.:9:.

That night the ArrowCave was short of nothing but tension sand hostilities swirling around those inside. Barry and Oliver weren't talking, Barry and Cadence weren't talking, Cisco and Caitlin weren't talking much since Harrison arrived, afraid he was going to finally exhibit his irritation that they left without telling them why, Cadence wanted nothing to do with Harrison, Diggle, or Lyla, and everyone else seemed to be walking on egg-shells so that no one snapped and started an all-out war.

With two metahumans, two vigilantes, and two people that knew their way around ammunition, it wasn't an assumption to say the tension could've imploded on a hair-trigger.

Oliver sighed as he ran a hand over his hair. What could go wrong now? He already had Captain Lance on his back, Laurel who was suspicious of nearly his every move, and his team was falling apart. Diggle and Lyla continued to argue about their marital status more than the issues they were dealing with, Felicity had clammed up other than the work she was doing on figuring out Digger's whereabouts—though he was partially sure it was because she had the innate ability to offend someone without meaning to—and Roy…well, Roy was the only one that didn't seem to be at odds with anyone. Though Oliver couldn't help but notice that he did appear pensive about something and had been since he had arrived at the ArrowCave when summoned.

There had never been a time where Oliver was simultaneously frustrated and questioning himself.

"I know the feeling." Lyla's voice broke into his thoughts and he turned around to face her. His blond eyebrows rose, indicating her to continue. "Seeing the world one way while someone else sees it another way. I know what that's like. There are some people in the world that only deal with extremes."

"And it'd be naïve to think that anything less than extreme measures will stop them."

"Sometimes bravery isn't enough. Sometimes the world requires us to be bold."

"Whatever the cost."

Oliver and Lyla exchanged lightly nods and the corner of her mouth turned up as she reached out and gently patted him on the arm. It was the only comforting thing that had come to the group in days and while Oliver was glad someone else understood his point of view, he couldn't help but allow his eyes to trail over to the forensic scientist that moped on a nearby set of stairs.

I wish Barry would understand where I was coming from; he couldn't stop the thought before it entered his head. Usually he gave the orders and everyone followed through with it, he didn't care so much about the thought that went into his plans. But with Barry's view of the world…Oliver's eyes shifted over to Harrison Wells, who sat quietly next to Felicity, watching as she did whatever it was she did to find Digger. Part of him resented Dr. Wells for the view of the world that Harrison had, no doubt, given him, but at the same time he was grateful. Barry knew what it was like to be a hero, what it was like to do things for the good of them, to care about the lives of everyone in his city, to guide and mentor him in the way he should have been while Oliver was stuck learning it all on his own.

A light smile tugged at Oliver's lips. Maybe he could learn something from Barry after all.

"I got him!" Felicity suddenly cried. "He's in a warehouse at the corner of Infantino and Adams." She smiled to herself, pleased that she was able to use her skills to aid the group once more. Even if she didn't have powers, there were other ways she could help them. Then she could sense Oliver behind her, rather than feel him, but felt her pride swell anyway. She moved quickly and got Oliver what he needed. Now they just had to be sure things moved as smoothly afterwards. "There are about ten bodies inside."

"Harkness knows we're coming," Diggle realized.

Brady's nose wrinkled. "How would he know that? Just because of that guy that you managed to take down?"

"He probably has informants all over that would tell him when he's about to be busted," Caitlin pointed out. She bobbed her head back and forth. "I guess the guy that Barry took to Captain Lance was only one of them."

"I can track his cell phone position," Cisco said, his eyes glued to Felicity's monitor. He gently shook his head as he looked at the eleven dots showcasing Digger's and his accomplice's exact positioning. Barry had gone against a lot of people before and even if he and Cadence could move quickly, this was still going to be a tough one.

"Cisco, you're with Diggle and Roy," Oliver instructed. "Barry and Cadence are coming with me."

"I'll race you there," Barry said as he walked over, his eyes locked onto Oliver's. Oliver opened his mouth to retort then sighed instead. This wasn't the time for them to get into another conversation…argument about things. They were in Starling City and they were going to operate the way he wanted them to operate. No questions about it. "Lyla you stay here, if we're sure about his motives, then Digger is going to come after you."

"I don't want her to stay here," Cadence interrupted, staring hard at the female agent. "I'd rather see an ARGUS member out on the field next to me so I can at least see when they're going to put a bullet in my head rather than sit back and wonder what'll happen next."

