My beautiful readers! I know that I said my next Supergirl would be a sequel to In The Darkness I will Guide You but this idea was rattling around in my mind and wouldn't leave me alone until I wrote it. So... since I wrote it, I thought I would go ahead and post it and see if anyone was interested in reading?

Another AU where Kara lands while Alex is an adult because I love motherlyAlex/littleKara fics.

For the moment, it's an exploration. I could maybe be convinced to continue...

Chocolate croissants are featured because they are amazing.

Alexandra Danvers walked down the street, running a hand through her auburn hair while simultaneously taking a sip of coffee.

It was the ungodly hour of 6 am; a time Alex still didn't know why she was awake for except that she had somehow convinced herself that a 6:30 am combat class was a good idea. It of course had seemed romantic to welcome in the day with kicking other peoples' butts when she had signed up in the evening. Now, dragged from the comfort of her bed far too early, she wasn't so sure.

The one perk of being up so early was how quiet the streets of the city were, Alex reflected as she walked through them. Far above the skyscrapers, the sky was streaking pink and blue as it heralded the morning. Somewhere, a solitary bird sang.

It was while cutting through the park that Alex realized she was being watched. She had just pulled out a pastry when a chill ran up her spine.

Glancing around, she couldn't see anyone, but the telltale prickle on the back of her neck told her otherwise. As an agent, she had learned to trust her instincts and right now they all were screaming at her.

Alex slowed her pace, trying to give her stalker a chance to slip up and reveal themselves.

Her efforts were rewarded when she heard a stick crack in the bushes to her left.

And suddenly, incomprehensibly quick, something streaked right in front of Alex, the gust of wind knocking her coffee and chocolate croissant to the ground.

"What the…"

Another rush of movement nearly spun her around before she could react and when she found her bearings again, the coffee cup was righted on the ground while the croissant was gone.

Slowly, Alex reached for the gun at her hip, eyes scanning the green foliage all around her.

Whatever that had been, it wasn't human.

Poised for action, Alex waited.

A bird sang and a soft breeze rustled the trees above, but there was no sign of whatever had stolen her pastry.

Still tensed for action, Alex reached for her coffee cup, which had been carefully set upright. There was still coffee in it, its faint warmth caressing her hand.

"Hello?" Alex finally called out.

All was still.

Briefly, Alex considered calling her boss, Henshaw, however all she had was a missing chocolate croissant as proof that anything had happened.

So, casting one last look over her shoulder, she continued on to her class.

Of course the dumb class she had signed up for was every morning for an entire week. Alex grumbled as she made her way through the city. She had thought it was once a week but apparently had skipped over the part that outlined she would need to be crawling out of bed before the sun was up every day.

Coffee, however, was always there for her; she reflected as she took a sip and entered the park she had cut through the day before.

The strange events of that morning suddenly ran through her mind; in the chaos of the ensuing day, she had almost forgotten. Instantly alert, she made her way down the winding path, taking a casual bite of her croissant.

The feeling of being watched returned almost immediately but this time she only had a second to register it before a form blurred before her and suddenly the croissant was gone and the bushes were bobbing violently in the wake of a huge rush of wind.

"You have got to be kidding me!" Alex drew her gun and dove into the brush, fighting away branches and leaves that attacked her face as she pushed further. "I am going to find you!"

Half an hour later, covered in little scratches, Alex grumpily entered her class.

"You uh… you have something in your hair," a classmate reached out and plucked a leaf out of her hair.

"Thanks." Alex crossed her arms and stared stormily ahead.

"There's… um… more…" her classmate told her timidly.

Alex cursed Mother Nature and pulled a stick out of her hair.

The next day, Alex brought two chocolate croissants on her walk to class, hiding one in her bag.

She had returned to the park after her class and in the evening after work, trying to find whatever had been there. She wasn't sure if it was more that she needed to find out what type of being it was to move so fast or that she was salty about her breakfast being stolen.

Either way, the being didn't seem to have evil intent, which was the only reason Alex hadn't brought Henshaw into it, along with the fact that the only evidence was two missing croissants. Although Henshaw seemed to trust her well enough, her wild claims were not going to inspire her boss's confidence unless she had proof that something was afoot.

