26

Danger Lurks Closer Than You Think

Brady glanced at the open door to the classroom. Their teacher hadn't arrived yet. The sound of his classmates' rowdy conversation was testament to that. A paper plane whizzed by his head, gliding through the air. Leah glanced at it and narrowed her eyes, sending the paper plane nose-straight to the ground, as if someone batted it out of the air.

"You're getting better," Brady remarked.

Leah shrugged modestly. "I've been practicing," She said. "When my mom and dad aren't around, I practice my powers as much as possible." She leaned forward and lowered her voice. "Don't mention anything about a vase if you're around them. So far they haven't noticed that it's stuck to the ceiling."

"Stuck to the ceiling?" Brady asked. He thought for a moment. He'd seen how she managed to hold Savitar still—or attempt to—when facing him before. She could do that but couldn't remove a vase from the ceiling? "Can't you drop it back to the ground?"

"I could," Leah agreed slowly. "But I've already broken two lamps that way. I'm getting better with adding gravity to things, but not taking it away. I don't want to break anything else." She shrugged while Brady laughed. "What about you? Have you been doing more training?"

Brady nodded. "Oliver's been busy with his mayoral stuff, but he helps out when he can. I've seen Black Blade a few more times. He's helped me with my phasing. Now I can phase more than one person without being exhausted after. Though my flying could still use some work."

Now it was Leah's turn to smile. The two looked up at the sound of a commotion at the back of the classroom. Brady exchanged a glance with his friend and craned his neck to the back of the classroom. Alicia stood at the head of a circle of her classmates—the popular students. They all were speaking loudly and over each other. It didn't take long for Brady and Leah to hear the topic.

"I'm telling you, Flare was the one who set fire to the building," Rachel said, her eyes wide. A grin settled on her lips, obviously she was enjoying the conversation. "I saw it on the news. And the news wouldn't lie."

"Then you know nothing about the news," Thomas replied, folding his arms. "The news lies all the time."

"But why would Flash partner with someone who would want to destroy an apartment building?" Rachel shot back. "There has to be something going on. Even he couldn't defeat that new Speedster. It's only a matter of time until all metas turn on the city. I'm not surprised Flare is the first one to do it. Flash has to be the next."

Brady clenched his teeth together. Leah muttered something to him, a warning. He could hardly hear it over the pounding in his ears. "And Shadowhunter is going to be the next one. Who could be a hero with the name, 'Shadowhunter'? They're all waiting for us to blindly follow them then they'll kill us all." Rachel then noticed Brady and Leah watching and tilted her head, a smarmy smile on her face. "What do you think of your precious heroes, now, Brady?" She asked. "They're starting to cause a lot of trouble.

Sucking in a deep breath, Brady tried to keep his composure. He'd never liked Rachel. Almost as much as he disliked Alicia. The two were always together and always had something nasty to say. It baffled him how the meanest girls were the most popular, but that seemed to be the norm. He expected there to be issues with metas, even his soccer team were divisive about who was a hero and who was only trying to cause trouble. He had to admit it looked bad. Even when his mom—as Flare-gave Iris a personal interview about Incognito and how he'd mimicked her, there were some that hadn't believed it. Thankfully, there were plenty who still did.

"Not any more trouble than you're causing," Brady shot back. "Because you can't keep your fat mouth shut about things you don't understand!"

Rachel's smile immediately dropped. She narrowed her eyes in a glare at him. "And where were you?" She asked. "When we went on lockdown, you disappeared."

How true that was. "I was sick," Brady said. Even he knew how lame the excuse was. But he and Leah had to get away to help them stop Savitar somehow. And Savitar had still managed to kick all their butts. He was much stronger than any of them could've imagined. They needed to come up with a different plan if they'd even come close to what he or the Assassination Bureau could do.

As it was, he thought it was a bit easy how his mom had managed to kill Incognito. Not that she wasn't getting stronger, he truly believed that. And Barry was getting stronger as well. There had to be something else going on. Cisco had even said as much, but no one could come up with a reasonable explanation for it.

