Author's Note: I realized that Chapter 12, the second part to 'Black Orchid' was never uploaded so I just did that now. Please go read chapter 12 as it brings closure to the 2-part arc!
Barry, as usual, was running late for his date. To make it up, he nabbed some flowers (and left the proper amount of money due) as he sped to the restaurant.
"You're late!" Belén was going to scold when she saw the bunch of the Azaleas in Barry's arms. "Oh, are those for me?"
"No, they're for the hostess," Barry thought to respond, but his sarcasm couldn't have been chosen at the wronged time.
Belén's face fell flat. "Excuse me?" she crossed her arms.
"U-uh, I m-meant y-you! A-absolutely you!" Barry swooped down to kiss her. He had to stop screwing things up already!
Belén pulled away from him and laughed. "You're such an idiot but you're my idiot so all is forgiven."
"Totally yours," Barry agreed, nodding his head fast. Belén giggled and leaned in to kiss him again when a strong force yanked her back.
The Azaleas fell to the ground.
Barry blinked and suddenly Zoom was holding Belén up like she was a rag doll. Barry stiffened but just as he was about to move, Zoom broke into a run. In a second Barry was after them.
Zoom was dangling Belén over a building's roof ledge. She was thrashing against his hold but it was doing nothing for her case. "Help!" she decided to then cry for.
"Flash, everything you have will be mine," Zoom said then promptly let go of Belén.
"NOO!" Barry rushed over as fast as he could but he just wasn't fast enough to save Belén.
Barry awoke with a fierce, terrified gasp. He breathed fast and heavy as his eyes scanned his bedroom. It took him several seconds to realize that he was in his bedroom, completely alone and not on a rooftop trying to save Belén. Still, without a second thought, he seized his cellphone from the nightstand and dialed Belén's number. It felt like eternity had passed before Belén picked up.
"...hello?" came her sleep-full, groggy voice.
Barry knew he'd rudely interrupted her sleep but right now he just needed to make sure she was okay and out of Zoom's way. He could apologize and make it up to her later in the day. "B-Bells, are you okay? Are you-"
"I'm tired…" her muffled words had a tinge of a child's tone. "It's…" she breathed in, "...3 a.m…"
Barry checked the time on his clock and made a face. It was 3 a.m. He would definitely make it up to her. "You're right, sorry. I was just…" But he couldn't tell her anything of what he saw. It would just scare her. "Sorry, Bells. Goodnight."
"Mhm...goodnight," And a second later Belén had hung up. Barry figured she wouldn't remember this in the morning.
With a sigh, Barry out down his phone and laid back down. His eyes were staring at the ceiling but his mind was somewhere else. Each night he had a different nightmare about the same concept. Zoom was threatening someone he cared for and he couldn't save them. Last night it was Zoom killing Caitlin and Cisco, the day before had Iris, and before that it was Joe...now tonight's star was Belén. As much as Barry wanted to tell himself they were just nightmares, the feeling of constant terror wouldn't leave him. Zoom could come in at any moment and hurt anyone.
I need to get faster, was the same thought that crossed his mind day and night.
~0~
With her eyes shut, Belén breathed in quietly and exhaled in the same manner. She sat cross-legged in one of the sandy areas of her greenhouse. Her hands rested over her legs in a zen manner.
"Just keep your mind clear," Shivhan walked in a circle around Belén. "All you need to think about it is the Green."
"How do I do that if I don't even know what it looks like?" Belén said without opening her eyes.
"Okay," Shivhan paused her waking in front of Belén. She squatted down to face the woman even though the latter couldn't see her. "The Green is a beautiful place, honestly. It's the only place that I can...feel truly peaceful. It's green - big shocker," - Belén smiled - "There's these tall trees that look like they go up and up, forever. There's beautiful flowers of all kinds. Representative of every botanical metahuman. It's almost like an enchanted forest. There's no noise. And by that, I mean there's no city noise. You just hear the leaves sway, the swish of gentle water. There's no cold there, there's no heat. It's perfect."
"Sounds perfect," Belén sighed and opened her eyes to reveal a saddened expression. "And I just can't get into it."
"We can keep trying-"
"-no, we've been at this for two hours. I think we're done for today," Belén started getting up from the ground. Shivhan had tried her hardest to help Belén finally get into the Green where she would be able to learn more about her powers, but Belén just wasn't feeling it. She literally could not access the place. She did everything Shivhan had instructed her to, but it seemed not even the Greenhouse Shivhan built in STAR Labs was enough to help Belén concentrate.
"Are you sure?" Shivhan straightened on her feet. The guilt on her face was clear as day.
"Don't worry, today's just not the day," Belén told her to ease the woman's guilt. "Maybe a break is good."
"I'm sorry if I'm not doing enough," Shivhan was the one to sigh now.
"No, you've done more than enough," Belén almost laughed as she gestured to the room. "You built me a Greenhouse, okay? It's just...I have a lot of things on my mind and...it's hard clearing them away when they're gnawing at me."
"I'm sorry," Shivhan still felt the need to say. She wanted to help Belén take down that bitch Datura and the only way to do that was to get Belén to access the Green. "Oh!" she gasped suddenly. "I know what we can do - well, I'll do it but then I'll get back to you."
"What did you have in mind?" Belén watched the suddenly excited woman backtrack towards the door.
"I'm going to go to the Green and ask the others what I can do to make it easier for you. It'll be fine - I'll be back when I have the answer!"
"O...kay," Belén watched Shivhan hurry out of the room. It did sound like a good idea, to be honest. With any luck, it might bring something good to them.
After a couple minutes, Belén got herself together to leave the room only to bump into her mother.
"Oh, there you are!" Veronica exclaimed with a visible - quite big - smile on her face. "I asked Cisco and he said to go down a left and then another left and...this place is bigger than I thought."
Belén nodded in agreement. "Oh yeah. But you get used to it. You'll get used to it." She smiled softly. Ever since Christmas, she was finally getting on track with her mother. Veronica had been stopping by STAR Labs more frequently to be more informed on their metahuman business, and sometimes she just stopped by to see Belén when the latter wasn't at CC Pictures.
It was nice.
Belén had never really been able to say her mother was in her life, and much less that they were on good speaking terms. The whole thing was a novelty but she loved it. There was a new sense of support that only a mother could give.
"So what is this place?" Veronica began to look around the greenhouse more in depth. She hadn't yet seen the room but she'd heard talk from Belén and the others that it was great.
"It's the Greenhouse that Shivhan built for me," Belén turned to face the room. "Isn't it wonderful?"