Alex had checked every news source in the city and even hacked into recent police records to try to find any reports of an ultrafast being. Her search had brought up nothing except more uncertainty as to whether she had imagined the whole thing to begin with.

But this time, Alex was prepared. A small camera was set up in the pin on her jacket and she had chosen the largest and most chocolate-y croissant the bakery had. Stepping into the park, she nonchalantly took a bite before sitting down on a bench and placing it beside her as she pretended to relax for a moment. Taking a long sip of coffee, she gave a satisfied sigh and closed her eyes for a moment.

The bait was taken and when Alex opened her eyes, her hair was blown in every which direction and the croissant was gone.

Going through a dramatic routine of expressing disappointment and frustration, Alex finally huffed in annoyance and left the park. Once a safe distance, she pulled out her extra pastry and took a happy bite.

She skipped the combat class in favor of an Internet café where she quickly pulled up the video feed from the pin camera, analyzing it on her laptop.

Brown eyes intent on the screen, Alex slowed the video down, first by 10x then 100x then 1000x.

Her eyes widened as she took in the image before her.

On the screen, a young blond girl stared straight at her, bright blue eyes shining out from her grime streaked face.

She looked like she wasn't even a teenager. It was a child… but how?

For a moment, Alex just sat there.

What was she going to do?

The next morning, Alex felt a rush of relief as the prickling of the back of her neck that alerted her that she was being watched.

The girl was here.

Slowly, Alex made her way to the bench and sat down.

"You can have my croissant," she addressed the bushes. "Here." Alex placed the pastry on a rock and turned to face the opposite way.

There was a quick rustle and after a moment Alex sat back down on the bench to look at the bushes and rock where the croissant had disappeared.

Certain the girl was still there, Alex slowly pulled out a lunchbox. She could feel the being's eyes on her. "It's more food, for you." She unzipped it and placed it on the rock, displaying fruit, a sandwich, cookies, granola bars, and, of course, another chocolate croissant. "Please. I don't want to hurt you."

As Alex said the words, she knew they were true. She didn't know what this small being was doing out in National City so early in the mornings, but she had a feeling the girl didn't have a home. And by the way she stole food, she didn't seem to have anyone feeding her either.

But the forest before her was silent.

Just when Alex was considering leaving so the girl would take the food while she was gone, a soft noise caught her attention.

At first, Alex couldn't tell the difference in the scene before her but then she found them; two blue eyes staring out at her from among the leaves and branches.

"Hey," Alex breathed, not wanting to scare her. She gave the friendliest smile she had ever mustered in her life.

The blue eyes blinked. Then slowly the branches parted and a small girl stepped out.

She was thin, far too thin, dirty tangled blonde hair falling around her wan face. Her clothing was a strange mismatch of torn shorts, a ragged shirt, and a plaid flannel that looked two sizes too large. And everything was covered in grime. Alex could barely see the girl's pale skin behind the layer of grime except where it shone out in lines down her face.

Tear tracks.

Alex stared into those bright blue, red rimmed, darkly shadowed eyes and saw a depth of fear and sadness that tore her breath right from her lungs.

For a moment they just stared at each other.

A sudden birdcall caused the girl to tense, wild eye sweeping the surroundings.

"It's… It's okay," Alex whispered.

Slowly the girl relaxed. She reached for the food, her eyes never leaving Alex. Her hand landed on the lunch box, picking it up.

And then suddenly she was gone, the place where she had been standing filled with nothing but swaying plants.

"Wait!" Alex jumped to her feet. "Please, let me help you. My name is Alex and I promise, I just want to help. I won't hurt you…"

The park was silent.

It was Friday morning and the combat class had been cancelled due to one of the instructors being injured, but Alex was in the park before the sun even rose.

She laid out food and a bundle of clean, warm clothes.

Come on, she begged the waiting plants around her. Please come.

Alex wasn't sure what it was about the girl. At first she had thought that maybe she was just curious to figure out what sort of being the girl was. Then Alex realized it: she cared about this little chocolate croissant thief. She wanted her to be safe and loved, like the child she was.

"I have food," she called out softly.

