.:36:.

"Well, Mr. Harper, it looks like your vitals are okay," Cadence said as she shined into his eyes with a flashlight. Quickly pulling the light away, she watched as his pupil adjusted to bring in the light of the examining room. She then moved the light to his other eye and did the same. "And it doesn't appear that your wounds have become infected in any way, so I think you'll make a nice recovery."

Roy chuckled lightly as he lay still on the cold examining table, staring at the ceiling of STAR Labs. He grimaced as he crossed his arms over his bare chest, holding onto the opposite elbow with each of his hands. "That's good to hear…but Mr. Harper was my father," he corrected her.

The fire metahuman glanced at him, clicking off the flashlight with her thumb. "Was?" She leaned over him, mimicking his stance by crossing her arms.

The red arrow swallowed hard, trying to push away the angry lump in his throat that seemed to pop up every time he mentioned his mother or father. But…having seen them after getting whammied by Incognito, who had disguised himself as Bivolo had brought all of the memories that he had of them, good and bad.

"My Dad died when I was really little…an accident of some sort, I don't know, my Mom wanted to protect me from it. And…it basically shattered her life." He turned his head and looked directly at her, shifting his eyes for a moment before looking back at her again. "So it was just the two of us and she worked hard to make sure I had everything I needed. But the stress ended up getting to her; she got into drugs. They were tame at first, a joint here or there, and then she fell into harder stuff. Soon I barely saw her when she wasn't strung out or high out of her mind before ultimately getting into Vertigo and…she left. I haven't seen her since."

"Oh." Cadence slowly nodded before reaching up and scratching the back of her head. "Geez, we all got some parental problems don't we?" A light laugh escaped her lips before she tilted her head and looked at him sympathetically. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay, I'm over it," Roy said dismissively.

"Yeah, you sound like you've really moved on." Cadence turned her attention to the wound on his arm and looked over it for a moment before glancing at his stomach. She gently moved her finger along the end of the wound and smirked when Roy sucked in a quick breath, his stomach contracting. "Should've warned you it was going to hurt."

"It hurt worse going in than going out," Roy replied. He uncrossed his arms and rested them on the side of the table. "You know, it usually takes a lot more work before I take my shirt off for anyone."

"Yeah, usually you have to be Thea Queen." Cadence pressed her palm against his stomach and he felt warmth on his skin before she started to heal him. At his noticeable silence, the fire metahuman looked over at him and she received a wide-eyed, almost anxious look from him.

"You know about Thea?"

"Which pat of, I've known Oliver and Thea for a while did you not understand? I mean, sure, Oliver and I aren't exactly close friends or anything, but it's kind of hard to ignore a little girl that followed her brother around and didn't' seem to have a lot of friends her own age. Besides, it's hard not to notice that Thea's…lifestyle managed to become fodder for a lot of tabloid and gossip columns. Such as when she gets a new boyfriend who some don't think is right for her…."

Roy pursed his lips but didn't reply.

She looked at him over her shoulder. "So how is she?"

"We broke up if that's what you're asking."

"Nie try, Little Red, but that's not what I'm asking. Seriously…how is she?"

Now the red arrow nod lightly. "She's mad," he admitted. "About a lot of things. About her Dad…her Mom…She knows who I am…what I do…and she was mad that I was continuing to be a vigilante with Oliver, after she asked me to stop." At Cadence's stricken glance he held up a hand. "She doesn't know Oliver's identity and we plan to keep it that way. She left Starling City to go to Corto Maltese with Malcolm Merlyn, which is another long story; because she wanted to get some training…she's doing better now, thankfully."

"That's good to hear." Cadence lifted her hand and motioned for Roy to sit up, which he did with ease. "I should give her a call the next time I'm in Starling."

A playful smile tugged at Roy's lips. "And when's that going to be?"

"Wow, Cadence, you really do have an impeccable talent for bedside manner," Caitlin said, smirking lightly as she walked into the room and over to Cadence and Roy. "Pretty soon you're going to kick me out of my job."

The fire metahuman lifted a finger as she turned towards her friend. "Firstly, despite being in residency, I have a M.D. behind my name, so in situations like this, you may call me Dr. Nash." She matched Caitlin's smirk before it morphed into a smile. "Secondly, I talk to little kids day in and day out and I used to be a cheerleader, so putting on a face of happiness is sort of my thing."

"Oh." Caitlin placed her hand on Cadence's shoulder. She gave a teasing smile. "If it helps, you make it very convincing."

