A/N: Welcome back, everyone! The third installment of this crazy romp through an alternate reality is finally here and I hope you are enjoying it! In this chapter we'll see most of our branching stories meeting up with each other so scene hopping should come down to a minimum…I emphasize should.

I also don't know how this chapter ballooned to just shy of 20k again because it sure as hell wasn't intended. I am excited that this story is now over 100k words! It certainly tops anything I've put out before and I'm looking forward to continuing it. I've considered separating the 'Duet' storyline and making it its own story, but if that does happen it'll be in the aftermath.

Shout out to my reviewers last chapter: CallMeMiles, Night2 and Guest! I enjoyed hearing from you and hope this chapter addresses enough of the relationships you mentioned as well as continues to deliver.

Chapter Playlist:

Cell Block Tango from Chicago by John Kander/Fred Ebb

She Hates Me by Puddle of Mudd

Gives You Hell by The All-American Rejects performed by Lea Michele & Cast of Glee

Cleaning This Gun (Come On In Boy) by Rodney Atkins

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or the songs used in this chapter! However, I do enjoy manipulating them to my whims!

Chapter 12 – All That's Known


Wally/Jesse/Thea/Roy – Wailin' Jennies Bar, Mama Liza's Office

After the woman's declaration, Roy leaned over to Thea and whispered into her ear. "Babe…this is how, like, hundreds of pornos start. The bad kind!"

Thea gaped at her husband.

Smack!

"OW!" Arsenal hissed, a hand shooting up to rub at the now tender spot on the back of his head thanks to the sharp rap delivered to it by the barrel of Psi's gun. "Shit that hurts!"

"Serves you right," Thea snapped exchanging a nod with the blonde. "Thank you for that. Sometimes he forgets himself."

Psi rewarded her with a smirk.

Siren glared at the quartet. "If I have to tell you four to shut the hell up until spoken to one more time I am going to beat this one over the head with an ugly stick!" She gestured at Jesse threateningly.

"Now, now, my dear," Mama soothed with a wave of her hand. "Let's not let our tempers get the better of us. Have you introduced everyone to our guests?"

Siren huffed. "Nearly. It was me, Harbinger, Psi and your precious little Heartbreaker that found 'em where you said we would." Pausing, a puzzled expression crossed Siren's face. "How did you know they were there anyway?"

An enigmatic smile crawled over Mama's lips. "Never you mind, dear. Suffice to say a…friend tipped me off. Now," her gaze fell back to the silent quartet. "How can Mama help you?"

Four blank stares and slow, non-comprehending blinks met her question.

After a moment, Thea decided to take charge and speak up. With the exception of Roy, she was the senior most crime fighter/superhero and, judging by the wide-eyed look he had returned to, her husband was once again freaking out over the dialogue involved with the scenario.

"Listen, Mama Liza," she began, trying to figure out what exactly she could and couldn't ask for. "We're kind of…lost. My husband, our friends and myself had a bit too much to drink earlier and we can't really remember how we got here."

That was of course a bold faced lie. But they weren't exactly in an ideal situation so she decided to take a leaf out of her brother's book and bullshit their way out of it.

The fact that the grandfather clock standing in the corner of the room read eight 'o clock was not lost on any of the room's occupants.

"If you could just let us go and point us in the direction of the nearest police station, we'll get out of your hair."

Mama smiled, her eyes never leaving Thea's face. "Hmm…I could do that, certainly. I'm sure the boys in blue would be more than happy to help you get your bearings." She tapped her chin with an elegant finger, thinking. "But first I think you should let my girls introduce themselves properly."

Jesse finally snapped out of her stupor and, picking up on Thea's unease, played along with her story. "Oh that's not necessary, Mama Liza. We wouldn't want to waste your time. I'm sure you have more important things you could be doing."

A chill went through the air and the quartet could see Siren and the other girls stiffen almost imperceptibly.

"My girl," Mama said, voice sugar sweet but filled with promises of pain. "You seem to be under the illusion that that was a choice. You're in Mama's house now. And anything Mama says, goes. Isn't that right, girls?"

"Yes Mama," chorused the Siren and the other women in the room.

Roy opened his mouth but Mama's voice cut him off.

"Sweetie, unless your going to say something along the lines of agreement, I'd advise you to keep your mouth shut, hm?"

He nodded.

Mama clapped her hands, the steely edge leaving her posture. "Now, how's about you and the girls do that number I love so much?" She wagged a finger at Siren when the younger woman pursed her lips in annoyance. "Oh come now, dear, you know it's the perfect way to fill these youngsters in on who we Jennies are. Get to it!"

Siren sighed. "I'll be right back, Mama, I'm gonna go grab Huntress, Squints and Valkyrie."

She disappeared through the door leaving the quartet and Mama to stare at each other in what felt like the most awkward silence the younger group had ever been a part of. The grandfather clock was the only noise in the room, it's great pendulum swinging side to side.

Roy's leg began to bounce anxiously, a tick he'd developed way back in the days when he and Thea were trying to keep their blossoming relationship a secret. It helped him combat his nerves when dealing with Oliver.

Seeing this, Thea laid a calming hand on her husband's thigh which he eagerly covered with his own. Roy always did have a bit of a problem sitting still. In the presence of Mama Liza, it would probably be better if he didn't progress to his more…annoying habits.

He popped his lips.

So much for that.

Thea sighed and dropped her head back to rest against the chair, defeated, as the rest of the room's inhabitants looked at Roy in disbelief. He kept his eyes up and away from any of the other gazes, playing the fool. Soon enough everyone else went back to not talking.

Pop!

This time the sound was louder and nearly every head snapped in his direction at an unhealthy speed. Cracking knuckles from behind the four captives alerted them to the mounting annoyance of their captors. Roy began bouncing his head as if he was listening to a song only he could hear.

Thea began hitting her head against her headrest.

Silence fell over the room again as glares once more turned away from the perpetrator. Even Wally and Jesse made their displeasure known with tandem eye rolls and scoffs. Upon hearing and seeing the other copying them, they scowled at each other before crossing their arms and turning away.

Again in sync.

POP!

Like a siren rending the still night air, the loudest pop yet pierced through the quiet of Mama's office and everyone exploded.

"Dammit Roy!" Jesse shouted angrily raising a fist at the archer.

"Seriously bro just stop." Wally pleaded.

Lyla toted her gun. "Can I shoot him, Mama? Please?"

"No let me do it, Mama!" Psi countered desperately.

Heartbreaker – Millie – remained quiet, though the smallest of twitches could be seen at the corner of her eye.

Thea just slapped her free hand over her eyes.

"Boy, if you so much as think about doing that again, I am going to staple them pretty lips together, do you understand me? I'm going to staple them shut and then melt the staples together!" Mama threatened loudly, nearly shouting.

Siren burst back into the room with the three other women from earlier, an alarmed look on her face. "Mama? What's wrong? I heard you shouting! Do I need to bust some heads?"

Mama glared pointedly at Roy who was, once again, preparing to pop his lips. The archer turned it into an unflattering lip trill immediately. The older woman smirked before turning to her lieutenant. "No, sugar, we're fine. Are you all ready to get things started?"

"Yes Mama," six of the seven Jennies chorused as they each pulled up an empty chair and sat in it.

"Don't you worry none, Heartbreaker," Mama reassured Millie. "We'll work you into this eventually. For now, just kick back, watch and learn from your sisters. Girls? Shall I get you started?" Without waiting for an answer she cleared her throat and addressed the group in front of her as the lights of the office faded to near black, drawing a startled yelp from Roy. A crash of cymbals and a slowly building roll on the snare accompanied her.

"And now, the six merry murderesses of the Wailin' Jennies night club performing their rendition of the Cell Block Tango!"

True to its name, a driving tango 8-count began with a loud flourish and, one by one, the six Jennies were illuminated as they spoke, each saying something different in a slowly accelerating cacophony of noise.

Siren: "Pop."

Lena: "Six."

Kendra: "Squish."

Helena: "Uh uh!"

Psi: "Cicero."

Lyla: "Lipschitz."

Looking at each other with raised brows, Jesse, Thea, Roy and Wally had absolutely no idea what to make of the words the six women were repeating over and over again. Each of their declarations came closer on the heels of its predecessor every time they finished a round and the expressions on each of their faces slowly turned from disgruntled to downright pissed.

Leaning over to her fellow female, Thea whispered. "Ten bucks says this has something to do with ex-boyfriends."

"No way," Jesse protested. "You see the looks on those faces, right? That's classic women scorned if I ever saw it! I ain't stupid, Harper!"

All: "Pop, six, squish, uh uh, Cicero, Lipschitz!

"Pop, six, squish, uh uh, Cicero, Lipschitz!

"Pop, six, squish, uh uh, Cicero, Lipschitz!"

Roy and Wally stared at the sextet warily. It seemed that each of them was giving the two males in the room looks of loathing, almost like they wished they would burst into flame and then suffer in agony for a long time.

"Dude do you feel like…we're in danger? Or maybe we were wrong about something and they're going to give us complete and total hell over it?" Wally asked the archer, his eyes never leaving the seated women in from of him.

Roy nodded. "I'm married, man. Of course I was wrong about something and am going to have whatever it was held over my head for the foreseeable future." He paused for a beat. "I also feel in danger, yes."

All: "He had it coming, he had it coming,

"He only had himself to blame,

"If you'd have been there, if you'd have seen it,

"I betcha you would have done the same!

"Pop, six, squish, uh uh, Cicero, Lipschitz!

"Pop, six, squish, uh uh, Cicero, Lipshitz!"

"Oh yeah," Jesse chuckled with a playful swipe at Thea. "I totally called it! Suck it, Thea!"

Rolling her eyes with a good-natured smirk, the youngest Queen shot a glance over at her husband who looked torn between curiosity and terror. She recalled Mama saying this was supposed to be an introduction to the Jennies and, even though they'd only sung the chorus so far, Thea was inclined to agree with Roy's caution.

These were the same people who nearly shot them in the street and marched them, at gunpoint, through a crowded establishment without any fear of reprimand after all.

Siren: "You know how people have these little habits that get you down?

"Like Bernie. Bernie, liked to chew gum,

"No, not chew, pop. So, I came home this one day,

"And I'm really irritated, I'm looking for a little bit o' sympathy,

"And there's Bernie lyin' on the couch, drinkin' a beer and chewin,'

"No, not chewin', poppin.' So, I said to him, I said,

"'Bernie, you pop that gum one more time...' and he did,

"So, I took the shotgun off the wall and I fired two warning shots,

"Into his head."

Both the males in the room, who had leaned forward when Siren started to speak threw themselves back into their chairs. Roy paled drastically realizing that he barely dodged a bullet thanks to Mama sending Siren out before his little lip popping episode.

"Well damn…" he muttered to himself, swallowing nervously.

Thea squeezed his hand even as she fought to stifle her laughter. "Looks like you got away with your little rebellion this time, Doofus."

"No shit."

All: "He had it coming, he had it coming,

"He only had himself to blame,

"If you'd have been there, if you'd have heard it,

"I betcha you would have done the same!"

There was no down time from the chorus into the next verse as Lena Luthor was lit up.

Lena: "I met Ezekiel Young from Salt Lake City about two years ago,

"And he told me he was single, and we hit it off right away,

"So, we started living together. He'd go to work, he'd come home,

"I'd fix him a drink, we'd have dinner and then I found out,

"'Single' he told me. Single my ass! Not only was he married,

"Oh, no, he had six wives! One of those Mormons, you know?

"So, that night when he came home from work, I fixed him his drink as usual,

"You know, some guys just can't hold their arsenic…"

"Jesus!" Wally gasped, his face screwed up in consternation at the unrepentant reveal the normally benevolent scientist – who Team Flash had worked with on several occasions – delivered, smug smirk marring her features. "Just what the fuck did we step into?!"

Mama met his eyes with a raised brow and a dangerous smile. "You best pay attention, sweetie, each of my girls' stories has something in common. It'd be in your best interest to figure it out. You and your pain in the ass friend."

