Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews, faves, and follows! It's what motivates me to finish this story aside from my unending frustration with how the show is going... I mean, I really love the show especially my OTF Snowbarrisco plus Harrison Wells, but the dynamics of the show that I know we all fell in love with in Season 1 isn't really there anymore. Anyways, time to end my mini rant, back to the story now. Enjoy! ;)
Chapter 2: Cause and effect
Everything was fine for the past few hours.
... Well if you consider being on edge every time Nora was around fine, then yeah Caitlin is definitely fine. But the great thing was the young speedster didn't seem to have any idea that Caitlin overheard her, and there's also the fact that Caitlin managed to act somewhat normal around everyone.
Instead of avoiding Nora, she found herself forcing more interactions with her more so than before, hoping to catch a slip of tongue, or maybe an action that's out of the ordinary, but to her frustration a whole day has passed and she found absolutely nothing.
It had been an unusually slow day in STAR Labs, and with everyone busy coming up with a solution to stop Cicada, she was left alone in STAR labs in comfortable silence as night fell.
Caitlin was busy looking through her microscope, analyzing the effects of the meta human cure she made on a sample of Cicada's blood when a familiar whoosh sound made her glance up. Barry entered the cortex in his civilian clothes, carrying a box of pastries from Jitters.
"What are you doing here Barry? Are we supposed to be doing something tonight?" Caitlin asked, surprised to see Barry at the lab when there hadn't been any new meta alerts for the past few hour. She knew Barry usually headed straight home after his job at CCPD.
"Oh! Uhh no. I just— I bought some snacks from Jitters, and I figured that with Wells and Ralph watching over Grace at the hospital you'd be all alone here..." He gave her a sheepish smile "Then I remembered how obsessed you were with these before, I used to bring you one of these everyday." Barry teased, bringing out a box of blueberry muffins.
Caitlin rolled her eyes at him, but she answered in the same teasing tone "Uh.. I seem to recall that you only bought me those for me for a whole month because you lost a bet with me." she reminded him grinning.
Barry shrugged his shoulders. "What? I thought Ollie and Felicity wasn't going to get together that fast." Barry said in defense.
"Right." Caitlin said in an amused tone. "Oliver's definitely faster than you in that division." She teased.
"Hey, I can't be good at everything right?" He raised his eyebrows, grinning at Caitlin.
Barry sighed happily. "It's nice to finally spend time with you Cait.. you know, without the whole stopping evil speedsters and psychopaths situation on our backs for a change." He gesture around them with a hand.
"Yeah..it's been a while hasn't it?" Caitlin replied and gave Barry a small smile, her throat tight with emotion she couldn't quite place. It's weird missing someone who you practically see everyday, but ever since flashpoint happened she felt as if the dynamics between her and Barry shifted drastically. Not only did her frosty alter ego suddenly appear after flashpoint, but it's as if a huge wall of ice went in between her and Barry.
"But I've got to admit, it's great having you on the field with me. It's way better than hearing you frantically worry about me over the comms." Barry teased her yet again. His good mood practically radiating off of him, that Caitlin can't help but get infected with it.
Caitlin let out a snort at this. "Yeah well, I wouldn't have to worry too much if you've actually learned to think before acting, but you'd rather do it the other way around." Caitlin chastised him for his habit of running head first into danger without actually thinking about it first.
"That's what I have you for, right?" Barry says, sincerely this time.
"Just don't expect me to patch you up every time you stupidly run into danger." Caitlin declared, although they both know she doesn't really mean it. Caitlin knows that she'd run to him in a heartbeat the moment she sees that he's in any sort of pain.
"At least now, you can keep me in check on the field." Barry answered, as he bumped his shoulder against her.
"Don't doubt that I would definitely freeze your ass on the spot, if you ever get any crazy ideas." Caitlin informed him matter of factly, her eyes glowing white for a quick second.
Barry let out a hearty laugh at her statement, and looked at her fondly, as if her frosty side amused him.
"I wouldn't expect anything less from you Dr. Snow" Barry replied, after his laughter died down.
It was Caitlin's turn to chuckle at that. She was about to reply when her stomach made a sound and beat her to it, blood immediately rushed to her cheeks in embarrassment. She actually forgot to eat again this morning, because she had to cover for Ralph and Wells who left STAR Labs really early to head to the hospital where Cicada's niece was. So the heavenly scent of the blueberry muffins Barry brought wasn't really helping her already empty stomach.
Barry's lips curled upward a little, trying to hide his smile. "Here" he said, handing her a muffin from the box of food on his side. "You should've told me you were starving, I would've come sooner with more food." Barry continued, also taking one for himself.
"Thanks, and no I wasn't that hungry." She replied, sending him a small grateful smile. She bit into the warm blueberry muffin, and couldn't help the quiet moan that came out of her mouth because of how heavenly the pastry tastes. She ducked her head in embarrassment yet again, as she heard Barry chuckle under his breath.
"Sure you weren't.." Barry muttered knowingly, teasing her a bit.
