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Summary: Finding the light in the dark is a hard concept for eleven year old Barry Allen to understand. After his parents were murdered before his eyes leaving him orphaned, he can only focus on the bad things happening around him. However with the help of Harrison Wells, his wife Tess and their two kids, Caitlin and Cisco, Barry learns that sometimes the good can outweigh the bad.
Chapter Four
The meeting with the DA and Captain had taken much longer than Harrison and Joe would have liked. For ninety percent of the meeting it had been Joe and Harrison arguing with the DA and Captain while Tess had been the only calm voice in the room. Although Harrison was not an aggressive person, he was definitely passionate. When it came to things that were important to him, he would fight with everything he had until he either won the fight or had no other option, but to retreat.
The matter of young Barry Allen was something Harrison would not back away from. Even though Joe had been hesitant, he had become less against Harrison and decided this would be best for Barry. Besides it wouldn't permanent. In fact, Joe predicted that Barry would only need to stay with Harrison and his wife for a month until Donna could meet the standard.
Donna had been called to the meeting, as the only other living relative of Barry she had a right to be here. Despite not being able to take her nephew, she was able to have a hand in what would happen to him. It annoyed the woman to no end that she couldn't help her nephew the way she wanted to, but she was going to do everything in her power to make sure he was happy.
When Joe explained the situation to her, she had been completely onboard with Barry being fostered by Harrison and his wife. The combined effort of Joe, Harrison, Tess and Donna had been enough for the DA to back down from her original front. All she needed was the judges stamp of approval and Barry would be given to Harrison and Tess as a foster child. It would require an unnecessary amount of paperwork, but Harrison didn't mind. As long as Barry would come with him, he didn't care what he had to do.
Tess was relieved, grateful even at the thought of being able to help Barry however she was concerned. It hadn't occurred to her until now that her two children had no idea what was going on. Whenever there was going to be a major change, Tess and Harrison made it a point to speak with their kids. This way they could see how they felt about the situation or event. To show that their input did matter on some levels.
It worried Tess to think her kids would be unhappy with the arrangement. What if Barry didn't get along with her kids? What if the three of them were always at each other's throats? Would she be able to keep Barry if that were to happen? Even though Tess wanted to help Barry, her children always came first.
"I'll contact you in the morning about the judge's verdict and bring the paperwork here," said the DA closing her briefcase.
Harrison nodded, "We will be here. Thank you."
The DA nodded shortly in acknowledgement and left the office without a word. The captain took a seat at his desk while Joe walked out of the room with Donna, Tess and Harrison behind him.
"Tomorrow you'll come back to fill out paperwork and be able to take Barry by twelve," Joe said walking with the couple.
Harrison smiled relieved, "I'm just glad it worked out."
"We aren't out of the woods yet Harry," Tess said, her hands in her jacket pockets, "We still need the judge's approval."
Donna rolled her eyes, "The judge is going to approve."
Joe nodded in agreement, "Your case is too solid and works for all parties involved. The only reason he could potentially turn it down is because Barry is still in the same city."
Harrison frowned at the officer's words, "Do they have any reason to suspect the killer would come after Barry?"
Joe hesitated, "I'm not able to tell you that. I will say however, it is a possibility. By taking Barry in and leaving him in this city, there is a risk of the killer coming after him. As of right now, moving him was a precaution. It's unlikely he would go for Barry since he didn't see the man's face."
"If Barry had seen the yellow man's face," Tess said, beginning to understand, "He would go into witness protection and leave everything behind."
Joe nodded, his eyes downcast, "Yes. He would have."
Harrison said gently, "He won't have to face that."
Joe didn't say anything in reply, he only acknowledged Harrison's words with a curt nod before walking away. Harrison watched Joe walk up the stairs on his right, no doubt in his mind that the officer was headed to find Barry.
"Don't worry too much about Joe," Donna said with a small smile, "He means well and takes awhile to warm up to others."
"That's understandable," Harrison replied.
"Thank you for helping my nephew," Donna released a gentle sigh, "I'll see you two later."