Wally bit his tongue and turned back to the performing Jennies and the alternating lights.

All: "He had it coming, he had it coming,

"He took a flower in its prime,

"And then he used it, and he abused it,

"It was a murder but not a crime!"

The song rolled right along, a put out looking Kendra now illuminated while the rest listened to what she had to say.

Kendra: "Now I'm standing in the kitchen carvin' up a chicken for dinner,

"Minding my own business, in storms my husband Wilbur in a jealous rage,

"'You been screwin' the milkman,' he says. He was crazy,

"And he kept on screamin' 'You been screwin' the milkman,'

"And then he ran into my knife!

"He ran into my knife ten times…"

Thea and Jesse looked over when Roy buried his face in his hands, an aggrieved moan making itself known.

"I think I'm beginning to figure things out here," he grumbled, inching closer to Thea in the interest of self-preservation. "Please don't leave me alone, Thee. I don't think me and Wally have a very good chance of getting out of this otherwise."

"I mean, yeah, I'll cover you, babe," Thea promised. A stormy look overtook her face, though the gleam in her eye – which her husband didn't see due to him still doing his best terrified ostrich impression – belied any anger. "You haven't been seeing anyone behind my back have you? You're not getting ready to level some crazy ass accusations at me, right? And do I hear you swearing on your life never to pop your lips again?"

"…yes ma'am."

All: "If you'd have been there,

"If you'd have seen it,

"I betcha you would have done the same!"

Judging by the shifting lights, Helena's verse was next. The on-again-off-again psycho

Helena: "Mit kersek, en itt? (How did I find myself here?)

"Azt mondjok, hogy a hires lakem lefogta a ferjemet, (They say my famous lover held down my husband)

"En meg Lecsaptam a fejet. De nem igaz! (and I cut his head off. But it's not true!)

"En artatlan vagyok! Nem tudom, (I am innocent! I don't know why)

"Mert mondja Uncle Sam hog yen tettem Probaltam, (Uncle same says I did it. I tried to explain)

"A rendorsegen megmayarazni de nem ertettek meg!" (at the police station but they didn't understand.)

Siren: "Yeah, but did you do it?"

Helena: "Uh uh, not guilty!"

Once again there was no pause between stories, though this time the alternate Earth quartet had absolutely no idea what had been said. They simply stared at each other for a moment, mouths open in confusion, before shrugging and turning their attention to Psi.

Except for Jesse who looked a little green.

Psi: "My sister, Veronica and I had this double act,

"And my husband, Charlie, traveled around with us,

"Now, for the last number in our act, we did these 20 acrobatic tricks in a row,

"One, two, three, four, five, splits, spread eagles, back flips, flip flops,

"One right after the other.

"So, this one night before the show we are down at the Hotel Cicero,

"The three of us, boozing,' havin' a few laughs, and we run out of ice,

"So, I go out to get some. I come back, open the door,

"And there's Veronica and Charlie doing number seventeen, the spread eagle,

"Well, I was in such a state of shock I completely blacked out,

"I can't remember a thing. It wasn't until later,

"When I was washing the blood off my hands,

"I even knew they were dead!"

"Okay, no! That's just fucked up!" Jesse declared vehemently, though her words fell on deaf ears as the Jennies didn't even flinch.

Thea snorted while patting Roy's hand encouragingly. "Which part?"

"Well both really," Jesse said, watching Wally inch his chair behind her little by little. "But mostly the whole 'berserker rage murder' thing! I mean what the hell?"

"Kara went through something like that. Apparently, red K is not good for social interactions" Roy chimed in. He grimaced. "Come to think of it, I've experienced it too. Back when I was just another gangbanger running around the Glades."

A sharp slap to the back of his hand pulled his downcast gaze up to meet Thea's eyes. "Stop it right now, Harper!"

He bit his bottom lip, face looking worn, and nodded.

All: "They had it coming, they had it coming,

"They had it coming all along, I didn't do it,

"But if I'd done it, how could you tell me that I was wrong?

"They had it coming, they had it coming,

"They had it coming all along, I didn't do it,

"How could you tell me that I was wrong?"

"For the record," Wally interjected between the chorus and the next verse which could only belong to Lyla. "I think I got the point about three verses ago."

Jesse snorted. "Well that makes one thing. I guess now I know if I want you to figure something out without having to explain it to you in excruciating detail, I'll need to come in guns blazing toting a severed head."

"Say what?!"

"Yeah, that's what Helena was talking about. She cut off her husband's head."

"Oh my…I don't even…," Wally stopped talking a slapped hand over his mouth, his stomach turning at the thought. "W-what…the actual fuck?"

Mama, listening from her desk, laughed.

Lyla: "I loved Al Lipschitz more than I can possibly say,

"He was a real artistic guy, sensitive, a painter,

"But he was always trying to find himself.

"He'd go out every night looking for himself,

"And on the way, he found Ruth, Gladys, Rosemary and Irving,

"I guess you could say we broke up because of artistic differences,

"He saw himself as alive…and I saw him dead…"

All: "That dirty bum, bum, bum, bum, bum,

"That dirty bum, bum, bum, bum, bum,

"They had it coming, they had it coming,

"They had it coming all along,

"Cause if they used us and they abused us,

"How could you tell us that we were wrong?

As the song built toward the final crescendo, the attitudes of the quartet had shifted drastically from when they started.

Thea was sending concerned glances at Roy who looked despondent and like someone had just kicked his dog. It was a sharp one-eighty from his earlier devil-may-care front and Thea wanted to figure out what was wrong.

Wally, after getting his stomach under control, now glared at Jesse in unmasked fury. His turnabout most likely stemmed from his and Jesse's initial fight back on Earth-1 over their breakup. Add that to her vehement attack on his obtuseness and, well…

Jesse looked much like her ex-boyfriend with the addition of a malicious gleam in her eyes. The argument could be made that, in the same manner happy, upbeat music could make a person feel those same feelings, so too had this song influenced the Earth-2 speedster's mood.

Something was bubbling beneath the surface and, if any of the four had been paying attention, they would have noticed Mama's steepled fingers and self-satisfied grin.

All: "He had it coming, he had it coming,

"He only had himself to blame, if you'd have been there,

"If you'd have seen it, I betcha you would have done the same."

Siren: "You pop that gum one more time!"

Lena: "Single my ass!"

Kendra: "Ten times!"

Helena: "Miert csukott Uncle Sam bortonbe!"

Psi: "Number seventee – the spread eagle!"

Lyla: "Artistic differences!"

All: "I betcha you would have done the same!"

With a final heavy hit, the song came to an end. All six of the Jennies, now finished with their introduction, immediately set about putting their chairs back where they came from before resuming their previous positions throughout the room or, in the case of Kendra, Lena and Helena, going back to whatever they had been doing.

Enthusiastic applause from Mama broke the silence and her pointed glare prompted the quartet to join in, resulting in a few half-hearted claps.

"Well now, I think the girls did a fine job of making plain what we're all about!" Mama announced after a few moments, lacing her fingers together underneath the chin and smiling at her guests. "Do you all have any questions for Mama?"

Feeling a little vindictive, Wally decided to speak, his tone biting and just a touch sarcastic. "So, what? You all are the 'She-Woman Man Haters' club?"

Mama, heedless of his attitude, seemed to consider his question seriously. After a small stretch of quiet – filled in by the nervous shifting of Roy and Thea and huff from Jesse – the woman's lips twitched upward. "Why, yes, sweetie, I guess we are. Ooh and isn't that just a lovely phrase, girls? I absolutely adore it!" All the levity left her face in an instant as she sent a shark-like grin, teeth and all, at Wally. "It just screams 'don't-fuck-with-me-if-you-want-to-keep-your-balls' Doesn't it, girls?"

Chuckles from the remaining Jennies – and Jesse, Wally noted with a gulp – proved their support of Mama's words.

Roy and Wally felt a chill run down their spines.

"In case you haven't noticed, you idiot," the archer hissed in a not-so subtle aside. "We're in the minority in the battle of the sexes right now! You might want to ease up on the sass and think about not getting us killed! Just saying."

More laughter from Mama met Roy's rebuke. "Oh, come now, dear, I'm not going to kill you boys without letting you air whatever grievances you've got. That'd just be unhospitable!"

"I notice you didn't say you weren't going to kill us," Roy pointed out.

"If I'm right – and I usually am aren't I, girl? – there seems to be some trouble in paradise!" Mama continued ignoring Roy's comment. She looked at Wally and Jesse with a congenial smile that set the former on edge. "I'd say you two are…recently parted, yes? What'd he do to you, honey? Sleep with your best friend?" her eyes flicked briefly to Thea who glowered. "No? Hmmm…does he not value you enough? Take you for granted?"

Any precaution Wally might have considered to insure his survival flew right out the proverbial window as he shot up from his chair, eyes blazing. The Jennies in the room stiffened and went for their weapons but stayed their hands when Mama waved them off.

"Are you kidding me?! I didn't do anything! She," he aimed an accusing finger at Jesse. "Is the one who all of a sudden decided, 'Eh, fuck it' and called it quits! With a break up box for fuck's sake!"

"Oh my God!" Now Jesse was up and in Wally's face, a dangerous look in her eyes. "You are such a child! I already told you I have things I need to do! You need to grow up and accept that instead of crying about it every five minutes to anyone who will listen!"

Sitting back in her chair, positively glowing as she drummed her fingers together, Mama interrupted. "Now, now let's not get too rowdy! How's about one of you tell us your side of the story first and then the other. That's fair, right?"

Something about the suggestion didn't sit well with Thea. It felt more like Mama Liza was playing with her food before eating it. And Thea was pretty sure she knew how this would play out. Plus, Wally and Jesse looked ready to explode – again – instead of acting like responsible, sensible adults and talking things out.

Wally spoke first.

"You know what, Mama? I think that's a great idea!" He continued to stare at Jesse through narrowed eyes, all of his pent up frustration and anger at their breakup ready to boil over.

And, at the more than obvious cue, a familiar chord progression on electric guitar filled the room. Thea and Roy's eyes grew wide, the selection catching them by surprise.

This fight was not going to end well.

Wally: "Met a girl, thought she was grand, fell in love, found out first hand,

"Went well for a week or two, then it all came unglued…

"In a trap, trip I can't grip, never thought I'd be the one who slip,

"Then I started to realize, I was living one big lie…"

"Oh boy, someone's going to get shot," Thea mumbled slouching as that realization set in. "Nothing good can come from a hate fueled sing-off."

Even though he was still in a mood, Roy couldn't help the quip. "I mean…there's always make up sex."

"Babe," the Queen heiress said with a flat look. "Just because that happened one time after we were so hammered I was tasting colors and you were seeing time doesn't mean that that's how the scenario normally plays out. Also, I'm pretty sure we weren't really pissed at each other. Just very, very, very horny."

Comprehension dawned on Roy's face and he smirked. "Oh, yeah! Isn't that the night the twins were conceived?"

Though she didn't reply the matching grin on her face said more than enough.

Wally: "She fucking hates me, trust,

"She fucking hates me,

"La la la love! I tried too hard,

"And she tore my feelings like I had none,

"And ripped them away…"

There was flicker of surprise in Jesse's eyes that Wally missed in his adrenaline fueled tirade but it was quickly masked by her own fury. The implication that she was some kind of heartless bitch toying with the other speedster's heart was slowly stoking the fire building in her belly.

Wally: "She was queen for about an hour,

"After that, shit got sour,

"She took all I ever had,

"No sign of guilt, no feeling of bad, no,

"In a trap, trip I can't grip, never thought I'd be the one who'd slip,

"Then I started to realize, I was living one big lie…"

Wally moved away from Jesse to plead his case to the Jennies in the room. First, to Siren, and when she all but pull the trigger on him, he cut away to Psi hoping to avoid death by headshot.

