Once Upon National City

A/N: Just a little fluff for the holidays. Happy whatever-you-celebrate everyone! I'll see you all in the New Year!

Just a quick warning. There's some mild language in this chapter, but nothing too extreme. ;)

POST DRABBLE REPLIES

Badassfox – Thanks for the review! You're very sweet. :) I don't think the relationship between Alex and Maggie is going too fast. Each relationship, as is every person, is different, and hence why some click faster than others. As for RWBY, I still watch, but due to my increasingly busy schedule, I don't have as much time nowadays to indulge in it as much. Thanks again for all of your support. I hope you have an awesome rest of the holidays and an even more awesome new year! Cheers! :)

Disclaimer: The characters and the worlds I write in do not belong to me. The stories that I write are intended for entertainment purposes. I do not make any money from them.

Summary: When Alex gets injured trying to capture a rogue alien, the last person she expected to see cooking breakfast for her, in her apartment, was Maggie. Sanvers. Romance/Friendship.

*** ~ Just Friends ~ ***

Alex awoke to the sound of sizzling.

That and the smell of bacon.

While that in itself was a bit unusual, considering she lived alone in her apartment, given what transpired a few days ago, maybe that wasn't such a surprise.

Alex groaned as she pushed her stiff self upright, the DEO agent blearily looking around to orient herself. Noting the stream of sunlight sneaking in through the crack in her curtains, her gaze immediate shifted to the digital clock on her nightstand, it taking a few seconds for Alex to make out the numbers.

9:32 a.m.

Huh. She finally slept through the entire night for a change. About damn time.

Tucking an errant lock of hair around her ear, Alex shifted to pull the blanket from her legs only to freeze when a twinge of pain shot up her right arm the instant she tried to move it. Eyes darting downwards, dark browns quickly spotted the white and blue pattern of a sling cradling her arm.

Right. She'd broken it a few days ago. Alex had almost forgotten about that. That was what, the third time in two years she'd snapped it? Probably not a good thing, but whatever. What was important was that she was alive. Injuries be damned.

Ignoring the pinch of pain just above her left eyebrow, the DEO agent awkwardly kicked the sheets from her feet, all the while being mindful of her arm. Mentally bracing herself, Alex stood up gingerly, waiting for the rush of dizziness which had crippled her for the past few days. When that didn't happen, she took a few tentative steps away from her bed, a smile stretching across her face as she continued to experience no ill effects other than the expected lingering stiffness. Pleased with her progress on the healing front, Alex finally shuffled her way towards the en suite bathroom to freshen up for the day.

"Smells good, whatever that is," Alex mumbled, leaning against the doorframe to her bedroom. Looking into the kitchen expecting to find her sister, she froze when she found not Kara, but someone else.

"Danvers, hey!" Detective Maggie Sawyer said, the NCPD officer shooting her a smile, dimples and all. "You're up. How are you feeling?"

Thank goodness Alex had the actual foresight to wear a tank top and shorts to bed last night. Otherwise, this would have been an awkward start to the day.

"Maggie?"

The said woman chuckled, briefly turning back to the frying pan on the stove.

"Still half asleep I see," Maggie said as she flipped over a strip of bacon with the spatula in her hand.

Blinking in confusion at the other woman, Alex quickly scanned the rest of her apartment, as if that would provide answers to the questions milling around her head. Draped over the back of one of the dining chairs was Maggie's brown leather jacket, the detective's gun and holster on the table in front of it. Also on the table was Maggie's cellphone and stainless steel travel mug, the NCPD officer's keys sitting in the key bowl near the door along with Alex's keys. A bit surreal if you asked Alex, just how normal those things felt to be there, as if they belonged.

"How…?"

As Maggie turned to answer her, it was then Alex noticed the hideous, pink, frilly apron the other woman wore. With Kiss the Chef printed on the front of it in big, bold, pink letters, it was a gift from Kara many years ago, one Alex had buried deep within the bowels of her cupboards the day after she got it. Where Kara got such an atrocious thing, Alex would never know. Thankfully her sister never questioned her about it afterwards, Alex refusing to have anything to do with the abomination, yet at the same time, unable to bring herself to burn the thing. The fact that Maggie had found it at all and was now wearing it, was truly a testament to her sleuthing skills.

"Your sister let me in," Maggie said, as if reading Alex's mind. "When I hadn't heard back from you for a few days, I thought I'd come by to see what was up."

Ah, so that's what happened. Alex nodded in understanding, the confusion originally swirling around her mind abating.