Oliver turned towards her, narrowing his eyes. "Cadence, now's the time to put personal feelings aside—"

"You mean like the little vendetta you have against Harrison, Liver?" Cadence shot back.

With the mention of his name, Harrison leaned back in his seat and placed his blue eyes on Oliver. He stared at the vigilante as he spoke, "I'm sure whatever it is that Oliver has against me can be pushed aside for the greater cause of Starling City for at least one night. It will be operative to have Lyla here."

Oliver nodded.

Oliver stepped into the dilapidated warehouse and slowly looked around. Neon lights flashes advertisements for gun and drugs and judging by the shuffling sounds Digger's accomplices were waiting for him—or someone else—to come closer and unleash a flurry of bullets into their waiting bodies. Then he received the hint of acrid smoke and heard a whooshing sound, and turned the corner, bow drawn, to find Barry and Cadence finish tying up the last of Digger's helpers.

Dusting his hands off, Barry turned towards Oliver. "You're late," he commented.

Oliver shot an eyebrow upwards and turned his bow to the side, shooting an arrow into the side of a man that snuck up behind Barry. The forensic scientist whipped around to watch the man fall to the ground just as Roy and Diggle walked into the room behind Oliver, bow and gun drawn.

"He's not dead is he?" Barry asked slowly.

"Tranquilizer dart," Oliver explained. He lowered his bow and gave Barry a look that held a slight hint of disdain. "The same thing I used on you back in Central City."

Cadence's eyebrows rose and she turned her gaze towards Roy, who held his hands up defensively. "I only shot you with a regular arrow."

"That explains it."

With a low sigh, Oliver kicked at the hand of one of the men that lay crumpled on the floor and looked around the warehouse. He gritted his teeth together and stepped further into the room, looking over the men and the contents of the room. It was a mistake that they were there; he should've seen it ages ago. "Digger isn't here!" He barked to his friends then turned to man that was closest to him, facing his direction. "Where's Digger Harkness?" He demanded, but at least demonstrated restraint. He could feel Barry's eyes on him.

"Never heard of him!" The guy shot back. "But he wanted us to give you this." He held up a dark rectangular object that Oliver snatched out of his hand.

"We shouldn't have come here! Harkness…Harkness isn't here!" Oliver thought for a moment, then his eyes widened as he turned back to Diggle and Roy. It took a minute for them to realize what Oliver had suddenly realized. Digger had sent them to that location to get him away from the ArrowCave.

He was going to attack there when the others were unprotected. He pointed at Roy. "Where's Cisco?"

"Still in the van," Roy said quickly.

"Tell him to call Felicity, it's an emergency!"

The ringing of Marcos's cell phone caused Lyla, Felicity, Caitlin, and Brady all to jump. Only Harrison remained cal at the sudden sound that blared through the otherwise quiet ArrowCave. Frowning, he twisted to look at the screen, his eyebrows narrowing even further when he noticed the 'BLOCKED CALLER' ID.

"I'm assuming it wouldn't be Mr. Queen making a house call," he commented.

"No. Oliver never makes house calls. Really, he doesn't even call just to say 'hi' every once in a while." Her hands clenched into fists at her mini-rant. Then Felicity shook her head, blonde ponytail bobbing. "N-no, it shouldn't even be ringing. I swear I turned it off after I decrypted it."

Lyla's eyes shifted for a moment, though her outward façade remained clear. "Could someone turn it back on remotely?" The last of her question got out of her mouth and a knowing chill ran down her spine. Felicity started to agree with her statement, asking if someone could 'back trace the trace?' before they all sprang into action.

There was a loud whistling sound and a boomerang flew overhead, crashing into the metal desk below Caitlin's hands. She let out a gasp of surprise when she realized how she had come to losing her fingers. Then sprang out of her seat, grabbing onto Brady's arm with one hand and the handle to Harrison's wheelchair with the other. Pulling the two to safety.

Peering her head out from behind the filing cabinet they hid behind, Caitlin watched, lower jaw dropping when she spotted Digger walk into the light of the ArrowCave, his snarl directed towards Lyla. "Hello," he greeted her in his strong Australian accent before he threw a boomerang with all his might. It crashed into some wires that hung from the ceiling, sending sparks flying. Caitlin continued to hold Brady against her chest and looked over at Harrison, who caught her gaze. She knew the two of them were thinking the same thing. He had to help them somehow…but what did that mean for the secret he was keeping of being able to move like Barry?

