-Chapter Twenty-Nine-
"Home is Home Wherever You Can Find It"
(Part II)
Barry never thought he'd be standing in his old bedroom again, let alone his childhood home. He remembered the fish tank was practically in the center of the room, the telescope by the window, the basketball hoop on the back of his closet door, the science posters on the wall, and the space station hanging from the ceiling. Now it was an office and all of his memories were packed up into the West attic. It was weird to think that everything in his life could be packed up into boxes and stored away without a second thought.
Slowly turning in a circle, Barry lifted a hand to his lips, trying to push back all those feelings he felt that night but it came crashing over him like a wave. His heart rate sped up (more so than the "normal" rate it was now), and he felt fear gripping at him. He wanted to run out of the house and stay put at the exact same time; he was finally getting answers that he wanted, but he didn't want to be there. Heat collected under his collar and he tugged at his clothes trying to cool himself down.
Breathe. Breathe. Sucking in deep breaths of air, he closed his eyes and flashes of red and light swirling around his terrified mother reached his ears. Screams of absolute terror and desperation rang in his ears followed by a roaring sound. Slapping his hands over his ears, he tried to block it all out, but it got louder and louder and—SLAM.
Barry jumped at the sudden loud noise, feeing the floor shake beneath his feet. His eyes snapped open and he looked around wildly. He was still in his office, his old room. He wasn't outside. He wasn't a kid anymore. He was safe. No one could hurt him; he was too fast. He was the Flash. Slowly lowering his hands from his ears, he shook them out, trying to rid his body of the feeling of dread.
"Bare?"
Barry whipped his head towards the doorway where Joe stood, holding onto a carton of Big Belly Burger fries. "I've been calling your name," Joe said before lifting a fry to his mouth. He popped the piece of fast food into his mouth and chewed. "You ok?" Holding out his hand, he offered the fries to his foster son, shaking the carton.
Barry removed a couple of French fries from the box and slid them into his mouth. "No," he admitted, shaking his head from side to side. "I just…it doesn't feel like home anymore. Home is supposed to feel safe."
"You're right," Joe agreed with a nod of his head. "It is. But no one would ever expect something like this was going to happen. Or could ever happen." Barry nodded his head as he chewed. "I mean, did you ever think one day you'd not only survive being struck by lightning but gain the type of speed people could only dream of?"
"Of course not," Barry replied. His cheeks puffed out as he sighed. "I just hate how this house makes me feel. It was like there was never any happiness here. Almost like our family never lived here."
"Well, there's one thing that hasn't changed since you moved out," Joe said, scratching at the back of his neck. "Come on, you're going to want to see this."
Barry followed Joe out of the bedroom-turned-office and down the stairs of the house. "Who lives here now, anyway?" he asked.
"A recent divorcee and her son," Joe replied. "Her son is spending the weekend with her ex. She was pretty accommodating to my request."
"Uh-huh," Barry said, feeling himself smile. "A recent divorcee, huh?"
"Don't get any ideas," Joe said. Barry didn't have to see Joe's face to know that the older man rolled his eyes. "She's really helping us out."
"Ok, so what was it you wanted me to see?" Barry asked, setting foot into the living room. His eyebrows lifted at the multiple fast food bags sitting on the living room table. "Apart from all the Big Belly Burger you brought over?" His stomach growled as the smell of the warm food reached his nose. He grabbed one of the bags and unfurled the top before reaching in to retrieve a hamburger box. "I'm starving."
"You're belcim," Averey said around a mouthful of French fries. She and Cisco were standing around the table in the dining room, eating.
"We came over as quickly as we could," Cisco added, licking ketchup off of his thumb.
Barry did a double take as he looked at them and the colored splotches on their hands and faces. "Is that paint?" he asked, lifting his hand to indicate his face.
"Like I said, we came over as quickly as we could," Cisco repeated, fixing him a stare that read "I'll explain later." Barry slowly nodded his head before taking another bite of his burger. "What's going on?"
"Of all the things in this house that has stayed that same, it was that mirror," Joe said, pointing across the living room.
Barry looked over at the mirror and frowned before taking a bite of the burger in his hands. "Man, I always hated that thing," he commented. "I swear, late at night, there were some weird…things you could see in there. And, I know it tried to get back at me for avoiding it. It nearly fell on me." He swallowed the food in his mouth. "Twice."
"Barry, it's backed with silver nitrate," Cisco explained.
"Like what was used in old photography?" he asked and Cisco nodded.
"Except silver nitrate itself isn't light sensitive enough to capture an image," Joe replied. "From what Cisco explained, anyway." Barry shifted his gaze over towards the engineer and Cisco tilted his head over towards the ocular metahuman.
"Averey can explain it better," he said.
"Sweet as. My time to shine," Averey said with a small smile before she clapped her hands together to rid her fingers of the salt crystals from her fingers. "Cisco's both right and wrong. You know how with those old cameras the photographer would slide those slabs into the back of the camera?" Barry nodded his head. "Those are called dry plates and was what the picture was exposed to with the combination of the flash used, the natural light, and the way the camera works."
"Anyway, to develop those pictures, a handful of chemicals were needed to extract photos from those plates. Silver salts were used most because it allowed the color of the image captured to change when the shutter was opened to indicate the difference in lights and shadows. Silver nitrate was created because the salt was difficult to use on thin plates and couldn't be stored for a long time. Like Cisco said, silver nitrate isn't the best to use for photography, but it's great to use for storage. 15 years of storage."
Barry watched as Averey paced back and forth in the room as she talked. It suddenly hit him that the last time she had set foot in his home was years ago. He remembered running through the house with Iris and Averey chasing after him, calling him "mean" because he wouldn't share his candy. He remembered lying on the carpeted floor coloring before taking part in a game of "The Floor is Lava."
