Chapter 61

"Alright, so what did you find out at Lion Castle?" Winn asks after clearing his throat awkwardly.

"The areas underground are all lined with lead. I memorized the layout of what I could see, which was everything except for one room above ground. Lena and I think the one above ground room that's lined with lead is Lillian's room."

Winn pushes over the blueprints to Lion Castle and Kara quickly looks over them, marking the room's location with a pen that Vasquez tosses her.

"Do you happen to remember the terrain around the castle? That would be useful to know." Winn says.

"Yes I do, actually. And Lena, I'm assuming you know the terrain as well?" Kara asks, turning to her girlfriend for confirmation.

"Yes. I scouted the area multiple times so I know the terrain very well. I will know the more general areas around it, which may be helpful in figuring out where to stay when we are launching our attack. Kara will probably remember better than I do what it's like directly around the castle." Lena admits.

"Awesome, thanks. Oh! And can you two look over the blueprints sometime? Make certain that all the entrances and stuff are on here?" Winn questions.

Kara and Lena nod. "We can do that in the morning, after we've had a good night's sleep." Kara answers.

"Okay, good. What's next on the agenda?" Winn asks.

"Crossbow progress," Alex chimes in.

She's pretty much recovered from how her sister and her sister's girlfriend got out of a dangerous situation because the guard thought they were some "adventurous couple" there to... Ugh, Alex can't even think it. She's scarred for life.

"How far has your team gotten, Sir Alex?" J'onn asks.

"We're pretty much done figuring out how it works and why, as well as what pieces it needs. We just need some time to work on building and testing upgrades, as well as time to replicate enough for our archers and knights that prefer long-range weapons." Alex answers.

"What do you need to finish?"

"Some lab techs that you can spare, and eventually we're going to need wood carvers and smiths."

J'onn nods. "That's doable. Keep me updated."

Lena hides a yawn behind her hand as the conversation pauses for a moment.

"Is there anything else we need to discuss today? Or can we come back with fresh eyes tomorrow and make a plan?" Kara asks.

J'onn looks over the table at everyone. "No, get some rest. You will need it. We will reconvene in the morning and make a tentative plan."

Everyone nods their assent and gets up, leaving the room one at a time. Jeremiah and Eliza stop in front of Kara and Lena before they go. They take turns hugging them both.

"Get some sleep, girls. From what I've heard, it doesn't sound like you've had much. And that's an order." Jeremiah says the last sentence in a way that makes it seem like he's teasing, but at the same time completely serious.

"We will, I promise." Kara says, kissing her adoptive parents' cheeks before heading out of the room.

"It's just past noon, darling." Lena points out as they're leaving the DEO.

"And you're practically dead on your feet. You need sleep, Lee, and so do I. It doesn't matter at what time."

Lena stifles another yawn, blinking tiredly. She gives a resigned sigh and holds Kara's hand. Her yawns slowly get more frequent as they near Kara's room. Lena tries to help when they're in Kara's room by attempting to put on her pajamas, but she just ends up putting on some of Kara's old clothes that vaguely resemble what she brought for pajamas. As in, instead of her nice nightdress, she's wearing an old short dress that Kara hasn't worn in years.

When Kara turns around, finished with putting her own pajamas on, she makes a squeaking noise in surprise. Lena looks amazing in everything, and Kara would think she's gorgeous even if she were just wearing a trash bag, but there's something special about seeing her in Kara's clothes. Kara blushes and guides Lena to her bed, which she promptly nearly flops onto in her tiredness.

Kara's super speed stops her girlfriend from face planting on her bed. Lena instead wraps her arms around Kara and cuddles close to her while still standing, letting out another yawn. Kara grins dopily at her and starts to float, slowly so that she doesn't startle her sleepy girlfriend.

She carefully maneuvers them until they're lying on their backs, Kara with Lena practically on top of her. Kara floats backwards until they're over her bed and gets them under the sheets successfully by the time that Lena's heart rate evens out in sleep.