Brady squirmed against Caitlin's grasp and she held on tighter to him. No. They had no choice but to sit back and wait. There was another crashing sound and Caitlin jumped once more, sure that Digger was trying even harder to take Lyla down.

"Guns!" Lyla shouted from somewhere near her.

"Cabinet, third drawer!" Felicity shouted back. Her voice sounded near too and not in pain. So she was safe. Caitlin took a deep breath, trying to steady herself, to keep herself from shaking. Lyla knows what she's doing. He's not trying to go after the rest of us, he's going after her. There has to be something else we can do. Caitlin opened her eyes once more and turned back to Harrison, who had moved his hands to the arms of his seat. Caitlin's eyes lowered and she saw the hint of his foot move, ready for him to leap up. Then she lifted her eyes to his once more and frantically shook her head.

Harrison stared at her then leaned back in his seat, lowering his arms, holding still.

Racing over to the cabinet she had been instructed to Lyla ducked down behind a wall of computers and opened the drawer, pulling out a pistol. She then whipped around and lifted her gun, shooting it at Digger, causing him to duck down behind any sense of protection he could find. Lyla continued to shoot at him, and then ducked down behind another enclosure. Caitlin poked her head out from behind her protection and watched as Felicity raced across the floor of the ArrowCave to a case and grabbed something off a shelf. Hearing a whistling sound, she turned back towards the battle and watched as Digger threw two boomerangs and ducked down once more. Lyla, who had moved to attack him, gave her position up and Caitlin immediately saw that she had made a mistake.

"LYLA! GET DOWN!" Caitlin shouted, immediately burning her throat raw. She watched as Lyla got caught in the shoulder with a boomerang and fell to the ground.

Then there was a flurry of movement. Caitlin felt herself grow cold for a moment, and then there was an explosion, sending sparks everywhere. Then there was a choking sound. Caitlin looked over once more and found Cadence holding onto Digger, her arms wrapped tightly around his throat, but what she saw surprised her; Cadence's lips were pulled back in a snarl, her eyes glowing a dark, blood red rather than the bright orange-red they did when she exhibited her powers.

"Mom," Brady gasped.

Hearing noise by her side, Caitlin looked up and found Harrison wheeling towards Cadence, a hand outstretched. "Let him go," he instructed in a firm yet gentle tone. "This isn't want you want to do. Let him go. He isn't our enemy, he isn't important to us right now." Caitlin continued to watch as Cadence stared at Harrison, as if not seeing him, and then slowly lowered her arms, her eyes returning to the normal orange color before lowering to its blue-green.

Once Digger was free, he raced out of the ArrowCave. Caitlin got to her feet and let go of Brady, who hurried over to his mother, and turned her attention to Lyla, who continued to lie on the floor, a boomerang out of her shoulder.

"Stop the bleeding!" Caitlin declared. "We need to stop the bleeding!" She hurried over to a cabinet along the wall, scanned the labels of the vials that sat in front of her and grabbed the one that would be the closest of use to her and a syringe. She kneeled down by Lyla's side once more, gently nudging a sobbing Felicity aside, filled the syringe from the vial, and stabbed it into Lyla's shoulder.

"She's not breathing!" Felicity cried. "Why isn't she breathing?"

Caitlin lowered her head to Lyla's chest and listened for a moment. Her pulse was feint, but it was still there. Lyla was breathing, but not very well, not very noticeable and that certainly wasn't good. She nodded at Felicity and the two carefully lifted Lyla up onto a nearby examining table. They had only just put her down when Oliver, Diggle, Roy, and Cisco came racing back into the ArrowCave with Barry right behind them. Diggle immediately raced over to his ex-wife, cradling her head in his hands, crying as he stared down at her lifeless form.

"I have her stabilized, but I can't operate on her here," Caitlin said, rising her eyes towards Oliver. It was then she realized she was shaking and it wasn't because of the cold that had seeped into her body before. She was shaking out of fear, a bigger sense of fear than she and the others had felt in Central City. Digger Harkness was out for blood and he would take down anyone that would stand in his way.

"Barry?" Diggle whispered, turning to the speedy metahuman.

He was already moving before Oliver instructed, "Starling General is at 8th and Wilcott" and was out the door in a matter of seconds.

