her? No. Alex is a federal agent and a light sleeper. She would have heard. Alex is still running through a list of possibilities when Kara toddles back into the room through the open door, rubbing her eyes with her fist and clutching the teddy bear. Alex lets out a relieved sigh.

“Hey, kiddo,” Alex whispers happily, holding out her hands. Kara runs into them and Alex pulls her onto her lap. She brushes back Kara’s unruly bedhead. Alex’s faded Stanford t-shirt hung like a dress on her, but Alex hadn’t wanted her to get sick on her cute new pajamas. “You get up early?” Kara nods, smiling at Alex.

“Hungry,” Kara beams at her, patting her stomach. Alex throws her head back laughing. She should have known Kara would bounce back quickly from her bout of food poisoning.

“Well, we should fix that,” Alex giggles. She stands, putting Kara on the floor and leading her into the living room. Once Kara is settled on the couch, staring with wide eyes at the TV and clutching her teddy bear to her chest, Alex flits around the kitchen, trying to prepare a healthy, protein filled breakfast for her mini Kryptonian. She hears her phone chiming, but she can’t be bothered to check it until the eggs are done, the bacon sizzled, and the fruit washed and cut into kid-sized pieces in a bowl.

“Kara, come in here so we can eat,” Alex calls, smiling when she hears the pitter-patter of little feet sprinting in, trailing a blanket behind her like a cape. Settling Kara into a booster seat with the food in front of her, Alex finally takes the time to check her messages while picking at her own breakfast. Her brow furrows deeper and deeper as she reads more. She glances up at Kara, biting her lip. “Finish up, kiddo. We gotta go run errands. I’ll be right back,” she says quickly, running into her room to change and grab an outfit for Kara. They need to get to the DEO. They found out who did this to Kara.

Chapter Text

“Kara, please be good,” Alex sighs, bouncing her little sister. They were in a meeting talking about what they were going to do, but Kara was whining, babbling in Alex’s ear about how she wanted to go home and play. “We will be done soon, okay?”

“No, wanna go home,” Kara groans, flailing her legs and kicking the table. The entire meeting stops. J’onn raises an eyebrow and Lucy bites back a smile.

“Agent Danvers, maybe you should work on finding a suitable babysitter for our young Supergirl,” he suggests. Alex grits her teeth, grabbing the duffle bag full of Kara’s essentials- her makeshift diaper bag- and leaves the conference room.

“We go play now?” Kara asks happily. Alex rolls her eyes and Kara juts out her lower lip. “Sissy, mad?” Alex sighs, trying to run through her mental list of who could take care of Kara (and who knows the secret). It’s too short notice for her mom to fly out. Winn is here working, as is Lucy. Maybe she can call James.

“No, I’m not, little one. I’m sorry I snapped. Sissy’s just gotta… I have to go somewhere for a little while. Remember when we went on errands yesterday? And you went to the nice office?” Kara nods happily as Alex gestures for Agent Vasquez to come over. “You’re gonna go hang out down there with our friend James, okay?”

“Ma’am?” Vasquez asks.

“Susan, I need you to take Kara downtown to CatCo. Leave her with James Olsen, and give him this bag. Then I need you to come back here because you’re leading a team for this mission,” Alex explains. Vasquez makes a face.

“Can’t you get Ramirez or someone else to do it?” she asks. “Ma’am,” she adds as an afterthought. Kara just whines, fidgeting and grabbing at Alex's clothes.

“No, sissy stay me, stay,” Kara whines. Alex just bites her bottom lip and hands her off to Susan. Kara cries, pulling at Alex and whining.

“I know, I know, baby girl. I'll see you later, and you'll go see your friend James and maybe Cat if she's there. Bye Kara, I love you, I'll be back.” Alex runs off leaving Vasquez holding a crying Kryptonian toddler. As she walks towards the parking garage, Kara’s screams grow louder.

I did not become an agent for this, she thinks to herself.

“Michelle!” Cat shouts. Her new assistant, some fresh out of college twenty-something who hadn’t yet proven completely incompetent, rushed in.

“Um, it’s… Melissa, Ms. Grant. Can I do something for you?”

“Well, you are my assistant, aren’t you?” Cat rolls her eyes. The girl hesitates and Cat just scoffs. “Melanie, what is that noise I hear?”

“Uh, it’s… A baby, Ms. Grant? A baby crying?” Cat grits her teeth.

“ Why is there a baby crying in this place of business? Where is it?” Just then, the crying grows louder. Cat peers out through the glass windows of her office to see someone carrying the toddler Kara. “Nevermind, I found it. Get out, Michelle, I pay you to do work not stand here.” Melissa scurries away as Cat goes out to meet the woman dressed in all black.

“I presume you work with Agent Scully? Agent Mulder, I presume?” The woman just rolls her eyes.

“Agent Vasquez, ma’am. Where’s James Olsen? Alex has been called away and someone needs to watch her sister,” she explains quickly.

“Olsen has been sent away to Mosul- at his request- to follow the action. Kara, why are you crying?” Cat softens her voice and Agent Vasquez turns so that Kara is facing the older woman.

“Sissy gone. She left-ed me,” Kara hiccups. She chokes out a sob and Vasquez just shifts her, clearly not knowing what to do.

“Give her to me. I can take care of her while you go save the city.” Cat holds out her hands and Vasquez only hesitates a moment before handing her off. She drops a duffle bag on the floor.

“Her things. Someone will call to update you when Alex can come pick her up. Keep receipts of anything you buy for her and the DEO can reimburse you. If she starts asking for Mr. Snuggles, that’s her teddy bear. She likes using her cape as her blanket, and it’s in the bag. Also, she doesn’t have her powers but she can get sick if she eats too much, but she needs to eat a lot more protein and carbs that a normal kid would, so… Good luck. I have to go.” She hurries off back down the stairs before Cat can do much more than hug Kara to her chest.

“Okay, little kitten, you’re okay,” Cat whispers. She bounces her as she walks, remembering how her own son had loved this. Kara just moans pitifully. Cat kicks the duffle over to the couch and sits down, bouncing Kara on her knees. She knows that her useless employees in the bullpens are staring but she doesn’t care.

“Let’s see, do you want your bear?” Kara nods, leaning back to look at Cat, rubbing her eyes with her knuckles. Cat is pleased to see she’s stopped crying. “Oh, look at this, look what we found. A binky. Do you want this?” Cat had already been weaning Carter off of pacifiers by the time he was this age, but she knew that this was a different situation, so she just popped the thing into the girl’s mouth. She had to admit it was cute to see this tiny version of her assistant.

“Hungry,” she declares, the word muffled around the pacifier.

“Can you give me a few minutes to finish up some work, then we can leave and get some food, hmm?” Kara nods, blinking sleepily. “Michelle! Call me a car,” she shouts. Her assistant nods as Cat carries the girl to her desk, bouncing her on her knees again while she finishes approving the layouts and leaves detailed lists of everything that needs to get done while she’s gone today. It takes ten minutes, and she can hear Kara’s stomach rumbling when she finally stands up.

“Melanie!” Her assistant runs in, smiling at the little girl on her boss’ lap.

“Yes, Ms. Grant?”

“Distribute this list to all of the department heads. It’s a comprehensive list of things that need to get done. I’m taking the rest of the day.” Cat points to the list on the table as she scoops Kara up and grabs the duffle from the floor. She curses in her head when she realizes she has to put her shoes back on. Kara pouts when Cat sets her down on the couch to pull her heels back on.

“Uh, Ms. Grant, this list has to be at least 100 items long,” her assistant hesitantly points out.

“One hundred thirteen items, including sub-points, to be exact. I am confident that my staff can handle it. If they can’t, they should be fired. Now, I am going. Don’t call unless it’s an emergency. Forward that list. Don’t destroy my empire,” Cat orders, carrying Kara and the duffle to her private elevator as everyone stares. Once the doors close and the elevator is moving, Cat smiles down at Kara.

“Food now?” she whines pitifully.

“Yes, kitten. We can get food as soon as we get back to my house.”

Before they made it back to Cat’s apartment, Kara was sound asleep in her lap. Thankfully, the drivers knew not to ask questions or say anything. While they were in her private elevator, Kara started to wake up as her stomach growled. To keep her momentarily placated, she filled her sippy cup with apple juice and put her on the couch with TV on in the background. Kara just hugged a pillow to her belly and tucked the bear underneath her armpit. Once the stove was warming up, Cat came over and draped the red cape over her. Kara snuggled her face into it and her eyes began to droop closed again. But of course, all Cat had to do was whisper that the food was ready and her eyes were opening again.