"Your sister had to leave for some emergency at work by the way," Maggie continued, turning down the heat on the stove. Another strip of bacon was flipped over. "I promised I'd keep an eye on you until she came back."

"How did you know where I lived?" Alex asked, making her way to the couch to sit down. As pleased as she was to be able to stand on her own now, she still got exhausted pretty quickly, much to her annoyance. It was probably a side effect of the various pain killers she was on. Speaking of which, she needed to take some more with breakfast. Joy.

"I'm a detective," Maggie said, grinning., snapping Alex out of her thoughts. "Remember Alex? I detect."

A wink.

"R-Right," Alex mumbled looking away, the elder Danvers a bit embarrassed at herself for asking such a silly question. Alex blamed the injuries she suffered days ago for this lapse in coherence. It wasn't everyday you got beat upon by a ten foot alien something or the other after all.

Stupid aliens.

At the sound of clanking, Alex's gaze shifted back to the kitchen where her eyes landed on the most unexpected sight. That sight being Maggie. Or rather, the NCPD officer's behind as her friend bent over to retrieve something from the oven. Today, it seemed the detective decided to go with her grey knit, long sleeve top she often wore (Alex liked that top too), the sleeves currently rolled up, a tight fitting set of black slacks hugging Maggie's contours from the waist down. Stylish as always, Alex couldn't but admire Maggie, even with that cringe worthy apron covering most of her outfit.

"You alright there, Danvers?" Maggie asked, straightening up.

Alex's eyes instantly snapped to Maggie's face when she realized she was being spoken to.

"You went quiet," Maggie commented, setting the tray in her hands down on the countertop.

"Yeah! Good," Alex immediately blurted out, fighting against the blush threatening to paint her cheeks red. "Good, yeah."

God, it was too early in the morning for this.

"If you're not feeling well, you should lie down," Maggie continued, completely oblivious to the look Alex had given her not even a minute ago. Bless her heart.

Taking off the oven mitts and apron and setting them aside next to the kitchen sink, the detective side stepped around the floating island to kneel down in front of Alex who was still on the couch.

"You don't have to act brave for me, you know," Maggie said.

Appreciating the sentiment, Alex shook her head, hoping it would be enough to deflect any probing concerns.

"I'm fine," she said with a tired smile, waving Maggie off with her uninjured hand. "It's nothing."

That was a total lie of course. Despite agreeing on being just friends, Alex continued to struggle with her still growing attraction to the cop. Having her so close, yet so far away, it was torture. Yet no matter how bad it got, it would barely compare to the agony she would have suffered through had they broke things off completely and gone their separate ways.

"Your sister says differently," Maggie said, something in her tone unidentifiable.

Alex's brows furled.

"And what exactly did she tell you about this?" she asked, a number of ideas already floating around her brain as to what Kara could have said.

Maggie's hands balled up in her lap, the detective pursing her lips.

"Something along the lines of you being thrown through a concrete wall and being lucky to be alive," Maggie said, her voice tight.

Alex frowned.

"Mind telling me how you accomplished that one?"

The intensity in Maggie's eyes was unlike anything Alex had ever seen before. While it came close to the intensity the NCPD officer had while on the job and performing her duty, this time, here and now, Alex knew something was different. It was more personal.

"Maggie-"

"Alex," Maggie said, cutting her off. "Please?"

Exhaling noisily, Alex hung her head. She was going to throttle Kara for this later, but first thing's first. Maggie deserved to know what happened. She was on the other side of town dealing with something else when it happened after all. Taking a moment to order her thoughts, Alex's eyes rose to meet Maggie's gaze once again.

"There's not much to tell, really," she said shrugging. That was a mistake, Alex wincing as a few muscles spasmed a bit, her body protesting that action. That did not go unnoticed by her companion, Maggie's eyes narrowing at her slightly, the detective however doing nothing else.

"An angry Appex was on the loose," Alex continued, trying to play off her pain as nothing. "And while trying to back Supergirl up, some of us got thrown around a bit."

Something dark flashed through Maggie's eyes, Alex quickly realizing just how poor her choice of words was.

"It looks worse than it actually is," she said, suddenly desperate to steer the conversation back to a lighter topic. "Really. You should see the other guy."

Alex had been lucky. Had it not been for the exo-suit she was wearing at the time, the same one she wore when fighting Corbin alongside her sister, things could have been a lot worst. It may not have been powered by kryptonite anymore, the DEO still experimenting with a new power source for it, but it still helped her kick ass under extreme circumstances. Though in this case, it was more of Alex getting her ass kicked than the other way around. Thankfully it was the exo-suit which took most of the beating this time.