"You were scared."

"I wasn't the one hiding with the rest of the class."

"No, you were just hiding out in the nurse's office." Rachel stuck out her lower lip, adopted a baby-like voice. "Did your mommy have come to pick you up?"

"Stop."

Brady blinked in surprise. He hadn't said that. Hadn't even really been doing anything. Nevertheless, when he looked at Leah, he saw her staring pointedly at him. He raised his eyebrows in response, unsure of what she was talking about. Then Leah's eyes shot downward and Brady did the same, his eyes widening when he noticed his feet were slowly, yet unnoticeably was starting to turn invisible. He was starting to blend in with his surroundings.

"Calm down." Brady gave her a look that expertly conveyed a question mark and Leah rolled her eyes in response. "Do you want to out yourself as a meta?" She hissed between her teeth, ignoring Rachel's giggling when he didn't respond to her.

"I wouldn't mind if it got her to shut up," Brady mumbled. "Do you think you can, I don't know, make her fall through the floor or something. We can always blame it on her big head."

Leah's eyes shone with mischief as if she were considering it. Brady knew Leah would never do it, though. They were too careful to get outed as metas in any way. The school already had the speed cameras set up around the perimeter and inside the school, made sure their emergency contact lists were updated and strictly enforced, and any whispers of students with abilities were quickly quieted. So far, none of the teachers had come across the secret social media account they'd created for the metas to speak with each other. He made a mental note to hand over the information to Caitlin the next time he was at STAR Labs.

"Ignore her." Alicia announced her presence, sliding into the seat behind Leah. She tossed her hair over her shoulders and crossed her legs at the knee, resting her hands over a manila folder in her lap. "She just likes to hear herself talk."

"It's no wonder she doesn't shut up," Leah replied before she could stop herself. "No one else can get a word in." Her eyes widened and she slapped a hand over her mouth, glancing at Alicia. Rachel was her best friend. "I mean—"

Alicia waved her off. "Don't worry about it. You eventually learn to tune her out. I've got years of practice."

"Must be hard," Leah sympathized, making Alicia laugh. Then she nodded to the folder Alicia held in her hands. "What's that?"

"Oh." Alicia sat up straight and tapped the folder against her knees. "This is, like, information from my dad's computer. Case files that, like, had to do with that glass meta you guys were, like, asking me about before." Brady felt his heart rate increase. He sat up and exchanged a glance with Leah. "And some other stuff, too. About the particle accelerator and...Breathtaker and Savitar, you said?"

"You got all that information?" Brady asked. He leaned forward to grab the folder, but Alicia yanked it out of his grasp. "What are you doing?"

"You don't like me," Alicia pointed out.

"You don't like me," Brady shot back.

Alicia rolled her eyes. "I like Leah and you're, like, kind of a package deal. So, I guess I have to. I trust all of this to her not you." Brady frowned so deeply he felt all the muscles in his face tense. "I went out on a limb to get this stuff for you guys. And you still won't tell me what it's for. If you tell me that, then maybe I can trust you a little bit more." She held the folder against her chest. "I do like you, Brady. I don't have a problem with you. You're a little secretive, but you're not mean or anything."

He nodded. "Thank you."

"So why are you mean to mean?"

It's easier than having to tell you my secret, Brady thought. The last thing he needed was anymore to know his identity as Shadowhunter, to know how closely he was linked to The Flash, Flare, and STAR Labs. There were some things he could easily explain away but things had become much more complicated as of late. Especially if Rachel had noticed where he went, it meant everyone else was going to wonder. He thought about telling her, Alicia'd told the truth, she was Leah's best friend, and he wondered how much she'd told the chief's daughter.

"I'm not mean—" Brady tried to defend himself.

"Yes, you are," Leah and Alicia harmonized.

Brady shot a 'thanks a lot' look at Leah and sighed. He hadn't had to worry about things when Conner was still around. And yet, he was like Alicia. He didn't have any powers, found out about Brady's abilities, and had been a confidant of everything meta related. And Alicia's opinions of metas had turned around.

