Author's Note: Final chapter for now but I'm aware that I did leave some stuff not completely cleaned up. If you want me to, I can continue a little more with this in a new follow up story. All depends on feedback!
Chapter 7 - Saturday
Morning. Nine A.M. Alex was waiting for Kara with her team of DEO agents when she landed outside the precinct building. The blonde hero poked her sister in the shoulder and grinned. "You and me. Drinks and catchup soon, ok?" She glanced at Agent Vasquez, who was checking her gear and mouthed at Alex. Why didn't you tell me?
The older Danvers sister grinned and bumped her a little. "It's new. I'll tell you everything later."
"Ok, c'mon. Morris is going to brief us."
The two women trotted up the steps, smiling at the desk sergeant and heading in the direction he pointed.
When they entered the situation room and moved to the front, it grew quiet and Kara perched her fists on her hips, making eye contact as she looked around. "Good morning, Officers. I'm Supergirl and this is Agent Alex Danvers," she said. "Agent Danvers, this is Detective Morris and his team." They exchanged nods.
Morris walked to a board with a map and some photographs attached. "Thanks to Miss Supergirl," he began. "We know who we're looking for. And I don't think we'll have any problems spotting him since he has a pair of wings and will be going right for our Girl of Steel here. His name is Jack Harris."
Kara nodded. "Agent Danvers heads up a team I work with closely and they will be providing backup. They have advanced weaponry and they'll drug Jack and take him away to a secure facility for treatment. I'm sorry to say it, Guys, but this is a special case. A person like this is unprecedented in National City and our prisons won't hold him."
Morris pointed to a spot on the map. "This is where the parade is starting, Miss Supergirl and we have men stationed all along the route. You'll lead off, smiling, waving etc. Will you be flying or walking?"
Supergirl chuckled. "Well, since I'm not a Macy's balloon, I think I'll probably walk," she winked as a few of the officers laughed. "Seriously though, I'm honored to be able to take part. I'll be walking but I'll be wearing an earpiece so talk to me, Guys, ok?" She looked between Alex and Morris then. "Detective, Agent Danvers, can we arrange for everyone to be on the same frequency so I can hear you all?"
"Yes, of course," Alex replied. "And, Guys I know I don't need to tell you that Jack Harris is strong, angry and very dangerous. Don't get between him and Supergirl because, believe me, she can handle him. Watch your own, each other's and the civilians' sixes." A round of nods went around the room and she turned back to Supergirl. "Give me your earpiece please." Kara handed it over, Alex agreed on a frequency with Morris and made a couple of adjustments before giving it back. "Tapping once will activate the general frequency. You'll be able to hear everything going on."
"Thanks." Kara took a breath and settled herself. "Thanks, Guys. See you at the parade route." Then she looked at Alex as the officer shuffled out of the room. "Bathroom. Need to pee."
The sisters entered the bathroom and after checking all the stalls, Alex hugged Kara tightly. "I know you're scared, Kara, but these guys and my guys all know what they're doing. Let us back you up, ok? You don't have to do this alone."
"I know, Alex and thank you. Go ahead and get the team ready. I'll meet you at the starting point."
"Ok, see you shortly."
"I love you," Kara said. She was sitting on the edge of the roof of a building overlooking the parade starting point, her legs swinging a bit in the wind. "I just wanted to tell you that before I have to go."
"And I love you," Cat replied. "You'll be careful, right?"
"I will try. I promise. Seeya later."
"Bye, Sweetheart."
Kara heard the music start up and touched her earpiece. "Ok, Team, I'm coming in from above you. Gonna make a bit of an entrance. Guys, do NOT shoot me please," she chuckled.
"We won't if you don't break anything, SuperMenance," Alex retorted, making the officers and agents laugh.
"HA HA," Supergirl replied. "It's been at least three days since I've done that." She pushed off the edge of the roof and flew down to the ground, rolling her body through the air before touching down gently next to the Chief of Police and shaking his hand. He placed his hand on her shoulder and they stood still for a moment while the local photographers took pictures. Kara saw James Olsen there and winked at him. The crowd went wild and chanted her name as the smartly uniformed man handed her a microphone and she smiled broadly at him. "Hello, Chief. Hello, Everyone!" She waved madly.
"Hello, Supergirl!" A louder round of cheers rose. "Thank you for being here today."
"Thank you for inviting me. It's an honor to be able to lead this parade in celebration of the exceptional men and women of the National City Police Department. They do a fantastic job every day and deserve every moment of this. I know how difficult it can be to fight crime and they do it with such bravery and compassion. I'm proud of every one of them."
