Harrison was speechless once he heard the speedforce's words. This was exactly what Ronnie had talked about, he realized, the source of their power. He looked around briefly, seeing everything standing perfectly still as though time itself had stopped.
"We're moving so fast that everything else seems to be frozen," 'Caitlin' spoke as though reading his mind.
"Why all of this?" he finally asked, shifting his eyes back to her. She did look like a slightly younger version of the woman he loved, yes, but at that the similarities ended. She seemed stiff, definitely not human. And she wasn't. Not really. This appearance was only for him to be able to talk her or possibly trust her, but if she asked him his opinion, he'd tell her it didn't exactly work that way.
"By letting Ronald Raymond charge himself like this, you imbued him with more power. He is able to run back in time now, dr. Wells. He's doing that as we speak."
"Come again?" Harrison thought he heard it wrong. Time travel? Really? Only then he ran the calculations in his head and nearly sucked in his breath, too busy recently with trying to be a hero and dealing with Snow's newly discovered abilities to have time to understand his own more. Yes, provided that he had enough speed and protection from the friction that his powers were already providing for him, it was possible for him to time travel. The realization nearly leveled him down because the implications were obvious. He could run back in time and make an accidental mistake. He could even potentially erase himself from existence, the movie Back to the Future Ramon had made him watch once, a testament to that.
"I take it I don't have to ask what Raymond is going to do," Harry sighed just then, the worst possible scenario seeming to also be the most plausible one in this situation.
"He's going to try and kill you, dr. Wells."
Harrison needed to pull himself back together before he spoke again since he was afraid his voice might come out shaky. It was just his luck, apparently, that when he seemed to finally have everything – well, ruined Labs excluded, but it wasn't like that was what mattered the most – a tragedy was bound to happen and take it all away from him. Again.
"How can I stop him?" he asked. "This has to be the reason to your sudden visit, right? You want me to stop him."
Speedforce in the person of Snow nodded.
"You have been given extraordinary powers, dr. Wells and not by accident. We have chosen you. It was Raymond that was the by-product, not you. And as you must know, with great powers comes great responsibility and he is abusing his. What is unfortunate here is that you yourself have given him more, you have made him able to travel back in time."
"I was trying to stop him!" Harry got angry, shifting from one foot to the other in his impatience. "You can't hold me accountable for that! I was trying to do the right thing!" And it blew straight into his face as always, the ever-present bitter taste of defeat in his mouth.
"We know, but it doesn't change the fact that what is done is done. The time cannot be changed, the implications being all too grand. The speedforce will help you, dr. Wells, but before we do that, there is something you need to see so you will never ever try something like this yourself. You have to remember that you're not only playing with your life and the lives of those closest to you, you in fact play with the fate of the whole world and every single person in it."
"Why are you telling me this?" He frowned.
"Because life deals us with all different kinds of cards, dr. Wells. Something may or may not happen to you or those you love, but eventually everyone dies. And whatever happens, you absolutely cannot go back and undo it. Look."
The world around Harry spun, yet he seemed to be standing still, grounded in place, only able to see but not act.
He saw Ronnie arriving at his destination in the Labs and speeding into his own office without hesitation, sticking a vibrating hand right through the past Harrison's chest. It was all over in a flash, the bitter irony not lost on Harry. For a moment he even panicked, thinking this was happening for real, that he, indeed, was just killed and the time altered, but then he remembered what the speedforce told him, so he forced himself to calm down. Yet, it wasn't easy.
Because this one death spurred a whole string of accidents and that must've been exactly what the speedforce was trying to warn him about.
One death. One small change. One life out of billions ended too soon.
It all prompted an avalanche impossible to stop.
The first image he saw wasn't all that bad as Ronnie was just in the Jitters, rid of his powers since his actions made it impossible for the particle accelerator to ever be built and therefore it never exploded. The door opened and Caitlin walked in, causing something in Harry's chest to twist.
