A/N: Hello everyone and welcome back! It's time to kick off a story arc that you have, hopefully, been eagerly awaiting. Fair warning: there will be plenty of drama, fluff, crappily described fight scenes and a lot more amidst the chaos to follow.

I hope you're ready!

Shout out to: Nami, Beast Mode92, 01eggy10 and RedArcherx. Thank you for the reviews and the suggestions last chapter, they were much appreciated and even put into use retroactively.

Special thanks to RedArcherx for pulling Beta duty.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: None of the characters in this chapter are mine. They belong to DC, CW and whoever else out there owns them.

Chapter 10: You Go Back, Flash, Duet Again (Duet 1)

STAR Labs - Cortex

A week after Kara woke up saw the entirety of Team Legendary Super Flarrow (the patent was pending though they were having significant trouble with the sheer number of logos and symbols and the logistics involved with incorporating them all. Debates were being held over whether they should just go with letters) making their way to STAR Labs for a get together/baby name/gender reveal for the newest members of the team.

Everything had gone well during Thea's delivery and two healthy babies were screaming their heads off after an eight-hour labor that had nearly wiped the small woman out before she'd had a chance to hold her children. In the end, she happily passed out with her daughter in her arms, despite the child's continued cries well into the night.

Roy hadn't been so lucky, but he really wasn't complaining.

Kara, being Kara, managed to convince Harry to help them decorate the lab even though, as the grumpy scientist pointed out, they had not one but two – soon to be three –speedsters who could have it all done in seconds.

"Decorations work a whole lot better when they aren't flying all over the place, Harry. You know that's exactly what would happen if we were using superpowers. Now shut up and hang those streamers!" Kara sing-songed the last bit of her counterargument.

There were snickers from the rest of the STAR Labs crew who were scattered around, having already been delegated their tasks by the finally showing – and absolutely loving it – Kryptonian. The general consensus amongst every one when it came to anything that Kara was in charge of lately was to just smile and do what you were told, or risk an emotional Kryptonian. It was a coin-flip as to whether or not the emotion would be extreme or manageable.

In addition to their out of town contemporaries from Star and their time-traveling allies, they were also expecting a small contingent from Earth-38. Things were going to get pretty crazy by the end of the night.

Kara had just finished setting up the last of the fold out tables when a ruckus from the parking lot caught her attention. Sometimes super-hearing came in handy. It seemed Nyssa and Oliver had arrived and Barry, running a few last minute errands, was greeting them.

"WHERE IS SHE?"

Attempting to greet them, at any rate.

"Heeeey, Nyssa. How're you doing? Good to see you all made it okay."

"I suggest you tell me where your girlfriend is and get out of the way, Bartholomew. Right now."

"I'd listen to her, Barry. If you value your health."

"Aw come on, Ollie, Nyssa's not seriously contemplating hurting me."

A pause.

Then what sounded like a squawk of surprise followed by a series of what sounded like punches, a body hitting the floor and, finally, the pained squeals of the Scarlet Speedster.

"OW! Ow, ow, ow, OW! She's in the lab! She's in the lab! Please let go of my arm, Nyssa, you know it's not supposed to bend that way!"

After a moment of silence, a relieved whimper signaled the former Ra's had released one-half of Central City's finest. The sound of heels clicking on the tile floor drawing closer prompted Kara to brace herself for what was surely going to be a lecture from the Queen of Star City. Her hypersensitive ears caught the tail end of Barry and Oliver's conversation.

"Dude…why the hell does your wife hate me?"

"She doesn't hate you, Barry. You just got in her way. You should know better by now."

"She was going to snap my arm, Oliver!"

"…yeah, she's been a little stressed lately, what with the whole Reign situation. Add to that Thea going into labor and William throwing a fit because he wasn't allowed to come with us to see everyone and I'm actually surprised she hasn't killed anyone."

"I…the fact you can say that so simply is concerning, Oliver, you realize that, right?"

"I do."

"…well…as long as you know. I guess."

"Come here, Barry. I think your arm is dislocated."

"SERIOUSLY?!"

"On three, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, okay. Just don't give me that 'one…snap' crap, got it?"

"Got it. Ready?"

"Yeah. I'm read – YYYYYYY! Mother…! What the fuck, Oliver?! You didn't even count, you bastard!"

"You're welcome, Barry."

Kara didn't even try to stifle her giggles, walking toward the entrance of the main lab and smiling winningly at the form of Nyssa Queen, who simply stood in the doorway and stared at the bubbly blonde, her eyes suspiciously wet.

"Hey Nyssa – oomph!"

Before she knew it, her arms were full of raven-haired assassin and, judging by the increased pressure, seemed to be doing her best to squeeze the Kryptonian to death. She gently returned the embrace and went to speak when Nyssa pulled away abruptly, her brown eyes wet and a furious expression on her face.

"You stupid, inconsiderate, moronic woman!"

Uh-oh.

"Nyssa –"

"Shut up!" The irate Queen growled. "I'm venting my rage at your irresponsible behavior and what you have put me through in the last week, Kara Danvers! Do not interrupt me."

Kara opened her mouth again but her voice failed upon seeing her friend's distraught face. Instead, she wrapped the woman in her arms once again, mindful not to squeeze too tight. "I'm sorry, Nyssa. I'm so sorry you had to go through that."

To her credit, Nyssa didn't break down as she had done the night they confronted Reign. She fought tooth and nail to maintain a modicum of her composure all the while keeping her face buried in Kara's shoulder. She shook and took deep breaths, trying to calm herself.

"I didn't know what to do, Kara, when I failed to get vengeance for you after…" her voice cracked and she swallowed. "I felt so useless. All I could think about was Barry's devastation and your reaction once you woke up. It haunted me the whole time you were in your coma. I would have been there when you woke but Thea went into labor and she wanted Oliver there with her. I could not leave my Beloved to deal with that on his own."