Donna left Harrison and Tess to go after Joe and speak with her nephew. Harrison and Tess left the police department in silence, the previous meeting and events still on their mind. Tomorrow morning they would gain another member in their household. The thought excited Harrison, he couldn't wait to have Barry come home with him and meet his children. He knew Caitlin and Cisco would love Barry, he just knew it.
Tess on the other hand was incredibly worried about bringing Barry in so suddenly, especially since her children didn't know. Even though fostering a child had been on Tess's mind and her family seemed to be onboard with the idea, she worried how Caitlin and Cisco would react, specifically Caitlin. Caitlin wasn't one to open up to others easily, the only reason why she was okay with Cisco living with them was because they were friends before. A complete stranger would be coming into their house and Tess knew that wouldn't go over well with her daughter.
"What's wrong," Harrison asked, pulling Tess from her thoughts.
Tess sighed, she leaned back against the passenger seat and said, "What are we going to tell Caitlin and Cisco? How was school today? Oh by the way, we're going to add a new member to our family. His name is Barry and he's your age."
"That's one way of putting it," Harrison said with a sly grin.
Tess glared at her husband, "I'm serious Harry. We didn't even ask them about this. What if the kids don't get along? What if Barry is meant to them or they're mean to Barry?"
Harrison raised an eyebrow, "You can't be serious. Barry will get along with Caitlin and Cisco. I have no doubt about that."
"What makes you so sure," Tess asked curiously.
Harrison smiled, "Barry, like our kids, is a science nerd."
"Just because they all like science doesn't mean they'll get along," Tess replied shortly.
Harrison shrugged, "Maybe not, but it's a start."
Tess sighed again, she couldn't argue with that.
Harrison and Tess had gone over everything they were going to say when Caitlin and Cisco arrived home for last hour and a half. The two had just returned from the lab were waiting for their children to return home, prepared to tell them what was going on. However the moment their kids came through the front door, the two were at a loss words.
Luckily, Caitlin and Cisco were a little pre-occupied with their debate about why the sky is blue to notice their parents freeze up. It honestly amazed Tess how one minute, Caitlin and Cisco were the best of friends and the next, they were at each other's throats over something small. Sometimes it was amusing, other times it bothered Tess to know end. Harrison didn't mind the arguing as much, he didn't like it when his kids fought, but he knew it was the natural order of things. Besides, their arguments were some of the more interesting debates Harrison had ever seen.
Harrison left his wife to deal with their children while he went to the living room to wait for them.
"Okay, enough with the sky talk," Tess said, "The living room, now."
Caitlin and Cisco stopped their arguing instantly. Caitlin studied her mother with a concerned and slightly unnerved look. Neither her nor Cisco had done anything recently, which meant there was going to be a family meeting. It wasn't uncommon for all of them to go into the living room, it was just when Tess called a meeting that something was wrong.
Cisco frowned, "Why?"
"Your father and I will explain when we get in there," Tess replied and walked out of the room.
Caitlin and Cisco exchanged a nervous glance, both asking the same questions and receiving the same answer, nothing. A bit hesitant, Caitlin and Cisco followed Tess into the living room. The living room was fairly small, it consisted of a yellow couch with red, green, brown and orange leaf patterns on it, a fireplace, two more chairs and a coffee table.
The couch had been Tess's idea, she said it looked like autumn itself, which was her favorite season and she had to have it. The two chairs matched the couch, both yellow and fall looking. The coffee table was simple, a glass top and a dark brown frame to keep it up. Caitlin and Cisco walked in after their mother had taken her seat next to their dad who sitting on the floor in front of the couch. His chin was resting in his hands, his eyes focused intently on the fireplace. Caitlin knew he wasn't focused on the fireplace though, he was too deep in thought to focus on anything.
"Dad," Cisco asked curiously, "What's going on? First mom calls us to the living room and now you have that look on your face."
Harrison smiled at Cisco, "What look?"
"The I'm-about-to-drop-a-bomb-and-hope-it-doesn't-blow-up face," Cisco replied simply.
Harrison chuckled weakly at that, "That obvious huh?"
"Only to us," Caitlin said, the corners of her mouth twitching upwards.