Then an image of his family seated around the circular dining room table came to view. His mom was alive his dad was out of jail, and was eating and talking happily with himself and Averey. If his mom hadn't died, would that be how things would have turned out? Or maybe not; Averey wouldn't need to come to America to look for his dad if wasn't in jail. Then again, he had said that Averey's mom and his mom were both open to them spending time together. Maybe no matter what, if his mom had been alive, it would have ended this way.
"So!" Barry snapped back to attention. "With the two speedsters in his house that night, their lightning created a bright enough flashes to impose images onto the backing of this mirror—no chemicals needed." She crossed her arms over her chest. "However, like all cameras, you're running the risk of double, triple, multiple exposures so what you could pull from it might be a right jumbled mess."
"But, it's worth a shot," Cisco added. "I have equipment to help back at STAR Labs. I just need to get it, set it up, and we can go from there." He pressed his lips together for a moment. "We could give you those answers you've always wanted, Barry."
"Tell me what it looks like and I'll get it for you," Barry said, deciding on the spot. It was partially fueled by his desire for answers and also his desire to get out of the house as fast as he could. Cisco quickly explained what the device looked like and Barry rushed to and from STAR Labs as quickly as he could carrying the parts needed. As Cisco and Barry set up what looked like a photo developing device, he went back to eating, refueling himself after the energy spent carrying the heavy object.
"The Floor is Lava."
"Sorry?" Barry asked, a handful of French fries sitting away from his mouth.
"You fell off the mirror in The Floor is Lava," Averey replied, nodding towards the piece of furniture in the corner. "And it nearly fell on you. I remember 'cause you busted your knee open and—"
"Iris saw all of the blood," Barry finished for her. "And she ran to Joe yelling, 'Daddy, Barry's dying'." Averey pretended to yell the last part of his sentence with him.
"Shoot, I remember that, too," Joe said, his tone taking on slight annoyance. "Nearly gave me a heart attack. According to Henry, I acted like the world was on fire."
"Bet I could beat you in a bike race, now," Barry said, chuckling at Joe's statement.
"Yeah, maybe," Averey replied with a smirk. "Are you admitting you lost in the first place?"
"No way." Barry shook his head. He quickly finished his burger before looking for another one. "I beat you fair and square." Settling on another carton of fries, Barry grasped a couple of the salted food between his fingers before biting off the top half. Silence fell over the two of them and Barry focused on his eating.
He couldn't help it; every time he looked at her, it reminded him of how different things were now. He had envisioned a perfect relationship between his parents and that wasn't true. He never thought his dad was capable of cheating and that happened. It made him angry to know that it was kept from him for so long (and even longer after Averey had found out) and at the same time, he was sad to know that everything he thought was to be true was just a version of it.
Now he had a little sister to look out for on top of everything else…and he didn't even know how to be a big brother. Sure, Iris was sort of like his sister, but most of the time it was more like growing up with his best friend. This was real. She was related to him by blood; and after her needed blood transfusion, a bit more literally.
"You don't have to do that."
"Do what?" Barry asked with more bite than he intended. He really had to remember that she could notice things most people wouldn't. Maybe he could pass it off as being hangry. No, he definitely knew it was the house putting him out of sorts. It just had an evil presence to it now.
"You said yourself we could work something out, if that means you just seem me as a friend or even a sidekick, then that's what you have to do," Averey replied as if she was having the conversation with him for the millionth time. "It's better than guessing how you're going to react to me by day."
"Guys," Joe said in a warning tone.
"It's not just hard for you, you know," Averey said as Barry continued eating. The food was cold and the potato was sticking to the roof of his mouth, leaving a gross coating. "But, if you want to act like I didn't say anything, fine. I spent 25 years of my life without a brother, I can last longer."
His vision went red. He didn't need this right now. "Oh yeah, you did so well for yourself you got yourself thrown in jail," Barry shot back before he could stop himself. "Congratulations."
Averey let out a laugh. "What do you think your life is since you decided to spend it all on getting dad out of prison?" she shot back. Barry was on his feet a second later, feeling the carton of French fries fold in on itself in his tight grip. Despite their height difference, Averey stood up to face him, eyes filled with the same determination he had seen back in the hospital. "See? This is what I mean! And I know this isn't just about you being whammied. One minute you're fine and the next you're acting like I'm a stranger to you." She lifted her arms before dropping them down by her sides, seeming to change her mind. "Which I guess I still am to you."
"Guys!"
"It sucks, ok?" Barry asked. He tightened his jaw, narrowing his eyes. "It sucks knowing that this had been kept from me for years from the people I've always looked up to, admired, and trusted completely." He curled his fingers into fists before he relaxed them. "And it sucks that someone I have to go out there with, someone I'm trusting to help me protect Central City wasn't honest with me."
"Right, you're preaching to me about honesty," Averey said, her eyebrows lifting upwards. "Have you even told Iris you're the Flash?"
"Guys!"
"That's completely—" Barry groaned as a bright light was suddenly shining in his face—Averey lifted a hand to cover her face, shuffle-stumbling over to her bag to retrieve her sunglasses. Lifting a hand, he turned to figure out what it was coming from when he spotted the horror on his mom's face. "Different." His attention shifting to the images, he felt the tension in his body release to be replaced by wonder. "What is this?"
"The night of Nora's murder," Joe replied grimly. "Cisco managed to salvage snapshots from the mirror and…this was captured." With a click the picture shifted. Nora was still in the center of the room, eyes wide, mouth open in a terrified scream, but now there were streaks of red and yellow around her.
Barry felt himself smiling as a sudden burst of relief flooded his chest. Finally, people would see the truth. "I told you Joe," he said. "The red and yellow lightning."
"You sure did," Joe said, staring at the pictures as they flashed before him.
"All this time I wondered…" Cisco said quietly, his thumb the only part of his body moving as he controlled the device to move through the images. "I'm sorry you had to go through this, Barry. It must have been worse than I imagined."
"Actually, it was everyone else I always felt sorry for," Barry replied, staring at the picture. "I knew exactly what happened, but everyone else had to waste their time imagining, speculating, and guessing." He chuckled. "They're the ones who never knew the truth."