"Look, this information is important," Brady said. "It's…it'll help my mom and Barry with some of the cases they're working on."

"Your mom and Barry?" Leah repeated. "I thought they broke up?"

"No, they're still together," Brady quickly explained. "It's complicated." He waved their hand. "But that's not the point." He nodded to the folder. "That is."

"Fine," Alicia finally agreed. Brady reached for the folder but she held it tighter in her grasp. "But I can't let it out of my sight. If anything happens to it and my dad finds out, we'll be in a lot of trouble. And, we all know what they're doing about metas in school. If they found out we're looking for them—"

"—We'll be in a lot of trouble," Leah agreed.

Brady did as well. Fine, they agreed. They'd have to meet up later to figure things out. And once they got that, he could give it to Barry and the others. And they'd be one step closer to stopping Breathtaker and Savitar. Stop them from doing…whatever it is they wanted and what they were doing together to achieve it.

"So after school then," Alicia said. "We'll see what my dad found out. Should be a lot, he's been working on it for months. And now that Lex Luthor is here—"

"Lex Luthor?" Brady didn't know the man personally. But he remembered his mom saying something about him before. It had been a big thing when Lex first arrived in Metropolis; roads were blocked off for his motorcade, the news was constantly on, and his face was plastered everywhere. Honestly, Brady had no idea why he was so popular or what it was he wanted in Central City. "Isn't Metropolis his home?" He asked Cadence once over dinner.

"Yes, but politicians always travel to gather interest in other cities."

"What does he want with Central City, though?"

"You've got me, there, bud. I have no idea."

Alicia nodded. "Why? Does that name mean something to you?"

"Not yet," Brady mumbled. He and his friends twisted toward the front of the room when their teacher arrived, a disgruntled expression on his face. "Who peed in his cornflakes?" He muttered, making Leah and Alicia giggle quietly.

"Settle down class," Mr. Casey called. He dropped his bag onto the table with a loud bang that made Brady jump. "I'm sorry I'm late. It seems that the latest meta attack incorporated my car and the surrounding streets. I've had a lot of insurance companies I needed to speak to as well as working out a way to get to school."

Brady grimaced and slid lower in his seat. It was easier when he didn't know anyone directly affected by the work they did to save the city. Let alone think about how much it would take to fix everything when there was only so much Barry and his mother could do before the city had to jump in and do their jobs.

"We're getting a late start as it is, so let's jump right to it. But first things first." Mr. Casey pulled a post-it note from his pocket and read off the list of names, Brady's and Leah's included. "You all need to head to the nurse's office right now."

Confused, but still doing as they were told, Brady, Leah, and the rest of their classmates slid from their seats and headed to the nurse's office. One by one, they went inside, coming out with stapled pieces of paper in their hands. Finally, it was Brady's turn to go in and he greeted Nurse Abeley with a small smile.

"Brady Nash, good to see you," Nurse Abeley said. "I'm glad to see you're keeping up with your school attendance. You've missed so much, starting late the last couple of years."

Brady shrugged. "Well, my mom and I like to travel," he explained. "And I get my homework sent to me so I'm not missing out on much." He cleared his throat. "Uh, so why was I called down here? Did I run out of Epi-Pens again?"

"Oh, nothing like that. You just need an update on your shots. You seem to be missing one on your medical file." She rifled through the filing cabinet, found his folder, and pulled a sheet out from inside. She turned and gave him a pleasant smile. One so pleasant that Brady wasn't sure was real.

Then her words resonated with him and his face screwed up in confusion. "I already got all my shots," he explained. The nurse should've had all his medical records, he remembered his mom sending them out after his summer away. "My mom sent you the forms."

"It's a new requirement," Nurse Abeley replied. She gave a kind smile, pushing the sheet closer to him. "There's a new shot our students need to get. We'll need you to get it and return that form as soon as possible."

"Okay," Brady replied slowly. He glanced at the page as he turned from the nurse to go back to class. He had no idea what it said, but his mom would probably know.

