ALEX'S P.O.V
The nine year old was finally asleep after a long night of nightmares, Comet laying by her side on the floor since the puppy had been making sure that the little girl was fine during the whole night.
She kissed the kid's forehead before walking to open the door, where Kelly was waiting at the other side with some cups of coffee and a box of donuts.
"Hi" she smiled before kissing her girlfriend and letting her in the apartment. "I'm sorry it's a mess. We went to pick up a few things from Kara's" she apologized as there were things everywhere.
"I thought donuts could cheer her up a little" Kelly commented while leaving the box on the kitchen's island.
"Yeah, it's perfect" she smiled slightly, looking back at the little girl worriedly.
"How was the night?" her girlfriend asked as she sighed, she was really tired.
"She's been crying most of the night" she answered. "She lost it at Kara's apartment, after going there she decided she didn't want to have dinner and the fact that Brainy has Saffire at the moment didn't help at all" she explained, even if she still didn't understand why he wanted the stuffed toy. "Comet is her bigger support" the puppy was already awake, but he refused to leave the kid's side.
"It's okay for her to be upset, I mean, we all are" Kelly pointed, getting her to nod as she received a text from J'onn.
"Mon-El has returned from Argo with Alura and... Astra" she read out loud, frowning a little when she got to the last name.
She was scared of Astra wanting to take the kid from her because of what happened years ago and, even though they had tried to get along, she wasn't sure of how much Halley's mom liked her or wanted her around that little girl.
"Hi, kiddo" she smiled when the nine year old approached them. "Are you hungry?" she asked her, seeing how the child shook her head as she opened the donuts' box ready to convince her. "Look, it's a chocolate glazed donut with sprinkles and you love sprinkles, right?" she showed to her as Halley was sitting on one of the stools.
However, the kid just observed how she left the donut in front of her without even moving, looking back at her still refusing to eat something.
"Okay" she sighed, Halley was as stubborn as Kara. "You need to eat something, sweetie. I don't care if it's half of it or the whole thing, but you need more calories than a normal child your size or you will get sick" she explained, but the little girl shook her head again, probably testing her patience.
"Alex is right, sweetie, you'll be so much tired, and we need someone with energy to take Comet out" Kelly commented, but the kid stayed still, barely looking at the puppy that was on the floor next to her.
"This is not a game, Hal" she told her, not really wanting to say what she was about to say, but, honestly, she didn't have an option. "If you don't eat, I'm gonna have to take you to Lena's lab and feed you through a tube in your nose and trust me, it's not fun" she was able to see how the child's eyes went wide while listening to her shortly before starting to eat the donut in front of her.
She looked at the little girl before looking at her girlfriend, not knowing if her words had been too much for the kid, but at the moment she couldn't deal with Halley getting sick as well.
"No more" Halley whispered, pushing the half of the donut she didn't want to eat.
"Okay, no more" she told her, pulling her into a hug, the kid clinging to her shirt.
"We're not going to need that tube, right?" the nine year old asked her.
"No, if you continue eating" she answered, knowing that the child was a little scared. "I didn't mean to scare you, kiddo" she told her, gently tucking the kid's brown hair behind her ears. "And now get ready, we have to go to the Tower" she kissed Halley's forehead before letting go of her.
The kryptonian child nodded slightly before leaving to the bathroom to get changed, moment at which she sighed.
"Was it too much?" she asked her girlfriend.
"It was effective" Kelly answered. "She's grieving. She's going to need everyone around her to be strong... I know it'll be hard, but we can't let her go through a dark path" the woman explained.
She looked away for a few seconds. It was hard to be strong when she felt the same way as Halley, but she had promised her sister that she would always protect that little girl and that was what she was going to do.
As soon the elevator's door opened, everyone turned to look at her, feeling observed as she approached them, kind of hoping for good news.
"Where's Halley?" Mon-El asked, looking for the kid.
"She's with Kelly. They're taking Comet out for a walk, they should be here soon" she answered, seeing him nodded slightly, he was worried about that child as well.
"The Anchor is the only way out from the Phantom Zone, if it's still there" Alura said with sadness. "There was a mirror that would activate only with the guards. It acted like a portal, they just needed to think about Krypton to return" the woman explained.
"So, if she finds it, she will be able to return, right?" she asked her, feeling a little bit of hope when she saw Alura nod.
"But it's not easy to find" Astra commented. "We looked for it too many times, but we kept losing prisoners because of the Phantoms" the kryptonian told them.
"There isn't one of those mirrors in Argo?" J'onn asked, seeing how Kara's mom shook her head.
"Not that I can think of" the woman answered. "I can investigate if there's still one or enough information to create one, but it would take time" Alura told them.
"We don't really have that much time" she pointed out, her sister did not have months. "We have to bring Kara back as soon as possible" she said since she needed her little sister by her side, she needed Kara to be alright.
