EXPEDITE ▇▇▇▇ VOLUME ONE
━━ ❛ 𝒓𝒂𝒅𝒊𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒇𝒇 𝒊𝒏 𝒘𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒔 ❜
chapter no. 015!
"WELCOME TO ERIN OSBORN'S HOUSE OF 'GAY FOR IRIS WEST.' THIS IS ERIN SPEAKING. HOW MAY I BE OF ASSISTANCE TONIGHT?" Erin sang, twirling around in her office chair. A pen dangled from her lips loosely as she chewed on it.
"Hi, this is Iris West calling right now."
Erin's eyes widened as she slipped off the chair, landing on top of a pile of laundry. Coughing awkwardly, she stayed on the floor. "Ah fuck, I thought you were Piper..."
Iris laughed on the other end, and a door shutting could be heard. "I figured that much by the way you answered."
"So, how may I be of assistance tonight, my future girlfriend?" Erin asked cheekily, sitting up and running a hand through her hair.
Iris laughed again, causing her to smile widely. "Can you come over? I need to rant."
"Now? I'm not wearing underwear!" the latter exclaimed, hopping up from the floor as her oversized t-shirt fell to her knees. Tripping over her own two feet, the woman fell back on the floor, groaning in pain.
"Yes, now. Wait, are you okay?"
Erin grumbled a 'yes' as she sat up again. "All right, I'll be there in like twenty minutes." The woman quickly hung up, slapping her forehead as she groaned again. Tonight was not her night, but then again, no night was ever her night.
Slipping on some underwear, sweatpants, and bunny slippers, she sprinted to the kitchen, sliding across the floor toward the counter where her keys sat. Grabbing them, she looked up to see Caitlin, Cisco, Barry, and Piper sitting at the table playing Scrabble. It warmed her heart knowing that her best friend was getting her life back together. She'd spent so long ignoring everyone that Erin thought she might never come back to her.
Piper looked amused as she checked out Erin's outfit. The other three wore curious looks with brows raised.
"I didn't know you were here; I thought you were out," Erin spoke, tilting her head.
"Not anymore, but I brought company. Where are you going in such a hurry? Got a hot date with somebody with your bunny slippers?" the redhead teased, to which her roommate responded with a middle finger.
"You know what, I don't have time for your sassy antics. I've got a certain West in dire need of my attention," she responded triumphantly.
Piper gasped. "Would that West member happen to be named Iris? Also known as, and I quote, 'the most beautiful woman to ever walk this Earth and I would give my last dying breath to'?"
Erin rolled her eyes, glaring at the giggling woman. Barry and Cisco were sharing a sly look as Caitlin grinned.
"Yes, and if you don't mind, I've got to go see my future girlfriend. Later losers!" Erin yelled, sprinting out of the apartment and past the elevator, going straight for the staircase and dashing down four floors.
Throwing her phone into the passenger seat of her car, she turned on the ignition and backed out of the parking lot, heading straight for Iris's apartment. A place that she'd been to a couple of times. Ever since the night Zoom attacked Piper, Erin had spent some of her time at S.T.A.R. Labs, coincidentally running into the infamous reporter a couple of times.
What started as subtle flirting turned into the short-haired woman complimenting and being bold in her attraction toward Iris. At first, she wasn't sure how she would react to a woman hitting on her, but she'd taken it surprisingly well— even flirting back with Erin.
The two spent a lot of time together, going to get coffee, shopping, cooking, and having Erin watch Iris write articles for CCPN. Erin was more than grateful for Piper because, without her, she may have never met or talked to the woman she was quickly starting to like more and more.
Within ten minutes of speeding down the streets of Central City, the woman in bunny slippers arrived at the door of Iris West's apartment. Knocking three times, she waited to be let in.
The door opened to reveal Iris wearing skinny denim jeans, a white tank top, and an emerald green cardigan with necklaces hanging loosely around her neck. She sighed in relief, opening the door wider for Erin to come in.
Closing the door behind her, she locked it. "I'm annoyed," Iris huffed.
"Yeah, I can tell by how your eyebrows are doing that cute scrunchy thing," Erin replied, pointing at the girl's forehead. Iris rolled her eyes.
