Scattered Sanity (Sanvers)

Square One.

(My heart hurts every time I even think about Sanvers. So this chapter probably won't make that pain any better.)

For the first time since she had been kidnapped, Alex woke up peacefully. Gentle rays of sunlight dappled the room with their luminescence, and a sleepy smile drew its way across Alex's lips while she relished everything around her. She was aware of the puffy comforter that she was swathed in, keeping warmth pressed against her body; she was aware of the soft pillow behind her head, and the comforting four walls of Kara's apartment. The younger had requested that Alex take her bed, insisting that she would be fine sleeping on the couch. Alex remembered that before she had fallen asleep, she had glanced upwards at Kara, who was gazing at her older sister compassionately.

"I love you, Alex." Kara had said, grinning as tears of joy swam through her eyes.

"I love you too, Kara." Alex had replied, reaching out to momentarily grasp her sister's hand. "And I'm not going anywhere." With that, her eyelids drooped shut, and sleep encased her.

Now, Alex slid out of bed, treading with light footsteps towards the kitchen. It turns out that there was no need, as Kara was awake, setting out a breakfast of pancakes and orange juice on the table. "Good morning." She said brightly, sliding into a chair and pulling a plate and glass towards her, eyes scanning the food greedily.

"Morning." Kara responded, leaning against the counter. It appeared as though she had already eaten. "Are you ready for today?"

Alex chewed thoughtfully, savoring the flavors and contemplating the question in a busy state of multitasking. While they were still at the DEO, it had been established that, if she wanted to, Alex could return to her work the next day. Obviously, she would have to undergo training again, so a temporary second-in-command would remain in her place during this time, until she was ready to take on the job again. When she wasn't conditioning herself, Alex would have to study notes about the DEO, restoring the portions of her memory that had been lost over the two years. This was a monumental task, especially since she was still adjusting, but Alex had decided to take on the challenge. "I hope so." She admitted, stuffing another forkful of pancake into her mouth.

About an hour later, Kara drove Alex to the DEO and dropped her off, wishing her older sister good luck before heading off to her own job as a reporter.

Alex cautiously entered, peering her head inside and looking around before setting a foot beyond the doors. She was dressed in loose-fitting clothing, suitable for exercise.

An agent guided Alex to the training rooms, explaining how the procedure would go. "You're going to be paired with one of our new recruits, who is also just starting the physical training process. You two will spar, however, another agent will be monitoring the session to make sure that nothing becomes too aggressive and no one gets injured. This is meant to be very low-stress, so if you ever feel like you need to stop, you can request to do so, and you will be released. You and the other recruit will be sparring for an hour, and the goal is to knock the other off their feet. If one is successful in bringing the other down, you two can recuperate before beginning another round." She paused before a large metal door, punched in a code, and it retracted into the wall. "Do you have any questions?"

Alex ran over the rules in her head. "No, thank you." She nodded politely, then turned to stride into the room, hearing the door close behind her. The sound was eerily similar to how the elevator door had sounded before she had been taken, but she shook herself out, redirecting her mind from those haunting memories.

"You alright there?"

The voice startled Alex, her head jerking upwards to land on another woman in the room, who was sitting cross-legged in the combat ring. "Are you the new recruit?"

"Indeed." The woman smiled. She had dyed black hair that was shortened at the back and sides, leaving a flop of hair falling to the left side of her head. The jet black was a strong contrast to her pale skin and bright blue eyes, irises that glimmered. She had a decent amount of muscle on her arms and legs, shown off due to her gray tank top and running shorts. Her voice had a playfully sly touch to it, and that intrigued Alex. "My name's Ashton. Ashton Hughes."

"Alex Danvers." Alex introduced herself, observing how relaxed Ashton seemed. "Have you ever done anything like this before?"

"Sparring? Sure, but not for official purposes." Ashton replied, pushing herself off the ground. "I heard your story. It's pretty amazing what you did."

A light blush rose to Alex's cheeks, broadcasting her embarrassment. "Thanks."

"Well, come on up here!" Ashton chuckled, gesturing for Alex to join her in the ring. "I'll make sure to go easy on you." She winked teasingly.

Alex laughed, assembling an unfamiliar fighting stance, as she couldn't remember the exact way that she had fought before. "I think that should be my line." She joked.

"We'll see." Ashton shrugged. "Ready?"

The redhead answered by awkwardly rushing forward, jabbing a fist towards the other woman's right shoulder.

Ashton narrowly sidestepped, laughing. "Alright!" She swung her leg around, attempting to catch Alex in the back of the knees.

Alex jumped over the swiping leg, striking Ashton in the side and knocking her slightly off balance. Her brain was firing rapidly, doing its best to analyze patterns and plan reactions as fast as possible.

Ashton stumbled, still grinning. Suddenly, she kicked Alex in the abdomen, fortunately missing the stab wound that Alex still carried in that area.

Alex still wheezed, letting down her guard for a brief moment as she sucked in oxygen to refill her shocked lungs.

That was all the time Ashton needed to grab Alex, effectively uprooting her feet with another slice of her ankle. Alex fell on her back, panting and sweating.

"Damn." Alex cursed through a heavy exhale, staring up at the ceiling in defeat.

Ashton kneeled beside the other woman. "You're fun." She offered her a hand, helping Alex to her feet. Their eyes locked for a fleeting moment, and Ashton's breath just barely hitched. She turned her head away fast, biting her lip. Contemplating something, Ashton gazed at Alex, her electric blue irises sparkling. "Do you have anything to do after this?" She asked.

"I have to study DEO policies." Alex groaned, stretching out her neck and peering at the other woman through her damp red hair.

"I could help you, if you wanted." Ashton suggested, shrugging her shoulders. "I have to study too, because I'm still a newbie."

Alex nodded. "Yeah, that'd be great!" She agreed. She noticed that Ashton appeared as if she was in deep thought, and she kept glancing at Alex when she thought the redhead wasn't paying attention, attempting to scrutinize every inch of the renowned agent. "After a few more rounds, though." Alex smirked. "This time you won't get lucky."

The dark haired woman threw back her head, laughing. "Lucky? Nice try." Ashton readied herself, bouncing on the balls of her feet in anticipation. "Do your best to keep up." She challenged the other, followed with another wink.

Three more rounds later, the women were equal in their ability to take each other down in combat. They fetched damp towels to wipe the perspiration from their faces, then downing bottles of water.

As they were about to go their separate ways for the time being, Alex looked back. "I'll see you in a couple hours to study, right? You'll be here?"

"Absolutely." Ashton affirmed. She began to walk off, but threw a final glance over her shoulder. "See you around, Danvers."

Danvers. Something about that nickname tugged at Alex's disorganized memories, but it wasn't strong enough to bring anything back into the forefront of her mind. Instead, she merely grinned, her face flushed an odd shade of pink.

(THE TIMING OF THE "see you around, Danvers" THAT I WROTE WAS COMPLETELY UNINTENTIONAL I WROTE THIS LIKE FOUR WEEKS AGO, BUT WHAT A PAINFUL COINCIDENCE)