You Bring Out The Worst In Me~

[nevergetshome]

It had been some time ago that Thawne had gotten the results of Claire's blood. He messaged her and to his surprise the text kicked back. A phone call told him the number had been disconnected. It only took a little bit of research with Gideon to get her address from this time period only to find out she'd moved. Recently. And where had she moved to? Of all places in the world but Central City. The hometown of his foe. A place he spent fifteen years of his life. It was time to visit his old rival.

Silent observation was key. He kept his distance, but immediately, he felt something interesting. Barry Allen was having trouble handling the Speed Force. The fumbles were small, but enough that he could feel them when Barry faltered. Ahh, so this was around his encounter with the Chameleon. That made sense. What drove a dagger into his heart though was to see Barry Allen and Claire Bennet together. After he'd shared everything with her. Told her how Barry ruined his life. Even if he never said Allen's name, he called him the Flash, and she clearly knew who he was. How could she betray him?!

Just one more reason to hate Barry. One more thing Barry stole from him. One more reason to destroy The Flash. He'd have to teach them both a lesson.

There was a knock at Noah's hotel door. Harrison was standing politely on the other side, waiting for Noah to answer.

Comments

[captaincaveman]

"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.

[infinite1ups]

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.

[captaincaveman]

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?"

[infinite1ups]

"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."

[captaincaveman]

"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.

[infinite1ups]

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."

[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!"

[infinite1ups]

She was putting on something of a facade at the moment with all her optimism, so she understood. How could they get anything done if they gave in to despair? They had to be okay, even if it took some faking.

"I'm hanging in there," Claire said honestly, but she was still heeping her mood up. "I'll feel better when I feel like I have something I can work on. If I can help you and Jesse at all, let me know, yeah?"

She let herself lean into Barry a little more. It would have been a whole lot harder to stay strong without him.

"My dad's probably working on getting some help from our end, too. I'm sure Peter will 'port here pretty quick once he finds out my life is in danger." Despite the tension in their relationship, she was so proud of her uncle. "He'll want to help however he can. You guys are gonna like him." Peter and Barry shared some similar qualities, after all.

Sylar might want to help too, but she felt conflicted about that thought, so she didn't share it. For all the horror he'd inflicted, he didn't want to kill her, even if he could. He'd told her so. And any lethal threat to her was one to him, so he'd have self interest. Maybe she could trust him. If he truly wanted to do better by her, his chance was coming.

"I don't know if the V-9 will even work - it might not do anything at all. I didn't get a chance to remind Harry that I heal faster than speedsters. But now there are toxins and antidotes that work on me, so the game is changing." That had her unsettled. Barry would notice the slight tension in her shoulders. "If it does, though, I'm excited to get to train with you." She smiled up at him.

[iamnotuptight]

Caitlin nodded then gestured for her to follow back into the Med lab. "We can get to work pretty quickly." Jesse followed behind them with Barry.

"Peter's welcome here if everyone agrees." Barry said, looking over at Cait. He knew Cisco was okay with it, but the ability might out Cait to yet another person and if she didn't want that, he wouldn't give the go-ahead. Same with Jesse. Fortunately, Jesse nodded with an approving smile, as did Caitlin.

"Harry has perfect recall. You don't have to remind him. Any time he 'forgets' something, he's avoiding the subject." Cait explained gently as she opened yet another phlebotomy kit. Jesse zipped around the lab at high speed but not disruptive speed, getting everything together for V-9 testing. Caitlin motioned for Claire to sit on the medical cot.

Barry grinned. "I'm excited to train with you too, if this all works out. I trained Jesse! But this is different."

Jesse laughed. "He's a good sensei."

[infinite1ups]

Claire was glad Caitlin approved of Peter visiting. She thought he might be able to give some helpful insight, if not help in a more tangible way. "Peter has a cryo ability, too. And he's really good at keeping powers under control, and the emotional aspect of it. He's an Empath, he relies on his emotions to tap into his powers," she said, trying to to sound like she was bragging. "Except for my regen, that one just works, now that he's got it locked in."

She withdrew herself from under Barry's arm and hopped up onto the cot, then held out her arm for the samples. At least she didn't have a needle phobia. They could probably draw a vial or two when she wasn't looking before she even noticed, since she wouldn't feel a thing. She trusted them fully. It wouldn't be like them to take without permission though. Even Thawne had asked first.

God, Thawne. She was nervous about the prospect of seeing him again. Not to much out of fear that he might cause her harm, but just from the heavy emotions of it all. Her worry for Barry was there too, looming over everything, larger than life. She couldn't lose him. Eobard could do anything he wanted to her if he left Barry alone, but she knew he'd never go for that. Hurting Barry was his primary, if not only goal.