Kara felt the woman smile against her and one of her own spread across her face. "You've done more for me in the last few years than I could ever possibly repay, Nyssa. I owe you so much for helping me become a better fighter, thinker and person. Why would you think I would hold something like this against you? Besides," she pulled away from the ravenette and brought both hands to her belly. "Baby SuperFlash is safe and sound and she's gonna want her godmother to greet her with a smile when she arrives."

The smile that bloomed across Nyssa's face made her look ten years younger. Looking into the blonde's eyes, she asked, "A daughter?"

"I shouldn't have told you that," Kara gasped, wide-eyed at her slip of the tongue.

Nyssa laughed. A full-bellied sound that carried through the hallway and the Cortex and caught the attention of nearly everyone who had assembled so far. Some gave the former Ra's wary looks, edging further into the room or hiding behind the massive food tables. Others – namely Caitlin and Cisco – found the laughter contagious and joined in, moving to join the duo.

Oliver, walking slowly with Barry to give his wife and her best friend time to talk privately, gazed at her fondly, a small grin on his face. He whispered quietly to the speedster. "It's been a while since I've heard her laugh. She's been so sad these last few weeks, the guilt eating away at her."

Barry clapped the older man on the shoulder. "I know the feeling. It was the darkest time of my life until Kara woke up and we found out what Clark had done."

"I've been meaning to ask about that," Oliver started. "How exactly did Superman manage to sneak into the DEO, take Kara into space, bring her back and then sneak back out without you even noticing? I would've thought I taught you better than that."

Flushing spectacularly, the Fastest Man in the World looked everywhere but at Oliver. "I…may have been passed out in the cafeteria at the time."

Oliver stared, his mouth hanging open in shock.

"In my defense," the CSI continued quickly. "I had been up for five days straight at that point and only eaten twice. I wasn't exactly in the best state of mind and Caitlin, Alex, J'onn and Winn forced me to go. Apparently, because I don't remember this part, but when Winn got up to use the bathroom, I knocked out, face first into my mashed potatoes. I woke up in the bed next to Kara's twenty-four hours later, none the wiser. Plus, nobody bothered to inform me about it in the first place!"

Shaking his head in disbelief, Oliver hid his face in his hands as they finally caught up with Nyssa, Kara, Cisco and Caitlin. "I've failed as a teacher."

Kara smirked at the archer's defeated look. "Are we talking about Barry sleeping in his mashed potatoes?" At Nyssa's questioning look, the Kryptonian grinned wickedly and pulled out her phone. "Behold! The World's Best Boyfriend and Keeper of My Heart…after fifteen hours of no sleep!"

At seeing the picture, Nyssa's laugh once again filled the halls.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Oliver turned to look at the now very pale speedster, his eye twitching in time with his hand.

"Barry?"

"Yes Oliver?"

"Didn't you just tell me that you had been awake for five days when you decided to snooze in your food?"

"I may have…exaggerated. A bit."

"A bit?"

"Just a smidge."

"And why did you feel the need to lie?"

"…because you would be disappointed in me?"

"Why was that a question?"

"Why was what a question?"

"Dammit Barry!"

"Don't hurt me!"

A loud chime from Cisco's pocket interrupted their back and forth. The tech genius withdrew his phone and looked at the notification, a smile on his face. "That's the Gypsy alarm! Looks like my Boo is inbound so, as fascinating as this conversation has been, I'm gonna go say hi!" As he turned to go, another chime sounded causing him to glance back at his phone. "Also, the Legends just arrived! Brb!"

Nyssa saw the look on her husband's face and quickly grabbed his hand. "Come along, Beloved, I find myself famished and in need of food. You can complain about Barry's inability to stay awake later." She shot Kara a grin. "I have something to tell you once the excitement dies down. You will love it."

Watching the couple walk off, Kara leaned in to Barry's side, an amused smile on her face. "Five days, huh?"

"Forget about that!" he whined, wrapping one arm around her waist while grabbing at her phone with the other. "Where did you even get that picture? Winn told me he didn't take any photos!"

Kara giggled. "Winn didn't. My sister, on the other hand, was so ecstatic to see me healing normally after Clark brought me back that she decided to take a commemorative picture. Which she then shared with me after I woke up."

"Winn lied to me?"

"…Yes?"

STAR Labs Parking Lot - Waverider

With a flash and the sound of displaced air, the Waverider appeared above the empty parking lot behind STAR Labs, landing almost silently on the asphalt. Moments later, the ship disappeared as quickly as it had come.

On board, Sara released her harness with a soft click and addressed her co-pilot. The sound of movement behind her signaled the rest of the Legends – minus Mick who had elected to stay in his room citing something about moving the plot along – getting up as well. The tell-tale whoosh signaled Wally's abrupt departure from the craft, no doubt eager to see his girlfriend.

Ex-girlfriend.

"Cloaking active, Gideon? We don't want any curious strangers wandering onto the ship while we're out having fun. Not again at least."

"Yes Captain Lance. Though I feel it prudent to remind you that the infiltration that took place last time was not my fault. If Mr. Rory had simply remembered to close the loading ramp, the incident with the horde of Compsognathus would never have come to pass."

An annoyed growl from behind the blonde signaled Mick's arrival on the bridge as he made his way to toward said ramp, shaking his head. "Snarky ship. I need booze." He was gone before either Captain or AI could respond, intent on his destination.

"That's still one of my top ten misadventures, you know," Ray quipped, his ever-present smile once again adorning his face.

"I can't imagine why," came Snart's customary drawl, not missing a beat. "I'm still finding things that they gnawed on not to mention those little bastards left plenty of presents all over the ship."

Nate gave a groan as he stood and stretched, joints popping loudly. "I still think that Gideon was playing us when she was "unable" to locate the dino-droppings. I don't think I deserved to wake up to a mouthful of the stuff, at any rate."

Sara rolled her eyes, a smirk on her face. "The rest of us had fun at your expense, Nate. I've got to give that one to Gideon, willful negligence aside." Seeing the history buff's single-fingered response as he followed a disembarking Ray, she snorted. Turning to Snart she raised a delicate brow. "I'm actually relieved that he responded this time. I was beginning to worry the two of you were planning your next big heist and Mick'd been sworn to silence again."