Still, the surrounding trees were silent.

Alex sighed, dropping her head into her hands. She had scared the being away.

Or…

Sudden fear filled her as she imagined the possibilities of what could have happened to a small girl out alone in the big city.

She's fast, she reminded herself. She could get away from anything.

But for some reason, Alex couldn't seem to pull herself away from the park, even as the sun filled the cracks of the city with light and other people began emerging from their homes.

Finally giving up, Alex left the supplies under a bush, hoping maybe the girl would find them later, and left.

Work was a nightmare, so much so that Alex had to push all thoughts of the blue-eyed-girl out of her mind. With a large insect-like alien destroying Main Street, she had to keep her focus.

The DEO swept in fast and was knocked down even faster by the alien's incredible strength and sharp serrated limbs. Its exoskeleton, a shiny sickly color of purple, was impervious to the many bullets they had rained down.

Alex was just moving to regroup with her team behind a dumpster when one stick-like limb knocked down the dumpster in one blow.

She went tumbling down, laying stunned for a moment before trying to scramble to her feet, only to find that her leg had been pinned by the dumpster.

Trapped, her hands tightened around her gun that was somehow still in her grip.

She knew it was useless, but she fired at the alien as its head slowly moved toward her, its hinged jaw swinging open.

Suddenly, there was a familiar rush of wind, and the alien fell back, shrieking and fighting something that Alex couldn't quiet make out.

As she stared at the blur streaking around the insect-alien, she suddenly realized what it was.

The girl.

Her little chocolate croissant thief.

Still pinned, she could only watch as the two beings tussled; one huge and vicious, the other tiny but determined.

A cry caught in her throat as a long limb slammed into the girl's middle, throwing her back through a wall. But before it could even leave her mouth, the girl was back and clinging to the alien's head. It bucked and jerked, but she held on, small arms wrapped around its skinny neck until finally it collapsed.

By the time someone was able to free Alex from the dumpster, the girl was long gone.

That night, back home, Alex couldn't sleep. She walked, limping slightly, to the balcony of her apartment and stared out.

Somewhere, that girl was out there.

Alex wished she could thank her for saving her life. She wished she could ask her who was taking care of her and why she was so hungry and dirty. She wished she could ask her where she had come from and if she had somewhere to go.

What's your name?

The moon only stared silently back at her, a sliver above the dark city.

Just as she was about to turn to go to bed, the jarring sound of metal hitting cement and bottles clanking and shattering caught her attention. Peering down, she could see that a trashcan had been knocked over.

Grumbling at the lowlife thugs in the area while also secretly glad for the distraction, Alex headed down the stairs to investigate.

"Hello?" she called out.

A small figure stumbled out and Alex froze at the sight of the girl.

Her skin was washed out under the dirt on her face and she seemed to be barely standing. One arm was wrapped around her middle.

"Hi," Alex said quietly. "You found where I live."

The girl stared at her, blue eyes alarmingly dull.

"Do you need help?" Alex moved forward very slowly and to her surprise, the girl didn't disappear. "I won't hurt you."

She was close enough to the girl to finally notice the crimson that was soaking through the flannel that the girl was holding to her stomach. Alex's eyes widened, a sickening feeling of fear washing over her.

The girl was hurt. Seriously hurt.

If she messed up and scared her away, heavens knew if the girl would make it the night on her own.

"Kid, let me help you," she said gently, taking another step, holding her hands up and praying under her breath that the girl wouldn't run.

The girl just swayed on her feet. Blood was dripping to the ground below her, Alex noticed with a fresh wave of fear.

She took another step.

The girl collapsed.

Alex didn't call an ambulance, not when she knew the girl wasn't human. She didn't call the DEO either; she was their main expert in alien physiology and trying to explain the situation would take more time than the girl had.

Instead she put a sheet over the kitchen table and laid the girl on it, her heart roaring in her ears and her mind screaming to her lungs.

The girl's arm fell away from her abdomen and Alex's heart clenched at the sad attempt at a bandage the girl had made using the flannel she had been wearing earlier. Gently pulling the blood soaked cloth away from the wound, Alex gasped at what she found underneath.

