"And just when I think they couldn't get cuter." Lena signed in a low whisper as she once again positions her phone between the seats to snap a new string of pictures of the sleeping pair snuggled together in the back seat.
Maggie only rolls her eyes but not even that can stop her gaze flickering toward the rearview mirror for a small glimpse of her own considering the road was now just a straight shot toward their destination. A soft smile gracing her lips at what she finds.
It seemed at some point since leaving the mall parking lot Alex had slid over into the middle seat instead of the one, she'd taken behind Lena when they'd chosen to leave. Maggie and Lena both choosing not to notice the soft teasing "So you do like her" from Kara as the teens stowed away their bags in the trunk of Lena's ridiculously expensive car after the keys had been passed from Lena to Maggie with a playful warning of "You scratch my car I'm having J'onn toss you in containment." As Lena circles around towards the passenger side.
Not that Maggie had caught Alex's answer as she finished adjusting the seat but the extra hard slamming of both the trunk and the passenger side door gave her some idea her sweet in denial baby gay was back in full force as the teenaged Alex climbed grumpily into the car. Gertrude at her side as she snapped the seat belt into place before the plushy dog reclaimed her place in Alex's lap.
Maggie thinking fast once she noticed the start of angry tears pooling in the young woman's eyes. "Mind picking us some descent road music?" she asks passing over her phone into the back seat. "We have a long drive ahead."
Nervous and watery eyes find Maggie's as she leans over between the seats as Alex chews her lips in a nervous tick that despite her best efforts have Maggie's heart flipping adoringly in her chest to catch. "Sure." The teen agrees unsure of herself as she takes the offered phone with only a small trembling when their fingers brushed as it was passed from one to the other.
"Nice choice." Maggie praises earning a shy blush as the opening notes of 'One Week' by Barenaked Ladies begin to play through the speakers as the passenger for the driver side and front-seat passenger door open allowing Kara and Lena entry into the car.
The music immediately turned down when Alex rather than Maggie notice Kara's wince at the current volume. Not that it had been that loud but considering how sensitive Maggie remembers learning her hearing was during the early days she'd been returned to it was a wonder Alex was letting it continue playing at all.
"We had to restock on road food," Lena says simply at Maggie's questioning look between the two latecomers. "and this is for you, considering I've been told how you get driving as long as we will be." The dark haired Luthor goes on setting a steaming to-go cup in the cupholder. "and I know for a fact your girlfriend will give me quite the scolding if I don't look after you in every way respectfully possibly until she gets her snarky butt back here."
The pair can tell Alex wants to ask when they notice she'd caught their not-so-subtle glances in her direction, but they don't give her the chance to ask before Lena's giving a coaxing "alright Kara picks next song.".
"What happened to 'Driver picks music' rule?" Maggie asks, "and I say Alex gets control." She adds sending the once again blushing teenager in the backseat a reassuring wink in the rearview mirror as she guides the car out of the underground parking lot and backs out onto the street.
"My car my rules." Lena answers with a cool shrug of her shoulders.
"Seriously you two stop being so dang cute." Lena whisper scolds bringing Maggie back to the task at hand and also making the dazed cop grateful the road was empty of any other cars so she could feel only a little less guilty about letting her mind wander when she should be focused on the drive.
"To be fair you think almost everything Little Danvers does is cute." Maggie teases her eyes now back on the roadway and away from the sight of the teenaged version of the adult woman she loved using her younger and also teenaged sister's shoulder for a pillow as she slept.
"Not Everything." Lena defends but even in the low lighting of the car's interior lights Maggie can tell she's blushing.
"Hints why I already added the almost before I said the rest of it." Maggie reminds catching sight of the road sign now growing easier to read in the glare of the car's headlights.
'Now entering Midvale'
"Finally." She sighs feeling a little of the uneasy tension drain away from her shoulders at the mere sight of the dented road sign they were now passing. A strange feeling considering like Lena this would be her first actual trip to the cozy town their respective Danvers sisters had once called home.
"Somehow not the way I pictured finally meeting my girlfriend mother…. well one of them that is." Lena muses from the passenger seat now rubbing her palms against her jean-clade thighs in a nervous edge Maggie wasn't used to seeing from the normally so confident Luthor. "Although this could be like a trial run….." She goes on now seeming to be lost in her own thought as her eyes stair unblinking out the dark tinted windows of the sleek heavily armored car.