"What? Us? Plan a heist that could destroy the very fabric of space and time?" Snart shot back, making his way toward the loading ramp, giving her a smirk of his own over his shoulder. "Never, Captain."

Zari couldn't help but laugh. "Oh wow, because that's not suspicious at all. He was way too specific, Sara." She elbowed the blonde playfully, headed toward the exit as well. "I'd check their rooms if I were you. You never really know with Len."

"I would have informed you if their plans had any direct effect on the timeline, Captain Lance. As always," Gideon reassured her captain.

Any response Sara had was cut off by the sudden appearance of a tear in the space/time continuum that depicted a pristine office background. Her heart skipped a beat and her palms began to sweat, though she fought to maintain a stoic expression.

Rip stepped through first, his brisk walk showing he was all business even in the face of a celebration. "Captain Lance, always a pleasure." He said with a nod and a pointed look before he addressed his longtime friend. "Hello again, Gideon. It's good to see you. Keeping this band of misfits safe and out of trouble I trust?"

"Of course, Captain. Though they do try their hardest. And it is good to see you too."

The former Time Master continued his conversation with the AI on his way out of the ship, leaving Sara alone to face their last arrival.

"Hey," Ava said with a smile, wrapping her arms around the shorter blonde. "I am so glad you managed to convince Rip to take some time off to visit Barry and Kara after the Reign scare. I was beginning to wonder if he would ever let me come see you again."

Trying not to let her girlfriend feel anything was wrong, Sara returned the embrace, albeit tentatively. "Boss man working you hard?"

Ava laughed pulling back and locking eyes with the captain. "Like you wouldn't believe. Laurel has been a godsend though! She makes sure that he's out of the office by five every day and doesn't drown himself in booze like he used to." She leaned in and kissed Sara softly, surprised when her girlfriend didn't return the embrace. "You okay?"

"Yeah, of course, babe," Sara said with a weak smile giving the Time Bureau agent a quick peck on the lips to try and allay her concern. "Now come on, we've got a couple of Sparsenal babies to greet and one lucky ass Kryptonian to shower with uncharacteristic affection." With that, she turned toward the exit, her fingers linking with Ava's. "Gideon we should be back…eventually. Let me know if anything comes up, okay?"

"Will do, Captain. Enjoy your time with everyone and give them my regards."

"You got it, Gideon," Sara agreed as she and Ava stepped out of the ship. She paused at the bottom of the ramp and turned to the other woman. "One sec." Running back up the ramp, she reached around the entrance and pressed the button to close the loading bay doors, moving back to Ava's side and giving her a winning smile. "The team would never let me live it down if I was the cause of another home invasion."

Ava stayed quiet, a frown on her face as she and Sara walked into the rundown looking building. Despite the restoration Team Flash had done to the Cortex and other essential areas, the vast majority of STAR Labs still looked as it had following the particle accelerator explosion. Their footsteps echoed loudly in the long empty hallway but were soon joined by the voices of the party already in progress.

Sara was just about ready to walk into the main room when she felt Ava's hand leave hers. She turned to her girlfriend in concern.

"Hey, what's wrong, Aves?" Taking in the other blonde's somber expression she walked back to her and took her hands. "Ava?"

"Did I do something wrong?"

The question came abruptly and caused Sara's breath to catch. This was something she had been hoping to avoid while they were visiting Central City and the rest of their friends. Although she had done her best the last few weeks to put on a strong front, Sara knew she'd given herself away one time too many. Ava wasn't the only one who had noticed changes in the ex-assassin.

Snart, of course, had been the first one. Well, after Gideon who had actually witnessed the event in her ever present omnipotence. Zari made her concern evident next, followed by Nate, Wally, Mick and then Ray bringing up the rear. Sara had waved it off with each of them, saying that it was nothing to worry about.

It had worked with them, so she decided to do the same with her girlfriend.

"What do you mean, Ava?"

Play dumb and smile, one of the strategies she'd picked up from Oliver pre-island.

"Sara," Ava started voice sharp and eyes hard, not fooled at all by Sara's ploy. "You've been acting weird ever since we took our trip to Aruba!"

"To be fair, John did dump the decapitated head of a demon at our feet before explaining that we had somehow managed to screw up even our success! It was a little disheartening, babe." Sara explained doing her best to keep her voice down knowing Kara was always within earshot.

Ava narrowed her eyes, staring into her lover's light blue eyes. "Stop it. I know that's not what's bugging you. You've seen so much worse than Constantine's blasé display – which Rip tore me a new one over, by the way – and been responsible for breaking time!" Her gaze softened and she leaned in closer. "Just talk to me, Sara."

Sara sighed, squeezing Ava's hands. "Can we just…not do this here? Now? Today is supposed to be happy and I don't want us to go in there and bring the mood down, okay?"

They held each other's gazes for a moment, neither one wanting to back down.

"Fine," Ava acquiesced after a brief stare down. "We'll table this conversation for now but it is not over."

At that moment, Caitlin popped her head out from around the corner, a smile on her face.

"I thought I heard you two out here! Come on, we're just waiting on Alex, J'onn, Winn, Eliza and Clark to get her before we get started. Although," the doctor ducked back into the room for a second, popping out again a moment later. "The food is already out and our three speedsters have begun to feed. Kara's eating for two and her appetite was voracious enough as it was plus her cousin is en route." She shrugged. "Basically, it's a free-for-all and if you two want to eat anything, I'd suggest you get in there now."

Looking to her girlfriend, Sara plastered on a grin, mostly for Caitlin's sake. "What do you say, Aves? Ready to do battle with three garbage disposals and a World-Eater?"

Rolling her eyes, Ava smirked. "Challenge accepted."

Earth-38 - DEO Headquarters

"How can the guy have all the same powers as Kara and still manage to be late?!" Alex shouted in the middle of DEO headquarters, her posture rigid in annoyance and scowl etched into her face.

Winn slowly backed away from the irate agent, seeking shelter behind J'onn. "Sometimes I wonder who's scarier: Alex or you, Sir."

