Sorry for the late update - I had surgery last week and have been resting -.- Not exactly how I thought I'd be spending my last few weeks of summer but hey, at least I was able to catch up on some T.V. Thank you, Mustard Lady, for your review - you're definitely on the right track with your thoughts!

Disclaimer: I do not own The Flash


Chapter 11: Communication

Shortly after Jason had entered the cortex, Iris had asked Wally to bring Jason to the field to heal anyone who desperately needed it. Jason was very wary of travelling with a speedster having travelled with Shannel a few times and having thrown up after each time. Wally agreed to call them a cab. After a long and excruciating cab ride out to the field during which the cab driver asked Wally a million questions about being Kid Flash, they finally arrived.

Wally noticed they were missing a few of the new metas so when he made his way to Cisco and Barry he asked, "Where are Freezeframe, Phendula, Chi, Red, Thunder, Yin and Yang?"

"They said they weren't interested in joining our team anymore, which is fair. They had like a few hours to train before being thrown in the deep end," Cisco explained. "Joe is going to get some police protection set up around their houses in case Ruth and the invisible meta decide to pay them a visit."

Barry gestured for Jason to follow him, "You must be Healer. I'm The Flash."

"Oh really?" Jason replied sarcastically.

Barry merely glanced at him, too tired to provide a comeback. Instead he went straight to business. "So unfortunately, while Maidabot and Kilg%re were battling for control over the technology around them, they took control of a weapon that broke under the strain of their power and electrocuted both of them… They're both dead."

Barry grew silent as he saw Jason's wide-eyed expression. Jason opened and closed his mouth a few times before finally saying, "Raine was my friend."

"I'm sorry man," Barry said quietly.

After a few more minutes in silence, Jason cleared his throat and said, "So is there anyone I should attend to?"

"Well no one is in mortal danger but Tidal Wave is a bit out of sorts. He used his attack where he became water and created water spheres to contain the mini explosives sent out by one of the bus metas before rushing at the meta at the speed of sound and knocking him out. It was actually pretty epic… but now he's a bit discombobulated because he wasn't able to put himself back together properly…"

As they approached Sam, Jason could see what Barry meant. Sam's eyes ran down the side of his face and his mouth was at the edge of his mouth. His body was mostly intact except for one arm which was attached to his stomach as opposed to his shoulder.

"You know, I kind of like this," Sam said waving his hand from his stomach area. Jason shook his head before waving his hand and returning Sam to normal. "Ah well it was fun while it lasted," Sam said before walking off to join the others who were collecting the bus metas for transportation.

"If that's it, I'm heading home," Jason said to Barry.

"Thank you for all your help," Barry said as he shook Jason's hand.

"What are you planning to do with Raine?" Jason asked.

"We'll notify the police and they will take care of it," Barry said. "I'm so sorry for your loss."

"Yeah well what do you care? You just used us to help clean up your mess and now you're throwing us away because you don't need us anymore. This is exactly why I didn't come in the first place," Jason snarled.

"Hey that's not true at all. Everyone who was here agreed to be here of their own free will. We didn't expect it to happen this soon and that's true but thanks to everyone, The Thinker has been stopped. Everyone here today literally saved the city. And we're not throwing anyone away. We're asking anyone who wants to to join our team. We can help train everyone to use their powers more effectively and help keep the city a safer place, but only if that's what they want. We're not forcing anyone to do anything and we're not calling you only if we need something from you. I am sorry for what happened to your friend but he was fighting for what he believed in. We're all out here risking our lives to keep our home safe and no one life is valued over another."

"Whatever," Jason muttered as he trudged away.

Barry sighed but he knew he wouldn't be able to do anything else at the moment so he rejoined the others who were waiting for A.R.G.U.S. to show up, seeing as the battle did take place on their property.

Back at S.T.A.R. Labs, Vicky was still on patrol, although they weren't anticipating an attack this soon after the battle. Iris was working on locating Ruth and the invisible meta, who they decided to name Whisper. Meanwhile, Ralph, Masuma, Harry, and Caitlin were preparing the place for extra guests. They figured it would be easier to keep everyone safer if they stayed together until Ruth and Whisper were captured, especially since the new additions to the group were still in training. Ralph and Masuma set up extra cots and clothes while Harry and Caitlin made a food run.

"What are you thinking?" Caitlin asked Harry as they walked to get food.

"Nothing, why?" Harry asked. He was clearly tense but tried to play dumb.

"I meant what restaurant should we go to?" Caitlin asked.

"Oh, well, what about that Chinese place we all like?" Harry suggested.