"Until now," Averey replied.
Barry lifted his gaze and locked eyes with Joe. No one was going to be able to know the truth. Not for a while. That fact settled heavily into Barry's stomach but it was for the best. They needed to present the evidence and information in a way to get everyone for them to actually believe that what was going on in Central City.
But now Joe knows the truth, Barry thought to himself. Now someone believes you. He paced in a circle around the images, freezing briefly when he spotted a younger version of himself, screaming desperately for his mom from the doorway. His face was flushed red, tears collected in his eyes, fear etched on his face. That night was like an out of body experience, only he had never seen what he looked like. That was the last time his mom saw him; not her 'beautiful boy', but a terrified kid. One she couldn't protect.
"Holy," Cisco said quietly. Barry looked over at him and saw that he was pointing at the images in front of him. "It—it's…"
"Barry," Averey finished for him.
Barry was going to point out how obvious it was that the little boy in the room was in fact him, but then he realized Joe, Cisco, and Caitlin were looking in a different direction. Standing in the center of the room was a picture of himself in the Flash suit. His hand was lifted into a motion almost like he was trying to stop someone. The Reverse-Flash? Barry couldn't see a yellow streak in this image. But he could make out the shape of his own jaw, the curve of his own nose, and the curve of his spine in his stance.
"That is me," Barry said, walking over to himself. He reached out his hand and passed his fingers through the image in front of him. "But, how?" He looked over his shoulder at the closer door behind him, in the direction the 3D image of himself was looking. "And what am I doing?" It hit him almost instantly: I'm trying to save mom.
"The Reverse-Flash came here for a reason that night," Averey said, taking in the scene in front of her. "I mean Barry is still fighting him from wherever in the future this happens." She waved her hand in the air, indicating the scene in front of her. "And we know that the real Barry wants to defeat him to get him to confess to his mom's murder. So why, at some point in the future, do you come back here?"
"Yo, this like, Harry Potter Time Turner kind of stuff," Cisco said, shaking his head back and forth. He massaged at his temples with hi free hand. "My head is hurting just thinking about it."
"Barry, I remember that night you came running into the house after I responded to the calls of the noise coming from here," Joe said. Barry looked over at him, his eyebrows furrowed. "If you're here…how did you get outside?"
"I—I don't know," Barry replied, shaking his head. He felt like he was a little kid all over again, explaining the story repeatedly to police officers and detectives. Each time he would be met with blank stares and condescending words. Even all the therapists thought it was just a way for him to cope with what he saw that night. Even Joe thought the same thing. "I was there in the house one minute and the next I was miles away in the middle of the street."
"Almost as if a speedster got you out of the house?" Cisco asked. He was talking slowly as if choosing his words carefully. Or maybe even he didn't believe his own suggestion. "So you…saved yourself? You knew what was going to happen to your mom and stopped yourself from witnessing it?"
"Or maybe to stop yourself from seeing just how gruesome it was," Joe replied, making his way out of the room. "Check this out." Barry, Cisco, and Averey followed him over to the floral covered wall where bright red splotches glowed on the wall. "I've never seen this before. How did I not see this?"
Barry placed a hand on Joe's shoulder, giving him the best smile he could muster. "It's ok," he said. "Really."
"These marks aren't on the wallpaper, though," Cisco pointed out.
"We didn't have wallpaper when I lived here," Barry said, reaching out his hand for the corner of the floral print. A tearing sound filled the air as he peeled it back, gasping when he spotted the dried blood on the dark wall.
Averey let out a low whistle. "No wonder they covered it," she commented, "that would be murder to get out of the wall." There was a pregnant pause of silence as she winced. "Ooh, bad choice of words."
"Can you get a blood sample from this?" Joe asked.
"Easily manageable," Cisco said with a nod. "Barry, could I use your lab?" Barry silently nodded his head. "I can see if there's a match to Barry's blood since he was here, but for the other speedster, that could take some time. I don't even know who to begin to match it to."
Joe let out a long sigh. "I think…Dr. Wells for one," he said.
"You think Wells had something to do with my mom's murder?" Barry asked, giving Joe a look of disbelief. "No. Joe. There's no way he could have been a part of that. It's impossible."
"I think at this point we can stop thinking that things are impossible," Joe commented, fixing Barry with a "You did not just say that" stare. "All I'm saying is, some stuff doesn't add up with him and I'd like to get it checked out."
"He didn't even know of my family back then," Barry protested.
"You don't find it a bit odd that out of everyone in the world, Harrison Wells knew exactly what was happening to you when you were in the hospital?" Joe asked. "Or that he didn't seem at all phased that Hartley Rathaway attacked him in his home the way he did?"
"All I know is that Dr. Wells, Cisco, and Caitlin, are the only ones who know how to help me," Barry replied, putting his hands up in the air. "I'm telling you, Joe, he doesn't have anything to do with this."
"Barry—"
Barry turned on his heels to walk away, stopping short when he felt a hand grab at his arm. He looked over at Averey who was pointing towards the abandoned Big Belly Burger food. The tops of the beverages were floating in the air, followed by the dark brown liquid of the soda. The last time he saw something like that happen was right before he was struck by lightning.
The words "oh no" were barely out of his mouth when the front door burst open in a rush of wind and a streak of yellow light. He felt a heavy weight on his chest seconds before he, Cisco, Averey, and Joe were thrown back against the wall before they fell into a heap on the floor.
"I wondered how long it'd be until you came back here, Flash," the Reverse-Flash taunted. Barry reached behind his back to massage his spine. "The past is hard to run away from. It always seems to catch up to you."
"Averey, get them out of here," Barry said, locking eyes with the Reverse-Flash's intense red gaze. "Now!"
"Barry," Joe protested, reaching for his gun. "You can't do this on your own."