It was a shot for school, it couldn't be too bad.

Caitlin yawned, rubbing her eyes with the palms of her hands. She leaned back against her pillows, lifting her legs so that her laptop rested against her thighs. A scan blurred across the screen in one corner, in the other was a superhero movie. It wasn't something she would've chosen herself, but Cisco had insisted she watch it or else he wouldn't be her friend anymore.

What made her want to start watching it now? There had to be something to do when she was taking the morning off. Her first morning away from work in…in three years. Maybe more. Since starting at STAR Labs, Caitlin prided herself on working as hard as she could to rise the ranks in research and technology through the company. But there was only so much time she could spend before it all seemed hopeless.

Savitar had beaten them, they had no further answers from the Assassination Bureau—and it was only a matter of time before Julian turned her in to the police. Now that he knew for sure she was a meta, now that he had a vendetta against her. It was the only thing on her mind. Even Captain Singh's wedding hadn't been able to keep her preoccupied. With Julian in attendance to the wedding as well, she couldn't completely relax. She could practically sense him every time he came near her, even to innocently pass by her table on the way to the buffet.

Cisco—he really was a great friend—had done his best to keep her calm throughout the wedding. But every time she felt a moment of peace, her anxiety would shoot through the roof when she turned back to her thoughts. Just as it was as she sat in bed that morning.

Her phone beeped, letting her know she had received a text message. Turning her phone over, Caitlin glanced at the screen and burst out laughing. Cisco had sent her a Snapchat image of a close-up of his face, a saddened expression—with HR in the background, the text reading over the screen; Wish you were here. Want to kill HR and you're the only one who can talk me out of it.

"You have too much time on your hands, Cisco," Caitlin murmured. She sent a text back—I'll be in later this afternoon. Try not to kill him until then and turned her phone off. She didn't want it on in case anything from the CCPD and Julian leaked back to her. The chances were slim since Barry had lost his job, and Cadence had said she'd be buried in notes to prepare herself for an upcoming trial, but she couldn't stand the thought alone.

With a sigh, Caitlin sat up and pushed her laptop aside. Now that she'd stopped watching the movie, she tuned in to how quiet her apartment was. She'd never really realized it before. A typical day had her up early, catching a workout at the gym in her apartment, getting ready, getting to work early, and staying in STAR Labs for the rest of the day. That pattern was only broken up by breakfast, lunch, or dinner plans with her friends. Metas and criminals were almost a daily occurrence in Central City, getting her back to her apartment late where all of it would start over again.

But there was only so much she could take before that anxiety couldn't be ignored any further. Even as she sat in her bed, her hands shook, palms sweated, and she felt overall sense of exhaustion. Something that certainly wouldn't help if she were to go into work that day. Not including the questions HR would shoot her way.

Over and over.

HR was an interesting man, but he could only be handled in small doses.

"Come on, Cait, you need to go out and do something," Caitlin murmured. "Stop freaking yourself out so much." She slid out of bed and took a shower, moving as fast as she could. Every time she felt even the hint of a breeze, she would stop what she was doing and wait. Wait to see if Killer Frost was coming out. Wait to see if a speedster was coming for her.

If anyone was coming for her.

She's been kidnapped and put in the line of danger so often she couldn't ignore any of the fight or flight responses her body naturally kicked in. On one hand, fear shot through her every time she was sure she'd be attacked, but a surge of confidence would come through as well. She'd been training recently; working to make herself stronger physically. She could at least put up a semblance of a fight if anyone came after her.

Caitlin studied her expression in the mirror as she put on her makeup. A young woman with a pleasant face but haunted eyes stared at her. Eyes that'd seen too much death, destruction, and tragedy in such a short life. Much more than any person should have. At her age, she always imagined herself to be married, living comfortably, and with a child or two. She'd managed two out of three—the only thing missing was the children. She lived comfortably and had the marriage…even if it hadn't lasted as long as she'd wanted.