"Nerd." Maggie sighs under her breath as she drums her fingers against the steering wheel in time with the beat of the song now playing low through the sound system. One of her Alex's newest favorites 'When the Wolves Cry Out'
She could see at least a few of the downstairs lights glowing in welcome as they drew closer to the house.
Eliza must be waiting up for them. Not that neither Maggie nor Lena blamed her as the car was parked beside the simi darkened house.
"Is it….is it true?" the mother asks after hurrying out the front door hardly managing to both finish pulling on a sweater given the chilly temperatures or properly pull first Maggie then Lena in for greeting hugs. All the time her eyes never wavering from the still-closed door of the car's backseat. "After you called asking about their old clothes J'onn stopped by to explain vaguely what happened." Eliza finishes now pulling the collar of her sweater up like a shield just as Alex had with Gracie earlier in the afternoon.
"He was only vague because we're still trying to piece together what happened ourselves." Lena defends earning a soft but reproachful glare from Maggie in return. "Sorry." She backpedals at once
Eliza only gives her a small understanding smile holding out her arms for another hug. "It's alright." She soothes one arm closing around Lena the other extended to interlock her fingers with Maggie's in another attempt at comfort. "but things will be cramped these next few days." She sighs looking back over her shoulder towards the house. "and with two teenagers back in the house…"
Eliza stops when the car door swings open with an excited "Eliza" as Kara sleepy as she still seems to be hurries the short distance Maggie and Lena had made up to the house.
Alex follows with far less grace just as groggy from the long car as her sister despite they'd spent the lion share asleep. "Yeah, leave us to bring up your bag." She calls with more of a yawn in her tone than teasing humor as Lena heads back to both unlock the trunk and help with carrying the cargo within it into the house.
A rush of wind signals Kara's answer whilst Alex gives a tired shake of her head as she carries both her own bag and Gertrude up the graveled path toward Maggie and her waiting mother.
"Hey, Mom." She yawns in greeting as almost as if she didn't realize she had the teenager leans in against Maggie's side not that Maggie was helping much considering her arm was currently wrapped appropriately but securely around the teenager's middle as Alex all but fell back to sleep against her shoulder.
"It's been a long day." Maggie attempts to cover giving up on holding the dozing teen upright in favor of simply sweeping the teenaged version of her girlfriend off her feet and into a more bridle-style carrying hold. Gertrude now awkwardly pressed between them as Alex's arms wrapped around Maggie's shoulders.
Eliza gives an understanding half-smile in the low glow of the house lights. "J'onn said this might happen but are you sure…."
Maggie was already waving off the offer before Eliza could voice it. "I've got her." She promises even shifting a little to accommodate Alex folding in to nuzzle her face against the hollow of Maggie's throat as she drifted in and out of sleep.
At this Eliza chuckles not exactly the reaction Maggie was expecting. "I know Maggie," the Danvers mother agrees and Maggie gets the feeling Eliza was implying far more than her simply carrying the sleepy teenager that was Alex into the house but for now at least neither are willing to explain as Eliza continues talking. Her fingers brushing ever so gently against Alex's hairline sweeping back a few fallen strands of her hair out of her closed eyes. "I'm just saying even as a teenager Alex wasn't an easy carry for anyone other than Kara."
"Huh?" As if summoned Kara rejoins them now munching quite contently on a cookie that just by the glimpse she had of it had Maggie's tongue prickling from the phantom burn and by the chocolate smears in the corner of her lips it hadn't been the first one, she'd had since first disappearing into the house.
"Those were meant to be for tomorrow, Missy." Eliza signs attempting but failing miserably to make her tone more of a scold at the innocently guilty expression teenaged Kara was sporting now.
"M' sorry." Kara mumbles around the last bite of the gooey treat. Given the honest threat of guilty tears of the single whispered phrase, Maggie was seriously considering intervening until she notices Lana already wrapping her arms around the sadden Kryptonian. A move that Maggie was positive had been made by anyone else would have ended seared by a startled burst of heat vision.
"Let's get everyone back inside." Maggie decides shifting her weight in an attempt to accommodate when Alex started squirming around when a cold chill rolled over them. "Easy, Danvers." She soothes or at least attempts to whilst trying not to let the restless teen drop onto the sidewalk like a sack of jean clade potatoes. Alex only mumbles in response nuzzling her face against the curve of Maggie's throat over the upturned collar of her jacket but her grip around Maggie's arms does tighten as if she's afraid she really will be dropped.