“Oh I should have known you’d be a messy eater,” Cat laughs, picking a spaghetti-sauce covered Kara up and carrying her to the master bath. The little girl just giggles, patting Cat’s cheek and getting sauce on her. She's thankful she changed out of her work clothes while making lunch. “We need a bath to get you all cleaned up!” Kara pouts and tries to squirm away. Cat just closes the door and puts her on the ground while she fills the tub.

“No baf! Wanna pay!” Kara declares. Cat just chuckles, shaking her head. She glances toward the closet in the bathroom. She isn't sure the last time she cleaned it out. Certainly not since Carter was small. Maybe she'll get lucky and she can find some of his old toys.

“Well, I suppose you won't get to play with my special bath toys,” Cat sighs as she digs through the back of the cupboard. She huffs when she realizes she must have gone on a cleaning spree one year and donated the silly things. All she had left was a rubbery fish shaped soap dish and a decorative rubber duck. She supposed it'll have to do.

“Gimme gimme gimme!” Kara squeals, dancing in place. Cat just quirks an eyebrow, resisting the urge to film this.

“Well, unfortunately we can only play with these toys in the tub,” Cat drawls, holding the toys behind her back. “And if you won't get into the bath, then-”

“I get in!” Kara declares, hurriedly trying to shed her clothes. Her arms get tangled, the shirt caught around her head when Kara starts making little whimpering sounds. She sits down on the floor and whines. “Help?” She calls softly. Cat just smiles, carefully pulling the little girl’s clothes off before setting her down in the tub. “Toys!” Kara holds out her hands, making grabby motions.

“I need a magic word, first,” Cat trills. Kara looks like a confused little puppy, head tilted. “Puh-puh- puh…” she hints.

“P-peas?” Kara tries. Cat immediately hands her the fish with a flourish, sitting the duck on top of her head. The sound of Kara's high pitched little giggle makes Cat feel like she could fly. She lets Kara play for a few minutes, splashing around in the bubbles before she sets to work cleaning her up. Before long, Kara is settled on the couch in a fresh pair of red overalls with a white shirt, her hair in two braids. She's cuddling her bear, watching as Cat sets something up on the little table.

“Wha-sat?” She asks reverently. Cat winks at her, scooting her down to kneel on the floor in front of the table.

“You are going to color me pretty pictures. And some for sissy, too,” she says. “And I am going to sit right here with you and do some work, okay?” Kara pouts a little and her thumb finds its way back to her mouth. What did she do wrong? When Carter was a baby, he loved to color. It was the best she could do to entertain the girl without any toys or anything. “Kara, what's wrong?”

“I wanna go home,” she laments. Cat sees the beginnings of tears. “Want sissy,” she adds and her bottom lip starts to tremble. Cat scoops her into her lap, pleased when Kara leans into her, hugging her back.

“Oh, my little kitten,” she exhales. “It's okay. She's gonna come back soon. And when she comes back, you can show her the pictures. Right?” She bounces Kara as she walks into the kitchen, warming up some milk and putting it in the little girls bottle. She's still sniffling pitifully and sucking on her thumb. They moved back to the living room and Kara remains on Cat’s lap while she colors. Cat just wraps her arm around her, working while she snuggles into her. Halfway through her third picture, her eyes are drooping again. Cat smiles. A bath and warm milk always put kids to sleep. She lays Kara down in the guest bedroom and returns to do work at the kitchen table just when she hears her son returning.

“Mom?” He calls. She hugs him, grateful that he sinks into the embrace before pulling away. He looks around the room, brow furrowed. It's moments like this when Cat regrets passing on her astute, observant nature to her young son.

“What are you doing home? And why is there a baby bottle on the table?”

Chapter Text

“Mom? Is there, like, a cousin I don’t know about? Did you decide to adopt a kid or something?” Cat just closes her mouth, thinking for a moment. Carter waits, staring at her.

“Something happened… to Supergirl. And she is now… a child,” she explains gently.

“I knew something happened to her when the helicopter shot her! How is Kara? Is she okay? Is she hurt? Why is she here?” He asks the questions quickly, glancing around as if he’ll see her running around.

“She’s taking a nap in the guest room. Other than being about two or three years old and very scared, she’s fine. A little tired and cranky, but fine,” Cat explains gently, walking down the hall towards the room, feeling a desire to check on the girl. Poking her head in, she smiles to see Kara lying in the middle of the bed- surrounded by pillows to keep her from rolling off the bed- wrapped in her cape as a blanket, binky in her mouth and the teddy bear tucked up against her chest. Carter peeks around her and she sees him smile before she goes to close the door. “Don’t want to disturb her too much,” she explains when Carter pouts. “Can’t wake a sleeping child.” He just nods, following her back out to the kitchen. He fixes himself a snack before turning to look at his mother again.

“So, like… why is Kara here? Not that I’m upset because she’s kind of a cute toddler. But, like… how did you get her sister to give her up. Aren’t they pretty much inseparable?” Cat nods because he’s right.

“She was called out into the field- she works for the government- and I offered. I know her secret, and she met me yesterday. It just made sense,” she shrugs. “When they’re done, Alex is supposed to text me and come get her.” Carter nods and concentrates on his snack. They chat about their respective days- outside of Cat taking care of little Kara- until Carter retires to his room to work on his homework. Cat promises to let him know when Kara wakes up and she finally gets to sit down at the table and get a few things done.

There’s little sounds coming from down the hall.

Satisfied with getting an hour’s work in, Cat stands to go investigate. She’d since changed into light jeans and a cotton t-shirt and pads down the carpeted floor in socks. As she gets closer to the guest room, she notes that the sounds are actually little murmurings. She wonders if Kara is awake or just talking in her sleep. The door creaks when she opens it, but it doesn’t matter because Kara is sitting up slightly in the bed, mumbling to herself and moving her teddy bear around. The blanket-cape lays on the bed, forgotten, and Kara is lying there in only a diaper- Cat had felt the overalls might be uncomfortable to sleep in and didn’t really have many other options. When she notices Cat, Kara smiles and sits up. She holds up her arms and Cat comes over to scoop her up.

“Well, good morning sleepy kitten,” she coos. Kara snuggles into her chest, humming happily. “Did you have a nice nap?” Kara nods.

“Sissy here?” She pulls away and looks at Cat with wide eyes. It breaks Cat’s heart to have to tell her no.

“Not yet, little one. Soon. Why don’t you and I go do something fun while we wait?” she keeps her voice light, bouncing Kara on her hip as the girl’s face falls. “We can bake cupcakes and you can make them all pretty for her, hmm?” Kara whimpers, letting her thumb slip into her mouth again. Cat tuts, replacing it with her pacifier and moving into the kitchen. She’s settled Kara in a chair at the head of the table when Carter comes bounding into the kitchen.

“Hey, mom, I- oh, hey. She’s up?” Kara squeaks, covering her face with her hands when Carter comes in, smiling gently at her. Cat goes over and kneels next to her, pointing to her son.

“Shhh, Kara. This is my son, Carter. He’s a big boy, but he’s very nice. Can you say hi to him?” Slowly, Kara lowers her hands to peek at Carter.

“Hi,” she murmurs. Carter smiles, hiding his face behind his hands and then quickly moving them away, playing peek-a-boo. Kara giggles, clapping, and he does it again. While Carter entertains Kara, Cat gets the ingredients ready for them to bake. She glances at the clock above the oven, wondering when Agent Danvers would be back- she can’t stall Kara forever. What could she possibly be doing?

“Tell us what you did before I do something you will regret,” Alex hisses, leaning her forearm against Maxwell Lord’s windpipe. She wasn’t pushing hard enough to actually hurt him, just enough to be uncomfortable. He just grunts, shoving her away.

“I already told you; I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He begins pacing the length of the small room. As soon as the DEO had discovered it was a Lord Tech helicopter that had shot Kara with a brand of synthetic kryptonite, they’d dragged him from his building complex to the interrogation rooms in the DEO.