For a moment, it looked like she began to sympathize with him – there was a small smile on her lips – and he took the opportunity to turn up the vocals. When the blonde started to laugh at him, however, he scowled and strode over to Lyla.

The woman's impassive face never broke. In fact, despite the speedster beginning to really belt, she never even acknowledged him, her thousand yard stare – reminiscent of the guards at Buckingham Palace – enough to unnerve him after a minute and, with a grin, set his eyes on his sister's doppelganger.

Wally: "She fucking hates me, trust,

"She fucking hates me,

La la la love! I tried too hard,

"And she tore my feelings like I had none,

"And ripped them away…"

Had the group been in their own reality, Iris West would have never shied from anyone, especially her brother while he threw a tantrum. She was a staunch believer in getting shit done and feared nothing in both her work life and her personal life. Her father and Barry were convinced she was trying to make them go gray early – Joe already showing signs – because of her wait-let-me-dig-deeper-it-hasn't-blown-up-in-my-face-yet attitude.

She and Laurel, at the genesis of Team Arrow, were very much alike in that regard.

Millie, on the other hand, seemed to share none of her alternate reality's traits when it came to confidence. As Wally approached, she tried to bury herself into the wall she was leaning against, turning her face away from the encroaching speedster. The pinched look on her face didn't cry 'scared' so much as it did 'uncomfortable' and her grimace was obvious.

Figuring he'd be better off somewhere else, lest Mama think he was getting too close, Wally turned back to the room as a whole.

Wally: "That's my story, as you see,

"Learned my lesson and so did she,

"Now it's over and I'm glad,

"'Cause I'm a fool for all I've said

"She fucking hates me, trust,

"She fucking hates me,

"La la la love! I tried too hard,

"And she tore my feelings like I had none,

"And ripped them away…"

Back at where he'd started, Wally took his spot in front of Jesse as the final chorus came to a close, though the music still powered on, the heavy rock threatening to burst out of the confines of the office.

Wally: "La la la la la la la la la love, trust!

"La la la la la la la la la love, trust!

"And she tore my feelings like I had none,

"She fucking hates me!"

Looking – and feeling – more satisfied with himself for getting that off his chest, Wally smirked at his ex as the music faded away.

"You know," Roy whispered to Thea in the waning moments of the song. "All things considered, I think that could have gone worse."

His wife gave him a disbelieving look. "How could that have gone worse? He tore her down in front of a bunch of strangers and made her seem like a gold-digging bitch!" she growled, unknowingly echoing Jesse's thoughts from earlier.

"Well he could've finished it with the words at the end of the fade out," Roy explained. "That would have been…problematic and –"

Wally: "I never got any action anyway."

Thea sucked in a breath through her teeth and waited for the inevitable retaliation.

"And now it's worse," Roy finished lamely.

Both vigilantes watched the ex-couple reengage in their glare-off in a kind of morbid fascination: whatever happened was going to be something spectacular.

Jesse kicked Wally in the balls.

"Oh shit!" Roy cried, feeling phantom sympathy pains shooting through his own person at the brutal assault while he watched his fellow man crumbled to the floor. "Damn! She got balls! I mean, like…all balls. That's a straight shot right to the junk – no thigh buffer or nothing! Fuck I think I can feel it!"

"Even though we're all in this together," Thea began in a diplomatic tone, arms crossed. "I feel no compassion for you, Wallace. None whatsoever. You deserved that."

From his fetal position on the floor, Wally squeaked.

The rest of the room exploded into laughter – save Roy of course – applauding Jesse's method of dealing with the problematic male. Even the stoic Lyla cracked a smile.

"Well if that don't put an exclamation on the moment, nothing will," Mama praised with a nod of her head. "Very well done, dear. You might just have what it takes to be a Jennie. And we're always looking for tough girls who aren't afraid to take action. But," she continued before Jesse could say anything. "I can see by the look in your eyes that you've got something to tell that little upstart. The floor is yours, my girl."

A steady beat came from an unseen synthesizer, an almost muted sound filling the room. The third beat of the pattern was accented with a hit of a drum and repeated for a few measures.

Looming over her once upon a time boyfriend, Jesse began to return fire.

Jesse: "I wake up every evening with a big smile on my face,

"And it never feels out of place. And you're still probably working,

"At a nine to five pace, I wonder how bad that tastes,

"When you see my face hope it gives you hell,

"Hope it gives you hell, when you walk my way,

"Hope it gives you hell, hope it gives you hell…"

Squatting down to Wally's level, Jesse slapped his cheek a few times, condescension dripping from her person. After his impassioned performance at her expense, she was reveling in the opportunity to drop some heavy truth-bombs of her own. In a much more backhanded manner, of course.

She was Harry Wells' daughter after all.

Jesse: "Now where's you picket fence love,

"And where's that shiny car? And did it ever get you far?

"You never seemed so tense love,

"I've never seen you fall so hard,

"Do you even know where you are?

"And truth be told I miss you,

"And truth be told I'm lying…"

Leaving Wally on the floor, she waltzed over to Thea and bumped her with a hip, singing at her friend with a glint in her eyes and offering a hand.

Even knowing taking sides in this back and forth would only result in hurt feelings, Thea couldn't resist the temptation. Taking Jesse's outstretched hand, she gave a surprised laugh when the other girl pulled her into a spin. The two danced for a few measures with Jesse throwing the occasional mocking look Wally's way, the smirk on her lips never fading.

The West family speedster finally managed to pick himself up from the floor and, with a little assistance from Roy, gingerly retook his seat.

"You know, if you had just not said that last bit you wouldn't be wondering right now whether or not you were gonna be able to have children in the future." Roy said plainly to the still cringing young man like a parent explaining to a chastised child why exactly they were in time out.

Wally stared at him with a pinched expression and a groan of discomfort. "…Fuck you, Roy."

Jesse: "When you see my face, hope it gives you hell,

"Hope it gives you hell, when you walk my way,

"Hope it gives you hell, hope it gives you hell,

"If you find a man that worth a damn and treats you well,

"Then he's a fool you're just as well,

"Hope it gives you hell, hope it gives you hell…"

By now, the Jennies decided they had sat idle long enough and joined the other-Earthers dancing in the middle of the office, smiles on their faces that depicted their obvious joy at Wally's expense. Millie, after a few encouraging tugs from Jesse – who had left Thea in the capable hands of Psi, finally got to participate for the first time in the last half hour. Even Siren, to the shock of everyone, was up and taking her own turn at the dance shenanigans.

Only Lyla remained in her place, as stoic as she'd ever been.

Jesse: "Tomorrow you'll be thinking to yourself,

"Where did it all go wrong?

"But the list goes on and on,

"And truth be told I miss you,

"And truth be told I'm lying…"

Dancing over to Wally, Jesse made a show of pining after him, feigning loneliness. She straddled his lap and caressed his face, getting a doe-eyed response from her ex and also a little squeak as she moved against his damaged pride.

And then she slapped him in time with the beat as she burst into the chorus.

Jesse: "When you see my face hope it gives you hell,

"Hope it gives you hell. When you walk my way,

"Hope it gives you hell, hope it gives you hell,

"When you find a man that's worth a damn and treats you well,

"Then he's a fool you're just as well,

"Hope it gives you hell…"

With one more slap – a bit more pop behind it than the others previous – she bounced herself off Wally's lap with a decidedly sensual flourish, and resumed her power anthem.

As the song progressed to its bridge it was almost impossible to liken the image of the all-business Jennies from their initial encounter to the ones laughing and dancing around Mama's office. Though it was slightly disturbing to witness the ease with which the girls were able to jump between happy-go-crazy and evil-without-borders for the speedsters (even if Jesse was currently enjoying their company), the Star City natives weren't exactly unfamiliar with the concept.

Hell, at one point Oliver had done the exact same thing.

"This is like some kind of epic sing-off," Roy commented when Thea spun by with a smile. "Only…the dark undertone that is the Jennies makes things a little more morbid than I'd prefer. Still…" he looked over at Wally to find the younger hero sporting a confused expression, as if torn between being pissed off and turned on. "I guess it could be worse."

Jesse: "Now you'll never see what you've done to me,

"You can take back your memories, they're no good to me,

"And here's all your lies, you can't look me in the eyes,

"With the sad, sad look that you wear so well…"

All of a sudden the music stopped and only the kick of the bass drum and hit of the snare remained. The Jennies, Jesse and Thea formed a semi-circle around Wally – his face once again adopting a look of fright – stomping in time with the beat and slowly closing ranks.

Roy gave a thoughtful hum, now speaking very much to himself. "This is how the good kind of pornos start. Do I find it odd that I am still thinking about porn at a time like this? Yes. Do I find it weird that I've associated my friends, and wife, with porn twice in the last half hour? Very much so." He glanced at Mama who, for the first time since they'd been introduced, was giving him a disbelieving look. "What?"

The crime boss blinked at him, mouth open slightly, before turning back to the spectacle in front of her.

Shrugging, Roy finished his monologue.

"Do I wish I was a speedster with powers intact so that I could go back in time and tell myself to stay in bed with Thea and the twins? Fucking yeah I do."

Jesse: "When you see my face, hope it gives you hell,

"Hope it gives you hell. When you walk my way,

"Hope it gives you hell, hope it gives you hell,

"When you find a man that's worth a damn and treats you well,

"Then he's a fool, you're just as well, hope it gives you hell…"

Back came the music in full force and with it the definite crescendo to the end of Jesse's song.

Jesse: "When you see my face,

"Hope it gives you hell, hope it gives you hell,

"When you walk my way,

"Hope it gives you hell, hope it gives you hell,

"When you hear this song,

"And you sing along but you never tell,

"Then you're the fool I'm just as well,

"Hope it gives you hell,

"When you hear this song,

"I hope that it will give you hell,

"You can sing along I hope that it puts you through hell!"

Mama's applause filled the silence left by the fading music. "Brava, darling! Brava! You truly would be a boon to the Jennies. All we'd need to do is –"

The door to Mama's office crashed open, startling everyone, and admitting a frazzled looking Helena. "Mama! He's here and he's pissed. Something about a fight that went to hell with a few punks and Cutter's boy, but he's got a message for us from Cutter. He refuses to talk unless it's with you. Should I beat it out of him?"

"No, dear, we don't want to stir the pot with the Blades," Mama sighed. She stood from her seat and marched to the door, signaling the Jennies to follow her. When Millie moved toward the door, Mama held up a hand. "Not you, sugar. I'd rather not have your daddies' boys flooding my place of business if it gets out your with us now. Not before we're ready to move, that is. Besides," she glanced back at the quartet. "We need someone to keep an eye on our guests."

With that, the crime boss left with her entourage in tow.

There was quiet in the room as the four heroes sent puzzled looks at each other.

"Did…she really just leave us alone?" Thea asked, eyebrows high with surprise. "I don't think that's ever happened in the history of us getting kidnapped and/or taken hostage."

Roy shrugged. "Technically she did leave one guard with us."

As one, the group turned to Millie and found the girl watching them warily, her hands gripping her small pistol tight, knuckles white. After a moment of both parties simply staring each other down, Wally spoke.

"So does that mean that we're finally getting out of here? I'd really like to be somewhere I don't have to be within five feet of my ex."

"Standing right here, jackass!" Jesse growled. "I'm not exactly stoked to be here either."

Thea sighed, exasperated. "Would you two cut it out? I know you're just foaming at the mouth to continue your little fight but right now is not the time nor the place. We've got an opportunity to get the hell out of here and I say we take it!"

Millie raised her gun. "Y-you all ain't going nowhere! If any of you try and leave I'll shoo—"

A muted thump sounded a second before Millie, eyes rolling into the back of her head, fell forward. Wally darted toward his sister's doppelganger and caught her before she could crash to the floor, sending a glare toward Roy who was stood over the collapsed girl with a raised hand.

"Uh…judo chop?"