"I've got you, beautiful." Going by her following wide-eyed expression at Kara's surprised squeak Maggie hadn't intended to say the last part aloud as she carried the dozing teenaged version of her girlfriend into the house. "Mind helping us up the stairs? I don't want to accidentally bang her head against the wall or something." Maggie goes on eyeing the stairs to the second floor.
Again, Alex's grip tightens around Maggie's shoulders grumbling sleepily against her throat but Maggie only chuckles at the cuteness of it all before untangling Alex's long limbs enough to finish passing her over to her superpowered younger sister.
"Eliza though you might be needing this."
Maggie's eyes brighten at the offering when Lana reappears from the direction of the kitchen now carrying a half-full tumbler of amber liquid. The fuller bottle of scotch teased her from Lena's other hand.
"I'll take you up on that in a second." Maggie decides but she does at least take the glass long enough to take in a deep grounding breath of her third favorite scent before handing the thing back and heading for the stairs.
At a louder then anticipated crack in one of the top steps the whispered chatter Maggie picks up from the direction of the closed bedroom door to the Danvers sister's shared room stops abruptly. At this Maggie snickers. She'd had a feeling Alex was faking more than a little of her earlier fatigue but considering the day she'd had Maggie had let it slide.
Now, however…
She pauses stealing herself and also allowing the hurrying teens behind the door a little more time to prepare whatever act they intended before she gives one tentative knock on the smooth white painted door.
"Kara?" she whispers still playing along with the idea Alex was asleep. She waits for the unsure "C..come in." sharing an amused grin with Lena who was not watching from halfway up the stairs before she opens the door and slips inside.
"Good, uhh mind staying with her a second…I um."
Maggie was physically struggling to keep the teasing smile from her lips at Kara's tactics the teenager even going so far as to point towards the hall then mincing brushing her teeth. Maggie guessed that was the last thing Alex had suggested before she'd been allowed entry into the teen's room.
Seems the teen Alex was curious about what would happen when the two of them were alone and Maggie thinks she was unaware.
"Yeah, yeah. Go ahead." The cop agrees now more leaning than actually sitting at the end of Alex's bed. She also waits a few beats after the door was once again closed behind the exiting Kara despite knowing full well even as a teenager Kara had x-ray vision and super hearing. With a shaky breath, Maggie moves to kneel beside the 'sleeping' teenager reaching out to let her fingers tangle lightly in a few loose strands of Alex's hair choosing not to notice the surprised hitch of the meant to be sleeping teenagers breathing even when her eyes remained closed.
"I don't know what the hell is going on right now." Maggie starts off her voice low as she cards her fingers in Alex's longer locks wanting to both respect Alex's current age but also needing the grounding comfort of playing with her girlfriend's hair as she gets her tangled thoughts in order. "but I do know one thing." At this Alex does a rather impressive sleepy shift of nuzzling her cheek into the hand Maggie still had in her hair, but Maggie can plainly see the dusting of a blush pinking the teenager's skin, but Maggie keeps talking.
"I'm loathed to say this given your current state, but I have to. For my own sanity." Admittedly Maggie hadn't intended to unload all this even when she knew full well Alex was fully awake to hear every confessing word, but it was all spilling out "my feeling for you…the adult you that is are still deeper than anything even I can control." Maggie confessed with a long-drawn-out sigh of a breath.
"Even now after all the heartbreak of making you call us off your still my reason for liking all the sickly sweetness that comes with February 14th, my reason for wanting a partner watching my back when I'm out in the field despite having moved back to Gotham to attempt to get over you." By now Maggie had untangled her hand from Alex's hair to rub between Gertrude's ears when she spies the plushy dog poking out from under the covers. If she notices the adorable pout Alex gives at the loss, she keeps it to herself.
"I'm going to fix this." Maggie promises scrubbing at her eyes when she realized she'd started crying as she'd been talking. "I'll stay a day or two to make sure you, Eliza, Kara, and Lena are settled in here unless little Luthor wants to come back too, but then I'm going right back to National City."
When the worried 'crinkle' furrows Alex's brows Maggie actively bites down on the knuckles of her free hand to keep from laughing aloud at the sight.
"Maggie."
The soft whisper from the direction of the door has both Maggie and Alex starting in surprise but the Latina was already shaking her head in denial. "I can't just do nothing and hope whatever this is wears off on its own, Eliza I'm sorry."
