She groans under her breath still attempting to sooth out the sting in her hand from all the paperwork not so helpful Pam in HR had, had her fill out even with J'onn's attempts to have the process sped up once Alex had called about bringing Brooks by to get her new dog acquainted with the sights, sounds, smell and general running of the DEO.
"How is it I'm more nervous about this than you seem to be?" Alex sighed her gaze lowering from the slowly ticking numbers as the elevator continues the even slower rise towards the more main floor to the quietly waiting dog at her side. CJ held gingerly between his teeth as the elevator moved Books looks up to give one of his seemingly endlessly smug puppy grins in quiet answer as his tail thumped lazily against the ground.
"Can bring the doggie out of Gotham but not the Gotham out of the dog huh Brookie?" Alex muses reaching her free hand down to card her fingers through the dog's scruff. The human taking Brook's choosing that moment to give a hard shake out of his coat in agreement with the question the half second before the elevator door pinged open.
The hub was just as alive as she remembered as she guides Brooks toward the more main cluster of monitors.
A few of the already working agents paused to offer believable "Welcome back Agent Danvers" greetings or at least give her a friendly smile or a brief incline of their head in silent recognition when she'd catch more than a few of her fellow agents quietly appraising her as she passed. Brooks surprisingly seeming the picture of ease with it all for his first time visiting as he pads along beside her.
Not the full 'hero welcome' she'd witnessed with her father and for that she was grateful.
Maybe she was pushing herself just a little farther than she should coming back officially ie in full tactical gear when everyone important would know she was still reassigned to the more 'non- field' related cases nor would she be allowed near any of the growing number of 'detainees' still awaiting relocation to one of the other DEO holdings but she'd missed the grounding air of control the sleek black garments gave her.
In her defense with Maggie's helpful notes in Brooks's adoption papers saying how her clever pup had already been through a few obedience classes at the shelter between his previous failed placements in finding a stable home means that Alex hadn't been able to use finding a class of her own as a valid reason to keep herself from going back to work.
She had to admit even she was shocked at just how well Brooks seemed to be with everything. The move. The adoption. The small rollercoaster of Alex's water-based panic attack flair-ups the last few days alone. Now here he was as cool as ever smack in the middle of the DEO acting as if he'd been here a hundred times as he gingerly set CJ down between his paws for another curious look around the place.
True this was an unusually quiet morning Alex reminds as the general buzz of her second home washed over her yet not even that seemed to phase the animal at her side as she watches Brooks's head tilt curiously at the sudden sounds of closing footsteps on the hub's newly polished floor making the tread squeak as whoever was wearing them drew closer. Brooks scooted a little closer against Alex's leg with a low warning growl as she too turned to see who it was.
"Okay just in time to straighten up the desk a little more before the new NCPD….ohhh erm uh hi their dog." Brooks gives a louder sound of warning as he once again planted himself between Alex and the unknown stranger. "Oh okay. Protective doggie. Got cha." Brooks sits back down but the mistrust lingers in the dog's eyes "Don't worry pup I'm just trying to get to my desk not give your person a paper cut or something." Winn assures shifting a few more of the files in his arms into a surer hold to notice the amused Alex standing plainly beside the dog in question. "Wait why is there a dog here?" Winn asks to no one in particular then seems to finally notice the human the dog was with "I'm sorry Miss but how'd you even get….A—Alex?"
The quick succession of comments earning a genuine smile as Alex's fingers slide in a reassuring scratch along Brooks's head quieting his untrusting grumblings with a calming brush of her hand behind one of his ears. "Agent Schott." She answers her tone as cool as ever yet her smile eases some of the surprised tension of the approaching man's shoulders.
"Oh, my, Alex. Hey." Winn stammered quickly dropping the files he'd been attempting to read over as he'd returned to his desk in favor of pulling his newly returned friend in for a hug.
The embrace does stall quickly however once his relief-filled mind caught up with his movements making his arms freeze midair as he takes a panicked glance around the still very much alive DEO hub.
"Come on Schott bring it in." Alex snickered in a low tone as she closed the separating distance for him. She truly had missed him and his annoying younger brother antics in her time away.
Brooks gives a soft huff from somewhere towards her knee making her glance down to see him looking from one to the other of them with expectant eyes as he leaned in against her leg.
"Brooks this is Winn, Winn, Brooks." Alex introduces reaching down to once again run her fingers over the top of the waiting dog's head. "He's a good one. We can trust him."