"My dad's treating Wally as if they're college pals, not father and son. He's ignoring the fact that Wally is involved in something that can get him killed, for crying out loud! He's just chilling in the corner while his son gets to do whatever he wants without consequences or repercussions." Iris ranted, falling onto one of the couches in her living room. Erin slipped off her bunny slippers and sat down next to her. "I mean— I didn't even recognize the Joe West that I had dinner with tonight!"
Erin looked over at the reporter, frowning. "Iris," she started, getting her to look over at her. "Joe just recently learned that he has a son he barely knows a thing about. He's probably just trying to get Wally to like him in any way he can. You all just lost your mom. I highly doubt Joe's going to allow you both to lose Wally. For right now, you need to let this thing ride out. Let your dad do what he thinks is best, and things will turn around. Just give him time to learn how to deal with all of this. He's struggling, just like you are."
"And for Wally?" Iris sighed.
Erin shrugged. "I don't fucking know the kid. I know he's a dumbass stressing out his beautiful sister, who cares for him. You can't control what the dude does with his life, so don't try to."
One thing to know about Erin Osborn was that she was incredibly open and brutally honest. She never shied away from anything. This was a characteristic that the West girl liked a lot about her, even though there were other things she liked a lot about Erin.
Iris smiled at the advice, her cheeks burning at the short-haired women's subtle compliment. Shaking her head, she sighed. "I won't try to control him, but I'm still writing that article on street racers and who's sponsoring them."
Groaning, Erin leaned into the couch. "That's not what I meant, but okay Nancy Drew. If you get yourself stuck in some sort of mess, I won't hesitate to kick your ass personally."
The reporter snorted, shooting her a cheeky grin. "Yeah, you might end up doing that. I got a lead on who's in charge of it all."
This information caused the latter to groan again, this time louder. Covering her face with her hands, Erin sighed dramatically. "Iris Ann West, as much as I find your journalism, detective skills, and occasional badass attitude hot as hell, you can be really stupid."
"I know, babe."
"Don't call me that unless you want to be pinned against this couch."
────
STRIKING HER FIST AGAINST THE PUNCHING BAG, SHE LET OUT A GRUNT. Bouncing side-to-side, Piper wielded her arm back and threw another punch. A mess of scarlet-red hair flew around her as her lips were parted, eyes trained on the punching bag. Imagining the man in yellow standing in front of her, she threw punches like rapid-fire, letting out angry sighs and grunts of frustration.
Last night, she'd woken up from a nightmare about the little girl Zoom killed back in November. The dreams had stopped since she told Joe about the black and blue monster's identity, but they returned last night in full force.
After crying herself back to sleep, she had another nightmare. Although, this one wasn't about Zoom. It was about her parents— the night they were killed, the night her whole universe changed. All because someone wearing a mask covered with red lightning decided to play God and picked who died.
Once she'd woken up the second time, the redhead realized that she wasn't going to be able to get any more sleep. Leaving the apartment at four in the morning, she jogged her way to S.T.A.R. Labs, her speed still not back after two days.
Since four thirty-three in the morning, Piper Lita had been in the speed lab, kicking and punching the hell out of the punching bags. There were three when she'd arrived, but now there was only one. The other two had been flung across the room and punched open, sand spilling from the broken seems.
Throwing a punch with her right fist, her chocolate brown eyes watched as the man in yellow smiled, his red eyes glowing with hatred. "Come and get me." He growled, causing a spike of anger to hit her in the chest so hard it felt as if thousands of push pins were sticking into her heart, pushing deeper in as his red eyes only glowed brighter. Those were the four words that had brought her to this planet in the first place. He'd relentlessly uttered the words to her for years during every battle they had.
Without realizing it was happening, her eyes became a bright purple. Letting out a scream of anger in the empty building, she did a three-sixty and kicked the punching bag at full force, sending it sailing across the room and into a glass board, shattering it completely.
Her chest heaved up and down laboriously, the knuckles on her hands beginning to bruise. Readjusting the straps of her black sports bra, she wiped the sweat from her forehead.
"And I thought I had anger issues," a low voice commented, and her head whipped towards the doorway where Harry Wells stood. Pushing her hair out of her face, she glared at him, not in the mood to have a cute little chit-chat this early.