He was bracing himself for the blow, sure she was there to meet Raymond and that the man got everything he wanted. He caused the particle accelerator explosion so he could get powers in order to get back in time and kill Wells so he could get the girl.
The blood started to boil in Harrison and he wanted nothing more than to move, grab Snow and speed off with her, but that was impossible. He told himself one more time that it wasn't real. That this wasn't really happening. It was just a projection of a possible outcome showed to him.
Still, it didn't seem to make the whole situation any better.
Though he did feel relieved once Raymond made his way to the table by which Cait sat and was actually shot down.
"Is this seat taken?" he asked, showing her the brightest of his smiles, his intentions clear from the start.
To Harry's surprise, she sent him an apologetic smile when saying, "Sorry, but I'm waiting for my boyfriend."
Once he heard that, Wells felt a pang of jealousy. It was a strange occurrence, indeed, that first he was afraid Raymond was the date, then happy that Snow turned him down and now he was displeased again because she was already taken. He wondered who the lucky guy might be since he himself was obviously dead in this timeline and then… The worst thought hit him because what if this life could've actually been better for her? Maybe she did deserve better than him. In fact, she deserved all that was best. He only wanted her to be happy and yet, every single day she assured him that she was, that she wanted this life by his side because she loved him.
His jaw dropped open as he saw a familiar person entering the Jitters.
When Barry Allen spotted Snow, his face illuminated in the brightest of his smiles and it was clear to Harry that he was head over heels for her. Only wait… in his timeline Allen was in love with Iris and he'd never let anyone believe there was more to his relationship with Caitlin, though it was always special. Like brother and sister, Wells reminded himself, feeling sick as he watched the younger man going over to Caitlin and placing a kiss on her lips before sitting down at the chair Ronnie had asked about earlier.
Wells's head started to spin as he raked his mind over the issue. Could Allen actually have feelings for Snow that went beyond those of friends or siblings? He felt sick. He wanted to leave, to go anywhere but here, but he was unable to.
Then his attention was attracted by the news that played on the TV. Iris West, the youngest reporter to receive a Pulitzer, was killed on her way back to Central City after four years of travelling over the world.
Harrison guessed this was his answer.
And then he noticed Ronnie sitting in the corner, watching the couple talking with a murderous expression on his face.
Harry's emotions kept on changing like in a kaleidoscope sine now he was angry that Raymond would try and hurt Allen for being with Snow.
Everything started becoming very blurry just then and soon there was nothing around him but a whirlwind of colors and the speedforce in the person of Caitlin.
"He's gonna hurt Allen, isn't he?" he asked her. "Caitlin is happy and he's…"
"Are you sure?"
"What? Of course I am! Did you see the way Raymond looked at them?!"
"I meant the happy part," speedforce corrected. "How can you be sure she is?"
"Wha…? How can she not… I mean… She certainly seemed happy."
"And you got that from a brief glimpse? You should know that appearances can deceiving. The answer is no, dr. Wells, she is most certainly not happy. The truth is that there is no real passion between her and Mr. Allen. They're best friends that decided to try and become something more. It might be working for now when it's still new, but it won't last. Their relationship is rather tepid, lacking passion that you always read about in books. Caitlin Snow stopped believing in that kind of love a long time ago and she doesn't even realize that was her grand mistake. Because love like this exists. Just not between them."
"Are you seriously trying to tell me that it's between me and her?"
"You should know it by now, dr. Wells, that love simply is where it is. Age, nationalities, skin color… it all disappears when it comes to real love. It just so happened that you two found it together."
That information left Harry speechless and quite frankly, he had no idea what to even think of that fact. It kind of felt liberating, like a huge relief, a burden taken off his shoulders since despite his powerful affections for Snow, he knew the age difference between them was always going to be on his mind, troubling him, not to mention that he'd also ruined her career.
Now he knew he should stop this thinking altogether and just accept what they both felt for what it was – real love that knew no obstacles. It was educational, actually. In the end, he knew he would be glad to have had the speedforce relay all of that to him even if now he still wasn't quite over witnessing that kiss Caitlin shared with Barry. That one he wished to erase from his memories since it still made him sick with jealously.
