⊱ ──────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ──────── ⊰
𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗘 𝗢𝗙 𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗘
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
the flash & scarlet
⊱ ──────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ──────── ⊰
IN SHORT, JULIET was pissed.
After her conversation with Iris, she had gone back to the CCPD to get some work done. However, a text from Caitlin had come through, saying that Barry had not only met up with Iris as the Streak again, but had gone after Tony by himself and was completely beat up. So beat up, in fact, that Cisco and Caitlin actually had to go rescue him themselves. Juliet now stood in the cortex, her arms crossed against her chest as she stared at Barry.
"What were you thinking?" Dr. Wells demanded. "What were you thinking? I told you that we would figure out a way to deal with him, using both you and Juliet."
"I'll heal," Barry insisted.
"You can't heal when you're dead."
"He's right," Juliet agreed, watching as Barry stood up. "Barry, why didn't you call me? The only way we know how to stop Tony, at least temporarily, is me. Were you not there when we encountered him for the first time and I knocked him back?"
Barry exhaled. "I know."
"Then why?"
"I didn't want you to face him again," Barry protested. "I saw how what he did to you affected you. All I want to do is protect you, J."
Her eyes momentarily softened and some of her anger faded away. Barry kept his gaze on her, which truly said that he meant every word.
Juliet sighed. "I appreciate that, Barry, I do, but I'm not some damsel in distress. He hurt me, and now that I'm powerful enough, I can finally hurt him back. It's my battle, too."
"He could have killed you," Dr. Wells added.
"I know, all right?" Barry stated angrily. "I know! In the past thirty-six hours, I've had my ass handed to me twice by the guy that tortured me as a kid and totally violated Juliet. I couldn't stop him then, and I can't stop him now! Even with my powers, I'm still powerless against him."
"Not necessarily. Cisco?" Dr. Wells looked over at him, and Cisco moved to stand behind the computers. "Any material, if struck at a high enough velocity, can be compromised."
"We ran an analysis on the metal in Tony's footprint," Cisco revealed. "Based on its density and atomic structure, if you impact it at just the right angle and just the right speed, you could do some serious damage."
"How fast would I have to go?" Barry asked.
"Factoring in the metal's tensile strength, estimated dermal thickness, atmospheric pressure, air temp, and if Juliet is holding him in place, you'd have to hit him at approximately . . . Mach one-point-one."
"You want Barry to hit something at eight-hundred miles an hour?" Caitlin questioned incredulously.
"Eight-hundred and thirty-seven, actually," Cisco corrected.
"That's faster than the speed of sound."
Cisco's eyes lit up. "I know. He would create a sonic boom, which, as I've said before, would be awesome."
Barry shook his head. "I've never gone that fast."
"Yet," Dr. Wells countered.
"I can't believe we're actually entertaining this idea," Caitlin admitted. "I mean, he'd need a straight shot from miles away."
"Yeah, five-point-three miles, theoretically," Cisco said. "But if Juliet uses her powers to hold him in place, there's a higher chance of Barry succeeding."
"Do it right, you two will take him down," Dr. Wells replied.
Caitlin then stepped forwards. "Do it wrong, you'll shatter every bone in your body."
Juliet and Barry shared a grave look. It was definitely risky, but right now, it was all they got.
Even after that, the two still had to go back to work. Juliet and Barry both walked into CCPD together. She was in the middle of explaining how Iris had called her when Tony came to Jitters when they were interrupted.
"Barry, Juliet," Joe's voice began.
"Joe, I've been beaten up enough for one day, and Juliet's telling a story, we gotta—" Barry responded.
"Hey, wait." Barry and Juliet then turned to look at him. "An anonymous tip led us to Tony Woodward's hideout. The place was trashed. What happened?"
"He showed up at Jitters to see Iris. I had to go after him."
Joe's eyes widened. "Iris, where is she?"
"She's okay," Juliet reassured him. "She called me after the incident and I went to go talk to her. Eddie also put a detail on her so she would be safe."
"I thought I could handle him this time," Barry said. "I tried."
"Still should've had me come with you," Juliet muttered, making Barry elbow her to be quiet.
"Look, I know what this punk put you both through, but you can't let emotion cloud your judgement," Joe announced.
Eddie then walked up to them. "The tollbooth camera got a shot of Woodward. Stolen car headed out of town. State police are taking over. We lost him."
"Don't worry, Eddie. They'll get him."
"I wanted to take this guy down."
"Not half as much as J and I did," Barry mumbled.
Eddie then brushed past Barry. "Let's go, Allen."
Barry looked down at Juliet in confusion for a moment, and she shrugged. "Go where?"
"Blow off some steam. I need to hit something."
Barry glanced at Juliet for help. "What?"