“There’s evidence that it was a Lord Tech helicopter that shot at Supergirl. And it hit her with a synthetic brand of kryptonite, which we know you’ve made,” Hank growls, steering Lord back into the chair. He rolls his eyes but sits down, leaning back in the uncomfortable chair.

“And I already told you I didn’t do this . After Supergirl helped save the city, I destroyed all of my work with Kryptonite. I discovered that one of my employees had kept her own notes and trials of a synthetic kryptonite intended to remove Supergirl’s powers. I ordered her to destroy it, and I fired her. She threw a tray of tools at me and disappeared with all of her research. I reported the incident with the police, you can check,” he insists, sounding almost bored.

“And we will. Even so, I want all of your information on that synthetic kryptonite given to our techs-” Alex begins.

“If she’s smart- and my employees are brilliant- then she’s changed it enough that the information won’t help,” he interrupts. Alex kicks his chair and he jolts.

“As I was saying,” she continues, “you will be giving all of the information to our agents. This employee’s name and personnel file, the data on the kryptonite, everything. If you leave anything out, we will come back. And you will not like what happens.” She dramatically marches off, leaving Maxwell Lord to splutter and figure out how to save his own ass.

“Okay, okay, everything I know is on this flash drive. You can take off the cuffs now,” he sighs. Alex just takes the drive and plugs it into Winn’s computer.

“Figure out who this bitch is and where she's hiding. Then email the information on the synthetic k to the entire science tech. Including me. I'll be in my lab. Don't bother me,” she barks, storming off without another thought.

Alex had been hunched over her computer for far too long, forgetting the last time she ate or drank anything or looked at something that wasn't the chemical breakdown of a synthetic kryptonite blend. She was only leaving the lab because Hank had come and ordered her to go eat something and let the other biochemical engineers have a go at it.

“I want to find out everything about this Emily Smitherman bitch, Winn,” she growls over her sandwich. He nods sleepily.

“We have a complete biographical study being done. When we're done, we'll know everything about her. We’ll know every time she caught the common cold, every grade she got on tests, and every time she's ever gone on a date,” he sighs, yawning and rubbing at his eyes.

“I want to know what the hell is wrong with her that made her target my sister,” Alex mumbles around her lunch ( is it still lunch if it's three in the morning? She wondered).

“Uh, yeah, speaking of which… where is your sister?” Winn glanced around as if he'll see the toddler superhero running over. Alex blanches, remembering what Vasquez had told her when she got back from Catco.

“Uh, shit. I kind of left her with Cat almost… eighteen hours ago?” She stood up, grabbing her sandwich and running out of the DEO. “I have to go get her before she drives Cat nuts! I'll be back!” She shouts as she runs out. Hank interrupts her, gripping her by the arm and halting her in her tracks.

“Agent Danvers,” he queries.

“I… I forgot I left my little sister with Cat Grant. Sorry, J’onn but I need to get to her. I'll be back when I have her and I'll come back and figure everything out. I really have to go,” she insists, pulling her arm away. He just frowns at her.

“Alex, you've been awake for… how long, now? Over twenty four hours. You haven't slept and you're a danger to other drivers on the road. I can't in good conscience let you leave.” Alex pouts childishly.

“I can't leave her there. I bet Cat has been texting and calling me. Cat wasn't even supposed to take her, it was supposed to be James. And I gave her to Vasquez and Vasquez just left her with Cat because we had a mission and I need to go get her. Because she's my little sister and now she's actually a baby and I really, really need to take care of her like my parents always told me to so you really can't hold me here, J’onn,” Alex rants.

“I'm not preventing you from picking up Kara. I'm offering to give you a lift because you cannot drive yourself,” he clarifies.

“Oh,” she replies softly. They drive through the city with sirens on, making it go even faster than Alex had anticipated. She had plugged in her dead phone while they drove only to watch it light up with twelve different voice mails, thirteen missed calls and almost a hundred texts, the most recent being only twenty minutes ago. It only says “your sister needs you.” Alex is sprinting to the front door of Cat’s expensive penthouse apartment. She flashes a badge at the doorman and he unlocks the elevator for her. Hank slips in just before the doors close and they are trapped as Alex reads through the texts trying to gather a sense of what's going on. She can't focus enough to find something concrete but finally the doors open and she jumps out into Cat’s living room to the sounds of whimpering cries.

“Kara?” She calls out nervously, venturing further into the enormous apartment. Carter pokes a sleepy head out of a door, rubbing at his eyes.

“Down that way, third door on your right. My mom probably took her out to the balcony to see the stars,” he explains, pointing down a side hallway. Alex sprints down the hall to find Cat Grant on the balcony in silk pajamas, holding a sobbing toddler against her chest. She points at the stars as she bounces her around, cooing softly. Alex pauses, just watching for a moment as Kara whines into Cat’s shoulder. Then, as if sensing her sister’s presence, Kara looks up. Her breath hitches even as she smiles.

“A-Alex?” She whimpers. “I m-m-m-missed you.” Cat turns, fixing Alex with a steely glare before she whispers to Kara who is already holding her arms out to Alex.

“See, I told you she'd be here. Sissy always comes back, kitten,” she whispers, easily transferring the tiny toddler to the agent. To Alex, she adds, “and I'm sure your sister will be staying here tonight so that she and I can talk in the morning. Right, Agent Danvers?” Alex doesn't really think it's a question. Hank, who'd been lingering awkwardly in the doorway decides to take his leave then, silently waving to Carter as he goes.

“Right. If you show us to a guest room and maybe lend me a pair of pajamas or something, I can get Kara to sleep.” Cat nods briskly, leading them down the hall. Kara just snuggled into Alex's neck, holding on too tight for Alex to even think of talking until the morning. Cat, realizing this, just left a pair of what seemed to be men's’ flannel pajamas on the vanity and went back to bed.

“Don't leave, sissy,” Kara whines when Alex tries to shift her to the bed. Alex pries her loose and stands, quickly stripping off her clothes.

“I'm just changing, little one,” Alex chuckles as Kara stubbornly sits up, rubbing at her eyes and watching Alex change clothes. Within moments, she was redressed in the slightly too large pajamas and crawling back under the covers, pulling a half-naked Kara dressed in only her diaper and an oversized shirt (since Alex hadn't thought to pack pajamas and Kara had clearly gone through her outfits) under the covers with her. They fell asleep snuggled under the covers together, just like they did Kara's first year on earth when the nightmares kept her up screaming all night. Alex was glad the screaming was kept to a minimum tonight and Kara wasn't strong enough to steal all of the blankets.

Chapter Text

Alex wakes to an empty bed.

She stretches tiredly, letting her arms and legs spread. Her eyes are still closed as her fingers tangle themselves in soft bedsheets. Much softer than anything she can afford. And while the flannel pajamas are very much her style, they’re thicker and more durable than her flimsy Target flannels. And suddenly, she remembers why this bed is so much bigger and softer and comfier. And why she’s wearing pajamas that aren’t hers. And why this bed should most certainly not be empty.

“Kara?” She sits up straight in bed, rubbing her eyes as she takes stock of her surroundings. The guest room is much bigger than her bedroom in her apartment. It’s all white walls and cream carpets and a white bedspread. The full picture windows open out onto a balcony and for a moment, Alex panics that Kara might have toddled out there and fallen. But then she notices the child safety glass and the height that would make it impossible for Kara to climb in this state. So, she stands. Checks under the bed, into the impossibly large wardrobe.

“Kara!” she shouts again, more frantic now. She slips her feet into the plush slippers on the ground next to the bed and runs out into the hallway to find Cat Grant walking towards her in casually frayed jeans and a soft cotton t-shirt. Kara is in her arms giggling.

“There’s no need to shout, Scully. She’s right here. We just thought you should get some sleep,” Cat sighs as she transfers Kara to her arms.

“No, silly Cat,” Kara smiles, wrapping her arms around Alex’s neck and hugging her. “She not Scully. Sissy’s Alex!”

“Well, my mistake,” Cat smiles. Alex just smirks, not even caring when Cat glares at her. “Kara, why don’t you go find the pictures we made for Alex? And then, I’ll put on a movie so your Sissy and I can talk.”

“A movie?” Kara whispers reverently. She looked at Alex as if for permission. Her sister just grinned, putting her down on the ground. Kara took off down the hallway, giggling.

“Cat, I am so, so sorry. Thank you a million for taking care of her. I didn’t mean to-” Alex is cut off with a look from Cat.

