KARA'S P.O.V
"Where's Halley?" she asked her sister after greeting everyone in that room.
Her baby cousin wasn't the only person missing, Mon-El wasn't there either and she couldn't avoid thinking that something had happened to the little girl.
The nine year old had spent as much time with her as possible, everytime she would wake up, the child was curled up sleeping right next to her, so it was a little confusing not seeing her there.
"She's with Mon-El. He's been avoiding the Tower today, so he took Halley to the park" Alex explained quietly as her father walked in that room. "They should be back soon" her sister added, to which she nodded, understanding that her father wasn't aware that the war between Daxam and Krypton was over.
"How long have you been awake?" she asked him while approaching to hug him.
"Not long" he answered, pulling away from her. "Just long enough to try out the perks of your yellow sun" her father explained as she couldn't avoid smiling, her gaze focusing on the elevator doors.
Her baby cousin stepped out with Mon-El by her side, a huge smile on her little face before running to hug her, so she kneeled down to take the child in her arms.
"I made them for you" the nine year old told her when they pulled away, giving her some drawings, which managed to bring a smile to her face.
"They're beautiful, baby" she told her, seeing the little one smile widely. "You're getting really good at drawing" she complimented her, tickling her a little.
"Thanks" her cousin giggled, getting her to do it as well, she had really missed hearing her laugh.
"And now come on, let's eat some cake" she kissed Halley's forehead before standing up, still holding the kid's hand.
During the rest of the evening she let herself forget about everything that had happened in the Phantom Zone, just focusing on spending time with her friends and family.
"Hey" Mon-El finally approached her. "It's great to have you back" he smiled.
"It's good to be back" she smiled at him, feeling observed by her father. "Thanks for taking care of Halley" she told him, seeing how he shook his head.
"It wasn't a problem" he answered. "It was a team work, we all made sure she was safe" Mon-El explained as her dad started walking toward them. "I think I should go home, I'll bring you Halley's things tomorrow" the daxamite told her, getting ready to leave, but she grabbed his arm to stop him, knowing that at some point they should meet.
"No, wait" she said. "Father, he's..."
"I know who he is" her father answered. "He's Daxam's Prince"
"He's no longer the Prince" she tried to explain, trying to calm things down, even more when she saw her baby cousin frowning.
"He's still a daxamite" those words seemed to be enough for Halley, who stood in front of Mon-El.
"Mon-El is my best friend" the nine year old said. "He's not evil just because he's a daxamite. You should meet him before assuming that. He's good" Halley wasn't going to let anyone be hostile to her best friend.
"Hal, baby.." she whispered, looking directly into her eyes as a way to shushed her.
"No. Why aren't you defending him? He's your friend too and he was your boyfriend!" the little girl exclaimed as she wanted to disappear, not being ready to face her father after that.
"Okay, I think someone is tired and grumpy" Alex said while grabbing Halley's hand. "Let's go calm down, okay?" her sister took the child.
Slowly she was left alone with her father, but she didn't have words to explain anything.
"When Mon-El arrived, we didn't see eye to eye. We were all the time arguing just because of our differences" she tried to start talking. "But Halley trusted him, even when I didn't. She would spent hours just playing with him and listening to his stories" she smiled while remembering how little her cousin was back then. "It took me a while to understand why she didn't see him as a threat. None had ever told her about the war, about how we hated each others... For her he wasn't different from us, he was a friend" she explained, turning to look at her dad. "He changed a lot, I've seen him changed, became the hero he's now" she said. "And I know it's a lot to ask you to leave all of it behind, but he's a friend, he's part of the team and I really trust him" she told him.
"If you trust him, then I might do it as well" he answered. "I think I own him an apology and little Halley as well" her father pointed out.
"Don't worry, he understands and Hal does it too" she told him with a soft smile.
-/-
HALLEY'S P.O.V
She woke up because of her cousin's screams. Kara was tossing on the bed, tears streaming down her face as she sat up before trying to grab the woman's shoulders.
"Kara" she called her, gently shaking her. "It's a nightmare, wake up. You're safe" she whispered as her cousin opened her eyes to look at her. "You're okay. We're at home" she told her with a reassuring smile.