"I already know I'm in good hands, but seeing what Jesse can do, I'm even more excited. It's... hard not to get my hopes up too much."

[iamnotuptight]

"I appreciate that you want to help, but... it's not just cryo abilities that are the problem. They come with Killer Frost. She's the problem. She's cold, and heartless, and... she's inside of me." Cait sounded like she might start crying again, but she took a deep breath and wiped the tears from her eyes onto her sleeve. She composed herself and waved off Barry's concern with a forced smile.

Cait would never draw blood without consent. She might even respect the fact that he'd asked Claire before taking hers when he could so clearly take what he wanted by force without being detected. She found a vein and drew a vial, handing it off to Jesse, who got to work prepping it.

"I have some of Cisco's Tootsie Pops under the counter if you need one." She offered with a smile. "I usually reserve them for Cisco when I need to draw his labs, but I can make an exception this time."

"Hey, how come I never get candy?" Barry objected. And it made Caitlin laugh.

"Because you, Barry Allen, are a lot more cooperative than Cisco." She teased.

"Shouldn't I be rewarded for that?" Barry sat beside Claire, sneaking an arm around her. He was still clingy after seeing that Vibe. "It took a lot of convincing to even get Harry to let her use her powers. He wanted us to convince her not to use them. So her training got delayed."

Jesse's expression hardened. "Yeah. He brought me here under the guise of doing tests to make sure I was okay. But told everyone to tell me I wasn't ready and that I couldn't handle these powers. God, he's such a jerk!" Jesse was annoyed all over again.

[infinite1ups]

Damn it. Open mouth, insert foot. She hadn't meant to upset Caitlin. But Cait seemed to wave it off quickly, and Claire didn't want to linger on it, if that was the case.

"Nah, I'm alright. Takes losing more than a few vials for me to feel any worse for wear." Barry's appeal for candy made her laugh, too. "Your reward can be spaghetti and meatballs for dinner tonight," she told him, leaning in as he slipped his arm around her.

Okay, so she was also pretty clingy after that Vibe. Seeing Barry so broken - the future and present Barry - made her want to give him all the reassurance she could that she was still here. Still fighting, and still his. Always his.

"I'm surprised my dad didn't put up more of a fight about me using the V-9," Claire added thoughtfully. "I know it's freaking him out as much as it does me that there's stuff that can affect me. He must really trust you guys." Not to mention how much trust he had in her now, but she didn't always see that as easily. It was easy to fall into the mental trap of thinking he still believed her to be that naive, inexperienced little cheerleader. She hadn't been that girl for years.

"But hey, if my dad can come around eventually, maybe Harry can too."

[iamnotuptight]

"I thought my reward tonight was cuddles. I get double rewarded?" Barry asked and nuzzled into her neck with a chuckle.

Jesse looked down as the sample processed. "I mean, he did. He asked me to help Barry on a mission. He told me I was more than fast enough and I wouldn't have had the confidence to do it without him. He also worked with Cisco to get me my own suit. But, still... he's so frustrating! He's the worst helicopter parent ever! At home, sneaking out is literally like breaking into the Pentagon! He installed Meta dampeners in the outer walls of the house so I can't phase through the walls!"

Barry was smiling. Not so much at Jesse's misery, but at Harry's sheer desperation to keep her safe and how, if he had kids, he might just have to go through the same things to protect them, assuming they were Metas.

Cait added a drop of clear red fluid to a couple drops of Claire's blood on a slide and swirled them together with a needle. She then slid the slide under her microscope and leaned in. "The V-9 is speeding up your cells and charging them with Speed Force energy." She reported.

[infinite1ups]

"Let's be real, you'd be getting cuddles anyway." That was a given with them, at this point. Those cuddles had certainly expedited her asking him to move in with her. She blushed faintly, shifting to lean against Barry a little more.

Claire was smiling as Jesse talked about Harry too, but mostly because it yet again reminded her so much of her own dad. He'd gone to such lengths to protect her. But Noah didn't have the temper that Harry did. Her dad's anger was quieter, more subtle, except for extreme cases.

"My dad still doesn't know that Cisco is making me a suit," Claire admitted. "I don't think he'll as on board with it as your dad was with you. Protecting myself is one thing, but he won't be that happy to hear I'm going out to be a hero." At least, she didn't think so. He was relieved that she'd been keeping herself out of the public eye after the Sullivan Carnival and her Ferris wheel jump.

She looked up as Caitlin spoke, trying to contain her excitement at what she heard. Just because it was giving her blood Speed, Force energy, that didn't mean it was safe. "Is it doing anything else?" Claire asked, then held her breath for the asnwer.

