Flashpoint: Heroes

"A trial run couldn't hurt anything," Claire teased, giggling. "I'm just saying! I wouldn't set you up with someone who'd hurt you." And if it turned out that way, she'd kick the girl's ass, friend or not. "What're you into - fellow smarty-pants, or more sporty types? Brunettes, redheads?"

She relaxed more as Barry rubbed her shoulder, then sighed. "My grandmother. And there was this painter in New York, Isaac Mendez. Unfortunately, I never got to meet him, but I saw his paintings of me. There were so many, and while they were... accurate, he clearly never predicted anything permanent."

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Cisco damn near blushed as he fumbled the questions. "I dunno! I'm-- I don't have a type. I'd just have to see if we hit it off, y'know?" Lisa had done everything she could to be his type. Posed as a fellow engineer, in town for a symposium at Mercury Labs. "...I guess I like nerdy types. But that's not a deal breaker. Ya know?"

"Well, I'm glad he never predicted anything permanent. You're not staying dead. You're not dying ever again if I can help it." Barry said adamantly.

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Cisco's blushing and fumbling was, unfortunately for Cisco, a nice break in all the doom and gloom that kept following them around all day. Or maybe not so unfortunately, if her matchmaking worked out. Her voice took on a sort of sing-song quality, "I have someone in mind. Y'all would be adorable."

She grinned up at Barry. "I'm okay with little temporary death if it's to save someone who won't come back as easily, especially one of our team. But other than that... I'm being more careful. No more dying." That was a decision she'd make every time, and no one could stop her. Not Harry and all his scolding, not even Barry and all his love for her. It was clear her mood was improving, at least for now, because her teasing had turned to Barry, too. "Even gonna let you go all hero and save me."

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Cisco smacked himself in the face and let the hand slide down his face with a groan. He wasn't nearly as put out as he pretended to be. "Fine. Show me wha'chu got, wingman." He teased.

"Isn't that something else Phoenix are known for? Being born a new from a fiery death." Not that Barry wanted any kind of death for her, but so long as she kept coming back, she lived up to the name. "You just make sure you always come back. Because, remember, I'll always chase after you. That includes into the void."

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The delight on her face only brightened when Cisco agreed. "Ah, see, now that's perfect. A Phoenix has wings. I'll do a little phone number swapperino." Claire giggled again.

"The Phoenix is reborn from the ashes, yeah. I've often felt weirdly drawn to fire." She shrugged, still grinning. "Dying is a last resort from now on, and I'll make sure it's something I can come back from."

But then she remembered something, and her smile finally faded some. "Barry, if I did actually die, what if it messed up other people's lives to bring me back? You wouldn't-- would you?" What Killer Frost said had stuck with her.

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"You're just the worst." Cisco teased with a smile. But despite all the levity, he instantly closed off and stopped walking when she not so subtly brought up the timeline shenanigans. Dante, his brother, was dead because Barry had screwed with time.

Barry's step faltered like he'd been punched in the gut. For a moment he looked hurt, but he quickly covered it up. "...I learned my lesson. Altering the past is too risky." Jay Garrick made that abundantly clear when he tried to fix Flashpoint a second time. "I know that now. It affects more than just the one thing I'm trying to change."

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In truth, she hadn't asked to be hurtful. It was her impulsive nature shining through, the words spilling out before she let herself stop to consider how they might react. Barry's answer was what she hoped to hear, though, and she nodded. "Sorry, I was just reminded of something from down in that cell with Caitlin. I mean, not Caitlin. Killer Frost. She... came out, her voice was different, saying that you'd change the timeline to get your happy ending and damn everyone else." Claire hugged him a little tighter around the middle. "But you just proved her wrong, so that's good. I didn't want to tell Cait and freak her out, but that was really unsettling. I don't want anyone to have to sacrifice to save me, and I don't want Caitlin to become Killer Frost."

Even if it means she dies. Maybe she'd find some way to come back on her own, maybe not. Barry could eventually move on and find someone else to love, though the thought made her chest ache. She took a deep breath and forced all that negativity out of her mind.

"We're going to be okay," she continued, almost stubbornly. "It'll take lots of hard work, but we can beat all these stupid bad guys. We have so much to fight for, like our family dinners, and movie nights and stuff, adopting a dog or maybe even a cat. A whole future together, all of us. Oh!" Claire looked to Cisco, lighting up again, "And we can have double dates!"