But Caitlin wasn't going to drop it now. She knew they hadn't spoken properly since the almost kiss after which was the intrusion where she was nearly kidnapped again (not to mention that hug). Then the battle just now during which people had actually died. There was a lot for him to be tense about but whether he would be willing to share it with her or not, Caitlin wasn't sure.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she finally asked.

He really didn't want to get into this now. There was so much he wanted to talk to her about but Harry was exhausted by the events of late and even though it was pretty much over, he still felt strangely unsettled. It felt almost as though they were missing something. So instead of getting into what he was really thinking, Harry said, "I'm going to visit Jesse tomorrow."

Caitlin stopped dead in her tracks and asked lamely, "What?"

Harry stopped and looked at her, "Yeah, you know now that it's over, I think I better go and try to make amends. Besides, I think I need a bit of a break away from all of this."

Caitlin knew she shouldn't be so shocked. This was expected, and it was what was best for both Harry and Jesse. However all rational thought escaped her at the moment. She was hurt that he felt that he needed to travel back to Earth-2 for a break. Didn't he think this Earth was his home? Weren't his friends here enough for him? And if he really didn't view this Earth as his home, then there was the possibility that he would like it so much back on Earth-2 that he wouldn't come back. After all, they had called him here to help when the whole DeVoe problem began and now that DeVoe was defeated, his job here was done. Yes, he had been kicked off the team on his Earth but they seemed to be ironing out the problems and it wasn't totally inconceivable that he would rejoin them.

As her thoughts and emotions threatened to bring Frost out, Caitlin started walking again. In response to Harry's words, she said forced a smile and said, "Yes, you should. Now come on, the others are probably back by now and we haven't even ordered the food yet!"

Harry could see right through the false cheer so just before Caitlin opened the door to the restaurant, he called out, "Snow."

As she turned towards him, he reached for her hands and held them for a moment before saying, "I know there is a lot for us to discuss. But… I can't get into it yet." He looked down before meeting her eyes again. "I want you to know, I will be back and we will have time to talk about it then."

The look in his eyes was so sincere and Caitlin couldn't help but smile widely at both his expression and his words. A wave of relief washed over her as all of Caitlin's doubts vanished with the guarantee that he would be back. "Thanks for saying that, Harry," she said quietly.

Harry smiled back at Caitlin as let go of her hands to open the door for her. They finally seemed to be back on the same page again.

After Lyla had taken the metas back to some secret A.R.G.U.S. jail, Barry, Wally, Cisco, Sam, Shannel, Tiên, and Olivia got settled in at S.T.A.R. Labs. Considering that they had just put their lives on the line to save the city, Team Flash thought it would be safe to reveal their identities to the new metas. They all changed out of their costumes and introduced themselves once Harry and Caitlin returned with everyone's food.

As they ate, Harry voiced a thought that had been pestering him since the end of the battle, "We should question Marlize about DeVoe's plan. Now that he's dead, she shouldn't have a problem revealing his plot."

"Really bothers you not knowing, hey Harry?" Cisco teased.

"Well doesn't it bother you, Cisco?" Iris asked. "We've been working on this problem for nearly a year, and DeVoe planned this years before that. I for one would like to know what he went through all that trouble for."

"Man, he was crazy. He probably just wanted to torment us or show off how smart he was," Cisco said.

"No, Harry's right. I'd like some closure on this so we should see if Joe can arrange a meeting with Marlize tomorrow," Barry said.

After that, the group had mini-conversations amongst themselves. Vicky had eaten quickly so she could go back on patrol. Shannel finished up at the same time and decided to join Vicky to keep her company. Ralph and Masuma were still inseparable as they talked away about old times as well as exchanging funny stories that had happened since they last met. Tiên, Olivia, Wally, Barry, and Iris, laughed as Sam experimented with his newfound ability to rearrange and grow body parts. Currently, he had five arms and was attempting to juggle empty takeout containers. Caitlin was laughing at Cisco and Harry, who were in a heated argument about Harry's ability to give proper instructions and were proving to be quite amusing. Occasionally, Caitlin would fan the flame by backing up Cisco just to tease Harry.

After dinner, while everyone else got ready for bed, Harry packed his things up in his room.

"Are you going somewhere?" Cisco said from the doorway.

"I'm visiting my daughter," Harry said shortly.

"Without telling anyone?" Cisco asked, his arms crossed in irritation.

"Snow knows," Harry answered. "Besides, it's only a short visit to make sure her team is actually making progress."

"And if they aren't?" Cisco asked hesitantly.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked shooting a glare in Cisco's direction.

