"Where's Alex?" The adult Alex asked when her sister entered her house alone a few days later.
"With J'onn, they are trying to figure out powers." Kara explained. "Apparently I was in the way."
"I'm sure Alex didn't mean that." Her sister said.
"It was J'onn who said it." Kara replied.
"Oh, well then you probably were in the way." Alex said unsympathetically.
"So can I hang out here?" Kara asked.
"You are always welcome here." Alex reminded her. "Have you eaten yet?"
"Only if you count salad as food."
"Alex cooked tonight?" Her sister guessed.
"Salad isn't cooking." Kara said. "But yes Alex was in charge of food. I so need to learn how to cook."
"How did you survive out there. I mean Alex could only take over cooking duties when she was what, ten?"
"Actually she volunteered to help cook from when she was six. At the time I told myself she wanted to spend time with me. I may have been fooling myself."
"You think?" The adult Alex asked amused.
"Your cooking skills are worse than mine."
"Barely." Alex countered.
"Still worse. How did you feed your kids?"
"Kelly always used to do the cooking. Something about wanting nutritious meals for the kids. Plus she thought smoke inhalation was bad from them." She added pausing as she lost herself in the memory. Coming back to the present she asked. "So pizza or potstickers?"
"I think you said the wrong word in there." Kara said.
"So pizza and potsticker." Alex said picking up her tablet and placing the order. "Okay, they should be here in forty minutes and thirty five minutes."
"So all we need worry about now is dessert." Kara grinned as she moved over to the couch.
"You know it is just us? I mean Kara and MJ are out so there is no one to help eat the food."
"I don't need help." Kara pointed out as Alex sat next to her. As she sat she asked. "How are you doing?"
"How do you mean?"
"There has been so much going on recently all your problems have taken a back seat."
"I'm fine."
"So no more panic attacks?" Kara asked.
"I'm okay." Alex said.
"See that wasn't a no." Kara pointed out.
"You have enough on your plate without worrying about me."
"I'm always going to worry about you, just like you worry about me." Kara countered.
"Always, but I'm okay." Alex said. "I still have bad moments, which can turn into bad days. But I'm getting there."
"You know you don't have to go through those bad days alone?" Kara asked.
"I do."
"Really? Because you have not told me about any bad days recently."
"Recently it has been more bad moments, rather than days. They pass quickly." Alex said. "What about you? You still worried about Fels' family."
"I'm trying not to." Kara replied. "There is so much to worry about now, like that and Red K and Lobo. Maybe everyday should have one thing assigned to it to worry about."
"Has Lena been giving you advice?"
"No. Why?"
"That sounds very compartmentalised. Just like Lena's box strategy."
-00-
"Good session guys." Wildcat said as the teenage Kara pulled off her gloves. He then looked at the teenager and said. "Watch your form, when you get tired you favour your right side too much. Next time we'll work on your core."
"Okay." The teen agreed as Grant's phone rang. As he went to his bag and read his message he looked round the gym and called over Kara's sparring parter.
"Hey Diz, you've got your car?"
"Yes." The older teen said.
"Something's come up can you drive Kara home?"
"I can walk home by myself." Kara pointed out.
"I don't need that hassle." Grant said.
"What hassle?" Kara asked.
"Of your mom finding out I let you walk home."
"I can take her." Diz agreed.
-00-
"I'm stuffed." The adult Kara said.
"I'm not surprised." Alex replied carrying the empty boxes to the kitchen. "One thing I do know is your appetite is back at normal levels."
"Seeing my daughter is on a constant health drive I need to get the calories when I can." Kara said joining her sister in the kitchen.
"So you're blaming Alex?" The older Alex said as bright lights shone through the window. Looking out and seeing an old car she didn't recognise she asked. "Who is that? Wait is Kara in that death trap of a car?" She then headed to the front door and walked out onto the drive way.
"Hi mom." Kara said getting out of the car.
"Kara." Alex said looking suspiciously at the driver.
"This is Diz." Her daughter said.