The Director of the D.E.O. merely raised an eyebrow, though on the inside he was laughing. "Pray you never have to find out, Mr. Schott. Although I have to agree with her in this case: Clark was supposed to be here fifteen minutes ago."

On cue, a shadow fell over the room prompting the inhabitants to turn toward the entrance. Hovering in midair with a cocky smirk on his face, and carrying a rather terrified looking Eliza Danvers in his arms, was Superman.

"Oh I think I'm going to be sick," Eliza moaned as Clark set her down, a hand flying up to cover her mouth as she bolted for the nearest trash can.

Alex ran to her mother's side, pulling her dirty blonde locks away from her face and holding them behind her head. "Mom!" In response, Eliza retched again. The oldest Danvers sister snapped her head to Clark. "What the hell were you thinking, you idiot?! You know she doesn't like to fly but you did it anyway?!"

Clark shrugged. "I'm sorry. I was running late and I knew Eliza would want to get here as fast as possible." Another retched cut through the air and he scratched the back of his head, a sheepish look on his face. "Sorry."

"B-broke…sound barrier…" Eliza managed between dry heaves, looking miserable.

"WHAT?!"

J'onn face-palmed and Winn balked at Alex's cry of rage, all but disappearing behind the taller man.

It was Clark's turn to back away slowly from the irate woman in front of him; Eliza's still hunched over form the only thing keeping him safe from Alex's wrath. Had she been Krytponian, the caped superhero was positive he would be nothing more than a pile of ashes.

"It was worth it?" he offered weakly.

"She was staying in the city, you jackass!"

The Man of Steel bit his lip wondering whether he should just keep his mouth shut and take the verbal lashing or open his mouth and try to smooth things over. Of course, if he were honest with himself anything he said would probably result in Mount St. Danvers erupting. She already looked ready to blow and Clark loved to live dangerously.

Yolo and all that jazz.

"Oops?"

"J'onn," Alex said calmly, voice devoid of any kind of emotion or feeling. "Give me the rest of the kryptonite. I'm going to kill him!" She glared at everyone in the room who had stopped to stare at the confrontation. "What the hell are you all looking at? Get back to work!"

"Alex!" Eliza gasped, straightening up and wiping a hand across her lips, grimacing at the aftertaste. Winn ran forward with a bottle of water offering it to the disoriented woman. Eliza gave him a small smile and took a swig, sighing in relief. Then she turned to her daughter. "Alexandra Danvers what has gotten into you? Clark didn't do anything I didn't ask him to do."

That brought the enraged woman up short. "But…he…you…" She growled in an effort to regain her previous fire. "You asked him to fly you five blocks at supersonic speed? I doubt that."

Eliza walked up to her daughter. "We were running late and are both eager to see your sister, so I asked Clark to get us here as fast as possible. Granted it was probably a little faster than I would have preferred," she amended with a pointed look at the superhero. "But it got the job done. Besides, I wouldn't have had to bother Clark at all if someone had agreed to come pick me up – five blocks away, mind you – instead of having Superman fly in from Metropolis to do it."

Scowling, Alex crossed her arms. "It was on the way."

Winn snorted but quickly swallowed his amusement at the look Alex shot him. She strode over to him, anger in every step.

"What are you laughing at, Schott? You got something to say to me? Huh?!"

Eliza grabbed her daughter's arm. "Alex! What is what is wrong with you?"

A tense silence fell, during which the bio-engineer refused to respond choosing instead to glare daggers at the terrified tech guru who was normally one of her favorite people. The clearing of a throat finally snapped Alex out of her stare down. She met J'onn's eyes briefly, concerned but also reprimanding, before turning back to Winn and wincing at his scared expression.

She heaved a sigh and ran a hand through her hair.

"I'm sorry, Winn. Things have been…stressful lately and I guess it's catching up with me." She raised both hands in a placating gesture. "I'm not mad at you. We good?"

Winn swallowed nervously but figured it was safe to come out from behind J'onn. "Y-yeah. We're good."

Alex gave him a weak smile and studiously avoided her mother's inquisitive eyes. "So, that's everyone who's going. Time to get a move on, I think. J'onn?"

The last of the Green Martians shot a look at both Eliza and Clark, unseen by Alex and Winn, and was about to say something before he thought better of it. Now was probably not the time to start any drama – any more drama, at any rate.

"Right. I think we've waited long enough," he agreed with a nod. "Alex, you have the device Mr. Ramon gifted us?"

"Yes sir."

"Then let's get this show on the road. Agent Vasquez!" he called as Alex opened up the breach to Earth-1. The shorthaired field agent walked over and stood at attention.

"Sir?"

"You're in charge while Agent Danvers and I are out. We shouldn't be gone for more than a day. I trust you can hold down the fort?"

"Sir, yes Sir!"

He gave her a nod. "If you need to reach us you can use the universal transceiver Mr. Schott got from Supergirl," he handed her the device that was, for all intents and purposes, a glorified cell phone. "Though I'd prefer it be only in the case of an emergency, Agent. We'll see you in a day."

With that, he turned toward the waiting group and stepped through the bright blue breach that closed right behind him.

Which was the exact moment one of the techies stood up, panic in his face.

"Ma'am!"

Not daring to believe things were going to shit mere moments after the Director's departure, Vasquez ran over to the man's station. "What is it, Jeffries?"

"It's Reign, ma'am," he gestured to the desk in front of him where both the computer monitors, each screen a different perspective but showing the same image: a lone figure floating in midair just above the highest building in National City – Catco. "James Olsen called in a few minutes ago while you were talking with Director J'onzz. As far as he knows, no one else in the building has seen her yet but…"

Vasquez nodded. "It's only a matter of time. Not to mention once the public catches sight of her there's no telling what kind of chaos will follow. Shit." Running a frustrated hand through her hair, Vasquez watched the feed for a moment when something dawned on her. "You said Olsen called in earlier, right?"

"Yes ma'am."

"And this is a live feed?"

A nod.

"So what's she doing up there?" she brought a hand to her chin, pondering the situation. "Before the fight with Supergirl she was all about getting in, dishing out death and "justice" and fleeing the scene before we could get there. Why the change in MO?"