"Amazing," Veronica admitted. "It doesn't even feel like we're still inside STAR Labs." She raised her head to see the sun reflecting through the glass ceiling. "And Shivhan really built this place?"
"She's very good at it," Belén folded her arms. "I just added a few more furniture pieces but everything else was her."
"And what do you do here? I mean, besides plant things…"
Belén smiled while Veronica tried her best not to look like she was judging. It was reasonable that she didn't yet really understand how Belén's powers worked.
"You know how Barry has his own training room downstairs?"
"You mean that eery blue room with the cardboard cut outs?" Veronica shivered. It was a creepy room that she got into a fight with Cisco because she'd openly declared how weird it was that he kept cutouts of everyone.
Belén laughed and nodded her head. "Yeah. The idea is that this room is all mine. I can use it meditate, to relax and keep myself in-tune with my powers."
"How would you do that?" Veronica eyed the bookshelf lined with several books. "By reading?"
"Sometimes," Belén nodded again. "I'm not a scientist but I do want to know more about botany. That way I can understand my powers better. But see, my powers don't come from strength. I'm not like Barry who needs to push himself to run faster and thus have a better hold on his powers. I need to be relaxed, at peace, to conjure up my powers. It's so weird, but…"
"Weird, ha…" Veronica blurted in a low mumble while she gazed at a bush of bright pink Azaleas. When she caught herself she quickly looked at her daughter. "I just meant -"
"It's fine, Mom," Belén almost laughed again. She could tell Veronica was trying really hard and that was all Belén wanted. "It's more than weird. You should've seen me when this all started. But I'm better now, thanks to everyone here and...myself."
"I was talking to um, Caitlin, and she was telling me that you've been trying to access this...other world? That's why you were in here with Shivhan?"
"I'm trying to access the Green. It's supposed to be this place where all botanical metahumans can go to for training, for peace, to meet with others BUT but…" Belén shook her head, "I am having the hardest time getting there. Shivan's doing everything she can but it really is on me to get there."
"Well take a break," Veronica suggested, not knowing that Belén had already suggested it earlier. "If you try too much at one thing, over and over, you'll never get good results."
"I know," Belén pushed her hair back. "Which is why I was leaving."
'Belén,' Cisco's voice called from the speaker above, 'Come to cortex quick!'
"You heard him," Belén led the her mother out of the greenhouse. She wondered what Cisco wanted since it'd been a pretty quiet day so far. They'd come into the cortex to find everyone already there, except Shivhan of course. "When did you get here?" Belén asked Barry as soon as she spotted him.
"A while back but I didn't want to interrupt yours and Shivhan's session," he opened his arms to hug her. He'd had to physically restrain himself from checking up on her in the Greenhouse (and maybe everywhere else) and that was only because Caitlin assured him that Belén was in there. With those recurring nightmares he had, it was impossible not to be afraid for her.
"It didn't work out again," Belén sighed. "Shivhan's going to be out for a couple days, probably. She's going to be in the Green herself trying to figure out how to get me in there."
"You'll get it," Barry placed a kiss on the top of her head. He then met Veronica's gaze and smiled. "Afternoon."
Veronica gave a nod. Everyone was being rally cautious around her out of fear that they would do something wrong and screw up Belén's new chance with her.
"Alright you guys," Cisco dramatically clapped his hands to get the group's attention. "I've been doing a lot of thinking on our Zoom problelm and I think I may have discovered a way to defeat him." He shooed Caitlin and Jay away from the computers in order to pull up a specific profile on the screen on the wall. "As some of you may well know, I've been deeply embroiled in a secret, one-sided battle with an invisible enemy."
Caitlin groaned and rolled her eyes. "No, not the Turtle again."
"You're still doing that one?" Belén raised an eyebrow, leaving Barry to flicker questionable gazes between her and Caitlin. He and Veronica were on the same page.
"What? What is the... or who is the Turtle?" he asked.
"It's Cisco's white whale," Caitlin slowly sighed. It'd been a while since Cisco mentioned the particular metahuman which led her to believe he finally dropped the entire thing.
"Half whale, half turtle?" Veronica made a face, and for a brief moment everyone could see a little of Belén in that.
"No," Cisco quickly shot down then sent a look to Caitlin. "Do you see what you're doing, Caitlin? Everybody's confused now."
"Get to it," Harry instructed, his face aggravated.
"I stumbled upon a few of these cases when we were looking for the Reverse Flash, robberies that were seemingly committed at high speed... people holding their beloved items one second. Those items were gone the next. Tell me what you see."
Everyone turned their attention to the screen that was showing them security feed of a store. Everyone seemed to be frozen in their spots while a one man walked at regular speed. He took off with an object on display like nothing.
"Did he stop time?" Veronica looked at her daughter. "Is that a power too? Stopping time?"
"We've yet to find one of those," Belén shrugged. "But I'm sure he or she is out there too."
"No, no, no, he's not stopping time," Cisco called to them to keep paying attention. "Look at the time code. It's still running."
"Yeah, okay. So if he's not stopping time, what is he doing?" Veronica challenged him.
"He's slowing down everything around him. And that is why we call him the Turtle."
"You decided to call him the turtle," Belén corrected him.
"Why have you never mentioned this guy to me before?" Barry asked, sounding a little offended that everyone seemed to know about the Turtle but him.
"Oh, I don't know, I think we've just been a little distracted, you know, what with other evil metas and whatnot. Do I need to go on?" Cisco's sarcasm had an icy tinge to it, but Barry merely smiled and let him continue. "Okay, so if we can catch him, figure out how he uses his powers...maybe we can show Zoom what life is like in the slow lane."
"How would you even know where to find him?" asked Jay.
Barry took matters into his own hands and rushed for the computers. He did his speedy investigation - which left an awed Veronica - and soon came up with some details. "Well, the robberies in the videos all correspond with police reports that were dismissed as lost or missing items instead of thefts. The suspect's M.O. being... Items of immense personal value." He continued to do a little bit more of searching until he stopped, stared, and sped off with his suit.
Caitlin moved over to see what Barry had found. "Uh... oh, it appears that there's a press conference at CCPD, because the Vandervoort diamonds have just been recovered."
"Is it really a good idea to let him go like that?" Veronica quietly asked her daughter.
"Most of the time he doesn't give us a head's up," Belén sighed and joined her friends by the desk. "Could we pull up security feed to see what happens? I get the feeling watching a speedster go up against a man who can slow things down is going to be interesting."
Caitlin hummed in agreement and pulled up the security feed. There they saw Singh giving a press conference to a group of reporters. Beside him were a couple of men, one of which was holding a jewelry box with a necklace and a golden ring.