"He probably didn't mean you," Juliet voiced, laughing slightly. "Go. Have fun."
She watched Barry go up the stairs for a moment, smiling softly. Juliet finally looked away and turned back to Joe, who had a knowing look on his face.
Joe then pointed at her. "You. Come with me."
Her eyebrows knit in confusion, Juliet followed after Joe into a quiet corner of the CCPD. She stared up at him, literally having no idea what was going on.
"I've had a conversation with Barry about Iris, so it's only fitting that I have a conversation with you as well," Joe told her.
Juliet blinked. "What about Iris? Because I don't know if you missed it earlier, but we're talking again."
"No, Jules. I want to talk about you and Barry."
Joe gave her a knowing look. Juliet raised an eyebrow, but her features soon settled once she got what Joe was insinuating. Oh God.
"Did Iris tell you?" Juliet inquired. "Because I swear if she did—"
"She didn't tell me anything," Joe cut in. "I figured it out on my own. Because the same way you look at Barry is the same way that he looks at Iris."
Juliet nodded slowly. "What a mess we're in, huh?"
"I would say so." Joe exhaled. "Look, Jules. I think now that Iris is dating Eddie, you should go for it."
Juliet adamantly shook her head. "No. I'm sorry, but I'm not doing that. Because Barry only has eyes for Iris. As much as it hurts for me to admit that, it's true. It's like I've told Iris — it's better for me to keep it inside so we can keep staying friends than lose him."
"You're not going to lose him. Even though Barry may love Iris, I can tell that he loves you as well."
"What?"
Joe winked at her. "Dwell on it, Jules. I have to go get something from downstairs, you can sit at my desk until Barry and Eddie are done hitting things . . . or whatever."
Juliet stayed in the same spot. Well, now she was just hopelessly confused.
She then walked into the precinct where all the desks were. Juliet sat at Joe's desk and opened the case file in front of her, reading more about Tony's background in the system. Disgust ran through her veins as she stared at his mugshot. Years later, and she still couldn't believe he stole her first kiss like that.
"St. James!" a police officer then called, and she looked up, watching as he sprinted towards her.
"What?" Juliet asked, standing up once he saw the concerned look on his face. "Did something happen?"
"Where's Allen and Thawne? And West?"
"Barry and Eddie are upstairs and Joe is downstairs, why?"
"Iris is missing," the police officer revealed, making Juliet's eyes widen and she swore she felt her heart stop. "The detail on her has been attacked."
Juliet didn't let him say anything else. She dropped the case file on her desk and immediately sprinted to the stairs. Juliet took the stairs faster then she ever had in her life and ran to her lab. Barry and Eddie were both taking off boxing gloves and the punching bag was set up. The two immediately turned to look at her.
"J?" Barry began, looking worried. "Juliet, what's wrong?"
"The detail that was set on Iris has been attacked and she's missing," Juliet explained.
"Go, all right?" Barry instructed to Eddie as he made a grab for his clothes. "Jules and I'll call Joe."
Juliet pulled her phone out of her pocket as Barry put his button-up back on. She immediately called S.T.A.R. Labs and nodded her head towards the door. Her and Barry exited their lab, leading towards the stairs that would take them back down to the precinct.
"Cisco, Caitlin," Juliet breathed out.
"Yeah, Jules, what's up?" Cisco questioned.
"We need your help to find Iris. Tony took her. Do whatever you can — hack satellites, hack security cameras, anything."
"We're on it."
Just as they reached the bottom of the stairs, Joe came out of the elevator, a folder in his hands. He immediately stopped and looked at the worried and panicked expressions of Juliet and Barry. Juliet hung up her phone and placed it in her back pocket.
"What's wrong?" Joe inquired.
Barry shook his head. "Tony has her, Joe."
Juliet watches as Joe instantly froze. She shared a worried glance with Barry. This whole situation was just not good.
"They're looking for her right now," Juliet added.
Joe then started to walk straight into the room with the desks, where people were gathered. Juliet and Barry trailed after him.
"Eddie, anything yet?" Joe voiced.
"We have roadblocks on every major artery," Eddie answered. "Units are searching."
"We will find Iris, Joe," Captain Singh promised before going back to his office.
Joe looked at Juliet and Barry. "You don't think he'll hurt her, do you?"
Juliet stayed quiet. Speaking on her personal experience, Tony had no remorse. He didn't care that he forced himself upon her, and he certainly wouldn't care if he hurt another girl, either mentally or physically. There was no telling what he would do.
"Sir, sir, we got a fire alarm call at Carmichael Elementary," a police officer told Captain Singh.
Juliet immediately straightened up and looked at Barry — their elementary school.
"Dispatch the fire department," Captain Singh instructed. "We'll send backup when we can."