A deep gash ran diagonally from the bottom of the girl's ribcage to right around her belly button. Whatever it was that had caused the gash was still in there; a thick piece of what almost looked like glass lodged deeply and peeking out just past the flesh.

Staring at the damage before her, Alex almost threw up, not because of the gruesome wound but because Alex could see no way that the girl could survive this type of injury.

Why, why, why… Who would do this to a little girl? How had this happened?

Alex stood frozen for a moment before moving quickly into action. She would do her best and pray that it was enough.

Examining the wound more carefully, Alex noticed something very strange. The skin around the wound was moving. Leaning closer, she examined the movement, eyes widening as she realized what was happening.

The girl's body was trying to knit itself back together, but couldn't because of the piece of glass sticking out.

A rush of hope filled Alex. If she could pull out the piece of glass, the girl's body might heal itself.

Urgently, she reached for her medical tools and set to work. As she worked, she talked, telling the girl about how brave she was, about how when she woke up there would be a pile of chocolate croissants waiting, about how she needed to keep fighting for a little longer and then Alex would fight for her.

The amount of blood that was spilling out onto the table set even Alex's stomach turning, however she pressed forward, knowing that every second mattered. Finally she pulled out the piece of what she had thought was glass and tossed it aside. It clattered on the table as Alex rushed to sew the wound together to try to quell the bleeding.

However when she brought the needle down on the girl's skin, it broke.

Alex stared at what had been her sharpest medical tool.

Invincible skin.

Alex clenched her jaw. She was starting to suspect what species this girl was and it made no sense.

Still, she focused her attention on slowing the bleeding the best she could before grabbing a light she used for her plants and aiming it directly at the wound. She hoped she had guessed the girl's species accurately and that her faint knowledge on the type of being was correct.

"Come on," she whispered, one hand holding the lamp steady and her other hand reaching out to take the girl's. It was small and cold in hers. "Just pull through the night, okay? After that, we'll figure it all out. We'll figure it out together. You don't have to be alone."

The girl's breathing was shallow, wet and rasping, and Alex once again debated whether she should bring in the DEO. However, she knew that the DEO had no materials to treat Kryptonians; Superman went elsewhere for his medical treatment and nobody knew where. Moving the girl would only endanger her further. And Alex knew her boss; this girl would never leave the DEO basement if she brought her to him. The man believed all aliens were evil. Hell, she didn't even know if the girl would get proper medical treatment there.

Here was best. As sad as it seemed, the makeshift operating room that was actually the table where she ate dinner was the girl's best shot.

Alex tore her eyes form the girl for a moment to try to figure out what had managed to penetrate the girl's skin. She picked up the piece of glass, still slick with blood.

With sickening horror, she realized what the material was and why it looked so familiar.

It was a piece of the insect-alien's shiny exoskeleton that had nearly killed her earlier in the day. That most definitely would have killed her if not for…

Alex's gaze went back to the girl's face, remembering seeing one of the insect-alien's limbs hit her in the stomach. The wound rapidly explained itself; she had been injured by the blow and a piece had broken off as it lodged itself inside her.

Alex could only imagine the pain the girl had been in. Yet she had continued to fight.

And what for? For… for her?

Guilt raced through Alex's veins. She should be the one bleeding out on this table, not a small girl.

Why? She wondered once again, however, this time the question was completely different.

Another realization hit Alex; the girl had been bleeding out all day before she had sought help. This girl was very scared of something.

Stroking the blonde hair, Alex silently promised that if the girl made it, she would make sure she had nothing to be afraid of.

A soft exhale caught her attention and she checked the girl's face for any signs of consciousness but found none. Then she checked the wound and gasped.

All that was left was a small scratch that was quickly fading away.

Her hand quickly went to the girl's neck, feeling that her pulse had picked up to a healthier level, her breathing losing the wet rasp.

The girl was going to make it.

At a kitchen table covered by a crimson stained sheet, surrounded by blood, Alex suddenly found herself sobbing with relief.

What do you think?

This really came out of nowhere and I don't know what I'll be doing with it, so if you'd like to see it continue, let me know.

Maybe a chapter of Kara's POV would be nice? We'll see.

Until next time!

~silverlining