"We're going to want to do facial recognition," Cisco quickly took his seat beside Caitlin, ready to get to work.
Belén, Veronica, Jay and Harry all crowded behind the two to watch. In no time had Barry confronted the Turtle, but as it turned out even Barry was a little outmatched against the man. The Turtle had emitted some sort of greenish glow that slowed everyone down, including Barry for a bit, and made a clean getaway with a golden ring.
"And he strikes again," Cisco made a comical frown. "Genius of a power, I'll tell you."
"So what exactly are we intending on doing with this guy when we catch him?" Belén moved over to Cisco. Cisco opened his mouth to respond when Barry sped back in, completely disoriented from his little trip. "You're an idiot for going out there like that, by the way," Belén called to him.
"I'm fine, thanks for asking," Barry sarcastically retorted.
"Shouldn't have gone out like that," she repeated louder in case his ears had been affected by the Turtle. "So Cisco, how are we going to use this Turtle for our needs?"
"Well, his powers are crucial to defeat Zoom so we'd need to examine them...maybe find a way to…"
"Siphon them?" Belén finished for him, her voice suddenly low.
Cisco blinked and quickly looked at her, unsure of how to respond. "Well...it...I'm not sure if that's plausible, but...maybe? I don't know." He chuckled to himself suddenly. "Maybe if we could use Datura then we could-" but he never got to finish his idea because Belén hit him on the arm. "What?"
"Uh, Mom, didn't you say you had a meeting with Axel's teacher today?" she suddenly asked her mother. Cisco shared looks with Jay and Harry, all three making quick checks.
"Yes," Veronica's eyes widened. "Oh my God, what time is it?"
"Four o'clock," Belén answered fast.
"I'm going to be late!" Veronica gasped and started to leave. "I will see you later, alright? Thank you for showing me around. Bye!"
"Bye, Mom!" Belén waved then released a big breath afterwards. She realized she had Cisco, Jay and Harry still staring at her and frowned. "What?"
"Have you told your Mom everything?" Cisco raised a suspicious eyebrow.
"I...told her about Zoom...and...what he wants...and stuff…" Belén fiddled with her thumbs.
"Mm, so did we not include the crazy siphoner after you?"
Belén dropped her hands and walked away from the desk. "I...did not see the point in that detail. It would only worry her. She just thinks that Datura is part of Zoom's crew who's only mission is to make our lives miserable."
"So you basically left out the part where she's hunting you down?" Harry said the words no one else wanted to say so boldly, but it's not like he cared.
"Well - I couldn't do it, alright!?" Belén defensively said. "How do you tell your mother that you have a psychotic siphoner coming after you? Is there a way?"
"Correct me if I'm wrong but wouldn't it be worse if she found out on her own terms?" Jay cleared his throat to ask the question. "You know Datura would love to do that, right?"
Belén brought a hand to her forehead. The peacefulness Shivhan was talking about earlier seemed much farther now. "I don't know guys, alright? I need to figure out the right way to tell her the truth but...I need a bit of time."
"I wouldn't waste time on that, then," Cisco warned. "You seem like you're finally getting to a good place with her."
"I know," Belén sighed. "That's what makes it harder. But I'll tell her, I promise."
Afterwards, when Caitlin cleared Barry of any lingering effects from the Turtle, they got things moving in hopes of capturing the metahuman once and for all.
"Yo. What was it like being in Turtle Time?" Cisco could not wait to ask, and it showed on his face.
"Yeah, no, it was weird. It was like waves of inertness... like all the energy was suddenly sucked out of my body, and then it would return."
"That's because that's exactly what was happening," Harry spoke up. He was scribbling down on a notepad what he was watching from the desk. "He has the ability to transfer all the surrounding kinetic energy into himself."
Jay caught on with the pieces. "Leaving everyone else in a temporary state of potential energy. That's right."
"So why could I still move?" Barry asked.
"Your speed-"
"Your speed allows you to change positions faster than anyone else," Harry interrupted Jay's explanation but Jay finished it in the end.
"So you can convert your stored potential energy back to kinetic energy."
"Excuse me, where are you going?" Cisco demanded when Harry made to leave the place.
"Trying to figure out how to use this against Zoom. You remember Zoom?" Harry made a face at them then left.
Cisco seemed to be on the verge of shouting, but instead he used his sarcasm to restrain himself from killing the man. "Cisco, please join me. We'll use your idea and take it to new scientific heights and save the world.' Yes, I'd love to!"
Caitlin had plopped herself down at the desk and looked at the computers. "Okay. Facial recognition software found us a match from the press conference footage. The Turtle's name is Russell Glosson. He was a small-time thief who stopped thieving after the particle accelerator explosion."
"All right, I'm gonna head to work... catch Joe up," Barry said and began to get his jacket. "Let me know if you find anything else." He stopped by Belén before going and gave her a chaste kiss on the lips. "I won't be by tonight, remember?"
Belén nodded, knowing he had agreed to be there for Iris and Joe as they had dinner for the first time with Wally. "That's fine. I have to figure out how to tell my Mom about Datura."
"Still?" Barry made the same face Cisco had earlier.
"Yeah, yeah," Belén shooed him off. Barry left with a laugh and missed the small curse she threw his way. She turned around and noticed Jay staring blankly at the profile of the Turtle. She nudged Caitlin in his direction.
"You okay?" Caitlin didn't deter from asking.
Jay glanced back at the two women and nodded. "Yeah, yeah, it's just, um…" he cleared his throat, "It's hard to... look at that and not think about how I can't help people anymore."
Belén exchanged a look with Caitlin, both smiling with ideas.
"I'm no genius - nor a scientist for that matter - but this is still another world with other technology," Belén made a shrugging manner of her shoulders. "Wouldn't it be possible to help you here?"
"You know what happened," Jay reminded them both.
"Yes, okay," Caitlin slowly rose from her chair. "Datura siphoned your speed, but...it's impossible not to leave a trace of those powers in your system, no matter what. It is plausible that through some technology we find that trace and give it a kickstart."
"Barry had that once," Belén remembered with a laugh. "Maybe the same can apply to you, Jay."
Still, Jay was not swayed. "Datura siphoned them. I count myself lucky to be alive considering the mess of corpses she's left behind from others. Any speed I had, she took it."
He then left the two in the room.
~ 0 ~
That night, Belén sat on her couch with the television and a blank stare. She truly was hoping to find the right way to tell her mother the last secret she had. Datura was something else - she wasn't Zoom, she wasn't as lethal, but she was still dangerous and she was still after her for some reason. Veronica needed to know that. In a long run, it could even protect her and Axel if she was prepared.