She listened attentively to every explanation they made about the Phantom Zone, feeling terrible about the fact that her sister was stuck there, at the place that the young kryptonian had always considered a nightmare.
It was an hour later when Kelly and Halley entered the Tower, the nine year old frowning slightly while stopping walking.
"Hi, little one" Astra tried to approach her daughter and, honestly, she had thought the little one was going to run to embrace her mother, but Halley just stared back unmoving.
"No" the nine year old shook her head when her mom was about to embrace her. "No! This is all your fault!" the kid yelled angrily while pushing Astra before going back in the elevator.
Everyone in that room had remained silent while observing the scene, Mon-El running after the kid as she observed how Astra sighed.
"She's not doing well" she told her
"Can I talk to you?" the woman asked her, moment at which she stayed still before nodding slightly, guiding her to the balcony. "I just wanted to thank you for taking her in" Astra told her.
"It's what Kara would've wanted and it's the least I can do for her" she answered barely looking at the kryptonian.
"We both know what happened that night" the woman stared at her as she gulped, not knowing where that conversation was heading. "You did what you had to, what you were trained for, so I don't resent you, agent Danvers" Astra told her.
"Call me Alex" she asked her. "I took you away from Halley that night, she was left alone with Non and Indigo" she was still feeling guilty about it. "She was really scared the first few days. I don't think she has fully recovered from it and now with Kara in the Phantom Zone… She's not doing well" she explained.
"I know" Astra nodded, looking away. "Just keep her safe for me" the kryptonian asked her, to which she nodded slightly.
"I will" she answered in just a whisper because she was not going to let anyone hurt her.
HALLEY'S P.O.V
"Hey, kiddo" Alex approached them as she got herself closer to Mon-El, not being able to hide the tears that were still streaming down her cheeks. "Are you okay?" her cousin's sister asked her.
"Is mommy mad at me?" she questioned back, upset of how her mom could have reacted to her words.
"No, sweetheart" Alex shook her head while sitting on the couch next to her. "She understands that you're upset. If you don't want to talk to her it's okay, but if you do, you can do it" the woman tucked her hair behind her ears before wiping her tears.
She looked at Mon-El not sure of what she wanted to do. She was aware that there was no way of knowing if things could have been different if her mom would not have worked with Lex Luthor.
She nodded slightly after a few seconds, holding to Alex's hand so the woman would take her to where her mom was. As soon as they stepped out of the elevator, she ran to hug her mother's leg, taking her by surprise, but getting her to hug her back.
"I'm sorry" she apologized as her mother embraced her tightly.
"It's okay, little one" her mom whispered, pulling her away a little, just enough to crouch to her height. "Are you okay?"
"I want Kara" she admitted. "Is it really that bad?" she asked in just a whisper.
"The Phantom Zone?" Astra asked, to which she nodded. "It's not a great place to be, but Kara it's strong, she will come back, okay?" her mom assured her, getting her to frown as she did not really believe those words.
She knew what the Phantom Zone meant for her cousin, so she could not believe that Kara was going to be alright being there or once they would be able to bring her back. It was going to be a long recovery.
ALEX'S P.O.V
She looked at the daxamite for a few seconds before frowning, the nine year old wasn't with him when he had been specifically taking care of Halley.
"Where is Halley?" she asked while approaching him, seeing how Mon-El looked around a little bit confused.
"She told me she was coming to get you" he answered, but she kept staring at him really needing a detailed explanation. "I was talking to Brainy and she said she wanted to see you... I mean, I saw her walking to the elevator" Mon-El explained.
"Did you see her walk inside the elevator?" she questioned him, trying to avoid panicking about the fact that the little girl was missing.
"I... I'm not sure" he shook his head as she sighed.
"Okay, great, Halley is missing" she said, angry at the daxamite for having lost the child.
Her words got the attention of the rest, J'onn, M'gann and Nia approaching them to see what was going on.
"There's no way she was able to run away from here, we were by the door, we would have seen her" Mon-El pointed out.
"You better be right" she warned him as the fear of something happening to Halley was getting bigger each second that passed.
Every single one of them started looking for the little girl, calling her name, trying to get her attention, but they didn't get an answer.
"A portal was opened shortly after Mon-El and Halley arrived" Brainy told them, to which she frowned.
"To where?" J'onn asked him.
"Um... give me a second... the Fortress of Solitude, I believe" Brainy answered. "There's been a release of energy there and it's been shorter and lower than an adult kryptonian, it could be Halley" he explained as she looked at J'onn, knowing the kid had probably taken the device she took from the Fortress.
"I'm taking you to the Fortress" J'onn said as she nodded.
"I'm going with you" Mon-El said, getting her to turn to look at him.
