Path 4 - Fire and Ice

Takes place after episode 21.

Caitlin paced the second floor of the precinct. All of Zoom's henchmen had filed out into the streets of Central City to wreak havoc and chaos. Her heart pounded so hard, she thought she was going to have a heart attack. She wrung her hands, taking deep breaths, but nothing calmed her. The sole reason she'd stayed after Zoom's ultimatum was to be privy to his plans and warn Barry, like she had when he'd targeted the police.

But now she was trapped with no way to contact anyone. It took all of three seconds for Zoom to rip out the phones and computers, clear out the police boxes she'd found the cellphone in, board up the windows, and barricade her in. He'd even gone so far as to remove all sharp objects, as if she were on suicide watch. It would've been easier to lock her in a cell, but no, she was his guest, and apparently, there of her own free will.

What had she done?

Her breaths were too rapid. She couldn't exhale. Her chest heaved in time with her racing heart. Clinically, she knew she was hyperventilating, but she couldn't stop. Not once the stress of her job had ever gotten to her. She'd been kidnapped by an angry, yet brilliant gorilla; targeted by evil meta-humans; worked under a super villain from the future; and generally been in harm's path just by being near Barry. She should be able to handle anything. She should be a pro at this, but Zoom was Jay— no, he was Hunter. Jay had been a lie, and thinking of him as her once-lover only caused her pain.

The room darkened, then grew cloudy. Little bursts of light dappled her vision. Before Caitlin could pass out, she darted to a chair and sat with her head between her knees.

What was she going to do now?

Loud static filtered in through the intercoms. "Caitlin? Caitlin, can you hear me?"

Her head jerked up at the sound of Cisco's voice.

"I think she can." He paused, as if listening to someone else. Harry perhaps. "Caitlin, this is only a one-way intercom, so I need you to wave or something."

She jumped to her feet, moving both arms like an enthusiastic airplane Marshaller. If they could see her, then they had access to the security cams as well. They could help her escape.

"Good." He exhaled, long and slow. "He hasn't hurt you, has he?"

Shaking her head, she lowered her arms and wrapped them around herself. Hunter thought he loved her. He wouldn't hurt her physically. The more insidious ways were fair game, though.

"We've been so worried about you, but so many things have happened since you were taken. What has Jay— Hunter told you?"

"Nothing." She shook her head to get her point across.

He went on, debriefing her in his usual jocular way, while she searched for a pen and paper. Several times, she had paused and looked at one of the cameras in surprise. Barry had died, but not really. He'd been in the Speed Force and was now back with his power, fighting the meta-humans as they spoke.

After scribbling, 'I'm trapped. How do I get out?', she held up her sign and slowly turned, unsure which camera he watched her through.

"Stop. Walk closer." When she did, he sighed, then pulled away from the mic to argue with someone. Though she tried, she couldn't make out what was said.

"Snow," Harry's urgent voice filled the room. "We need you to stay put. And we need you to get Zoom to agree to peacefully meet with us."

In a detached way, she realized she'd dropped her sign. As her paper floated toward the floor, she stared at its meandering path, trying to process his words. Stay. Convince Zoom to do something. Peacefully. She nearly laughed out loud. Her shoulders shook from her repressed mirth, despite desperate tears filling her eyes.

She just wanted to go home.

"If anyone can do this, it's you, Snow. Are you still with me?"

Sucking in a sharp breath, she pulled herself upright and nodded.

"There's something bigger going on. Something bigger than Zoom and his army—"

Cisco interrupted him with a rustle of noise. "They're my visions. I get to tell them." His voice strengthened as he focused his attention on her. "So I've been having these visions of an all-powerful being, huge and craggy faced with eyes that shoot out some kind of energy beam, but like nothing I've ever seen. They can curve and twist, go through matter and not destroy it, but then it hits his target and they disintegrate." He snapped his fingers. "Just like that."

"Get to the point, Cisco," Harry drawled.

"He goes to different worlds, takes them over. It's like Hitler's dream realized. And he's on his way. Here."

She blinked.

"Did you get all that?"

She blinked again.

"Caitlin?"

Lifting a finger for him to give her a moment, she took a slow breath, then grabbed the paper and pen to write, 'When and where do you want to meet?'.

"Here, at STAR labs, as soon as possible. Have him call off his goons too."

They must think she was some kind Fairy Godmother with a magical wand. How in the world was she supposed to do this? She sat and rubbed her temples.

Static cut through the line. "We have to go ... They're attacking the building."

She jumped to her feet, shaking her head. While she worried for them, she didn't want to be alone. It felt so good to hear a friendly voice, she'd managed to finally relax, even with all the doom and gloom.

"You have ... get his attention ... Hurry."

Their connection was cut off, leaving her alone in heavy silence. She collapsed into her chair again, doing her best to not let herself get caught up in the weight of her problems. One thing at a time, she told herself.

Her gaze landed on the papers, particularly the one begging for help. She couldn't let Hunter see it. Hiding it wouldn't work. She thought about ripping it to shreds, but he could still put it together. Eating it was out of the question.

Fire.

Of course, there were no lighters, but batteries and aluminum gum wrappers were easy enough to find.

It took only a moment for a spark to ignite the papers and consume her writing. Satisfied, she dropped them in the small trash can before realizing her mistake.

In her haste, she had forgotten to dump it, and now all the papers and trash inside fed the fire. The flames were already melting the plastic. She nudged it with her shoe to scoot it away from the wooden desk, but hadn't taken into account how hot the damned thing would be.