"But how, how, how do I tell you?" Belén closed her eyes and let her head fall back on the couch. At the same time, a gust of wind hit her and when she opened her eyes she found Barry had made his way in.
"Change of plans!" he excitedly threw his hands in the air.
Belén smiled. "Not that I regret giving you a key, but one of these days I will be changing and you will walk in on that." But of course after a second or so she realized that for a boyfriend that probably didn't sound as bad. "What are you doing here, anyways? I thought you were having dinner with the Wests."
"Uh, he didn't show," Barry made a face and walked over to sit beside her. "I mean, I get that it's all new for Wally but he didn't even call to let them know."
"Hm," Belén got to thinking. She hadn't truly met Wally properly except for the cordial greetings from Christmas and New Years, but the young man didn't seem to be rude or anything. "I mean, he lost his Mom and now he's probably feeling a little disoriented. He has a father to answer to now...and a big sister…" her eyes widened a bit, "...God knows I know how it feels to answer to your siblings."
Barry chuckled, however, and earned himself a mock glare.
"See this?" she pulled her sleeve up of her left arm and pointed to a small scar. "I stole some of Maritza's makeup one time when I was fourteen and she threw a fork - yes, Barry, a fork." Barry truly tried his best not to laugh. "And God knows I regret messing around with Rayan's chemistry set."
"You were a wonderful, annoying little sister weren't you?"
Belén tossed her hair back and nodded. "You forgot the cutest, but yes, I was."
Barry laughed with her and pulled her closer. He finally noticed what she was watching and had to make a remark. "Since when do you watch Jeopardy?"
"I don't. I wasn't even watching television actually, I was thinking…"
Barry noticed the change in her tone and looked down at her. "About…?"
With a sigh, Belén pulled away from him. "I've told my Mom...almost everything about our STAR Labs lives."
"Almost everything?"
Belén nodded. "I just haven't told her about Datura. I can't figure out the right way to do it."
Barry sighed and straightened himself up. "I'm sorry, but...I don't think there's a right way to tell someone...their daughter is being targeted by a crazy siphoner. God knows it wasn't easy finding out from my perspective." Belén smiled as he touched her cheek. "I can only imagine what it'll be like for her."
"Maybe I shouldn't tell her," Belén bit her lip, suddenly questioning herself. "I mean, why tell her if it'll only worry her?" but as she asked herself more questions, she realized she didn't want to hold it back. She didn't want to have another secret that could really drive her away from her mother. "Barry, I should tell her...shouldn't I?"
"I can't make that decision for you, Bells," Barry reached for her again, and she allowed herself to be taken into his arms. "But I can be there with you, if you'd like? Or just help you come up with things…?"
"No, please be there," Belén wasn't sure of much but she knew it would become a lot easier if he was there.
Barry held her tight, letting her rest her head on his chest. "Okay," he kissed her hair.
"And while we're on this topic...if there's anything you'd like to tell me, I'm all ears."
Confused, Barry looked down at her. "Wh-what?"
Belén raised her head to meet his gaze. "I talk to Iris, Barry, like all the time at work. She says you've been waking up screaming in the night. What kind of nightmares are you having for that to happen?"
There was a sudden flash of his recent nightmare where he had been forced to see Belén be killed. "N-nothing...just the usual traumatic nightmares."
"Are you sure? Because I-"
"Bells, I don't want to talk about it. Please."
Belén looked at him in the eyes and saw a terrible turmoil. But she couldn't very well force him to speak could she? It did not, however, mean she would let him get away with it. She'd get him to talk, just maybe not tonight. "Okay," she finally said back. She laid her head on his chest again and snuggled closer to him.
He reached for the television remote and changed the channel, hoping to God she wouldn't press further on the matter. Much like her, he didn't know the right way to tell her about his horrendous nightmares.
~0~
The next day was a good one. STAR Labs had managed to find a clue of where their metahuman could strike next. Cisco had pulled up a city event for them all to see. It appeared to be some elegant event...
"Central City Museum is hosting a special black tie event tonight showcasing 'The Crystal Ball.' It's a famous painting, apparently, recently recovered from Markovia."
"And they decided to name it the 'Crystal ball'?" Belén couldn't help make her remark.
Cisco rolled his eyes at her. "Anyways. The painting is on loan to the museum from the Silverberg family. Jacob Silverberg himself said, 'The painting's safe return means more to us than all the money in the world.' It's like they're begging Turtle to rob it."
Barry nodded his head and turned to them at the desk. "Okay, yes. This is a plan. So the Turtle will make his move, and we can be there waiting to take him down."
"How do you look in a tux?" Caitlin casually asked of Jay sitting beside her.
"He's 6'2", he's square-jawed, and he's jacked. I think he looks fine," it had been Belén who answered the question, much to Barry's shock. She turned around wearing a nice smile. "What?"
Barry merely raised his eyebrows at her.
"I'm 6'4"," Jay cleared his throat, a little amused.
"Please don't help," Barry sent him a sharp look before sarcastically saying, "I guess I'll just have to find another date then.
Belén looked him dead in the eye and made her response. "You do that and Zoom will be the least of your problems."
"Yikes," Cisco shivered. "That's just cold."
"What? I can be evil," Belén smirked.
As soon as she said those words, Harry, who'd been tinkering with some equations in the next room, dropped something on the floor. Everyone sent him concerned glances but he acted like nothing happened. He knew he had to get himself in control already. He had Datura and Zoom waiting for him on one side and those were two people he could not defer. Jesse's life was on the line.
~0~
When night time rolled around, the team was ready to go through with their plan. While Cisco and Harry monitored from the STAR Labs van, Belén, Barry, Caitlin and Jay would mingle through the event. Since Joe was taking care of other business - relating to Wally - Veronica had been asked to help. She would be lingering in the background, hand on weapon in case the Turtle showed up.
"I can't believe you said that," Barry was in the middle of scolding Belén while they 'mingled'.
Belén rolled her eyes. "And I can't believe we're still on this topic." She picked up a champagne flute and took a small sip. "Are you that jealous?"
"I am not jealous," Barry clarified, but it looked like the complete opposite to Belén. "I'm just a little...uncomfortable when you admire other men."
"I can scope out the menu but it doesn't mean I'm going to order."
Barry had heard a lot of things in his life but that was something that completely took him aback. "What!?"
A burst of laughter escaped through Belén's lips. "Maritza used to say that all the time. I can see other men but it doesn't mean I'm going to after them. It's like…" she thought for a moment, "...it's like you and...I don't know...Beyonce. Don't you think she's hot?"