Caitlin too embarrassed to answer just shook her head, and continued to enjoy the pastry, savoring the warmth and the nostalgia it brought.
A comfortable and familiar silence fell upon the both of them as they finished the food Barry brought. For a moment, she could pretend that they were back to old times, when Barry would randomly drop by her lab to bring her food and accompany her for hours as she finished up all her lab tests, while he would talk about his day at work or what happened with Iris, or sometimes even about his visits to his Dad and Caitlin would listen quietly letting him get it all out of his system. She didn't exactly know when or how it stopped, but after the whole thing with Zoom the both of them seemed slightly distant from each other. Until now she isn't sure if it's the effect of Flashpoint or just her wanting to distance herself from the blackhole of pain she felt when Zoom told her that Barry was dead, either way it all went downhill from there.
"Caitlin?" Barry suddenly called her, snapping her out of her thoughts and bringing her back to the present.
"Hmm?" She responded, her eyes immediately snapping to him but she avoided meeting his eyes directly. Somehow she's scared that when he sees her eyes, he would know what she was thinking about just now.
"You were just staring at the blueberry muffin on your hand for like five minutes now." Barry explained. "Is there something on your mind?" he asked searchingly.
"Oh, it's nothing. Uhmm—I was just thinking about the... thing me and Cisco are working on." Caitlin answered quickly, not wanting Barry to worry about what she was thinking of.
Barry's brows raised in interest "You mean the meta human cure?" he asked.
"Yeah," she said nodding, "Cisco's actually working on the actual cure itself, while I was wondering if I could maybe reverse engineer Cicada's meta DNA to produce something like a vaccine for you guys..." she explained, sharing with him an idea that's been playing around in her head, since they got their hands on a blood sample of Cicada. "So theoretically, with that Cicada can't block your powers." Caitlin finished.
"That's..Wow, you outdid yourself again.." Barry remarked, amazement clear in his voice.
"Don't praise me yet, it's still just an idea. Plus, the only way we could test it is with Cicada actually being in the same room with you guys." Caitlin reminded him, not wanting to get his hopes up just yet.
Barry shook his head, "For weeks we had nothing against Cicada, but with your idea we finally have something to work with." he concluded, giving her a look that somehow shows just how much he appreciates everything that she does for them.
It's the little things like this that gets to her, for so long she struggled to deal with the guilt that came after she helped Savitar, that no matter what she does, it won't make up for the fact she stood by the man who planned to kill Iris and the fact that she's part of the reason why H.R. is dead. Yet, out of everyone on the team Barry was the only one who never looked at her any differently. To this day she still can't understand how he can look at her and not see a killer, how can he look at her with gratefulness and admiration in his eyes.
And now, you're even investigating his daughter. Caitlin's conscience reminded her, adding yet another layer of guilt. She hated keeping secrets from Barry, but she can't stomach the thought of being the one who destroys his family. If what she's thinking is true, which she really hopes is not, then Nora might be working with the man who killed Barry's mom. At this point, all she need to find out is why and how Nora is working with Thawne. Maybe it's all just a misunderstanding, but she need to know more about this before telling Barry.
Caitlin bit her lip. As much as she wants to find out the truth about Nora, she knows that her full focus should be on helping Barry right now and taking down Cicada and the sooner they stop him, the sooner she can focus on finding out Nora's secret. With new determination, she finally met Barry's eyes.
"Well, then I'd better start on the serum now." Caitlin said with confidence, almost startling Barry.
His eyebrows shot up. "Now? You're not heading home yet?" he questioned.
She shook her head. "We don't know when Cicada's going to reappear, and the sooner I finish this, the better our chances of stoping him." she explained, standing up from her chair to head to the cryogenic storage behind her to get another sample of the said meta human's blood and place it in the centrifuge.
Not even a second after the centrifuge started spinning, she felt a rush of wind as Barry flashed out of the cortex. She turned around in surprise but, before she could even react, Barry was back with two steaming cups of Coffee. "Well, I guess we're gonna need this then." Barry offered with a cheeky grin.
A smile bloomed across Caitlin face as she shook her head fondly, grateful for the fact that Barry was willing to stay up all night with her.
3 a.m.
She flashed inside STAR Labs like she usually does, at exactly 3 a.m. every night, a routine she's done ever since she travel to this time period, she was less concerned about anyone catching her because of the time of her visits.
She sped through the corridors of the lab leading to the time vault, but something caught her eye, just as she neared the corner before the cortex, making her skid to a stop. Nora immediately stiffened, the lights inside the cortex were definitely on and even the corridor was well lit, which was not normal.
She quietly walked up the corridor, making as little noise as she can, in case someone was still inside STAR labs. At first she thought the someone could've just carelessly left the lights open, but as she neared the entrance of the cortex, she could definitely hear voices inside and machines whirring.
She made a move to turn around, even though she needed to upload her journal entry, she couldn't risk getting caught now considering how far she's come. Even the smallest suspicion can jeopardize their whole plan, "time is a fragile little thing Nora, there are no room for mistakes, one wrong move and you risk getting erased out of existence" she could hear her mentor's warning play inside her head. She was about to flash out of STAR labs when she heard it, her head shot up and her eyes widened in surprise, as she heard her father's distinct laugh from inside the cortex.