"Thank you for the kind words AND, since you're a difficult woman to pin down, we'd also like to thank you in return for the support and help you provide every day. It is my honor and pleasure to present you with a special National City Medal of Honor, Supergirl." He accepted a box from his colleague and opened it to remove a medal on a ribbon. Then he lifted it over Kara's head and settled it in place. Finally, he offered his hand and the hero shook it gently.
"Thank you, Chief," Kara nodded, her voice breaking with emotion as she lifted the medal to look at it. "This means a lot to me." Then she glanced in Alex's direction. Her sister was wiping a tear from her face discreetly and she was smiling proudly.
"Now, I think it's time to get this parade started," Chief Branson finished. "Supergirl, lead off!"
Kara grinned, handed back the microphone and started off as the music blared around her, followed by six motorcycle mounted officers in their dress leathers. She walked at a good pace, waving both hands and walking back and forth hugging kids and shaking hands with adults. "Supergirl," she heard in her ear. "So far so good."
"Ok, Detective." She quickly scanned with crowd with her x-ray vision and didn't come up with anything either. "All good on my side too." Kara continued walking and, halfway through the route, she spotted Alex walking near her by the barrier. Her weapon wasn't raised but the hero had a feeling there was something Alex wasn't happy about. "Agent Danvers?"
Alex glanced at her. "Stand by, Supergirl. This doesn't feel right. What's taking him so long?"
They continued on another couple of minutes. Even though the music was loud, Kara could still easily hear the sounds behind the sounds and she suddenly stopped as she distinctly heard the sound of something out of place... "Alex, I heard something…" But it was too late and she saw the grenade as it rolled along the ground several feet from her. Without thinking, she zoomed over to it, grabbed it and threw it as hard as she could straight into the air. It exploded several thousand feet up but people around her started to scream and run and she had to launch herself into the air to hover over the panicked citizens' heads so she could x-ray scan the area for additional grenades. "Did anyone see where it came from?" she yelled.
"No, Supergirl," a man's voice came back. "We have no eyes… no eyes."
And then there was space devoid of people in front of her, except for two. A muscular man with a pair of large black wings stood, holding a child by the arm. "Alex, you got him?"
"I see him," the older Danvers sister replied. "I have a lock on him but you have to get that kid away. If I hit her with this much of the drug, it'll kill her."
Supergirl nodded and slowly descended to touch down a respectable distance from Jack Harris. "Hello, Jack," she began. "That was a clever diversion to get rid of the audience."
"I knew you'd get rid of the grenade in time. I don't want to hurt anyone else but you, Supergirl," the young man replied. He glanced down at the kid then. "But I will if I have to."
The hero took a couple of steps closer. "Hi, Sweetheart," she addressed the child. "What's your name?"
"Laura," she whispered but Kara heard her clearly. "I'm scared. I want my Mom."
"I know, Laura and I promise you'll see her soon." She held out her hand to Jack then. "Whatever it is you want, you can have it. Just please, don't hurt her. She's just a little girl, Jack."
Harris smiled coldly. "I knew this would get your attention, Blondie," he sneered. "You're a sucker for a bleeding heart. Get down on your knees… NOW!"
"Supergirl… don't. That's weak position to fight from…" Alex's voice came through again but Kara held up her hand to silence her.
"Ok, Jack. I'll kneel and you let Laura go, ok? I'll do whatever you say."
For a long second, Jack gazed at her. "Why are you doing this so easily?" he asked.
Kara swallowed and looked down. Then she slowly dropped to one knee. "Because you're right," she replied. "I didn't mean to… and I couldn't help it… but I did let your mother die. I had a split second choice and I could only save two people so I saved the people I loved." Tears rose in her eyes. "And I'm sorry, Jack. I'm sorry I wasn't enough."
The young man dropped the little girl's arm. "Run to your Mom," he told her. "Go now before I change my mind." Laura took off and her mother ran to grab her and pick her up. Kara saw two police officers take them away. "Don't think I have any sympathy for your guilt, Supergirl," Jack stated. "It's time the whole world knows that Supergirl is not perfect."
Kara sighed and chuckled, shaking her head. "The people of National City are well aware that I'm not perfect," she replied. "They know I'm flawed… that I'm just a person like they are… and that I make mistakes… but they support me anyway, Jack. THEY are my strength. THEY are what keeps me going every day and I've sworn to protect them." Kara placed her knuckles on the ground. "Alex, on my mark hit me with one of those darts," she murmured as the young man was momentarily distracted by the sound of approaching sirens.