[iamnotuptight]

The fortunate thing about Harry's anger, was he rarely resorted to actual violence. He wasn't abusive, so they mostly treated it like a barking dog. He was loud, and sometimes scary, but you knew you were safe. The hardest thing he'd ever throw at actual people were white board erasers, and that was usually reserved for those he knew could dodge them. The only person he'd ever hit in a rage was Hunter, who hit him first, to be fair. The first time Jesse ever heard her dad's 'work voice' she was startled. She'd been young and she'd never known him to have a stern bone in his body until then. But even the people at the Labs that he talked down to like that, still seemed to like him, so she knew it wasn't him hiding who he was at home. He was putting on a tone at work. Her mother had said that was how he needed to be at work and she'd understand one day. She wasn't sure she understood, but she knew he loved his family and he cared about the people he worked with at the Labs. And clearly, he loved Team Flash like family.

Barry happily leaned right back into her. He loved to cuddle. "Are we hiding the suit and hero stuff from your dad; letting him find out naturally?" Barry asked. He'd follow her lead on that, because it was her decision.

Cait leaned back a bit and brought up the live video onto a computer. The cells were vibrating and darting everywhere on the slide like someone had disturbed an ant hill then hit fast forward. "We won't know until the V-9 burns out. Give it a few minutes. Then I'll introduce a dilute acid to make sure the cells can still regenerate. Velocity 6 essentially disabled Jay's-- I mean Hunter's ability to speed heal. From there, his cells started to rapidly degenerate under the stress of the super speed. Eliza had no prior connection to the Speed Force, so her body wasn't equipped to handle it at all. She had no latent healing to fall back on, and she just..."

"She disintegrated into ash while she was running just as her lightning turned blue." Barry supplied quietly beside Claire.

Jesse looked over at Barry thoughtfully. "Do you reckon that's why I got super speed when the dark matter wave hit me? Because Eliza injected me with V-9, so my body had a jump of Speed Force in it in the past?"

Barry shrugged. "All I know is, you were in a coma and something was pulling me towards you. I knew I could help you. Maybe it primed your body or maybe you were just destined to be a speedster, which is why you survived the V-9 overdose."

"The cells are slowing down. About five minutes for just a drop of Velocity isn't bad." Caitlin informed. When the cells finally all stilled to a stop ahs used the needle to draw up a small portion of dilute acid, then dropped it on the slide. Instantly the cells died and she froze as they seemed to be stripped like expected of normal human cells. She gave it a moment and when nothing happened, turned to face the room. "I... think V-9 is even lethal for you. I can... I can work with Harry and see if we can't develop a new serum. He helped me create V-7 through 9. He worked with Hunter on V-1 through 6. So he knows the ins and outs of it..."

"Caity, look." Jesse pointed at the screen as the healing kicked back in, repairing the cells slowly until they were healthy once again.

[infinite1ups]

He'd yet to throw anything at Claire, but they'd managed to work out their disagreements through talking. And he'd also seen the way she jumped when he suddenly slammed his hand on her kitchen table - that wasn't fear of him, it was trauma. Or maybe he guessed (correctly) that she wouldn't bother dodging anything he launched her way.

Claire was also pretty cuddly, she was just careful about who she allowed to see her like that. Here with Barry and their friends, she was comfortable, free to be entirely herself. "I'm going to sit him down and tell him, I think," she answered. "It's bound to come out eventually, but I want him to hear if from me. The grown up thing to do, y'know?" She thought her dad would appreciate it if she went to him directly instead of sneaking around more than she already had.

As Caitlin put the slide display on the screen, Claire looked up in awe. She'd never had the chance to see her regeneration work on this level before, and she was amazed by it. Cait's word had been enough to go on already, but seeing the V-9 in action on a cellular level was visual proof she also appreciated. She frowned, though, hearing Barry tell what happened to Eliza. That sounded awful.

As her cells slowed to a stop on the slide, she kept watching intently, listening as Jesse and Barry chatted about her speedster powers. She had a theory about Evo powers, and now she wondered if Meta powers could be similar. Later, she'd have to write all this down and add it to her notes. For now her attention was drawn to the next phase of Caitlin's testing.

Her frown returned, deeper this time, watching her cells die on the screen. But watching them come back to life, she quietly gasped. Sure, it was her blood, and she'd watched herself heal more times than she could count. Seeing it like this was something else entirely, she couldn't put it into words. It was so cool. In the back of her mind, she wondered about Thawne's research, how he reacted to seeing her cells react to whatever tests he ran. She pushed those thoughts away for the time being.

