A Cure for Boredom
by Sandrine Shaw

It's not like Leonard is a fan of prison in general, but being stuck in Iron Height's new meta-human wing almost makes him long for gen pop. As little patience as he has for the common brand of power games and petty fighting, spending all day stuck in a solitary cell with power dampeners that have no effect on him is turning out to be mind-numbingly, excruciatingly, boring.

There's nothing to do all day except for his mind to keep running in circles. It's been ten days since they dropped him here, and he's come up with nineteen way to break out of this place, six of which don't involve any kind of outside help – three, if you discount the ones that require leaving a trail of dead bodies behind. His reluctance for pointless death has nothing to do with the deal he's struck with a certain Scarlet Speedster, nor with the kid's infuriating insistence that there's good in him – if anything, that makes Leonard want to prove him wrong; he just doesn't like things to be messy, that's all.

Either way, he has little intention of staying here for longer than absolutely necessary.

He's lying back on his cot with his hands crossed behind his head, staring at the ceiling and contemplating the best schedule for putting one of those plans into effect, when a tell-tale crackle of electricity buzzes in the air. And sure enough, a split-second later he spots the familiar flash of lightning from the corner of his eye as Barry blurs through the wall.

A small smile tugs at the corner of Leonard's mouth. He quickly covers it with a scowl as he sits up and, in one smooth motion, turns to face Barry. "My my my, Flash, if I'd known you were susceptible to paying conjugal visits, I wouldn't have sped up my unscheduled release the last time they locked me up."

"What?" Barry blinks at him, clearly taken aback.

Leonard gives him a slow, deliberate once-over, letting his eyes linger on the places where the Flash suit hugs Barry's muscles just right, making sure Barry feels the weight of his gaze. Excitement bristles on his skin like a static shock, something he can never quite shake whenever he and Barry go toe-to-toe.

"Hmm. You in all that tight red leather. Showing up in my cell after count. No prying eyes." He nods up to where the little red light of the security camera stopped blinking a few seconds ago, probably at the same time the dampeners went out so Barry could phase into his cell. "Could give a guy all kinds of ideas."

The flush that colors Barry's cheeks clashes with the dark red of the suit in the most delightful way, and Leonard decides that this moment right here is worth all the boredom of the past week.

Barry visibly struggles to regain his wits. The blush remains, even when his voice trades the confusion for cheekiness. "Sorry, Snart, we're not married, so I'm afraid conjugals are out."

And now that is an interesting response. Leonard raises an eyebrow. "Really, Scarlet? That's your only objection?"

"What? No, that's not what I— You can't just— Dammit, Snart, why do you have to make everything so difficult?"

Leonard was only teasing, but the way Barry splutters and averts his eyes makes him wonder if he wasn't onto something. It's not like he never thought about it. Anyone with a pair of eyes can see that the kid looks good in that tight little get-up, and having seen his face when the mask comes off has done nothing to quell the temptation to find out what Central City's resident hero would look like all spread out and his for the taking. He just didn't think Barry was amenable to the idea. It just may merit consideration concerning his future interaction with the Flash, once Leonard's out of here and back in the game.

In front of him, Barry pulls a face and rubs his forehead through the cowl, as if being around Leonard is giving him a headache. Leonard's tempted – oh so tempted – to suggest that sex is supposed to help with those, too.

Barry sighs. "Look, I'm not here to trade innuendo. I need your help."

"You don't say." Leonard snorts. He didn't think this was a social call, considering all the trouble Barry went through to find him here. "Just as long as you remember that my assistance doesn't come for free."

"It's a bit time-sensitive, so how about we skip the negotiation part and you just tell me what you want. No prison break." Before Leonard can get a word in, Barry narrows his eyes and adds, "Or sexual favors."

Pity.

"I hadn't thought about asking for those," Leonard lies. "Interesting, how you immediately latch onto that."

Barry sends him a withering look, but there's laughter in his voice when he says, "Yeah, I'm sure it was the furthest thing from your mind, Snart."

Leonard gets up and closes the distance between them, pleased that Barry doesn't back away when Leonard steps into his personal space. He looks wary when Leonard reaches out to lightly trace the Flash insignia on his chest, but he doesn't flinch – not even as the finger suggestively travels downward across the hard planes of Barry's stomach.

The material of the suit is thin and flexible enough that the way his throat works when he swallows is clearly visible, and Leonard's surprised by the overpowering rush of desire he feels watching the kid struggle not to sway towards him. When exactly did this become more than a game to keep himself entertained? When did it turn from simple teasing, trying to unnerve Barry, into something more substantial?

"Much as I'm enjoying our little quid pro quo, there are some things I prefer to be given freely."

And anyway, he wouldn't want to waste a perfectly good pay day for something he's increasingly sure he can get for free – but he knows better than to voice that thought.

Barry licks his lips and nods jerkily, holding Leonard's gaze, and it feels like they're making a deal that has nothing to do with whatever Barry's here for. They both let the moment linger until the tension grows taut and heavy.

As much as Leonard would like to see what happens when it finally reaches its breaking point, Barry did say that the information he needed from him was time-sensitive.

He pulls away with some reluctance. "So, Flash. About the deal you came here for, how about this: I give you whatever you need, and in exchange... Not a prison break. But if I happen to find my way out of here, you don't throw me back inside."

Barry opens his mouth to protest, but Leonard cuts him off before he can voice his objection. "Not unless I give you a new reason to."

An exasperated huff, and Barry rolls his eyes. "Fine," he grudgingly concedes.

It doesn't surprise Leonard that Barry's agreeing to his terms – he must have been pretty hard up for that information if he risked breaking into a meta-proof prison to ask for Leonard's help.

Maybe he should send the meta who drove the kid to that kind of desperation a fruit basket as a thank-you gift, he thinks idly as he considers moving up the schedule for that prison break. And once he's out... he might have to pay Barry a visit. Leave the Cold Gun at home, see if they can't make a different kind of deal – out of costume, literally as well as figuratively.

Things are certainly looking up.

End.