Santa's Real
Barry and the gang celebrate Christmas day at Joe's and discover a mysterious set of presents under the tree. Jay/OC. Not a part of the rest of the Flash story that I intend to write but it is the same characters. One-shot.
Christmas Eve
"So are we meeting here tomorrow for food and presents?" Caitlin asked as she shrugged her jacket over her shoulders.
Barry nodded as he stood to help Perci up from the floor as Jay walked back in from the kitchen with Joe.
"Yeah at 12. Perci do you need a cab? I know Caitlin had already booked hers." Barry asked as he handed Perci her jacket. She shook her head.
"I'm just going to walk home, it won't take too long. And you never know I might even see Santa." Perci joked. The gang laughed as Cisco stood and put his hands on his hips.
"Why do the girls get offered a taxi but Jay and I are expected to find our own way home?" Cisco said in a mock insulted tone.
Jay shook his head as he grabbed his leather jacket. "I'm actually going to head with Perci, so I'm walking too."
Cisco shook his head. "Yeah but we still didn't get the offer." He mumbled as he sat back down, grabbing another cup of eggnog. A horn sounded outside the house, signalling that Caitlin's taxi had arrived.
"So I will see everyone tomorrow." Caitlin said, as she hugged Perci and Barry before running outside to get her taxi.
"Same here, we should head before we don't actually leave." Perci said as she fixed her boots at the door. Jay nodded as he came and stood next to her. Opening the front door Perci shouted back from the door that they would see everyone tomorrow and that Cisco shouldn't drink any more.
OoOoOoOoOoOoO
Walking along the snowy empty streets of Central City Perci was walking slightly ahead of Jay when she started to slipped forward on a patch of hidden black ice. Bracing herself for the fall that was quickly approaching she suddenly felt an arm around her waist pulling her up back to her feet.
"I thought you had lost your fast reflexes." Perci said as she drew up level to Jay, his arm still around her waist holding her close to him.
"I guess I still have good reflexes whether I'm the Flash or not." Jay replied his head inclined down so that he could look into Perci's green eyes.
Perci smiled as she pushed her red hair back from her eyes as she stepped back from Jay's arm. "I guess so. We should start walking, but I will probably be sticking close to you."
Jay laughed his breath highlighted in the air due to the cold weather. "I wouldn't mind." Jay said glancing back over at Perci who was now only a foot away from him rather than a few feet ahead.
Still at least ten minutes from Perci's apartment with the pace they were walking, Perci was now walking with the arm linked with Jay's after she had stumbled again.
"You always been this clumsy?" Jay asked still looking forward but feeling the presence of the person pressed next to him.
"Yes, I have. However I am usually ok on the ice, it must be the eggnog." Perci laughed looking up at Jay. "What about you? Are you clumsy or have you always been surefooted?"
"Always been surefooted and it's been really useful as the Flash. A clumsy Flash would put more people at risk." Jay said reminiscing back on the feeling of being the Flash.
"You miss it." Perci stated.
"Yeah but I am getting used to not having it, not being that man, the hero. I guess it is getting harder to keep the reason of why I was the Flash alive, it was easy when I was fast but not so much now." Jay replied kicking the snow at his feet as they turned the corner to Perci's street.
"You still are a hero, or at least you were mine tonight." Perci said with a smile pulling tighter at Jay's arm. "And you do it for the same reason that Barry does. At heart you are both good people who want to help people."
Stopping at the door for the apartment Perci fished for her keys in her pocket. "Does that mean that you aren't good at heart?" Jay asked leaning against the door frame.
"I am but not as good as you and Barry. I use my powers to help my friends and by extension Central City so not as good as the Flash." The door opened and Jay followed Perci inside.
"That's my reason for helping, for being a hero. It's hard to keep that in my head though when my power starts growing and demanding more." Perci continued as she took her jacket off and hanged it on the coat hook. Jay copied as he had since he started staying in Perci's spare room.
"That's why I like Christmas so much." Jay said sitting on the couch, as Perci went to change. "It reminds you of your reason for being a hero."
