"So the grand plan is….?"

Mick and Effie ran up the steps the the house and slammed the door, dropping the scuba kit in the hallway. Their transport, abandoned in a side street in the city.

He couldn't remember how they made it out, only the people in the bank did waking up beside them as they sauntered past, then an intense heat like a wall as they rushed through the door, where his scuba kit became useless as he had to breathe so hard.

Effie must had been practicing a new technique, she'd saved them from getting caught. He'd screwed up. She saved them. The more times he repeated that to himself the more ridiculous and far fetched and embarrassing it sounded.

But those shiny ice white diamonds were laying in an deposit box virtually inviting him to take them. He wasted so much time in the vault that the people were waking up. Why did he take such a risk? They weren't even there for diamonds, no matter how much Effie wanted them. It wasn't part of the plan.

Effie disappeared to her room and the house fell silent. He wouldn't want to be around him either.

Mick sat on the bed and stared at the window where Len would have been. A cool breeze against his cheek even thought the window was closed.

He dropped the bag containing the days takings on the floor and started to open the wardrobe to hide the cash. Jewellery from the deposit boxes, were stuffed in a pillow case ready to be deposited under the kitchen sink until he could figure out what to do with them.

He spread the diamonds out on the bed. It would be hard to fence them, but they were begging to be stolen. He was a criminal after all.

He could see Lenny again, in the window seat, examining his nails if he was waiting for something.

"Haven't forgotten about you Lenny. Been busy."

Five large stones, about the size of marbles. They looked familiar, he turned the stones with his fingers, one was imperfect. A black mark. Why would there be a black mark on something so pure and pristine. Something clicked in his mind. He knew that stone.

He put the stones in their velvet bag and hid it at the bottom of the wardrobe.

He shucked his clothes and got into bed, struggling to sleep, his mind trying to remember what he knew about the diamonds.

Weeks crept by and laying low was getting boring, the only notable achievements being that they had a managed to binge watch all of Buffy the Vampire Slayer- He wouldn't let her near Game of Thrones no matter how much she begged. Arson was one thing, all that sex was quite another- and all of the latest season of CSI.

Effie had perfected her fire waterfall. She told him about the manipulation of the oxygen, lining them up to make a curtain of flame, waving her hands at him. It went straight over his head. On the other end of the spectrum, his most notable achievement was that he'd drunk a lot of beer.

A loud knock echoed around the house.

It was peculiar as no-one had ever knocked on the door before, they just barged in. Then again the only person who knew he was there was Effie.

Mick opened the door, to nothing, just thin air.

He threw a string of curse words at the empty air and slammed the door, seething that he was interrupted.

He stomped into the kitchen, ready to shout at whoever was in there, he'd had a bad day. Sitting at the table, in the spot that Len usually appreciated was Sara, rocking backwards on the chair. How did she get in? He didn't want to ask and get a convoluted reason. He would go for the most simple one. She was an assassin.

"Hey Micky" Her voice ominous and curious at the same time. The extra plates in the sink, two cups, a pile of books on the table.

She kept swinging on the chair. He desperately wanted to tip her off, so that she fell in a heap on the floor, but thought better of it.

"What do you want Sara?" He growled at her "Thought you were travelling around the universe with Rip." He popped the p on the end with distain.

"He sent me."

Mick pulled up a chair and sat on it backwards.

"What made the almighty Rip send you?."

"It hasn't happened yet."

Mick took a deep breath and rubbed his temples. Time travel always gave him a headache. She sat in silence, watching him. Ok, he'd bite.

"What's going to happen?"

"Central City's going to go up in smoke."

"As much as I would love to see that. It won't be me,"

"I know that."

A shadow elongated across the kitchen, Effie blindly staggered in, aiming towards the refrigerator, she swung the door open, removed a bottle of water and shut it again, before taking in the fact that there was someone else in the room that she had never seen before.

She glanced at the blonde woman, as she undid the water and took a long slug from it.

"Dad always makes sure I drink enough water." She uttered blandly, replacing the cap and eyeing the woman's reaction to the comment. Sara's face remained passive. Effie, non plussed about the reaction, took the bottle and left the room.

"Dad?

"She's suspicious. We don't get visitors."

Sara raised an eyebrow, not questioning the family development. She pushed the chemistry and physics books across the table.

"It will be her."

Mick looked perturbed. He knew that the last job had nearly got them arrested and life had gotten a little boring, but he'd tried to train her to keep her cool so to speak.