Ignoring his presence, she went over to where the punching bag lay on the ground, surrounded by broken glass and the frame of what used to hold the transparent board. Grabbing the bag, she heaved it up and brought it back over to the stand it was previously hanging from, reattaching it.
"Why're you here, Lita?" Harry questioned, his glasses resting in his hands. The frustrated woman rolled her shoulders back, spreading her feet apart before striking the bag. "Is your speed back?"
Stepping back, she brought her left leg up and struck the side of the hanging bag. "No," she threw a punch, "it's not."
Narrowing his eyes, he watched as the feisty heroine continued to throw blows at the bag, spinning and kicking it forcefully. Eventually, he walked away.
Continuing to picture the man in yellow standing before her, she let her fists make solid contact with the leather bag, her anger radiating off in waves.
"You're just like your parents," the vibrating voice echoed in her head as her body bounced back and forth. "Weak. Pathetic. Selfish. Worthless. Heartless. Oh! Let's not forget evil. That one's my favorite." Letting out another scream, she pulled her arm back before hitting the bag, purple lightning treading up her arm.
This one was for her parents.
Hit.
This one was for ripping away her innocence.
Kick.
For breaking her heart.
Punch.
For making her hate a world that she hadn't even begun to explore.
Kick.
For destroying her home.
Punch.
Taking away her humanity.
Kick.
Shattering her soul.
Hit.
Terrorizing the people in Caruthers City.
Kick.
Creating a part of her so dark it'd never seen the light.
Punch.
For sending her here.
Hit.
Blinking, she watched as the leather bag flew off the hinges and soared across the room. Once it impacted the floor, it almost exploded; sand spilled everywhere due to the fist-sized holes in the fabric that were smoking.
"Uh, good morning to you too, sunshine." Piper whipped around. Cisco and Barry stood in the doorway, their eyes on her. Breathing heavily, she nodded before looking at the mess she'd made. "Is everything okay? 'Cause this room looks like it's been through hell and back." Cisco spoke slowly, glancing over at his best friend.
The redhead shrugged as she took the black gloves off, her eyes trained on her black, blue, and purple-stained knuckles. She walked over to her bag and began wrapping them.
"Piper?" Barry asked apprehensively, walking towards her, Cisco trailing behind. "Are you okay?"
Piper looked up, finishing up wrapping as she glanced between the two. "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"
You're such a liar.
"You suck at lying. You know that, right?" Barry asked, raising a brow, and she huffed.
"I—" Piper stopped short, her mind going blank. "I don't know."
The brown-haired man frowned as Cisco looked between the two, getting the vibe that he should probably give them some privacy. Backing away, he awkwardly but quietly exited.
"Talk to me. What's going on? I saw you just last night with everyone, and you were good," Barry mentioned as the woman in front of him struggled to meet his eyes.
"I couldn't sleep. I kept having nightmares about that little girl and Zoom—" the redhead paused, rubbing her forehead. "And then I started having nightmares about the night my parents were killed."
Stepping forward, the speedster used his index finger to tug her chin up, automatically opening her eyes. "I'm here if you want to talk about either of those nights. Talking about things like that can be hard, but I want to listen when you're ready."
Piper smiled softly, feeling physically and emotionally drained after kicking and punching for hours. "Thank you," she whispered, to which Barry responded by pulling her into a hug. Scrunching her eyebrows, she looked at him oddly. "I'm gross and sweaty. Why would you..."
Barry chuckled, shaking his head with a smile. "I don't care. You still look beautiful to me."
His words caused her cheeks to burn as she looked away. "It's too early for you to be saying cute shit like that to me," Piper grumbled, and he laughed, that ethereal smile of his shining.
"It's never too early to say anything to you," he argued. "Speaking of," he began nervously, the tone of his voice making her ears perk. "Two days ago... at the gala. There was something important that I wanted to ask you before Turtle interrupted and decided to steal a priceless painting along with you." Piper raised her brows, intrigued by where this conversation was going. Her fingers crossed, hoping it was leading to something she'd been waiting for forever since she first laid eyes on him. "Would you—"
"Barry, I found something in your crime scene samples from yesterday. Get down here!" Cisco called over the sound system.