"No," Barry said, slowly getting to his feet. His back throbbed with each deep breath of air. "If the neighbors hear the gun fire, they could call the police."
"Uh, he kind of is the police," Cisco reminded him, "and so are you for that matter."
"I don't need anyone else to get hurt, or worse, in this house," Barry said, shaking his head back and forth. "Now get out of here."
"How noble," the Reverse-Flash taunted. Gritting his teeth, Barry rushed forward, driving his fist into the stomach of the yellow suited man. The Reverse-Flash doubled over grunting in pain before grasping tight handfuls of the back of Barry's shirt and coat. His world was turned upside down as the Reverse-Flash lifted him off his feet before proceeding to ram him into the wall. "But, it's not going to stop me."
Around and around the Allen household, the two speedsters fought, trying to gain the upper hand. With each punch, kick, and twist of limbs that Barry endured, he gave back to the Reverse-Flash as best as she could. Lamps were knocked over, glass was broken, and walls were knocked into as they fought. He was faster now, he had people to take care of and it was that drive that kept him fighting despite the rapid fire hits his body was taking.
"Gah!" Hitting the back of a chair, and rolling over the top, Barry hit the floor on his shoulder before quickly rushing out of the way of the chair falling on top of him. He slumped into the corner, gasping for air. "Why did you come back here?"
"Why did you?" the Reverse-Flash replied, standing over him. Rolling his head on his neck, he regarded the projection of Nora in the middle of the room. "You weren't fast enough to save her then and you're still not fast enough now."
"Somehow, someway, you and I get back to that time," Barry seethed, taking in deep breaths of air, his chest burning. Tasting copper in his mouth he ran his tongue over his lips and winced when he felt the split in the corner of his lips. He spat the blood onto the floor. "And I will not lose."
"You've already lost, Flash," the Reverse-Flash replied. "And you will always lose. That is your desti—"
Pop!
Barry flinched as the Reverse-Flash's head bent to the side as a soccer ball ricocheted off of the side of his head. The Reverse-Flash slowly turned his head to face Averey who trapped the ball with the inside of her knee before sliding her foot underneath it. Mouth forming a tight line, she used her foot to flick the ball up into the air before pulling her leg back and striking the ball. It zoomed through the air before striking the Reverse-Flash in the chest, bouncing away to the floor.
"It's years until I have to deal with you," the Reverse-Flash said, tilting his head from side to side. He slowly lifted his arms as if to say 'Oh well'. "All in the family as they say. It is, too, your destiny to lose to me. Why wait decades?"
"Maybe someday in the future, mate," Averey replied, her voice wobbling just slightly. She planted her foot down on top of the ball before rolling it back onto the top of her foot, striking it for a third time. "But not today." The Reverse-Flash merely bent out of the way before shooting forward in a burst of yellow light, grabbing her with a hand to her throat. The sunglasses covering her face flew off by the movement.
"You may show courage now," Reverse-Flash taunted as he pushed Averey higher and higher up the wall. She kicked her legs and twisted this way and that, scratching at his hands as she tried to breathe. A bright glint repeatedly appeared and disappeared near her hip. "I promise you; that will soon change."
Sucking in a deep breath of air, his chest painfully expanding, Barry pushed off the wall and burst forward, leading with his shoulder. A gurgled gasp of surprise escaped past Barry's lips as the Reverse-Flash's fingers on his free hand tightly clutched his larynx. The wind whistled through his ears as the Reverse-Flash charged across the room and slammed the two metahumans into the wall. The darkness of the room started creeping into Barry's vision. He tried prying at the Reverse-Flash's fingers but could not break his strong grip.
"Say farewell, Flash."
Suddenly, a beam of purple light filled Barry's vision before it hit the Reverse-Flash square in the eyes, momentarily changing the angry red color to a dull mauve. The Reverse-Flash growled, shaking his head from side to side, as if clearing his vision. Barry dropped his arm to his side. The red glow of the Reverse-Flash's eyes dulled as the shadows closed in on him. With his weakening energy, he reached behind Averey's back, feeling his fingers slide over the smooth surface of one of her boomerangs. He quickly disengaged one half of the weapon before thrusting it forward into the evil speedster's stomach.
The Reverse-Flash let out a loud, long scream of pain before he dropped the two metahumans to the floor. With a clatter, the metal weapon hit the floor, falling from Barry's relaxed grip. Coughing and gasping for air, Barry massaged his burning throat. His vision swam in front of him, the darkness receding until what was left was the light and shadows of the dark house and Cisco's device.
Letting out a gruff yell of effort, Averey pushed herself to her feet and burst forward, ramming her shoulder into the speedster's stomach, tackling him to the ground. The speedster reached wildly for her, its maroon colored glow of his eyes flickering its intense red light. Barry got to his feet in time for Averey to come crashing into his chest as she was thrown off the Yellow-suited man.
"Oof."
"You are just wasting your time." The Reverse-Flash stated as he walked over to the fallen metahumans to leer down at them. "Time you do not have."
"You said…we'll be fighting for…for decades," Barry said, his chest rising and falling as he gasped for air. His lips parted—increasing the split in his lip, the dull pain turning into a sharp sting—and he gave a confident smile. "Seems like I've got plenty of time."
"Wrong again, Flash." Barry was lifted off the ground and carried through the bottom floor of the house, being slammed into each wall along the way before he was dumped in the kitchen. Curling himself up into a ball, Barry covered his head as the Reverse-Flash landed punches and kicks on him.
He suddenly stopped and Barry cracked open an eye and watched as the Reverse-Flash turned and caught the metal weapon that went flying towards him; easily pulling it out of the air. Almost lazily, he threw the boomerang to the kitchen floor where it clattered as it bounced away. Her bottom lip quivering just slightly, Averey stared back at him.
"You're only stopping the inevitable, Visionary," the Reverse-Flash warned her. "I'm sure even you can see that."
