AUTHOR'S NOTE: Last chance to turn back if you don't want to be spoiled for "Wonder Woman!" But if you've already seen it, read on!
I loved the movie. Its climax reminded me of Leonard and Sara. I mentioned that to Jael, and she said she'd love to read that. This fic is the result.
For as long as Leonard could remember, half the fun of going to movies with others was watching their reactions. He could vividly remember his mother visibly relaxing as they watched The Muppet Movie, and then singing him to sleep with "The Rainbow Connection" for weeks afterwards.
At least, when Dad wasn't around.
(Leonard would never admit it to anyone, but "The Rainbow Connection" could still bring tears to his eyes. That would be weak, and Captain Cold was not weak.)
It was the same with Lisa; once she was settled into the theater seats with her popcorn and box of Jujyfruits, she would shed the fear that surrounded them at home and be completely immersed in the film, whether it was the exploits of The Brave Little Toaster and his band of household appliances, or of The Little Mermaid and her fishy friends. Lisa would sing the songs she'd heard for weeks afterwards.
At least, when Dad wasn't around.
(Leonard would also never admit that the tune "Under The Sea" could still bring a smile to his face. That would be warm, and Captain Cold was not warm.)
Mick, unsurprisingly, had a taste for action movies with plenty of ass-kicking. But he also, surprisingly, had a taste for historical dramas. Those turned out to be an excellent way to hide out from the police after a job; the cops would never think to look for their suspects in the middle of a screening of The Bounty or Schindler's List.
(Leonard was still surprised that Mick chose to sneak into The Passion Of The Christ not just once, but four times.)
Robocop turned out to be an excellent tool for screening potential crew. He'd always have it playing in the background when "interviewing" candidates, eliminating those who showed too much enthusiasm for the gore. Those were the types who'd bring down too much heat.
Mick started calling it the Screen Test.
(And Leonard really should have done a better job screen testing Alexa, but rather than pay attention to a movie she would put her arms around his neck and her tongue down his throat and he was young then and…
Well.
Even Captain Cold wasn't immune to some kinds of heat.)
Before the Oculus, watching movies with Sara confirmed what he'd already figured out about her. Like Mick, she loved action movies, though she watched them with a more critical eye than Mick, leaning forward to study the fight scenes and picking them apart if she found them lacking. And as expected, she preferred strong leading ladies, whether they were self-rescuing space princesses or women masquerading as Chinese soldiers preparing to fight the Huns or smart-mouthed lady spies who were good with their fists and with guns.
But she drew the line at rebellious young socialites fighting to survive the sinking of the Titanic. "Been there, done that," she'd said. "Twice. I don't need to see it on screen."
Since his return to the Waverider, there hadn't been time for movies. Or just about anything else. They'd been running headlong from one time fracture to another, fixing what had been broken in the Legends' effort to undo the Legion's damage.
(And Leonard didn't think he could ever really forgive himself for his part in that, even if he couldn't remember what he'd done. Even if they refused to tell him the full story. He still had a pretty good idea, based on the mistrustful way Mick had looked at him when they retrieved him from the time stream.)
(Leonard would never admit this either, but that look from his oldest friend had hurt. Almost as much as seeing his oldest friend in Chronos' armor. Admitting it would be soft, and Captain Cold was not soft.)
But once the worst of the damage was fixed, and history no longer seemed to be hanging on the want of a horseshoe nail, Sara declared shore leave for all; 72 hours to relax, visit family and collectively catch their breath.
Lisa was out of town, so Leonard settled for a phone call and a promise to see each other the next time the Waverider was in town. "You've got a time machine, Lenny," Lisa'd told him. "You can always call ahead."
She's also warned him off harassing Team Flash. "Cisco will only tell me they've been through a lot. But where's the fun in kicking them when they're down?" she'd pointed out.
(And no, Leonard was not going warm with pride to see how Lisa had developed her own code. Captain Cold didn't do that.)
With Lisa and Team Flash out of pocket, and with Mick making it clear he wasn't interested in company (at least not Leonard's company, at least not right now), Leonard was left still kicking around the Waverider once the others were gone. He'd just decided this would be the perfect time to start casing the ship, to see all the changes Jax had made… just in case he ever needed to find a hiding place again (and in case anything worth stealing had been brought on board while he was… away)… when Sara strode around the corner.
