Notes: Season 3 AU; using some of Frost's later seasons characterization

Rogue Ice

Killer Frost. That was the name her Earth 2 doppelganger had gone by. She doesn't think it fits her, though. After all, who has she actually killed? Caitlin?

Caitlin's still in there with her, safe and sound and riding backseat for a change.

She doesn't know who she is right now, just that if she follows through with what everyone else is expecting of her then she'll find Savitar and, eventually, become Killer Frost for real. It's just... Savitar has yet to kill anyone himself. He's let everyone else do his dirty work, like killing anyone except Iris is beneath him. And she may not know who she is yet, but she does know one thing for certain.

This girl doesn't do anyone's dirty work but her own.

So she does not go looking for Savitar. She's done with that nonsense and while she hopes Iris doesn't kick the bucket, Team Flash has made a lot of assumptions about who she is without giving her a chance to decide who she wants to be. Especially Caity. The only reason she even exists is to protect Caitlin and this is the response she gets.

It's not fair. She doesn't want her future dictated to her by people who are afraid of her or who only want to use her to further their own ends.

But she has no where else to go, does she? Maybe.

She doesn't go looking for Savitar, but she does go looking for trouble. And it takes her a while before she finds where she's looking for. Who she's looking for.

Hartley looks very annoyed to be woken up at four thirty in the morning, but he doesn't look afraid of her.

"Caitlin, do you have any idea what fucking time it is?" He sighed, heavily, "I like the hair and the eyes, though. Suits you. Sudden onset meta-human?" There's a hint of teasing to his voice.

"It's not sudden. And I'm not Caitlin. She's still rattling around in here, but she's had the reins long enough. My turn to have fun." She tilted her head to the side, watching for a reaction. Waiting to see him be afraid of her. But he just opens the door a little wider and waves her into his apartment.

"Got a name, then? Calling you not-Caitlin seems a little rude."

She smiles because... he isn't afraid of her. "Frost. My name is Frost."

"Well, make yourself at home. I'm going back to sleep for at least three more hours." Hartley side eyed her. "Unless you absolutely need to talk to me about something right this very second."

She shook her head. "I need a place to crash and to stay off Team Flash's radar. I'm not their favorite person right now, but they've got bigger problems than little old me."

"In that case, mi casa es su casa." He waved at the couch. "PS3 is logged into my Netflix account. I just ask that you use the guest user so as not to lose my place with any shows I'm in the middle of watching."

"Awesome. Thanks." Frost - and she did like that, it was her choice and her name after all - settled on the couch and grabbed the remote to flip on the TV. "Noise won't bother your ears?"

"While I'd prefer you keep it to subtitles only, I'll be fine if you don't." Hartley yawned. "See you at an hour of the morning that isn't god awful," he declared, heading into his bedroom to sleep. And it's more like four hours later when he re-emerges and sets the electric kettle to boil, but he does seem better rested.

Frost pauses the show she's been watching - subtitles on instead of audio - and turns to watch him instead.

"You want tea or something else?" Hartley asked.

"I've never had tea before. Might as well try the boiled grass and find out."

Hartley snorted in amusement. "This one is more along the lines of leaves, rose hips, and..." another yawn, "strawberries. Nice combo. Not my usual morning tea but I forgot to make a grocery store run yesterday and I'm nearly out of everything. I'm not sure if this is even caffeinated, but if I don't check then if it isn't then maybe I'll still get a placebo effect from it."

There's a snort of amusement and it takes Frost a moment to realize she made that noise. She smiles. "Well let's give it a try. Thanks."

Hartley gives her a thumbs up and then finishes making tea and jam covered toast in silence. He joins her on the couch and offers her some toast along with her tea before settling back and watching her curiously. "So, what's your story? What has you on the run from the team of well meaning hypocrites?"

"Caity doesn't like losing control, so she was scared of me. And because she was scared of me, everyone else was scared of me too. But I'm not gonna let their fears dictate who I am." Frost taste tested the tea and the frowned. Too hot. She poked it with her finger, carefully, not wanting it to freeze. Then she tried again. Much better this time. More along the lines of iced tea right out of the fridge.