"Funny." Averey's gaze shifted down towards Barry and he peered back at her. Angling her head slightly, she indicated a direction with her chin. He looked around the room, mind working quickly, wondering what it was that she was motioning to. Then he saw a broom leaning against the stove.
Everything around him moved slowly as he used his speed to rush over to the cleaning tool. He grasped it in his hand and ran back over towards Averey. In slow motion, she started dodging to her right as the Reverse-Flash raced towards her. Stepping in front of the speedster, Barry placed himself between the two metahumans. He held the bristled end of the broom to his chest, the handle sticking out in the air in front of him.
Then everything was back in real time. Barry pushed Averey out of the way just as a gagging sound tore from the Yellow speedster's mouth's he was clothes lined. The Reverse-Flash crumpled into a ball on the floor, the molecules of his body slowing down before the vibrations stopped all together. Before Barry could move, the Reverse-Flash slammed his fist onto the ground in frustration before rushing out of the house in a burst of wind.
With a rush of air, the Reverse-Flash sped out of the house.
"God damn it," Averey cursed as she rolled onto her stomach from where she lay on the floor.
"Cisco?" Barry asked between gasps of air, massing his wrists as the broom was roughly jerked from his hands. "Joe?"
"They're ok."
Barry nodded his head, squeezing his eyes shut as he waited for his energy to build back up again. Once he caught his breath, he pushed himself up to a kneeling position.
"I had it handled," he said, putting his hands to his knees before sitting back on his heels.
Averey lifted an eyebrow as she wiped at the blood sliding down the corner of her mouth. "I could see that," she replied. Retrieving the second half of her boomerang from the waistband of her jeans, Averey searched the dark kitchen for the other half.
Barry's lips twitched as he got to his feet. He shuffled to the living room and gazed over at the images of his mom and his younger self. It was a small win, but a win nonetheless. For once, he felt like he was able to defend his home.
Caitlin brushed her hair behind her ears before rubbing at her tired, burning eyes. She stretched her arms up over her head, pointing her toes as she flexed the muscles in her legs. When her muscles started to burn, she relaxed in her seat. How late was it?
Reaching for her computer mouse, she shook the device, the blank screen saver disappearing to reveal her lock screen. A picture of her and Ronnie filled the four corners of the computer screen. She couldn't see him placing a kiss to her temple as they stood in a field of flowers as it was blocked behind her account picture and the fields to enter her password. Quickly typing in the password she got a brief glimpse of the full image before her computer screen went blank and then brought up the many pages, charts, and graphs she was looking at.
"10:37," she said to herself, her gaze shifting to the upper hand right corner where the date, time, and volume indicator sat. "When did it get to be so late?"
"You're still here, Dr. Snow."
Caitlin whirled around in her seat, startled by the sudden voice. "Oh, Dr. Wells," she said, putting a hand to her heart. "You scared me."
"I apologize," Dr. Wells replied, folding his hands in his lap as he came to a stop beside her. "I thought I was the only one burning the midnight oil. You should get some rest."
"I will," Caitlin replied, giving him a small smile. "It's just that I've already been so far behind on…everything around here," Caitlin explained with a sigh. "Mainly speaking Bivolo and how to reverse his 'whammy' effects, and understanding Averey's gaps of memory."
"You know as well as I do that Rome wasn't built in a day," Dr. Wells said with a light of his eyebrows. He removed his glasses from his face and rubbed at his eyes. "You'll want to be careful. I take eyestrain seriously." He shrugged his shoulders, waving the glasses in his hand as if to prove his point.
"Dr. Wells you know there are no lasting damages from eye strain," Caitlin said with a patient smile.
"Indeed I do, but I still wish for my employees to stay in peak mental and physical health," Dr. Wells replied, carefully folding the arms of his glasses before hooking them to the collar of his black shirt. "Have you made any progress?"
"Well, Bivolo somehow manages to whammy all of those at the bank, Barry, Averey, and who knows how many others through his optic nerves," Caitlin explained, turning back towards her computer. After a series of clicks, forms appeared on her screen with Central City Memorial Hospital emblazoned at the top. "From the medical forms I was able to get through the CCPD, their anger reached peak heights in times of incredible stress."
"The more stressed they were—and they would be given the atmosphere in the bank," Dr. Wells said with a short laugh, "the angrier they got."
"Which explains why a woman with a newborn would suddenly snap and aim a gun at a bystander," Caitlin agreed with a nod of her head. "Let's just be glad this didn't occur at the DMV." She smiled as Dr. Wells laughed quietly at her joke. "We've seen Barry lash out from time to time and of course, your stress can be shown in many different ways; with Averey being whammied with purple and it affecting her psychosis, I would assume that for her, it's—"
"Fear," Dr. Wells said at the same time as her.
"Correct," Caitlin replied with a nod of her head. "Well, I don't particularly blame her. This can be a lot for people." Dr. Wells didn't answer. At the stretch of silence, Caitlin turned her head, recoiling when she noticed how close her boss was to her.
"How are you doing?" Dr. Wells asked, peering at her with an intense gaze. "Really? It's not just Barry who's been through a lot."
Caitlin found herself massaging her wrist, feeling the raised skin; a reminder of her few hours in captivity with Cisco at the hands of Leonard Snart and Mick Rory. The flash of his face on the TV screen every night promoting a reward for any piece of information that would lead to his arrest would send a cold shiver down her spine. Feeling the heat of a flame so close to her would have her break out in a sweat. Walking to her car alone even in broad daylight occurred with multiple checks of her surroundings, and the presence of tense muscles in her shoulders.
"Your silence says more than any words could."
Caitlin snapped out of her thoughts, offering a fleeting smile. "I'm ok," she replied. She nodded her head over and over again. Her gaze then shifted towards her hand as he gently grasped her hand, running his thumb over the scar on her wrist. "Um…"
"I promise you'll start feel safe again," Dr. Wells said.