They stopped and stared at each other for a moment. This was the first time they'd been alone together since… before the Oculus.
"Thought you were going to see your sister," Sara said.
He shook his head. "She's up in Coast City. I'll catch her next time. Thought you were going to see your dad?"
Now Sara shook her head. "He's up to his eyebrows in deputy mayor business. Oliver's traveling and left Dad in charge."
Leonard took a step closer to her. "So we're both at loose ends. What do you say we be at loose ends together?"
(Maybe now they could finally talk. About that kiss. And about "me and you.")
"Well, I was just about to head out to the movies. Gotta see Wonder Woman on the big screen. Wanna come with?"
(Or maybe not. But… this could be a chance to see just how much Sara had changed while he was… away, and maybe show him a way to broach the subject.)
Of course Sara still loved movies with strong leading ladies. And hot buttered popcorn… and stealing his M&Ms (though he'd never grudge her those). When she moved the armrest between them up and out of the way, settling ever so slightly against his side, it almost felt like their old movie nights from before, when they'd casually lounged together in his quarters or hers, shoulder to shoulder.
(But never closer, and he wasn't ready to cross that line yet, even if she had already kissed him. Not until they'd had that talk.)
She still leaned forward during fight scenes, and after watching the Amazons battle the Germans, she sat back with a contented sigh, leaning just a little more against him.
When Diana first appeared in her full Wonder Woman gear, he heard Sara take in a little breath, and glanced over to see her eyes sparkling. She wiped at one eye, and then catching his gaze, dropped her hand into the popcorn bucket for a few more kernels before looking back at the screen.
Not letting on that she'd just teared up.
He smirked a little at that and took his own handful of popcorn.
From that point, Sara remained snugged against his side, focused on the movie and relaxed in their old familiar way, shoulder to shoulder.
Then Steve Trevor approached Diana and left her with that watch. Leonard felt Sara tense next to him. She didn't move away, but Leonard could see her jaw tighten and her fists clench. When the plane blew up with Trevor on board, Leonard felt Sara's shoulders shake and saw her head drop for just a moment. Then she took a shuddering breath and looked up again, her sparkling eyes firmly fixed on the screen, pointedly not looking at him.
But she also didn't move away from him.
Through the remaining minutes of the movie, she took slow, steady breaths. Probably some kind of League technique for controlling emotions. By the time the credits started rolling, he could feel her relaxing again.
He leaned over so he could speak quietly in her ear. "You want to talk about it?" When she started to stiffen once more, he said, "Sara."
She blew out a sigh and nodded.
There was a small park across the street from the movie theater. They settled onto one of the benches and sat in silence for a moment, Leonard watching Sara as she stared down at her hands in her lap. Finally, she let out an ironic chuckle.
"You wouldn't think a superhero movie would need a trigger warning. Something like 'Major Character Death.' "
One side of Leonard's mouth lifted in a slight smile. "That would have been one hell of a spoiler."
She looked up with a choked laugh, and now he could see her eyes were sparkling again. "True."
"But I get it. You've been there and done that with seeing someone give their life to save the world. You didn't need to see it on the screen."
She held up a hand, shaking her head and looking away from him. Then she said, "It wasn't the self-sacrifice, Leonard. The League teaches us to accept the possibility of giving our lives as part of a mission."
She paused, sniffled a little, then let out a shaky breath. "What actually got me… was that before he sacrificed himself, Steve told Diana how he felt… but she didn't get to tell him."
She looked back at Leonard, and the sparkle in her eyes had become tears trailing down her cheeks. "That… that hit a little too close to home for me."
He reached out to brush the tears away. "Sara…"
She put her hand over his, leaning her cheek into his palm. "If you still want to know what the future holds for me and you…"
He leaned forward to kiss her then, letting her know without words that there was nothing he wanted more, feeling her go soft under his touch.
Feeling himself go warm under hers.
And knowing, for the first time, that soft and warm did not mean weak.