Once the wind that whipped her hair around died down, Caitlin turned and dropped down into a seat, pressing her palms against her face. Her skin was warm, her hands were warm, and she was still shaking. Cisco sat down in a seat next to her and put his arms around her, hugging her tightly. "Its okay, Caitlin," he said quietly to her. "It's okay. Everything's okay now. You did a great job."

"Cisco…" she finally lifted her head, speaking quietly with him. "It was…this was so different than what we've gone through back in Central City. I thought…" Moving her hair out of her face, she looked into Cisco's eyes. "I thought I was going to die. I could only think about…the things I hadn't been able to do because we don't take things in Central City as seriously."

"I know." Reaching out, Cisco tucked her hair behind her ear. "I know." Caitlin gave him a small smile and they hugged again, holding onto each other tightly.

Oliver glanced at the two, running his hands over his hair before walking off. He paused momentarily as Felicity reached out and placed her hand on his arm. He looked down at her, noticing the tears in her eyes that she tried her hardest not to let fall, and brought his hand up to hers, gently squeezing it. Felicity's pink lips curled for a moment, into a tiny comforting smile, and then she removed her hand from Oliver's arm. Oliver kept his hand on hers a moment longer, squeezing it once more, then walked off to a quieter part of the ArrowCave. He really needed to be alone.

And within those few minutes he got to himself, he didn't know what to think about first. How Barry might have been right? How he needed to put more trust in his team? How he needed to stop going with his first instincts and think things through? How he was actually right the whole time but things didn't always go his way? How he needed to work harder to be sure things went his way? All of the above and with no clear idea of what the correct solution was.

He turned his head lightly when he heard footsteps coming up behind him and let out a low breath. "This is all my fault," he said.

"It's not your fault, Oliver," Cadence reassured him with a light shake of her head. "No one can completely be to blame for things that happen around here…around us." She walked over to his side and tilted her head back to look up at him, frowning as she remembered that she had to do that a lot even when they were kids. "I thought you knew that by now."

"I tortured Marcos to give up that file." Oliver briefly closed his eyes, the screams of the man immediately coming back into his head. He normally didn't put much thought into what he did for the slime that ruined Starling City. But this time it was something he knew he wouldn't forget, now there was someone that showed the humility he wished he had…putting it right into his face and questioning his moves and motives. "None of this would have happened if it wasn't for me."

"Gosh, I never thought I would ever hear you say that, 'liver." Cadence laughed lightly. "Especially considering you just had to bat your eyelashes and claim innocence and no one ever questioned you."

"That's because I had Tommy at my side backing up my story while you, Thea, and Laurel kept whining about the things we did." Oliver allowed himself to smile at the memories that felt like far off dreams of a life he only used to know and desperately wished he could get back to. "Doing what I do takes conviction. But more often than not it's the will to do what's ugly. Every time I do that I'm trading away little pieces of myself. So…you asked what's what wrong with me, that's what's wrong. The part that I'm trading away is Oliver Queen. And lately I've been feeling like there is nothing left except the Arrow."

He expected her to snort, to scoff, to sigh, to tell him he was wrong. He didn't expect her to agree with him. "I know what you mean, when I was in the Assassination Bureau, there were times where Breathtaker and Leah would give me enough control over my body…of my head so I was aware of what I was doing, but I couldn't control myself. When I was with them I was Brigade, I wasn't Flash Fire, I wasn't even Cadence. I was…a puppet for them to get to Barry so they could get to Harrison. And the worst part is that I've done sad bad things under their control that I know wasn't me…but it was still my hands that did it and that's always going to follow me and I know how I'm ever…how anyone is ever going to see past that."

She moved her hair off her forehead. "I joined them to make sure nothing happened to Brady, so he could have the life he deserved and that's what kept me in it. But I don't know if that thought is still enough to justify what I've done." She shrugged. "I know you had your own reasons, I can't even begin to imagine what happened to you on that island, but I know you still have Oliver Queen in there. Nothing can take that from you."

Really? It seems that no matter how long I try to run from it, it always comes back, keeping the old life I used to know away from me. Oliver tensed, hearing more footsteps behind him. These were heavier footsteps of a man's, but not so heavy the person was imposing.

"I think you're full of crap," Barry said from behind him.

I should have known there'd be more he had to say to me. Steeling himself, Oliver turned around, his eyes darting when he found Cadence was no longer with him. But he hadn't smelled any smoke, letting him know she hadn't teleported. Barry took a few steps towards him. "Look, you've convinced yourself that everything you've been through has taken away your humanity. But I think it's of your humanity that you made it through. You wouldn't have survived much less come out the other end a hero. Someone who wants to do good if you didn't have a light inside you."