Piper bit down on her lip as the boy groaned, throwing his head back. "Dude, come on..." Barry whined. She chuckled at the annoyed look that crossed his face, a smile spreading across hers.
"Quit flirting with my girlfriend and get down here, dumbass!" the long-haired boy yelled through the speakers.
Piper burst into laughter as the man in front of her rolled his eyes. He sped them to the Cortex, where Cisco was holding a cup of coffee towards Piper, knowing she probably hadn't had any. Smiling gratefully at him, she plopped down in a chair as Barry made his way to his side.
"All right, I ran your crime scene samples six ways," Cisco started, "and I noticed two very strange things. One, definitely metahuman cells in the oil." Caitlin walked by Piper, giving her a fist bump before she joined the boys. "And two, he didn't die from his burns. It was suffocation."
"Suffocation?" the speedster asked slowly. "That makes sense, actually. The burns indicated that the body was covered in something."
Downing half the cup, the redhead stared up at the ceiling. She didn't know what they were talking about. She only listened because she needed something to distract herself from her thoughts.
"Cross-referencing O2 levels in the organic matter, I found a direct match to animals trapped and preserved in an asphalt seep. The guy was fossilized." Cisco announced, and her brows rose.
Now that's something you wouldn't see on a Magic School Bus episode.
Barry's eyes widened as he bent down to look closer at the monitors. "So, whoever killed him is like a walking—"
"Tar Pit," the redhead spoke up, her eyes trained on the ceiling. "Too slow." She snapped her fingers and pointed to Cisco, who was scowling at how she'd beat him to the punch.
"So, he's basically drowning them in tar." Caitlin nodded in confirmation, giving the brown-haired man a cringe at his statement. "Why did he target Daniel Burge?"
The sound of the theme song for Star Wars started playing, and Piper stopped spinning around in her chair, raising her brows at Cisco, who was chuckling awkwardly and reaching for his phone. "Oh, that's my meta-human social media app," he clarified.
Tilting her head to the side, she eyed the boy. "You have way too much time on your hands," she commented, earning her a playful glare.
"That's right. My app." Cisco emphasized the word 'app' while everyone rolled their eyes. "There's an attack in progress. Sixth and Bell, downtown. Is your speed back, Piper?"
The woman in question glared at him, which quickly answered his question. Without a word, Barry sighed and grabbed his suit, speeding out of the room.
Caitlin pulled up a live stream, and everyone turned their attention to the screens on the walls. The Flash's back was facing the camera underneath a bridge, a man with tar oozing out of him standing in the middle of the street.
"His suit makes his ass look really good," Piper mused, sipping her coffee. Caitlin looked over at her, raising a brow while Cisco placed a hand on his heart, offended.
"Um, hello? Your boyfriend is standing right here."
She chuckled, sending him a wink before turning her attention back to the monitors.
"Remember me, Clay?" Tar Pit charged, raising a hand.
The man, who Piper assumed was Clay, gasped. "We killed you."
"I bet right now you're not thinking 'yummy,'" Tar Pit grumbled.
"Yo, are you guys seeing this?" Barry asked through the comms.
"Oh yeah, we see it," Caitlin replied, glancing over at Piper, who was watching silently.
Tar Pit's hand caught fire as a pool of tar puddled up in it, and Barry ran, grabbing Clay and placing him on the ground. "All right, any ideas?" he called, causing the three in the Cortex to glance at one another apprehensively.
"Viscosity of asphalt lowers as its temperature lowers," Piper answered slowly, and Cisco nodded.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, and it hardens. Hey, find a way to cool him down!"
Everybody watched as the scarlet speedster ran to a fire hydrant. "Hey, barbecue! Hit me with your best shot!" The Flash yelled, throwing his arms out at his sides.
"Hit me your best shot. Why don't you hit me with your best shot," Piper sang quietly, bobbing her head side-to-side. Caitlin and Cisco looked up and over at her, their eyes narrowing.
"Really?" Caitlin retorted, and the redhead looked away from the screens, her cheeks flushing pink.