"No, you've already done enough" she snapped at him angrily, observing how he was about to say something, but he knew better than to complain, so the daxamite just shook his head before walking away.
By the time they got to the Fortress of Solitude, the nine year old was sobbing, sitting on the ice floor with her head buried in her legs, Kellex standing next to her as the robot was trying to communicate with the little girl.
She did not waste time to run to Halley, sitting next to her slowly as she was afraid of how the kid was going to react, but after not seeing the child move, she wrapped her arms around her, pulling the kryptonian closer to her.
Halley fought against her for a few seconds before relaxing, but it was the lack of strength and how cold was the kid's skin which managed to alert her, something was wrong with that little girl.
"I want Kara" the kid sobbed as she tightened the embrace.
"I know, sweetie" she whispered, taking off her jacket to wrap Halley with it. "We have to take you back to the Tower, okay?" she told her as J'onn approached them, nodding for him to pick up the nine year old.
The child felt limp against him, her head resting on J'onn's shoulder with her eyes closed, which only got her to panic a little bit more about everything that was happening.
When they were back at the Tower, Halley remained unconscious, not reacting to any single test they were making to be completely sure that the kid was alright. And she had wished for something to be wrong so at least they could help her, but the only conclusion they could make was that the nine year old kryptonian had solar-flare somehow.
"I'm cold" Halley complained, still not opening her eyes, but being more aware than minutes ago.
"It's okay, kiddo, you're already a little warmer" she told her while checking the kid's temperature.
"I'm sorry" the child's blue eyes looked directly into hers. "I lied to Mon-El" Halley admitted as she turned her head to look at the daxamite, who had been sitting on the couch just waiting to know that the kid was alright.
"You scared all of us. You scared me" she said as the nine year old looked away. "Don't do it again, please, I can't lose you too" she caressed the child's face, getting her to nod. "So, what happened?"
"I solar flare" her sister's cousin answered.
"How?" she asked her.
"I used my heat vision… I was upset" the kid explained. "What if she never comes back?" that question broke her heart, Halley's eyes shining because of the tears.
"She will, sweetie, I know she will" she assured her, even if deep down she made herself the exact same question. "She taught us how to hope, so we can't lose it, for her" she wiped Halley's tears, seeing her nod.
She embraced the kid against her, knowing that her words weren't enough to calm the nine year old, so she remained like that until the kid seemed to be a little bit more relaxed.
"I bring a few things for Halley" it was Brainy who approached them. "First Saffire, I'm sorry you had to spend your first night back without him" he said while handing the blue dragon to the kid, observing the red cape that was attached to its neck. "It's fabric from Kara's old cape, I thought it could be a way of keeping her close to you" he explained as, for the first time since she had come back, the child smiled slightly while embracing the toy. "And your cousin asked me to upgrade while you were gone" the couluan gave the kid the necklace.
"Thank you" Halley hugged herself to Brainy, who hugged the child back.
"You're welcome, kiddo" he smiled, he was happy.
"Thanks, it really means a lot" she told him, seeing him nod before leaving them alone. "We should be heading home, it's late and you still need a warm bath" she said to the child.
"Can I say goodbye to Mon-El?" the kid asked her as she sighed, she was still a little upset.
"Sure, kiddo" she answered before helping her to get down of the stretcher, observing how the little girl ran to hug her best friend. "I'm sorry for what I said before, Mon-El" she apologized, since she knew that he cared about the kid as much as her.
"It's okay, I shouldn't have left her alone" he smiled, still keeping the nine year old embraced. "Next time don't lie to us, if you want to go to the Fortress or anywhere, just ask us" Mon-El told the child, who nodded slightly. "I'm seeing you tomorrow, okay?" he kissed Halley's forehead.
After saying goodbye to him, they both left to her loft, trying to make sure that the kid had a bath and a warm dinner, but, just as it had happened that morning, Halley refused to eat, accepting a cup of hot chocolate, that for her was more than enough.
The nine year old snuggled closer to her, being wrapped in a blanket and with her beloved dragon in between her arms, watching the movie quietly.
"Do you think Kara will find the Anchor?" Halley asked, taking her by surprise.
"How do you know about that?" she asked her.
"I read about it in Argo" the child answered before adding. "And I heard aunt Alura talking about it this morning"
"Maybe she does" she answered to her question.
"She has to" the little girl said. "She has to come back home"
"She will, kiddo" she whispered, kissing her forehead, really wanting to believe that her sister would find her way back home.
Hi!
I'm finally able to upload this first chapter of season six!
It took me a while to know what I wanted to do with Halley, but I think I really know where I'm heading right now.
I really imagined her being depressed, but at the same time being kind of hopeful. I also wanted her to react badly to her mom, blaming her of everything that has happened.
Thanks so much for reading, let me know what you think,
Ayrin