Not What You Expected

Earn Your Stripes

"Wheredoes this Zoom guy live, in a cave?" Amy grumbled as she trudgedthrough the woods beside Francisco, grateful he'd had the sense tobuy her regular boots as well as the heeled ones.

Franciscochuckled at her question, "As a matter of fact he does," he said,to which Amy frowned in disbelief, "but it's no ordinary cave, it'sset up in the face of a cliff, impossible to get to without superspeed,"

"Isthat where we're going?" she asked, stumbling over a large root inthe ground.

Franciscoshook his head, "No, nobody goes there unless Zoom takes you there,and you're not likely to live very long once inside,"

Amygrimaced at the thought, imagining some hideous torture dungeon withbugs and bats and blood on the walls. "If we're not going there,then where are we going?" she asked, looking around, "I mean weare going to meet this guy right, this isn't just some nature walk?"

"Fuckinghell," he muttered before stopping to turn to her, "Is there anyway you can just shut up and stop asking so many goddamn questions?"he asked with a huff of annoyance.

Sheput her hands on her hips as she answered "I have a right to knowwhere we're going Francisco, especially considering how dangerousthis meeting is going to be, for the both of us,"

Franciscoregarded her for a moment, the annoyance slowly fading as he took inthe woman who stood before him, marveling slightly at how differentshe was from the frightened mess he'd found a mere two weeks ago. Shewas beautiful. Not just in the obvious physical sense, it wassomething deeper and darker, almost like how a storm was beautiful.He could see the strength and potential in her, simmering just underthe surface, waiting to be unleashed like a tempest of bright redenergy. But as he looked at her and saw all of this, he could alsosee the fear. It was written clearly in her eyes, under the fiercefront, under the anger and almost spiteful determination he could seethat cold glimmer of fear and he felt his heart soften ever soslightly.

"You'reafraid," he said, not a question but an observation, one thatcaught Amy off guard.

"Well...yeah,"she admitted, shrinking slightly under his gaze, "can you blameme?"

'Protecther'he heard Cisco's voice whisper, but he found he didn't need to betold, his feet already moving his body towards her like agravitational pull. "Amaryllis Warren," he said softly, the feelof her name on his lips strange, but not unpleasant, "while I dodistinctly recall you telling me that you hate me, which to be honestis perfectly understandable, do you really think that I would haveset this meeting up if I did not have complete confidence in you andyour abilities?" Amy stared at him for a moment, a mixture ofsurprise and what looked like pride flicking over her features. Hetook hold of her hands as he had done many times before, holding thempalms up between them before placing his palms down atop them, "youhave within you, a formidable power, something that the people Iassociate with would kill to have; so while I am not saying youshouldn't fear Zoom, because only a fool wouldn't fear him, I amtelling you that in this world, with your abilities...Zoom isprobably the only thing you have to worry about."

Amydidn't know how to respond, unfamiliar with this level of respectfrom him. Had she not been living with him for the past two weeks,her brain might have told her she was hallucinating, that she wasseeing Cisco in his face and imagining everything he said, but sheknew better. This was Francisco Ramon, the meta-human known asReverb, the man who had re-taught her to use her powers the hard way,and even if she tried she could not mistake him for his double now."Thank you," she whispered, feeling genuinely safer with hisconfidence behind her, and somehow sort of proud that she had managedto earn it.