She jumped back, cursing under her breath, and ran to grab a fire extinguisher. The closest station was empty though, as well as the next. It wasn't until she'd scoured the downstairs, she realized Hunter must have removed them.

Pushing back her wild hair, she looked around for something else that could put out a fire. A half-empty water jug sat in a water dispenser in the corner.

After lugging the heavy burden upstairs, she hesitated. Smoke billowed out of the room, making it nearly impossible to see the burning desk. There were no other options. She had to put out the fire.

Steeling herself, she took a deep inhalation, charged into the open room, and dumped the water on the desk. The unbearable heat didn't let up, which meant the flames had already spread.

Panic lit up her nerves. Adrenaline coursed through her veins, spurring her to run despite the wall of thick smoke closing in on her, concealing everything, even light. Her galloping heartbeat pounded in her ears. Soot turned her eyes into waterfalls. Her hair and clothes clung to her sweat-soaked skin.

She bumped into things and tripped over others. There would be bruises, but those were the least of her worries. She was lost and her body demanded air.

Unable to hold on any longer, she gasped in a lungful of acrid smoke, only to choke on it. Harsh coughs raked her body as she dropped to her knees, ripping off her shirt to cover her nose and mouth. The darkness was as suffocating as the clogged air.

If she died from such a stupid, colossal mistake, she was going to be furious.

She crawled around, looking for the stairs. All she thought about was making it out alive, helping her friends, and taking a long vacation.

What felt like hours had passed, and yet she never found her escape. Breathing hurt and provided little oxygen. It made her light-headed and so tired she desperately wanted to lie down. So she did.

Caitlin rested her head on the warm tile and blinked lazily at her smoke-filled surroundings. Her muddled thoughts slowed as a cool feeling of euphoria spread over her.

Knowing that she was dying should have frightened or angered her, but nothing penetrated the mind-numbing fatigue, not even the strange tunnels of wind that sucked out the smoke, or the nightmarish masked man carrying her outside.

The next time her eyes opened, she found herself in a hospital bed with an oxygen tube in her nose and needles in her arms. Early morning light filtered into the quiet room. It had been night when Cisco contacted her. Fear for them had her bolting upright and pulling out all the tubes. She needed to make sure they'd survived the attack.

When a large hand landed on her shoulder, easing her back onto the bed, she flinched. Memories of her rescue came flooding back. Zoom had saved her. Again.

She expected to see the ugly mask of Zoom or the hard eyes of Hunter. What she found though, was Jay, worried for her well-being.

"You gave me quite a scare, Cait," he said.

Unnerved by the softness in his tone and the tired look about him, she tried to swallow. Her sore throat grated from the simple action and she grimaced.

"Do you need a nurse?"

He stepped away from her bed and she noticed he still wore his black speedster suit. He must have been with her all night, which was good. If he was in her room, then he wasn't out there, doing God only knows what.

Waiting for a response, he stared at her, seemingly just as unsure as she felt. It reminded her so much of the Jay she had fallen in love with, it made her chest ache. She shook her head, answering his question, then let herself fall back on the pillow.

"I'll let you rest, then."

He turned to leave, but she threw out a hand to catch his. His body went rigid. He looked at her in surprise and moved back to the bed. Was that guilt in his eyes? For removing the fire extinguishers? For forcing her to take desperate measures? Regardless, she hadn't thought him capable of the emotion.

"Barry?" she croaked out.

As if she'd flipped a switch, his face transformed into Hunter's. "Alive. Same with your friends."

She nodded in relief. "They—" The pain of talking cut her off. Each utterance was like swallowing thumbtacks. "A message."

"I know."

Her eyes widened.

"You didn't think I wouldn't also have access to the security system, did you?" He tsked. "I saw it all. I saw your sign."

The monitor picked up her sprinting heartbeat and announced it to the world with loud, fast-paced beeps.

"You lied to me, Cait." He smoothed back her hair with a gentle hand. "It hurts, you know."

She tried to speak, but he hushed her.

"Seeing you almost die made me nearly go crazy. I can't lose you too."

He was talking about his mother, she realized. While his tragic past saddened her, she just couldn't forgive the horrible choices he'd made.

"Which is why I'm willing to make some changes. Maybe Barry and I can work together. If meta-humans are free, no more hiding, no more stigma, then I'll help fight Darkseid." At her raised brow, he added, "Cisco named him."

He was looking to make amends, to be a better person. For her. It wouldn't be enough for lasting change, but it was a step in the right direction.

Squeezing his hand, she mouthed, 'thank you.'

His stance softened, and there was her Jay again. The awkward, boyish look thawed the icy wall she'd built around her heart when it came to him.

He lifted their hands and kissed the back of hers before walking to the door. "I'm leaving someone behind to watch after you while I'm away. If you have even a scratch when I come back, he dies."

Without waiting for a reaction, he left. His words were so matter-of-fact, he could've told her the sky was blue and the grass was green. She shook her head, wondering if that would ever change, then closed her eyes for a much-needed nap.

Author's Note: I had a sadder ending planned for this chapter — no, not another death :) — but it had a mind of its own and took over. I never resist when that happens because it always turns out better.

So I can check off 'Zoom helps Barry' from my list. I just have one more of mine and then I'm on to the requests. Right now there's Zoom wins, forcing Caitlin to stay with him, and Caitlin chooses Zoom. Should the last one be a two-parter? Maybe one where she stays, but in hopes to bring out his humanity, and another where he brings out her inner Killer Frost, she goes dark, and becomes his partner-in-crime.

Also, if you have any more ideas, I'm game. It's been a lot of fun writing for our little Snowhunter community, and you've been so supportive it makes me want to continue. I can't thank you enough!