Upon National City
A/N: Oh hello! Good to see you all again. What a surprise this must be. :P It's only been like what, 3 years since I last posted something up? (Not to mention it's been 2 years since Supergirl ended and I only caught up watching it now. Lol). Better late than never, I suppose. Thank you all for your patience. I can't guarantee a regular posting schedule yet, but this is a start. Given my lengthy absence from the fanfiction world, my writing is no doubt rough around the edges. Bear with me, I'll get back into the groove soon enough.
Here we have another AU with Alex as Batwoman and Kara as Supergirl. Similar to the world in Drabble # 22: Black and Blue, this one is simply another world in the Multiverse, and not a mix mash from the Elseworlds debacle. In this world, Alex and Kara are not sisters, and neither of them know each other's identity outside of being a super hero.
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: She didn't have many friends, not in her line of work. But of the sparse few who did in fact put up with her, there was no one closer than a certain blonde haired, blue eyed Super. Alex & Kara. AU. Friendship/Family.
*** ~ Of Bats and Supers ~ ***
The city was quiet.
Scanning the various streets below, Alex coolly took in the sights from her perch atop the ledge of National City's tallest building, CatCo, for once enjoying the calm before the storm. Because really, there was always a storm when it came to places like this. National City was no exception. Whenever a hero watched over a city, you knew trouble was never far behind. Not to mention she was here, all dressed up in bat black, and it wasn't purely pleasure, that's for sure.
The whoosh of displaced air and the muted thud of boots.
"You're a long way from home."
Smirking at the familiarity of the voice, Alex glanced down at the oblivious city dwellers below before looking back over her shoulder to meet the gaze of her companion.
"I could have said the same last month," she said. "It's not every day a Super leaves her home town to go sightseeing, especially in a place like Gotham."
Supergirl chuckled at that comment, coming to stand next to Alex. The blonde rested her arms on the ledge as she too overlooked the city, inches away from Alex's booted feet.
"Had some business in the area," the Kryptonian said after a moment of silence. "Something I'm guessing you're here for now?"
A raised eyebrow.
"Something like that."
Last month, Gotham was host to one of the biggest conferences on the entire continent. All in the name of charity. Big names from all over the world attended the conference, one whose name and purpose had already escaped Alex. And of course, with so many big names in one place, what better a venue for some of Gotham's nastiest villains to rear their ugly heads.
Alex was more than ready for it, even with all the uncertainty surrounding the security for an event of that size. Bruce had been warning her about it since it was first announced after all, the two of them coming up with various contingencies for all sorts of situations. Yet as prepared as she was, she was completely blindsided when National City's resident Super showed up in the middle of the chaos (all of which she totally had under control, thank you very much) to offer her aid. Not one to look a gift Kryptonian in the mouth, Alex gladly accepted the assistance, and with the three of them combined, that had to be the fastest Heroes versus Villians fight in the history of Gotham City. And they caught all the bad guys to boot.
Since then, this type of thing became a common occurrence. That being the two of them inevitably meeting up each other when travelling abroad, usually in each other's cities for whatever the reason. To date, it had happened almost half a dozen times in a matter of months. Whether or not Alex had intentionally started seeking the other out now just because she could, well, that was up for debate.
"Are you the one I should be thanking for the foiled bank heist earlier tonight?" Supergirl asked, breaking Alex out of her thoughts.
"Bank heist?" Alex echoed, thinking back for the moment.
Going through her memories of earlier on in the day, Alex couldn't recall anything about a bank- Oh wait. There was that thing earlier. Something about being in her civvies while attending to some bank business when lo and behold a few thugs thought they could make some quick change. While she couldn't openly do something about it per se, there was a reason she kept a few spare Batarangs on hand at all times. One never knew when they found themselves in a tight spot after all. And a well thrown Batarang could do a lot of damage.
A smirk.
"I neither confirm nor deny such a thing happened," Alex said cheekily, earning her a chuckle from the alien next to her. Then the said alien reached under her cape, at the same time floating up to stand next to Alex on the ledge, a black and maroon Batarang held out to Alex to take.