"That's the school you two and Iris went to," Joe stated.
"And Tony," Barry said.
"Go."
Juliet and Barry started to walk out of the precinct. She swallowed her nervousness. No. She would not allow Tony Woodward to make her feel like she was nothing ever again. That was the old Juliet. This new Juliet was never going to let anybody break her down.
The two heroes got into their suits and Juliet immediately teleported to her old elementary school. She ended up back inside the hallway, the utterly familiar hallway where the incident had happened. Juliet stayed back in the shadows as she watched Tony keep a tight grip on Iris in front of the trophy case.
" . . . 'cause I'm not going out without a fight," Tony was saying.
Barry then sped in next to her, making Tony and Iris look at them. "Good, 'cause you just found one."
Tony walked forwards, dragging Iris with him. "You just won't stay dead. And hey, you're here now too. Come to save your little fan girl?"
"She has nothing to do with this," Juliet argued, focusing on vibrating her vocal cords so her voice would echo and blurring her face. "Right now, this is between you and us. Let her go."
Tony did as he was told. Iris then fell onto the ground, making Juliet grit her teeth.
"Oh, I could, but I'd rather make her watch while I break every bone in your bodies," Tony stated before turning into metal.
Juliet then summoned a red ball of energy in her hand. She threw it straight at Tony, making him fly over backwards and land straight in the lockers, the very same set that he had pressed her up against when she was eleven. The lockers dented, but Tony just got right back up. He walked determinedly towards the heroes, his fists clenching.
Barry then sped up, slid under Tony's legs, and sped Iris back to the lockers that Tony had just dented. Tony went to throw a punch at Juliet, but she ducked and kicked him in his back, causing him to stumble forwards. He threw another punch, but Juliet jumped back, making him hit the wall instead.
"I've known guys like you," Barry announced. "Peaked in high school, never got over it. All these powers, and look at you. Bully then, bully now."
He then grabbed the flag pole and hit Tony with it, but Tony merely turned to metal and took the other end of the flag pole himself. Tony spun around and caused Barry to slam into another set of lockers. He then caused Barry to slam into a wall hard as well. Tony went back and forth, slamming Barry around, until he finally let Barry hit the ground. He loomed over Barry, his fist clenching while he turned to metal. Barry then sprinted out of the school all together. Juliet watched as the doors slammed.
Tony scoffed and looked at Iris. "There goes your hero."
"He made it out," Cisco's voice said over the comms. "Barely."
"I'm still here," Juliet voiced to Tony, red energy traveling up and down her arms. "It's you and me."
Tony then started to approach her. Juliet pushed back all of her fear, knowing the same way he approached her now was just as intimidating as it was when she was eleven.
"Why did he stop?" Caitlin then asked.
"He's miles away," Cisco revealed. "Five-point-three miles away."
"Hold him in place, J," Barry stated.
Juliet did as she was told. Just as Tony went to raise his fist, she focused everything she had on keeping him still. Juliet held her arms out, staring straight at Tony. Just like on her arms, red energy started to travel around Tony. Juliet kept her eyes and focus on him as she circled out of the way. She could feel herself getting more and more of a headache and her muscles tightening, but she ignored it.
"Barry, wait," Caitlin protested.
"No way, he's gonna do it!" Cisco exclaimed. "Go, man, go!"
Tony couldn't move his head to look at Juliet. "What are you doing to me?"
"Telekinesis," Juliet replied. "That means I can control things with my mind. And right now, I'm making sure that you don't move."
"And why's that?"
As if on cue, they heard glass shattering and multiple booms from outside. Juliet smirked, and blowing straight through the door came Barry, flying forwards with his fist out. He then punched Tony straight in the face, causing a sonic boom. Tony and Barry got blown back from the impact, but Tony was no longer metal. Juliet released her focus and slid down the wall in exhaustion, her mind spinning.
"Supersonic punch, baby!" Cisco shouted. "Woo!"
Tony then slowly got up from the ground. However, before Juliet or Barry could do anything, Iris surged forwards and punched Tony. Tony then fell back down.
"Nice punch," Juliet complimented.
"Yeah, I think I broke my hand," Iris complained, holding her hand in pain.
"Oh, me too," Barry agreed.
Police sirens were then heard, telling Juliet that they were probably coming to help. She got up, blinking the black spots out of her vision, and knelt back down next to an unconscious Tony. Juliet placed her hand on a shoulder, ready to teleport, but she looked back up at Iris.
"Nice to see you again," Juliet said. "Keep writing that blog."
