A/N: Thank you for the reviews.

Jennifer Baratta - Thanks!

"You okay?" Eliza asked as she joined her granddaughter on the beach

"I can't help thinking it was my fault."

"What was?"

"What happened with mom. I mean if I hadn't been so hard on her, maybe she could have fought off whatever Malaise did to her."

"What happened was not your fault. And you were attacked too." Eliza said wrapping an arm round her granddaughter and pulling her towards her. For a moment Kara said nothing before saying, her voice laced with sadness.

"I've been fighting with mom so much recently."

"Your mom knows you love her." Eliza said hugging her as they heard a car.

Immediately recognising the car Kara asked her grandmother.

"Did you know they were coming?"

"No." She said seeing three teens get out of the car.

Confused the teenage Kara and Eliza walked towards the driveway.

-00-

"Mom!" MJ said jumping out of the car before hugging her. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She said hugging him trying not to move her ribs. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to see you." He said. "Plus from what Diz heard it sounded like Kara was screwed too."

"Your sister is okay." Alex said. She then looked at Diz and said. "She's on the-"

"I'm here." The teen said approaching with Eliza, as the teenage Alex made a beeline for her mother.

"Let's go inside." The adult Alex said. "There's a lot to talk about."

"Are you going to jail?" MJ asked as he walked with his mother.

"No." Alex assured him.

"You sure?" He asked.

"I'm sure." Alex replied.

"Should you be in hospital?"

"I'm fine." She said as they entered the lounge. "Have a seat."

"Are you sure you aren't going to jail?"

"Just sit down." Alex said nodding to the other teens to do the same.

"Do you want me to go?" Diz offered.

"No, this involves you too." Alex said causing Diz to frown before sitting next to his girlfriend.

"I am pretty sure you have figured out most of what happened." Alex said.

"You were made to drink and had a car crash." MJ summarised.

"Yeah, but what wasn't covered in that summary was I had an encounter with a man." She said showing the teens a photo. "This man, he's a meta called Malaise. He gets inside people's heads and makes them have dark thoughts or relive their nightmares. He got to me and he got to Kara. He may come after the rest of you. So you need to watch out for him." Alex explained.

"You okay?" Diz asked the teenage Kara as he squeezed her hand.

"Yeah, J'onn undid what he did. Sorry I've been weird." She said as MJ looked at his mother and asked.

"Where have you been?"

"When?"

"Leading up to the accident you were gone all the time. You'd come back late. Where were you?"

"I was working."

"No you weren't. If you were aunt Kara would have known where you were." MJ pressed.

"Your mom was an idiot and tried investigating something by herself." The older Kara jumped in. "And that let her become an easy target."

"Investigating what?" MJ asked.

"That's not the point." Alex said.

"Might be." Her sister countered.

"Or not." Alex said.

"Or it might be. There was a reason you started to investigate." The teenage Kara said wondering what it was her mother was trying to hide.

"Yes there was, but right now that is unimportant." Alex said.

"Don't we deserve the truth?" The teenage Kara asked.

"Yes." The older Kara said causing her sister to stare back at her. After a minute of silent looks, eye brow lifting and head motioning Alex finally gave in.

"Fine." Alex sighed. She then looked at Diz and said. "A few weeks ago Wildcat saw some of your old gang hanging out round the gym. He thought they are trying to start a new gang and fill the void left by Kai. I was trying to figure out what they were up to and if they were connected to anything else we were investigating."

"You thought I was involved?" Diz asked.

"No." Both sisters said. Before the older Kara said. "She was trying to protect you." She then muttered. "In a really stupid way."

"The point is, you could be a target." Alex said looking at Diz. "So be careful."

-00-

"Hey." Kara said as she sat down next to her daughter on the beach. "You okay?"

"Yes." The teen said looking round.

"Sorry I haven't been round much."

"Alex needed you." The teen said.

"So do you. How are you doing with everything?"

"I'm fine." The teen shrugged before throwing a stick for Chewie who scampered off to get it. She then looked at her mother and asked. "Do you trust Frax?"

"I guess. I mean he did save you."

"Can you promise not to freak out?" The teen asked.

"Probably not." Kara replied honestly. "Wait have you seen him here?" She asked looking round.

"No."

"Then what is?"

"Can I see him again?"

"Of course." Kara said.

"You sure?" The teen asked.

"If that is what you want, of course. Why would I freak out?"

"You freak out at everything." Her daughter pointed out.

-00-

"You need to sleep." Eliza said as she joined her eldest on the porch.

"That's kind of hard right now."

"I thought J'onn had helped?"

"He has, it's not that. He attacked Kara and I had no idea. He got so close to me and I didn't know and he could have done anything. What if I had hurt the kids?"

"You didn't." Eliza reminded her.

"But I could have." Alex said.

"All the more reason not to work alone." Eliza pointed out as the door opened as the teenage Kara stepped out.

"Hi Sweetie." Eliza greeted as Alex asked.

"Everything okay?"

"Just checking on you." The teen said.

"I'll give you some space." Eliza said standing. "Don't stay up too late." She added before heading inside. Once she was gone the teenage Kara sat next to her mother and said.

"I'm sorry."

"For what?" Alex asked.

"How I've been treating you. You were trying to help Diz and I just gave you grief."

"You don't need to apologise. I was just as much to blame." Alex said. "But I need you to promise me something."

"What?"

"No matter how mad you are with me, and no matter how busy you think I am, I need you to tell me that things aren't right. Like you having nightmares."

"Okay." The teen agreed before asking. "What's going to happen to you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Are you going to get arrested?"

"I already told you and your brother no." Alex answered.

"Yeah, but you have been lying to us for weeks."

"The video J'onn found was enough to prove what happened wasn't my fault." Alex assured her.

"Good. But are you going to be okay?"

"I'll be fine. But I need you to be careful."

-00-

"Why didn't you say something or ask for help?" Kara asked as she sat next to her sister on the beach the next day.

"You were dealing with too much." Alex reminded her. "Besides it wasn't exactly DEO business was it?"

"But it was family business." Kara reminded her. "You should have told me."

"I know. But ... It was like I felt I had to do it alone. That asking for help would have proved how worthless I was."

"You're not worthless." Kara said.

"Thank you. And I'm sorry."

"I don't want you to apologise. I want you to not do it again." Kara pointed out. Instead of addressing the comment Alex suddenly said.

"I've had enough."

"Of what?" Kara asked concerned.

"Being weak, being a victim."

"Alex, you're not weak. He messed with your mind for weeks. He was trying to break you and he didn't." Kara reminded her.

"He was only able to mess with my mind because of how messed I was. He didn't create self doubt he played on what was already there." She then paused before confessing. "Ever since Kel died I have felt unworthy."

"Of what?"

"Living. It should have been me in the car not Kel. I should be dead not her. But I'm done with it. I'm not going to let my fears and guilt plague me anymore. I am not going to sit back and let life happen to me. I'm going to live. But to do that I need your help."

"Always."

"And I might need you to show me the right path, because after what he did to Kara I am so angry and I might do something stupid."

"I'll keep you honest." Kara said.

"Good. Then we need to get back to National City."