Oliver/Kara/Ava – Cutter's, The Strip

Kara stared at her bare hand, her gloves discarded to the side, eyes riveted on the small princess cut diamond on her left ring finger. She was aware of the conversation taking place between Oliver and Ava – in the same way a lonely drunk at a bar is aware of the conversation going on at the opposite side of said bar.

Incoherent murmurs.

Cutter had pointed the ring out to her but, with the threats looming over them at the time, Kara put it out of her mind.

Until now.

"He actually proposed…" she breathed, the words softer than a whisper but heavier than any to have escaped her before. "I'm engaged." She could feel her eyes watering and for the life of her couldn't decide if she was happy or sad. After all, the world they were currently in was a conglomeration of everyone's minds with the added bonus of already having an established timeline/plot.

It looked like everyone here had a background and they – Kara, Oliver, Sara and the rest – merely had their subconscious dropped into their counterparts of this world.

Which completely boggled the Kryptonian's mind. Maybe this was just how dealing with an extra dimensional being usually went. At any rate, she opted to stare in awe at the ring for a few more moments before Oliver's annoyed bark roused her from her stupefied daze.

"Kara!" the archer called again, the concern he felt masked cleverly by the twitching of his eye – which was slowly but surely becoming a concern he felt he needed to get checked out – and a look of annoyed resignation. "Have you heard anything Ava just said?"

Kara absently shook her head, not bothering to lift her gaze from her hand.

When he went to speak again he felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to meet Ava's eyes. "Oliver give her a minute. She just found out that this world's Barry proposed to her doppelganger! Something that she's wanted from her Barry for a good while now. I can't imagine that's easy to swallow."

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Oliver had to bite his tongue to stop the almost instinctive need to add, "That's what she said" to the Time Agent's words. He scowled and berated himself mentally.

'Damn that immature vibrating son of a bitch!'

Ava was right of course. It hadn't just been Kara waiting for Barry to propose. Team Arrow had a betting pool going that they had recently agreed to redo since all of their deadlines had passed. He knew that Team Flash – and by extension Gypsy – had one as well though they continually denied it, save Cisco who couldn't lie to save his life.

The amount of back sweat produced when he tried was disconcerting.

To Oliver's knowledge, Sara and the Legends didn't have a pool going nor were they allowed to join any of the existing ones because of the cocky, all-knowing smirks each of them donned whenever the subject came up. All the non-time travelers figured they knew exactly when it happened and how but when pressed, the Legends would clam up. Even Gideon, who had a history of delivering bad news in the cheeriest way possible and blabbing secrets usually resulting in compromising situations for the group that crewed her, was surprisingly mum.

He couldn't be sure about the gang from Earth-38, but Oliver knew that at least Alex and Clark were ready to beat a proposal out of Barry. If he had to guess, the archer would actually lump Eliza and J'onn in that category as well, although the older woman was a lot more subtle when it came to death threats than either of her daughters or Superman. And J'onn…he was probably the sole person who knew more about the situation than the Legends did, at least in a more 'here and now' kind of way. Benefits of being a telepathic Martian, Oliver surmised. Winn was likely the only one unruffled by the whole thing and that was undoubtedly because of his brand new relationship with Caitlin who, more often than not nowadays, could be caught with her eyes glued to her phone or stuck to her ear in conversation with the tech geek.

Sometimes, Oliver really hated the fact that Cisco, Felicity and Winn had collaborated on making interdimensional texts and calls a thing. There had been a couple of instances where it nearly came back to bite one of the teams in the ass.

Of course, it had also saved the teams more times than he cared to admit, so maybe the point was moot.

At any rate, he felt his sensitive side involuntarily come to the surface. "Kara, hey, look at me." When she didn't respond he mirrored Ava's earlier action and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, lips quirking as she finally tore her eyes away from the ring. "I know this is a lot for you to process right now and if it were any other scenario – preferably where we weren't being held captive in our minds – I would let you stew, but we need to keep our heads in the game, okay?"

"Really?" Ava hissed, though her exasperated question was muffled as she dropped her face into her hands. "Has anyone ever told you that you have the emotional range of a teaspoon?!"

"More than he'd care to admit," Kara mumbled before Oliver could respond, her expression brave but eyes looking vulnerable. She swallowed and gave her fellow blonde a smirk, latching on to the normalcy of poking fun at Oliver. "Though I think that's a generous description. One time when he was trying to comfort Barry, he literally held a hand about an inch away from his head and told him, and I quote, 'It okay. Don't be cry.'"

Ava grinned back at the Kryptonian. "Sara told me his sole expression is Angry. Apparently there was an incident at the hospital where he told Quentin to keep his tears in his eyes where they belong."

Kara laughed and Oliver figured the ribbing was worth it.

"Haha let's all make fun of the guy who was permanently scarred – literally and figuratively – by his five year ordeal through hell and back," Oliver groused, though he gave Kara a wink to waylay any guilt the kind-hearted alien might accrue as she was prone to do. "Makes perfect sense."

Kara shrugged. "It's not our fault that Nyssa's the only one who speaks 'Oliver' fluently. The rest of us have to guess at what exactly is going through your mind." She paused tapping her chin with a finger, thoughtful expression on her face. "Although, Barry seems to have an uncanny knack for puzzling you out as well, so I guess that's two people."

Ava giggled.

"Okay, okay, can we get back to talking about what we're going to do regarding our movie musical dilemma?" Oliver begged pouring himself a shot of whiskey and downing it in one go before offering it to both women.

"Oh hell yes," Ava said with glee serving up her own shot glassful and knocking it back. "Damn I needed that!"

Kara raised an eyebrow at Oliver when offered the bottle and pointed down to her flat belly. She rolled her eyes at his 'oops' and looked back at Ava. "Yeah. Ollie and I caught the tail end of…whatever that was between you and our dear Miss Lance. Care to enlighten us?"

"I'm gonna need another shot if we're doing more feelings," Oliver mumbled grabbing at the whiskey.

Ava heaved a sigh while fiddling with her empty shot glass, quiet as she tried to figure out a way to start. "Sara and I woke up pretty much at the same time at the other end of The Strip. The setting and wardrobe change threw us for a moment but, honestly, we've both been through weirder situations than this so we decided to enjoy the place before everything went ass up as per usual."

"What the hell do you guys get up to?" Oliver asked from over the rim of his glass.

"Potentially screw history up on a regular basis, inadvertently sabotage the future and, on occasion, absolutely fuck the present up," Ava rattled off with a straight face and then snorted. "At least that's what the Legends tend to do. Rip and I usually come in with the cleanup crew and make the locals forget they've just been traumatized and irrevocably violated by a group of the most flamboyant individuals I have ever met."

This time Kara giggled. "Yeah, that's the Legends alright. At once both the universe's greatest hope and biggest threat."

"And people called me dangerous," Star City's resident vigilante leader grumbled.

"Well…"

"Shut up, Kara."

"Anyway," Ava pressed, wanting to get the story out now that she'd started. "I kept catching her stealing glances at people while we were walking The Strip. Flirting silently with anything that caught her eye. Eye-fucking them, as Sara would say." She shook her head, the hurt obvious on her face. "I called her out on it and then we started…singing!"

Oliver and Kara looked at each other.

"The same thing happened to Kara and, to a lesser extent, me," Oliver offered. "According to a note that Music Meister – the guy who brought us here – left for us, in order to get back to our reality we have to jump through a bunch of hoops while wearing all the bells and whistles."

Seeing Kara nodding in concurrence, Ava blew out a breath through pursed lips. "Well shit. I hate to say it but that checks out. I can't imagine any other reason either Sara or myself would break out into song save severe inebriation and we weren't at the casino near long enough for that." She waited a beat and her brow furrowed. "Come to think of it there was this…warmth in my belly…"

"Right before you started, right?" Kara jumped in. At Ava's nod she continued. "That's exactly what I felt when Merlyn threatened me to liven the place up."

On cue, the telltale voice of one of Oliver's greatest nuisances – colored by the same rather stereotypical gangster accent he'd had when they met him – sounded from behind them.

"And you did a damn sight better than that schmuck of a fiancé of yours, I'll give you that much." Cutter Moran stalked over to the trio a grin on his face. "These yahoos are finally getting up and hitting the dance floor, so thank you for that. It doesn't hurt that they're choosing booze over water to wet their whistles either." He gave them all a contemplative look before addressing Kara. "Listen, doll, I tasked Allen with finding my son earlier and so far I haven't heard nothing. I want you to take your boy-toy and girlfriend and go look."

"I'm sorry," Oliver interrupted rising from his seat at the bar. He scowled at smirking face in front of him. "What makes you think we're just going to roll over and dance for you?"

"…Again," Kara added unhelpfully, undermining any sort of threat the archer might have presented.

Oliver's twitch was back.

"Because I'm the boss, kid," Cutter said with an arrogant smirk. "And I got more guys than you. Listen, you do this for me and you'll never have to deal with Cutter again, yeah? Of course, you'll no longer be welcome in the club again but you don't seem like you'd care overly much." He took Oliver's silence as acceptance and turned back to Kara. "Tommy's got a place about ten blocks from here roundabout the line between Dan and Blade/Jennie territory. He and your boy always got on well before our falling out so I figure you know where to go."

Kara blinked. "I…forgot?"

"Oy vey…" Cutter moaned, rubbing his temples to soothe his growing aggravation. "Allen always told me you weren't an airhead but I have my doubts. You go out the door, you take a left and then you walk. You're gonna pass the Wailin' Jennies club a few blocks down and you'll be able to tell where our territory starts and the Dans' ends. They've got a lot of…color. Not to mention the fact that there's a monstrosity of a casino looming over everything. If you reach DDs you've gone too far. It's the apartment building that looks torn between staying open and being condemned. Got it?"

Figuring Oliver and Ava would remember the directions better than she would – she still got lost in STAR Labs for Rao's sake – Kara nodded. "Yup! Sure! Don't even worry about it! Kara and Co. off to do the good work! One estranged son coming right up!"

Cutter's eye twitched.

"…Just go. Now!"

Kara gave an anxious giggle as Ava grabbed her hand and dragged the Kryptonian toward the door, Oliver following behind with a smirk on his face.

"What are you smiling about?" Ava asked once they were out of the club and Kara's nervous laughter died down.

"I just realized how much I needed to see Malcolm Merlyn nearly pop a blood vessel," Oliver responded with a chuckle. "It's good to see even villains aren't immune to the overwhelming force that is Kara's overzealous happiness. What I wouldn't give to see that man's head explode!"

Ever the consummate professional, Ava rolled her eyes jerked her thumb in the direction Cutter had so graciously provided for them. "Shall we find the wayward son?"

Kara froze eyes wide in horror.

"Kara?" Oliver asked, concerned at her abrupt shift in attitude. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"I-I…" the Kryptonian was breathing hard, her eyes going misty and her body starting to shake. She swallowed audibly before she did another complete one-eighty and glared at the street in front of her for a moment before bringing her gaze to Oliver's. "I'd better not miss Supernatural because of this son of a bitch! It's the Scooby-Doo crossover episode!"

Oliver stared.

Ava stared.

Then, they stared at each other.

Then, together, they threw up their hands in exasperation.

"Oh for fuck's sake!"

Kara didn't realize they had walked away from her until thirty seconds after the fact. Upon that discovery, she squeaked and started after them, running despite what felt like knives digging into her feet thanks to her heels.

"Guys! Guys! Wait up! Wait for me! Oliver! Ava! WAIT!"


Cisco, Gypsy, Winn, Alex – DDs, The Strip

"Is that…a casino?" Winn asked giving Alex a perplexed look when the trio stopped in front of one of the loudest looking buildings they had ever seen.

Figuratively and literally.

Whoever designed the den of iniquity hadn't been able to decide on a color scheme as evidenced by the multiple clashing colors splashed all across the walls and large signs declaring the casino's name. There were a couple of incredibly attractive female criers handing out vouchers with flirty looks and suggestive winks causing both Cisco and Winn to blush hotly and Alex to stop and don a thoughtful look.