"Well…" Barry deferred from answering.
"Barry, Beyonce is hot. Admit it. Now does that mean you'd go after her?"
"No, of course not," Barry took her hand which wore the promise ring he'd gifted her for Christmas.
"See? It's the same for me. Jay is good looking - any woman would fall for him - but I've already got my guy," Belén leaned forwards and kissed him. "Ti amo mio idiota," she said in fluent Italian.
Barry blinked and stared at her for a good minute, only making Belén laugh in the process. "Did you...did you speak Italian?"
"I am Italian, Barry. You remember that, right?"
"I do but...you've never really spoken Italian."
"Never had the moment, I guess," she shrugged. "I do speak Spanish as well, you know. Piss me off and you'll hear some very colorful words in 3 languages."
"You just got insanely hotter right now," Barry stole a kiss from her but the look in his eyes indicated he wanted more than just a kiss right now.
Belén blushed and looked out to the dance floor. "Why don't we go and dance?"
"Anything you want, just please keep talking to me in foreign languages," Barry said while Belén led them towards the dance floor. She had to laugh at him.
They found a spot and started dancing along to the slow music.
"You look like a dream by the way," Barry eyed the dark purple, laced gown Belén chose to wear for the night. He probably should have mentioned that as soon as he picked her up but he was a bit focused on what she had said about Jay.
Belén smiled. "Smooth, but thank you. You look very handsome too." She'd joked about seeing Jay in a suit but in her book, Barry had won the most attractive award. Maybe she was biased? Or maybe she just really loved it. "The bow-tie was a nice touch too." A very nice one. She tapped the bowtie and looked up at Barry with an alluring smile. "Maybe we should leave a little early..."
It was Barry's turn to flush. It had been much too long since they had a proper date and it showed. He held Belén closer to him, his hands gripping her waist. "We'll plan something," he promised her.
"Unfortunately I won't be wearing a sweet dress like this the next time," lamented Belén.
"You'll still look beautiful, Bells." Barry pressed a kiss on her temple.
"We've got eyes on Turtle!" Cisco communicated to the four in the building.
"I see him," Belén stepped back from Barry and pointed him to the man across them in a hallway. He was taking down a painting from the wall.
Barry quickly sped away.
"HEY!" Belén cupped her mouth to shout. "Leave that alone!" Her yell prompted the other guests to freeze in their spots and the officers around to go into action.
Veronica came up with her gun aimed at the man. "CCPD, freeze!"
The turtle turned around with a menacing face. From his spot he emitted his green slowing powers and made everyone freeze. Before Veronica knew it, her gun had been snatched from her hands. She and Belén turned around to find the Turtle standing at the base of a staircase, aiming at them with the same gun.
"For someone slow, he seems so fast," Veronica blinked rapidly. She blocked her daughter off from the man's aim.
Barry returned, as the Flash, and assessed the situation. "Oh, no. He is much slower," he promised Veronica.
"This is a trap?" the Turtle realized. "Well, I'm slow... not stupid." He changed aims and shot at the chandelier above Belén and her mother.
"Aw damn," Belén mumbled, knowing the chances to escape on their own was not an option with the Turtle's powers.
Barry tried speeding down the stairs to get her and Veronica out, but the Turtle did his best to slow him down. However slower, Barry succeeded in time and pushed the two women out of the way. The chandelier crashed down on the floor, and a bit over Barry. The lights went out and allowed the Turtle a clean getaway.
"Belén!?" Veronica first made sure her daughter was safe.
"I-I'm fine!" Belén scrambled up to her feet and hurried to Barry. "Caitlin!? Jay!?" she frantically called as she tried to pull Barry out from the chandelier. "Help!"
"I got it!" Jay came in first and, much easier, pulled Barry to his feet. The metahuman was a bit out of it but hopefully alright when Caitlin would check him over.
~ 0 ~
Barry was blinking fast as Caitlin passed a light through his eyes. There he was sitting on a stool in the cortex, letting Caitlin run the tests she wanted even though he knew he was fine. The cuts and bruises he'd gotten from the chandelier were already healing and some already gone. He let her since she had already checked Belén and Veronica up. Eventually, Caitlin drew back her light and gave the nod he was fine.
"Your pupils are normal. Your heart rate's a little low. But other than that, no concussive symptoms."
"What about Turtle?" Barry got up from his stool and rubbed his face.
"No sign of him," Cisco shook his head. "Or the painting. He, uh, must have gotten away with it in the chaos."
"He's not as stupid as we thought he was," Belén shrugged. "But we are going to need to come up with a better plan."
"I think we should start by seeing if your speed still works," Cisco said to Barry. The metahuman frowned and, for show, sped out of the room and returned the next second with regular clothes on and left the suit in its display. "Okay, it works."
"We still have to find out how Turtle drained him of it," Harry pointed out and began to leave to start on it.
"I have to go see how my Mom is doing too," Belén announced too. It was then that Barry realized Veronica wasn't there anymore. "She's fine, if not a little shaken," Belén said for his sake. "First real encounter with a meta is...tough. I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Yeah," Barry agreed. "Do you want a lift?"
"Always," Belén extended her arms forwards to be carried off. With a chuckle, Barry did just that.
~0~
Before anything, Belén had sent a text forewarning her mother she would be stopping by. She knew Veronica was left more than a little 'shaken' and didn't want Veronica to automatically shut it down like some crazy superior mom. Belén understood that there needed to be some venting done in order to truly fight metas. When she had changed into much more comfortable clothes, Belén went for her purse and jacket to finally go visit her mother. She checked the time on her phone and while it was a little later than she had planned - which she would fully blame for Barry for - she headed for the doorway.
"Next time just say no to 'one kiss'," she muttered under her breath and opened the door.
She truly regretted it.
Quickly, she tried pushing the door to close on the Turtle. "NO!" she was absolutely done with being attacked in her own apartment.
Unfortunately for her, the Turtle proved stronger and flung the door open, throwing Belén to the floor in the process.
"The hell do you want from me?" she scooted back. Her right hand flexed as it underwent the scaly green change.
"The thing most precious to the Flash…" the Turtle stepped towards her, "...you."
"Fight me, then," Belén gritted her teeth and thrust her scaly green hand forwards, sending a surprising green vine that smacked the Turtle against the open door. She quickly scrambled to her feet. So much for secret identity, she thought.
"You're like us," the Turtle took delight in that. The malicious grin on his face sent a shiver down Belén's back. "Makes a lot more sense, I'll tell you that."
