Security cameras disabled – check.
Vault open without tipping off the alarm system – neat job – check.
An Egyptian precious stone vase placed safely in the center of the room – check.
He moved in closer to study the piece of art. It was the right vase, the one he expected to find in the vault, but its appearance was slightly different. Although he held it in his hands only a couple of days ago, now it looked aged. Its metal surfaces were all fogged, and the intricate red jasper designs lost some of their luster. It did not make the vase any less beautiful, though. Quite to the contrary, the passage of time gave it the charm of an ancient relic. He marveled at the fact that now it appeared much more organic, seamless, than it used to look in its pristine state.
He made a step back, satisfied. Okay, all set for the grand reunion, he smirked.
Leonard Snart stood with his back to the open vault of the Central City Museum. He ruffled up the fur on his parka, adjusted his trusted cold gun in his hand, and shot it at the nearest glass exhibit case in the adjacent hall. The glass shattered, and the alarm system came alive. A high-pithed noise filled the room for a second, red lights flashing across the perimeter of the hall. And then it was quiet again. He began the countdown.
It should not take more than a minute. He took a deep breath, and waited.
He was excited. And he did not feel the need to hide it. He had waited a long time for this encounter. He had been looking forward to it. He wanted to feel this thrill again.
Truth be told he could not really complain about the lack of adventure in his life. Actually, these past few months his life was far from dull. His mission with the Legends Team had provided him with an endless amount of excitement, danger and thrill. Still there was something amiss. There was this other kind of thrill he was used to, the one he craved now. And he knew only one person who could help him make up for that.
He loved Central City, and since he was back home for a while, he wanted to feel fully at home again, that meant getting back to his former life-style. So, he waited for the last key element for his happy-to-be-back-home equation.
His body tensed up in excitement when, true to his expectations, a familiar streak of yellow lightning zipped through the doorway across the hall. Aware of Leonard's presence the figure came to a halt. In the dimness of the hall and because of the distance between them, Leonard could not quite make out the man's features, but the speed and the trademark suit all in place, there was no doubt that it was the Flash. He smirked. Finally.
"Miss me?" Leonard drawled.
The Flash did not reply, and, as far as Leonard could tell, he just stood there silently, looking his way. He seemed more guarded than Len remembered.
"Put your weapon down and surrender," the Flash said at last, or more like deadpanned in his emotionless vibrating voice.
"You know, I envisioned a warmer welcome," Len said mockingly. He did not let it show, but he was getting nervous. Something was not right, he just could not figure out what.
"This is the last warning, surrender." The Flash was plainly dismissing his attempts to start their semi-friendly banter. It was disappointing. And there was this feeling of uneasiness. It was something about the Flash's posture, his words that were setting Leonard off. The Flash was acting strange, like he was not himself today.
"Would you drop that buzzling voice?" Len asked, ignoring the other man's demand.
If the Flash was determined to act cold, even though it was not his MO, he would gladly oblige him, but he would make him speak like a normal person first. Leonard hated his modulated voice, it had this weird echoing sound to it, but more than anything it was like some artificial machine voice, making it almost impossible to pick up any emotion it might contain. The Flash knew it and had not been using it with Leonard unless he was particularly pissed at him or they had an unwanted audience. So, which was it now?
"C'mon, what's wro.." Len started, when the figure jolted and vanished from his field of vision.
'Shit', Len thought. He flared his cold gun aimlessly, trying to create a shield around himself. It worked, the flash of lightning collided with the wall of ice instead of his jaw. Under two seconds, hell… He had tactics, but if his reaction could not keep up...
The Flash was circling around his makeshift wall, thawing it.
"Scarlet, stop!" Len shouted. "Why are you being like this? Won't you at least talk to me?!"
The Flash stopped at that. Through the wall Len could make out the other man tilting his head to the side quizzically.
"What?" the Flash asked genuinely amazed, he even forgot to do his voice modulation. But he quickly recovered. "You criminals are really crazy these days", he remarked, back to his resonant voice.
At that moment a piece of the thinned wall crumbled down, revealing the Flash, who stood in front of Leonard, a few feet apart. For the first time today, he could see him clearly.
"I'm not here to talk; I don't console or reason with the criminals. I just stop them." The Flash announced, looking Leonard in the eyes. The Flash frowned, quirking an eyebrow, as he did not quite expect the astonished look the other man was giving him.
Len was lost for words. He stared at the man's face helplessly, jaw agape. He could not believe his eyes. The man standing before him was shorter, dark skinned, yet he wore the Flash suit. Who? His mind was racing. How can this be? This is wrong. Why? A sickening feeling settled in his gut. After a long moment he had finally managed the courage to ask the most vital question of the moment. He was scared to hear the answer, feared the possibility that he had already guessed the answer, but he just had to make sure.
"Who are you?" Leonard's voice came out a low whisper.
"I'm the Flash," the other man stated. "If you're new to the city just ask the Iron Heights' inmates about me".
"No…" he mouthed. This can't be.
A flash of red and a strong punch that knocked the air out of his lungs were the last things he remembered before everything turned dark.
TBC
I've just watched E20 of the Flash, and the way it ended was really intense, so I wanted to explore how Captain Cold may react to this development if he knew.
Be prepared for some headcanon and (possibly) coldflash hints.