Jeffries spoke up. "Ma'am? Do you think we should contact Director J'onzz?"

Vasquez was torn. As a field agent, she never had to worry too much about the bigger picture. Her decisions were smaller and, while they could ultimately effect the outcome of a mission, the responsibility rested on J'onn or, when he was unavailable, Agent Danvers. As Acting Director, however, she would shoulder the blame for any mishaps that befell the DEO and National City.

"Let's play this one by ear," Vasquez said after an internal debate. "Reign hasn't done anything yet and we know that she didn't attack The Three Amigos even after one of them tried to stick her with kryptonite. We'll let her do…whatever it is she's doing for now. That being said," she turned away from him and called for another agent. "Hix. Prep a strike team and be ready to move if things go south. Side arms outfitted with kryptonite bullets. Do not leave any at the scene if you are forced to fire. Understood?"

"Yes ma'am!" Hix said with a salute. He set off toward the armory. "Igle, Valdes, Price: with me!"

Vasquez looked to the monitors again, eyes narrowed. "Jeffries?"

"Ma'am?"

"Why didn't you say something when the Director was actually here?"

"…it seemed like he was having an important conversation?"

Vasquez gave him an incredulous stare, mouth open in shock. A moment later, she shook it off and turned back to the screen, the masked wild card still unmoved.

"Please don't fuck up the city on my watch."

STAR Labs - Cortex

"I mean a break-up cube, Jess? Really? What the hell is that about?" Wally asked bitterly, doing his best to keep his voice down amidst the excited talk that had started up following the arrival of the rest of the Legends.

He had been in a funk ever since the last time the team had stopped by to visit STAR Labs and Cisco had given him the mysterious box, the shorter man's hesitance evident. When Wally went to open it, Cisco had caught his hand and suggested that he wait until it was in private. He was glad he had followed his friend's advice.

"It's how we do things on my Earth, Wally." Jesse said exasperated. She knew she should have stayed home but her dad insisted she show up. "It's not meant to be an insult, it just keeps things from getting messy, okay?"

Wally scoffed, looking anything but mollified by her explanation. "No, Jess, it's not okay! That's anything but okay! You didn't even give me a fucking reason, just said work was getting crazy and we'd be better off as friends." He shook his head as the memory flashed through his mind. "The least you could have done was tell me to my face."

"Why? So you could act just like this?" Jesse laughed, her eyes hard. "Besides, even if I wanted to talk about it, you were already off gallivanting through time with the Legends. I didn't have any way to get in touch with you." She looked around and saw that they were drawing attention. Exhaling sharply, she glared at her fellow speedster. "Look, this isn't the time or the place to argue about this, Wally. You want to talk? We'll talk after the party is over, okay?"

"Yeah, sure, talk when it's over," Kid Flash groused, stomping over to the buffet table, mumbling under his breath. "You'll probably just disappear like last time." Grabbing a plate, he started piling up anything within reach.

As he reached for a can of soda, a breach opened above the table, the swirling blue portal casting a harsh light over the crowded Cortex.

"Looks like Earth-38 is about to join the party!" Sara shouted over the noise of the portal, a smile on her face at the thought she might get to spar with Alex again. They had made quite a team during the Earth-X invasion.

Cisco, however, looked horrified.

"The food! Barry! They're going to cross over into the food!"

His warning was too late and, with a crash, the inhabitants of Earth-38 landed smack dab in the middle of the food tables and on top of one startled speedster.

Once the breach closed, courtesy of the downed Agent Danvers, moans and groans could be heard from the pile of bodies, J'onn being King of the Hill. He had landed on Alex, who was on top of Winn, whose face seemed to be planted somewhere firmly south of Clark's waistline, who somehow managed not to crush Eliza at the bottom of the pile.

The poor woman was face down in the gigantic bowl of chocolate pudding.

It took a moment for the gathered group to process what had just happened. The first snicker, surprisingly from Oliver, triggered an avalanche and soon the entire room was laughing at the absurd picture before them. Though they had met and interacted with Team Supergirl many times since Kara's introduction to Earth-1, the fact that the majority of said cooperation went through a government organization meant Barry and company only ever saw them as prim and proper, by the book individuals.

Seeing them in the absolutely ridiculous positions they were in was both hilarious and cathartic.

"Mom!" Kara called speeding over to help the older woman up and out of the pudding, a grin teasing her lips. With a sharp tug, Eliza came free and the pile of people fell one level, much like a row of blocks in Tetris, resulting in the other Kryptonian in the room landing in the now vacated pudding bowl.

Barry, ever the stalwart gentleman, flashed over to Kara and Eliza, offering a towel to the older woman.

"Here you go, Mrs. Danvers."

Scowling at her still giggling daughter, Eliza took the towel and scraped the dessert from her face. "Barry how many times do I have to tell you to call me Eliza? You've gotten my daughter pregnant – we're there." She gave the chuckling man a hug then looked to her daughter, pausing a moment to really take her in. "Look at you, sweetie. You're glowing!"

A high-pitched scream shattered the moment.

Back at the crash site Clark, no doubt fed up with the lack of people getting off him, flew up from the table, face covered in chocolate – bowl suspiciously empty – with the two remaining humans clinging to him for dear life. J'onn, ever the sensible leader, floated down to the floor, his brows raised in amusement.

"Okay you two," Clark said, wiping pudding from his eyes. "The Clark Train has arrived at your destination and it's time for you to let go. Seriously."

"Gladly," Alex grumbled, letting go of the muscled Kryptonian and landing lightly on her feet. Seeing her sister, she sent her a grin. "Hey sis. Long time no see!"

Kara grinned and, pulling Eliza with her, engulfed the Danvers ladies in a group hug. "Oh it's so good to see you two! Gosh, when was the last time I saw you both, together, and not arguing?"

Alex met her mother's eyes over her sister's shoulder and both women rolled their eyes, both deciding not to comment for fear of her words coming true. It was a proven fact that whenever Eliza and Alex were together for more than a few hours, they would inevitably devolve into an argument that would somehow grow into a raging feud of screams and shouts that left the both of them hurt and emotionally exhausted.