"Where's Cisco?" he found himself asking then, remembering his best friend and immediately worrying he might be dead just like Iris was.
The speedforce Caitlin only smiled before she disappeared and everything spun around him once again, the colors finally sharpening enough to present shapes and he eventually discovered he was in one of the Labs' rooms.
Cisco was there, standing before a strange metal construction with another whirlwind inside before… Harrison frowned on seeing a figure emerge from there and then gasped when he recognized… himself. But that couldn't be right. He was dead, wasn't he? And he was also pretty sure that what he just saw was definitely not bringing someone back from the dead. That just wasn't possible. Period.
It all became clear when the man got to his feet, raising his hands up into the air, introducing himself as dr. Harrison Wells from another earth.
So the theory of parallel universes all existing at once was actually correct? Harry wondered, his mind spinning with all the new information, yet, once again.
Everything dissolved into nothing then and when his view sharpened…
His mouth parted open as he spotted what appeared to be an embracing couple. What more, it was himself and Caitlin.
It took Harry a minute to arrive at a conclusion that she and the Wells that appeared in front of Cisco had an affair.
"What the…?"
"Oh, yes, they wouldn't be able to help it even if they tried. This is the not-so-happy ending to Caitlin and Barry's relationship," the speedforce provided, appearing right by Harry's side. "Fate will always find a way, dr. Wells. This," she pointed the kissing couple, "will rip Caitlin's relationship with Barry apart and not only in the romantic sense. She will lose the best friend and support she'd always had. She will hurt everyone in her life because of this."
"So Raymond didn't kill Allen?" Harry just asked, forcing himself to tear his eyes away from the couple. This sight wasn't that bad for him. In fact, if he needed another proof that he and Caitlin were meant to be… There was truly not a version of his life without her in it and vice versa, was there? He could as well give up now, stop overthinking things, stop working himself up over the seemingly non-existent issues and just make his way back home to her.
"He thought about it, but he was afraid he'd get caught as it wouldn't be as easy as erasing you from existence when leaving no evidence behind," the answer came. "He's stalking her every move, though and she's completely unaware when carrying a secret about her affair. Raymond hopes for her relationship to end since it's clear to him it lacks real passion, but once he sees this…"
Harry felt sick again, nausea hitting him twice as strong.
So this would be the tragic end to an equally tragic love story. Always in each other's orbits, always given another chance from fate to be together, but always losing it in the end because of one Ronald Raymond who couldn't get over his obsessive feelings for Caitlin.
The life that Harry had so far built was just as much in danger as the one showed to him by the speedforce. He needed to stop Raymond and he needed to do it as soon as possible.
"How can I stop him?" he voiced his thoughts aloud.
"Actually, this is my job," the speedforce informed and he shot her a look, not understanding anything anymore. "I will stop him from going back in time, but it won't come without a cost. This will take a lot of my power and I will need something in return, dr. Wells."
"Name it," Harrison encouraged, swallowing hard, bracing himself for what was to come. He was beyond afraid it would be something he wouldn't be able to give or something that would drive a wedge between him and Caitlin once and for all.
"Stopping Ronnie will take a lot of power which in result will cause a rift. The speedforce energy will start bleeding into the world, destroying it slowly and killing everyone on its way. There is, however, a way to prevent this and it's by trapping a speedster inside to seal the hole."
Harry's mouth went dry when he started thinking of the implications of what she just said, but then he heard, "Luckily for us, Raymond is a speedster, so if you manage to catch him after we prevent him from going back in time, you will need to throw him into the speedforce and it will close, trapping him inside, feeding off his energy."
"All right. All right. I can do this," Harrison said when nodding. "I will."
"Just remember that you don't have much time. The rift will open soon and you need to make sure Raymond is in there before it starts destroying the city. Otherwise…"
"I know. I won't fail."
"That's all I need to hear. Now go. Do your job."