It was similar to what Oliver had to said to Barry when he started; there was something inside him that would make Barry different than Oliver ever was. But that there was a light inside him? How could there be a light when he felt nothing but darkness?

His eyes shifted to the side and he spotted Felicity walking up behind them. Just by looking at her face he could see it was important.

He could push his own dark thoughts aside for the moment.

Wind raced by Barry's ears as he ran to the train station. It was the last place Felicity had gotten the facial recognition software to take them, knowing Digger was nearby. Why the Australian was so out in the open no one knew but it wasn't anything they were going to pass up. Still, as he ran, Barry couldn't help but look over his shoulder every now and then, threatening to pitch himself into trash cans and innocent bystanders as he did so.

He couldn't help it; the thought of the BlackFlash popping up behind him again, his claws stretching for his back and arms was enough to keep him on edge for weeks. He became afraid of using his powers when he put his mind on the BlackFlash too much, but when he had his tunnel vision on what he needed to do, things were fine. Still, the thought continued to creep into his mind, no matter how many times he tries to push it away. Finally reaching the train platform, Barry relaxed a bit, and continued to move innocent bystanders out of the way. They didn't need to get hurt for something that wasn't their fault.

Barry raced along the train tracks, moving people away from the zone that was bound to become dangerous as Oliver held his bow and arrow up to Digger, warning him to hold still. Finally, Barry came to a stop next to Oliver and the two glared at Digger.

"Get on the ground!" Oliver shouted. "Now!"

Digger laughed a low methodical laugh. He took a few steps closer to Barry and Oliver. "Why would I want to do that?"

"You hurt a friend of mine," Oliver growled. He took in such a deep breath his chest swelled against his suit. "You think you can run and I won't find you?"

Digger shrugged, a blasé shrug that caused Barry to clench his hands into fists, gritting his teeth. The ease of which this man spoke, how much confidence he had was infuriating. "Probably not. But I have a contingency in place." Barry watched as Digger reached into his pocket and pulled out a contraption that had a glowing red tip. Barry's heart stopped as he realized what it was Captain Boomerang was holding. "Five bombs planted throughout Starling. Now, you can stop me or you can stop the bombs. But you can't do both. Bombs are on, in ninety seconds the city will be on fire."

On fire? Barry repeated and slowly started to smile. He had an idea. He turned to Oliver, a question in his eyes. The Green Arrow didn't take his eyes off Digger but knew Barry's question, having his answer ready. "Go," Oliver whispered.

Turning on his heel, Barry raced out of the train station and back towards the ArrowCave. He brought his hand up to the lightning bolt on the side of his hood and pressed his ear piece. "Guys, Harkness has triggered five bombs throughout the city," he gasped as he ran. "I don't know where."

"To blanket the entire city he'd have to use radio controlled IEDs," Felicity said.

"But if we key into the detonator's frequency we can pinpoint the location of the bombs," Cisco added.

"English please," Brady complained. "I'm only eight here."

"They can trace the locations of the bombs using computer technology," Roy explained to him.

"Thank you."

Barry continued to run around the city, listening to what his friends had to say. He listened as Felicity and Cisco took him to his first location, behind a restaurant packed with people. He looked over the bomb and then back up to the crowd, swallowing hard. He couldn't let all of them get hurt, but as Felicity had warned him when he gave his idea of running it out of town, if he moved one they would all detonate. He brought his hand up to his earpiece once more. "Cade, I need your help."

"What do you need me to do?"

He paused for a moment, surprised that she was immediately willing to help him after their fight. But at the same time he hadn't hesitated when saying he needed her help as well…"I need you to help me get the others to the bomb locations then help Oliver."

"No problem."

When Barry arrived at the ArrowCave he found Felicity and Cisco left as Cadence had taken Roy and Caitlin to their designated areas. Brady and Harrison were sitting at the monitors, watching the pinpoints of the others as they were to diffuse the bombs. Harrison had his hands over his mouth, staring hard at the screen, almost glaring at it, but didn't make any moves to acknowledge Barry when he arrived at the ArrowCave. Brady, on the other hand, turned and smiled at Barry and Barry smiled back before doing a quick double take.