Perci came back out of her bedroom wearing a white top that said It I agreed with you we would both be wrong across it and a pair of pink and grey leopard print trousers.
"I guess" she replied as she grabbed a water bottle and headed back to her bedroom door. "But it would be nice to be reminded sometimes."
Jay nodded as he stretched out on the couch. "I couldn't agree more. Good night Perci."
Christmas Day
Jay and Perci made their way to Joe's the next morning in a festive mood yet neither could shake the feeling that they needed reminding why they stayed in the hero business. As everyone sat around the tree after the meal they felt stuffed as they sat looking at the present they had unwrapped that morning.
Jay and Barry sat on the floor as the rest of the gang lay around the couches and relaxed with their friends.
Barry lay back on the floor and moved his head to look under the tree.
"Jay what's that at the back of the tree on your side?" Barry asked pointing at a bundle at the back of the tree. Jay leaned back and grabbed what Barry was pointing at.
"It's more gifts." Jay stated holding the bundle in his lap. "I thought we did every present this earlier?" Jay asked slightly puzzled.
"We did." Joe answered leaning forward on the couch, everyone looking equally confused. "Why don't you pass them out Jay."
Jay looked at the names on the presents and started laughing. "You should see who they are addressed to yourself." Jay stated as he handed them out to the right people. Looking around to make sure Patty was still out of the room Barry spoke first.
"They are addressed to the other us." Barry said as Joe and Iris scrunched up their faces. "The Flash and friends." Barry whispered looking for Patty.
Joe and Iris leaned forward looking at the names shocked that anyone would actually write it down.
"It's not any if our handwriting." Perci stated pointing at the words. "And it says from Santa."
Cisco laughed. "As if Santa is a story parents tell their kids about to make sure they behave."
Jay sighed and shook his head. "Really Cisco you believe in men who run at Mach 2 and women who can manipulate Life Force but not Santa?"
"You do?" Cisco questioned as he started to pick at the wrapping of his present.
"Why not?" Jay questioned. "However I do think we should open them before Patty walks back in."
The gang nodded as they ripped apart the wrapping paper, destroying the names that were written on them. Perci opened hers quickly shredding through the name so that even if Patty saw the wrapping then she wouldn't work it out. Each person sat with a black box on their knee, apprehensive about opening the gift properly. Barry, Caitlin and Cisco quickly opened the box and each gasped slightly looks of surprise plastered on their faces. Jay and Perci exchanged a quick look before opening in the box and finding a small note above their gifts as the others had done.
Being the hero is hard but this is your reminder of why you are doing it. Keep remembering xoxo
Picking the note up both Jay and Perci looked around the room slightly shaken that this mirrored their conversation from last night. Under the note everyone had the same present as picture frame with multiple photo slots each which had been filled. Everyone's centre frame had a picture from the night before which hadn't been printed by anyone yet of everyone. Yet that was the only picture that was the same in everyone's gift. In Perci's gift there was a picture of Joe and Barry and Iris filling the top frame, the left frame was a picture of Cisco, Caitlin and Ronnie from before the accelerator explosion and the right frame's picture surprised her the most, it was a picture of Jay smiling out at the camera as if he didn't have a care in the world. Jay looked down at his frame and then up at Perci with a smile. His top frame was a picture of him and his dad from Earth 2 when he was younger, the left frame was a split picture of his Justice League back home and the group of friends he had made here and the last picture was one of Perci starting straight into the camera her green eyes piercing out at him.
Everyone looked up from the surprise gift a look of happiness across all of their faces.
"There is no way that one person had access to all of these photos." Caitlin said running her fingers over her frame. Barry nodded in agreement. "It wouldn't be possible."
Cisco scoffed "So Santa is real!" He semi-shouted keeping his voice as low as he could so Patty didn't hear.
The group descended into laughter as Perci and Jay smiled at each other, wondering what would come next.
Merry Christmas everyone and Happy Holidays. I have released a poll for Perci's superhero name. (Her real name is Persephone). Please review. Feel free to PM me.