Suddenly, he was back on the streets and people started moving again, the time no longer flowing slow for him. He didn't waste it, picking up running and arriving in the cortex, immediately throwing a direction, "Ramon! Trace Raymond's speed signature and do it fast!"
"Wait... Wait a minute there, buddy!" Cisco raised a hand, pointing at the older man. "What the hell was that? I mean… I mean… dude was supposed to stop and instead… What happened?"
"Cisco now! There's no time!" Harrison yelled and in that moment a thunder sounded outside, giving him the worst of feelings. All because it seemed to be happening too fast.
"Harry, are you ok?" Caitlin was right there by his side, her hands already on his suit and trying to get to the zipper in order to run her hands over his flesh in search for any potential wounds.
"I'm fine," he assured her, stopping her by taking her hands into his and looking her in the eye. He might be out of time, but for her he always had to find it. "Ramon, please," he threw the younger man's way once more, noticing that his fingers stopped moving over the keyboard just briefly before picking up the pace again. Cisco must've been surprised by his boss actually asking so nicely. In the end, he only swallowed hard, seeming to know that whatever was happening, it must've been really bad. "Raymond ran back in time," Harry then confessed when shifting his attention back to Caitlin. Like that, Ramon thought, even more scared now. Only then he found the guy.
"Got him! Wait… if he's running back in time…" he started, straightening up his back and scratching his head.
Harry was by the console in no time, checking the dot that was Ronnie.
"Keep me informed over the comms where he's going. He's running away."
"From what?" Caitlin frowned.
"From me. I talked to the speedforce," he relayed quickly when securing the mask over his face. "She told me she could stop Raymond, but I needed to get him ASAP and throw inside to patch up the rift from the power drain."
"What rift? And is it really a she?" Cisco asked, but Harrison was already gone. Yet, when another thunder sounded outside, they all seemed to have gotten at least part of the answer. "Why do I have this feeling that everything's gonna go to hell in a handbasket?"
Caitlin only saddened, already out of her mind with worry and apparently, now it wasn't only Harry that she had to be concerned about.
Harrison was tired. He so, so tired.
It was understandable since he'd never before in his life run this fast and he slowly started coming to a conclusion that he was never going to catch up with Raymond. He simply wasn't going to make it, already feeling his powers depleting because of the effort he was putting in trying to run as fast as his opponent. The other speedster seemed to have more power now and Harry needed to finally admit his defeat, knowing that time was chasing him as well and that every other second spent on running after Ronnie could cost him the life of one of his friends back in Central City where the rift was open and getting out of control.
He had to come back. He knew it. Yet, he couldn't seem to accept that, because it meant… it meant… He suddenly stopped, barely managing to steady himself before he would run into a wall or worse and there was no room for even one more error. He knew what he had to do, yet he didn't want to accept this.
Caitlin. Caitlin. Caitlin. Only her name echoed in his head now and he nearly bent over, opening his mouth and screaming. He was powerless to fight this, powerless to outrun Raymond. He had to take the place in the speedforce. There wasn't any other way out of the situation. Only it still didn't seem like the best solution since it meant leaving his team at the hands of a monster.
Either way he lost. Only one way it was certain that they were all going to die along with numerous people in the world.
Harrison forced himself to make one last effort and ran back home.
By the time he arrived at the front of the Labs, the three of his friends, including the woman he loved more than anything in this life, were standing by the front door, looking up at the sky, powerless to stop the lightning storm that was raging on. And it was getting closer. Soon it would affect the entire city and the people in it and Harry just couldn't let that happen.
"Harry!" she spotted him the second he appeared, bending over and trying not to vomit as he'd drained himself of so much energy by now that he felt like passing out, everything inside of him stirring, screaming no, rejecting the choice he knew had to be made. "Harry," his name came out in a whisper as she gently cupped his face, lifting it up, her fingers sliding over the perspired skin. "Oh my God, you're burning up. Harry, we need…"
"No," he rasped out, barely breathing, desperately holding onto his consciousness as his body wanted nothing more than to finally give up and pass out. His eyes met hers and he drew strength from the never ending love and concern for him that he saw there. He slowly lifted his hands and rested them in the crooks of her arms since she was still holding onto his face, her eyes filling with tears as she seemed to know already what was going to happen. What had to happen.
