Cisco

January 5th, 2019

It was well into next year when the team next heard from Austin. According to Caitlin, spellcaster lock downs were no joke, it was already hard enough to make it the mortal world, on a normal day. If it wasn't for Iris's weird anti magic field they would have been stuck there too. So, it was a bit of a surprise when Austin appeared in the cortex with no warning. Given the circumstances Caitlin lunged for her wand and Ralph knocked her wand from her hand. Well, he tried to, she jumped out of the way and Iris grabbed the wand while she was distracted. Unfortunately, Iris trying to play keep away isn't super effective so when Austin tried to grab it back, probably very confused at this point, Barry stepped in and grabbed it from his wife, staring down Austin who finally realized something was up and backed down slowly. As soon as she did Barry shoved the wand at Caitlin, as if just realizing he was holding it, and continued to stare down Austin from the back of the room.

"Okay, did my wand offend you guys or something? What's up?" she asked, her tone was light but her movements were slow and her eyes kept on darting around the room.

"We found your journal," Caitlin said, stepping forwards, arms crossed. Austin's face instantly dissolved into a look of confusion and her body relaxed.

"What journal?" Austin asked. The her credit, it was a brilliant performance, did they have theatre class at magic school?

"You know, the one where you keep all your notes from spying on us," Iris said, walking up behind Caitlin, matching her stance. Austin stood up straight and her eyes got big. She threw her hands up and walked backwards a step, her head shaking almost imperceptibly.

"Look, whatever you guys think you know, it's not what you think," she said carefully.

"We know you've been lying to us," Caitlin barked. "What we don't know is why. You get one chance to explain yourself before we strand you wandless in Siberia." Cisco's eyes widened comically. That certainly hadn't been a part of the plan. Most of Cisco knew she was bluffing to scare Austin but a part of him was slightly terrified of his friend. Austin apparently didn't share that sentiment because she let out a small laugh and her eyebrows went up.

"Wow, didn't expect that coming from you," she said lightly. "Seems more like Killer Frost's style."

"So you admit it, you've been watching us!" Barry exclaimed. The team had never mentioned Frost to Austin, there was no way she could have known, well, not that she was Caitlin anyway.

"I never said I wasn't watching you," Austin insisted. "In fact, the first time we met I told you that I had been watching you to make sure nothing went wrong."

"Austin, that book went back two years!" Iris exclaimed. "Caitlin has only been openly using her magic for a few months now, there was no reason for you to watch us before now. An if there was you wouldn't have lied about it."

"I didn't lie!" sce exclaimed exasperated.

"A lie of omission is still a lie," Cisco butted in.

"Perhaps but sometimes it's a necessary one," the red head admitted. "I'm a guard, I watch people's backs, it's what I do. It's all I know how to do. I do it because if I don't people get hurt."

"So you've been watching Caitlin this whole time?" Joe asked.

"For a few years now, yeah," she admitted softly.

"As in since the particle accelerator a few years or as in since she came here a few years?" Ralph asked.

"Particle accelerator," Austin informed them. "Or thereabouts. For the record, we're the same age and Caitlin came here when she was eight. You really think I was a baby spy?"

"We don't know much about you," Caitlin snapped. "What made you start watching me anyway."

"Boredom I guess," she said. "I like people watching and I picked up some chatter about your family and how you left. I was just curious what it was like here on Earth, I thought you might be able to show me. Then you guys just happened to be really interesting."

"Oh, so we're your own personal reality show now?" Barry asked, voice dripping with sarcasm, his eyes narrowing. He obviously didn't believe her, Cisco wasn't entirely sure that he did either but in the end it was Caitlin's decision. She knew what was plausible and what wasn't. Maybe Austin really did just get bored. People have done worse out of boredom.

"It wasn't like that," Austin sighed, her voice soft. "At first I was just curious, then I got attached. I didn't want anything bad to happen. I thought I could help."

"What, Reverse Flash, Zoom, Savitar and Devoe weren't enough?" Barry asked. "But a haunter comes in and suddenly you're all gun hoe. Sound like you are only willing to help when it benefits you."

"I stepped in because there was nothing else you guys could do!" Austin insisted. "I knew you could stop the others."

"No offense to Iris but we've had others die, what was it about her that made you save her?" Caitlin asked. "Was it because it was a magical creature? Does Barry have a point?"

"I saved Iris because it's my job!" Austin yelled exasperated.

"What does that mean?" Joe asked. Austin looked like she was about to yell again but took a breath instead.

"I protect people, from magic. It's what I'm trained to do," she said in a shaky voice. "I can't fight things I don't understand. I don't know much about meta human. I don't know if magic effects them and even if it did I couldn't have used it. Magic is illegal here."

"So you risk it now?" Iris asked.

"We've been over this," Austin exclaimed. "Now I have it covered but it wasn't worth the risk before. A magical threat needs to be fought with magical force. I'm sorry that I didn't tell you guys that I was watching you but I only wanted to help. You have to believe that. Please." Her eyes were pleading and even though she was looking at everyone, Cisco knew she was really only asking one of them. Weather it was Caitlin or not he wasn't sure.