Kara did not answer, just pulling her into a hug as she closed her eyes, knowing that her cousin just needed a few minutes to calm herself down.
"I'm sorry I wake you up, baby" Kara kissed the top of her head.
"It's okay. You're always awake because of my nightmares" she answered, snuggling closer to her. "Are you sure you're okay?" she asked after a few seconds of observing how Kara remained with her eyes open, just staring at the ceiling.
However, when she did not receive an answer, she pulled away a little, just trying to figure out what was happening with her cousin.
"I'm okay, sweetie" Kara answered while looking at her. "I see Saffire is a superhero now" the older Kryptonian pointed to the blue dragon's cape.
"It's a piece from your old cape. Brainy thought it would help me to feel you close" she explained. "And it kinda did" a smile was drawn on her face as she shrugged.
"I'm glad it helped" her cousin smiled at her before pulling her back into a hug. "Try to go back to sleep. I love you so much, baby" Kara kissed her hair.
"I love you too" she answered with a smile.
She hid her face in her cousin's neck before closing her eyes, just focusing on Kara's heartbeat to finally fall asleep.
-/-
"We have to go pick up Comet from Argo" she told her cousin while eating her breakfast, already missing the puppy.
"And we will soon. First I have to figure out what has been happening at work and how you've been doing at school, okay?" Kara answered while looking at her, so she looked away. "What's wrong?"
"I haven't been going to school" she barely murmured, but she knew that she had been heard. "I started having panic attacks... But I've been doing homework and even calculus" she explained, observing how the reporter was staring at her with so much sadness.
"Okay" her cousin sighed. "I'll talk to Alex" Kara said as Zor-El approached them.
"I think I broke Halley's door. I'm sorry, I'm still trying to understand my strength" Zor-El apologized.
"It's okay, we'll fix that later" his daughter answered. "I'm going to get ready and then I'll do your hair" her cousin told her, so she nodded slightly.
"It's that a dragon?" Zor-El pointed to the soft toy that was placed at her lap.
"It's Saffire, like Mon-El's dragon" she answered while showing him, hoping that he would like a little bit more the idea of Mon-El being a daxamite and their friend.
"I'm sorry about yesterday, Halley" he apologized, to which she shook her head.
"It's okay... Kara has told me a little about the war" she shrugged. "I know kryptonians and daxamites didn't get along. And that their societies were completely opposites... But I think they didn't take enough time to listen and understand each others" she looked at him. "We aren't different from each other"
"You are so much right, kid" her uncle nodded, so she just smiled at him.
Once they were all ready, they left to CatCo, where Nia was waiting for them, so she ran to hug her before they would go into the elevator.
She could tell that her cousin was nervous about being back and having to lie about where she had been during all that time, which got her to hold Kara's hand tightly.
"Hi, Andrea. Good morning" Nia was the first one to speak when the door opened. "Coffee cart, best part of CatCo. Come on, uncle Archie, Hal" the woman said pulling from Zor-El, but she didn't move, refusing to leave her cousin alone.
"It's okay" Kara whispered to her, so she would leave, but she didn't. "I'm okay, go with Nia, please" her cousin told her, which she finally did.
She stayed with Zor-El, showing him every single article Kara had written over the past years, waiting impatiently for the staff meeting to finish.
When Nia came back, she sat down by her side just as she had been doing recently whenever the reporter was taking care of her, letting her work but trying to help her if it was possible.
"Why did no one tell me that phantoms attacked National City?" her cousin came back with name list in her hands, getting her to look away, not wanting to remember it.
"Alex didn't want us to burden you" Nia answered. "She knew you'd be worried and for no reason. The Phantom is gone, this is in the past" the woman explained.
"But how did he even get here?" Kara asked.
"Um... We sort of released him the first time we tried to rescue you" Nia said as she sighed.
"So all these people suffered because of me" her cousin was already taking the guilt from what had happened.
"No, no, Kara, it is Lex's fault, he's the one that sent you there" the young reporter pointed out as she finally looked back at her cousin.