Leaving the bathroom, Caitlin stopped to grab her purse, getting as far as the living room before stopping in her tracks. Her eyes fell on a photograph that sat on the table by her armchair. She could've sworn she'd turned it over. It was her favorite photo of her and Ronnie; on their first anniversary he'd surprised her with a trip up to the mountains. It was one of the happiest days of her life, something she could still look back on fondly.

One of the few that hadn't been tainted.

Caitlin lifted the photograph, ran her fingers over the glass. It squeaked beneath her fingers. A wistful sigh escaped her lips, her eyes dropping to the ring that glittered on her left hand. She hadn't thought about Ronnie in a long time. Hadn't really noticed her ring in that time, either, though routinely took it off at night and put it on in the morning. It didn't fill her heart with warmth the way it used to. Like he was right there, holding her hand.

Now it felt cold. A chunk of ice stuck to her finger, tethering her to the life she left behind. The life that left her. Cadence had said she thought Ronnie may still be alive. Had been hesitant to say it because she hadn't sensed Ronnie's body heat—though Caitlin wasn't sure if she wanted to say it was more his life force—snuff out when the Singularity had ripped him and Professor Stein apart. Cisco did his best to keep her mind off it, unable to talk about his lost friend as well.

A lump of pain slid up through Caitlin's chest, to her throat. She tossed the photograph aside. Could barely stand to look at it. Could barely look at anything that reminded her of Ronnie. She'd already given away his clothes, got rid of some of their mementoes, anything to keep from seeing it. Now that she thought about it, she'd spent many nights in STAR Labs the last couple of months. The pile of laundry sitting by the laundry room, ready to be folded and others to be cleaned was a testament to that.

She was avoiding it. Just like she avoided everything in her life that may be unpleasant. Voicemails from her mother continued to pile up on her phone, all unanswered and unreturned. Of course her mother only cared when things became tough with her research. Otherwise, Caitlin didn't even fall on her mother's radar.

Gritting her teeth, Caitlin turned away and brought her hands up to her forehead. She pushed her hair back from her face. Come on, Caitlin, get a grip, she thought. You have more important things to think about. Savitar, the Assassination Bureau, Black Blade, White Hot, the metahuman database, Killer Frost…

The moment she thought of her frosty friend, Caitlin felt her entire body grow cold. She closed her eyes, turning her head away. "No," she murmured. "No. Not again." The pain continued to slide up her chest, to her throat. A hard, velvety lump that only came when in intense moments of distress and emotion.

Then it was gone.

And Caitlin was gone along with it.

Her hair shifted from brown to white, eyes slid to an icy blue, fingertips adorned with a wispy white vapor. Killer Frost tilted her head back and forth, rolling her shoulders. Stretching after a length of absence. Then she glanced down.

"Ugh," Killer Frost moaned. She smoothed her hands down the sides of her pants, glanced at her shoes. "Looks like I need to work up her wardrobe again." She he shook her head. "She really needs to figure out fashion instead of sitting in a library all day."

Brushing her white-blonde hair from her face, Killer Frost's icy eyes shifted around the living room. Her upper lip curled. "And to get a new interior designer. This stuff sucks." Killer Frost's eyes roved over the living room before finally landing on the leather purse that sat in the armchair. "At least she's got good taste in handbags." She picked it up, turning it back and forth in her hands. "I may have to take this one for myself."

Glancing inside, Killer Frost picked up a wallet and flipped through the bills, leaving the 1s and 5s behind while she took the 10s and 20s. Then she turned it aside and found the slots that held Caitlin's credit cards and picked up the top one. "Let's go see what Caitlin wants to treat me with this time."

Killer Frost left the apartment, only making it a few steps before she was grabbed and whisked away in a trail of white-blue light. She stumbled when she was released and glanced around, finding herself by the waterside. She scowled as a nearby passenger boat whizzed by, hoking loudly, drunk passengers screaming at the top of her lungs. Then she turned the glare to her companion, Savitar, as he stood beside her.