Her understanding was truly the worst, because he'd rather she hated him. Maybe then it would all be easier.
"I have to pay for my mistakes, Caitlin," he finally confessed. "I just wish you didn't have to pay that price, too."
She shook her head in denial, more tears flowing down her face, her eyes never leaving his blues, her fingers lovingly tracing the lines of his face as though she was trying to burn his image into her memory.
"No, Harrison," surprisingly, it was Barry who spoke, coming closer whereas Cisco just stood there in shock, a look of denial all over his face. "As much as I hate the fact that you didn't tell us the truth about the accelerator before, you can't do this. Besides, now we know that it wasn't really your fault."
"Doesn't matter. I still could've stopped the launch."
"What will this do to Caitlin?" Barry then asked.
"Allen, I have to do this," Harry told him impatiently, "if I don't, we'll all die."
"But… but… what if I don't get you back? Why are you even trying to be the hero so hard now?" Caitlin asked in a feeble voice and he locked his eyes with hers again, never wanting to stop looking at her.
"Because of you, Caitlin. You made me a hero and I couldn't be more grateful that you showed me another way. A better way. I wish we had more time, but…" He sighed, closing his eyes and shaking his head a little before looking at her again. The thunders were getting closer now and were also more frequent, so he knew he had to cut this short.
"I think I liked you more when you weren't trying," she complained, obviously trying to joke, but she failed miserably and Harry felt like crying, appreciating the effort anyway. Because she was so, so strong that it never ceased to amaze him. Even now, when she had every reason to fall apart, she was strong for him, because he needed it and she knew it.
"Listen, I will do everything and anything in my power to come back to you, do you hear me?" he suddenly promised, remembering how the speedforce made him believe once and for all that they were meant to be. That no matter what they did, how much he tried to push her away, they were always meant to end up together. It gave him hope. A feeble one, but it was hope nevertheless. "I promise you. I will never stop looking for a way back to you, but in the same time I need you to live your life, Caitlin. You have to let me go for now." He stumbled just then, his energy running out. He knew he had to use the last remnants of it to run into the speedforce. Otherwise they were all dead. Yet, he didn't seem to be able to move. "Caitlin, you're my lightning rod. I love you. Every road was always going to lead me to you." After saying that, seeing what his words did to her, he pressed his lips against hers, kissing her with all of his might and then he was suddenly gone, speeding off and into the speedforce, her arms hanging loosely at her sides as she nearly lost her balance since he wasn't there anymore.
In the end, she didn't really want to fight her body's reactions and she let her knees hit the ground as she screamed, not even registering that the lightning storm ceased, suddenly leaving the sky strangely quiet.
She felt so terribly alone that she couldn't breathe, her chest clenching painfully, causing her heart to be squeezed in an impossible way, the pain becoming too much.
And then there was suddenly a warm pair of arms around her and she gave in to Barry's embrace as he got down to the ground. "I'm here. It's going to be all right, Cait. I'm here. You'll be just fine. I'm sure we will get him back eventually. We will. We have to," he kept on whispering into her ear while she was crying into his shirt.
None of them noticed Iris approaching, watching the scene from a distance as she was making her way to the Labs, knowing that the strange lightning storm had to do something with the known to her speedster.
She used her powers when she was close by and yet, before that, none of the remaining people noticed her, Cisco busy staring into the sky with a very guilty and anguished expression on his face and Barry cuddling Caitlin on the ground, not registering anything around but the woman in his arms.
AN: All I can do is to apologize for the long wait and thank you for not giving up on me. You know who you are! I hope I did bring on the all-too-familiar anguish, drama and tension of this story. More soon!