"Yeah... It... It doesn't matter, like you said that's over, it's done now, so I'll go talk to Andrea" Kara seemed like she did not want to keep talking about it, just as Nia sprinted over to Zor-El after seeing how he was lifting a copy machine.
"Welcome back, Kara" William approached them.
"William, hi" her cousin smiled. "I'm sorry I left without saying goodbye or..."
"It's alright, I know what happened" he interrupted her. "How are you doing?" he asked.
"Good, adjusting to be back" Kara answered.
"If you ever need anything, just ask" William assured her. "But I know about someone that is taking a really good care of you, isn't that right, Halley?" he looked at her, so she nodded before hugging her cousin. "I haven't forgotten about the ice cream, so if it's okay with your cousin, we can go later" he said, getting her to look at her cousin.
"Can I?" she asked.
"Sure, baby" Kara smiled at her, so she smiled back.
-/-
KARA'S P.O.V
She stared at her laptop not knowing where to start writing the article without being tormented with her own memories from the Phantom Zone.
She went back to reading the names from that list, still blaming herself for what had happened to those people. However, she couldn't avoid the panic when she recognized one of the names.
At that moment she turned to her baby cousin that was chatting happily with Nia, a huge smile on her little face as she frowned slightly, feeling confused about why her friends had hidden the fact that Halley had been injured during the attack.
The slight thought of that little girl being hurt by those phantoms made her sick, so she did not stop herself from walking to where the child was, taking her time to observe her, to be sure that the kid was alright.
"Are you okay?" Halley asked her with so much worry in her voice when she stood right in front of her, gently tucking her cousin's hair behind her ears while looking for a scar, but she didn't find one. "Kar...?"
"You are safe, okay? I promise, baby, they won't hurt you again" she told her, pulling the kid into a hug, only to feel how the little girl hold onto her tightly. "Why didn't you tell me she was hurt during the attack?" she asked her friend, keeping the nine year old in between her arms for as long as possible.
"Her name shouldn't be in that list" Nia shook her head before looking at her. "She went missing for a few hours. When we found her, she had been attacked, but not transform into a phantom. Instead she had a fear vision and she was fine as soon as we got her under the sun lamps" the young reporter explained as her cousin pulled away from her, she could find fear in her blue eyes.
"You died trying to save me and Lex told me that everyone would hate me" the nine year old barely whispered.
"It's alright. I'm right here" she said while crouching to her cousin's height. "No one would hate you for that, sweetie. What happened with Lex wasn't your fault, I had to stop him from keep hurting you and it just... it happened, Hal" she grabbed the kid's face, the little one not really making eye contact with her. "I'll always do everything I can just to keep you safe, baby" she hugged the child again.
"I was scared" Halley admitted, her head resting on her shoulder.
"I know. I was scared too" she admitted as well, knowing that the fear she was feeling would never go away.
-/-
HALLEY'S P.O.V
She let go of her cousin's hand to run to her mom, hugging herself at her with a huge smile on her face before having to pull away because Comet started to jump around her.
"Hi, I've missed you" she embraced the puppy, smiling when the dog licked her face.
"He missed you too" her mom told her as Comet ran inside the house to get his toy so she would play with him.
She spent as much time as possible playing with Comet and her mom, knowing that they would return soon to Earth since Kara needed to go back to work, but her cousin had already promised that it would not take them long to come back to Argo.
"Hal, baby, we have to go" Kara called her.
She was always a little sad to say goodbye to her family, even if she knew that she would she them again soon, but having to leave was always hard.
"When we come visit can you teach me about science?" she asked Zor-El after approaching him.
"I would love to" her uncle answered with a smile. "But you're going to have to tell me everything you know about dragons" he added.
"I will" she smiled as Zor-El crouched to her height.
"I'm going to need you to take care of Kara. She's been through a lot, but I know you're going to help her heal" her uncle said as she nodded slightly. "You're a really smart, kind and sweet kid, Halley. I'm really glad I got to meet you" he told her shortly before she hugged him, taking Zor-El by surprise since it took him a little to return the hug.
