The Rescue

Chapter 5

Before they make their way to Nia's apartment, Kara sends out a quick text to the group to remind them to be on their best behavior with Lena. Kara doesn't mince words when she emphasizes that she will take swift action to anyone who upsets her. At Lena's request, they made a pit stop for liquor. Kara grabs a couple of bottles of cheap wine. Lena spends a few grand on a ridiculously good bottle of scotch. She may or may not want to be on Alex's good side.

"Hey, Nia!" Kara announces their arrival.

Nia beams at the two women. "Kara! Hi! You must be Lena! Welcome!"

"Hi Lena. I'm Kara's sister, Alex. Nice to finally meet you."

Lena immediately recognizes her from the morning at Noonan's. "It's nice to meet you both. Thanks so much for letting me tag along."

"Where's James and Winn?" Kara asks, looking around the apartment.

"Oh, running late. Like usual," Nia jokes.

Alex eyes the scotch that Lena just plopped onto the counter. "They won't mind if we get started without them. Whatcha got there, Lena?"

"Oh, well, my drink of choice is scotch. Feel free to help yourself."

"This isn't the cheap stuff. I'm impressed! Are you sure I can have some? This must have cost a fortune," Alex spouts.

"Oh, it's not as expensive as it seems," Lena brushes it off.

"If it's that pricey, I better dig out some real glassware," Nia adds. While she rifles through her cupboards, she asks over her shoulder, "So, Lena. How did you and Kara meet?"

Kara immediately turns to Lena with a deer in the headlights look. They hadn't talked about what Lena was comfortable sharing with everyone. Alex, of course, clocks the behavior.

"We actually met at the bar the other night," Kara says carefully.

Alex's eyes bulge, "You were the woman that Kara was so concerned about!"

"What?" Nia asks, confused.

Lena eyes Alex wearily before responding, "Kara did help me out at the bar to get away from some rather -unpleasant- men."

"Did you have to punch anyone this time?" Nia excitedly inquires, placing the glasses in front of Lena to pour.

This time, it is Lena's eyes that widen. The cork of the bottle shoots up a little unexpectedly from the sudden burst of strength.

Kara rushes to add, "No, no, Nia. Nothing like that. I just had to threaten to pull in the bouncers this time."

"This time?" Lena practically shouts. In the back of her head, she remembers that Kara mentioned that she does this with some frequency, but to hear that sometimes it gets physical, it is a shock. Since Lena froze, Alex takes the bottle out of her hands. She is rather eager to try this brand of scotch.

"Yeah, my dear sister has this nasty habit of plowing into situations without much of a plan. She wants to save the world regardless if it gets her hurt," Alex explains with an edge to her tone.

"Guys, stop. It's not like that," Kara whines.

As Alex passes the glasses around, Winn and James blunder through the door with cases of beer and pizza. Lena moves out of the way into the living room. The group all greet each other excitedly and diverts the previous conversation, much to Kara's relief.

"Winn, James, this is my friend, Lena."

"Holy Mother of Science! You're- you're Lena Luthor!" Winn exclaims. "Kara, why didn't you tell me that it was Lena freaking Luthor coming tonight?!"