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Barry full on stopped and pivoted to face Claire. She'd asked him to let her handle Caitlin, so he'd trusted her with Cait entirely. He hadn't snooped. Nor had he even known where they'd gone when the two ran off. "Wait, she became Killer Frost in front of you?" Why, yes. That was panic in his voice. Cisco seemed torn as he watched Barry react. "So it's true? She's becoming Killer Frost. It's all true?" Thawne hadn't twisted the truth at all.

"Dude, we were gonna tell you. The Vibe just seemed more important." Cisco defended.

"Did she hurt you?" Barry asked worriedly. He wouldn't blame or hold Caitlin responsible for it, but he needed to know.

Barry tried to let her optimism calm him down, like he usually tried to do for others. "...we could adopt both." He admitted. "We'll figure all this out. With this God of Speed, with Thawne, with Caitlin, with Alchemy. ...and double dates." He agreed.

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When Barry stopped, it caught up with her that she'd spilled the beans. She gently clapped a hand over her mouth and groaned.

"I'm sorry. I was gonna let her tell it. But like Cisco said, the Vibe kinda took over." Claire shook her head, hand dropping back to her side. "She didn't hurt me. Her hands were super cold, though. Probably cold enough to hurt someone who isn't me. We gotta go easy on her, she's so scared." Cisco hadn't been there when Cait was breaking down. Obviously that was still affecting Claire.

She slipped her hand in with Barry's, giving a soft squeeze. "Both sounds nice. And all the rest. I mean, I don't love that we seem to have a buffet table of baddies all around, but I do like that I'll get to work with you and everyone else." Her smile came back, though it was a little less bright. She was trying to hold onto that optimism. "We're gonna be okay. All of us. The double dates and holidays and game nights, we're going to have it all. A dog and a cat." Okay, that part made her especially happy.

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"Yep. That's about the reaction I'd expect." Cisco said as she covered her mouth. They'd been keeping that secret so well. He hadn't been in the room when Claire and Killer Frost spoke, but unlike Barry, he'd pulled up the security feed as soon as the motion alarms went off. Which, unfortunately meant Harry knew already. If the man didnt already recognise Frost on sight, he could have blown it off, but Harry knew Earth-2 Killer Frost, so it had only taken a frame of seeing her white hair to know. He'd mad the genius promise not to say anything until he figured out what was going on. So, even if Cait hadn't agreed to tell everyone, Harry would still be in the know to help them.

"I'm sure she's scared. She was almost killed by her Earth-2 doppelgänger when Zoom held her captive. She's terrified of Killer Frost." Barry said gently.

"And just as terrified of becoming her." Cisco added.

"We've had a laundry list of baddies in the past. It's nothing we can't handle." Barry said softly and brought her hand to his lips so he could kiss her knuckles. Back up the elevator to the Cortex, would be an awkward couple conversations. But they would be there for Cait and he was there for Claire to defend her decision with Thawne. No matter how many white board erasers Harry threw their way.

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"This just goes to show that it really is hard for me to keep anything from Barry," she said with a chuckle. She was surprised it had taken her this long to let it slip, honestly. But, as far as she could see, it would be fine. Caitlin said she was going to tell everyone anyway. They could all support her. Maybe she could even get Peter or Tracy to help - Peter with his empathy and control over his abilities, and Tracy being adept at using her own cryo powers.

Claire could handle a few erasers. Though she was worried about facing the inevitable disapproval from both Harry and Noah all at once. Noah might bend a little easier, because he knew better than anyone how intractable she could be. But Harry would probably be harder to sway. She was happier than ever to have Barry's support. It was priceless, having someone who believed in her so strongly.

"I've had it too easy for too long, time to get my head back in the game. I don't want to say I missed it, but... it's nice to feel like I have a purpose again. Something bigger than just myself."

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"Remind me not to confide in you if I'm planning Barry's surprise party." Cisco teased.

"I'm sure you had a purpose. You just didn't realise it." Barry told her confidently as they stepped out of the lift into the curved hall just outside the Cortex. He could see Harry had made his way up from the lab after Cisco had run out on him. Jesse was standing against him, leaning her shoulder into his side while he had an arm wrapped around her. Cait was with them. The mood was heavy, so it was likely Jesse and Cait filled Harry in on the info left by Thawne.

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"Probably for the best," Claire agreed, giggling some more. "Just ask me to make a cake and don't tell me what it's for." Because there was no way she'd miss out on making her boyfriend a birthday cake.

"I was pretty aimless for a few years, but in a weird way, I think it helped. I needed to... be my own person and find myself, you know?" It had helped her grow up a little, and while she still had a ways to go, she was in a much more stable place now than she had been right after her Ferris wheel jump.