"No, it won't"

"She gets out of control and destroys Central City."

"Do you know why?"

"Lies"

Her blunt reply shocked him, but he didn't show it.

"I didn't ask for is all his fault." He spat "He's out there somewhere screwing me over."

"Who?"

"Lenny."

Looking at Mick like he'd started having a psychological break, she smiled gently.

"So, you're telling me, that Leonard is messing with the universe."

"He went in to the Oculus, which is as good as a goddamn time machine. Fuck knows where he is and he's pissed at me for not going back for him. He has some sort of plan and I have have no idea what it is." His voice getting more frustrated at each word.

It was all true and it was a fact that made him feel particularly uncomfortable as he always knew the plans. He stopped abruptly realising he was sounding pathetic.

Sara raised an eyebrow, never having heard him voluntarily say so much at the same time.

"You really think that through sheer force of will, he has managed to break the space time barrier and interfere in your life?"

"Would explain our plans" Stubbornness radiating from his words. "Would explain Effie and Vic." He said the last word quietly. The ex soldier was for some reason at the back of his mind as if here were for a reason.

"Are you making friends?" The patronising tone making his fingers twitch as he held himself back instead of doing something stupid. Who said he had no common sense. Well Lenny did, but he wasn't there. "And the books. He would be pleased that you have decided to do something with your life apart from trying to kill yourself."

"How do you know?"

"You didn't think that we would leave you in this time without back up did you? We have been keeping a semi close eye on you for years." she raised a sly eyebrow. "Who's Vic?" She enquired with a distinct lack of subtlety.

"None of your business"

The wrist band on Sara's wrist lit up.

"Crisis averted. I have to go." She rose from the chair. He followed her to the door and waited as she stepped into the street. She abruptly turned to face him. "Maybe he's waiting for you to follow." She stood in the doorway for a moment. "Did you ever want to be someone better?"

"Saving the world got old." Mick grunted dismissively. "Didn't know I had a choice"

"Everyone has a choice." Her voice full of knowing "I miss him too, you know. We all do."

She stood on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek, pressing a bottle of whisky into his hand. He didn't want to know where she'd had it hidden. He didn't want to know either.

"See you around Micky."

He blinked and she disappeared, the only evidence of her being there, was the bottle of 25 year old scotch he had in his hand and the lingering pressure of the kiss on his cheek. No-one had kissed him in a long time.

He shut the door and took a deep breath.

"Ok Lenny, I give. What do you want me to do?" He whispered to the air.

The room went cold for a second, then warmed again.

A noise came from the living room. Talking. Growling to himself, he cursed the brat for leaving the television on and went to turn it off. As he was about to push the button on the remote control, an image popped up on the screen. A state of the art microprocessor was being auctioned on Christmas Eve.

Part of his heat gun.

The gun that he had been forced to take apart and fix over and over, so it was ingrained in his mind.

"So that's the plan, you smug bastard."

The room dropped a few degrees in reply.

Mick raced into his room and wrenched open the wardrobe, removing the velvet bag, pouring the diamonds in this palm. The black mark was a message.

His heat gun.

The ice that stopped the heist for a week, so the diamonds in the right place on the day they hit the vault.

A final heist from beyond the grave. Clever. Not pissed after all.

Of the things he needed, one down, three to go.

Mick turned off the TVs, put the bottle in a really high cupboard and made himself a sandwich, then marched out to the garden where he found Effie, practicing dripping flames from her fingers like candle wax.

"Effie, we have work to do"

"Has the lady gone?"

It was too much of a brain twister to explain the appearance of Sara, so he didn't. He nodded

"Did I do ok?"

"Perfect. Fell for it, no problem." He said absently, watching the flames, then beckoned for her to join him inside.

He grabbed a beer and a coke from the refrigerator and slumped in Len's spot, passing the can to Effie. She popped the can whilst he opened the beer with his hand.

"What's the plan."

"We have to steal something from an auction."

"What?"

"A part of my old weapon is up for sale."

"So the grand plan is to rebuild your dumb heat gun?"

He stared at her, wondering when she had started talking him like that, or if she had always done it.

"That about covers it. Len want's me to. Seems to think that I need it," The last words were grudging.

"We've been practicing." Effie's voice upped an octave "We can do this. We're a team"

"This is bigger than banks." He shook his head. "I get busted, you're on your own. We need help" Mick finished his beer and rose from the chair. "I have to leave for a few days."

"Where are you going?"

"Gotham."