Gypsy scoffed and rolled her eyes. Not missing a beat she grabbed her boyfriend by the ear and tugged him through the doors right past the criers, Winn and Alex following close behind stifling snickers.

Upon entering the casino they were assaulted by the smell of smoke and alcohol along with the overwhelming sense of crippling debt as hundreds of people milled about including waiters and waitresses toting trays of drinks.

"Ay si!" the Earth-19 breacher moaned in relief, grabbing a couple glasses of what looked like Jack and Coke. She brought one up to her lips and gave another moan of appreciation. "AH! Dios! It's like finding an oasis in the middle of the desert!"

Cisco gave her an incredulous look. "Gyps…you realize there were probably twenty different places along the way you could have gotten a drink, right? I'm pretty sure prohibition never happened here."

"Callate, mi amor," Gypsy hissed, her eyes closed and trying to revel in the feel of the burning sensation at the back of her throat. "You're ruining the moment!"

"Love you too, babe," Cisco deadpanned. A heavy hand landed on his shoulder before he could say anything else and he squeaked, spinning around and coming face to face with a terrifying sight. It was one he had seen only once before and one he never thought would follow him into this crazy conglomeration of psyches.

"So this is the little punk you've been hanging around with, mija."

Josh "Breacher" Reynolds seemed to tower over Cisco despite their near identical height. His trademark grimace gave off nothing but disapproval and, if the techie had to guess, a simmering loathing for the boy in front of him. He was dressed in a charcoal gray jacket and slacks with a black t-shirt underneath, black shoes and had a black fedora on his head.

"Eeep!"

Alex shoved her fist into her mouth in an effort stop her snort of amusement. When that failed she grabbed Winn, who was busy staring in terror at the gruff looking man by the arm and dragged him over to the bar.

"Who the heck was that?!" asked the short haired brunette, sitting down at the bar but never looking away from Cisco's deer in the headlights look or the broader man's death stare. "Jesus he looks like he's going to eat Cisco alive!"

Laughing quietly, Alex flagged the bartender down. "If I had to guess that would be Gypsy's dad. I had the same look on my face when I met Maggie's dad."

Winn raised his eyebrows in fascination.

Meanwhile, Gypsy was looking at her father in shock. "Papi? What are you doing here? How did you get here?"

Breacher finally turned to his daughter though his expression was puzzled. "What are you talking about, Cynthia? This is where I work…as head of security for the Foss family. You know that, Chiquita." He brought his gaze back to Cisco who was staring at him in wide-eyed horror. "I remember you mentioned you were seeing someone but I never thought I was going to meet him. You kept avoiding bringing him around but now…now I can talk to him face to face." He squeezed Cisco's shoulder tightly and dragged him toward an empty table, leaving a sputtering Gypsy in his wake.

"Eeep!"

"Stop squeaking!" Breacher barked, shoving Cisco into a chair and taking a seat opposite him, crossing his arms with a thunderous look on his face. He didn't say anything for a long moment, simply glared Cisco down with what the younger vibe meta was sure was the mortal equivalent of heat vision.

He felt like he was seconds away from spontaneously combusting.

Clearing his throat, Cisco decided to bite the bullet and try and make conversation. "Sooo I –"

"Shut up."

"No, yeah, totally! Let's just sit here in awkward silence and not talk about anything! I love staring contests! And looking into your angry, angry eyes I'm just now realizing that you are really good at staring contests! Have you even blinked since you walked into the casino? I don't think you've blinked since you've walked into the casino! Which I find incredibly impressive so, you know, kudos! But I really think –"

"Do you ever shut up?"

Cisco reacted instinctively to Breacher's annoyed growl, squeezing his eyes shut and bracing for some kind of physical confrontation. When it didn't come, he cautiously opened one and saw the man staring at him with a look of exasperation.

Gypsy's father let out a sigh and looked up, seeking an answer to just what his daughter was thinking by picking the scrawny man before him as her boyfriend. Upon receiving none he settled his gaze on Cisco once again.

"I'm going to be blunt with you, boy. I don't like you. It's not because I know you or you've done anything to wrong me. It's because I know what you're after – I was a punk just like you once," Breacher explained, watching the other man's face morph into an expression of dawning realization. "Just listen, you little shit."

A sudden burst of electric guitar, fiddle and drums rent the air causing Cisco to jump in his seat and slam his thighs into the tabletop, eliciting yet another manly squeal from him.

"Eeep!"

Breacher: "The Declaration of Independence, think I could tell you that first sentence,

"But then I'm lost, I can't begin to count the theories,

"I've had pounded in my head that I forgot,

"I don't remember all that Spanish or the Gettysburg address,

"But there is one speech from high school I'll never forget…"

Admittedly, this hadn't been what Cisco expected at all. A little nostalgic reflecting on Breacher's life as a kid was something he could handle if it meant getting away with his life from the overprotective man. Gypsy had warned him before their first meeting that her father could be very intense when he wanted to get his point across. What she had failed to mention, however, was that the man's intensity was not limited to just the one instance.

It was ingrained into every aspect of his life.

Glancing away warily, he caught sight of his girlfriend looking absolutely livid and gulped. Whether or not she was angry with him, Cisco knew that her wrath could be just as formidable – and volatile – as her father's.

Collateral damage was the Reynolds family motto.

To Cisco's horror, the older man pulled out a shiny looking gun from within his jacket and placed it flat upon the table. A moment later a handkerchief joined it and the dream world lookalike proceeded to polish his weapon with nonchalant ease.

Breacher: "Come on in, boy, sit on down and tell me about yourself,

"So you like my daughter do you now? Yeah we think she's something else,

"She's her daddy's girl, her mama's world, she deserves respect that what she'll get, ain't it son?

"Hey, y'all run along and have some fun! I'll see you when you get back,

"Bet I'll be up all night still cleanin' this gun…"

There it was! There was the threat that he had been waiting for since the moment he'd seen Josh Reynolds' face inches from his own.

Cisco grimaced.

Calling Breacher by an actual human name just didn't work for some reason. Trying to sugarcoat the fact that the guy could – and most likely would – kill him if Gypsy ever expressed so much as passing displeasure at his behavior sure didn't help.

His gaze followed Breacher's motions as he inspected the barrel of the gun for a moment before running the handkerchief lovingly along the already spotless metal. The reverential look on Breacher's was making Cisco uncomfortable.

Swallowing thickly, the younger meta tried to push himself even further back into his chair than he already was.

He failed.

Breacher: "Well now that I'm a father I'm scared to death one day my daughter is gonna find,

"That teenage boy I used to be that seems to have just one thing on his mind,

"She's growing up so fast it won't be long before I'll have to put the fear of God,

"Into some kid at the door…"

When the gun barrel had its sights directed at him, Cisco threw his hands up in fear, eyes wide as he realized that this was where he was going to die. In the middle of a crowded casino being serenaded – or sung his death aria in a weird way – by his girlfriend's arguably psychotic father. The worst part about it all was that none of it was really real!

Except the death thing. That was real.

"Eeep!"

He heard someone smacking a hand to their face and imagined it was Gypsy face palming. His assumption proved correct a moment later when she voiced her exasperation.

"Why are you squeaking like un pinche pájaro all of a sudden?" A sigh. "Sometimes I wonder why the hell I love you so much, babe."

Well at least he'd die knowing Gypsy still loved him.

Breacher: "Come on in, boy, sit on down and tell me about yourself,

"So, you like my daughter do you now? Yeah, we think she's something else,

"She's her daddy's girl, her mama's world, she deserves respect that's what she'll get, ain't it son?

"Hey, y'all run along and have some fun! I'll see you when you get back,

"Bet I'll be up all night still cleanin' this gun…"

Upon finishing the chorus for the second time Breacher got up, gun in hand, and stalked around Cisco, an unnerving smile cracking his weathered face. The feeling of his impending doom grew with each step and Cisco shrunk into himself when he felt both of Breacher's hands on his shoulders and the cool metal of the gun brushing his cheek.

Meanwhile at the bar, Winn was glancing nervously between Cisco and Alex.

"Uhh…should we help him?" he asked his fellow agent while tapping at the rim of his glass rapidly. "I'm not one hundred percent confident that Cisco's gonna make it out of this intact."

Alex grinned, her demeanor the exact opposite of the DEO tech's. She swiftly downed her glass and laughed mischievously. "Oh, calm down, Winn, it's fine! He's not actually going to kill Cisco he's just giving him the 'hurt my daughter and I'll kill you' speech. It's a rite of passage that fathers use to ward off any unsavory suitors after their daughters for a quick bang. You should have seen the stare down my dad gave to my date to the Spring Formal freshmen year!"

"So this is normal?"

"Well…" Alex dragged out with a tilt of her head, pursing her lips to the left and then to the right. "More or less. You'll probably experience something similar once you and Caitlin decide to really start moving things along. Except it'll be a bunch of superheroes. A speedster with a massive protective streak; a SCPD detective who's practically adopted her and has the entirety of the police force at his beck and call; a vibe meta who could probably send you into space and, coupled with a super genius with multiple doctorates, could absolutely figure out a way to evaporate you or something…"

"Okay, I get it, you can stop now," Winn muttered, now feeling a healthy paranoia starting to grow.

Ignoring him completely, Alex continued. "A well-established journalist who would be more than happy to find all your dirt and expose it on our Earth; a formerly reformed and since returned to her roots hacktivist who helps bring down big wigs in one of the most corrupt cities I've ever seen…"

Breacher: "Now it's all for show ain't nobody gonna get hurt,

"It's just a daddy thing and, hey, believe me, man it works…"

Cisco didn't feel at all reassured at the bridge. Breacher squeezed his shoulders – hard – and all the younger meta could do was whine and try not to show the pain on his face. The gun moved away from his face as his girlfriend's father moved back to his seat, picked up his handkerchief and began polishing again, a satisfied look on his face.

Back at the bar…

"…and then there's the doctor who was literally a part of the guy who used to be her fiancé and would do practically anything to make sure she stays happy in memory of said deceased fiancé…"

Winn began banging his head on the bar top.

"…a debatably unstable billionaire archer/mayor who recently reestablished his connection to the Bratva, was forced to work for ARGUS and excelled at it, and bested the former leader of the League of Assassins in one-on-one combat; the aforementioned archer's wife who was the most recent leader of the League of Assassins and decapitated one of her father's former Horseman because the man pissed her off…"

The glasses on the bar rattled as Winn swung harder.

Breacher: "Come on in, boy, sit on down and tell me about yourself,

"So you like my daughter do you now? Yeah we think she's something else,

"She's her daddy's girl, her mama's world, she deserves respect that's what she'll get, ain't it son?

"Hey, y'all run along and have some fun! I'll see you when you get back,

"Bet I'll be up all night still cleanin' this gun."

With the conclusion of the song, Breacher put his gun back in jacket and stood up, looming over the distraught Cisco.

"Do we understand each other, boy?" he growled, eyes narrowed and gaze sharp.

"Y-Yes sir! Sir y-yes sir! Loud and clear! Crystal!" Cisco babbled nervously saluting the man instinctively though he had no idea why.

Breacher nodded. "Good. Remember, I might not always be around but I'm always watching! And if you hurt my daughter I will find you and I will kill you. And you'll never see me coming! When you least expect me, that's when you can expect me!"

Cisco blinked, his fear evaporating momentarily at the odd statement. "But…I…uh, I'm sorry. Uh, when I least expect what?"

"Expect me when you least expect me!"

"But that doesn't even make sense, though. Uh…"

"When the time comes, it'll make perfect sense!" Breacher declared before turning to his daughter and giving her a kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you later, mijita. I don't know exactly what you see in this one but if he makes you happy –"

Gypsy smirked. "He does. Somehow he inexplicably does."

Her father's doppelganger smiled. "Then that's good enough for me! Bueno! I've got to get back to work before Big and Little get on my case about slacking off. I swear those two can be real pains in the ass when they want to be."

With that he was gone.