She gave everyone a smile as they entered, especially Caitlin, because yeah, it was fairly obvious that they'd all had that talk. It made her feel kinda bad to have missed it, but she was also so proud of Cait.

"Hey guys.“ The smile on her face hadn't quite reached her voice, but she wasn't all doom and gloom. "Hell of a day, am I right?"

"Claire." Her father's voice cut through her awkward attempt at humor. "The vision, did you see anything?" He looked almost desperately at Barry and Cisco.

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Neither Cisco or Barry could actually meet Noah's gaze. Like kids who got caught after curfew. But Cisco spoke up, "It's... I mean, nothing concrete to prevent it, but it's true. We have a few bits to go off of. The way Thawne described time..."

Cisco was clearly incredibly uncomfortable and Harry knew it wasn't just the Vibe that had him I'll at ease. So he cleared his throat to cut the young engineer off and pulled away from his daughter. "Thawne used the words 'time is malleable' and he isn't wrong. But it's delicate and complex." Harry fetched a box of dominoes from Cisco's gaming desk, ~~(totally not stealing this perfect visual from HR)~~ and tossed them at Barry, who caught on immediately and used his speed to line them up in a perfect line. "If I knock over the first domino, we all know exactly what's going to happen. The whole row goes and we end up with a predicted outcome. But if we alter the path," the physicist picked up a couple of the dominos leaving a few that had been placed unevenly or were slightly askew. Then, he knocked over the first domino, and the first gap still continued on the path but the second gap threw the tumbling domino off the table and stopped the chain, leaving the last domino standing unscathed. He held up a hand in a sort of shrug. "Time isn't set in stone. Fixed points can't be changed without catastrophic outcomes, but those are few and far between. If we can alter the right event leading up to this prediction, the outcome will change. We've done it before with Ramon's Vibes." Harry scooped up the dominoes and stacked them back into the box.

Edited Date: 2025-10-27 02:35 pm (UTC)

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She knew her dad could be intimidating. Demanding, even. But to her, seeing afraid and helpless was worst of all. Intimidation and demands meant he had a plan, or could come up with one.

Noah Bennet had always been the man with the plan. Now he was learning to rely others more than he ever had. The visual explanation was exactly why he liked Harry Wells so much. He wasn't completely out of his element dealing with time-travelers, but Eobard Thawne whad certainly proved himself to be more savvy about it than Hiro Nakamura ever was. It didn't escape his notice, however, that Thawne was issuing them a warning.

"Seems to me," Noah said slowly, thoughtfully, "like Thawne wants to save Claire, in his own twisted way. Why else would he tell Claire about this?"

"I'm going to find out," she interjected before she could stop herself. Better to rip off the proverbial band-aid. "I'm going to talk to him." And then she shut up, because she knew she'd just dropped a bomb.

Her father, to her surprise, didn't say anything. It made sense to him, as much as he hated to admit it. But she sounded like she had a plan - no doubt she'd discussed this with Barry and Cisco before making their way back into the Cortex. He decided to give them a chance. Besides, Harry would put up enough of a protest, he already knew. She seemed to heed Harry's warnings, at least a little. Maybe he'd have better luck.

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The boys felt horrible more than intimidated. Telling someone that, yes, their daughter was going to die unless they could come up with the impossible and save her was not an easy thing to say. Especially after witnessing it. Cisco was glad Noah had declined to see the Vibe, because seeing Barry react to it was bad enough.

"I may share a face with that bastard, but I can't even begin to guess his motives here." Harry stubbornly refused to say Thawne was showing any signs of humanity by warning Claire. It had to be a trick or somehow self interested in some way. So, as predicted, when Claire said she was going to talk to him, Wells was quick to shoot her a stern look.

"I must still have a punctured eardrum." He said slowly. Almost coldly. "I could swear you just said you were going to talk to that psychopath. I obviously didn't hear you correctly, Bennet."

Jesse crept up behind Harry and tugged on the hem of his sweater. "...dad." She said softly.

"That man just sent a silent threat to us that he can get to your father, that he's been in the building, I've been bending over backwards to make sure he stays away from you, and you want to seek him out?"

Barry knew that very tone and he went rigid beside Claire in response to it.

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Noah was glad he'd declined as well. He'd seen her die enough, even if she'd come back. There was no way he could bear the sight of seeing her not get back up again. As Harry's ire was stoked, he reminded silent - anything he could add would only be repetitive.