Once they pulled away, she walked to her cousin, taking Comet's leash before holding tightly to Kara's hand. She smiled at the older Kryptonian while remembering Zor-El's words, she would always be there for her cousin.
-/-
KARA'S P.O.V
One more time she was sitting in front of her laptop, not knowing how to write that article with all the memories being triggered each time she would read the word phantom.
She observed how her sister was sitting down next to her on the floor, moment at which she sighed, getting herself ready to talk, wanting to free herself from that fear.
"It was so cold in there" she murmured as her sister questioned her, not understanding what she was saying. "In the... Phantom Zone" it was hard to say that name, to remember it al. "So empty. Every breath felt like... like ice. And I was so weak" tears were starting to get contained in her eyes.
"It's okay. You don't have to talk about this, okay? Remember?" her sister told her, trying not to force her to do something she wouldn't agree with.
"No, no, no, I-I want to. I need to" she assured her. "I don't wanna be alone anymore" she admitted, her voice cracking because of the sob that was being held in throat.
"You are not alone, you've got me" Alex was trying her best to comfort her. "And you have Hal, she's going to be clinging at you for a long time" her sister pointed to the slept child on the couch, getting her to smile a little.
"I think I just..." she couldn't find her words."I just... so desperately wanted to get away from the Phantom Zone that I... didn't let myself process... how much I went through. How afraid I was" she explained, for the first time being honest with herself, accepting her sister's comforting hug. "What if that fear never goes away?"
"You know... when I, uh, when I thought that we couldn't get you back, I... I just wanted to give up" Alex pulled away from her. "I mean, like... like I couldn't get out of bed. I couldn't... you know? And now that we did get you back, I still feel like you could slip away at any moment" her sister explained as she could find tears also in her eyes. "I felt that way today, too. And I'm so sorry. Because all I want to do is just shield you from any more pain that I just didn't even think it's... the only way out is through" she made a pause to look at her. "And we're gonna get through this together" Alex assured her as she nodded.
"Healing together" she whispered.
Halley moved behind them, her cousin's heartbeat increasing as she turned only to find that the child was crying in her sleep.
"Shh, it's a dream, baby" she caressed the kid's face with concern when she heard her calling her. "I'm here, Hal, I'm here with you" she took her baby cousin in her arms, observing how the nine year old calm down as soon as she held her, that little girl was truly scared of her disappearing again. "What exactly happened with her dreams?" she asked, keeping the kid in a tight embrace.
"She was connected to the Phantoms, they were feeding through her energy each time she would project herself into the Phantom Zone" her sister answered. "Your mom said that only people that practiced witchcraft were able to do that... But Halley..., she was chosen by Jindah, she was going to be sacrificed to rebirth Reing..." Alex looked at the child. "Maybe there's a little bit of magic in her"
Those words only made her to close her eyes in fear, since she didn't know how she would be able to help her baby cousin if that was the case.
"Kara, she's okay, you're okay and that's what matters right now" Alex reassured her while gently rubbing circles on her back, getting her to nod slightly. "I know right now it's like a lot to process, but we'll figure it out together" her sister pulled her closer into a hug as she remained with Halley in her arms.
She closed her eyes for a few seconds, relaxing. She was finally at home with her family, so for the first time in a long time she allowed herself to forget everything that had happened even if it was just for one night.
Hi!!
I'm really enjoying the new episodes, but it's a little bittersweet because it means that we're getting closer to the end.
Since the moment I knew Zor-El was returning with Kara, I had that scene with Mon-El and Halley in mind. I don't think he would react the same way Alura did and by how he reacted to the fact that DEO had daxamite tech... It had to happen. And Halley protecting Mon-El it was necessary, no one can mess with her best friend.
I think I might be combining episode 9 and 10 in one chapter since I don't think there's much storyline for Halley in them.
However, I've been thinking about Esme because I truly believe Kelly and Alex are going to adopt her, but if you have read 'Teen Halley' fic then you know that they do adopt a little girl, Willow, who is much younger than Esme. So I've been thinking that since little Halley time travel, the timeline could have changed and they would have Willow, but also Esme.
Thanks so for reading, let me know what you think,
Ayrin