Tess took a seat beside her husband while Caitlin and Cisco sat on the floor across from them, the table in the middle.
"What's up," Caitlin asked first.
"And are we going to like it," Cisco added, a smile grew on his face, "Are we getting a dog? Please tell me yes."
"Not this time," Tess answered much to Cisco's disappointment.
Harrison smiled gently, "How would you two feel about having someone else move into the house?"
"You two decided to foster," Caitlin questioned, but it sounded more like a statement to Harrison.
Tess nodded, "Yes."
"Oh cool," Cisco said with a grin, "Is it a boy or a girl? What's their name? How old are they? When are they coming? Do they like Star Wars or Star Trek or both? How do they feel about sci-fi? Are they on the nerd side or athletic side?"
Harrison blinked twice before answering, "A boy, his name is Barry. He's eleven, tomorrow, I don't know, I know he likes science and my guess is nerd side."
Cisco nodded thoughtfully, "Sounds good to me."
"Why so soon," Caitlin said, her tone borderline dark.
Tess replied, "Because his situation is… special. We only found out today that we would foster him and to be honest, there is still a chance that he might not stay."
"Why is that, don't you just need to fill out the paperwork and here he comes," Cisco asked, slightly confused.
Caitlin rolled her eyes, "It's more than just sign paperwork and the kid arrives."
Cisco huffed, "I know that. I meant, why is there a chance he still might not come if dad just said, he'll be here tomorrow."
"It's a small chance," Harrison started, "But he will most likely be here tomorrow. Are you two okay with this?"
"It's not like we have much of a choice," Caitlin muttered under breath.
Cisco heard her, but made no comment about it. Instead he focused on his parents. The idea of having a new friend excited Cisco, he really hoped Barry would like him and team up against with him against Caitlin. It was about time he had some backup against her, she was ruthless at times and would need the extra help.
"I'm all for it," Cisco said, his brown eyes bright, "Will I have to share my room?"
"No," Tess said with a more relaxed expression, "He'll stay down the hall from you and Caitlin."
"Cait," Harrison said looking at his daughter's blank expression, "Are you okay with this?"
Caitlin shrugged indifferently. Truth be told, she was not happy with this new arrangement. For as long as she could remember, change was not something Caitlin Snow-Wells liked to deal with. Cisco didn't care so much about change though, he just went with the flow and it bothered Caitlin to no end. As far as Caitlin was concerned, change was never good thing.
"Even if I wasn't okay with it, he would still come," Caitlin finally said, "Besides, he probably has nowhere else to go. I'll be fine and maybe, maybe I'll like him."
Cisco scoffed, "You don't like anyone-OW. Let go."
Caitlin only smiled tightly and she released his ear from her death grip. Cisco rubbed the sore cartilage while glaring at the twelve year old girl. He really hoped Barry would team up with him and they could gang up on Caitlin, maybe even pull some pranks.
"Enough you two," Tess said with a sigh, "There is something else you should know about Barry. When he comes, the two of you need to be nice, welcoming and most of all gentle."
"His parents were killed less than a week ago," Harrison added softly.
Cisco's eyes widen in shock and horror at the revelation. He remembered what it felt like when he lost his parents, even though under different circumstances, it still hurt. Even to this day, the wound still stung. Caitlin frowned, she lowered her head as she remembered what had happened to her parents when she younger. When she lost them, she felt completely alone and lost in the world. If it wouldn't have been for Tess and Harrison, she never would have recovered. She could understand the need to be easy with Barry, especially if he lost his parents so recently.
"What about the rest of his family," Caitlin asked sorrowfully, "Could no one else take him? Is he really alone?"
Harrison replied, "He does have an aunt, but the state won't grant her custody until she can meet their standards. Barry won't be staying with us forever, only until he can find his way back home."
"We'll make sure he feels at home here," Cisco said with a broad smile.
Caitlin nodded in agreement, a soft look in her eyes. Harrison recognized that look, he offered a her a gentle smile to show that he understood what she couldn't say. At a very young age, she had lost her parents without a warning, similarly to how Barry had lost his own. Caitlin and Cisco would help Barry, Harrison had never been more sure about it than in that moment.