"Well, I've always felt safe here," Caitlin replied, feeling the warmth of Dr. Wells's hand on top of hers turn into a burning heat that climbed up her arm and into her cheeks. "I accepted your offer at a position here without hesitation. You've done so much for me and Cisco."
"And you two have done more than I could ever ask of you," Dr. Wells replied, gently squeezing her hand. "I'm sure you two had a better outlook in your careers than to continuously work at a defunct laboratory. But, I appreciate that you stayed. I know I don't say it enough. Especially not after Ronnie—"
Ronnie. Caitlin pulled her hand out from underneath Dr. Wells's, folding her hands in her lap. Ronnie was still alive. Of course, he wasn't in the same state as she had last seen him, but he was still there. Whenever she was in the most danger he was there; first outside STAR Labs at the first sighting of the Reverse-Flash, and then when Snart and Rory were around. There was still some of her Ronnie in there. And here she was, allowing another man, her boss, to make her hot under the collar.
At the same time, it was somewhat comforting to get that kind of attention again. It had been so long since she had not only felt like a functioning person, but that she could feel attractive to anyone. Her work helped her get her confidence back; it gave her a reason to put a little effort into doing her hair and makeup in the morning, and it gave her friends to help her smile and loosen up around. Cisco had been trying for months to get her to open up or to at least smile and while that didn't happen all the time, he was still there and she was grateful for it.
The fact of the matter was Cisco didn't look at her the way Ronnie did. Sure, Dr. Wells was a closed off man, but she couldn't help but wonder if she really was seeing more in his gazes. Whenever she started thinking that, she got confused, or felt guilty, and wanted to kick Averey for putting that thought in her head to begin with.
"Um, so anyway, I w-was thinking given Bivolo's optic abilities, the right combi—uh—combination and frequency of light and color, um, should reverse his effects," she quickly explained, stumbling over her words. "Um, the only problem of course would be Averey's adverse reaction to bright lights."
"The ends justify the means in this case, I'd say," Dr. Wells reassured her. "Great work, as always. Caitlin."
She cleared her throat as she looked over at him. "Thank you, Dr. Wells," she replied. "Although, I don't believe this answers the gaps in Averey's memory. Nine months is a long time to not remember anything."
"The mind-body connection is a complicated thing as I'm sure you know," Dr. Wells reminded her, settling back in his seat, crossing his arms over his chest. "As was evident with Barry's coma and the circumstances surrounding that. We're not dealing with a normal circumstance."
"You're right," Caitlin replied with a nod of her head. "I know you're right. We can figure this out."
"Not tonight we won't," Dr. Wells commented, leaning heavily to one side. His face contorting with pain, he lifted himself up onto the left arm rest, bearing all his weight on his forearm. Reaching out a hand, he reached underneath the computer screen and pressed a button, causing the screen to go black. She could feel the heat radiating off of his arm, his torso as he leaned close to her. "I understand the excitement of a scientific breakthrough, but even the greatest minds need to rest."
"Dr. Wells, are you ok?" Caitlin asked as he settled, which looked more like collapsing, back into his seat. A sheen of sweat covered his forehead, and he was breathing a little heavily.
"I assure you, I'm fine," Dr. Wells replied, waving his hand in the air.
Caitlin fixed him with a pointed stare. "Let me see," she insisted, turning her chair around to face him. "You didn't try to get in and out of your chair by yourself again, did you?"
"I may have lost mobility in my legs, but I assure you, there are still things I can do for myself," Dr. Wells replied. Caitlin lifted an eyebrow and with a sigh, he grasped the hem of his shirt, lifting it up over his stomach. Her eyes drifted over each ridge of his abdomen before landing on the multi-colored spot on his right side.
"What happened?" she asked, feeling her eyes widen.
"I'm ok," Dr. Wells insisted.
"You should put some ice on it, it'll make the swelling go down and reduce the pain," she explained to him, shifting to get a better look. "In a couple of hours it could look better, but it's going to take a few days, a week top to heal."
"I heal quickly, it's nothing to worry about."
"Still." Before she could stop herself, she reached out a hand and gently pressed at the edge of the bruise. She could feel Dr. Wells's muscles tense beneath her fingers as he sharply inhaled, swiftly grabbing her wrist to stop her. "Sorry." She lifted her gaze to lock eyes with him. The warm skin beneath her fingers slowly lifted and fell with each breath Dr. Wells took in. His grip on her hand was gentle, yet firm.
"That's ok."
And then she was kissing him.
Joe let out a long sigh as he pulled into the parking lot of the police department the next morning. It was a long, sleepless night. Every time he would close his eyes he could see the Reverse-Flash over and over again. He had been warned to not try and track the guy down before, and Iris was threatened in response. What would happen now that he was seen inside the Allen home? The guy had to have known by now that Iris was writing about him as well. And somehow he knew they were at the house….
Shaking his head back and forth, Joe ran his fingernails over his scalp before scratching the back of his neck before he let out a yawn. He just knew that the day would be even longer. If he wasn't already late, he would've stopped off for some coffee. It was times like these he wished Jitters delivered. It wasn't uncommon for Barry to be late to work, but now Captain Singh had to deal with the both of them running behind their usual schedule.
"Hold on a second, Barry," Joe said, reaching for the young adult's arm when he heard the seat belt unbuckle with a click.
"Sure." Barry gave him a curious look as he slammed the open passenger door shut. "What's going on, Joe?" Barry asked.
"You haven't said much about what went on last night," Joe replied. Barry pressed his lips together, shifting his gaze out the front windshield. "You were able to fend off the Reverse-Flash again. Are you ok?"
"Yeah, Joe, I'm fine," Barry replied in his tired, groggy voice. "I'm the same as when you asked me last night." He lifted his hand when Joe opened his mouth to explain himself. "I really am ok. I just…I keep thinking that somehow I get back to that night. I just don't understand it."
"Ha." Understanding was something Joe was still working out when it came to anything STAR Labs related. "Welcome to the club."