"Yeah, well, that used to be who I really was and now that the Assassination Bureau is gone…I feel like I'm starting to become myself again." Cadence thought for a moment then reached up and took Caitlin's hand, gently moving it from her shoulder and squeezing it in hers. "I heard you stood up for me when Oliver and Diggle were telling you guys that I was working with them. I know it's all very confusing but it's really good to know that you stuck by me."

"You never gave me a reason not to." Caitlin squeezed Cadence's hand back before she turned to Roy and gave a nod of approval. "You did a good job patching him up, Cade. But…" she motioned to the wound on his arm that hadn't been healed all the way. "Is that supposed to, finally, be payback for when he shot you with arrows?"

Roy started to protest but Cadence beat him to it. "No, actually." She then snapped her fingers and a tiny flame appeared over her index finger. "This is." She swiftly moved her hand and held it by Roy's side, singing his skin with the flame. He jumped and let out a curse moving his hands to his side. Cadence laughed, patting him on the leg. "You're going to be just fine, Roy. But now I have to see to my other patient." Looping her arm through Caitlin's the two walked towards the cortex of STAR Labs. Roy jumped off of the examining table, wincing as he pressed his palm against his side, and followed them. "You know, if I take your job, you could take mine. Go out in the streets, fight some people…"

"No thanks, I'm good where I belong. Behind a computer and with Dr. Wells…" Caitlin quickly caught her trip up. "And Cisco, of course."

"Of course."

The two young women arrived at the cortex where Oliver, Diggle, Felicity, Brady, Barry, Harrison, and Cisco were all talking. Cadence released her arm from Caitlin's and crossed the room over towards Barry, intercepted by her son who she hugged and gave him a kiss on the forehead. She then placed her hands on her hips, giving Barry the once-over, causing him to avoid her gaze. "I get that you can heal yourself incredibly fast, but I'd at least like to get one look at my patient," she remarked. "But if you're eating Big Belly Burger, I guess you must be okay. Pass one over?" She asked, motioning to the pile of Big Belly Burgers and Fries that sat beside the Flash. "I'm starving."

As if he was Gollum protecting the ring from Frodo, Barry instinctively twisted away, holding onto the burger he had just unwrapped. "No way, I need all of these."

"You know, if it wasn't for your metabolism, you'd be obese. I'm just looking out for your health, Barry."

"Or trying to be really clever and steal my food, Cade."

With a light shrug, Cadence teleported to the pile that sat beside him picked up a burger and a carton of fries, and teleported onto the desk next to him. He regarded her with indignation as she made a show of unwrapping her burger and taking a large bite out of it. Brady smiled up at the speedy metahuman as he took a handful of fries from the box. "I have to keep up my energy, too, Barry," she reminded him through a full mouth. "Don't forget that I worked hard, too."

Barry nodded as a light silence fell between the two of them. He then held his burger in one hand and tilted it towards her. Cadence looked at him for a second before shifting her burger to the hand closest to Barry and the two clinked them together before taking another bite. Quickly it off, Barry picked up another burger from the pile and started to unwrap it. The crinkling of the wrapper broke the silence between them and Cadence let out a light sigh.

"Look, Barry, I know you don't trust me, and I don't blame you, but, I'm sorry—"

"—Actually, I should be apologizing to you," Barry interrupted. He wiped his hands off on a napkin before resting them on the edge of the desk, kicking his long legs back and forth, the bottoms of his converses gently scuffing over the floor. He nodded over to Brady, who had then gone over to Cisco and listened as he conversed with Caitlin about the new metahumans they had locked under their feet in the pipeline. "I mean…I can't give the excuse of having been under the influence of Bivolo entirely, but I shouldn't have outed Brady like that. And even after that…I guess I get that you were trying to help him. I shouldn't have said those things I said."

You did, actually. The fire metahuman shrugged, taking her time to finish the bite in her mouth before responding to him. She understood everything that he had said and the hurt that came with it; it was something she had risked when she hadn't explained herself before, when she wanted to. I was just closed-minded about the whole thing. You didn't deserve any of that. "You had every right to," she finally said to him, speaking slowly as if choosing her words. "I haven't been entirely honest since I first popped up in your life and…I guess it started to get to you."

"Honestly, we weren't sure if we wanted to bring you in to STAR Labs at first, but Dr. Wells insisted that Cisco make you a suit and that we allowed you to join us." He turned towards the man that sat in his wheelchair, gently taking off his glasses and cleaning them before replacing them on his face. "I mean, I was the first to give you the chance, but you should be thanking Dr. Wells." He turned towards her with a sympathetic smile. "I mean, if you're not still reeling about the whole, him being your father thing."

"Well,"—her eyebrows furrowed together as she gave an amused smile—"I think the initial shock is gone. It came at a really band time, you know?"