"You know what I mean. Will you rejoin their team?" Cisco clarified.

There was a silence as Harry contemplated this. "I don't know," he finally said as he finished packing the last of his things.

"Man, what are you doing?" Cisco said, shaking his head. "Look, I get it, you need to spend time with your daughter too. But Caitlin deserves better than that."

Harry stopped dead in his tracks, "What do you mean by that?"

"Hey, I know it's none of my business, but clearly there is something going on there. You can't just abandon her."

"You don't know what you're talking about," Harry said quickly. "I would never do that to her."

But he cut himself off too late and Cisco jumped up and said, "HA! I knew it! You do love her!"

"What? Come on, Ramon, I just said I wouldn't hurt her because she's a good friend - "

"Oh c'mon man, the cat's out of the bag," Cisco said while rolling his eyes. Then, turning serious again, "But I mean it about abandoning her. Like I said before, Caitlin is like my sister. If you ever hurt her, I will hunt you down and hurt you."

Harry was slightly unsettled that Cisco knew about his feelings for Caitlin but he smiled slightly at the threat, and said, "Relax, Ramon. It's me who feels that way about her but it's likely not reciprocated."

Cisco stopped short. "You mean you HAVEN'T TOLD HER YET?!" he screamed.

"SHHH! No of course not," Harry said.

"What are you waiting for? You're not getting any younger!" Cisco exclaimed.

"She was kidnapped, her old boss was murdered, and she was just attacked for god's sake! How would it be a good idea to say 'Hey Snow, just thought you should know, I have feelings for you liKE A LOVESICK TEENAGER! Please say you love me back too!' NO!" Harry said as he did a little mock dance for some reason.

"Okay promise me you'll never do that again," Cisco said warily. Then he continued, "Okay fair point, I guess giving her some time to think about it would be good. Okay now, shoo, go. The faster you go, the faster you'll be back and we can hear the happy news!"

Harry just rolled his eyes as he exited his room and made his way to the breach room. When he got there, he noticed Caitlin sitting on the steps up to the platform. When she saw him, she smiled and stood up.

"I just wanted to say bye," Caitlin said sheepishly, "and to give you these."

She passed him an envelope addressed to Jesse and a tin box. "I was wondering if you could pass the envelope along to Jesse. She left me a note before she left and I just wanted to thank her. The box is a peace offering from you to the rest of their team."

Harry raised his eyebrows and asked, "What is it?"

"Homemade cookies," Caitlin said simply.

"I'm not going to-" Harry began before Caitlin cut him off.

"Ah! No arguing," Caitlin said, pushing him along towards the platform. Then she firmly added, "And don't you even think of eating them yourself."

Harry pretended to look offended but as he stood there, about to leave, he was suddenly hit with a wave of sadness. He was slightly reluctant to go, even though he knew he needed to do this to reconnect with Jesse. His friends here on this Earth really cared for him and he didn't really ever stop to think about it except occasionally in the small pockets of peace that they had between crazy meta attacks. At the moment, he was especially thankful for the woman standing in front of him. Despite the fact that he was taking off when they finally had an opportunity to talk about them, she was understanding and supportive about it. Caitlin was the reason his relationship with his daughter was on its way to healing in the first place.

With a small smile and a look that conveyed his sincerity, Harry said, "See you soon, Caitlin."

With that, Harry breached to Earth-2 and left Caitlin alone on the steps. It sounded cheesy, but she missed him already. She felt empty and planned on wallowing in her sadness for the rest of the night. However, her friends had other plans.

"Hey Caitlin," Iris said from the entrance of the breach room. "I thought we could have a sleepover-type thing with the rest of the girls. Or whoever else wants to join, I mean no judgement." Cisco had told Iris about Harry leaving and they both thought Caitlin could use some cheering up. Besides, she deserved to relax a little after being through the mill the last few days.

Caitlin smiled, thankful for the distraction. "Yeah, that would be great!"

"Great, let's get set up. Poor Ralph and Masuma went through all that work for nothing…"

As it turned out, everyone loved the idea so they set up their mattresses in a line in the most spacious room. Even though they were beyond exhausted only moments before, the team seemed to get their second wind and everyone was jumping up to help. Olivia and Shannel decorated the walls with a single set of Christmas lights while the others had the idea of setting up a tent-like cover over the mattresses using blankets.

Once they were finished, everyone got settled into bed but no one went to sleep right away. Instead, everyone chatted away lightheartedly for what seemed like hours. When they finally drifted off, they all slept peacefully. Everyone, especially Team Flash, was thankful that the bigger threat was eradicated. If only they knew…