Kara closes her eyes and falls asleep quickly.

***

"Do you think we'll win?" Alex asks suddenly that night when she and Maggie are in bed, in their pajamas (which is really just their undergarments).

"Hmm?" Maggie lifts her head from Alex's shoulder to look at her girlfriend's face.

"Against Cadmus, against Lillian. Do you think we'll win?" Alex asks.

"Of course. Good trumps evil in pretty much every story." Maggie answers.

"Do you really believe that?" Alex prods.

Maggie is silent for a moment, thinking. "No. Not really. It's never that black and white. Good and evil. There's always gray areas, two sides to every story. We're doing what we think is right for our people, just like I'm assuming Cadmus is. No matter how bad their methods are, at the center of it, we're all trying to protect the people we care about. They just think the threat is aliens, and that the end justify the means."

"Mm," Alex hums. "So then my question's the same. Do you think we'll win?"

"I don't know, sweetie." Maggie admits. "We'll just have to do our best to come home, back to each other. I think that if we fight for the right thing, we'll win for sure."

Maggie can practically feel the confusion coming off of her girlfriend in waves.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, fighting for something like pride or greed, that's a pretty powerful motivator. As is fear, and hatred, and other things like that. But if that's all we're fighting for, if that's why we're fighting, we'll never win. Because when it comes down to it, we would never be able to do what needs to be done. We would value our own lives too much. But if we fight for what we believe in, if we fight for love, that kind if cheesy thing. We'll win. Because if you have someone to come home to, you'll fight ten times as hard as you would if you were just in it for money or glory. Get it?"

"I think so. So since we're fighting for love, to get back to each other, we'll win?"

"I would like to think so. Yeah." Maggie shifts so she can look at Alex better. "What brought this on, Danvers?"

"I'm just wondering what will happen after all of this. You know?" Alex asks, meeting Maggie's eyes. "Right now, it seems like this fight will last forever, but it won't. One way or another, it will end."

"Yeah. I can get that. And Alex?"

Alex startles slightly at the sound of her name falling from her girlfriend's lips. Usually whenever she says Alex's name, it's to say something bigger.

"Yeah?"

"After all this, we're going to continue being the two most badass agents the DEO has ever seen. We're going to talk about our future and someday, I'll be getting down on one knee. Our defeat of Cadmus and Lillian will bring about an era of peace and prosperity, the likes of which the Luthor and Danvers Kingdoms have never seen."

"Wow," Alex breathes out. "You've really thought that through. Except for one thing, Sawyer."

"Hmm?" Maggie hums.

"Who says you'll be the one getting down on one knee?" Alex winks at her dumbfounded girlfriend.

"You noticed that, huh?" Maggie asks, her cheeks turning a light pink.

"I'm a Knight and I work for the DEO. I'm good at noticing things, babe." Alex points out and they our in comfortable silence as they both get lost in their own heads, thinking about the future. "Did you mean it?"

"Mean what?"

"You... You wanting to marry me?" Alex says hesitantly.

"Of course! Someday, Danvers, you're going to have a ring in that pretty little finger of yours." Maggie says confidently.

"Little finger, huh? I don't remember you complaining about size the other night." Alex teases.

"Mm. Maybe you should remind me how not little they are." Maggie says seductively.

Alex laughs and Maggie rolls so she's fully on top of her, her smile soft but showing her dimples she knows Alex loves.

"That was terrible, Sawyer." Alex chuckles.

"It worked, didn't it? You're in my bed, Danvers." Maggie points out with a wink.

"Actually we're in my bed, Sawyer."

"Actually..." Maggie says, pausing for dramatic effect. "We're in our bed, babe."

Alex melts beneath her and leans up so she can kiss Maggie.

"... See? It worked!"

"Shut up Maggie and make love to me."

"Happily."

What adorable nerds! And they have plans to figure out next chapter! And then after that, Lena and Kara have their first time! Thank you all for reading and for your amazing comments! Stay awesome!