"I'll say."

"Otherwise, despite recent circumstances, thanks for believing in me. Like I said before, I had never known anyone that I didn't have to be so guarded around. So when I figured out that there was someone in Central City that could do the same thing, I looked for you. But that was on my own merit, at the time, it had nothing to do with the Assassination Bureau. I thought you could help me find Brady and you did…and so much more so…all in all I just want to thank you for being such a good friend, Barry." She regarded him curiously, almost a bit shy. "That is…if we are still friends?"

Barry twisted his mouth to the side and thought about it for a moment. Finally, he looked at Cadence out of the corner of his eye and broke his façade, laughing a little nervously at her intense stare. "If it's something that I've learned within the past…wow, almost a year, that I've been doing this, is that you don't have a lot of people that you can put your life in the hands of and know they're going to help you no matter what. I used to think, for this part of my life, that was only Cisco, Caitlin, and Dr. Wells…and Oliver. And now Felicity and Diggle and Roy…" he looked at her again. "And you."

"Well that's good," Cadence remarked. "Because if it weren't for me, you'd probably be dead." Barry gave her an incredulous look. "Well, actually, if it were for me, you'd be dead, too, so I guess that doesn't make my point."

Barry laughed. "No, not really." He finished off his last burger and tossed the wrapper to the floor. He pressed his lips together for a moment, eyebrows furrowing. "When we met…were you really looking for me?"

"I guess, I haven't really explained myself have I," Cadence remarked. She was silent for a moment then cleared her throat, speaking up so that the others could hear her. "I guess…I owe all of you guys an explanation about…everything that's been going on since I came around." Brady leaned against his mother's side and she ran her fingers through his hair before wrapping her arms around him. "Where do you want me to start? When Brady was born or back when Liver used to chase me around with snails and frogs?"

Diggle snorted loudly. "Liver?" He asked, turning over the Arrow, who pressed his lips together and gently shook his head towards the fire metahuman. "That's a new one."

"I thought you would have grown out of that by now," Oliver remarked towards her.

"It's just payback for the frogs," Cadence said. "I still have plenty of pictures in my arsenal for the snails."

"You have pictures of Little Oliver?" Felicity asked, her eyes immediately lighting up. "I want to see!" She bit her lower lip at the resulting silence that accompanied her statement. Slowly, she brought a hand up to cover her mouth. "We've been going at this for hours." She then squeezed her eyes and fists, clenching her teeth. "I mean, we're all tired, I'm not thinking straight. Please just get to your story before I manage to cram a third foot into my mouth."

Cisco held his hands over his mouth, trying to contain the laughter that was threatening to break out. Caitlin, who did her best to keep from laughing as well, elbowed him in the side and the two fell into similar stances of pressing their lips together and crossing their arms.

"Okay." Cadence tucked her hair behind her ears and let out a light sigh. "Well, now you guys know that Brady isn't my brother, he's my son. I got pregnant when I was sixteen and my boyfriend, Brady's father, wasn't allowed to see me anymore. His parents shipped him off to a boarding school shortly after we told them and I finished up the school year. After that…my parents kicked me out of the house." She absentmindedly ran her hands over Brady's hair as he tilted his head back and looked up at her critically, showing that she hadn't told him the whole truth as to why they never visited him much. "They didn't want to have their pregnant daughter around when they had so many high profile clients coming their way, not with all of the gossip and rumors because my boyfriend's Dad is one of the wealthiest in Metropolis. Apart from the Luthors, of course.

"So there I was, seventeen years old with a one year old son and having no idea where to go. So I went to the first place I knew would be far enough away and where no one would know who I was if I mentioned my name, and that was Central City." Cadence lowered her head and looked up at her friends, gauging their reaction. Despite Harrison shifting in his seat and Caitlin and Cisco exchanging glances, they all continued to stare at her. "I've lived in Central City ever since then, going back and forth to Metropolis when I needed to. I got my GED, went to Central City Community College for two years then transferred to Central City University in a program that fast-tracked me through pre-med. Went to Med school…and the rest is history, I guess. Ancient history, in a way."

"So you were here in Central City when the Particle Accelerator blew?" Caitlin asked.

The fire metahuman tilted her head to the side for a moment, lightly chewing her bottom lip. "Yes, we were. We were in our apartment when it blew and watched some of the other explosions that came from it. We heard about the casualties in the aftermath and then heard what happened with Barry and how he was put in a coma. Then like I said when I first met you guys, I thought it was sort of strange how the day that a guy wakes up form a nine month coma, who had been heavily featured on blog posts and some Facebook statuses, there was 'The Streak' or 'The Blur' or whatever it was that he was called before being called 'The Flash' that just so happened to come up around the same time. And I was excited. Finally there was someone around that could do the same things I could do since I was a little girl, and he was helping save the city in some ways. And while I know that setting a fire probably wasn't the best way to get your attention, I had it under control and knew that you would investigate it. And…that's where I met you guys.