"Diz?" Alex asked.
"Short for Dizzy." Her daughter said.
"Your parents named you Dizzy?" Alex asked glaring at the boy.
"No. The Los Zetas did."
"The Los Zetas? You're in a gang?" Alex asked.
"Was. Grant got me out."
"But you still use Diz?"
"You can call me Alonso. Alonso Lopez." He said unable to take Alex's glare anymore
"Why are you here?"
"Ted insisted he brought me home." Kara said stepping in.
"I should go." Diz said. "I'll see you Friday." He added looking at Kara.
"See you Friday." Kara smiled as he drove off.
"Friday?" Alex asked as they went back into the house.
"My next lesson." The teenager said. "Why are you being so weird?"
"Because you are hanging out with a gang member."
"Former gang member." Kara said walking upstairs.
"Why is it that whenever I think I am making progress, something like this happens?" Alex asked walking back into the lounge. "Kara is hanging out with gang members."
"I heard." Her sister said. "And technically it is one former gang member." She added trying to calm her down, but as her sister glared she asked. "Oh, is this one of the times you vent and I just nod my head?"
"Yes." Alex said sitting down next to her.
-00-
"Grant, why the hell did you set my daughter up with a gang member." The adult Alex asked storming into the DEO training area.
"What?" He asked looking up at Alex.
"Alonso." Alex said.
"Who? Oh you mean Diz? I asked him to drive her home not sl- not date her. But he's a good guy."
"He's a gang member."
"He was in a gang. He's out."
"There's no such thing." Alex countered.
"It's rare. But it has been more common recently. Something we have the Kai gang to thank for. They broke up a lot of the other city gangs on their rise to power."
"He wasn't recruited by Kai?" Alex asked.
"Didn't meet their requirements." Grant said before explaining. "He's a meta. That's why he has the name Dizzy."
"What?" Alex asked confused.
"He can make people dizzy. It's like you have vertigo. I get why you're cynical, but he's a good kid. I wouldn't have him in my gym and I wouldn't let him live with me if he wasn't. Plus I am pretty sure Kara isn't his type."
-00-
"Why are you still here?" Cat asked walking through the office late that day.
"I'm just trying to get to the bottom of this." Kara said.
"This?"
"What happened with Sloane Syndicate. Did they really stop? Who is behind them? Where did they go?" Kara listed.
"You have found no trace of them in National City?"
"No. It's like they just disappeared. Or at least I think they have. I have found so much weird stuff happening it is hard to work out of they have gone. But the stuff I am finding doesn't seem Sloane like."
"Maybe you are asking the wrong question." Cat said. "Have you ever wondered why there are so many criminals here? I mean if you were going to doing something illegal would you choose to do it in a city which has Supergirl as a protector?"
"No."
"Yet National City seems to have more arrests than most cities. The answer is because you search for the bad. And when you do you will find it." Cat said before seeing Kara's blank look and adding. "If you focus your search in National City you will find something, just maybe not what you are looking for. If nothing is being revealed easily maybe they relocated. If they did you just need to change where you are looking."
-00-
"Sorry I'm late." Kara said when she finally returned home.
"It's fine." Her daughter said looking up from her homework.
"Why aren't you over the road?"
"Kara has a test she is studying for and MJ has practice." The teenager explained.
"You didn't want to hang out with your friends?" Kara asked.
"Friends?"
"Like Martin."
"Steve is working days this week so Martin can spend time with him after school."
"So it's just us tonight?" Kara asked.
"Yes."
"Have you eaten?"
"Not yet. I was waiting for you." The teen said.
"Do you want to go out then?" Kara offered.
"Do you have time?"
"Of course I do." Kara said. "But to be clear you aren't picking the restaurant." She said as her phone rang. "Give me a moment." She said to her daughter as she answered the phone. "Hi Vasquez … No I haven't … Okay, I'll be right there." She said ending the call and looking at her daughter. "Sorry, I have to go."
"It's okay."