Gypsy smiled after her father-not-father before walking over to her boyfriend. "So, you made it through the Josh Reynolds hazing ritual. How do you feel?"

Cisco glared at her. "Where the hell were you, babe?! The man had a frakkin gun to my head through an entire verse of that song and you couldn't be bothered to maybe, I don't know, help me?! I could have died!"

"Oh, stop being such a baby, mi amor. You were never in any danger." She paused remembering once again that the man who had just been in the room with them was not actually her father and therefore his actions were suspect. "…I think."

They walked over to Winn and Alex, the former still banging his head – which was now an angry shade of red – against the bar top while the latter seemed to be listing something.

"…then there's the youngest Lance who was a former assassin in the League of Assassins and now leads a team of time travelers with the potential to wipe you out of existence without you even being aware of it just by changing a few things in the timeline; and then there's Kara who, while she does love you, would hurl you into space if Caitlin asked because she absolutely hates people hurting her loved ones. Including her loved ones. Did I miss anyone?" Alex asked happily completely aware of the mental torment she had just unleashed on one of her closest friends.

Winn whimpered and buried his face in his hands. "No…no I think you got them all."

"You know what?" Cisco asked, looking the two Earth-38 inhabitants. "I don't want to know."

Gypsy nodded her agreement. "Probably for the best."

"Don't worry about it too much, Winn," Alex said while giving his shoulder a reassuring squeeze and then standing up to stretch. "As long as you don't plan on screwing everything up by doing something stupid, you should be golden. Just mind your manners and – oomph!" Normally elegant and grace personified, the redhead nearly crashed to the floor after running headlong into a dapperly dressed Joe West, his ensemble a solid black suit with a black button up and fedora, offset by the red tie decorated with white polka dots and held in place by a gold tie clip, the gold pocket square complimenting it nicely.

Joe's presence, while unexpected, wasn't what threw Alex into stunned silence. It was the figure beside him that rendered her speechless.

Brown hair fell to her shoulders, curling slightly toward the bottom. A sleek black dress that hugged her body hid absolutely nothing of the lithe figure that hid beneath and the dressy black gloves running up to mid forearm added to the appeal. Black high heeled shoes adorned her feet and bled into a few teasing inches of caramel colored skin. Thrown over her shoulders to complete the look was a brown mink stole, looking simultaneously out of place and like the perfect complement to the already amazing ensemble.

Maggie Sawyer, no matter what reality it seemed, knew how to cut an imposing figure.

Alex choked as she took in one other detail that she had missed with the shock of seeing her ex-fiance for the first time in what felt like years.

In her arms, she held a wriggling child.

The same child from the park.

Evangeline.

Winn, just as stunned by Maggie's appearance as Alex, was the first one to manage to get words out. Though whether or not they were appropriate was another story altogether.

"Oh shit."


Barry, Nyssa, Caitlin – Tommy's Place, The Strip

"We're sure this is the place?" Barry asked his two companions as they stared up at the apartment building in front of them.

"Yup."

"Yes."

Barry glanced down at the slip of paper Ralph had given them before they'd made it two steps from the casino. After reaffirming the address, he returned his gaze the aesthetically displeasing building with amazing architectural integrity. The whole place looked like it was wilting but somehow managed to stay upright and not collapse on itself.

"I…guess?" he caved with a helpless shrug. Part of him wondered whose mind oversaw the creation of this particular piece of real estate while the rest of him screamed it was probably better not knowing. "At any rate, it says his apartment number is 221B. Shall we head in?"

"GUYS!"

The shout from their right drew the trio's attention and, upon turning to investigate, they were greeted by a grinning Sara Lance who was on the arm of someone who was decidedly not Ava.

Nyssa solved the mystery for the other two. She had only seen pictures and heard stories from Oliver about his deceased best friend who tragically met his end during Malcolm's attempted purge of the Glades.

Recent new had caused her to become quite interested in her husband's long passed friends and family.

"Thomas Merlyn?"

Barry and Caitlin gasped in tandem though Sara shaking her head and holding up a hand quelled any questions. Though they hadn't been as familiar with Team Arrow then as they were now, both speedster and ice metas knew the name. Seeing the handsome and sharply dressed man in the flesh, they understood why Oliver and Tommy were such prodigious and successful playboys.

"Think of Winn, Caitlin," Barry whispered earning a harsh glare from the brunette doctor that definitely would have been flashing bright blue/white were they in the real world. The speedster didn't even flinch as he continued. "And I'll think of Kara because I am not afraid to admit that that's a damn fine man!"

Nyssa and Caitlin both snorted while Sara raised an eyebrow, smirk on her lips.

Tommy stared at his fellow male and awkwardly scratched the back of his head with his free hand. "Uh…thanks?"

"Not a problem," Barry replied with a roughish grin and wink that Sara could have sworn he'd stolen from Constantine, though she noted the teasing glint in his eyes.

Figuring she should cut anymore confusion regarding the man next to her in the bud, Sara introduced him properly to the others. "Nyssa, Caitlin, Barry…this is Tommy Moran. We were actually headed upstairs to take a load off after all the…excitement of the night so far."

Nyssa narrowed her eyes, taking Sara's figure in again. She noted the slightly marred makeup around her eyes – which were red – and the slight slump to her shoulders, casting a defeated air over the normally confident woman. Torn between concern and the knowledge that women like Sara and herself didn't like their vulnerable moments – few and far between as they were – pointed out, Nyssa bit her tongue and decided to go with the safe approach.

"It is good to see you, Sara. You are the first of our group we have encountered since we arrived." There, provide just enough information for those in the know to know what was going on and those who weren't to assume something plausible and not ask questions.

"I know we all got whammied by that other-dimensional douche bag before he sent into this alternate reality but damn, Sara! You look like shit!"

In the silence that followed Barry's words, Nyssa reflected.

There were sometimes, she had once confided in Oliver, that she absolutely could not fathom the intelligence and ingenuity of Barry Allen. A self-made genius when it came to forensic science with powers of deduction that rivaled even that of the R.O.U.S. in Gotham made him an invaluable ally even before his coma and the manifestation of his powers.

He was one of the best things to happen to Oliver in his life. Barry's presence and assistance on several of their more problematic cases helped balance out much of the doom and gloom attitude usually adopted by her husband, much more so than the rest of Team Arrow. Having an outsider's perspective – and a positive attitude that was only eclipsed by Kara – and positivity allowed a certain amount of levity to return to the once dreary confines of the Arrow Cave. A soothing balm in an otherwise harsh and unforgiving world.

Yes, sometimes, Barry Allen was precisely what the situation called for.

This was not one of those times.

Caitlin, ever the stalwart enforcer of good behavior and proper etiquette when it came to the males with whom she associated on a regular basis – a daunting endeavor if there ever was one considering the group expanded at an alarming rate – reared back and whacked the speedster on the back of the head.

"OW!"

"Apologize."

"But I –"

"Don't make me bring Kara into this, Barry. So help me, if you don't tell Sara you're sorry for being a tactless idiot as soon as we find your girlfriend I am going to rat you out faster than you've ever run in your life. Do you understand?" In that moment, hands on her hips and a stormy expression on her face, Caitlin was every bit the intimidating maelstrom Killer Frost could be.

"Y-Yes Mom – ma'am! Yes ma'am!" Barry squeaked, scrambling away at his Freudian slip to take shelter behind Nyssa who did her best to hide her amusement. Tentatively peeking out from over her shoulder, Barry shot the blonde ex-assassin a meek look. "I'm sorry for saying you look like shit, Sara."

Caitlin facepalmed. "Oh, Barry."

"I was just concerned. You seem…sad," he continued, trying to head off another physical altercation at his expense.

Sara gave him a weary smile, whatever hostility that had flared moments before vanishing at his words. She waved off his concerns. "Thanks, Barry, I appreciate the concern. It's…nothing I can't handle, okay?"

None of the trio, or Tommy judging by the way his eyebrows shot up, believed her but then, Sara Lance was never one to share anything but flirtatious looks and comments designed to deflect. One of the many things she'd picked up somewhere along the way after that fateful day on the Gambit.

Deciding discretion was the better part of valor, Nyssa spoke up. "Thomas your father sent us to deliver a message." She saw the shift in his stance, tension settling in his shoulders and eyes watching her warily. "And I only just now realize how that sounded. Worry not, he simply wished to inform you to stay away from the…Dappers, I believe it was? He does not want you near…cake-eaters?"

"Yeah, that sounds like my pops alright," Tommy confirmed with a sigh running a hand over his face. "Son of a bitch always has liked keeping tabs on me even when he all but forbids me from the club and Blades territory. I suppose it doesn't help any that he's right."

Caitlin spoke up, a curious look on her face. "What do you mean?"

Tommy shrugged, taking his arm back from Sara and tucking his hands into his pockets, a wistful look darkening his features. "There was this dame I took a shine to while I was still part of my dad's outfit; a real looker and spitfire. She completely caught me off guard. The problem was our parents: hers control the Dapper Dans, the biggest gang around, and most of The Strip while mine is head of the Blades. They're smaller but my father went out of his way to find some really dangerous allies, not to mention he's recently taken up with the Jennies."

At their puzzled looks, he elaborated. "They're the third gang fighting for The Strip and overseen by Mama Liza," Barry squinted in thought, the name tickling something in the back of his mind, but brushed it off in favor of tuning back into the conversation. "and made up of women only. Don't let that fool you though – them dames are just as dangerous as any of my dad's guys and twice as vicious."

"Well I wouldn't go that far, Tommy Boy."

Whipping around, the group found themselves staring down a face they only saw in their nightmares, flashes of false fronts and manipulations going through their minds.

"Thawne," Tommy nodded with a neutral voice. "To what do we owe the pleasure?"

Eobard Thawne, the original Team Flash big bad, gave them an oily smirk his gaze promising nothing but trouble. Flanking him were a couple dozen assorted thugs all dressed in white long-sleeved button ups with their sleeves rolled up to their elbows accompanied by black slacks, shoes and ties.

"The jig is up, Tommy. Dear old daddy put the hit out on you after he figured out you were working for the Dans. Tsk, tsk, tsk," he taunted, the joy he was feeling evidenced by his shark-like smile. "I have to admit, I never thought you'd have the moxie to pull something like that! And all of this over a broad? But not just any broad, ain't that right, boys?"

His goons laughed darkly behind him, snickers and smirks being exchanged.

"No. You had to go after the one dame that would send everything to hell, didn't you? Honestly, Tommy, I'm surprised your daddy waited so long to have you dealt with, especially after your little rendezvous nearly caused him his best hit man. Word around the club is Wilson really wanted to find you himself. Eye for an eye and all that."

Tommy stiffened at that declaration, paling rapidly.

Nyssa's eyes widened slightly and she locked gazes with an equally surprised Sara before both women schooled their features. It wouldn't do to alarm anyone until they met back up with Oliver.

"What really vexes me, though, is that despite everything your daddy's done for you in your life, despite the Blades considering you family," Eobard said as he stalked closer and closer to Tommy with each word, an angry scowl on his face. "Despite everything you stood to inherit, you're flour-flusher ass is actually working for those fucking cake-eaters!" Now Thawne was incensed, his eyes blazing with outright hatred and tinged red.

A silence fell over the two groups and it seemed all traffic – pedestrian or vehicle – had ceased in anticipation of the fight to come.

Barry, always the pacifist, held out his hands in a placating manner. "Come on, guys! Let's just take a deep breath and calm down, okay? I'm sure we can talk this out!"

As loathe as he was to admit it, Barry felt slightly disappointed when his pleas didn't even garner a momentary glance in his direction. Instead, Thawne's heated gaze only got more focused on Tommy before his intense expression abruptly gave way to a manic smile, his teeth bared and eyes eerily alight.

Barry shuddered.

"Well, it's been fun chatting with you and your little friends, Tommy Boy, but I have a hit to carry out. Consider this an act of mercy on your daddy's part because he could have sent out someone a lot worse than me to put you down." Thawne gestured toward his entourage. "Boys? Get him."