Tarpit grunted and threw a flaming tarball at the hydrant, causing water to burst. Droplets hit him, causing him to melt like the Wicked Witch of the West. "Oh, yeah! Team Flash!" Cisco yelled, fist-bumping the air.
About an hour later, Barry came back, immediately changing out of his suit and joining the other three. "Tar Pit— Tar Pit, that's what we're calling him?" the speedster double-checked, looking over to Caitlin, standing beside him. Cisco and Piper were sitting in office chairs, feet away, seeing who could spin the fastest. Looking up with a childish smile on his face, Cisco nodded. "Tarpit was after Clay Stanley. As it turns out, Stanley is a suspected hitman that the CCPD has been trying to track for a while, but they haven't been able to make anything stick."
The slight pun Barry unknowingly made caused Piper to snort and Cisco to giggle.
"No pun intended." The speedster added, looking directly at the two.
Caitlin held back a smile. "Do we know why he was attacked?"
Barry shrugged. "Uh, Stanley wouldn't answer any of my questions. He was pretty scared."
Piper furrowed her brows, grabbing onto Cisco's chair to stop her from spinning. "When a hitman is scared, you know something's wrong." The others nodded in agreement.
"Hey, did you get an I.D. on our metahuman?" the brown-haired man asked Cisco.
"Yeah, I'm running it through five different facial recognition systems right now, so it should take a minute." The computer beeped on cue, and the boy nodded in satisfaction. "And there it is. Who's the best hacker in the world, people?"
"Felicity Smoak." Barry, Piper, and Caitlin spoke unison, causing him to turn around with his mouth open.
"What is wrong with you three? That's not friendship. And Piper— you don't even know her!" Cisco protested.
Piper shrugged, a smile laced upon her lips. "I don't have to know her to know she's the best." He scowled, glaring at her as she just snickered quietly.
"Our meta-human's name is Joseph Monteleone," Caitlin announced, clasping her hands together.
"Monteleone was reported missing. Surprise, surprise, the night of the particle accelerator explosion." Barry read off the screen, crossing his arms.
"And what's the connection between Monteleone and the two victims?" Caitlin asked as Piper stood up, joining her side. Placing her hands on her hips, the redhead narrowed her eyes as she read the fine print.
"I'll call Joe. Have him run background checks on all three guys." Barry replied.
Caitlin nodded. "Okay, I'm going to run some tests on the tar samples. See if I can find his weakness."
The two walked away in different directions. Tugging Piper's arm, Cisco pulled her out of the room after the scarlet speedster.
"Barry!" he called, stopping him in his tracks. Turning around, he raised a brow as the boy approached, dragging Piper behind him. "Hey, are you feeling okay?"
Barry tilted his head in confusion. "Yeah. Why?"
The long-haired boy glanced back at Piper. "You're going slower than normal. You clocked in at one-thousand-four-hundred-and-fifty miles an hour."
Barry raised his brows, growing more confused. "I'm sorry, but how fast do I usually run?"
"Fifteen hundred. Are you getting enough to eat?" Cisco asked, reaching up to knock on the man's forehead before he swatted his arm away.
"Yes, yeah, dude, I'm fine, seriously. The difference seems negligible. Fast is fast, right?"
Cisco looked at Piper, who stared at him questioningly. "Do we believe him?" he asked.
Shrugging, she nodded. "I do."
────
"I'M A REPORTER FOR CCPN. I WANT YOU TO STOP HOLDING THE RACES."
"Sweetheart, unless you can find me another way to make five grand a night, it ain't gonna happen."
"Here's a preview of the expose that I am writing. You are the star of the piece. I had a little chat with some of your previous associates and dug up some revealing details about you. Like the gambling rings you run or the thefts you've been involved with. I'm sure the CCPD will be interested in this one."
Iris West stopped playing the recording on her phone and poured herself a cup of coffee while Erin stood speechless. "You were right. I am going to have to kick your ass." Erin finally spoke, crossing her arms. "What the hell were you thinking, Iris?! This dude could have literally hurt you if he wanted to." The woman in question glanced up, shrugging. "Do you have a death wish or something?"
The doors to Central City Picture News opened, and Wally West stormed in, coming up behind both Iris and Erin. "You got a death wish?" Wally retorted, causing Iris to lift her head and glare at the woman beside her before turning around.