"That's fair. So I guess they want to force you to let Caitlin be in control a hundred percent of the time and you'd rather get your bearings on who you are as a person before even considering a potential time share with her?"

"Pretty much." Frost nibbled on the toast and then smiled. Strawberry rhubarb jam to go with the tea. Delicious.

"So, just a heads up, but Lisa Snart is supposed to be getting back into town this evening. She's planning on reforming the rogues, though that's really just me right now. Maybe Axel if he can convince her it's worth springing him from jail again. So don't be too surprised if she tries to recruit you." Hartley smirked in amusement. "Or seduce you. Probably both."

Not something that he'd have told Caitlin. He really did believe she was someone different. But not bad different.

"Huh." Frost tapped her chin lightly. "I wonder if I'm amenable to being seduced."

"I suppose you'll find out when she starts flirting with you." Hartley gave her a look. "Have you slept at all since taking control of your body?"

Her body? As much hers as it was Caitlin's... and Hartley was the first to acknowledge that.

She shook her head. "Too wired. Everything's new. The last time I was in charge I was... too full of Caitlin's fear. I looked for a way to unmake myself... and couldn't find it."

"But you aren't looking to unmake yourself anymore?" Hartley asked carefully.

"No." Frost shook her head. "I want to have everything this life has to offer me. And screw Caitlin's fear. She can grow a backbone and learn to live with me."

"Good."

"I might be a little tired, though," she admitted.

Hartley nodded. "I'm gonna shower and change and head out on a grocery store run. While I'm out, feel free to use my bed to sleep, okay?"

Frost nodded. And then yawned. In the back of her head she could feel Caitlin watching, but powerless to shove Frost out of the driver's seat. "What if Caitlin takes control back while I'm asleep?"

"Then I'm going to chew her out for being shitty to you," Hartley told her honestly. "I don't know why you came to me, but now you've got someone on your side in this."

And that, Frost thinks to herself, is exactly why she sought him out. Because if anyone understood the rejection Frost faced from the very people who should have helped her find her feet in this world...

Hartley Rathaway was that person.

Frost wakes up and she's still running the show.

She gets out of Hartley's bed and checks herself out in the mirror. And rolls her eyes at the clothing she's wearing. Caitlin's style was so boring and conservative. Always so worried about what other people thought of her.

Frost wants to dress for herself. To dress in a way that makes her feel confident and sexy and to hell what anyone else thinks of her. Maybe that's something Lisa can help her with.

But for now, Frost wants to play with her powers. Enjoy them.

Hartley takes her to an abandoned warehouse and tells her, "have at it." So she does.

She creates tracks of ice, sliding up and around the huge, empty room like her own personal rollercoaster. It's exhilarating and she whoops with joy.

Before, Frost had only used her powers to threaten. And for all that Mr. Perfect called her bluff, he'd still thought she was basically evil!Caitlin and not a person all on her own, who valued Caitlin's friends for being Caitlin's friends.

But this is fun and when she twirls around, spinning like a ballet dancer or a figure skater, she swirls the ice up around her in beautiful spirals.

"Looking absolutely gorgeous."

Frost comes to a stop and looks over. Lisa Snart is standing with Hartley, off to the side of the warehouse. And she's watching Frost with an almost predatory expression. And... oh... Frost wants.

"Well thank you, gorgeous," Frost purred, bringing herself down to the ground in front of Hartley and Lisa. "Wanna come dance with me?"

Hartley looked ridiculously amused as Lisa happily took Frost's hand.

"I used to be a figure skater," Lisa told her. "Almost made the Olympics, but then my father, well... Lewis Snart never liked having children more successful than him."

"So you feel at home on the ice, huh?" Frost teased, opting for a lighter topic for now.

"Like I was meant to be here," Lisa agreed.

"I hear you might be interested in bringing in a new Rogue?" Frost slid them around on some of the lower pathways she'd first created. "I admit, I don't really have any skills for theft, but I'm a quick study and my powers could be quite useful. And it's been made quite clear I'm not considered Team Flash material."

"Oh, hunny," Lisa kissed Frost's cheek, "I would absolutely love to have you in the rogues."