Chaos erupted.

An onslaught of opponents closed around the quintet, eager to carry out their leader's command. Several of the thugs flashed switchblades out of pockets while others came at them unarmed with fists raised and ready to deal whatever damage they could. They well outnumbered the prey and, had it been just another group or any regular old hit, that would have automatically given the gangbangers an easy win. But it wasn't just some random group or some run-of-the-mill, caught with their pants down, unaware target.

It was the Avengers!

"Barry?" Sara asked, heaving an exasperated sigh. "You realize you're narrating out loud again?"

"I am?"

"Yes."

"…I apologize."

"You're forgiven. Just focus on the fight, please?"

"Right!"

Instinctively, the group had formed a small circle the moment they knew Thawne intended to sick his goons on them. Although they were unsure how well-versed Tommy was when it came to a fight, they were willing to give him the benefit of the doubt based on the kind of life he'd most likely grown up in.

Cutter Moran could not have been a good father.

Nyssa blocked the first strike from her opponent easily, a wide sweep with her arm enough to send the punch wide. With the opening provided she struck like a cobra, crushing the man's windpipe with the heel of her hand and then sending him flying with push kick to his chest. Her situational awareness gave her a heads up to a strike from her left which she dodged, a glint of steel missing her cheek by inches. She grabbed her assailant's arm, stepped in front of him and used her hip to flip him over, slamming the man down on the asphalt where he remained motionless.

"It seems we are in luck," Nyssa commented as she weaved away from yet another swipe. "Our attackers have no sense for battle. They may have the numbers but, as Barry so eloquently put it, we are not just a random group of nobodies."

Ducking a stray knife meant for Sara – who herself had avoided it – Barry huffed. "I'm sorry! Sometimes when I get excited I just can't control it!"

"Ha!" Sara barked, a wicked smirk on her lips. "Yeah, Kara's complained about that before!"

Barry froze. "Really? OW!" Holding his bleeding nose he pulled his fist back and cleanly knocked out the offender only to be met with Sara's laughter. "Dammit Sara! Why'd you have to distract me?!"

"Oh, come on, Barry," Caitlin chimed in only just stepping out of the path of an incoming fist. She slammed her foot right into her opponent's crotch and gave a satisfied smirk as she watched him fall. "What's the first rule of Oliver and Nyssa's training?"

Sara whipped a backfist into a nose, adrenaline pumping through her veins. "Yeah, tell us, Barry!"

"…dodge." The speedster pouted grumpily, wiping at the blood running over his lips.

"Exactly!" Nyssa barked as she sent another goon to the floor with a vicious headbutt, hardly even scuffing her appearance. "Now stop talking about the advice we have given you and put it into action, you easily distracted, ridiculously lucky, walking contradiction!"

Barry pouted. "Why do you have to make it personal?"

Nevertheless, he resumed fighting with gusto and just a smidge more awareness when it came to his surroundings.

Watching the fight from a few feet away, Thawne scowled. This wasn't looking good for his boys at all. As if to emphasize his realization, yet another nameless grunt crashed to the ground at his feet courtesy of the blonde with a manic smile on her face. And really, if he had to blame anyone for the dwindling of his forces, it would be the dame in red and said blonde. The other three were nothing special though they were putting down their fair share.

"Still, better to be prepared," Thawne whispered to himself. Bringing his thumb and middle finger to his lips, he released a sharp whistle that startled the defenders and got an immediate surge of confidence from his waning men.

From the shadows of the alleys both in front and behind, dozens more similarly garbed thugs poured onto the street, bolstering their numbers and enveloping Nyssa, Sara, Barry, Caitlin and Tommy.

"Shit!" Caitlin swore, drawing raised eyebrows from three of her four companions. "What? I'm not allowed to lament the fact that we're probably going to die in this fucked up reality at the hands of a bunch of Guys and Dolls wannabees?" She punched another baddie in the nose, a satisfying crunch accompanying the hit.

Barry brightened. "Aww! You were paying attention during Movie Musical Marathon Night!" He dodged a kick, ducked an incoming punch, dipped out of the way as Sara tossed another body passed his head, dived into the stomach of a leaping gangster and slamming him into the asphalt, and dodge a retaliating kick by inches. "I knew you loved musicals!"

"No! I love Kara and I love you!" the doctor emphasized vehemently while stomping her heel into the foot of an encroaching enemy and then kneeing him in the groin. "I put up with musicals because of that."

Readying a retort, Barry went to speak when he saw a blade flashing toward Nyssa's unprotected back. Unfortunately, sometime during the fight, Barry had become boxed in by Sara, Caitlin and Tommy and couldn't make a move toward the former Demon's Head, who was busily working to keep her guard up against two opponents at the same time.

"Nyssa! Behind you!" he shouted, straining to get around his allies and the seemingly endless onslaught of minions. "Look out!"

It felt like things were moving in slow motion as he watched one of his closest friends turn toward the oncoming blade, and for the first time in a long time, Barry remembered what it felt like to be helpless. Nyssa wasn't going to be able to guard in time. There wasn't enough distance and both her hands were occupied blocking her other assailants. The gleaming silver switchblade was going directly for her chest.

And then Oliver was there, delivering a thunderous Superman punch the side of the enemy's face, the blade falling from his hand as he collapsed in a boneless heap.

Rolling with his momentum, Oliver launched himself into another opponent, landing an impressive shoulder tackle that knocked the wind out of the other guy. When they hit the floor, Oliver straddled the man and, with two swift punches, knocked him out.

He shot his wife a cocky grin. "Did you miss me?"

"Always, Beloved," Nyssa replied with a predatory smile of her own. "Though I am disappointed it took you so long to find me."

"Well you did tell me to stop planting trackers on you after the incident at the OBGYN."

"Because that incident sparked what came at dinner that night, Oliver."

"So Roy got a few new scars…"

"The man had night terrors for weeks after that!"

"Yes. Yes he did."

"Oliver."

"I love you!"

Even while the couple conversed they moved in tandem, back to back and carving through henchmen left and right. It really was a sight to behold as The-Man-Who-Could-Have-Been-Ra's and She-Who-Was-Ra's almost singlehandedly cleared the area around them.

Of course, they were not the only dynamic duo doing a deadly dance.

Sara and Ava, despite their recent blow up, mirrored the older couple's actions, the combat situation acting as a temporary balm over the hurt feelings and biting words. For the moment, the only thing that mattered was making sure they all made it out of their current predicament. They both knew the battlefield was no place for that conversation.

"I'm still mad at you," Ava assured Sara bitingly, bringing up her arms to stop an errant swing of a switchblade.

Inappropriate timing had never stopped any of the Legends in the past, present or future and it seemed to have bled over into the Time Bureau's most capable agent.

"Well I'm still mad at you!" Sara sniped back, utilizing Ava's block to take out the thug in front of her.

It really took a certain kind of someone to be a Legend and not strangle your crewmates.

"Barry!"

"Kara!"

The last couple on the battlefield also happened to be the most exuberant upon seeing each other again. Outwardly, at least.

Oliver and Nyssa's reunion was practically erotic by the normally withdrawn couple's standards.

It took the two halves of SuperFlash a little longer to get to their significant others than either of the two other couples simply because, while they could fight hand-to-hand, they were not completely used to doing so without their powers humming reassuringly in the backs of their minds. That being said, the managed to navigate toward each other with wide, happy grins on their faces.

Punching and kicking the whole way there.

Finally, they were together again. The dwindling numbers of their enemies gave them a moment of reprieve where they simply stared into each other's eyes.

"I wanna kiss you right now," Kara breathed with sparkling eyes, moving into her boyfriend's arms.

"I wanna let you kiss me right now," Barry answered back as he pulled her close, their noses brushing.

Kara gave him a mischievous grin. "I'm gonna do it."

"So do it."

She did it.

In the moment that their lips met, it was as if all the chaos surrounding them faded away and the uncertainty of being in this strange world eased to a manageable ache. It didn't matter that they were in the midst of a serious fight. It didn't matter that as soon as they pulled away, Oliver and Nyssa – and probably Caitlin, Sara and Ava as well – were going to give them an earful about battlefield etiquette.

For now, the only thing that existed in their world was each other.

Separating, Kara gazed at Barry through half-lidded eyes, smirking fondly at his dazed expression. "I love you."

"I love –"

"Are you two seriously professing your already well-established love in the middle of this?!" Oliver barked from Nyssa's side where he had a gangster in a chokehold while fending off another with the former's switchblade, effectively utilizing the man as a meat shield.

"Yes."

Oliver could feel his twitch slowly but surely making its way down into his arm and screamed in frustration. "GAHH!" He chunked his hostage into the man in front of him, succeeding in taking both out in addition to two others directly behind them.

Eobard Thawne, no matter what face he was wearing, was a shrewd and calculating man. Therefore, he knew, upon the arrival of the new trio, it was time to retreat and report back. Failing wasn't going to earn him any good will but at least he'd managed to identify some of Tommy's allies.

That didn't mean, however, he was going to leave without giving them something to remember him by.

"Well this has been fun," he drawled, voice carrying over the cacophony of moans and groans of his beaten cronies. He sent a vicious kick into the head of one of the downed men. "I have to say I am impressed that you all managed to put up such a good fight."

Barry couldn't help himself. "I'd say we put up more than just a good fight – we kicked your ass, Thawne."

Eobard sneered in response. "It would seem so. I guess that means it's time for me to get gone."

Kara snorted. "As if. Do you really think we're going to just let you walk away after trying to kill us?" She unlatched herself from Barry's side and – ignoring his alarmed 'Kara!' – stomped over up into the face of her boyfriend's first big bad, no fear on her face. "In fact, I'm going to take the liberty and knock you out right here, right now!"

She swung.

Thawne had been waiting for the attack. In an instant he had grabbed her arm and pulled it violently behind her back just on the cusp of breaking it. The feel of cool metal against her temple elicited six gasps from the watching group.

Pain wasn't completely foreign to Kara. She'd been hurt before both while powered up and not. But there was something about the burning sensation in her shoulder, slowly intensifying the longer she was in Thawne's grasp, that put this instance above all the rest. She drew in a shuddering breath and met Barry's frightened eyes. Eyes that, just moments before, had been alight with joy.

"My, my, how the tables have turned," Thawne taunted with another tug on the Kryptonian's arm, a pained whimper the only response. "You were saying something about knocking me out, doll?"

"Let her go!" Barry snarled, his fists clenched tight as he fought to keep his rage from overtaking him. "Let her go now!"

A grin.

"No, I don't think I will. You see, she's the only thing standing between you and me," he pointed out as if he were lecturing a school room of inattentive children. "If I let her go, well, you'll just take me down, won't you? But, if I keep her with me – keep this gun pointed right at her pretty little face – I'm pretty sure I get out of here, free and clean."

All eyes were on the hostage situation. Thankfully, most of the onlookers were combat veterans who knew not to aggravate the situation. Trying to pull off some kind of daring rescue would only result in Kara getting hurt or worse. Still, that left Caitlin who, while no stranger to these kinds of situations – having been in one herself – was becoming something of a wildcard thanks to the steady fusion of Frost's personality, and Barry.

Barry who was shaking in barely controlled rage and had a wild look in his eyes. If he'd still had his powers, he would have been vibrating so fast a mini lightning storm would've decimated everything in his wake. As it was, it looked like the speedster was getting ready to attack.

"Barry," Oliver hissed, placing a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder. "Easy. She's fine right now so don't do anything stupid, understood? Playing the hero right now – as disadvantaged as you are – is going to result in Kara getting hurt and put the baby at risk. Breathe."

Taking the archer's advice to heart, and mirroring his girlfriend's earlier shaky breath, Barry allowed the tension to fade. Now he stood loose and ready to move, his mind calming bit by bit as he took a few more breaths and his vision clearing from the haze of desperation that'd possessed him moments ago. Catching Kara's eyes again, he saw pain but also a glint of something he would recognize anywhere, having become accustomed to it quite well over the years: determination.

