"Morning." Eliza called as Kara and the teenage Alex entered the house the next morning.
"Hi." Kara greeted as Alex bent down and picked up Chewie.
"Don't worry, he has been well fed." Eliza assured her granddaughter.
"Thanks." The teen said as her two cousins thumped down the stairs.
"Hi, bye." The teenage Kara said entering the kitchen, grabbing a slice of toast and leaving moments before her brother entered and took the remaining four slices and left the room without saying anything.
"Have a good day." Kara said kissing her daughter goodbye.
"I will. Bye." She said following her cousins out of the house.
"You okay? You look a little tired." Eliza commented to Kara wen the children were gone.
"Yeah, I didn't sleep well last night. I was having really weird dreams and then Alex had nightmares."
"Perhaps you should take the morning off?"
"Are you ill?" Alex asked frowning entering the kitchen.
"No, just tired." Kara said. "But I am okay."
"You sure?" Alex asked.
"Guys. I'm fine. I was probably just worried about tonight."
"Tonight?" Eliza questioned.
"Fels's parents are meeting us."
"Is that a good idea?" Alex asked. "I mean don't you want a few more days to get over what happened?"
"I can't put them off forever. Besides Frax's warning about them has already made me worried. I'd rather get it over with."
"Do you want backup?"
"No, we'll be fine." Kara said before adding. "I hope. But can you look after this little guy again?" She asked stroking Chewie's head.
"Of course." Eliza said. "When are you meeting them?"
"After school."
"So comfort food on standby?" Alex asked.
"Yes."
-00-
"Ma'am we have found something." Harris said entering Alex's office.
"What is it?"
"The team were doing a wider sweep round the building where Tycho was keeping the molten Kryptonite and your antidote and we found a grave about one hundred yards away. It contained sixteen bodies."
"It may not be connected." Alex said. "It is probably a good dumping ground for the mob."
"True but they managed to get prints from two of the bodies in the field and they were known associates of Utkin. And that's not the only thing. A lot of the bodies seem to have had their heads ripped off." He said showing Alex another photo.
"Get those bodies to the desert facility and get a full autopsy done."
"Yes ma'am."
-00-
As Kara and the teenage Alex reached the trio Frax turned to the older couple at his side and spoke in an alien language. He then turned to Alex and Kara, pressed a button on his arm and said in English.
"These are my parents."
"It's nice to meet you." Kara smiled.
"This is the daughter?" The man said looking at Alex, ignoring Kara in the process.
"This is Alex, your granddaughter." Kara confirmed.
"Salkor died before Alex was born?" The man asked.
"Yes. Alex never had the chance to meet him, but Frax has been telling us about him." Kara smiled.
"Have you taught her anything of Dakran?" The man asked Kara.
"Not really. I didn't know where Salkor was from until recently."
The comment causing the grandparents to hit the buttons on their sleeves and start speaking to each other in an alien language until Frax cut in causing them to turn back to Kara and Alex.
"Frax has been teaching Alex since he arrived." Kara added.
"Seeing this is an opportunity to get to know Alex I am sure you have questions." Frax said to his parents who once again hit the button on their sleeves.
"Indeed." The mother said in English before turning to Alex and saying. "Tell me about yourself. Have you always lived on Earth?"
"No. We came almost a year ago." Alex said.
"And before that?" The grandmother asked causing Alex to summarise her childhood.
Once she was done there were more discussion in the Dakranian tongue before the grandfather looked at Kara and said.
"Alex deserves more than you gave her." The accusation hitting Kara like a slap in the face.
The comment causing Frax to say something to his parents in their native tongue. However he was cut off by a glare from his mother.
Alex was about to say something when Kara put her hand on her shoulder.
"You're right." Kara said. "Alex did deserve more. And I will always regret not being able to provide more for her. As I'm sure …. it doesn't matter."
"If you have thoughts speak." The grandmother said.
"It's fine." Kara said.
"In that case we must deal with correcting your mistakes."
"Excuse me?" Kara asked.
"Your mistakes. They must be corrected." The woman said causing Kara to feel uncharacteristically angry.
"That's it. I'm done." Alex said.
"What?" The man asked.
"I'm done." Alex said. "I came here because Frax asked and I like him. But all you are doing is insulting mom, so I'm going." She said walking away.
"Alex?" Kara called after her, but the teen kept walking.
"Excuse me." Kara said chasing after her daughter.
"Alex where are you going?" Kara said reaching her.
"Somewhere else."
"Al-"
"You said it was my choice. And I have chosen. I don't want to talk to people who talk to you like that."
"Okay." Kara agreed. "Go wait in NooNan's I'll be over soon." She added signalling to Ruby to watch Alex.
