A/N: I didn't forget this story I promise! It's always in the back of my mind, but making myself actually write is a whole other story. I wish I could just transfer my thoughts straight onto the page as I think of them.

Also I discovered Youtube Premium and have been binging the React/FBE channel. I have a problem. LOL

Anyway not a lot happening in this chapter. Just some Lexa/Avery time.

Chapter 29

"Hey, kiddo. You ready to go?" Lexa called through the open doorway to Avery's room. Clarke had taken off to run her errands over an hour before, but Lexa and Avery didn't feel the need to rush off.

"Yeah, just give me a second," Avery smiled as she pulled her hair up into a quick ponytail and then pulled it through the back of her baseball cap.

Lexa grinned and tapped a finger to her own hat. "Nice look." She occasionally had to wear a baseball cap as part of her uniform, so she'd picked up the habit in more casual dress as well. It was an easy way to keep the hair out of her face for the day. Although she could only remember doing this once, maybe twice back in California, but it seems Avery had paid attention.

"Grandpa and I used to wear matching hats sometimes. My hair was always all over the place though. This works so much better." She still missed her grandpa, but at least Lexa like to do some of the same things he did.

"Mom said maybe we could go camping this summer if you came with us." Avery said as they made their way out of the apartment.

Lexa laughed at the random change in conversation. She was used to Avery's thought process now, but it was the topic that was the best part of it. Clarke had filled her all in on Avery's desire to go camping, and how much she really wasn't into the idea. Clarke had always been much more of an indoorsy person. But the young woman couldn't deny her daughter anything if she could help it.

"Yeah, if I can get some time off later this summer then I'm all for it. I've never been camping either," Lexa admitted. "When I was about your age, we went on an overnight class trip, but we stayed in a cabin that had a bunch of bunk beds. That's the closest I've ever been."

The two girls made it to Lexa's car and piled in. They buckled their seatbelts before turning back to the conversation. "My school does something like that but not until 6th grade. That's so far away."

Lexa chuckled. She supposed to a ten-year-old that would be a long time to wait. Avery would only be in 5th this year, so she still had a while. "You know your mom really loves you to even be entertaining the idea." Lexa glanced over to Avery to see the giant smile on the girl's face. She knew exactly what she was doing to her mother.

"I know. She doesn't like the woods, or bugs," Avery laughed. "She'll get over it."

Cheeky little girl, Lexa thought to herself. She wasn't as put off to the idea as her girlfriend, but she could see Clarke's side in it. While Lexa hadn't ever spent time out in the middle of nowhere, she'd spent a good amount of her life outdoors. With some of her foster homes, it was easier just to stay out of the house for as long as possible.

"She was talking about inviting your aunt Trish and her family too, so that could be fun."

"Yeah, aunt Trish said she took my dad camping a couple of times when he was little. She told me it was lots of fun for the two of them."

Lexa hadn't heard about that. She wondered briefly if Trish had told her this before or after Avery's desire to go. Maybe that was partially the driving force behind it. She'd have to talk to Clarke about it. If Avery was using it as a way to feel closer to her dad, then they'd have to go and make it a good experience for her.

Pulling into the parking lot of the station, Lexa got out of the car and met Avery at the front. She put a hand on Avery's shoulder and led her inside. "So, this is it," she waved a hand at the building.

"This is where you work?" Avery didn't know what to expect, but the brick building didn't seem that impressive, at least from the outside.

"Yep. Come on, it's better inside." Lexa could hear the tone in Avery's voice. It was the same one Clarke used when she was unimpressed. She opened the door and waited for the girl to go in ahead of her. She followed quickly and let the door fall shut behind her. She put both hands on Avery's shoulders and guided her towards the large desk in front of them. "This is our desk sergeant, Mindy. She knows pretty much everything that goes on in this building and likes to boss us around."

Mindy laughed at that description because it wasn't a lie. Mindy bent over the desk so that she was eye level with Avery. "She exaggerates. I give them their assignments. I wouldn't exactly call that bossing them around," she winked. "Sometimes they get treats when they behave, though."

"It's true. She makes some really good cookies."

"Best in the city," Mindy bragged. She pulled a tin from behind the desk and held it out to the young girl. "See for yourself."

Avery glanced at Lexa quickly before taking one. They weren't lying, it was a really good cookie. So soft and just the right amount of chocolate. "Yummy. Thank you."

"You're welcome. What's your name?"

"Avery."

"What brings you here to our station?"

"Lexa."

Mindy chuckled at that response. It was the truth she supposed. "How do you know our young Officer Woods?"

Avery shrugged. "My mom."

Lexa also couldn't help but laugh. It seemed that Avery was a little intimidated but the older woman. She could understand. She had been too when she first started here. "This here is Avery Griffin. She's my girlfriend Clarke's daughter."

Mindy smiled. "Oh, I've met your mom a few times. I can see the resemblance now."

"This is Avery's first time in D.C., so I thought I'd take her to a few of my favorite places while her mom ran some errands," Lexa explained. She had a decent relationship with the older woman and had, had a quite emotional talk with her after she'd come back from California.

They finished up their conversation and Lexa walked Avery further into the building. "Here's my desk. Although I don't spend a whole lot of time here, mostly just for the paperwork they force me to do."

Avery saw the little smirk on Lexa's face and giggled. She sat down in Lexa's chair and twirled it around several times. "At least the chair is fun, and comfy."