"You are not the first person to accuse me of that, so maybe," she replied, walking past him and towards the printer.
"Going down there, threatening them? These people, Iris, they live in the dark. They're cockroaches, except they don't scatter when someone turns on the lights. They're looking to bite." Wally stressed.
Erin looked between the two, noticing the thick tension.
"If they're so dangerous, Wally, then why are you in so deep with them?" Iris countered, grabbing a stack of papers and moving past him.
Turning around, his mouth dropped open as he looked between the two women. "I'm not. I can stop when I want."
Erin snorted, sending him a challenging brow when he looked her way.
"So, why don't you?" The older West asked, raising her brows. "You said you were only street racing to earn money for Francine's medical bills. Well, there are no medical bills anymore, so why are you still doing it?" Wally looked down at the ground. "Look, I am not going to pretend that Francine meant to me what she did to you, but in the short time I spent with her, I saw what kind of a person she had become. She was smart, kind, and loving, so I can't even imagine how much you miss her."
"You don't know what I'm feeling," Wally stated, stepping forward.
Iris followed in suit. "Well, let me tell you how I feel. I know you were trying hard to convince everyone that you were a badass, but I know you're a good kid, Wally. And you didn't get that way by raising yourself. You had a single mother who cared for you, so my dad and I care whether you wrap yourself around a tree or get shot by one of these gangsters. Having someone care about your well-being cannot be a new sensation for you." She walked to her desk, sitting down and adverting her eyes to the screen.
Erin gave the boy a pointed glare before sitting on the edge of Iris's desk.
"Show up there again, and I won't be able to protect you." Wally stalked out, not daring to look back. Iris sighed, burying her head in her hands as Erin reached over and rubbed her back.
"Do you want me to go beat his ass?" she asked.
Iris smiled softly, shaking her head. "No, one of those street gangsters will probably do it for you."
────
THE SIDE OF HER CHEEK WAS PRESSED AGAINST THE COOL SURFACE OF THE TABLE. A computer screen was placed a few inches from where her head was resting while its accommodating keyboard had been shoved to the side. Slow and even breaths escaped her parted lips as her eyes were shut. Her legs were crossed in the chair, her right arm lying on the table while her left one dangled towards the ground.
"Hey," Joe called, walking into the Cortex. "I ran background checks on everyone involved in this Tar Pit mess, came up empty. I mean, they all have records, but they're sealed, so I can't read them."
Cisco snorted, shaking his head. "Well, that's 'cause you're bound by ethics, Detective West."
"How many felonies are we committing breaking into sealed court records?"
Turning his gaze back to his computer, the long-haired boy shrugged, beginning to type. "Eh, three or four. Nope, five."
All three files popped up on the monitor in the front of the room, and Barry spun around in his chair. "Well, they were sealed because the records are all juvenile offenses."
Joe narrowed his eyes. "They weren't arrested together."
"No," Cisco began, "but look at this. They served in the same juvenile detention facility. Actually, Monteleone and victim one were bunkmates."
Caitlin walked in, noticing the sleeping woman in the corner. "You guys do realize that you're going to wake her up if you keep talking that loud, right?" The three men glanced over to Piper, who was soundly asleep, peaceful breaths leaving her lips.
"Oops," Cisco muttered.
"Who do we have locked up with vic two?" Barry asked, going back to the topic at hand.
"Bronwen, comma, Clark. Good luck finding him. He has a ton of addresses, and I can't seem to find anything current. I'll run his picture through facial recognition." Cisco answered, beginning to type as Iris walked in, Erin treading behind her.
"That won't be necessary."
The three men and Caitlin turned their attention to the two. "In this case, she is facial recognition," Erin remarked, gesturing to Iris, who was rolling her eyes.
Barry and Joe gave them peculiar expressions, tilting their heads. "I know exactly where we can find that guy, and, Dad, you're not gonna like how," Iris spoke, giving her father an apologetic look in advance.
"Okay, you can tell me about it on the way. Erin, you're coming with us." Detective West responded, earning him a mischievous grin from the girl.
"Hell yeah, let's kick some ass," Erin cheered as Harry walked in with an egg-shaped machine in his hand.