"Joe, I can go back and change things," Barry said, rubbing his hands together. A look of excitement crossed his face as he turned in his seat to face Joe. "Somehow, I wind up back at my house. Somehow I'm in two places at one time and I'm going to learn how I did that and I will save my mom." He let out a long sigh. "I can save her, Joe. Then, I won't just be dreaming about what it'd be like if mom was still here."
"Well…you wouldn't be living with me for one thing," Joe pointed out to him. "You wouldn't have had to move in with me and Iris at all."
"Well…yeah," Barry said with a shrug of his shoulders. "And my dad wouldn't be in jail, and—and maybe Iris and I would be together. I mean, if I never fell into a coma, maybe they wouldn't have bonded so much."
"Only, even if you went back to save your mom, that wouldn't stop Dr. Wells from creating his particle accelerator," Joe agreed. "Maybe there would still be the accident and you would still gain your abilities."
"At least I would still be friends with Cisco and Caitlin," Barry said, his mouth twisting to the side just slightly. "And, I'd still be able to meet Dr. Wells."
"And Chyer might still pass away and Eddie would still become my partner." Joe reached out a hand and grasped the steering wheel of his car, drumming the wheel with the side of his thumbs. "Eddie and Iris would still meet and could quite possibly, and still annoyingly, fall in love." Barry gave him an odd look. "I'm just saying that you could change one thing, but everything else could turn out the same way."
"I get the feeling that there's another point to your bringing this up," Barry said after a moment of silence, his eyes narrowing just slightly.
"I don't know what's scarier," Joe commented after a moment of silence, "how perceptive you are, how Averey can read people's faces or both." He gazed out at the street, watching people walk up and down the street during the morning commute. "That's what I wanted to talk about."
"I knew it," Barry said. Joe looked over at him. Barry settled back in his seat, chin lifted just slightly, looking at Joe out of the corner of his eye. "Look, Joe, I'm not in the mood for a lecture."
"It's not a lecture."
"Good."
"It's just a fatherly talk in a stern voice."
Barry's eyes closed briefly as he let out a quiet laugh. "I knew it." Scratching at the side of his head, he lifted his eyebrows in a silent suggestion for Joe to start talking before he dropped his hand down onto his thigh. Once Joe was sure he had Barry's attention, did Joe start talking.
"You went below the belt with your jail comment last night," Joe commented.
"Why does everyone think I'm the one in the wrong?" Barry asked, sounding tired. "Am I not allowed to be angry?"
"You have every right to feel how you feel," Joe explained. He lifted his hands and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm not saying you're not; it's understandably a lot to take in. It is not ok, however, to be disrespectful. I know you wouldn't talk to me like that, or anyone else."
"Yeah, but Joe—"
"That was not the man I raised for the past 14 years," Joe added. "I am immensely proud of the man you've become because of how compassionate, brave, and protecting you are. But, I am not proud of how you've handled this whole situation."
Barry bowed his head. Even as a kid, if there was one thing Joe didn't like invoking from his parents, it was the feeling of disappointment. Anger was easy to get through in comparison. As an adult, he hated feeling that disappointment for his kid (or in this case, foster child) let alone conveying it.
"Nobody's perfect, Bare. I know you know that. Your parents weren't either. It's not going to hurt your mom's or your dad's memory to be mad at them. But don't take your anger at them out on Averey just because she's the only one around. Your being 'whammied' makes you a bit more open with your feelings, which on one hand I am happy to see you expressing because you can bottle things up inside, but you need to learn how to convey them respectfully."
"I guess," Barry muttered.
"If the roles were switched, and Iris had to live with you and your parents, I sure as hell would hope they'd teach her to respect everyone that wanted to be a part of her life. In fact, I know that they would. Nora and Henry are some of the most selfless people I've ever met in my life and I was glad I could call them my best friends. And, in the grand scheme of things, Averey is the only part of your immediate family you have left."
Joe watched as Barry's Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed. His lips formed a thin line, but he didn't say anything else."Or maybe it's because it's another part of your family life you can't control." Barry looked over at Joe out of the corner of his eyes. "She didn't ask for any of this, much like you didn't either. Not what happened to your mom, or your dad, or getting these powers. But, you've learned to accept your abilities and are using it to help others." He reached out a hand and gently squeezed Barry's shoulder. "For that, I am proud."
Barry nodded his head, loudly sniffing. He lifted a hand and placed it on top of Joe's, giving it a gentle squeeze. "I know with everything, you've had people left and right telling you how to feel or act," Joe said to Barry, "but whenever you can, find some time to figure things out for yourself. Whenever you're ready and need someone to listen, I'm always here."
"I know," Barry replied, swallowing thickly. "Thanks."
Joe chuckled. "See?" he said and Barry gave him a confused look. "Not much of a lecture, right?"
Barry let out a loud, single "Ha!" before he opened the passenger side door. "No, but I'm sure I'm going to get one from Singh anyway," he replied. "Might as well get it over with."
"Mmmhmm." Joe climbed out of the car, remembering to grab his keys and lock the door behind him. He patted Barry on the back as they crossed the parking lot and made their way into the building.
"Oh, Detective West." The man sitting behind the front desk, waved to get Joe's attention. "Captain Singh has been asking for you since you he got in this morning. He wants to see you in his office right away."
Joe made a face before patting his pockets for his work phone. Retrieving it from his breast pocket he groaned, realizing he hadn't turned it on. "Oh, shoot," he muttered before tapping his hand on the wooden, circular desk in thanks. "Come on, Barry."
"This can't be good," Barry commented, following Joe to the elevator. "Suddenly, I feel like I'm being called into the principal's office."
"Oh, you remember how that feels, huh?" Joe asked, calling for the elevator. Barry rolled his eyes as the doors slid open with a chime and they stepped inside.
"One science experiment gone wrong and you're branded for life," Barry commented as they were lifted to their floor.
"People's feet were stained green for three weeks, Bare," Joe reminded him. Barry shrugged as he reached into his pocket for his own ringing cell phone. "Aren't you going to get that? It's been ringing since this morning."