“I am happy to help out with Kara. Next time a case might take you a while, just warn me. And also, send her with more clothes. And pajamas, just in case. Your boss dropped off a few more things with my doorman early this morning, so we’re fine. That’s not what I wanted to talk about,” Cat interrupts. As Kara comes back toting several pictures, she pauses to smile at her.

“Oh, Kara, are those for me? They’re beautiful ,” Alex gushes, kneeling down to take the pictures. Kara squeals happily, dancing around.

“Let's go pick out something for you to watch, hmm? How about… a superhero movie?” Cat gasps. Her son loved the Incredibles and insisted they keep the movie on DVD. Alex snorts, but follows Kara into the living room. Once she's settled on the couch, bear snuggled against her chest and pacifier in her mouth, Alex follows Cat into the kitchen.

“Again, Cat, I'm so sorry about leaving her here and-”

“Scully, enough with the apologizing. You're reminding me of your sister. I told you I'm happy to help out and I mean it. Now, I do hope you've found me helpful, yes?” Cat interrupts, silently offering her a cup of coffee which Alex gratefully accepts.

“I can’t even begin to thank you enough,” Alex asserts. “I am really sorry about going AWOL- and don’t tell me to stop apologizing,” she adds. Cat, who had been opening her mouth to do just that, smirked and closed her mouth. “I just got really caught up in trying to figure this out and I was locked up in the lab trying to figure out the chemical composition of the synthetic Kryptonite. I just… Sometimes when I get in the middle of the case, I lose track of time and everything else. And usually, it’s fine. I don’t have any pets or anyone to get home to. It’s just Kara who comes and reminds me to get home at a decent time, but I don’t have that right now.”

“Believe me, Alex, I understand,” Cat says gently. Alex is still startled by Cat so casually using her first name. “It’s hard to balance work and raising a small child. But it’s important for Kara’s sake that you do find that balance and you establish a schedule as best as you can. She’s just a child right now and she was terrified last night that you had abandoned her. She deserves better.”

“I know,” Alex sighs, nearly crumbling with guilt. She hadn’t thought about how Kara had felt being dumped with Cat by Vasquez and then not seeing Alex for ages. The weight of her guilt was pressing down on her chest and her face fell. Cat just taps her hand, bringing her back to the discussion.

“But that’s not what I really wanted to talk to you about. I wanted to talk about keeping Kara safe in light of whatever you’ve discovered,” she says very matter of factly.

“I can keep my sister safe,” Alex scoffs defensively.

“I’m not saying you can’t,” Cat sighs, rolling her eyes. “But obviously, you have a job. And your job is how you keep your sister safe. So, I’m suggesting you and I work together to take care of her and keep her safe.”

“How do you mean?” Alex asks suspiciously. She glances back towards the living room as if to make sure Kara is still okay in there.

“I mean I can take care of her during work hours so you can go to work. You will set an alarm so that you remember to stop for lunch and then again to come pick her up at the end of the day,” Cat offers. She is aware she may very well be overstepping here, but Cat Grant did not get to where she is without toeing the boundaries.

“You run a multimillion dollar corporation. Are you telling me you’re just taking time off until we can figure this out?” Alex deadpans, raising an eyebrow.

“Who said I was completely taking off? First of all, I employ only the best. They should be able to handle me taking a step back and not holding their hands. Second, I don’t plan to just stay home. I’d go insane doing that. When Carter was small, I used to bring him to the office with me. I can do it again,” she shrugs. Alex just takes a moment, sipping her coffee. Cat bustles around the kitchen, cleaning up the remnants of breakfast.

“I think… it could be a worthwhile arrangement. I will have to talk to my boss, though. And what would you tell people about the kid who just suddenly appears? And you're right, Kara is still in danger. There's a lot to consider,” Alex admits, biting her lip.

“Consider away,” Cat sighs. “I just wanted to give you the option. We can work out the details this weekend. The better question is this: what are you planning on doing with your sister today?”

After Alex and Cat chatted a while longer, Alex moved to gather Kara’s things and put them back in the dufflebag before joining Kara on the couch for the rest of the movie. Cat is already lying next to her. When Alex offers her a bottle of juice, Kara giggles and takes it, snuggling into Alex’s lap to keep watching. Alex just smiles, playing with Kara’s hair. All in all, it’s not that different from their regular movie nights.

“Okay, Kara, now that the movie’s over we’re going to go home. What do you say to Cat?” Alex sighs, standing. Kara pouts, kicking her feet as they bounce on the couch.

“Don’t wanna weave,” she whines.

“Kara,” Alex says in a warning tone, grabbing the little Kryptonian’s shoes. She’s hit with a flare of anxiety. How does she deal with a defiant toddler? What does she do? Kara sighs, biting her lip. Clutching the bear to her chest, she looks up at Cat.

“Tank you Cat,” she says softly. Alex breathes a sigh of relief as Kara settles onto the couch to get ready to leave.

“Good girl. Now, let’s go back home, hmm?” She pulls Kara’s shoes on and buttons up her coat, balancing her on her hip. “Cat has to go back to work, and we’ve taken up enough of her time today.” Cat smiles, rolling her eyes. “Say goodbye,” she prompts as they head towards the door, hefting the bag onto her shoulder.

“Bye!” Kara calls.

“Wait,” Cat calls back. She runs over with Kara’s bear and her pacifier. Kara squeals, holding out her hands and making grabby motions. Cat smiles as Kara hugs the bear and she puts the pacifier in her mouth. “Thought you might miss these,” she winks.

“‘Fank-ou,” Kara mumbles around the pacifier. Alex smiles, thanking Cat again before they head back into the car and towards Alex’s apartment.

“Oh, Kara, it’s nap time for Sissy,” Alex groans. She had finally crashed about an hour after they got back to the apartment, but Kara was still awake and excited about everything. She was running around playing, singing and chattering. Every time she passed Alex on the couch, she’d stop to chat with her sister.

“No, I wanna play,” Kara whines. Alex is just sitting up, trying to get a second wind when Kara skirts away from her, giggling and spinning and twirling. They’d had lunch an hour ago and from what Alex knew based on movies and TV, kids were supposed to nap after lunch. Right?

“Kara,” Alex groans, lumbering after her little (now much littler) sister while googling how to get a toddler to nap. Leaving Kara in the living room for a moment, she goes to put some warm milk in a bottle. “Kara, let’s go have some quiet time, okay?” she suggests softly. Kara frowns, about to protest. “I wanna tell you a story. And you can bring Mr. Snuggles,” she adds.

“Mmmmkay,” Kara nods. Alex grabs the Supergirl cape, too since Kara had started using it as her blanket. Kara sits upright in the bed, smiling as she watches Alex move about the room, dimming the lights and putting on soft acoustic music from her phone. She kicks off her shoes and settles in next to Kara, wrapping an arm around her. Kara lays wrapped in the blanket, leaning into Kara with Mr. Snuggles tucked under her armpit and the bottle still in her mouth. “Story!” Kara reminds her with a giggle.

“I know, goofball. I’m trying to think of one,” Alex says, stifling a yawn. Why would she suggest telling a story when she doesn’t have any children’s books?

“Not a goofball!” Kara smiles. Alex just sighs, shaking her head.

“Uhh, let’s see. Once upon a time, there was a little girl who wore a red cloak.”

“What’s her name?” Kara asks. Alex smiles, poking her in the tummy. She’s glad to see Kara blinking slowly, sleepily.

“Her name is Kara. Isn’t that funny?” Alex teases.

“Tha’s my name!” Kara squeals around the bottle.

“I know!” Alex laughs. She continues on to tell the story of Little Red Riding Hood- it was one of the few stories she knew without needing to look at the book- and by the time she was done, Kara was rubbing at her eyes sleepily.

“Alright, sleepyhead. We’re gonna do quiet time now, hmm? You don’t have to fall asleep, but I’d like it if we could have some quiet rest time. So you’re going to lie down. And you’re going to close your eyes. And we’re going to rest, okay?” Kara nods, scooting down on the bed. She shifts, curling into Alex’s side and closing her eyes. Alex, who had been planning on going back out to sleep on the couch for as long as possible, just sighed, pulling the blankets over her. She gently rubs Kara’s back,humming softly. Alex falls asleep within minutes.