"Ah," Alex said, amusement in her voice. "So that's where that one went."
Alex gratefully took her signature weapon back and slotted her wayward Batarang back into her holster, along with the others already on her person.
"Let me guess," Supergirl said. "That was your favorite one."
Alex smiled. "All of them are my favorite ones."
A wink.
Another chuckle.
"So what brings you this side of the world?" the Super asked, her gaze lingering over the city once more, the hero ever vigilant. "And don't tell me it's just to foil bank heists, because both you and I know you have more important things to be worrying about instead of street level thugs."
Knowing very well she wouldn't be left alone until she said at least something, Alex just shrugged, her cape fluttering in the wind.
"Got some business in the area," she said, much to chagrin of her present company.
"Business, huh?" Supergirl mused, raising an eyebrow at Alex.
"You know how it is," Alex said. "The less you know about it-"
"The better off I am," the blonde finished for her.
"Took the words right out of my mouth," Alex said, the corner of her lips quirking upwards.
"Ha, ha," was her reply.
Still feeling eyes on her, Alex turned to look at the Super, a curious express on the alien's face.
"Something wrong, Supergirl?"
The Super pursed her lips for a moment, causing Alex to raise an eyebrow at the blonde. Not that the other hero could actually see it without her x-ray vision, what with Alex's mask and all. Why Supergirl hadn't done so already was a mystery to Alex. Maybe it was an alien privacy thing. Not that Alex was complaining.
"It's just that…" Supergirl began.
"It's just..?" Alex repeated, genuinely curious.
"You're different," the Kryptonian eventually said. "From the other Bats."
A laugh.
"Why? Because I'm a woman?"
"No, no," Supergirl said, shaking her head. "You're not doing this as revenge or something like that. You're doing this almost as if you're looking for something."
Surprised by such insight, Alex turned her gaze back to the city below again.
"Not something," she said after a few seconds, Alex currently unsure why she was even entertaining the alien with her personal life story right now. "Someone."
"Who?"
A leather clad fist clenched at Alex's side.
"Someone important," she said. "And of no concern to you."
"Right, sorry," Supergirl quickly apologized, having realized she probably overstepped a boundary somewhere.
Alex felt bad, being short with the Kryptonian like that. She didn't have a lot of friends, not in her line of work. But of the sparse few who did in fact put up with her, there was no one closer than a certain blonde haired, blue eyed Super. But some things were still too raw for Alex to talk about, even decades after the event.
"Do you think they're still alive?" Supergirl asked.
"I certain hope so," Alex found herself saying without thinking. "If not…"
"If not?" the blonde echoed.
Alex swallowed down the lump which had suddenly formed in her throat.
"Then all of these years of searching were for nothing."
That had always been her greatest fear. The fact that all of these years searching could be for naught. That all of her hoping was for nothing. That in the end, he was already gone, and she wasted all of this time thinking otherwise. If that is how it ended, Alex would be crushed. So much of her life would have been wasted on nothing but ghosts and whispers.
A hand on her shoulder.
Glassy brown eyes darted to meet compassionate blue ones.
"I think they're still alive," Supergirl said, a small smile on her face. "And if you ever need any help, just let me know and I'll be over in a jiffy."
A beaming smile.
Alex blinked in surprise for a moment before laughing.
"Over in a jiffy?" she said, thankful for the change in subject so to speak. "Who says that anymore?"
"Hey now!" Supergirl said, pouting. "What's wrong with that saying? I like it!"
Alex chuckled again, the tears blinked away.
"While I appreciate the sentiment," Alex said, unable to hold the smile back on her face. "I can manage on my own. Thank you, though."
Reaching into one of her belt pouches, Alex pulled out a small device and playfully tossed it at the Super who caught it easily. It was the size of a small flip phone and looked about the same. Though if one looked hard enough, they could make out a distinct logo on the casing. And it may or may not have had better encryption than the US military and government combined, meaning no unexpected eavesdroppers during a call. But Alex didn't mention that detail.
"While we are on the topic of offering help," Alex began, giving a nod to the communicator in Supergirl's hand. "If you ever needed mine, you now know how to reach me."
