313. Chapter 313

Last time they’d all had a day off – a day away from attacks and betrayals and offices and labs – it was the beach.

Today? Today, it’s the zoo.

Kara practically skips on the way, holding Alex’s hand on one side and Maggie’s on the other, and James grins broadly behind the Danvers girls and their Maggie to snap photo after photo after photo.

“Hey, what about me, Olsen? I’m photogenic too! Where’s the love?” Winn teases as J’onn chuckles with his arm around M’gann, and James pulls Winn into his chest for a selfie.

Kara whines slightly about the line – “Shouldn’t Supergirl get to stroll in for free? And, you know, without waiting?” – and Alex laughs and asks before pulling Kara into her arms, because it’s going to be a long day of sights and smells and overstimulation of Kara’s Kryptonian senses, and the more love she buoys her with, the better. Kara sighs and leans back into her sister, letting her eyes close, blocking out – just for a moment, because Alex has got her, Alex won’t let anything happen to her – all sights, all sounds, all scents, all senses, except the ones that are anchoring her to the ground, to Alex.

“All good, sis?” Alex asks, and Kara takes a deep breath and nods as she opens her eyes.

“I wanna to see the birds. Can we see the birds first?”

“You don’t get enough time with them spinning around up there, Little Danvers?” Maggie teases as she tries to hold out her credit card to the cashier, but J’onn waves her away.

“DEO mental health budget. Pam will make sure Theresa approves it,” he leans down and whispers in her ear, and Maggie grins, leaning into M’gann.

“Your man’s got moves.”

“Oh, I know he does.”

They giggle and J’onn casts them a baffled look as he distributes the tickets to his children and his girlfriend.

“I take it we’re starting with birds for Ms. Danvers?” he asks, and Kara squeals in delight, tugging Alex’s hand forward. Alex yelps and grabs at Maggie, and the three of them lurch ahead, Winn stumbling after them and James racing to the front, weaving between throngs of children and parents and strollers and balloons, to get in front of his friends – his family – to photograph their laughing faces.

“What do you think they think about?” Kara wonders aloud as they slip into a steamy recreation of a forest, her head cast all the way back to skim the tops of the trees, Alex’s hand in hers the only thing keeping her on the wooden floor.

“Their songs!” a passing toddler chimes as they bump full speed into Maggie’s legs. “Sorry!”

Maggie doesn’t miss a beat, getting down on one knee to be eye-level with the kid.

“That’s okay, kiddo. It’s an exciting place! So you think the birds think about their songs, huh?”

“Yeah!” The kid launches into an elaborate imitation of the chirps and calls all around them, and James asks the parents’ permission to snap a photo of the child laughing with Maggie, with Kara – because of course Kara’s dropped to her knees and started singing along with the child – Alex beaming behind them, leaning into Winn and smiling like she’s never seen such a beautiful sight as her girlfriend and her sister making bird songs with a random child.

When eventually the child’s parents thank James for happily agreeing to email them his photos – “that’s James Olsen, honey!” – they set off toward the reptile house, and Winn shudders.

“Do we um… do we have to go… you know… there? That’s usually connected to where they have the spiders and um… you know spiders and I don’t really see eye to eye…”

“Well yeah, they have so many more than you do, man,” James puts his arm around Winn’s shoulder, and Winn jumps.

“Distinctly not funny, James!”

“No, come on, we’ll avoid the spiders for you, okay? Besides, I think I know where Alex wants to go next,” James grins.

“Aww, babe, do you have a secret favorite animal you’ve never told me about?”

Alex blushes when they wind up gaping at the polar bears, a look of pure joy and pure sadness somehow mingling perfectly on Alex’s face.

“Iorek Byrinson, huh?” Maggie asks, and it’s the only thing that could make Alex tear her eyes away from the majestic creatures.

“How did you know?”

“All the other girls wanted to be Lyra. I bet you wanted to be Iorek. All that perfect armor, always protecting people he loves.”

“Are they… are they bonding over The Golden Compass?” Winn asks no one in particular, and M’gann burrows into J’onn’s chest as they all watch Alex kiss Maggie soft and tender and warm.

“See, this is why I need to finally meet Cisco, I’ll have someone to bond over Star Wars with,” he groans, and James and Kara clap him on the back supportively.

They all have to stop and wait for Alex and Maggie to finish kissing again when Maggie discovers that Alex absolutely loves butterflies – “don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone at the DEO, Danvers, wouldn’t want to ruin your ruthless rep with how gentle and melty and soft you actually are” – and James snaps a fantastic series of photos of Winn jumping up and down alongside a group of toddlers, in excitement to see a few zebras full out sprinting in their dwelling.

Maggie and Kara both break down squealing over the otters, Maggie reduced to utter mush as she gushes about how smart they are, how thy use rocks as tools, and Alex breaks down squealing over her girlfriend and her sister’s adorableness.

James squats down and stares, long and hard and serious, at a small family of elephants, and Maggie takes her turn photographing him, because “he doesn’t have enough pictures of himself, and look how sweet he looks.”

She snaps even more photos when Kara goes over and squats behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her chin on his shoulder as they both watch the creatures watching them.

Maggie earns another series of kisses from Alex – “god, Danvers, can you keep it in your pants for like a minute?” “No one asked you, Schott!” – when she buys Kara half the food court, and as Kara happily stuffs her face and debates loudly with James and Winn about the ethics of zoos and Alex and Maggie take the opportunity to thief some of James’s fries – Alex giving a portion of her share to Kara, who can never have enough – M’gann leans against J’onn, snacking on a bag of peanuts.

”And to think I was convinced I’d never have children again,” J’onn says softly, and M’gann leans up to kiss him gently.

”In your defense, no one could possibly have predicted you winding up with this crew.”

They watch as a food fight breaks out and Alex shields Kara from flying french fries while Maggie goes on the offensive against James and Winn nearly falls off the bench with laughter.

”No. No one could possibly have predicted this crew. And honestly, M’gann? I wouldn’t have it any other way.”