"Clark?" Caitlin asked looking up at the still floating Kryptonian, eyes shining with mirth. "Do you think you could put my boyfriend down? I'd really like him not to have broken legs anytime soon."

"Of course, Dr. Snow," he said. Smiling at the doctor, Superman brought himself slowly to the floor so as not to startle Winn, whose fear of heights – no matter how tall – kept him clinging to the bigger man in a death grip.

When they landed and the techie refused to let go, eyes still squeezed shut and white-knuckled grip strong, Caitlin gave a fond sigh before walking over and prying her boyfriend off a highly amused Clark.

"Come on, Winn, I know you know you're not in the air anymore. You can let go and then we can get you something to eat…" she paused and glanced over at the buffet tables, assessing the damage wrought by their guests and sighed. "We'll order something to eat since you all decided to breach on the food."

"To be fair, Dr. Snow," J'onn defended as he managed to salvage a plate of sandwiches from amidst the chaos that had once been a decent spread. "We can't exactly control where in STAR Labs we land. We just know that we land in STAR Labs. It's not as accurate as Mr. Ramon's abilities."

Cisco puffed up like a peacock at the indirect compliment but he quickly deflated when Gypsy shot him a death glare.

"You gave them a interdimensional extrapolator?!"

"Uh…yes?"

That conversation went on for a good while and provided unending entertainment for the gathered group who had settled back into easy conversation once introductions were made for those meeting for the first time.

Barry and Jesse – the latter deciding she didn't want to be anywhere near Wally right now because he was being 'an overbearing asshole' – were tasked with going to get pizza to make up for the mess left in the wake of Earth-38's arrival, courtesy of Palmer Tech (read: Felicity).

Kara took the time to ask the question that had been burning in her mind since Oliver and Nyssa arrived.

"So Ollie," she asked with a bounce, eyes eager. "Where's the rest of the gang? I really want to meet my niece and nephew!"

Laughing at her over-eager expression, Oliver answered. "Roy and Thea decided to take the train, they figured it would be easier than being on a plane with two babies who could potentially cry the entire time. We went ahead and sprung for a private compartment, just in case. Dig and Lyla offered to pick them up from the station and Felicity tagged along." He looked at his watch. "They should be here any moment now."

Right on cue, Dig and Lyla walked in, the former carrying baby Sara in a sling across his chest and hurriedly cooing at the whimpering baby. Lyla herself looked a little frazzled with a finger in her ear as if she was trying to clear it.

"There she is!" Sara practically back flipped out of her seat and ran to the couple, though she only had eyes for their child. "There's my namesake! Oh just look at you, sweetie! You've grown so much since the last time I saw you."

Any sounds of distress immediately vanished from the infant upon Sara snatching her from her father in exchange for delighted squeals and giggles.

"Just a heads up," Lyla said addressing the room. "Thea and Roy are bringing the twins in and they finally went to sleep when we were parking. According to their parents, they were bawling the entire six hours on the train so please," she sent a sharp glare toward the corner of the room Cisco, Ray, Winn and Nate occupied before looking at Kara. "Please keep your voices down, okay? At least until we can get them set up in the med bay or somewhere quiet!"

Kara looked affronted. "What are you looking at me for? I'm always quiet!"

Next to her, Alex snorted while Oliver, Nyssa and Eliza laughed. "My dearest, darlingest Kara Danvers: you are anything but quiet. Don't you remember what happened when Nyssa asked you to be her Maid of Honor?"

"That was one time, Oliver Queen! Once!"

Eliza raised a brow. "Did she squeal and shatter the windows?"

Nyssa looked impressed while Kara slunk lower in her seat, face red. "How did you know?"

"Oh she used to do that all the time when she was younger! Every time she got scared or really excited I would have to sweep up shards of glass and find reasonable explanations for the neighbors and the cashier at the hardware store." Seeing her daughter's continued embarrassment, Eliza kissed her forehead. "That was before she had a handle on her powers though."

Alex couldn't resister another jab at her sister. "It got so bad one year that Mom had to declare a ban on all horror movies, surprise parties, terrifying Halloween costumes, jump scares and pranks. I think the record was something like fifteen windows in one month."

"Maybe we should call you Black Canary," Felicity deadpanned, greeting Ray with a peck on the lips before falling in to an elaborate four-way handshake with the occupants of his table.

A shuffle of feet from the hallway caught Kara's attention and she turned toward the doorway in time to see the last of the Star City party arrive. Faces haggard with bags underneath their eyes, Thea and Roy looked like they had been through the ringer already but the tired smiles they sported revealed they would not have it any other way.

With a rush of wind and a couple of dislodged tablecloths, Kara was by Thea's side in an instant.

"Oh Rao, Thea! They are so beautiful! Oh please, please, please, please, please can I hold them?!" she shouted in a whisper, able to stifle her enthusiasm at the last minute though she seemed to vibrate with excitement, doing her best impression of Barry.

Thea gave her a tired smile. "You bet, Aunt Kara, though maybe one at a time to start with, yeah?"

Nodding rapidly, the blonde Kryptonian easily accepted her small niece as Roy pressed a kiss to his wife's temple and moved off to the other side of the room to greet his fellow males. In her amazement, Kara didn't see the rest of the women arriving at her side, greeting Thea quietly with congratulations.

The infant in her arms was tiny and light – weightless even. Kara drew on her knowledge of taking care of Clark when he was a baby, supporting the head and settling the precious cargo into her arms.

"Zrhueiao aos," she whispered, enraptured by each breath. A tiny fist gripped at the soft blanket she lay swaddled in while the other rested at her lips. "What's her name?"

"Is everyone here?" Thea asked her transfixed friend with a smile.

Kara shook her head but didn't look away. "No. Barry and Jesse went to get some pizza in the wake of my family's arrival from Earth-38…in the food."

The brunette archer glanced to the destroyed corner with a raised brow. "Well we'll go ahead and wait for them before we reveal the twins' names. Besides, I hear you and Barry have some good news of your own."