An uneasy feeling settled in his stomach as Thawne spoke.

"Now, little miss sunshine here is going to accompany me back to the club and none of you punks are gonna follow, capiche? If I so much as feel a set of eyes on me I'm gonna blow a hole in her head and give Rorschach a whole new set of inkblots!" He started backing away, the gun never wavering from Kara's temple nor his grip on her arm faltering. His gaze, however, stayed locked on the group in front of him.

Unseen by Thawne, Kara gave her friends a grin and shot a wink at Barry.

"No, no, no, no, no!" Barry breathed, his earlier worry returning in full force and catching Oliver's attention. "She's going to do something stupid, Oliver. Something really stupid!"

"Shit."

Just as Thawne had caught her by surprise initially, Kara's next action completely threw the villain for a loop. With a vicious crash, the blonde threw her head back right into the unsuspecting gangster's face and smiled at the feel of cartilage giving way under the assault. His grip fell slack as the man's hands moved instinctively to his face, shouting angrily.

Kara's smile vanished as stars exploded behind her eyes as pain flared at the back of her head. She staggered a few steps away from a livid Thawne, unaware of the shouts from her friends or the movement surrounding her. Kara fell to her knees and rolled over onto her butt blinking rapidly as she tried to clear her vision and get her bearings.

Barry was moving the moment Kara was out of Thawne's grasp. "KARA!" He wasn't moving fast enough! If his powers were still working he would've been there in the blink of an eye but instead his normal strides seemed to take hours as, with each step slammed into the asphalt, he grew closer and closer. Oliver's shouted orders fell on deaf ears, though Barry heard the movement of his friends around him as they moved to assist.

All he was focused on was Kara.

And then Thawne shook his head, wiped the blood from his face and glared down at Kara, aiming his gun at the still dazed Kryptonian's head, an enraged look contorting his face and his eyes flashing red.

"You got balls, toots, I'll give you that. Too bad about that face though – it's about to get a lot less pretty."

He pulled the trigger.

Several things happened in the moment Thawne's gun fired.

Barry managed to throw himself between the bullet and Kara, shielding his girlfriend and holding onto her tightly, though his momentum sent them into a roll.

Oliver tackled Thawne before he could get another shot off, delivering a savage punch to his chin and knocking him out cold. His better half quickly picked up the fallen weapon and trained it on the downed man in case he woke up.

Sara and Ava, while concerned about their favorite power couple, secured the vicinity, making sure that the rest of the thugs they dealt with earlier were either dead or down for the count. It wouldn't do to get taken by surprise.

Caitlin bolted to Kara and Barry's side, immediately assessing the two and trying to discern any injuries. Her eyes scanned Kara first and, aside from a few minor scrapes the doctor could easily attribute to the tumble Barry's rescue resulted in, she was perfectly fine. Caitlin breathed a sigh of relief and turned her professional gaze to Barry.

And nearly choked at the pool of blood he was laying in.

"Hey Cait," the speedster greeted with a pained smile, one hand gripping his wounded shoulder as he grit his teeth against the pain. "Did I tell you? I've recently been anointed."

"Barry, I swear to God if you make the lame ass joke I think you're going to make right now –" the ice meta began in a pinched tone, a little more of Frost's attitude flaring up, before being interrupted by the wounded party.

"I'm holey! I'm a holey speedster!"

There was a collective groan from the gathered heroes as the poor attempt at humor both annoyed them and eased their worries simultaneously. At least they knew their friend was fine.

Mostly.

Kara pushed herself up, scrambling over to her boyfriend and barely holding in a scream of anguish at the steadily growing amount of blood. "Oh, Rao! Barry! Baby are you okay?! We have to get you to a doctor before you bleed out! Shit! Rao, Barry, please don't die on me! Please, please, please don't die on me!"

"Kara!" Barry had to shout so that his girlfriend could hear him over her panicked ramblings. She stilled and met his gaze as Caitlin gently eased him up so that he was now upright. "I'm fine –"

"Not fine," Caitlin argued halfheartedly, examining the bullet wound on the back of her friend's shoulder.

"I'm okay –"

"Not okay," the ice meta reiterated.

"I'm not dead." Barry eyed Caitlin for a moment, waiting for her inevitable rebuttal. He smirked when none came. It always paid to generalize when it came to injuries. "And, in case you forgot, Caitlin is a doctor."

Caitlin gave Kara an absentminded wave, still evaluating the wound. "Hey."

"Oh, right. Sorry Cait," Kara apologized with a blush and scratching the back of her head in embarrassment. "I'm just a little worried."

"Meh, it happens."

Barry moved his uninjured arm and took Kara's hand. "I'm going to be okay, babe. You know Cait's worked wonders with the team before and…," he paused staring down at Kara's stomach, eyes wide as his own bout of panic began to grow. "K-Kara…you…you're not…y-you're not…"

"Don't freak out, Barry," Oliver's voice came from behind the trio where he was sat on top of Thawne's motionless body watching the doctor evaluate their speedster. "Kara's still expecting, but her mental perception just doesn't show it. We think it's to help maximize our chances of success."

He missed the nervous fidgeting of his wife.

The ball of fear building in his stomach vanished at Oliver's words and Barry let out a sigh of relief. "Well thank God for that." He turned to Kara and was about to say something when a wave of dizziness swept over him and he decided to rest his head on Kara's shoulder instead.

"Barry?" his Kryptonian asked, concern lacing her tone.

"Just a…little dizzy, babe, that's all," he mumbled, eyes fluttering shut and slumping into Kara.

"He's lost a lot of blood," Caitlin said calling Oliver and Nyssa over to help her pick the now unconscious speedster up. "He needs blood and I need somewhere I can get the bullet out and stich him up."

Sara turned to the only native of their shared reality. "You think you could help us with that, Tommy? Tommy?"

Tommy simply stood there for a moment, stunned at everything that had transpired in front of him in a matter of moments. He'd grown up around violence – it was a staple of his life – and he knew how to fight. But what he'd seen these people do blew his mind. They had absolutely thrashed Thawne's cronies even outnumbered as they were. Then they'd taken out one of his father's more violent goons like it was nothing. A walk in the park.

Save for Barry – who he was coming to realize wasn't exactly the same guy he thought he knew – bleeding out on the floor.

"Tommy!"

Shaking his head, Tommy turned to Sara and met six expectant gazes. "Uh…right! So, since my dad seems to have figured out where I've been laying my head since I left, I think the only safe place we've got is DDs. It's not too bad of a walk and it is in the opposite direction of my father's establishment so it should minimize any contact we might have with any more of his goons." He jerked a thumb over his shoulder toward their intended route. "Shall we?"

Before anyone could answer, an unnaturally strong breeze tore down the street, kicking up trash and dust and forcing the group to shield their eyes. It lasted for a handful of seconds until, just as suddenly as it had come, it vanished.

"What in the hell was that?" Oliver asked no one in particular, a hand massaging the sudden ache running down the right side of his torso.

"No idea," Sara said with a shrug before she smirked. "You think the Matrix is glitching?"

Ava scoffed. "That's déjà vu, not spontaneous gusts of wind. And didn't – wait," she cut herself off, looking around frantically. "Where's Thawne?"

Everyone turned toward where they had last seen the villain and, with a sinking realization, found he was gone. Somehow, in the moments they'd taken their eyes off him, Thawne had vanished into thin air. There was no possible way – unless he had his speedster powers – that he could've gotten off the street in that small little window.

"Well that's not good," Oliver said bluntly.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious," Sara responded in monotone.

Nyssa hoisted Barry's uninjured arm over her shoulder. "There is nothing we can do about him now. Come, Thomas, you said you know of a place."

With a nod they were off.

They trudged along at a respectable clip, Oliver and Tommy – who had taken over for Nyssa – moving Barry with relative ease, Caitlin keeping pressure – and an eye – on the wounded speedster's injury just in case.

Kara walked next to Nyssa, her face blank and eyes not taking anything in, the shock of what had happened just now setting in.

"Kara?" Nyssa prompted gently attempting to coax the other woman back to the present. "He is going to be fine. Are you?"

Blinking rapidly to clear her head, Kara looked at her BFFF (Best Female Friend Forever) and swallowed thickly. "I-I almost got him killed, Nyssa."

"Yes. Yes you did."

"He got shot because of me."

Nyssa nodded. "Again, yes. Did you expect Barry would just let you take a bullet when there was something that he could do to prevent it?"

"Well…no, but –"

With a shake of her head Nyssa silenced the Kryptonian hero. "How many times must I tell you that you cannot dictate the actions of others? Particularly of those who love you?" She let the questions sink in for a moment before continuing. "If the situations were reversed, would you not have done the exact same thing? Barry loves you, Kara, and therefore his choices will always reflect that. Just as yours tell of your love for him. So stop beating yourself up over what you cannot control."

Kara bowed her head with a sniffle but nodded. "Yes ma'am."

It took them another fifteen minutes before the lights of DDs casino came into view and another five to successfully navigate the still heavy foot traffic of The Strip to get there.

"Okay, this is ridiculous, Tommy," Sara said in exasperation once the group managed to get through the doors without any trouble thanks to a few quick words from Tommy to the guards on duty. He led them toward a back door with a weathered 'Employees Only' sign hanging from it while she continued. "Why is your dad sending his goons to kill you? I know you guys had a fight, but this seems insane!"

Tommy took a deep breath, a resigned look on his face, before letting the collected air out in a huff. "Well let's just say that my dad hasn't always been as…reserved as he is now."

"Sending a murder squad after his own son because of some stupid fight is reserved?" Sara parroted with an incredulous stare at the Merlyn doppelganger, missing the uneasy looks exchanged between Barry and Caitlin while Nyssa, Oliver and Kara narrowed their eyes in annoyance, all of them having encountered the father in question.

"Well…" Ava ventured, not exactly sure how to continue now that she'd opened her mouth. "Here's the thing…" she trailed off again, trying to pick her words carefully in Tommy's presence even though the man seemed preoccupied with getting them to a place they could treat Barry.

Nyssa scoffed. "Cutter Moran is just as despicable here as Malcolm Merlyn was back in our world," she bit out harshly, not caring for a delicate delivery. "In fact, he may be even more twisted here. If the rumors are true, he cut apart his cousin over a disagreement the two had."

Sara let out a low whistle and raised her eyebrows. "Now the assholes with knives make more sense. At least our Merlyn didn't make it a habit to go around killing his own family."

"True," Caitlin admitted genially though her expression turned sour as she continued. "He settled for best friends and innocents instead."

Tommy didn't even flinch. "Oh trust me; daddy dearest has no qualms about collateral damage or burning bridges. For instance, there used to be two other gangs running in this area along with the Dans, Jennies and Blades. Dad cut a deal with both of them and, as soon as he got what he needed, took them out. I'm actually surprised the Jennies agreed to any kind of partnership – it's like playing hot potato with a bomb and not knowing how long the fuse is."

"I am curious," Nyssa spoke after a beat of silence, allowing Tommy's statement to sink in. "How is it you came to work for the Dans if your father controls one of the greatest threats to their power on The Strip?"

"To be honest, me jumping ship was a long time coming. There's a laundry list of shit I had to do for the Blades that I couldn't reconcile with for the longest time. And that was before Dad decided I was ready for initiation." Tommy glanced at his watch before nodding toward another door in front of them. "Come on, Doc's protégé is inside and he should have what you need to fix your friend."

Sara followed him with a raised brow. "And then you'll tell us what this is all about?"

"Then I'll tell you what it's all about, doll."


A/N: There you have it, ladies and gentlemen! Things are starting to get serious for all of our heroes now. Tempers flaring, emotions running high and I shot a speedster for his corny joke! A lot of influences in this chapter that I hope you enjoyed – maybe enough to leave a review and let me know.

I know there wasn't as much music in this chapter but aside from the four that were, it didn't feel right to put any others. There's always next time!

'Til next time!