For a minute, something looked off about the eight year old boy but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. Instead, he hurried back to the train station and fond Oliver and Cadence locked in battle with Digger. Oliver ducked out of the way as Digger aimed a punch at his head and Cadence teleported to Diggle's other side using her forearm to block his punch. She blew a cloud of smoke into his face and he quickly backed away, shielding his eyes, before turning back towards her and gave a punch and kick combination. She matched each of his blows, knocking his arms out of the way. Then she rolled against the ground and Oliver took her place, backing Digger up against a pole.

With a snarl, he pushed Oliver back out of the way and sent a strong kick to his gut. Cadence kicked high in the air from behind him and teleported out of sight, reappearing right in front of him and her blow struck him in the face. She sent out a flash of fire that caused Digger to cry out in pain, his hand caught in the path of the flame—though he still held onto the detonator—and backed away once more. Oliver sent a flying kick to his chest so that he crashed into the pillar and followed it up with an arrow to Digger's shoulder, pinning him to the concrete.

Digger struggled for a moment, and then let out a wheezing laugh. "You think you accomplished something here? You think not killing me has made you strong? You're nothing." He then paused, his smile fading once he realized that none of his bombs had gone off. "It just means you're weak."

"It means I have some humanity left," Oliver growled before turning on his heel and walking away. Barry glanced over at Digger then back to Oliver, who nodded towards Barry as he walked by.

Of course, Barry thought as he walked over to Digger. You always want me to do clean-up. Grabbing onto Digger's arm he turned and called back to Oliver. "Which way to Starling City Police again?"

He smiled as Oliver waved a hand over his head.

"It was fun being here," Brady said as he looked around the ArrowCave. "Do we really have to go back to Central City?"

"Yes, we do," Cadence said. She reached out and ran her hand through her son's hair before patting him on the back. "You have to go back to school, do your chores, do your homework..."

Brady's nose wrinkled as he tilted his head back and looked up at his mother. "What homework?" She paused, blinking down at him.

"The homework you were supposed to do while we were away…."

"Oh. I didn't bring it."

"You didn't bring it?"

"No."

"Why?"

"Because homework is boring!"

Cadence sighed heavily and tilted her head back, looking up at the ceiling as she shook her head. Lowering her chin she caught Caitlin's eye and she smiled back at her. Then the two turned their attention towards Harrison as he moved forward a few inches. "I believe I speak for everyone when I say that it surely was an event, working here in Starling City."

"And next time we'll be sure to call," Caitlin added, gently biting her lower lip. "Before we suddenly show up."

"Unless you, you know are having one of those big company parties that give out those awesome gift bags, then we could just drop by," Cisco said. Clearing her throat, Caitlin elbowed him in the side and Cisco glanced at Harrison before dropping the bright smile from his face. "You know, after calling first."

"Hey don't worry about it," Roy reassured them. "You guys are fun to have around." He nudged Cadence's arm and she gently rolled her eyes in response.

"You guys are fun, too," Cisco agreed with a slow nod. "But, you know, it'd be even more fun if you realized that your ArrowCave is right under a nightclub."

"We're not calling it the ArrowCave," Felicity said, holding her hands up as she stood up from her seat. She then clasped her hands together, smiling around the room. "But now that you've mentioned the nightclub there is something that I think you guys would like to see." She waved a hand and hurried over to the stairs that led the way up to the top of the stairs—with Harrison using the express elevator—and walked out onto the empty floor of the nightclub.

"You know, for a popular nightclub, this place is sort of dead," Cisco commented when he noticed the dim lighting.

"Let's fix that then," Oliver's voice echoed along the expansive room seconds before the lights flicked on. Cadence blinked for a few moments before she noticed the balloons and streamers that hung around the room, then noticed Iris, Eddie, Laurel Lance, and Thea amongst the group as she was bombarded by the sudden cry of, "Happy Birthday!"

"Happy Birthday, Mom!" Brady said and reached up, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "Are you surprised?"

"Yeah, I'm surprised. How did you know it was my birthday?" Confused, Cadence scratched the back of her head, but accepted the eager and excited hugs that came her way. "I never mentioned when it was."

"Well, when we were back in Central City and we met Ryder—"Caitlin started to explain.

"Wait, Ryder?" Felicity repeated.

"It's a long story!" Cadence snapped, not wanting to go through it all over again. Especially now that she was remembered he had left his birthday gift to her, waiting in her apartment. "How did you?"