At this, Kara looked up and gave the younger woman a watery smile.

"I'm so happy for you, Kara," Thea said wrapping an arm around the blonde and squeezing her tightly. "If Ollie hadn't've been there, I would've marched out of the delivery room and been at your side – stirrups and all."

"I know. That's one of the reasons I love you."

Eliza gave her daughter a kiss on the forehead and smiled at the scene. "We're all happy for you, Kara. Oh, but look at you with that little one! You're a natural."

"I would say it's because she had to change Clark's dirty diaper when she was younger," Alex snarked, caressing the baby's head tenderly, a look of longing in her eyes. "Can I hold her, Thea?"

"Of course," the brunette said with a smile.

"Just a few more minutes," Kara cooed softly, turning away from her sister to shield the slumbering babe.

Nyssa shook her head at the blonde and patted Alex's shoulder. "Don't worry, Alex, we'll make sure Kara shares. From what Barry's told Oliver, she's been in baby mode since waking up."

The gathered women laughed quietly at Kara's pouting face.

"Oh my God, look at the guys!" Felicity hissed, followed by a snort of laughter.

As one, they all followed the hacktivist's gaze and found one of the most adorable yet hilarious sights they had ever seen.

Roy stood off to one side, arms crossed and an amused expression on his face, watching his son get passed around. First Oliver took him, then Ray, who passed him off to Rip, which led to Wally (who's surly face softened somewhat at the sheer cuteness of the baby) passing him to Joe. The detective smiled at his son fondly for a moment before chuckling at the infant and handing him off – somewhat reluctantly – to Snart (who was surprisingly adept at handling the small human) who gave him up to Nate. This led to Cisco all but squealing in joy as he took the baby before turning to hand him off to the last male.

Mick Rory.

The man looked absolutely terrified as the baby was all but forced into his arms. In fact, the entire room seemed to be holding their breaths sure that the young Harper would awaken screaming at any moment. Instead, the child wiggled slightly, eyes scrunching up, gave an exhausted yawn and tucked his head into Mick's chest, snuggling into the man's warmth.

Mick smiled.

"Oh my God," Sara breathed, in awe at the tender moment. "Where's my phone? Someone get a picture of this! Proof that Mick has a heart!"

"And that he can smile," Ava quipped, snapping a silent photo with a grin.

In the blink of an eye, two lightning enhanced blurs appeared in the room, arms laden with three large black delivery bags each.

Barry set his burden down on the table in front of Kara – oblivious to the sleeping baby in her arms - opening one of the insulated bags to reveal five individual pizza boxes.

"Ladies and gentlemen I present to you the best pizza I have ever had…from Coast City! It's fresh out of the oven so come and get it!" he yelled, a satisfied smile on his face, taste buds already imagining the first bite.

"WAAAAH!"

"WAAAAH!"

Twin cries came from the barely week old twins who had, until just moments ago, been sleeping soundly. Now, obviously upset at being disturbed, the Harper children screamed their lungs out, intent on making sure anybody within hearing distance knew they were displeased.

"Dammit Barry!" Roy hissed, immediately taking his son back from Mick and bouncing him to try to calm the bawling baby. "Why are you yelling?! We just got them to sleep."

Thea just whimpered, trying to remember a time in her life that didn't involve screams or the constant pounding in her head. As if reading her mind, the baby girl in her arms wailed even louder into her ear and it was all Speedy could do to not join in.

Mick and Snart started a slow clap, their expressions annoyed and entertained, respectively.

"Well done, Allen. You managed to scare the crap out of the sleeping babies and now we're going to have to listen to them for the next hour until mommy and daddy can get them to quiet down! I hope you're happy," Snart barked, his voice louder than normal to carry over the noise.

Glancing around Barry noticed that he was receiving several pissed off glares. Oliver had his face in his hands while Nyssa sent him a blank look although he was pretty sure her right eye was twitching.

Kara, having been forced to surrender her niece to Thea, was scowling, eyes beginning to burn bright, though Alex's steadying hand quelled most of her ire.

"Easy there, Kara," her sister soothed. "You know Barry didn't know the twins were here and sleeping, so don't vaporize him just yet, okay?"

Seeing his girlfriend release a deep breath, Barry knew he'd just dodged a bullet. A chuckle just behind him made him jump, turning to find Clark shaking his head. The bigger man patted his shoulder.

"For a moment there, Barry, I was sure that Kara was going to melt you down. I've only ever seen that look on her face once before when I was brainwashed and she handed me my own butt. She zapped me with heat vision then."

Barry stared at Clark eyes wide. "Seriously?! You think she was going to fry me?"

"Why do you think I was ready to jump in front of you?"

Thea walked over to her husband, giving him a resigned smile. "We might as well get this thing started, babe. Looks like the gang is all here."

"Finally!"

Everyone shot up from their seats, levity forgotten in the wake of the unfamiliar voice, the hum of both the cold and heat guns priming along with the sound of several other weapons being drawn their response.

In the back corner of the Cortex, leaning casually against the wall and eating out of a bowl trail mix – the only thing to completely survive the earlier chaos – was a thin, curly haired man wearing a black t-shirt and slacks, a dark suit jacket accented with a red pocket square finishing off the outfit. He seemed at ease, completely unconcerned with the weapons and angry glares aimed at him.

"Who are you?" Oliver growled flachette in hand and ready to strike. Internally, he was berating himself for not bringing his bow. He shouldn't have just assumed things were going to go off without a hitch, especially with everyone getting together. They attracted trouble like shit did flies.

"Do you know how long I've been waiting for all of you to be in the same place?" the fair-skinned man complained, putting the bowl down and wiping his hands of the leftovers. He gave the room a cocky smirk.

A heavy thwack cut the air as a throwing knife dug itself into the concrete wall an inch from the stranger's head, courtesy of Nyssa.

"I believe my husband asked you a question," the former R'as prompted, already drawing another blade. "It would be in your best interest to answer as my next attack will not miss."

Her threat only seemed to amuse the man who let his gaze roam slowly over the group of heroes.