"This certainly beats having to fly over to Gotham every time I need to speak with you," Supergirl said, Alex giving her a smile.
"It certainly does," Alex said, watching as the Kryptonian pocketed the device… wherever her suit had pockets on it. "Unfortunately though, should you require an in-person visit, it's going to take me a bit longer to get over here. You know, not all of us has been blessed super speed and flight capabilities after all."
"That's too bad," Supergirl said. "Those do really come in handy."
"I bet."
"You know," the Super said. "If I ever had a sister, I think I would want to her be like you."
"Like me?" Alex said in surprise. "Why like me?"
"You've got that cool, badass big sister vibe going on," the blonde replied back, much too cheerily than Alex thought possible. "I like it. It's cool."
"Badass?" Alex echoed. "Are you even allowed to swear?"
"What?" Supergirl frowned. "What do you mean am I allowed to swear? I'm an adult I'll have you know! And adults swear a lot."
Alex laughed.
"It's just that, you know, that whole Truth, Justice, and the American Way thing? I don't recall swearing being included in that."
"Hey now!" the Kryptonian protested. "Just because people say I'm all that doesn't mean I can't swear!"
"So you mean it wouldn't be a problem if I dropped off this recording to CatCo Magazine for their next issue?"
"What!?" Supergirl squawked, visibly surprised. "You've been recording me?"
"Can you imagine the headlines?" Alex continued, motioning with her hand in front of her as if reading a title off a billboard. "Potty Mouth Supergirl Caught on Tape!"
A laugh.
"Oh what a scandal that would be!"
"You wouldn't!" Supergirl exclaimed, her eyes wide in horror.
"You sure about that?"
At the sound of sirens, both of them paused to look at the source for a few seconds before turning back to each other again.
"Up, up and away?" Alex said.
"Seems so," Supergirl replied, wistful almost.
"You sound like you don't even want to go," Alex said, her head tilted to the side as she watched the strugging alien.
"Would you believe me if I said I don't?"
Alex's eyebrows shot up, no words coming to mind at that admission.
"I know, I know," the Kryptonian said. "That's pretty bad of me to say. I mean, this is my city and all. But..."
"But?" Alex echoed, quite curious as to what was going through her companion's mind. All joking aside, Alex really did care about the blonde, more than anyone knew. More than even perhaps she realized herself.
"This is nice," Supergirl said with a small, shy smile. She waved back and forth between the both of them. "It's nice to be able to talk to someone about these superhero problems without having to worry about protecting my identity or protecting myself because the same person I'm talking to will use it against me."
"Who says I won't?" Alex asked, playing devil's advocate. Not that she would actually do anything of the sort. Just the thought of doing such a thing, any kind of malicious thing, to one of the kindest, sweetest people she knew, made her sick to her stomach. There was already too many bad people in this world. Everyone would be better off if there were more people like Supergirl around, alien or otherwise.
"As I said before," Supergirl said without missing a beat. "You're not like the other Bats. I don't believe you're that type of person. And I'm a pretty good judge of character, if I do say so myself."
Alex merely shrugged at that statement, though secretly she was flattered. That was high praise coming from a fellow superhero. Their methods may have been different, but Supergirl's heart was in the right place. And for her to suggest the same about her, well, it meant so much to Alex, more than the Kryptonian could ever know.
At the sound of more sirens joining in the fray, both of their gazes diverted to the sounds once more, Alex smiling slightly.
"I think you should get that," she said, reluctant herself.
"Yeah," said her present company with a small nod. "See you around again?"
Another laugh.
"No promises," Alex said. "But hey, that never stopped us from running into each other before, has it?"
A beaming smile.
"No," Supergirl said. "No it hasn't."
A/N: A bit more of a laid back kind of chapter, but considering I haven't written much over the last few years, I though it better to ease myself back into writing slowly at first. :) Not to mention, I always though the show could use more small moments like this in between all the major stuff going on, fights, etc.
In case it wasn't clear, the person Alex is searching for is her father, Jeremiah Danvers. Like much of the show, he is missing.