Eliza crosses to Maggie side coaxing the seated woman's chin up with one hand whilst the other swipes at the still falling tears sliding down her cheeks. "I just don't want you overworking yourself, dear. I know firsthand how much you care for my daughters, but I also know how you get when you have a puzzle to solve."
Eliza can tell Alex was watching them through her lashes now still attempting to fool them into thinking she was sleeping as Maggie turns to hide her tear-stained face against the mother's front. Eliza readily wrapping her arms around her almost daughter in-laws shoulder as Maggie's hands fist tightly against the back of her shirt as she muffles a few pained sobs against her stomach.
"S'not fair," Maggie stammers against the soft cotton of Eliza's shirt. "S' not f-fair." She hiccupped
"I know." Eliza agrees her hands smoothing down Maggie trembling back as she continues her quiet cries. "I know it's not sweetheart."
"I just got her b…b…back." Maggie cried again her voice muffled by the fabric of Eliza's shirt as she talks.
"Come downstairs honey. I'll make you some tea." Eliza offers having noticed an equally tearful Kara as well as Lena watching them from the bedroom doorway.
"Ravochls." Maggie answers with an agreeing node against Eliza's sternum.
"I'm sorry?" Eliza chuckles her fingers still playing absently with a few stray strains of Maggie's long hair. Alex was right it was addicting to touch once she'd started.
"Rather have scotch, please," Maggie says a little more clearly.
"Okay you can have some scotch." Eliza chuckles leaning down to press a motherly kiss to Maggie's forehead once the now guilty-looking woman had managed to pull herself together enough to lift her head from nuzzling against Eliza's stomach. "But you need to get to bed missy." Eliza adds her eyes finding Kara's as she coaxes Maggie from Alex's bedside.
"Sorry, Mom." Kara sniffed redirecting her guilty gaze towards her shoes at the soft scolding.
Maggie catchiest the younger super's arm pulling her in for a sister worthy hug that Kara melts into and if purely by accident she holds on a little too tightly Maggie doesn't complain as she nuzzles her cheek against the teen's shoulder. "El mayarah." Maggie feels more than sees Kara's shock at the whispered words as Maggie hugs on tighter.
Really even as a teenager Kara gives good hugs before she spins around breaking Maggie's hold long enough to pluck the plushy otter from her sister's bed to offer to the teary-eyed cop. "Only fair you get a bad day buddy too. And Alex swears this one here gives the best snuggles." Kara explains pressing the soft toy into Maggie's trembling hands.
Maggie had been told about this one. A gift from Jeremiah after a toddler Alex had scraped up her knee in a fall whilst father and daughter had been out at the zoo.
"She's not wrong." Alex had given up pretending sleep and was now sitting with her back propped up against the headboard watching them. Well watching Maggie. "But mind if I see him a second?"
Maggie nodes shuffling over to hand off the stuffed otter to its true owner. "Here switch." Alex smiles offering Gertrude as she takes the otter. "Just for a second." She adds catching Maggie's overly surprised expression despite the tears still sliding down her cheek at Alex's offer to part with the dog she'd been jealously guarding since Kara had gifted it to her.
"Kara…" All eyes turn towards the blonde at her sister's sudden exclamation of her name but her next words come out in Kryptonian that it seemed not even Eliza knew what had been asked. Whatever it was had Kara clapping her hands over her ears and humming just loud enough to drown out whatever it was Alex was now whispering in the little otter plushy wrapped in an obvious bear hug against her chest.
Whatever it was Alex had told it was sealed with a kiss to the otter's forehead before it was offered back towards Maggie with a cool. "Okay, he's all yours for the night." From the grinning teenager.
Maggie rolling her eyes before giving Gertrude a kiss of her own to the plush dog's muzzle before passing her back to Alex's waiting hands with a rough "Night Danvers."
Alex blushes a light pink before giving an answering "See yeah tomorrow morning Sawyer." As Kara climbs into the adjacent bed with a light "Night Maggie, Night mom." Of her own. A much quieter blushed "Night Lee Lee." Directed towards Lena who was waiting quietly by the door.
"Goodnight, my Supergirl." Lena answers her arms already wrapping reassuringly around Maggie's shoulders when the Latina reaches her as Eliza finishes fussing over pulling up the comforters for both her teenage daughters.
"I mean it girls lights out, it's been a long day for everyone so get some sleep." Eliza says stopping at the door her hand on the light switch.
All four of her daughters laugh as the lights go out.