Blinking, Joe did a double-take. "What is that?"
Harry grinned, looking up. "Breach implosion reactor."
"Sorry I asked," Joe mumbled, gesturing to the two women to follow him.
Moving to face the scarlet speedster, Harry raised a brow. "You ready?"
Barry nodded. "Yeah, let's do it."
"Wake Lita up too. She can come with. You two are the only speedsters, and to close them all quickly without Zoom noticing, you both need to know how this works. Let's get moving." Harry added, pointing over to where the redhead was sleeping at the desk.
The corner of Barry's lips twitched upward. She looked more at peace than he'd ever seen her before, not a trace of stress, anger, sadness, or happiness on her face. Just content. Which was enough to make him happy.
Hesitantly, he reached forward and shook her shoulder lightly. Shaking her shoulder again, her eyes fluttered open slowly. Moving her eyes up, Piper saw Barry standing over her with a slight smile on his face. "Hey, sleepyhead. Harry and I are going to test the breach implosion reactor. Do you wanna come with us?"
Piper nodded, rubbing her eyes before standing up.
Making their way to the door, Harry joined them, rotating his shoulder as he winced. "Hey, Harry, are you okay? You seem like you're in pain." Piper noticed, her brows furrowing in silent concern as he glanced over at her.
"What? No, no, I have a headache." He stumbled quickly, his pace picking up speed. Barry opened his mouth to call the man out but halted in his tracks, knowing it wasn't his place to press further.
The van ride to the closest breach near S.T.A.R. Labs, other than the one in the basement, was eerily quiet. Neither of the three had attempted to make small talk, each in their own little world. Although, Piper couldn't help but notice that as Harry drove, he continuously reached for his shoulder, his jaw locking in pain for no more than two seconds.
She wanted to ask what was going on but decided against it, realizing that he'd probably snap at her, and she wasn't in the mood to be snapped at. Her head was pounding, and she was starving. Those two things distracted her from what their intended goal was tonight.
Soon they arrived and set everything up.
Wells stood in front of a small table, goggles on as he messed with the reactor. "If our calculations are correct—"
"And they are." Barry butted-in.
"And they are. When this device detonates, it will collapse the event horizon on this side of the breach, thereby shutting off any connection to Earth-Two permanently." Harry cleared his throat, tinkering with the device again, ensuring everything was locked and set in place.
The man next to Piper yawned, both she and Harry glancing over at him. "Are you okay?"
Barry looked up, noticing the other two staring at him. Feeling his cheeks burn, he nodded, stuffing his hands into his warm coat pockets. "Yeah, I'm just a little tired. I don't feel like myself. I'm good, though." White smoke dropped from his lips as he spoke, clouding the air around him.
Glancing at Harry, Piper saw a slight tint of guilt in his eyes. Something was off, she could tell. The man was acting more jumpy than usual, not to mention more talkative and in pain, although he wouldn't admit it to them.
"It's gonna work, Harry," Piper encouraged, hoping some reassurance would help ease whatever was going on in his mind.
Harry nodded absentmindedly, sliding the goggles up and tossing the device in his hands a few times. "You ready?" he asked, nods of confirmation heading his way. "Which one of you wants to throw it? It needs to be thrown through the breach at a high speed."
The two speedsters glanced at the other, shrugging.
"Barry can. I don't know if my speed is back or not and if it isn't, and I throw that, I could break it." Piper replied.
Harry nodded and handed the reactor to Barry, both he and the redhead stepping back. Nodding, the brown-haired man stepped forward and threw it. A glowing and whirling ocean appeared in mid-air, glowing brightly as it began to vibrate. Suddenly, a loud popping sound erupted, and it was gone.
Walking quickly, Barry stuck his hand out where the breach had once been, the other two jogging up.
Nothing hung in the air as he waved his hands, feeling absolutely nothing. A delighted smile took over his face, and he spun around. "We did it!" he laughed, pulling Harry and Piper into a group hug.
Piper laughed softly, a satisfied smile aligning on her cheeks as the scientist simply blinked. They all stepped away, and Barry shoved Harry's shoulder slightly. "Come on! You just rewrote the laws of physics! Don't smile or anything."
