"Are you sure about this, Clarissa?" Rip asked concerned, "We can take him with us."

Clarissa laughed at the over-anxious father, "You don't need him with you while you do this. I am perfectly capable of watching him."

"But..."

"Rip," she cut him off, "I promise you, Jonas will be fine with me for the afternoon."

Cisco rolled his eyes, "Gideon," he called, "Are you connected to Clarissa's phone?"

Rip automatically moved his arm so that her avatar could be seen when she answered the question, she complained otherwise.

"Yes, Mr Ramon," Gideon replied, "If anything happens I shall be able to alert Captain Hunter instantly."

Cisco and Clarissa both turned to Rip who held up his hands in defeat, "Fine."

"Go say goodbye to your son," Clarissa shooed him out to the back garden where Jonas was playing.

Rip grimaced but did as he was told and headed out to where Jonas was playing on the swing set that had appeared in the back garden since his last visit to the Stein residence.

"Daddy," Jonas ran over to him.

Rip hugged him, "I have to go out for a while but Clarissa is going to look after you. Are you okay with that?"

Jonas looked at him nervously, "You will be back soon?"

"Of course I will," Rip soothed, "I just have some things to do which will be boring for you so I thought you would like to stay here with Clarissa so you can have fun."

"Okay," Jonas nodded.

Rip hugged him tightly, "Be good."

x

Joe and Caitlin were waiting for them when they reached the house with a For Sale sign sitting in the garden.

"We were beginning to think you weren't going to make it," Joe noted when they pulled up in the Star Labs van.

"Rip had some separation anxiety," Cisco told them as he slid out the van.

Shaking his head in annoyance at his friend Rip followed him telling them softly, "The last time I left Jonas for any length of time I thought he was gone for good."

"He's with Clarissa and Gideon is connected to her phone," Cisco comforted him, "He'll be fine."

Joe moved to Rip's side, "The quicker we get inside then the faster you can get back to him."

Nodding Rip walked with them to the house.

"You don't like it," Joe said after a few minutes of walking through it, "Do you?"

Rip shook his head, "I don't. I'm not even sure why."

"Sometimes you just don't," Joe told him, "Let's head to the next one."

Rip nodded and followed the others out of the house back to their vehicles. Gideon had found several possibilities for houses that Rip could purchase so he had asked for some help to look at them. Joe, Caitlin and Cisco were the only ones free for the afternoon.

"Far too small," Rip grimaced as he walked around the second property they were viewing.

"This is bigger than my apartment," Cisco noted, "And you've been living there for a few weeks."

"Yes," Rip replied, "No offence Cisco but that is temporary this is going to be my home. Formerly I lived on a ship that was extremely spacious. I need more room than this."

Caitlin sighed, "Okay, next."

The third house they looked around was much larger and Rip sighed seeing the hopeful looks on the other three faces.

"There are too many windows," he grimaced, "I'd feel like I was living in a fishbowl and would be an easy target."

Joe nodded, "There is one more on Gideon's list of possibilities. If this doesn't work for you..."

"Then I will have Gideon look again," Rip replied.

Joe saw Cisco shake his head before they climbed into the cars once again and headed to the final option.

x

The final house was only a few blocks from where Joe lived.

Rip climbed out the van and looked at the front garden as the others joined him. He could hear them talking behind him all trying to point out good features of the house.

Rip pulled away and started to wander around. There were four good sized bedrooms including the converted attic, with a kitchen, dining room and living room that were a big enough for him. It also had a large back garden that was fenced in which he was sure Jonas would love to play in.

"Well," Joe appeared at his side as he stood in the kitchen, "What's wrong with this one?"
Rip turned to him a smile playing on his lips, "Actually, I like it. It reminds me of the house Miranda had, it has plenty of room and a garden for Jonas to play in."

"You like it?"

Rip nodded ignoring the disbelief in the other man's voice, "It's also quite close to your house..." he trailed off not quite sure how to finish his sentence. As much as the others kept pushing the idea that he was now part of their family Rip was still having trouble with the concept.

Joe nodded in agreement, "Good point. I didn't actually think of that but considering everything you really should be close to at least one of us," he chuckled at stunned look on Rip's face, "Still having trouble with being part of family aren't you?"