"So after you mentioned that your birthday was coming up it didn't take long to figure out when it was exactly," Barry commented, turning his attention over to Harrison, who smiled, running his hands over the other in his lap. "And unlike the rest of Starling City, we wanted to show them there's always something to look forward to." He smirked over at Oliver, who rolled his eyes in response.

She wanted to asked about Diggle and Lyla but realized then wasn't the time as Laurel, Thea, Iris, and Eddie all didn't know anything about their whereabouts from the night before. She was also sure they hadn't all known about Brady being her son or Harrison her father but didn't dwell so much on it, knowing it was the least of the secrets they all kept. She didn't have to like that they were both part of ARGUS, part of the team that had used her, but they were still people and she had been hurt badly.

"C'mon, you want to blow out the candles before they start to melt all over the cake, right?" Thea asked as she and Iris walked over, holding onto each end of a large sheet cake. "I mean, I don't know about you but I don't find it to be particularly appetizing."

Chuckling, Cadence pulled her hair behind her ears, thought for a moment, and then blew out the candles in one breath, causing her friends and family to clap appreciatively. "What did you wish for?" Eddie asked as Iris and Thea put the cake down and started to cut it up.

"That you'd let me drive all the way back to Central City without a fuss," Cadence replied with a light smirk towards him. Her wish had something to do with Central City, but not anything that had to do with driving there.

"Hey, I'm part of the law, I understand the rules of the road," Eddie defended himself.

"Says the man that likes to speed whenever he gets the chance," Iris teased him.

"I only do that to impress you," Eddie shot back.

"Mmm, with a father on the police force I can tell you that the least impressive thing is someone who speeds," Laurel commented, crossing her arms over her chest. She laughed lightly as Iris let to a light scoff, complete with moving a hand to her chest and said, "Don't get me started. My Dad is always on me about my driving!" The two started to laugh as they stood off to the side, swapping stories about their police officer fathers.

Cadence smiled and moved her hair behind her ears once more as Cisco declared for the party to start, causing a blast of music to start up. If there was going to be a time they were going to enjoy themselves with all of their friends and family in one room. It was going to be then.

"So you were setting up this whole place just for my birthday?" Cadence asked Thea. "I'm surprised it's a nightclub, last time it was in your family's barn. With all of those pony rides."

"Where I fell off and broke my arm, I know," Thea said. She rolled her eyes. "It was Tommy's fault though; he was the one that scared the horse." She laughed lightly and nodded over to Barry. "But it was all his idea. So you should be thanking him."

"I should?" Cadence turned towards Barry, crossing her arms. "Was this before or after Oliver nearly banished you to Central City?" She frowned up at him as he shuffled his foot against the ground. On one hand she was still pretty upset, but on the other he had gone through so much trouble do this for her…

"Before," Barry finally admitted. "And as for our fight…for everything that happened…I get it. You really felt that you had no choice and you did what you had to do." He brought his hand up and rubbed his neck. "I guess I got so upset because nearly every metahuman I've run into has been out to get me. And then I met you and I thought things were different and…it was like I was always going to be alone. We were friends and then I found out…" he shook his head. The conversation had been run into the round nothing had to be said anymore. "I understand why you did what you did. But you're much more than what you did with the Assassination Bureau and you worked hard to get out of it. And you reminded me that we had to make hard decisions sometimes. You're a great addition to our team."

"Thanks, Tholly." Cadence smiled and reached over, giving him a tight hug, glad Barry hugged her back. She looked over at the dance floor and laughed a little when she noticed Cisco dancing enthusiastically to a Lady Gaga song. "How about this; I'll forgive you if you join me on the dance floor, put those Zumba classes to work?"

"You mean anything to get Cisco to stop, right?"

"Exactly."

"You're on."

A/N: Wow, almost two weeks since an updated. I was busy guys, please bear with me. As you can see this is the last chapter with the Arrow part of the crossover and now back to the Flash-verse with Christmas and the Reverse Flash and the Rogues and Hartley and Ronnie and all that good stuff that I'm incredibly impatient to get to (not to mention season 2). Now you may be wondering why Harrison and Brady didn't have big parts in this chapter while in the ArrowCave, but it was done on purpose and will be explained in upcoming chapters.

I have plenty of other relationships (family, friendship, and romance) that I haven't shown yet in this story that will get their spot in the limelight with the upcoming chapters. I hope you liked this one. I certainly enjoyed writing it.

Thanks to Alisha Winchester Collins and MinecraftDanny for reviewing.

Cheers,

-Riles