"Apparently I wasn't the only one that noticed the existence of the Flash as Breathtaker and the others noticed and wanted to use him to, apparently, get to Dr. Wells." Her cheek twitched at the mention of her father's name, but continued with her explanation. "They must've been following him for a while, since the Accelerator explosion, to know so much about him and me. The thing is…I met Leah ages ago, when I was still at CCU and she seemed so normal. We were friends, I guess, even if she was a bit older than me. Then she introduced me to Lucas…and you can see how well that turned out."

"Did you two have a thing?" Felicity asked.

"Not even close. It was more like…he was very arrogant, and was sure that he knew better than everyone at everything. I never met whoever the real Incognito or Breathtaker was before the explosion, and it wasn't until after when I went to see if Leah and Lucas were okay, that I realized they had gotten some powers. They were showing off with it at first and, while they weren't always straight-laced, they figured they could use it to their advantage and get a better life. Because, of course, money makes people happy. So they fell into the life of crime, met Breathtaker and Incognito and were convinced that becoming mercenaries was the best way for them to get there, and because Breathtaker is very convincing when he wants to be. I didn't know about the influence Leah was putting on me until I was too late into it and even then I still didn't really know until all of this."

Cadence spread her arms then rested them gently on Brady's shoulders. "And that's everything." She then snapped and held up a hand. "Actually, that's not everything. I had great control of my powers every since I was eight years old, I put a cap on it, not allowing myself to get to the point where I became dangerous to anyone else because I had to keep it a secret. My parents know and apart from you guys, that's just about it. I couldn't let anyone else know in case I hurt them and having to hide it so much made me learn how to control it a lot faster. But I was confused as to how I could've gotten my powers, especially when other metahumans popped up after the explosion. And I didn't know until Dr. Wells over there, told me that he injected me with something that gave me my powers."

A light laugh escaped Harrison's lips as all eyes turned towards him, slightly accusatory. "In her justified anger, Cadence seems to be forgetting that she had been placed in the hospital with a very bad fever, during this time." He looked directly at Cadence and she stared back at him. "An offset of the flu; her body wasn't responding to antibiotics and her fever continued to spike until she was hospitalized. While visiting her, I gave her a concoction that I believed would save her and it did…and then some. I had no idea it would mutate and give her her abilities. Just like I had no way of knowing the Particle Accelerator explosion would give Barry and countless others theirs."

"Now, I think that's everything," Cadence added.

"What about that fire in Smallville?" Diggle asked, staring hard at her. He nodded over towards Oliver, who perked up at the mention of it. "Through our research…we found that there was a blaze that had destroyed a good chunk of farm land down there and that you were—"

"Considered a suspect?" Cadence interrupted. She let out a sarcastic laugh. "I guess my Dad's money was good for something. Firstly, I didn't start that fire. I had nothing to do with it. But I guess at one point I wasn't careful when I was by myself and someone saw me use my powers at one point. And it was well known that the teens in Metropolis would go down to Smallville for some fun, while teens from Smallville would go to Metropolis. My friends and I always went to Smallville on the weekends to hang out. It hadn't rained there in a while and a storm came through, lightning struck a fence post or something and it started a fire. Someone started a rumor that I started it, I was investigated for a bit but then I was cleared so…"

Diggle nodded, satisfied with the answer. There was a brief moment of silence that filled the room before Cisco slowly started to raise his hand, bringing all eyes his way. His eyes were narrowed in confusion and when he had the chance to speak, he seemed unsure of what to ask as his mouth opened and closed repeatedly.

"Yes, Cisco?" Barry prompted him. "You wanted to ask something?"

"Well, where do I start?" Cisco replied. He ran a hand through his hair before starting to pace back and forth. "I really want to get to that really sweet sword that you somehow managed to create through your powers. But there's also something else I'm not so sure of. Not only is it that you clearly have the capability to bring more power to your fights, though the risk of having another seizure is great. But that also means that you have an incredible sense of control as, in life, fire is considered a really unstable element."

"Yeah," Cadence agreed. She waved a hand, prompting him to further the conversation.