Even just holding Barry's hand, she felt him stiffen. She leaned in a little closer, more to support him than seeking out any of her own. As much as it hurt to hear Harry sound so cold, she could handle it. She had to.

"You heard correctly." She was carefil to keep her tone even. No sarcasm, no brattiness. "I need to ask him what else he knows. He has to know more if he was able to send me the newspaper. Maybe he knew Cisco would Vibe it." Then, more softly, "I'm going to ask him why he's trying to save my life."

And she was going to apologize, but she didn't dare say that out loud. There was more, this part she couldn't keep to herself because she was certain Barry or Cisco might say it anyway, and she didn't want to make it look like she had any questionable motives.

"It might be our best, or only chance, to find out more about how to stop this. And... it could be a chance to get Thawne locked down. To protect Barry." She was trying to save her own life, sure, but that was just as important, if not more so. If it somehow came to giving herself up to save Barry... Claire didn't finish that thought, but it probably showed on her face.

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"And what stops him from running off with you? He clearly wants to split you and Allen up. None of us are fast enough to stop him especially if you go to him. He won't hear you out with Allen at your side." Harry was irritated, sure, but his daughter's hold on his sweater was enough to hold him in place despite his rage complex. He held the tin of dominoes so tightly his knuckles blanched. The only reason they were still in his hand was Jesse.

Barry gave her hand a squeeze to let her know he acknowledged her support. He didn't need it as much as she did, he thought. He'd seen Harry like this before and in the moment, it always annoyed him, but he knew it was just how the man processed emotions.

Jesse gave his wrist a tug and he took a slow, deep breath. "Or it could be exactly what he's hoping for. To get you away from Allen. Who came up with this brilliantly idiotic idea? You or Allen?" He sounded less angry and more just defeated now, taking off his glasses and cleaning them with the bottom of his sweater, having tucked the domino tin under his arm.

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For her dad's sake, She was glad Harry had refrained from throwing things. Noah had a lot of respect for the man, but even he had limits.

The possibility of Thawne absconding with her hadn't even occurred to her, but she had the grace not to let her surprise show. Surely Thawne would expect Barry to keep her away at all costs. She had convinced herself it would be a surprise to Eobard when she reached out.

"It was mostly me," Claire admitted. "Barry said Thawne would know more, and I ran with that. We... kind of have a plan. Or the beginnings of one." And she had more that she wasn't ready to share yet. "C'mon, y'all know he wouldn't let me do this completely defenseless."

She looked to Barry almost apologetically, smiling sheepishly, because she was putting him on the spot. But he'd be able to explain it better than she could.

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Barry was put on the spot, but that was okay, because he picked up right where she prompted. "Velocity--" But that was all he got out before Harry cut in.

"--no." Harry angled to face Barry more now. One hand on his hip, the other bent at the wrist as it still held his glasses, braced against his hip. "We talked about you using Velocity. It will destroy you, just like it did Zoom. You're smarter than that, Allen."

"Not on me!" Barry argued, but realised how weak that probably sounded. "We're gonna have Caitlin run tests to see if Claire's healing can out-pace the damage Velocity 9 does to the body. If it's safe, I can train her to run with it and she can use it to escape Thawne if she needs to."

"And if it's not safe?" Harry asked pointedly.

"I'm working on a cryo bomb to use against Thawne. Should slow him enough for Barry to get Claire out in time." Cisco said confidently, looking over at Claire. Yeah, this was totally discussed. Shhh, just agree with him Claire.

Harry sighed and put his glasses back on the bridge of his nose. He shot Cisco a glare but didn't argue. "You're all dead set on this plan?"

Edited (Good God the typos) Date: 2025-10-27 06:04 pm (UTC)

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"Hold on, what are you giving to Claire?" Noah had more or less bee on board so far, because he was curious to see what Thawne's motivations for saving his daughter's life were. "Some kind of drug?"

"Velocity 9," Claire repeated, then hesitated. She knew her dad wasn't going to love this part, and she knew why. "If it's safe, it can temporarily give me super speed."

"Just what you need, the ability to make impulsive decisions even faster," her dad sighed. There was no real malice in it. Like Harry, he sounded defeated.

She had no idea what the cryo bomb was all about, but she was happy to play along with Cisco. "Yeah! It's how we can slow Thawne down without it getting Barry, too. All he's gotta do is stay out of the blast zone." Her confidence had soared, and she let go of Barry's hand to slip her arm around his waist. "If there's anyone who's know who the God of Speed is and how we can stop him, it's Thawne. He's our best shot. And I... I can't explain it, but I think he'll want to help me. Maybe I can get through to him."