"I know I broke your trust," she whispered, looking to the floor, "but all I wanted to do is help. And right now you need me. I know that you don't want to admit it right now but you do. If we don't work together then the purists will win. We are the only ones who can stop them."

"I'm getting really tired of people lying to me," Barry said, ice in his voice.

"She lied to all of us Barry," Iris said, putting her hand on his arm.

"At least she wasn't secretly a super villian," Ralph said. Eyes snapped to him. "What? I know about your past baddies. As far as liars go she's not that bad."

"And she unfortunately has a point," Caitlin says. "We do need her, I'm not enough and we can't exactly call for another spellcaster."

"I mean, we could call your mom right?" Cisco asked. Austin snorted. Caitlin's eyes shifted towards her friend.

"My mom wont help us. It's Austin or nothing," she turned to look at Austin. "I believe you Austin. I don't trust you but I believe you. You get one more chance. Don't mess this up." She held up Austins wand and slammed it on on the consol before storming out of the room.

"Okay, that's enough of that," Cecile said. "Austin, are you going back to the realm or do you need a place to stay?"

"I uh, should probably head back but you guys should know that the alert is down," Austin informed the team members still left in the room.

"Isn't that good?" Iris asked.

"No, it was shut down because they realized that it was a distraction," the guard explained. "There was another break in only this time something was definitely stolen."

"What did they take?" Joe asked.

"It was this machine," she started. "We have exactly on lab that the king permits to experiment on mortal technology. One team was working with radio waves and how they affect magic. They were working on a device capable of broadcasting and amplifying the reach of magic to a larger area less casters involved. It was supposed to be for the guards. Specifically in the case of a spell block decree or lock down."

"So they turned radio waves into magical waves?" Cisco asked. Austin nodded.

"How bad could that be for us?" Iris asked.

"They could send a very powerful spell a very long way a lot easier than normal," Austin sighed.

"So bad, got it," Ralph said.

"Well, this seems like the kind of thing to warn CCPD of except I can't because who would believe we are under attack from wizards," Joe said.

"And you would blow a lot more than just my cover," Austin warned, finally stepping forwards to grab her wand. Barry instantly met her eyes but she looked away.

"Look, I have to get back but whatever is going to happen, it's happening soon. I know it didn't go great last time but we are going to have to take another trip. You have a week tops," she said before casting a spell and disappearing. As soon as she was gone Caitlin flew back into the room.

"Guys, I'm sorry I dragged you all into this," she said.

"It's not your fault Cait," Barry said.

"Yeah, you didn't know she was watching you, and she did save me," Iris said. "Liar or not, she's still a good person."

"Yeah, she's defying her orders just to help us," Ralph said.

"That's what worries me," Caitlin said. "If she can disobey the people she's pledged her life to protect how do we know she won't just turn around and do the same to us?"

"She's not disobeying them," Barry said after a moment of silence. "At least not in her mind."

"What do you mean Barry?" Cecile asked.

"Her job is to protect her king and his people," Barry started. "In her mind, that's what she's doing. Protecting people is more important to her than protecting the laws. She's not unloyal. She's too loyal. She's knowingly doing something that could get her fired or worse because she thinks it can save people."

"Dude, just a second ago you basically hated her," Cisco said, looking at him with furrowed eyebrows.

"No, I was pissed at her," Barry said. "And betrayed. I seem to always be feeling like that. But that doesn't mean that she's not on our side. I've done some stupid shit, lying to Iris about who I was, flashpoint. I made mistakes but I didn't make them maliciously and neither did Austin. We can trust her Caitlin. That I know to be true."

"Okay, you have a point," Caitlin said. "And speaking as someone who is trying to get back a formally evil second personality I guess I can't really judge her too harshly." Once again her hand flew up to her necklace as she took a deep breath in and out.

"So we're trusting her?" Ralph asked.

"A guarded trust but yes," Caitlin said. "We trust her for now."

"Okay, well, we should be getting back to Jenna and I'm sure that all of us could use a little bit of alone time after that," Cecile said, pulling Joe towards the exit.

"I agree with that," Iris said turning to her husband. "Wanna get out of here?" Arry looked down at her and smiled. He put his arm around her and next thing Cisco knew they were gone.

"Well, I don't quite have that exit but I'm going to get going too," Ralph said, heading out.

"You want a breach home?" Cisco asked Caitlin. She didn't say anything. "Caitlin?"

"Hm?" she grunted, not looking up.

"You okay?" Cisco asked. There was another brief pause, then Caitlin blinked and looked up.

"What?" she asked.

"I asked if you wanted a breach home but you were all zone out on me," Cisco said, a small smile finding its way onto his face.

"Yeah, sorry, just a long day I guess," she said.

"The only thing long was that hour," Cisco said laughing before he became serious."Do you really think we can beat these guys?"

"Absolutely," Caitlin said, not skipping a beat. "I'm no level ten but I know what we're capable of, with or without powers. We can do this, we just need the right information."

"So who is going into the realm this time?" he asked.

"I'll...talk to Austin but we need to figure out why your powers didn't work there before we do anything else," she explained.

"Did you hear what she said about the break in?" he asked her. She nodded.

"I didn't go that far and these halls have quite the acoustics," she smiled. "We'll figure this out. We always do."