"Order take out if there isn't anything to eat in the apartment." Kara said before changing into Supergirl and flying off.
-00-
"What have we got?" Supergirl asked landing by the DEO squad.
"Giant fanged alien." One of them said. "It appears to have armour, that we can't get through."
"Anything else?"
"Its drool is toxic." Another Agent said.
"Okay. Leave it to me." Supergirl said.
"It's also really aggressive." Another Agent warned.
"Do you know what species it is?"
"It didn't give us a business card." One of the Agents said as another one jumped in.
"No ma'am, they are searching the database back at HQ, but no hits yet."
"Okay, I'll go look." Supergirl said flying off as another DEO squad drove towards the first.
Landing in front of the alien Supergirl said.
"I need you to stop."
In response the alien growled and dribbled even more saliva, which hissed when it hit the ground. It then turned and a giant spiky tail whipped round and nearly hit Supergirl, who dodged at the last minute.
"They could have mentioned the tail." Supergirl muttered before looking round for something to restrain the alien with.
"Supergirl." Vasquez said over the phone.
"Yeah."
"The alien is heading straight for the hospital. We can't evacuate."
"Understood."
"Echo team have a new restraint technology with them. You should be able to use it."
"Okay." Supergirl said before quietly adding. "Got to get to it first."
Stepping out in front of the drooling alien again she said. "I need you to stop. We can do this the easy way where you just give up." The suggestion causing the tail to whip round again.
"That would be a no then." Supergirl said as members of echo team ran towards her.
"Here." One of them said. "If you can wrap it round him it should restrain him."
"Sounds easy enough." Supergirl said taking the device and flying towards the alien, moving quick enough that the restraint was around it before it realised what was happening. However, while the arms and torso were locked in place its tail still swished and it kept drooling. As the saliva hit the restraint there was more hissing and the device melted away.
"Well that's not going to work." Supergirl commented before evading the tail once more. However, two of the DEO agents that had closed in on the alien were not so lucky and were knocked to the ground. As the alien approached them Supergirl tried to get its attention by treading on its tail. A tactic that worked and the enraged alien turned to face her. As it did so she asked over the radio.
"Any gadgets that are drool proof?" Before there was a response the alien whipped its tail at her once more. This time she caught it and used it to spin him round like a hammer. As she released it he flew into the side of a building and passed out.
Suddenly several DEO agents swarmed round it and used various restraints on it, including one that forced its mouth shut. As they secured the alien Supergirl approached the two fallen Agents who were moaning on the ground.
"You two okay?"
"No." They moaned.
-00-
"What happened?" Alex asked as she saw one restrained prisoner and two DEO agents being wheeled through the corridors.
"He escaped and they got in the way. Sorry." Supergirl said.
"It's not your fault." Alex said before asking. "What was that alien?"
"No idea, never seen anything like that." Supergirl said. "But it was dangerous."
"You okay?" Alex asked.
"I'm fine. What are you doing here?"
"As soon as it looked like the hospital was in danger I was called in." Alex said. "I need to check on some things, but after that you want to go for a post save snack?"
"Yes, but I should get back. I kinda abandoned Alex."
"Okay, but make sure you eat."
"Of course." She smiled. "Do you need me for anything else?"
"No. Go home." Alex said.
-00-
When Kara got home she found the apartment was silent. Turning on a light she saw a note on the table. Picking it up she read the note, that was written in an alien language.
"I got tired so I went to bed. I made dinner for you, it's in the fridge. Love you."
Heading to the fridge she found the food Alex had left for her. But seeing the amount of green on the plate she decided to grab some cookies instead. As she bit into the first cookie she heard some scratching and she turned to see Chewie scampering towards her.
"Were you made to eat vegetables too?" She asked quietly so not to wake Alex, before grabbing a dog treat and giving it to him. "I expect that to buy your silence." She said eating another cookie. Once Chewie had finished the treat he looked at Kara who again passed him another one before asking. "Want to help me research Sloane Syndicate?"