"So…if you're that controlled with your powers and you can lose control when you're very emotional as we've seen before…" Cisco trailed off and turned towards Caitlin, whose eyes widened a little in anticipation. Cisco held his breath for a moment then turned back to Cadence, holding his hands up defensively. "Please forgive me if this is too forward but you have a son so…what happens when you—"

"Oh!" Cadence slid her hands into the back pockets of her jeans. "Uhh…let's just say I set his room on fire…in more ways than one."

"And he didn't know it was you that did that?"

"No. Thankfully, he had candles lit."

"Candles?" Barry snorted, trying and failing to hide his laugher.

"We were sixteen and in love, don't judge," Cadence shot back, though she appeared amused as well. "Besides, it was better than cheesy romance music or doves, so…" She awkwardly motioned back towards Cisco. "Is that all you wanted to know?"

"Actually, there's a lot more, but I don't think now would be the best time to ask," Cisco pointed out as an alarm started to go off on his computer. He flopped down into his seat and pulled up a map of Central City. "Guys there are accident and fires and emergency calls coming in all over the city. We may have the metahumans in the pipeline, but it's going to take a while for the city to get put back the way it once was."

"Especially now that so many people know about metahumans," Roy added. "There have to be news footage and amateur footage everywhere."

"Just like when I first got mine," Barry agreed. He quickly explained, "One of the first few days that I woke up, Clyde Mardon attacked and robbed Gold City Banks and there were eyewitnesses that had recorded everything on their phones. If enough people come forward, then we're all going to be exposed."

"Don't worry about that," Oliver stated, reaching behind him to pull up his hood. "I can take care of it." He turned on his heel and started to walk out of STAR Labs.

"Oliver, what are you going to do?" Felicity called after him.

"You're not going to kill anyone are you?" Barry added, eyes widening with concern.

"No. I'm just going to put the fear of God in them."

"As helpful as that would be, Mr. Queen, I have another idea I think would suffice the situation that we're currently in," Harrison said. "Though as it is, I don't believe I'll need your help with it. It's late and we've all been working hard over night. I implore you to go get some sleep." He grabbed onto the control stick of his wheelchair and maneuvered himself around to leave the cortex. "We still have some work to do."

"I told you, Barry, you didn't need to walk us back to our apartment," Cadence said as he turned to the speedy metahuman as he strolled beside her. She shifted Brady up higher in her arms, moving his head to her left shoulder as he snorted quietly. "It's not that far away."

"I know, but if we can't use our abilities until we're sure everything blows over, I wanted to make sure you guys got home alright," Barry said. "Especially since we don't know who else is still out here." He ran a hand through his hair before shoving them into the pocket of his jacket. "I wouldn't be able to live with myself if something happened."

"Well, I think I've proven I can take care of myself, and you, but thanks all the same." The two smiled at each other as they continued on. "I'd invite you in, but it's kinda late and I'm sure I don't have nearly enough in the refrigerator. Though the ice cream seemed to last you a while."

Barry grimaced, feeling guilty about what he had blurted out when he was under Bivolo's influence once more. It didn't help that Bivolo and Captain Boomerang managed to get away from their clutches throughout the chaos that had stormed through Central City. She had told him the secret after he confronted her about Brady, telling him the entire story of her relationship with his father and how she had been teased and called names all throughout school. Not to mention the snide remarks he heard sent her way from the other parents at her school when he had gone with her to pick Brady up from school as well as when the boy's class had visited the CCPD. Then he turned around and spilled her secret with the most malicious intent.

"I saw that," Cadence said to him. "You really don't have to apologize anymore. Besides, it wasn't fair to Brady for him to keep saying he was my brother and now I don't have to be so on guard about anything anymore. I'm happy it got out."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I am." She looked up and stopped when she recognized the front of their apartment building. "This is our place. Thanks for walking us back, Bare." She gently shifted Brady. "If he were awake, I think he'd thank you, too, but it's been a long night for all of us."

"Well, he's welcome, too." Barry reached out and ruffled Brady's hair before reaching out and giving Cadence a one-armed hug. Cadence hugged him back, squeezing him tightly. "I'll see you later, Cade. Gotta run."

Cadence laughed lightly. "Stay warm," she replied before turning on her heel and going inside.

Barry watched until they disappeared from view, suddenly overcome with a feeling of exhaustion, before looking around. Once he was sure the coast was clear, he raced back to his apartment. Changing into his pajamas, Barry went over to his bed and crashed onto it, passing out in a few minutes.

This time, he slept soundly.

A/N: Whew, finally we get some more back-story on Cadence, though it'll go more in depth with it in the sequel. Next chapter is all about Barry and explains what happened with the Assassination Bureau as well as Iris, Eddie, and Joe. Thanks for reading, guys.

Cheers,

-Riles