"I'm an orphan, Joe," Rip said softly, "Yes, I had my mother at the refuge but she raised me to be a Time Master. An organisation who then drummed into me that I needed to be above personal attachments. I wasn't meant to love Miranda or have Jonas. I sometimes thought I was defective because I cared about them."

"What about your team?"

"I brought them together for a specific purpose. They weren't supposed to be anything more than a means to an end," Rip confessed.

"But they became more," Joe noted, "Even though you didn't want them to be."

"I've lost everyone I have ever cared about," Rip told him harshly, "From the woman who would feed me when I was living on the streets to my wife so yes I find it hard to let people in."

Joe winced slightly at Rip's confession, "We have been pushing you pretty hard about being one of the family."

"And I'm trying," Rip replied sincerely, "For Jonas."

Joe frowned slightly before asking, "How about for yourself?"


"Daddy," Jonas grinned when Rip entered the Stein's house, "We painted."

Rip laughed seeing the streak of yellow paint on his son's cheek, "I can see that. Did you have fun today?"

Jonas nodded, "Grandma is lots of fun."

"Grandma?"

"It's alright if he calls me that," Clarissa asked from behind them, "Isn't it?"

Rip smiled at her, "Yes, it is."

"Did you do your boring things?" Jonas asked as Rip took the cloth from Clarissa to clean the paint off his son's cheek.

He nodded before he touched the cloth to Jonas' nose making him laugh, "I did and I've finished so we're going to go home now. Cisco has a new movie to show us tonight."

Jonas gave a cheer, wriggled out of Rip's arms he ran over to Clarissa to hug her, "Thank you for looking after me, Grandma."

"You're welcome, darling," Clarissa held him tightly, "I am happy to have you come and spend the day with me whenever you want."

Letting him go Clarissa moved to Rip and hugged him as well, "Remember that you are both always welcome here."

"Thank you, Clarissa," Rip said sincerely, "I may take you up on that offer again soon since I found a house."

"That's wonderful," she told him, "I must admit I expected it to take you a lot longer than this."

Rip frowned, "Really?"

"I can see how hard this is for you, Rip," she squeezed his arm, "You still want to be out there travelling through time and having adventures with your team."

He shrugged, "Perhaps but Jonas is my priority and has to be from now on. I can't let Miranda down."

"I wish I could have met her," Clarissa told him, "Because she must have been someone so special for you to have loved her."

Rip nodded unable to find the words against the lump forming in his throat. He didn't talk about Miranda with people usually but sometimes her name slipped out and the knife in his heart twisted.

"Now, I'll see you both soon," Clarissa smiled giving him a way to leave, "And tell Cisco next time he is to come inside as well."

Rip shrugged, "I left him arguing on the phone with Felicity over something to do with security systems."

Clarissa laughed, "Well it sounds like things are normal."

With a few more hugs for Clarissa from Jonas, Rip finally managed to get his son out of the house so they could head home.

x

"Captain Hunter?"

"Yes, Gideon," Rip said as he fixed dinner for his son, glancing over to where Cisco and Jonas were playing a board game completely ignoring him.

"Do you wish to talk?" she asked concern in her voice.

Rip grimaced, "Why would I need to talk?" he sighed at the long silence that answered him, "Gideon?"

"You have taken a big step today," she reminded him, "Choosing a house. I was not sure you would like any of the choices I gave you."

Rip smiled to himself, "You knew that the fourth one was perfect though and similar to the house Miranda had. You knew I would connect with it."

"I hoped," she replied, a little smugly.

Rip chuckled softly, "I should be able to install the systems to allow you access to the full house."

"Once you have managed to buy the house," Gideon reminded him, "Assuming you have tried to buy it."

"Joe has agreed to help me," Rip assured her, "Since I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing."

"You have changed, Captain," Gideon told him, pride in her voice, "There was a time you would never have asked for help. Not even from me."

Rip shrugged, "Perhaps working with the Legends did change me more than I realised."

"Only for the better," Gideon replied, "I assure you."

He smiled at the praise, "Thank you, Gideon."