"Where are you going?" The teen asked.
"To say goodbye."
"Why?"
"It's polite."
"They don't know what polite is." The teen pointed out.
"That doesn't mean you should be rude." Kara argued. "I'll be there in a minute."
-00-
"Why is it that in-laws hate me?" Kara asked entering her sister's lounge.
"It went well then?" The older Alex asked.
"They almost went full blown Rhea." Kara explained.
"Who is Rhea?" The teenage Kara asked.
"That is a long story." Her aunt said.
"Not really." Alex said. "She was the mother of one of Kara's boyfriends who hated Kara so much she led an invasion against Earth."
"Bet mom doesn't look so bad now." MJ said to Diz.
"Should I get the DEO to start preparing for war?" The older Alex asked.
"I said almost full blown Rhea." Kara pointed out.
"What happened?" Eliza asked.
"They just kept insulting mom." The teen Alex said.
"So what did you do?" Eliza asked.
"I walked out." The teen said.
"Fair enough." The older Alex said. "Are you meeting them again?"
"No." The teenage Alex replied as Kara said.
"I don't know."
"Don't they want to give you loads of money or something?" MJ asked his cousin.
"So?" The teenager questioned.
"So shouldn't you keep in with them?" MJ said.
"I really worry about your moral compass sometimes." His mother said as the doorbell rang.
"Expecting someone?" Kara asked her sister.
"Seeing we haven't ordered the pizza yet, no." The older Alex said causing her sister to go to the door.
"What is he doing here?" she asked looking through the door. Moments before she answered it and greeted "Frax."
"Hello." He said awkwardly. "I'm sorry, I didn't know how to contact you and I wanted to speak, so I found Alex."
"Why are you here? Has something happened?" Kara asked.
"No. I wanted to apologise. I am sorry about earlier. I know it doesn't help, but they didn't mean anything by it."
"Then they shouldn't have said it." The teenage Alex said joining her mother at the door.
"No they shouldn't." Frax agreed.
"What they said wasn't your fault." Kara said.
"Yet I feel responsible." He replied. "I'm sorry." He added looking at Alex.
"I don't blame you." The teen said.
"Thank you." He said before seeing several other eyes on him. "Hello." He said to the newcomers.
"Do you want to come in?" Eliza offered.
"No. I just wanted to say sorry." He said before seeing the older Alex come out of a door.
"Alex, you are here?" Frax asked. "If I had known I would have used the communicator."
"It's okay." Kara said before asking. "Where are they now?"
"Back on their ship. It may not have come across this way, but they did not mean to insult you. They are still upset about Salkor."
"I understand." Kara said as her daughter muttered.
"I don't."
"Perhaps I can give you one of these." Frax said before looking at the older Alex. "It is a communicator like I gave you. It will make it easier."
"Thank you." Kara said taking the object.
"I should go. My parents have demanded my presence. I will see you later."
-00-
"You okay?" Alex asked walking out to the backyard where her sister was staring at the night sky.
"I guess." Kara replied as Alex sat next to her.
"Don't do it." Alex said.
"Don't do what?" Kara asked her sister.
"Believe them. I know you, you'll start to agree with them and-"
"What they said wasn't wrong. I mean Alex does deserve better than I gave her." Kara said. "I mean her entire life has involved running from danger. She never really had a real home until a few months ago."
"Home isn't a place, it's people. And she has always had you showering her with love." Alex said. "What matters is what Alex thinks and I am pretty sure if you asked her if you had let her down she'd say no."
"Doesn't mean she couldn't have had a better life." Kara said leaning against her sister's good arm.
"Maybe, but Fels had that better life and he ran away." Alex pointed out.
"I guess … I just wish I had been stronger for her."
"With the grandparents?"
"No. In life in general."
"You have been plenty strong."
"It doesn't feel like it and that makes me angry."
-00-
"Has mom gone to bed?" The teenage Kara asked her grandmother having said goodbye to Diz.
"No. She's talking to your aunt in the backyard. Don't worry she is taking it easy." Eliza said before asking. "Where's your brother?"
"Gaming with Alex, I think." The teen said getting a glass of water.
"How are you doing?"
"Me? Fine. Why?"
"You have been through a lot." Eliza reminded her. "And I don't just mean the attacks. You are looking after your brother and cousin. Not to mention you are in high school and are worrying about going to college."
"I'm okay."
"It's okay not to be." Eliza said.
"I know. The shrink keeps telling me that." The teenager said. Seeing the worried frown her grandmother was giving her she added. "I'm fine. I promise." The teen said. "But I do have an assignment to finish so I'm going up."