Chapter Text

For the second time that day, Alex wakes to an empty bed. She lays there for a moment, straining her ears to listen to the voices coming from her living room. Immediately, she recognizes Kara.

“Sissy’s seepin’,” she called. Alex took a moment, still trying to muster the strength to stand. There was a faint whisper, too soft to make out before Kara speaks again. “Can’t reach!” Deciding she doesn’t really like the idea of Kara talking to someone out in her apartment, she lurches out of bed and slips out into the living room, rubbing her eyes.

“Kara, what’s going on?” she mumbles, eyes not completely open. After a moment of hazy focusing, she realizes Kara is on her toes reaching for the doorknob, shrugging. The doorknob is rattling and Alex has never been so grateful she locked the door. In a moment, Alex is awake and whisking Kara away with one arm, depositing her on the floor behind the couch. She draws her gun and goes to the door.

“Who’s there?” she calls out from the side of the door.

“It’s your director, dumbass. Now let me in before I kick down the door.” Alex recognizes Lucy’s voice and quickly holsters her gun before unlocking the door.

“Wow are you that unfamiliar with the concept of visitors? It's not really customary to greet them with a gun,” Lucy teases as she struts in looking around, she raises an eyebrow. “Where's little Little Danvers?” A giggling Kara runs out from behind the couch, barreling into Lucy's knees.

“What's going on Lucy?” Alex mumbles, rubbing sleepily at her eyes again.

“We've made some progress. We figured out why someone is targeting Kara and with Lord’s tech, they're getting closer to figuring out the chemical composition of what she was hit with. Came to update you and tell you our plans for keeping Kara safe.” She picks up the girl in question, blowing raspberries on her cheek as she giggles.

“Wucy! Down, down!” Lucy laughs and lets Kara down. The girl immediately takes off, running around to find her toys.

“Kara, Kara, slow down! Walk!” Alex shouts after her. Kara slows her pace and Alex sighs, turning to give Lucy a tight smile.

“Taking care of a toddler is tiring you out?” Alex grunts, nodding, and sits down on the couch. “Well, hopefully it won't be for too much longer. We found some information about the rogue employee. Her name is Emily Smitherman. She grew up in Metropolis and when she was a kid, her family was killed in an attack by the Bizarro Superman. He left a bomb in the airport and then one in the Daily Planet building and Superman chose to save the Daily Planet. Twelve people were killed and thirty six were critically injured. The blast killed the Smitherman parents and oldest daughter Genevieve. Emily was the only one left and apparently, she still holds a grudge against all aliens,” Lucy explains. Kara runs in during the story, toting her bear by the arm with her thumb in her mouth. She leans against Lucy’s knees, hugging her legs. Lucy just smiles, rubbing her back and smiling down at her while she talks.

“So… Where is she? Because I want Supergirl safe. And I want her back,” Alex says. She hates that her voice shakes. She hates that her breath is taken away by the thought of someone wanting to harm this beautiful, tiny little Kryptonian toddler for something that wasn’t her fault. Without a second thought, she scoops Kara up and cuddles her onto her lap, swaying gently back and forth. Kara squeaks in surprise but leans into Alex, burying her head in Alex’s shoulder. Alex just breathes in the scent, hugging her tight.

“Winn’s working on it. We’ll figure it out. We’ll keep everyone safe, okay? In the meantime, we’d like Kara to always have a DEO agent with her,” Lucy assures her.

“Me,” Alex says simply. Kara hums, hearing her name. Alex just combs her fingers through the little girl’s hair.

“You need breaks. You need to sleep. And if you don’t get to go into the field and hunt down these bast- bad people,” Lucy corrects herself, smirking nervously, “you’ll get restless. So, when you go into the field, or when you need a break, either Vasquez, J’onn or I will come and take your place.”

“Well, I already worked something out with Cat Grant. She’s offered to take Kara during normal work hours since I can’t take her into the office.” Lucy raises a curious eyebrow.

“Cat Grant cares enough to take shifts at childcare for employees?”

“You and I both know it’s a Kara thing. Besides, have you looked at this face? Wouldn’t you want to spend time with her?” She spins Kara around on her lap, tickling her. Kara giggles and squirms, her face turning pink. Finally, Alex relents and Lucy is grinning.

“Okay, that’s fair,” she admits. While Kara squirms off her sister’s lap, running around and trying to engage them in her made-up games, they continue to discuss the rogue Lord Tech employee trying to kill her little sister and how to keep her safe.

“Cat!” Kara squeals the moment she steps off the elevator. They were meeting Cat in the lobby of the Catco building to drop Kara off before Alex went to work a few hours at the DEO. Her plan was to only work half a day and spend some time resting and grocery shopping and Kara-proofing the house before she went to pick up Kara from her office. Lucy was due to stay in Catco during the day since she could pretend she was considering coming back to work there.

“Well good morning kitten. How are you today?” Cat smiles even though it was only yesterday she last saw the little girl.

“Alex says I dressed like a big girl,” Kara grins proudly. Alex had been running late and simply laid out Kara's outfit for her once she was in a fresh diaper, running off to get herself dressed. When she saw Kara had managed to pull on the little black leggings and red shirt all by herself, she had indeed grinned and praised Kara while they got her shoes and coat on and fed her a quick (but hopefully filling) breakfast. Granted, things were inside out and backwards but it was close enough.

“Wonderful, dear. I'm so proud,” Cat smiles. Kara squeals happily, reaching up for Cat’s arms. The CEO quickly scooped her up, nuzzling her cheek. Kara just closed her eyes, humming in contentment.

“Thank you so much, Miss Grant. I am only taking a half day today because I've worked so much this week trying to, uh… y’know… fix this problem we've got?” Alex stumbles awkwardly over the words as she transfers the bag of Kara's things to Lucy. “So, um, if you need to you can just call me and I can get her or Lucy can just take her. If things get too hectic with having her here, I mean.” Cat waves her hand dismissively.

“No, dear, it's fine. I must admit I quite miss having someone this small. And besides, if Miss Lane is here at my disposal, I'll quite likely use her skills in whipping my abysmal legal department into shape. Kara and I will be having lots of fun, won't we?” Kara giggles in response. Alex smiles warmly at her.

“Okay,” she acquiesces. “You be good for Miss Cat today, okay Kara? And Lucy too.” She tickles Kara under the chin until the girl squeals out her agreement. Alex gives her a tight hug- effectively hugging Cat, too- and kisses her on the cheek before she leaves. Kara watches, whimpering sadly.

“Oh I know, kitten,” Cat sighs. “But she'll be back. And besides, this means you and I get to have fun, right?” Kara sniffles a bit before nodding her agreement. Cat snaps her fingers and holds out her hand, taking the hideous duffle bag away from Lucy. “Kara will be spending the day with me. If anyone asks, she is my son Adam’s girlfriend’s child of whom I just became aware. You are here to reconsider your position at Catco. And to visit an old friend, of course.”

“Of course,” Lucy grins, immediately falling into step with Cat as they head towards the elevators.

Three hours later and Cat Grant was on a roll. There had been some snags along the way, of course. People had been too focused on watching Kara color while sitting on Cat’s lap during the morning staff meeting so of course she’d had to yell. Which, naturally, startled Kara and she shrank into Cat’s lap, abandoning her coloring while Cat hugged her. Once the meeting had ended, Kara slipped off her lap and moved her coloring to the coffee table. Cat gave her half an hour before confronting her.

“Kara,” she had said softly. The little girl still jumped. “Did I scare you when I yelled?” She approaches slowly, crouching down next to her. She grunts at first, annoyed that her dress wasn’t allowing her the flexibility to actually sit on the floor next to Kara.

“You yelled in my ears. It hurted,” she whimpers, her lower lip trembling.

“I’m so sorry, kitten. I wasn’t mad at you and I didn’t want to hurt you. But sometimes when people don’t pay attention, I get mad and I yell. But I should have thought about your ears. I’m so sorry, can you forgive me?” Kara nods, shuffling over into Cat’s hug. Cat did some of her editing on the couch so that she was closer to Kara. After an hour, she’s scoffed one too many times. This is truly unacceptable.

“Marley!” Cat calls, stepping away from Kara and careful not to hurt her ears.

“Yes, Miss Grant?” Her assistant asks, pen poised and ready to take notes.

“I need to go yell at my editing department. This week’s articles are atrociously filled with errors. And I know Olsen is abroad but still, the photo department should be better than this. It looks like a toddler with a disposable camera took these,” she snaps.