"I swear even Kara's zillion pictures don't do this handsome pup any justice." Winn gushed earning yet another half-smile from Alex in quiet agreement as Winn kneels more to Brooks's level whilst being respectful of the unspoken 'dog on the job' rule as he gives the dog a more scrutinizing appraisal.
"Don't even." Alex says reading the quiet calculations buzzing around in the crouching man's gaze.
"I didn't say anything." Winn defends glancing up to meet her appraising gaze.
Alex rolls her eyes at the comeback as her arms crossed loosely over her chest. "You didn't need to. I know you Schott" the returned agent reasons "He's mine. If you want one of your own go adopt for yourself."
"I've looked into it actually but lucky for the strays of the city our shelters are running low on options." Winn confessed, "I'm guessing also a reason you picked Gotham of all places to find this handsome boy here."
Even Brooks huffed at that, but Alex did see that the rescue sat up a little straighter at the praise. "So go in then." She coaxes with a smile at the lazy thought happy wagging of Brooks's tail.
Winn blinks up at her bashful now as the dog slowly noses over the prized toy it had also been guarding toward him "W—what do you mean?" he asks in quiet awe at the show of apparent trust once he remembered Kara's helpful explanation about the importance of the stitched up plushy cat.
"I assume you've already made up some kind of tactical gear for him." Alex says holding out a hand to help the already-rising computer genius back to his feet "and if you haven't then what the hell Schott? Brooks is family now after all and we protect our own." Brooks's tail thumps a little harder against her ankle at her words as he too stands back to his full four-legged height.
"I mean I may have…" Winn stammers rubbing a hand against the back of his neck "I'll need to make some minor…" he follows as he looks once again down at the dog at his friend's side, but Alex with Brooks close beside her with CJ once again held gingerly but securely between the padding dog's teeth was already walking towards Winn's allowed work room with a teasing. "Well come on" call over her shoulder.
"You're damned right I'm filming this. This is a Danvers milestone." Alex defends looking up from capturing the adorableness of her dog being fitted for his first set of tactical gear to see Brooks making yet another happy spin turn atop the table.
"Brooks buddy I know your excited, but you also have to stay so Winn can finish up, okay?" Alex sighs reaching out to therapeutically straighten the familiar fabric of the harness fitted over her dog's back and chest. The dog gives a strained-sounding whimper at the command even when he obediently sits down because of it. His gaze once again fixed on the workshop door as his tail wagged even harder in obvious anticipation.
Alex glances towards Winn as if for an explanation not that one would be easy what with Winn currently scrutinizing something delicate looking at a side table whilst holding a screwdriver between his teeth as he worked. Not that Alex will admit aloud she melted a little more inside once Winn offered to make CJ her own smaller vest from the few scrapped swatches of Brooks's new harness.
"Looking sharp there Brooksie, boy."
Alex's heart spins out against her ribs in surprise as along with her nearly ankle-snapping spin turn toward the door Brooks bounds off the tabletop at Maggie's teasing opener.
"Sawyer," Alex gapes trying and miserably failing to regain her composure "You're here."
"I told you I'd been seeing you around, Danvers." Maggie reminds as she halfheartedly fends off Brooks's excited kisses as he snuggled up against her. "Missed you too Brook, Brook." Maggie promised pressing a kiss to the wet nose of the dog attempting to bawl her over as his excitement at seeing her again.
"Those are some really nice threads for a fed working a paper-pushing job, Danvers."
Alex feels a blush heating her cheeks at the other woman's assessing gaze before Winn's mumbled curse draws them back to the other human occupant of the space.
"Crap you're here already." Winn panics only to smile when Brooks helpfully picks up the fallen screwdriver for him as the humans talk among themselves.
"At ease Schott. I've got her." Alex waves off
"You got me?"
Maybe it was the way the words were said, maybe it was the subtle raising of Maggie's eyebrow or the had-to-be-mistaken swooning look Alex was still debating she caught it before she blinked, and it was gone as she forced her equally jellied legs to carry her the separating distance to Maggie's side.
"You're in my world now Sawyer, so yes I've got you." Alex says far surer of herself than the hummingbird speed of her heart would have her believing at the shy smile Maggie gives in return.
"I guess I can live with that." Maggie sighs with a giggled laugh when Brooks makes a hurried skidded sit back at her side. CJ once again held in his muzzle as he meets her eyes.
"Detective Sawyer is our new go-between with the NCPD." J'onn clarifies from behind the flushed cop. "Take over showing her around the place alright Danvers, Supergirl needs backup uptown."
"Of course, sir."