"Oooh feisty! I like it when they have spunk! It makes everything that comes after much more amusing." He walked up to Oliver and Nyssa, the couple at the front of the group, before turning sharply and locking eyes with Barry. "I'm here to teach you all a lesson. To answer your question, Mrs. Queen, I'm not too worried. You couldn't hit me if you wanted to."

Barry collapsed.

"Barry!" Kara shouted in panic as chaos ensued around her, dropping to her knees and pulling her boyfriend's head into her lap, running a frantic hand over his face. "Barry? Wake up, baby! Please!"

Battle cries and roars of outrage drowned out terrified screams from the babies.

Oliver loosed a flachette in tandem with Nyssa's knife but both missed as the mystery man vanished in a flash, lightning trailing after him and, with a vicious right hook, knocked out Snart before disassembling the cold gun in less than a second.

"Speedster!" Sara shouted from her defensive position in front of Thea alongside Caitlin, who's expression hardened as her long brunette locks shifted into the telltale white of Killer Frost and her eyes turning bright blue. The temperature dipping sharply prompted more cries of displeasure.

In a blink, the newly discovered speedster stopped inches away from Caitlin's face, a grin on his lips. "Well aren't you something? I sure wouldn't want to be on your bad side, babe!" He shot her a wink.

Hair and eyes flickering briefly, Caitlin was the next to fall.

"NO!" Came Winn's frightened cry as he watched his girlfriend collapse boneless to the floor. He moved to run to her but J'onn's hand on his shoulder stayed his impulse, though every fiber of his being screamed at him to help.

Seeing their second ally fall, Oliver growled angrily and launched a barrage of flachette's at the gloating meta, slowly closing the distance. Nyssa, seeing what her husband was doing, followed suit from the opposite side. Everything they threw at him passed right through, his vibrating visage frustratingly cocky, and then he was gone again.

"Looks like you two need some time to just chill!"

Oliver's eyes went wide when they finally registered their enemy standing behind Nyssa. "Nyssa…!" Terror filled him as he witnessed her realization of the same fact before she whipped around in an attempt to fend him off only to meet with bright blue eyes and a smirk.

Her body fell slack before icing over.

"You son of a bitch!" the Emerald Archer roared, all thoughts of tactics and common sense flying out the window as he flung himself at the man to engage in hand to hand combat, even though he knew he wouldn't be able to touch him thanks to his speed.

And his ice powers…

It took Oliver a moment – and a punch to the face – to realize that they weren't fighting a speedster at all. He ducked an incoming kick, barely avoided the slash of an ice dagger and threw himself backward onto the floor to dodge the follow up throw.

"He's stealing their abilities!" Oliver shouted as he rolled away from a vicious strike, Sara and Ava running in to give the archer time to get to his feet while Rip fired away with his revolver. "I don't know how but this guy took Barry's speed, Caitlin's ice powers and I'm almost positive he's picked up Nyssa's combat abilities."

By now, the rest of the room had recovered from the shock of losing two more of their friends in a matter of seconds and decided to retaliate.

Wally and Jesse took it upon themselves to keep their enemy corralled, lightning dancing over almost every surface of the Cortex. Thea handed off her daughter to Iris as she ran forward to help her brother and Sara, Roy following soon after once Felicity assured him his son would be safe. Dig, not willing to expose baby Sara to the loud reports his weapon would make tossed his gun to Lyla who stayed back, and took pot shots when she could.

Nate, Zari, Mick and Cisco hesitated though it took a moment longer for Gypsy to lower her hands, realizing their dilemma. The proximity of their allies to the enemy negated any help that the latter three could offer, herself included, and, while being able to 'steel up' was useful in regard to personal defense, Nate really couldn't keep up with any of the fighters, much less an ice throwing speedster with close quarters combat expertise.

J'onn and Clark stepped up next, leaving Winn and Eliza hidden behind one of the banks of computers, intent on adding their considerable strength to the battle when movement to the left caught their attention.

After making sure Barry was still alive and using her hearing and x-ray vision to ensure the safety of Caitlin and Nyssa were stable, Kara rose up, head ducked and blonde hair falling to cover her face. She trembled in barely suppressed rage, an angry glow emanating from behind the curtain of hair.

"ENOUGH!"

Her shout stilled all combat and noise in the Cortex, attention focused on the furious Kryptonian.

"I don't care who you are. I don't care why you're here. And I most certainly do not care about the condition I am going to leave you in for what you've done!" With a growl, she brought her – literally – heated gaze up.

In spite of the threat of his impending doom, the sharply dressed man gave Kara a shark-like grin, eyes shining as he stared into hers. "That's my cue!"

Before anyone could move, he snapped his fingers.

Kara felt woozy all of a sudden, her eyes heavy. She tried to focus on her opponent but couldn't see straight. Stumbling, she saw she wasn't the only one affected.

Thea dropped first.

Then Wally.

Jesse.

Roy.

Sara.

Ava.

Gypsy.

Cisco.

Winn.

Alex.

Her feet were just about ready to give out underneath her when Kara heard her name. Looking around, she saw Oliver swaying dangerously, his face screwed up as he tried to fight whatever was taking everyone.

"Kara…"

He crashed to the floor.

"Remember, Kara Danvers," came the voice of their assailant, his smirk just as confident as ever and wagging a finger in her face. "You all have to learn the lesson. Even if that lesson is sometimes hard to face. Sleep now."

The world faded to black.

A/N: So there you have it! The introductory chapter to the promised "Duet" rewrite. It was a bit of a pain to get everyone in this chapter, especially considering that this go around is not going to be limited to Kara and Barry going into MM's movie musical. There are times when things might get a little crazy, but rest assured we will get to the end in one piece – more or less.

As always, I would love to hear your feedback. Likes, dislikes, what you loved, what you hated, the works!

There will be a lot of music involved with this story. A LOT! I am trying to keep things reasonable but I'm incorporating both musical tunes and any other genres that just worked with the characters and the scenes they're in. I will list the songs in each chapter at the beginning for those of you who want a more immersive musical experience, so worry not.

Until next time!