"I'm gonna need a whole new wardrobe," Frost added. "Caity's clothing choices are boring."

"Well then, shops are open for a few hours yet. Let's go get you something that'll drop some jaws, shall we?"

Frost picks her outfits because they make her feel good about her body. She looks good in the dark, form fitting clothing that shows off her curves. But the hungry look Lisa Snart gives her is a bonus.

Caitlin murmurs in the back of Frosts mind, longing for pastels and clothes that didn't include a 'boob window' type view. Frost ignored Caitlin, just like all the times Caitlin ignored her.

Hartley and Lisa teach her to pick locks and disable cameras. And all three of them figure out the best applications for to use her powers in small heists. They hit a jewelry store to test how much she'd learned and their lessons had paid off. Not a peep from the Flash during the whole affair.

Lisa puts a delicate snowflake necklace around Frost's neck afterwards. "It's almost as pretty as you are."

"I'm gonna kiss you," Frost warned. But Lisa beat her to it.

The next time the new Rogues go out, Hartley and Lisa break Axel out of jail while Frost plays decoy, keeping the Flash busy and icing him to a wall before running off. The violence is exhilarating and Frost enjoys it despite knowing that it was this kind of impulse that made Caity fear her. She's not murderous, though, and if Barry was really paying attention then he'd realize she didn't mean him any lasting harm. Humiliation maybe, but no physical harm.

But the encounter it also reminds Frost that the Flash is running on a deadline for his girlfriend's murder.

Iris had been nice, if completely uninterested in getting to know Caitlin. She didn't deserve to die just so Savitar could traumatize Barry. And Frost knows from Caity the date and time Iris West's death was supposed to occur.

In the end it's not a difficult choice to show up, Lisa parked a block away waiting to be Frost's getaway driver.

Savitar is so focused on killing Iris and watching Barry's reaction to that murder, he never notices Frost's attack until it's too late. She throws him across the street and freezes his suit to the cement.

It turns out 'Iris' is actually HR, but he didn't deserve to die in Iris' place either. And Frost doesn't care about the details. She swans off while Team Flash figures out how to get their shit together. Frost's got a sexy getaway driver to join and a friend, who actually wants to put her first, to update on the situation.

Cisco finds her. Probably using his powers to vibe Caitlin.

"I'm not giving Caitlin control again," Frost said, after letting Cisco into her safe house. Well, hers and Lisa's. "Not until she's willing to promise to share with me."

"Not like I've got any say in that," Cisco conceded. "But Caitlin is still in there?"

"Yeah. She's here. Sleeping more often than not." Frost scowled at him. "I'm not a monster and you all treated me like one. I didn't ask to exist, but I do and I have a right to be able to live my own life. I'd rather not do that at Caitlin's expense, but..." she shrugged. "I'm dating Lisa."

"Snart?"

"Apparently I'm a lesbian," Frost replied with a nod and a grin. "And Hartley was all worried about Lisa seducing innocent ol' me and I'm the one who swept her off her feet."

Predictably, Cisco grimaces at the mention of Hartley. "I'm glad you've got people looking out for you," he finally said. Probably because if they were looking out for her, then they were helping keep Caitlin safe.

Frost changes the subject. "Iris okay?"

"Yeah. Physically anyway. But Barry's been pulled into the speed force. Someone had to stabilize the speed force prison now that Savitar's been mostly erased from history. And I don't know how to get Barry out yet." Cisco hesitated, "HR wants to thank you for saving him."

"Maybe I'll swing by STAR Labs and say hi sometime." She doesn't ask about Julian and Cisco doesn't say that he feels bereft without his two best friends.

Frost feels bad for him. She's not going to promise anything. But maybe it's time she and Caitlin had a little chat.

Looking in the mirror, Frost imagined the reflection wasn't platinum blonde with ice blue eyes, but brunette hair paired with brown eyes. "I think it's time we talked," Frost said.

In her head, Caitlin replied tentatively, "yeah. It is. I misjudged you. I'm sorry."

It turns out that when Frost cries, her tears freeze. Which is actually kind of annoying.