The ground underneath her knuckles began to vibrate and shake and then tremor but Jack didn't seem to notice. His eyes were full of fury. "Well, it's time for National City to say goodbye to their superhero," he said, pulling out the Kryptonite knife that Director Henshaw had lost to Kara's aunt, Astra, weeks before.
Alex's eyes widened. "Oh my God. How the HELL did he get that?"
The ground underneath Kara's knuckles just shook harder as she pinned Jack with her eyes. "National City may have to say goodbye to their hero… but not today!" she replied angrily. "Alex, NOW!"
Alex fired and Kara shot into motion, catching the dart in midair and plunging it into the young man's neck in a split section action that was too fast for the naked eye to see. A moment later, Jack was out cold and Kara gently laid him on the ground before dropping to her knees and looking down at the knife hilt protruding from her stomach. Her fingers fluttered over it for a moment before she collapsed and rolled onto her back, blinking dazedly.
"KARA!" Alex yelled as she ran to her sister, dropping her weapon and skidding on her knee pads as she reached her.
"Wow… that actually hurts… a lot," Kara groaned, her blue eyes wide and her blood covered hand now clasped around Alex's forearm. The older Danvers sister pulled out her field kit and grabbed some gauze which she used to press down on the wound around the blade. Then she grasped the hilt of the knife.
"Hold on, Kara," she said. "I'm going to have to pull it out."
Supergirl was breathing shallowly from the pain and she closed her eyes. "Just do it," she got out through gritted teeth.
In one smooth motion and wrenching an agonized yell from her sister, Alex pulled the knife out and flung it as far away as she could. One of the other DEO agents immediately grabbed it and placed into a shielded box, killing its ability to further harm Supergirl.
For a long moment, the blonde hero just lay there, trembling, tears leaked from the corners of her eyes and ran into the soft hair at her temple. Alex held her hand and gently smoothed her hair back. "You're going to be ok, Kara. I promise. Just rest now."
Kara nodded but she looked to her right as she heard her name and suddenly Cat was there on the other side of her. "I thought I told you to be careful," the older blonde replied, snippily. "Are we going to have a problem with your following the simplest of instructions, Supergirl?" Then she turned her gaze on Alex. "And you, Agent Danvers. You're going to have to do a better job of taking care of the love of my life here. Are we clear?"
Alex glanced at Kara, whose color was starting to come back now that she was healing, and a large smile spread across her face. "Yes, Ma'am. Crystal."
Supergirl slowly sat up and hugged the two woman. "I love you both," she said. "Very much."
Back at Kara's loft, she was being pampered by the two women who loved her. She sighed and relaxed, not feeling one bit guilty for the attention she was getting.
"How are you feeling?" Alex had Kara's sock-covered feet in her lap and was giving her a foot rub. The superhero's upper body was in Cat's lap and she was stroking her hair and rubbing her scalp.
"Much better," the younger Danvers grinned. "I should get hurt more often if I'm going to get this much attention."
"NO!" Alex and Cat exclaimed together, making all three of them laugh.
Kara grabbed a slice of pizza and took a healthy bite. "Yum… and I've even got donuts for dessert! YAY!" Then she frowned. "So do we know how Jack got his hands on that Kryptonite knife? THAT was SO not fair!"
"Not yet," Alex replied. "I did NOT see that one coming. Who could have given it to him? It's so weird."
"And he's not talking?" Cat asked, running her fingers down Kara's neck to her collar bone and making her squirm a little.
Alex shook her head. "Nothing but threats against Supergirl. That dude is NOT well. I think he's come up with more creative ways to kill her than I've ever heard… or even dreamed of… before."
"Hmmm… I wish there was something I could do," Kara said softly. "But I'm not sure that he's ever going to be ready to hear me. Oh hey wait!" She poked her sister's shoulder. "I do believe that you owe me the story of you and Vasquez?" Kara prompted.
"Oooh yes," Cat agreed. "I want to hear this one too."
Alex chuckled. "I think it'll sound familiar," she replied. "It just happened over a long period of time. We talked a lot, we had a couple of drinks together after missions. She kicked my ass over being too protective of you, Kara… literally… in a sparring match." She shook her head and took a sip from her glass of wine. "I just fell in love so subtly, I didn't even realize it was happening."
Kara laced her fingers through Cat's and brought them to her lips, looking into her eyes. "A familiar story indeed," she murmured and the older blonde smiled.
"A veritable fairy tale… happy ending and all," Cat added.
Alex picked up her glass and offered a toast. "To love."
"CHEERS!"
The End.