With that, she teleported Tony away. They ended back up in the pipeline, which was the destination Juliet wanted to go. Barry then sped in as well, got a new cell, and sped Tony in. They locked him inside and kept his cell front and center. Juliet and Barry, both with their masks off yet still in their suits, waited in the shadows for him to wake up. They wanted to show him that even though he had done them wrong, they still came out on top.
Sure enough, after a couple of minutes, Tony woke up. He looked around and realized he was in a cell. Tony then got up from the ground and started to bang on the walls.
"Hey!" Tony yelled. "What is this? Where the hell am I?"
"Somewhere you'll never hurt anyone ever again," Barry responded.
"Who the hell do you think you are?"
Juliet and Barry shared a quick glance before walking into the light, revealing their true identities to Tony.
"I think you know the answer to that question," Juliet replied.
Tony stared at them in recognition. "Allen? St. James?"
"The thing that happened to you, Tony, it happened to us too," Barry stated. "But it didn't just give us abilities. It made us more of who we are. You got strong. I got fast."
"And I got powerful," Juliet added. "Unlike how I was before, when were eleven. In fact, I got powerful enough and Barry got fast enough to finally beat you."
"You used your gift to hurt people. Not anymore."
"Allen, St. James," Tony protested as the two walked backwards. "Allen, St. James. Allen, St. James, don't walk away from me! Hey! Come back here!"
The two of them ignored how Tony was hitting his cell while turned to metal. Cisco then lowered the door to the Particle Accelerator, really sealing Tony in. Finally, when the door was low enough so that Tony couldn't see it, Juliet and Barry shared a high five before Barry pulled her in for a tight side hug.
"Dude, that had to feel great," Cisco commented.
"You have no idea," Barry voiced.
"Almost as good as proving me wrong about the supersonic punch?" Caitlin questioned.
"Actually, that part hurt. Like, a lot." Barry and Juliet then turned around to look at Cisco and Caitlin. "But we couldn't have done it without you guys."
"All I want to know is which childhood bully are we gonna take down next?" Cisco admitted. "Mine or Caitlin's?"
Juliet let out a small laugh. "Uh huh."
"I vote mine." Juliet, Barry, and Caitlin then began to walk away, Cisco trailing behind. "What? Guys, this is not a joke."
Juliet elbowed Barry's side gently. "I think we should go check up on Iris as her best friends instead of superheroes, yeah?"
"Yeah," Barry agreed. "Come on, let's go."
The two of them got into their normal clothes before going to Jitters, which was dimly lit. They entered, only to see Iris cleaning up like she normally did.
"Hi," Iris greeted, but her face fell upon noticing it was just them. "Oh, I thought that you were someone else."
Juliet shook her head. "Really feeling the love, 'Ris. So, uh . . . Joe told us what happened. Heard you punched Tony Woodward in the face." She chuckled a bit. "Wish it was me. Is your hand okay?"
"Not broken, so that's something," Iris answered. "And that punch was actually for you."
There was silence. Juliet glanced in between Barry and Iris for a moment before letting out a groan.
"Oh God, guys, this is painfully awkward," Juliet complained. "Come on, let's get this over with."
Iris sighed. "I've missed you."
"Yeah, I've missed you too," Barry responded. "When I heard Tony took you, I — I just — I don't know what I would do if anything happened to you."
"Considering how crazy you got after you saw what he did to Jules, so I think I know," Iris voiced. "And my guardian angels are looking out for me. Do you want to hang out and catch up?"
"Yeah. I would like that, yeah."
"I promise not to talk about the Streak or the Materializing Figure tonight," Iris said as they all sat down in chairs.
"No, you can talk about them," Juliet encouraged. "Or we can talk about whatever, like how When I Look at You is one of the best songs out there." She was met with blank stares from Iris and Barry. "Wow, tough crowd. Okay, Iris, take it away."
Iris immediately got excited. "Good, because it's not just the Streak and the Materializing Figure. There are others out there that are like them. I — I've gotten scattered posts about this guy that's on fire, except that he doesn't burn up."
"Okay, so wait," Barry cut in. "Wait. You're trying to find the Burning Man now too?"
"Yeah, why not? I mean, a lot can happen in a week. Especially with the Streak and the Materializing Figure. I've been trying to get answers from them, especially the Streak. Where do they come from? How do they do what they do? But they dodge everything. Literally, with this super-speed and this teleportation power. When they move, Barry and Jules, you don't even see them. They both come and go in the blink of an eye, in a—"
"Flash?" Barry finished.
"Of Scarlet?" Juliet added.
Iris paused for a moment, seemingly liking what they just said. "In a Flash. Of Scarlet. Yeah."
And from that day forwards, Iris unknowingly gave her two best friends their superhero names — the Flash and Scarlet.
〖 ϟ 〗
THANK GOD I CAN FINALLY CALL JULES SCARLET NOW