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"It's not safe." Harry said matter of factly and looked to Noah. "Velocity is a speed drug originally created by a speedster, Hunter Zolomon, also known as Zoom, from my Earth. He wasn't happy with his speed, so he used the drug to make himself faster. It turns out, the drug had fatal side effects. Even with his speed healing, it was still killing him. Snow and I created a new formula of Velocity that was less deadly and slowed the rate of cellular decay, but it's still too dangerous to use regularly. There's also evidence that it could be addictive." Harry shot Barry a look.

They didn't have proof. It was a sample size of two. One was a psychotic serial killer with a lust for power and the other... well, she had her own set of issues. "If Cait has any reservations, we won't go through with using V-9. I'll personally destroy every sample we have left." Barry promised. There was tension there for a reason. "I wouldn't suggest it if I wasn't going to take every precaution to protect Claire. You all know that. She wants to do this and I want her to be safe. I don't trust Thawne. But he did issue this warning for some kind of reason. He knows every aspect of my life. So if I've fought this God of Speed, he'll know about them. He'll have answers. And if Claire thinks she can get them, I have faith in her." Barry lifted his chin up, daring anyone to defy that.

Harry groaned and tossed the domino tin back onto the gaming table haphazardly in utter defeat. He then folded his arms behind his head and turned away from them. "I'll divert my immediate attention to a new dampener for Snow. Jess, help Snow test Bennet's samples against V-9. Ramon," Harry snapped his fingers and gestured for Cisco to follow him.

Cisco looked hesitantly between Barry, Claire, and Caitlin. "I'm gonna..." He gestured helplessly at Harry then started after him.

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Claire wanted to remind Harry that she heals faster than any speedster, and also to point out that there was a possibility that the V-9 wouldn't have any effect on her blood at all, but there wasn't an opportunity. He'd given in, and was going along with the plan. At least as far as letting her samples be run against the V-9. That was something. And honestly, working in upgraded cuffs for Cait was every bit as important. She wasn't going to get in the way of that. "Thanks, guys," she called after them instead, offering Cisco a smile before he walked away.

Then she turned to Caitlin and Jesse. "I... have a feeling you might need more blood from me, huh?" The smile on her face lingered. It felt like they were getting this thing started, and she felt invigorated. But she also felt guilty. "Caitlin - are you alright? Sorry I wasn't here when you told them. And, uh... Barry's up to speed." Pun intended, of course. "Sorry 'bout that. I swear I only have a big mouth when it comes to this guy."

She gave Barry a little squeeze around the waist, smiling up at him. "I dunno what I'd do without you, babe. It means the world, how much you believe in me."

Noah's voice cut in again. "It means a lot to me, too, or else I might have started arguing more than Harry," he said quietly. "But I trust you all to keep Claire safe, and Claire-- I'm going to trust your judgment, here. If this speed stuff works, and it helps you, I'll take any advantage we can get."

"Thanks, Dad." He didn't have to tell her to be careful. She could see it all over his face.

"I'm going to head out and make some calls, see when Peter might be able to join us now that we know it's safe." He squeezed Claire's shoulder, then Barry's, and gave the others a smile and wave as he headed off.

There was no hiding it, Claire's face lit up at that, and she was quickly blushing. "Sorry. Things have been kinda rocky between Peter and I for a while, and I guess I'm excited for things to be like they used to. Well, hopefully they will be."

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iamnotuptight

Cisco offered a little smile and wave back at her as he trotted after Harry.

"No. But I have to be." Cait admitted honestly. She gave Claire's arm just above her elbow a gentle squeeze. The brunette ducked her head, not wanting to even look in Barry's direction, afraid of what she'd see in his eyes. "I would have rather it came from me, but I'm not mad." Clearly, Caitlin was a wreck. She was only marginally better off than she'd been after Zoom finally released her. "Harry's going to make me a stronger power dampener with a better power source so I don't have to go for very long without it. The cuffs have to charge for four hours every couple days." Snow wrung her hands together then flicked her gaze back up to Claire. "How are you holding up?"

Barry held her close and smiled. "It's hard to out argue Harry, but I've worn him down over the years. We'll keep Claire safe. I can promise that's not the last word we'll hear from Harry on it either. He always comes up with a backup plan, in case the V-9, and the uh, cryo thing don't pan out."

Barry leaned into Claire. "Be safe, Sir." Then he gave Claire a little hug. "I can't wait to meet Peter!"

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