"You couldn't wait until I actually had some fun, could you?" She spat. Savitar looked back at her. His eyes glowed as brightly at the rest of his suit. Even without irises, even without a way for the man inside the suit's eyes to be seen, Killer Frost recognized the menace in Savitar's stance. Despite not having been released—Caitlin managed to stay in control longer than Killer Frost through possible—Killer Frost was able to tap into Caitlin's brain at some moments. She had an idea of who Savitar was and how dangerous he could be. Not even a team of metas could stop him.

Killer Frost stepped back. Savitar continued to look at her, gently tilting his head to the side. Something about the way he looked at her was familiar and simultaneously chilling. "What?" Killer Frost looked Savitar up and down. "Are you going to kill me now?" She slowly shook he head. "I doubt your blood is so cold."

"I've been waiting for you," Savitar said. Killer Frost's eyebrows rose in response. Then her eyelids narrowed in suspicion. "I've been waiting for you to appear once more so I can make you my offer. To offer you what you desire."

He had no idea what she desired. How badly she wanted to be her own person. To be separate from that…wimp Caitlin Snow. To be her own person and make sure nothing changed her back. "And what's that?"

"Salvation." Savitar stepped towards Killer Frost, slowly closing the gap between them. The sound of metal rubbing against metal filled the air, as his joints moved. Low clanking from the weight of the suit. "I want to make sure Caitlin never returns. I want to tear away everything Barry Allen has in his life."

"Why should I trust you?"

If it were possible for him to smirk, Savitar would have. He continued toward Killer Frost until he was only a few feet away. Then, slowly, very slowly Savitar knelt to the ground. He placed his palms on the ground and in seconds, his suit came apart at the back. There was a grinding sound as gears ran against each other. A light emanated from the suit, only broken by a figure emerging from the suit.

Savitar smiled at Killer Frost, running his fingers over the scarred side of Barry's face. Killer Frost's eyes widened as she gazed at him. "I think you'll find a few good reasons."

Killer Frost closed her jaw. Swallowed away the lump that filled her throat. "What do you need me to do?"

A/N: Huh. One of my shorter chapters in a while, but it did bring up some more plots that hadn't been touched upon in a bit. The pacing of the story is going to move faster, I know things have been a bit slow as of late (or that might just be me since I basically read and re-read everything I write while I'm writing it).

So I didn't 100% say why Caitlin turns into Killer Frost, but maybe you got the idea here? It will be revealed fairly soon, just like Savitar's identity has been revealed to others a lot sooner than it has been for the show. But the question is, how long until Barry knows the truth? And who will be the next to know?

Please remember to review; any feedback helps me become a better writer and motivates me to write more. I respond to every review, even anonymous ones. I update my story every Wednesday, if there's a time that I won't it will be posted on our twitter: DarkElements10.

Cheers,

-Riley

Review Replies

DarkHelm145: Don't worry, things with Barry and Cadence won't be dragged on for too long. You'll find out soon. (Though if anyone is really curious, I don't mind spoiling it. I just need to have an actual way to contact you if you're an anonymous reviewer). Yes, Incognitos real form is the older man. He's not too old, not a senior, but getting up there. Late forties, early fifties. Not quite death gun, but close. You don't see anything but his glowing eyes under the hood and you only see his hands from beneath the cloak as well.

Ethan: Stratos's daughter was mentioned twice. Once in Flash Fire and once in Crossfire. (That I remember, anyway, lol). Incognito can shape shift into anything; people, plants, animals, as long as it's a material in some sense, he can shape shift. It won't be dragged on for too long between BarryCade. But, as you know, it had to happen.

Jason Hunter: Not this chapter, but one coming soon.

Guest: Yep, she said 'no'.

PowerHero432: Good catch! Yes, it was titled that for three reasons. One of which is obvious, the other two require a bit of close-reading to find. But it will make sense when it's revealed. Hers and Barry's 'separation' won't last too long. As you know. But the reasoning behind it TI feel is a pretty good one. We'll just see what you think when we get to it. And you'll see how the AB react soon.