"Don't speak to me!" Belén pushed her hand down and at the same time a new vine did the same over the Turtle, only for him to use his own powers and leave the vine just a couple inches above his head. Belén was forced to watch as the man easily walked behind her and, picking up her own purse, he smacked it hard over her head, effectively knocking her out.
~0~
While everyone worked hard to find the Turtle, it was fairly easy for Harry to make a quick escape out into the night. This time he was surprised to find he had been beaten to the meeting. Datura was sitting lonesomely, one leg over the other, on the ledge of a shipping port with a cellphone in hand. She was scrolling but Harry couldn't see much of her face since her dark curls were over her shoulders. At a first glance the woman did not seem like Belén, and even when one got to know her - while knowing her doppelganger - she wasn't like Belén either.
"Funny, in this world your little experiment failed completely," she looked up with a dazzled face. "It's amazing how different our doppelgangers can be while still looking exactly alike."
"You look nothing like yours," Harry spat, but it Datura took that as a compliment.
"I know. You know I actually wish I could crack the code for inter-dimensional travel just to see what the rest of the 'me's" look like." Datura tilted her head then, curiously thinking. "Or I could just siphon them. That sounds a lot easier."
"If you could do that then we wouldn't be here, would we?" the sour tone in Harry's voice momentarily caused a flash of yellow in Datura's eyes.
Harry shifted to one side, intently studying as much as possible until the effect went away. He then noticed Datura quickly trying to get herself back to her usual demeanor, like it never happened...but it did. And Harry wanted to know why it did. What did it mean when her eyes did that thing? He still had yet to forget when the same thing happened after Datura and Poison Ivy made a visit to STAR Labs a while ago. The overlapping voices? Harry was sure that was not of her own voice.
"What I do or don't do is none of your business," Datura finally spoke again, and with her own voice. She was up on her feet, a deep scowl across her face. "But what you do, is most certainly my business. Zoom wants to know how your new mission is going."
Harry released a breath but nonetheless answered her. "I'm working on it but I'm...I haven't come up with a way to do it yet."
"Tick tock goes the clock," Datura innocently said.
"We're trying to solve a metahuman case-"
"I don't give a rat's ass what anyone in this world is up to!"
"You might want to know that this particular metahuman has the ability to slow things down, including the Flash himself."
That piece of information certainly made Datura stop and think. "Really? Completely?"
"Well, the Flash is the Flash for a reason. This particular metahuman has the ability to transfer all the surrounding kinetic energy into himself."
A curling smile started spreading across Datura's face. Her eyes were lighting up with a new sense - was that happiness? For some reason, on this Belén the emotion didn't fit. "So…" Datura began walking while she thought out loud, "...because of Barry's speed, he can convert all his stored potential energy back into kinetic energy. Oh, if he wasn't against Zoom, I'd be impressed."
And yet, standing there and watching her, Harry swore she actually was impressed.
"So then-" Datura turned to Harry, snapping him out of his thoughts, "-I'm sure you know what to do with this metahuman." Harry stood there silently, unsure of where she was going with it. A dark ferocity took over Datura's face. "Kill him, Harrison. Find him, find out whatever made him tick, and turn that into our weapon against the Flash. Remember, it's the only way we can all win."
"Except the Flash…" Harry decided to remind. He was the first to admit that everyone - including Barry - on this world were heavily annoying. However, that did not mean that he wanted them to die. "And of course, Belén."
"Well, she never had a chance. What's she doing right now, anyways?"
Harry kept silent but as the seconds ticked by he knew it was the wrong choice. If he didn't tell her, she'd find another - probably hurtful - way of finding out on her own. "She's trying to get into the Green." And judging by the look on Datura's face, she knew all about that place.
"Hm, she won't get in," she said, but it sounded like she was trying to convince herself. "Work fast, Wells. Tick, tock, goes the clock." She flashed him a wide smirk and turned to leave.
~ 0 ~
When Belén woke up, she found herself bound to a regular wooden chair. With a sigh, she looked around and concluded she was in some sort of library but it was overfilled with objects that just didn't belong.
"For a criminal, you didn't strike me much for the library sort of guy," she called once she spotted the Turtle a couple tables away. He was typing on a typewriter. "What kind of metahuman hits people with a purse?"
Her sardonic joke made the Turtle glare up from his work. "You talk so bravely…" he meant that as a warning, but Belén snorted.
"Well, between you and me, this isn't the first time I've been kidnapped. It actually gets quite boring after the second or third time."
The Turtle studied her face and was a little peeved not to find any traces of fear. She smirked.
"What's the matter? Did I mess up your damsel in distress plot?"
"This was never about you. This is about hurting someone who values you."
Belén rolled her eyes and looked away. "Yeah, I know. You use me to get to the Flash. Been there, done that."
"So I am right," the Turtle gained his confidence back. Belén turned her head his way, questioning him with a silent look. "I saw the way the Flash saved you and the older woman."
"Oh, congratulations, you spotted a hero saving women. I'd clap, but...you know…" Belén nodded to her bound wrists.
"It's a waste of time... saving people. They take everything for granted."
Belén stopped with her sarcasm to stare at the man. "Oh, so you take the things that matter most to them, then?"
"My wife Rosalyn took me for granted. She wanted to leave me... the thing I valued most."
"So that's what this is about? You're hurt because your wife left you?"
"I couldn't let that happen. So I made her mine," the Turtle got up and slowly walked for the wall with a red drape. He pulled the drape and revealed a dead woman sitting behind a glass case. "Forever."
Belén's eyes widened in horror. "Uh…"
The Turtle returned to the desk to pick up the paper he'd been writing on and walked over to the next drape-covered alcove. He pulled on it to reveal another glass case, an empty one, and turned to Belén. "I do hope I spelled your name right." He revealed her name was written on the slip of paper.
"Y-you...missed the accent over the 'e'..." She found her last ounce of sarcasm before her terror settled in.
~ 0 ~
As soon as they found out Belén had been taken by the Turtle, everyone in STAR Labs got straight to work. Even Veronica had returned to STAR Labs, and because it was later, she had to bring Axel in with her too. The four year old was yawning from his spot at the desk but was keenly watching his grandmother and Barry pacing back and forth.
"Grandma, is auntie Belén coming back yet?"
Veronica stopped pacing to look at her grandson. She of course hadn't told him why they were looking for Belén. For him, he just thought she went out like the grown ups do all the time. Veronica didn't know what to say, mostly because this was the first time she was in this sort of situation. Fortunately, Barry was already used to it (unfortunately).