Lexa took over and twirled the chair several more times before stopping and helping a dizzy Avery back up. "Over here we have our locker room. We have several showers and dressing rooms. Sometimes people wear what we call 'street clothes' to work and have to change into their uniform when they get here. Sometimes, something on the job forces us to change or even shower."

"Like what?"

"Well, it was probably a month after I met your mom. I was escorting a drunk individual back to the station when he threw up all over me."

"EWW!" Avery squealed.

"Yeah, the really bad thing was that I had a hot date later that night." Lexa saw the smile on Avery's face even if she tried to look disgusted by her mom being called hot. "Lucky for me, I'm smart enough to have not only a spare uniform, but also a spare change of clothes in my locker, just in case."

Lexa led them both down the stairs towards more of their recreational areas. "Down here we have a small shooting range." She led her through a small observation area where Avery could look at the targets without being in the room.

"Can't we go in?"

"And let your mother kill me? Don't think so." There wasn't anyone currently using the range, but she still didn't like the idea of Avery being in that room and she was sure Clarke wouldn't either. This outer room was as far as she felt comfortable going.

"Further down this hallway we have the gym. That's where I usually prefer to spend my down time." She hadn't been big into working out until she'd joined the force. Just making it through training had been hard on her body. These days she felt like she was in great shape.

"I mostly use the treadmill. Being able to run long distances is a definite need in this job." There were a few of her fellow officers using the weightlifting machines when they entered.

"Well, looky who we have here," one of the men smugly sang.

"Shut it, Quint. Behave please," Lexa tried. She wasn't too fond of the guy. He was always so smart mouthed and superior.

"Didn't know you had a kid. No wonder you're so soft."

If Avery wasn't there, Lexa would have punched him right in the gut. Instead she held it in. "Not that it's any of your business. But Avery here is my girlfriend's daughter. I was just showing her around."

"Wanted to see a REAL cop, did she?" Quint pounded on his chest as if that proved his point.

"Oh knock it off," the other man in the room punched Quint in the shoulder. "Lexa's just as good a cop as you are. Better probably," he added. He turned and held a handout to the young girl. "Hi, I'm Gustus."

Avery hesitantly shook his hand. "I'm Avery."

"Well it's very nice to meet you Avery." Gustus showed Avery some of the equipment and told her how to use it. He even spotted her while she tried out the bench press. Although the bar alone was almost too heavy for her, she gave it her all.

"Not a whole lot more to see," Lexa led Avery back up the stairs so they could head out.

"Where's the jail cells?"

"We have a couple of holding cells, but they aren't that interesting I promise you," Lexa answered. "Come on, I got a place I'm sure you'll enjoy a lot more."

This time the drive was mostly silent as Avery looked at the stores as they passed by. Lexa pulled into a small lot and parked the car. She signaled for Avery to get out of the car and led her towards a small building with a bright blue door. Avery couldn't see from the outside what it was, but her jaw dropped when they made it through.

One day after her return home, Lexa had been missing her girls and found herself wandering the city when she'd stumbled upon this little hole in the wall store. It was filled to the brim with all kinds of books. Old ones and new ones, novels and picture books. All throughout the place there were bean bags and couches that looked so inviting.

"Whenever I'm missing you guys now, I come here. Knowing how much you and your mom love to read has gotten me picking up some books. The owners here are really nice. You don't have to buy anything, you can just come here and read to your hearts content if you want. They do a lot of business online, so they don't mind people just hanging out."

Of course, Lexa had purchased quite a few of the books she'd picked up, but she'd still read them here. There was something so calm and relaxing just being among all those books and the people who enjoyed them.

"Go ahead, look," Lexa waved her forward. "If you see anything you like, grab it."

Lexa watched as Avery practically skipped along the shelves, touching each and every book as if it was precious. She pulled a few out and found a spot on an empty bean bag and began skimming through them.

Lexa took a seat on the couch next to her and pulled out her phone to find a text from Clarke. The other woman had finished up the rest of her errands and was now on her way to the hospital to empty out her locker and wondered if they wanted to meet for lunch.

"Alright kiddo, pick out the three books you can't live without," Lexa told Avery. She knew that might be a little excessive, but she also knew it would be hard for Avery to even dwindle it down to only three.

"Are you serious?" The only time she ever got that many books at a time was for Christmas or her birthday. Not on a random weekend.

"Yep. Hurry so we can pay. We gotta meet your mom for lunch. She thought you might like to see her old hospital too."

It took Avery a good ten minutes to decide but they were soon on their way. At least Lexa knew her way around this hospital and easily found the cafeteria where Clarke said she'd meet up with them.

"Do I get to see where you guys met?" Avery asked as she shoveled some fries into her mouth.

Clarke laughed at Avery's excitement. She'd never get used to how much her daughter loved Lexa. She looked over to the other woman and placed a kiss on her cheek. She couldn't help herself. She was so glad to have found a love like Lexa's. "If the room isn't occupied, I suppose that could be arranged."

After they were done eating, Clarke showed Avery around the hospital much the same way Lexa had showed her around the station. They weren't able to show her the room where they met because it was occupied, but they shared the story again as they stood outside of it.

"Best day of my life," Lexa stated.

"Definitely up there, one of two for me," Clarke agreed. After all, Avery's birth was one of those for her. Even if she'd been scared out of her mind at the time.

As they left the hospital later that day, all three of them were feeling as if they were finally whole, as a family.