“O-okay, Miss Grant?” Melissa says, unsure why she was called in.

“Find Lucy Lane. She’s somewhere in this building. Find her and have her come watch Kara. Until then, she will stay here with you,” Cat orders. Melissa nods, smiling and waving at Kara. Cat picks her up for a moment, balancing her on her hip to talk to her.

“She’s going to watch you for a few minutes until Lucy comes back, okay? Maybe you can color some pictures for her, or you can look at some games on my tablet, hmm?” A few days ago, Cat had taken a company tablet and loaded it with kid’s games and TV shows for Kara to use while in the office. Kara nods shyly and her thumb finds its way into her mouth. Cat just kisses her temple and puts her on the ground before hurrying out to go yell at her idiot employees, already plotting to fire at least three people before she gets back to Kara.

“Whatcha doin’?” Kara asks after a while. The lady Miss Cat left her with is sitting at a desk and Kara is on the ground next to her coloring pictures but she had gotten bored. And the lady was making silly faces while she looked at the papers on her desk.

“I’m opening letters for Miss Grant,” she explains, smiling down at Kara. She had called around looking for Lucy Lane but nobody could find her so Melissa was stuck watching Kara until she came back- not that she minded because Miss Grant’s granddaughter was so cute.

“Why?” Kara crinkles her nose and Melissa has to fight against the urge to squeal.

“So that she only has to see the important stuff. She’s the boss and she doesn’t have time for the less important mail.”

“Oh,” Kara says. She slumps down.

“What are you doing?” Melissa asks. She gets out of her chair to kneel down on the floor with her. A few employees in the bullpen shoot her looks- abandoning work to play is not a good use of company time- but she ignores them when Kara beams at her.

“Coloring! Wanna help?” Sissy had gotten Kara a big book of coloring pictures and crayons. She didn’t stay in the lines a lot but she used lots of pretty colors and Alex liked them a lot.

“Oh, I’ve got a lot of work to do, sweetie. How about you sit with me and you can color me a pretty picture for my desk?” Kara grins, gathering all of her crayons and things to settle herself on Melissa’s lap. She's just finished her picture of the princess castle when Lucy runs in.

“Hey, so sorry. I had an emergency for work and I had to talk my people through it over the phone so it took a little longer than I thought it would. Where's Cat?” Kara squeals happily, running over to Lucy and excitedly showing off her pictures.

“Ms. Grant is dealing with the editing offices and the photography department right now. She should be back soon,” Melissa explains, happily hanging up the picture Kara gifted her on the side of her desk.

“Okay, well Kara and I will just go wait in her office. Maybe we can go sit in the sun on the balcony, hmmm?” Lucy hums, kneeling down to appreciate Kara's coloring. She starts to walk into the glass office when Melissa stands.

“Wait, Ms. Grant doesn't like-”

“Ah, it's okay. She won't mind me and Kara hanging out. And don't worry, I won't let you get in trouble.” Lucy throws a wink at the flustered assistant who blushes and sits back down. They go to sit on the balcony and wait for Cat to come back. Lucy gets too enveloped in playing little games and singing songs to notice Cat had come back a while ago and had been watching the two play from her desk, smiling faintly.

Chapter Text

Meanwhile, at the DEO, Alex was making progress in making an antidote for Kara. Her lab techs had been working tirelessly to figure out the exact chemical composition of the synthetic kryptonite. They'd done that whole Alex was home the day before and were now in the process of using that information to find a reversal solution. Alex was bent over the lab table, scratching out her latest batch of miscalculations.

“Agent Danvers, we need you in the field!” A young Agent came crashing into her lab, panting with exertion. Alex just glared at him.

“Can't another agent do it? I told the directors I’m in the lab until we can find an antidote,” she snaps.

“I’m sorry, ma’am. Director Henshaw requested you specifically. There’s a hostage situation at Catco involving Director Lane and Supergirl. It’s Emily Smitherman.” As soon as he mentioned Catco, Alex was up and running out the door, grabbing her gun belt and her badge as she went. She didn’t even wait for him to finish updating her before jumping on her motorcycle and tearing off towards the Catco building.

“Hungry,” Kara whined. She laid her head on Lucy’s lap while they waited for Cat to finish her business call before they left.

“I know, babe,” Lucy whispers. “We’re going soon. Here, have a little snack while you wait.” She fishes in the duffel bag and pulls out a little bag of crackers. With Kara’s Kryptonian metabolism she surely wouldn’t ruin her appetite. Kara squeals happily, settling on the floor behind the couch to eat, positioning herself so she could still watch Cat on the phone. Lucy was looking at her phone, trying to take a picture of Kara that got Cat in it (and the way Kara was watching her like a little duckling) when she heard the screams from below. She was on her feet in a moment.

“Wucy?!” Kara yelps, covering her ears. They’d discovered that Kara still maintained some of her super senses, if not her actual powers and loud noises always startled her. Lucy has one hand on her gun, gesturing to Cat. The older woman cuts short her phone call and rushes over, slinging the diaper bag over one shoulder.

“Take her somewhere safe. Call security, then the police. I’ll call the DEO. Don’t come out until I come find you, okay?” Lucy orders. Cat scoops up Kara, nodding.

“Come on, kitten. We’re gonna play a little game of hide and seek, okay?” Cat whispers into her hair. Kara whines, burrowing into Cat, covering her ears. They’re making their way towards the secure file room behind Cat’s office when there’s a crash and the bang of a gunshot. Lucy takes off running, gun out as people in the bullpen run screaming. Cat pauses just for a moment, paralyzed with fear that one of her employees is hurt but Kara is crying now, screaming in Cat’s ear and she starts moving again.

“Freeze!” A voice shouts. Cat ducks behind her bar counter. So close , she thought ruefully, glancing wistfully towards the door. “Come on out, Miss Grant,” another voice teases. This one is lighter, more feminine.

“I’m good here,” she calls back. She hugs Kara tighter, shushing her and trying to calm her crying. She holds her to her chest, rocking back and forth while trying to text her contacts in the NCPD.

“I don’t want to hurt anyone, Miss Grant. I just want Supergirl. If you give her to me, I promise no harm will come to anyone else,” the female voice calls back. There’s a yelp. “If you don’t give her to me… well, I’ll have to start shooting people.” A pained grunt and the sounds of knuckles on flesh. “And we can start with your precious little secret agent here. Lane, right?” Cat inhales sharply, her eyes still closed as she rocks back and forth. Steeling herself, she drags the makeshift diaper bag over, rummaging through it to find the pacifier. She puts it in Kara’s mouth, wraps her in the blanket and hands her the teddy bear, slowly beginning to pry her fingers off of Cat’s shirt.

“Shhh, baby, stay right here. Kitten, I just need to stand up. You stay right here, don’t move, okay? One second,” she breathes. With a sad little whimper, Kara lets her go and Cat stands.

“Cat, stay down,” Lucy insists even as the gun presses against her temple. Her lip is bleeding and a bruise is beginning to form on her eye. A tall man wearing all black holds her by the neck so that she’s on her toes trying not to choke and the gun is pressed to her temple. Standing next to them is a small woman, about Cat’s size but thinner. Her cheeks are sunken in and her hair is greasy and unkempt. If she weren’t sneering and pointing a gun at Cat, she might actually feel sorry for the girl.

“Who the hell are you?” Cat sneers at the girl.

“You can call me Emily,” the girl smirks. Cat wonders idly if her yellow teeth are caused by drugs or just a general lack of hygiene. “And then you can give me Supergirl.”

“I don’t think that’s happening,” Cat replies haughtily. She can feel Kara lean against her legs, her body trembling. Cat squares her shoulders. “I want you out of my office.”

“Not until I get the little alien pest,” the girl snarls. She gestures with her gun to the bar. “Now hurry up before my guys get bored and start shooting hostages.” Cat glances out to see some of her employees huddled in the middle of the bullpen while more people with guns stand over them. Cat winces internally when she sees Melissa watching her, the muzzle of a gun resting on her head. Cat feels a wave of protectiveness overtake her. That was her employee out there and it would be her fault if she got hurt.

“Why do you even want her? If you were that desperate for a child you could have adopted. Hell, you could have whored yourself on the streets to get pregnant,” Cat jabs. The girl- Emily- snarls.