"So, am I going to just... die, after the V-9 wears off whenever I use it?" Claire asked curiously, hiding her worry. Dying in and of itself didn't concern her, especially since she'd watched her cells regenerate - she knew she'd recover. It was the circumstances outside of her dying, like if she couldn't get away fast enough before her borrowed speed ran out. "I mean, I'm okay with that. It's just one more thing to prepare and train for."

[iamnotuptight]

Seeing anyone jump around him, except maybe Cisco because he enjoyed playfully spooking the engineer, was enough to derail his anger in most cases unless he was too worked up. Then he'd just remove himself in that case.

"If you need me there, even if it's just to be your cuddly rock when you tell your dad, I can do that." Barry offered. He remembered trying to keep it from Joe for all of a day until he desperately tried to tell him but Joe wouldn't listen. Then, Joe was forced to believe. At least in Claire's case, she didn't have to break the barrier of 'things aren't what they seem'. Though, it was a toss up if Noah would go scorched Earth on them like Joe had with Wells.

Cait looked shocked by the question. "No! I was forcing your cells to trigger a regeneration response. We created V-9 to reawaken Jay-- Hunter's latent speedster healing abilities." It was hard for her to separate Zoom from the false name Jay he'd presented when it came to the memories pertaining to when she'd still been in love with him. Just like it was so hard for all of them not to refer to Thawne as Wells when talking about him from before they knew he was evil. When he was pretending... it was funny, they'd been expecting Harry to be the dangerous one, and while he had betrayed them, Jay had been the real wolf in sheep's clothing.

"V-6 shut down Hunter's connection to the Speed Force and his ability to heal. V-9 returned that connection while it was in his system, allowing him to heal while he was dosed. It wasn't able to repair all the damage done by V-6, but it prevented more. You have your own regeneration abilities to protect you from the damaging effects of super speed, unlike Eliza. She had no regeneration to save her. It can't give you the ability to heal. But it does look like there is a kickback from the serum after it breaks down in your system. There may be a period after it wears off where your healing could be delayed."

[infinite1ups]

"I think I'll be okay, telling Dad. He's not going to like it, but something tells me he won't be entirely surprised." He knew she'd been looking for something like this - a way to feel like she could really do something and help. He'd obviously been taking that into account when drawing up plans for the New Company. Which still needed a better name.

It was Thawne's possible reaction to it that unnerved her more, funny enough.

Claire was visibly relieved at Caitlin's further explanation, though she felt bad that Cait had to keep talking about someone who had obviously upset her so much. She knew bits and pieces of the story, but not all of it. Enough to sympathize with her friend.

"Right. So I'll just have to make sure I'm someplace safe when it wears off," she said, then shrugged. "That seems doable, especially once we know exactly how long a full dose will last in my system. Barry and I can get started testing it out and training me. That way if I crash out, I'm in a controlled environment."

Claire was extremely careful to keep her excitement in check. In all honesty, she wanted to jump out of her seat and get going, she wanted to train as much as she was physically able. But she knew Barry wouldn't want her to push herself and risk her well-being the way she so often did, and since he was the one heading up her training, she'd have to follow his lead, as well as Cait's medical advice. Still, she allowed herself a smile.

"Thank you, Caitlin. You too, Jesse. I think this is gonna be a big help." If it gave her enough of an edge to get away from Thawne in a dangerous situation, it would be worth any risks.

"Well, babe, I still won't be able to outrun you, but it'll be fun when you catch me," she teased Barry.

[iamnotuptight]

"Well, before we give you a full dose, I want to run a couple more tests against the same sample. Your regenerative abilities gives me a unique opportunity to test the same sample for cellular degeneration after multiple exposures." Caitlin said as she clicked off the monitor for now. "But it's very promising."

Cait nodded at the thanks and Jesse smiled brightly. "You're welcome!" Jess chirped back, dancing excitedly from foot to foot. This seemed like things were looking up a bit after the whole mess from earlier.

Barry was what Harrison had called cautiously optimistic for the whole thing. He knew how many ways this could go sideways, but he wanted to believe. He knew Caitlin wouldn't let any V-9 reach Claire until she'd tested it thoroughly and he would train her the beat he could.

"With V-9, you'll need to be careful. Because it can give you the potential to run faster than me when I'm not using tacyons. But that's also fast enough to cause damage to your body. If your lightning starts turning blue, you'll need to slow down." But that was exactly why they were using V-9. Because it would make her faster than Thawne. Fast enough to escape. But, warnings aside, he smiled. "I'll still run after you. Always."