"Your auntie just got a little lost," he stopped his pacing to explain to the boy.
Axel furrowed his brow and started getting up in the chair. Caitlin quickly reached to make sure he didn't fall off. "Can grown ups get lost too?"
"Sometimes," Barry went along with it for his sake. "But it's okay, because we're all looking for her right now."
Cisco hated to burst the child's bubble but he had to inform them how the search was currently going. "I'm not getting any leads on this guy. It's like he's totally fallen off the grid. You know, it... any of the stuff he's stolen, I can't find it."
"He keeps them," Harry's eyes widened when he realized. "He keeps them the way a serial killer collects trophies."
"He's stolen a lot of a stuff," Caitlin looked at them, concerned for their odds at the moment.
Fortunately, investigating was part of Veronica's abilities. "Which means he needs a lot of space to store it," she walked back to the desk, putting a hand over it. "That's where we start. See if he rented any storage spaces."
"I want to help find auntie," Axel leaned forwards on the desk and Caitlin decided it would just be safe if he sat on her lap than remaining standing on the chair.
"I got something," Cisco announced after a couple of minutes. "His ex-wife used to be an archivist for antiquities at the Naydel Library before it shut down, and it shut down three months after the accelerator exploded."
"That place is big enough to hold Turtle's stuff," Veronica immediately pointed. She meant to leave but Barry stopped her. Without having to say a word, she got the message. "I am not staying here and leaving my daughter out there."
"The Turtle's power will easily affect you. If we both go, he'll target you and it'll be even more difficult to make it out alive," Barry logically argued back. Veronica blinked then looked to the side, figuring he was more or less right.
"But Barry, we haven't even figured out how to neutralize the Turtle's power," Jay reminded.
"Well, I'm gonna have to power through it," Barry shrugged. Now he was most certainly not going to waste time while Belén was out there. He sped off with his suit and went to the instructed place. "All right, I'm outside the library."
"Barry, the only way to save Belén is if you grab her in between each of the Turtle's pulses," Cisco warned.
"You'll only have 2/10ths of a second to make your moves," Caitlin calculated closely.
"I got it," Barry sucked in a breath and got ready to do his thing.
~ 0 ~
Belén watched with disgust as the Turtle prepared a needle for her, apparently. "I don't know who you think you are but you are not sticking that in my blood vessels."
"I like your bravery, girl," the Turtle complimented. "But it would bode well if you felt just a little scared."
"I was for a minute until I remembered people are coming for me. In less than a second you'll find yourself locked away."
"Such faith…" the Turtle meant to jab the needle into her forearm but Belén concentrated and turned that arm into its scaly green form, causing the needle trouble. "What the…?" the Turtle glared at the woman.
"I'm no regular woman, remember?" she smirked.
Their sure-to-be disagreement was interrupted by Barry who was speeding his way through the room. The Turtle, no surprise, used his powers to slow him down. With ease, he walked up to Barry and punched him several times till the speedster went down. Barry shook his head to get back on track then quickly sped off for a redo.
"I guess he doesn't care about you as much as I thought," the Turtle went back to the table where his 'tools' were and picked up a silver knife. "And I doubt even your freaky scale skin is impenetrable to knives."
"Crap," Belén muttered under her breath. Her vines wrapped around her binds and quickly released her wrists. "Stay away from me you freak!" she jumped from her chair but the Turtle emitted his powers once more to keep her in place.
At the same time, Barry returned with a stronger speed. The Turtle turned around and forced more of his powers to surround them. This time, however, Barry 'powered through' and was able to throw the Turtle across the room. With a heavy breath, he turned for Belén on the floor.
"Man this is the first time I love the sonic boom," she found her humor and chuckled.
Barry didn't know whether to scold her for being so aloof of the danger she'd be in, or just hug her and smile that she was okay. Even though it was completely different from his nightmares, the mere fact that Belén had been taken away by another of his enemies made him spiral.
~ 0 ~
When the Turtle woke up, he was facing the STAR Labs group in the pipeline. He rushed to his feet and planted his hands on the clear wall, thinking nothing of it yet.
"Hey, Turtle," Barry greeted him like nothing. "So you want to know my new definition of irony? Now you... are our most prized possession. My girlfriend says 'hi', too."
The Turtle scowled and tried using his powers only to find the wall was containing it back. Barry shut the pipeline down and headed back for the cortex where Belén, her mother and Axel were.
Caitlin used the advantage she'd been presented and called for Jay to wait for her. "Jay?" the man in question stopped and turned. "I know," she said, seeing him in a significant manner. "Why didn't you tell me that you're sick?"
Jay wasn't the least bit surprised she'd caught onto him. "The champagne. You took my DNA off the glass."
Caitlin acknowledged her deed with a nod. "You know I lost my husband... how hard that was for me to move on. How could you let me get close to you knowing that soon I'd lose you too?"
"I just... I didn't expect... his. I didn't expect you."
"Then help me find a cure," Caitlin stepped closer to him.
"There is no cure, Caitlin," Jay sighed. "Datura siphoned them from me."
"Okay, then we find her, we capture her," Caitlin quickly devised.
Jay shook his head at her. "Datura was a right terror for my city. Next to Zoom, she's virtually unstoppable."
"Not if she's looking for Belén," Caitlin wagged a finger. "If she wants Belén then it has to be for something, which means...there might be a weakness she's trying to cover up. We can use that to our advantage. We find her, we analyze her powers, and maybe find a way to bring your powers back."
Jay looked long and hard at Caitlin and soon gave in. Happy, Caitlin hugged him, confident enough that they would be able to do this task together.
~ 0 ~
"Auntie Belén, you can't get lost anymore," Axel cautiously told his aunt after his grandmother announced they were going home. Belén was sitting on the bed in one of the side rooms, amusingly watching Axel give her instructions. "You have told hold hands, remember?" he simulated what he was talking about by holding his grandmother's hand. "Like this. Okay?"
"Don't worry, Axel," Barry walked in, hearing everything, "I'll hold your auntie's hand all the way home."
Belén shot him a sarcastic look but Axel believed it straight away. "Use the sonic boom if you need help," the young boy said.
"How you know about that…" Veronica gave Belén and Barry sharp stares, "...I don't think I want to know. Belén, are you sure you're okay?"
"Mom, you heard Caitlin, and my testimonies. I am just fine," Belén reassured.
"If you need anything…"
"I know," Belén smiled softly. "I know."
Veronica smiled back and looked at Barry next. "Please?"
"I'll take her home myself," the metahuman promised.