“Her kind killed my family, let them burn and left me alone. She has to pay. This was just the best way to weaken her.” Cat wants to grin triumphantly. All it took was a journalist to get some answers, figure things out.

“Her kind? Surely you understand she isn’t the representative for all aliens. She doesn’t have to pay for the crimes of her species.”

“Cat, stop,” Lucy whispers. Her face is red and she’s kicking, struggling for breath.

“Twelve years ago, her cousin let my family burn! They exploded and Superman just- he let it happen! If that stupid family had just stayed on Krypton, it would’ve been fine. There wouldn’t have been a bunch of villains targeting Metropolis. It’s their fault!” Emily shrieks, gesticulating wildly with the gun. Cat can hear sirens. Her only plan now is to stall long enough for someone to come rescue them.

“Twelve years ago she was just a child, still new to this world. She had no part in that. I’m sorry that your family is gone but this won’t bring them back,” Cat implores. She can feel Kara’s breathing pick up against her legs. She wants to hold her but also wants her safe, hiding beneath the bar and far away from the bullets. Cat had no desire to test Kara’s invulnerability in this state.

“No! Enough, stop it!” The girl puts her hands to her ears, turning away and pacing. In that moment, Lucy kicks backward, hitting the man holding her between his legs. He crumples and she recovers immediately, coughing and hacking as she grabs his gun and puts a boot to his temple. The move is practiced and careful- just enough force to knock him out but not enough to kill him- and she immediately turns to point the gun at Emily. “Drop that!” Emily shrieks, pointing the gun at Lucy. Lucy advances, a gun goes off, there’s a loud bang, the room fills with smoke and chaos descends.

Later, Cat and Lucy will learn exactly what had happened. Once Alex and J’onn had arrived on the scene they’d taken their tactical teams. J’onn and the other teams swept the other floors, freeing the trapped employees and taking down any other attackers- apparently, Emily had been working with some staunchly anti-alien groups to get her supporters.

Meanwhile, Alex had taken her team straight up to the top floor. They’d thrown in a flash-bang grenade to disorient the attackers then come in with gas masks and weapons drawn. In the chaos, Emily had gotten off six shots. Most just shattered the glass walls of Cat’s office. But one had grazed Lucy’s arm and the other had hit an agent’s vest, bruising his ribs. Before the smoke had cleared all of the invaders were in handcuffs and Alex was holding pressure on Lucy’s wound until another agent came and checked on Lucy. Cat had crouched down, shielding Kara until Alex came to get her.

“Si-sissy,” Kara had sobbed. All of the noise and terror had finally thrown her into hysterics. Alex was crying too as she rocked her sister.

“I know, baby girl. I’m here, Kara. I have you now,” she repeated softly. Lucy was taken to the DEO med bay to get stitched up. The hostages from the bullpen were checked- thankfully, none were harmed. Cat gave them the rest of the week as paid leave and many left in tears, embracing their family members who had arrived. After an hour, Kara had finally cried herself to sleep and Alex was heading back to the DEO to get her checked out. Cat decided to tag along, riding in the back of the DEO tactical van since Alex couldn’t take Kara back on the motorcycle.

“I haven’t thanked you yet,” Alex acknowledges, watching Kara sleep, brushing her hair from her face. Even in sleep, Kara trembled and her breathing was hitched and heavy as if she was still crying.

“Hmm?” Cat murmurs sleepily. For a while she had been running on adrenaline, unable to stop moving as the DEO investigators and the NCPD took her statement. Now, it seemed she had crashed and was unable to keep her eyes open.

“I need to thank you. For keeping her safe. What you did- distracting Emily? It was… God, Cat, it was insane and brave and-and-and totally against protocol but… You kept her safe. And you stalled until we got there and we just… I can’t thank you enough. I don’t… I don’t know what- what I would have done if- she had- if she had-” Alex chokes back a sob, unable to even process losing her sister. Cat just holds her hand and lets Alex fall apart for a moment. By the time they’re back at the DEO, all traces of Alex’s breakdown are gone. Cat follows closely behind as Alex leads her through winding hallways and past scary looking rooms.

If this were any other day, Cat would be looking around, snooping. She’s a reporter, she can’t turn off the instinct. But today Cat’s attention is focused solely on Kara, on Alex. She watches the two women- one much smaller and younger than normal- as they walk through the halls and Kara sways in Alex’s arms. Finally, they arrive in the med bay and Kara is whisked away by the doctors. Alex knows to hold back but Cat tries to follow.

“They’ll take good care of her. C’mon, Cat. Let’s get you checked out. When they’re done or if she wakes up they’ll come get us. Miss Grant, really, you were in the room when a flash-bang went off. If you don’t comply, I’ll get someone to sedate you,” Alex warns sternly, her voice taking on a more authoritative tone as Cat fights against her. With a dramatic sigh and a pout, Cat sits down and lets herself be cleared medically.

“Danvers,” J’onn barks. She turns, moving over towards him. Cat had just been examined and was arguing with the doctors about taking a few weeks off of work to recuperate. Kara was still in another room being examined.

“How is everything? Where’s Lucy?”

“Lane is fine,” he assures her. “While we were busy, the biochemical engineers continued working on the antidote for Supergirl. They believe they’ve discovered it.” Alex stills.

“What?” she chokes out.

“The doctors would like your permission to administer it right now via IV while she’s still asleep,” he continues. Alex just bites her lip.

“What if it hurts her?” she whispers, leaning against the countertop in an attempt to appear casual. In reality, her knees are threatening to give out.

“They insist it won’t. Agent Danvers, you know we’ve done things like this before with synthetic kryptonite. We wouldn’t suggest using it unless we were certain it wouldn’t be harmful.” He squeezes her shoulder reassuringly. Alex closes her eyes, knowing his words to be true. She exhales a shuddering breath. It will be fine , she tells herself.

“I want to be there when they do it,” she finally says. He nods, leading her back to the examination room where Kara lies underneath the sun lamps. They’ve changed her into an oversized hospital gown and there’s an IV dangling from her arm.

“Agent Danvers, she’s perfectly healthy, just a little dehydrated and tired. We gave her a mild relaxant to keep her calm during this procedure and put in the IV to hydrate her,” one doctor informs her. Alex nods once, briskly. Seeing movement at the corner of her eye, she realizes Cat has followed her.

“You’re sure this won’t hurt her?” Cat asks. There’s a fire in her voice, but the fragility in her eyes and the tight clenching of her muscles tells Alex she’s more scared than anything else. She knows the feeling.

“Positive, ma’am,” another doctor assures her. One of Alex’s coworkers in the lab brings out a vial that glows faintly purple. Alex bites her lip, trying not to cry as he injects it into Kara’s IV. Cat reaches out blindly, grasping Alex’s hand as a shimmering light envelopes Kara. It grows until it’s so bright it blinds everyone. When they blink the light from their eyes, they see a full grown Kara, blinking confusedly. She focuses on her sister and her boss and- are they holding hands?

“Alex? Ca- Miss Grant? What are you doing here? Why am I in the DEO?” she murmurs sleepily.

Chapter Text

Alex doesn’t know what to say. She just smiles at Kara.

“Shhh, dear. Go back to sleep. We’ll be here when you wake up. Rest,” Cat whispers once it seems Alex won’t be responding. Her hand pulls away from Alex’s to caress Kara’s face. She sighs happily, her eyes fluttering shut. Kara is asleep again before Alex can speak.

“It worked,” Alex laughed, tears welling in her eyes. She sniffs, stroking Kara’s hair while blinking back tears and Cat nods with her. When Alex’s shoulders start to shake with sobs, Cat quietly asks for the room. The doctors and agents protest for a moment, wanting to ensure that their superhero was unharmed but when the first sob escaped Alex’s lips they left. No one really knew how to deal with their fearless, badass leader having an emotional breakdown.

“Gah- I’m so-sorry,” Alex sobs, one hand over her belly, the other covering her mouth to try and quiet her whimpering cries. Cat just shakes her head, squeezing Alex’s shoulder.

“Let it out. It’s been a… an emotional few days. You lost your sister, but not really. You came to care for the smaller version of her and now you lost that girl and got your sister back. It’s perfectly understandable,” Cat says very matter-of-factly. Alex just nods, biting her lip. She lets herself cry for a few more minutes, knowing she’ll miss having that little girl around. Finally when the tears seem to have dried up she sits down next to her sister’s sun table, practically resting her entire upper half on Kara’s stomach. There’s a scraping sound as Cat drags another chair to the other side.