[infinite1ups]

Faster than Barry. Somehow she'd missed that part. But to be fair, there was a lot going on today. Claire nuzzled her head against his shoulder. "I won't get too far ahead, don't worry." She'd never leave him behind.

"Pretty cool that you can use the same sample more than once. And yeah, it makes sense how that'd replicate multiple doses to my system." If her blood on the slide could survive repeated doses, then she'd be fine. Most likely. Probably.

But something else Barry said had caught her curiosity. "Would my lightning be yellow like yours, then? Or is it different for everyone?" Obviously she needed to know if they'd both be Pikachu. Hashtag priorities. "Could I... use the lightning? Or just be fast?"

Thawne had said his own lightning couldn't hurt him, but he wasn't immune to it from other sources. It could be just one more thing to give her a little edge if things went south.

[iamnotuptight]

Barry combed his fingers through her hair when she nuzzled her head against him.

Cait nodded. "I might even be able to calculate the scale of your healing delay by measuring precise volumes. And get you some estimates."

Barry looked surprised by the question. "I'll be honest, I don't see why it wouldn't be yellow. Jesse's is. Just like the real Jay Garrick's, and Hunters when he wasn't running as Zoom. So was Kid Flash's." When both Jesse and Caitlin looked curiously at him, he ducked his head. "The Flash in the Flashpoint where I saved my mom."

Jesse perked up again. "Oh! Ohohoh! We totally need to teach her to throw lightning!" She said excitedly when Claire brought it up. "It's a trip!"

[infinite1ups]

The hand in her hair just made her relax even more. One of those things that put her right to sleep when they cuddled. When he petted her hair or rubbed her back, she was done for.

"Whoa, that's so cool. All of this is so cool." Even in her relaxed state, Claire was still pretty excited. She grinned, holding back a giggle. "I definitely want to learn how to throw lighting. Then I can be Pikachu."

But then she paused, and suddenly perked up. "Jay Garrick was in Cisco's Vibe with us. He pulled a third Barry into some kind of breach, but I don't think it was one of Cisco's breaches. Cisco said he recognized the guy's suit. Could that be something to help us now?"

[iamnotuptight]

"Pika-who?" Jesse asked curiously.

"Oh, don't you start!" Caitlin scolded Jesse, who giggled mischievously. "Your dad knows Pocket Monsters, so I know they exist on your Earth." Cait huffed and Jesse just laughed.

Barry on the other hand, looked offended. "Did you just call them Pocket Monsters? Uncultured!" He teased. "I'll teach you to use Thunderbolt." He promised and kissed the side of her head.

But the next news mellowed the mood back out again. "Jay? And another me? I must've missed that part." He'd been too distracted. "That must mean I travel into the future? Nah, if Jay opened a breach, what you probably saw was a rupture in time. A gateway into the Speed Force." He frowned. Did he end up there by accident somehow, or did he get so desperate that he was trying to stop this God of Speed and Jay knew something would happen if he messed with time directly? "Did it look like I was doing anything?"

[infinite1ups]

"Pocket Monsters? That's adorable. And technically still kind of correct." Claire was giggling too, and beamed even brighter when Barry kissed her. Take that, Elle. She'd get to use lightning too!

Barry's questions sobered her up some though, but she wasn't nearly as gloomy as when they'd been discussing the Vibe previously. "You were hiding behind a tree, and it looked like you wanted to intervene. But before you could do anything, Jay's hand reached through the breach and pulled you back through it. Cisco and I missed it the first time around 'cause you were behind us." She chewed at her lip, brows furrowed. "But Cisco said he's The Flash on Earth-3, wouldn't he be on our side? There's no way I'm making Cisco watch that a third time, but now I can't help wondering what else we may have missed."

It was too bad Peter couldn't paint the future anymore. He couldn't share his dreams with others the way Cisco's Vibes could be shared. Unless maybe he found some way to do so through telepathy.

"Could it have been another you, from another Earth? And that's why Jay pulled that Barry out? I mean, he looked like you, but he could've just been dressed in the same suit."

[feelthelightning]

"Jay's really big about not messing with the timeline and living in the now. Very Uncle Ben. With great power comes great responsibility. Kind of thing. So it's possible that's a different past me. Obviously future me from my perspective since I don't remember it. Or it could be a different timeline me entirely. I don't know. I can reach our to Jay and see if he knows anything about it or the God of Speed. He's been doing the Flash thing a lot longer than I have. He might have answers Thawne doesn't."

He hadn't even thought about asking Jay for help. So that was another very good avenue to pursue. Especially if Thawne turns out to be too risky or doesn't give them anything. "But yeah, he is on our side. He's a really good guy."

"And the doppelgänger of Barry's dad." Jesse added very gently.