"Maggie," Alex said, hesitant. "Say something, please?"

It was rather unsettling just how quiet Maggie was being right now. Alex could count the number of times the cop remained this tip lipped on one hand, and still have fingers left over. Whether Maggie would admit it or not, she was a talker. A lovely one at that. Which meant when she went quiet, that was never a good thing.

Against her better judgement, Alex reached out with her good hand and rested it on top of the NCPD officer's clenched left fist.

"This sort of thing comes with the job," Alex said when Maggie still refused to speak. "You know that."

The fist under Alex's hand tightened even more, Alex frowning at the immense pain she saw in the other woman's eyes, pain she didn't have a clue on how to soothe. Offering her friend a small smile, Alex squeezed Maggie's fist gently.

"It's not like you haven't had your fair share of bumps and bruises too."

Ever since meeting Maggie and getting to know her, really getting to know her, that was a constant concern at the back of Alex's mind. While she would always worry about those she held dear, it was a bit different when it came to the detective. Unlike Kara or J'onn, who first and foremost were aliens and had an advantage because of their physiology, in times of need, they also had the resources of the DEO at their disposal. Maggie did not. And that truly horrified Alex, to think what could happen to Maggie, the woman so amazing and brave, but essentially doing the same job she did without backup.

"Bumps and bruises are one thing, Danvers," Maggie said thickly, drawing Alex out of her thoughts. Reaching up, the detective gently traced the line of stitches just above Alex's left eyebrow with her finger. "But this…"

Alex swallowed down the lump in her throat, her stomach doing somersaults. God, how she wanted to lean into that touch, so badly! But she didn't. They were just friends. And Alex would not ruin that for the both of them.

"H-Hey now," she said all flustered. It still amazed Alex just how quickly Maggie could draw that reaction out of her. "I'm alright. I'm alive. And if it makes you feel any better, I'm no longer on hourly concussion watch."

That revelation earned her a smile, a small one, but a smile nonetheless.

"Glad to hear it," Maggie said, her expression easing. The tension was still visible in the NCPD officer's shoulders, but at least it wasn't as palpable.

A chuckle.

"I know what that's like," Maggie sympathetized. "It sucks. A lot."

"Oh my god!" Alex exclaimed, eagerly accepting this olive branch. "The first day in the med bay was the worst. I was ready to strangle anyone who came to check on me after the third hour."

Maggie laughed, a very much welcomed sound to Alex's ears.

"Don't I know it," Detective Saywer said with a grin, shaking her head. "Had I known that's where you disappeared to days ago, I would have brought over some case files to save the DEO the trouble. You must have been going stir crazy."

"Like you wouldn't believe," Alex said, laughing herself. Soon her laughter faded and a sombre smile replaced it.

"Sorry for making you come all this way," Alex said, truly apologetic. "I still haven't been cleared to use my phone or laptop yet, because, you know."

She motioned to her head.

"Otherwise I would have told you."

Maggie smiled, her eyes gentle.

"No need to apologize. I get it. I've been there myself a few times. It's not fun."

"No," Alex agreed. "No it's not."

Both of them chuckled.

With the tension between them now gone, a comfortable silence settled upon the pair, Alex finding herself inexplicably drawn to Maggie's warm gaze. So many emotions swirled behind those hazel eyes, some of them hidden, yet others in full view for all to see. While it still hurt Alex to be in the same room as Maggie at times, especially given the other woman's clear refusal of her feelings, there were times, like this one, when she was happy to have her in her life. Alex was never the type of person to have a huge group of friends, not like Kara, yet the ones she did have, she would always cherish. No matter what.

"I'm glad you're alright," Maggie said after a few seconds, the detective holding Alex's uninjured hand between her own. Maggie's hands were warm.

Pushing down the butterflies threatening to escape her stomach, Alex felt a genuine smile stretch across her lips as she responded.

"Me too," she said.

A/N: I picture this potentially happening some time after Alex invites Maggie to pool after the initial rejection (end of Season 2, Episode 7) but before Maggie finally realizes how much she wanted to kiss Alex (end of Season 2, Episode 8).

Appex is a large, purple alien known for its superhuman strength and durability. For more info, check out this link (replace commas with periods): dc,wikia,com/wiki/Appex_(Prime_Earth)

In the show, it's looks like Alex's bathroom and bedroom are on opposite sides of the apartment from each other. That said, for this drabble, let's just say they're connected. ;)