“Mmmm, why do I feel like I just woke up from a coma?” Kara groans a while later. Alex, who had fallen asleep, jerked awake.

“Hmm?” she mumbles. Cat just smiled from where she sat, legs curled up under her as she checked emails on her phone with one hand, the other holding Kara’s hand.

“Well, you may as well have,” she chuckles. Kara struggles to prop herself up on her elbows so Alex reaches in and helps reposition her. Kara glances down at herself, frowning.

“Why am I basically naked? How long have I been out? Why did they change me out of my super suit?” Cat smirked, raising an eyebrow at Alex, allowing her to pleasure of explaining all of this… insanity.

“Well, Kara… What do you remember?” Kara bites her lip, frowning as if trying to remember a dream and it’s slipping through her fingers, harder to remember the longer she’’s awake.

“Um… I was fighting a metahuman, right? She controlled the elements like the avatar or something. And then… there was this Lord Tech helicopter and I was hit with something and then… I woke up here?” Alex laughs awkwardly.

“Sort of?” she mutters. Just then, the DEO doctors come bustling in to do a more thorough medical examination. Alex and Cat back up to let them finish. By the time they’re done, J’onn arrives for the official debriefing.

“No, Alex we can go to the debrief room,” Kara insists, trying to push past her to sit up.

“No way. You’re staying under these sun lamps for at least another hour,” Alex declares.

“How long have I already been under them?” Kara challenges.

“Nearly seven hours,” J’onn supplies.

“Then I can handle an hour of debriefing and then I’ll come back for another two hours. How’s that sound?” Kara offers. Alex sets her jaw but the doctors are nodding that she’s practically at full power already so this can’t possibly hurt and Alex can’t really argue with that logic.

“Only if you go in a wheelchair to the debrief room,” Alex counters.

“Alex, no. It’s fine! I’m fine!” Kara laughs.

“No ‘buts’, missy,” Alex says sternly, slipping into the voice she’d used with little Kara. Her sister startles, hand going up to her mouth, She bites on the edge of her thumbnail hesitantly, unsure why she’s so… nervous? She’s not scared of Alex, per se, but she definitely doesn’t want to argue with her big sister.

“Uh, okay,” Kara agrees quietly. She manages to stop biting her nail only to start nervously playing with her hair. Alex just smiles, helping Kara get into the wheelchair without flashing everyone in her paper thin hospital gown. They drape a blanket over her lap- more to keep Kara covered than for warmth since Kryptonians can’t get cold. As they bring her through the halls everyone smiles fondly. Kara, embarrassed by all the attention, just blushes and stares at her lap. She takes a handful of the blanket, bunching it in her two fists and holding it up to cover the lower half of her face.

“Oh, don’t be shy now, kitten,” Cat clucks her tongue, forgetting for a moment that this is not the toddler she’d taken care of for the past few days. She’s pulled the blanket down to Kara’s chin before she realizes, stilling her hand. “Uh, sorry, Kara.” The young blonde just blushes, confused as Alex wheels her up to the table in the small conference room.

“So,” she finally says, settling the blanket down on her lap. She squares her shoulder and puffs out her cheeks as everyone settles, determined to quell this weird vulnerability and childishness. “What’s been going on?”

“Where do we start?” Alex laughs before J’onn takes over, beginning the debrief with all the seriousness of a heart attack. When he starts talking about the synthetic purple kryptonite turning her into a toddler, Kara starts laughing.

“No, this is some kind of joke, right?” she chuckles. But she thinks about it. The pet names. The desires to put her thumb in her mouth, cover her face with a blanket or play with her hair. Then Alex pulls out her phone to show Kara pictures and she’s struck dumb. Because that is her. She remembered family photos back on Krypton, sees her own chubby cheeks and bright blue eyes. Her hair was curlier, redder. Someone had dressed her in a Supergirl shirt and she sat on Lucy’s lap, giggling. “Is that-”

“That’s you, yes,” Cat drawled. But when Kara looked up she found Cat grinning lazily, her cheeks pink.

“And how long was I… like that?”

“A few days. We all took care of you,” Alex explains, tucking a lock of hair behind Kara’s ear. J’onn gives her a moment to scroll through all of the pictures Alex had saved. When she gives the phone back, he continues giving her the rundown. She interrupts a few times with questions, making sure no one was seriously injured before he finishes rehashing things.

“Is everyone okay? Will Lucy be okay?”

“She’s fine, Kara. I already texted her. J’onn sent her home to rest but you can call her once we’re done.” Kara worries her hands.

“Welcome back, Supergirl,” J’onn smiles, awkwardly clapping her on the shoulder after a few minutes. He leaves the three women alone in the room.

“Ready to go back to the sunlamps?” Alex asks. Kara nods. The smiles make more sense now as she goes back through the halls. Now when they look at her they see a toddler. Kara wonders if any of them are disappointed that the real Kara is back now. When they get her settled under the sunlamp, Alex plays some music and leaves her alone at Kara’s insistence. Once alone, she takes some time to reflect on everything that’s happened.

She had been a toddler. Just hours ago she had been an actual, honest to Rao toddler . And her sister and her bosses from both of her jobs had taken care of her. Kara’s cheeks flush in embarrassment as she realizes everything they’d done for her. Now it all makes sense though, she supposes. The way Cat called her ‘kitten’ and the authoritative tone Alex had taken, different from her Agent tone, and her Big Sister tone. Kara squirmed, feeling exposed wearing only the hospital gown. Maybe she could get Alex to bring her the super suit. Or maybe pajamas, she thought through a yawn.

The longer Kara lays under the sunlamps, eyes closed, the better she feels. She starts to remember things, fuzzy little images. She vaguely remembers playing with Cat and lots of snuggling with Alex. Kara isn’t sure if they’re really memories or just her mind conjuring images after hearing the stories from Alex. By the time her sister comes back, Kara feels much better about the whole thing.

“Wow, these are… a lot of toys,” Kara smiles once they’re back at Alex’s apartment. Her older sister had insisted on Kara staying there for the night just in case there’s any after effects of the synthetic purple kryptonite. Alex’s normally spotless apartment is now littered with stuffed animals, blocks and dirty children’s clothes. Kara smirks, picking up a pair of footie pajamas covered in her house coat of arms. Alex grins.

“You were a spoiled kid for the past few days. And I do have pictures of you in those if you’re interested,” Alex grins.

“Maybe later,” Kara sighs. She collapses back on the couch, tired and famished. Luckily, three different takeout places were on their way with food. Making a face, she squirms and extracts a stuffed bear with dark brown fur and a little bow from underneath her. Alex grins, rubbing a hand over the bear’s head and sitting down next to Kara, leaning into her.

“This was your favorite, the first toy we gave you. J’onn actually picked it. Not sure where he got it from,” Alex explains softly. Kara grins.

“That’s sweet… Really, really sweet,” she grins. She hugs the bear to her belly. “Was I… Do you miss me? Or, like, the little me?”

“I do,” Alex admits. “She was… You were very cute and very sweet. But while you were little I missed this version of you. I missed my sister that I can talk to about my love life- or lack thereof- and the sister who paints and watches crime shows with me and eats too many potstickers and all of the pizza. Plus, I like that I don’t have to change any more diapers,” she teases with a crinkle of her nose. Kara just blushes. “But I think I will still miss that little girl,” she sighs after a while. Kara nods.

“And Miss Grant really babysat me for half of this time?” Kara winces.

“I think she missed having someone to take care of like that. She said Carter thought he was too old to be mothered now.” Alex pauses, grinning at her sister. She nudges her playfully. “Why? You worried Cat only sees you as a kid now, not as her future girlfriend ?” Kara just scoffed, her cheeks turning pink.

“Shut up,” Kara groans. Alex just laughs, hugging her sister tight.

“Whatever, I’m just glad you’re back,” Alex hums. Kara grins, snuggling into Alex’s arms. They stay like that for a while before Kara jumps up.

“Food’s here!” Alex laughs. “Finally,” she groans when the man knocks. Alex just shakes her head, smirking. Yeah, her sister was definitely back now. And Alex is thrilled to have her back but later that night she did allow herself to cry for the little girl she lost.