Why is he here? She thought to herself in surprise, her movements stilled involuntarily, knowing fully well that Barry could sense her presence if she uses her speed. Nora knows that she needed to get out of there, but the curiosity to find out why her dad is still here at this time of the night was eating away at her.
She debated whether to just turn around and leave or stay and eavesdrop on her dad, but the voice that rang out next made the decision for her. Caitlin— she was definitely the one who spoke up, her blood froze at the thought of her dad and the bio-engineer together at STAR labs in the middle of the night.
Electricity flashed behind her eyes, the feelings she buried deep down to play her part perfectly, started bubbling up the surface. Every time she saw Caitlin, she would always have to keep her emotions in check, but if she was being completely honest with herself, spending time around her at STAR Labs made her actually like Caitlin. There even came a point where she reconsidered going through with their plan, but tonight was a cold harsh reminder of why she needed to stick to their plan.
. . .
"I've dreamed of that moment for most of my life. To see my Dad again, to finally meet my hero." Nora sighed. She was crouched on the cold metal floor, her back against the metal bannister outside the cell. "All my life, I grew up without him because of you— you did this to my family." She glared at him accusingly, with venom in her voice.
The man on the other side of the glass was watching her, with no hint of emotion in his eyes. She actually didn't care if he listened to her, she just wanted someone to take the blame for everything that happened. And, it was easier to hate the villain— it was easier to blame the Reverse Flash than her Dad.
"Was this your plan all along, huh? Make The Flash disappear for all these years, for you to just get yourself imprisoned in the end?" She told him with contempt in her voice, "For a super villain, you're pretty pathetic.." Nora mocked him, to rile him up, but to no avail. His demeanor didn't even change, he just kept watching her, as if she was a toddler on a petty tantrum.
She shifted, and made a move to stand up when he finally spoke up. "Nora, is it?" Thawne addressed her, a hint of curiosity in his tone. "You look absolutely nothing like your father, but I can see the resemblance in your personalities." he told her, matter of factly, as if he was just stating the obvious.
Nora wanted to ignore the comment, though it definitely hit a nerve. She didn't even know why she came here, but it felt good to finally vent out her frustrations. To slip off the mask she had been wearing ever since her father came back a year ago. "You don't know me, Thawne" she shook her head, slightly in defiance.
"But, I know what you want." the man inside the cell stated simply.
She just stared at him, her mouth pulled into a tight line. She didn't know what he meant by that— hell she didn't even know what she wanted. Nora knew that he was probably baiting her, but she can't seem to ignore the curiosity his statement sparked, so she just watched him with apprehension this time.
"I could give you all the time you lost with your father," he began "stop him from ever disappearing twenty five years ago." he finished, with so much confidence, that she couldn't even doubt that he could actually do it.
She knew what he was implying.
Run back in time to change what happened back then. Truth be told she actually considered it more than a couple of times already, ever since she found out about her speed. She had her doubts of course, everybody warned her about the repercussions of changing the past, and it's not like anyone taught her how to actually do it. Her dad never had the chance to properly teach her about her powers, so she doesn't even know how to time travel even if she wanted to. There is also the fact that, if she did get to travel back to the past, she stood no chance against stopping her dad's greatest enemy all by herself.
But now, The Reverse Flash himself was standing in front of her, dangling all she ever wanted at an arms reach, like it was just as simple as hitting the rewind button on a video.
"How?" she started cautiously, even though he was offering to help her, at the back of her head she knew that he was still a villain whose main goal in life was to destroy her father. "And, why should I even trust you."
"I'm going to train you, Nora" he proposed, with a calculative glint in his eyes. "Train you to become faster than your father, to be fast enough to change the past— to prevent your brother from even existing in this timeline." he finished, a satisfied smirk gracing his face.
He definitely knew which buttons to push, she knew that he probably has an ulterior motive behind all this, but because of what he said she couldn't care less about what's in it for Eobard Thawne, all she cared about at this moment was getting back the life she deserved, that 'he' took away from her.
"He's not my brother." She spat out, hardness seeping into her tone.
"And he won't be for much longer, if you let me help you, Nora West-Allen." he told her slowly, watching her— waiting for her to take the bait.
. . .
Nora shook her head, forcing herself to focus on the present. It doesn't sound like they're leaving the lab anytime soon, and she can't let her dad know about the trips she'd been making to STAR Labs in the wee hours of the night. All this time, she thought she had been making progress, making her parents spend more time with each other, and slowly setting things into place, just as Thawne instructed. But, she didn't expect their plan to invoke more interactions between her Dad and Caitlin, she needed to speed up their plans because of this.
She knew she couldn't send a journal entry to Thawne this time, so maybe it was time to give her mentor a personal visit, Nora thought to herself, as she silently speed out of STAR labs. She circled around the City a handful of times, gaining just enough momentum to run back home, to her original time period.