Much more reassured, Veronica left with Axel. Barry wasted no time and took ahold of Belén to bring her home like he'd promise. Belén could only yelp when she was dropped on her bed.
"A little head's up would've been nice!" she exclaimed afterwards.
Barry stood in front of her with a finger pointing directly at her. "Now you're going to bed and resting. I'll be back tomorrow morning to see how you are."
Belén raised an eyebrow, something different swirling in her eyes. "Okay." Barry leaned down to kiss her then started to leave...when Belén spoke again. "And don't worry, I'll leave my phone on in case you call in the middle of the night again."
Barry froze and slowly turned sideways, meeting her knowing face. "Wh-what…?"
"At first I thought I was just dreaming that you were calling me in the middle of the night but my phone does keep the calls just like any other phone. You called me...and I remember it now. You wanted to know if I was okay."
"Bells…" Barry tried playing it off as nothing more than a simple call, but Belén knew better by now.
"You called me to make sure I was okay," she reiterated. "Why? Why would you do that?" Barry deferred from answering, but not even that saved him. "It's because of those nightmares Iris told me about, huh? I assume one of them included me this time?"
Barry said nothing and didn't look at her.
"Barry, talk to me. You helped me tonight now let me do the same for you," Belén pleaded and held a hand out for him. With that soft smile on her face, it was impossible for Barry to walk out on her. He came back, dutifully, and sat down beside her. "What are those nightmares about that they're haunting you?"
"They're about Zoom," Barry found no point in hiding it anymore.
As soon as he said it, Belén felt stupid for not figuring it out on her own. Of course they would be about Zoom. The thing was a monster, and with a face.
"They're never the same...but...they're always about the same thing: someone dying."
"By Zoom?" Belén guessed.
With a sigh, Barry began to recount the different nightmares that involved each of his friends and family. He described how one moment everything was fine and he was just living his life like normal until Zoom showed up and murdered his friend. In one instant it had been about Caitlin drowning. In another Joe had been shot with a bullet. Belén tried to keep a straight face as she listened to how each of their loved ones suffered a terrible fate because of Zoom.
"And then there's you," Barry hesitated to say. "Rarely had dreams about you - I guess it was building up to you. You're there, looking pretty, and then the next minute Zoom's got you and I'm not fast enough to save you."
"And that's why you call," Belén whispered.
"Usually. Sometimes I sneak in just to make sure you're sleeping," Barry confessed. "And you are...each time."
"I can't tell you that it's all going to be okay, but...I can promise you that we are all going to fight against that monster," Belén took his hands in hers. "We're not damsels in distress and we're not Zoom's rag dolls. We're strong, Barry, and Zoom is going to feel so sorry when he finds out."
Barry squeezed their hands and tried to think like Belén. They are strong. They would defeat Zoom if it was the last thing they did.
~0~
Late at night Harry waited by the breech located in the STAR Labs portal room. He knew that through this portal all Datura had to do was go through his version of STAR Labs. He kept wondering how Datura managed to open up all these portals without actually having Zoom do it nor the ability herself.
Soon enough, Datura popped in again.
"Got my message?" she flashed a smirk the moment she straightened up.
Harry took out the cellphone she had with her earlier and suspiciously looked at her. "How did you manage to connect through different worlds?"
"I forgot to mention, I'm a scientist. Don't even think about tracing that by the way," she hopped down the small steps from the portal. "My good friend made sure to help me with those deets. Well, update on that metahuman?"
"Captured and locked away," Harry put away the cellphone in his back pocket.
"But alive?"
"Yes."
"Then I assume you know what happens next," with that, Datura tossed him a silver device that resembles a gun only this one held a vial.
Harry caught it with a little rush and inspected it fast. "You want me to extract blood from him?"
"Sample tissues, brain tissues, whatever you want as long as it helps the cause. I know you're more than capable of building that but I wanted to save you the trouble," Datura motioned with her hands for him to get going.
"You want me to kill," Harry stated after taking a good examination of the device in his hands. It was strong by all means and he was sure that extracting anything from the Turtle with it would mean his death.
"Is that a problem? I thought you wanted your daughter back."
"But to kill…"
"Oh for the love of…fine, let me take a leaf out of my doppleganger's book and help you a little more." Datura snatched the device from him and literally started walking out the hallway.
For the first time scared, Harry rushed to follow her. "You could get caught-"
"Then I suppose you'll make sure this gets erased from the security feed," Datura rolled her eyes. "Where is he?"
Harry silently moved up ahead. He knew this would come back to bite him but all that ran through his head was his daughter. If he allowed Datura to do what she wanted then he would be one step closer to getting Jesse back.
"High tech," Datura remarked as Harry pulled up the Turtle's pod cell. "Much more sophisticated than where Zoom keeps Jesse," she gave a tantalizing smile while Harry glared.
"Hey…" the Turtle was stirring awake from his sleep when he saw the two.
Datura walked forwards, past Harry, and into the pod. Without a single word she stuck the device into the Turtle's nostril. Harry flinched when the device snapped and blood splattered inside the vial. Datura then straightened up, kicked the Turtle's corpse off her boot and walked out.
She revealed glowing white eyes. "Easy, peasy," Her voice overlapped with another. "Zoom isn't so patient, you know? Time is precious so you better get to work." She patted his shoulder and walked out of the room.
Harry was simply terrified and yet awed by the woman. The doppelganger topic was always a fascinating one, but a theoretical one too. Never in his life did he think he would end up as a puppet for one of them.
Author's Note:
This was always a fun episode I loved to watch! There's some good parts coming up now, promise!
P. S: I have created a tumblr account dedicated to my fanfic works! It's also a place where I thought anyone might want to comment about a story or even just talk! I'll probably drop some aesthetic work belonging to my stories too! Feel free to check it out, my URL is "noble-crescent" and the tag I created for any posts having to do with my work is # noblecrescentedit.
Halloween news: I've been wanting to write a cute Halloween one-shot and I want to find good halloween costumes for Belén & Barry. Any ideas? I have one but I'm open to other suggestions! Leave one behind if you do!
For the review:
Musical Bear: Ah yes, I had to leave that Snart bit out. So sorry! Oh I knoooooow, I loved writing that scene with the promise ring. They're just too damn dorky sweet not to love xD. I actually have thought about season 5. I'm still writing season 4 right now but I've definitely weaved in the future child plot with the actress I'd envision them to look like. I definitely added a couple twists to it though, surprise! I'm glad I could finally write Veronica getting along with Belén - it's what they deserve! And yes, I believe it took Barry and Wally a while to get along so we'll see how that goes here! Thanks for writing!