"Oh, it's Linda Park," Barry replied as he glanced at the screen. "She's been wanting to meet with me for a follow up for Iris's article to talk about STAR Labs." He let out a sigh. "I just haven't had the time."
"Mmhmm."
"What? It's true." Joe gave him a pointed look. Ok," Barry said, making a face at him, "I'm just worried about what she's going to ask."
"You're going to have to tell her one way or another, Barry," Joe replied, "either you do it or you don't." He gave Barry a half smile. "Although, something tells me she's not just asking you for an article."
"What do you mean?" Barry asked, giving him a confused look.
"From what I've heard from Iris, Linda took a job at CCPN as a sports writer," Joe explained. "Last I checked, science didn't belong in the sports section. I mean, not unless she's trying to find the chemical components of steroids."
"Come on, Joe," Barry objected, "she's just doing her job. She was assigned to help Iris with the article."
"Sure." Joe shook his head, chuckling. His laughter quickly died as the elevators slid open and he watched as people went rushing up and down the stairs and back and forth across the floor, talking over each other and waving papers. "What the-?"
"Joe!" Eddie hurried over to his partner, a grim look on his face. "We've got a lot on our plates today and Captain Singh is not happy."
"What else is new," Barry said, looking around at everybody, his jaw slack. "What happened?"
Eddie put his hands on his hips, bowing his head just slightly as he sighed. "There was a murder late last night," he replied. "It wasn't called in until early this morning. But, uh…" Joe watched, his heart suddenly hammering in his chest, as a pained expression came to the younger detective's face. "The woman that, uh, that now owns the Allen home…her body was found this morning." He motioned towards his heart be lifting a hand to his mouth. "She was found stabbed in the heart."
"W-what?" Barry asked.
Joe suddenly felt sick to his stomach. "Are you sure?" he asked.
"It's what I've been told," Eddie said, lifting his shoulders in a shrug. "Captain Singh has a case for us, he was waiting until—"
"Let's not keeping him waiting any longer, huh?" Joe said, sidestepping Eddie.
"Uh, sure."
Barry stuck close to Joe's side. "It had to have been him," he said quietly into Joe's ear. "It's just like what happened to my mom. No one else could have done it."
"Don't worry, we'll figure this out," Joe reassured him, making his way around frantic people to reach Captain' Singh's door. He only got snippets of conversation as he slipped past, but the word, "Morgue" was brought up a lot. Rapping his knuckles on the window to his boss's door, Joe used his other hand to stroke his chin. He knew Barry was right.
There was no one else who would pull off the same kind of murder twice in one house after Barry slipped through his fingers a second time. He may not know why the Reverse-Flash killed Nora in the first place, but this was a warning.
Joe snapped back to attention when his boss's door was pulled open so roughly, the blinds smacked against the window. Joe, Barry, and Eddie slipped into the room, and Eddie closed the door behind him. "Normally, I'd get right into why you're late but we have bigger problems," Captain Singh said in a tight voice as he took his position behind his desk. "We'll discuss that later, believe you me."
"Yes, Captain," Joe agreed with a nod of his head. "It won't happen again."
Despite the tense feeling in the air, Captain Singh chuckled. "Don't make promises you can't keep, Joe," he commented. "Nevertheless, you're here now and I need you on this case." He reached towards the laptop that sat on the corner of his desk and slapped the spacebar with his thumb. There was a moment of silence before a gruff voice, and a voice full of fear started playing.
Joe listened as the demanding voice boomed through the speaker on the computer. His heart sank as his name was heard over the recording as the man who killed Clyde Mardon. Anguished screams split the air before Captain Singh turned off the recording.
"Two murders in one night?" Eddie asked, his arms crossed tightly over his chest. "Here I thought all the metahumans were the problem in the city now."
"Nevertheless, Mayor Bellows has indicated that this is a high priority case," his boss explained. "The strange thing was, the deceased, in this case the coroner, was found dead this morning surrounded by ice and water. The sprinkler systems were never touched."
"Stranger things have happened in this city," Barry said in a somber tone.
"No kidding," Captain Singh replied, deadpan.
"So, this could be Snart," Eddie replied. "I mean, no one has been able to find him yet and he does have that cold gun."
"Don't remind me," Captain Singh muttered.
"No, it's not Snart," Joe said quietly. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to think. That voice sounded so familiar to him. When was the last time he had heard it? The coroner had named him in the death of the man's brother. That's it. He opened his eyes, snapping his fingers. "It was Mark Mardon; Clyde's brother."
"Son of a bitch," Captain Singh said, his voice barely above a whisper. He briefly closed his eyes. "Ok. Ok, I want all of you down there right now; get as much evidence as you can."
"Yes, sir," Barry replied.
"We'll head out right now," Eddie added as he made his way to the door.
"And, West, Allen, I don't want you anywhere near the Sherry Covington case," Captain Singh called after the three men. "I know you have some personal history with that house." Captain Singh's hardened gaze softened into a look of compassion. "And I am sorry for what happened to your mother, Barry. I'm sorry you had to be the one to witness what had occurred that night. I just worry there's too much personal interest there."
Joe pressed his lips together, willing himself not to look over at Barry. "Yes, sir," he said with a nod of his head. If only he knew just how connected they already were to the case. She might not even be dead if they weren't there. The Reverse-Flash had warned him to stay away before; what would he do now?
Ethan: I always had the feeling that Eddie was jealous of the Flash to some extent and decided to put it here. Overall, I think he just felt like he couldn't compare to someone with abilities the Flash has so he tried to do as much as he could, if not more, as a police detective. Don't worry, I had them not go eat for a specific reason. There is a bit of complexity that is brewing with Iris, Eddie, and Averey that builds and will be touched on later.
Guest: I'm glad you liked it. I had that idea of them getting to kno each other better for a little while and was gad to find a place to put it in.