Blinking again, the goggles resting on the top of his head fell back down on his face. "I guess that was pretty cool," Harry spoke slowly, still shocked that his invention worked successfully.
"One down, fifty-one to go!" Piper cheered, rocking back on her feet. Fifty-one to go until we can get rid of Zoom for good.
"Allen, Lita," Harry began quietly. Both speedsters turned to him. "Thank you."
"Of course. Friends help each other, and we'll always be here to help you." Piper stated.
"This is just the first step in getting your daughter back." Barry breathed. "Let's head back and tell the others it worked."
Piper watched as another wave of guilt spread across the scientist's face. However, it disappeared almost as quickly as it had arrived. Tilting her head slightly, she watched as he weakly nodded, looking away from them both.
────
SEARCHING THROUGH CISCO'S WORKROOM WAS LIKE SEARCHING THROUGH AN EMPTY PIT OF DARKNESS, LOOKING FOR A BEAM OF LIGHT WHEN NONE EXISTED. In other words, it was nearly impossible to find anything.
Piper had lent Cisco her necklace so he could figure out how it worked and now wanted it back— not wearing it felt weird. She'd worn it for six years, so walking around for only a few days without it didn't feel right.
When she'd ask for it back, Cisco told her it was on the desk in his workroom. What he failed to mention, though, was that he had seven desks, and the room was cluttered to the max— making it difficult to search for anything.
Groaning in frustration, she stood up from where she'd previously been squatting on the ground, looking underneath a desk for the necklace. As she stood, the top of her head hit the bottom of the desk, causing everything to rattle. "Dammit," she hissed, rubbing the back of her head as she stood up.
Multiple bottles and trinkets wobbled, and she reached forward, trying to catch all of them before they fell. A cylinder glass tube was the only thing she hadn't grabbed, and it rolled on top of a laptop, pressing multiple keys. The computer's screen lit up, and as she moved the tube, her eyes got caught on the words 'speed force', 'activated,' and 'transmitter.'
Hastily tossing the tube, she narrowed her eyes. "Speed Force Transmitter... Last activated at eleven-thirty-seven... Successfully retrieved two percent of the speed force..." Piper murmured; her eyes widened as she realized what this was.
Barry hadn't been running as fast as he usually does. He's been more exhausted and said he didn't feel like himself. This was why. Some of his speed was stolen. Someone put a small transmitter disk on his suit.
Looking to the top right of the screen, she noticed that the user logged in was Harrison Wells. "Son of a bitch," Piper whispered, feeling the all too familiar sensation of anger clouding her vision for the second time that day.
The man everyone thought they could trust to help them betrayed them. Zoom and Harry had more in common than they realized.
An iridescent, glowing purple illuminated the speedster's eyes as she felt a surge of electricity run through her bloodstream. Grabbing the tube that'd been lying next to the laptop, Piper sped to the Cortex.
"I know I'm slower in the moment, but I can't tell by how much." Barry's voice traveled down the hallway as Piper made a sharp right turn. Time froze as she jumped over the line of computers and grabbed Harry from where he was sitting at a desk. Quickly picking him up, she slammed him against the glass wall of one of the side rooms. Purple lightning crackled off her body as everyone froze.
Piper's arm was pressed harshly against his upper chest, keeping him in place. "Are you kidding me?!" she yelled, and everyone jumped, startled by her outburst.
"Piper, what—" Caitlin started, but the redhead cut her off.
"First Thawne, and now you?"
Harry's face was sickly pale as the realization of what she was talking about set in.
Joe and Erin entered, noticing how the room was dead silent and frozen. Following the others' gaze, they saw Piper pressing Harry up against the wall, his feet dangling off the ground.
"They trust you, Harrison! I trusted you!" Piper shouted.
"Y-You don't understand. She's all I have left." Harry choked out.
"Understand what? How it feels to have someone take away your family? Have someone use them against you?" Piper asked, her chest heaving up and down. "My parents were killed in front of me when I was thirteen! Their murderer kidnapped my sister and used her to get me to betray my best friend before killing her too! So, don't you dare tell me that I don't understand. Hell, everybody in this room understands what it's like to lose someone they love! You aren't the first person to face this kind of tragedy. You don't have a monopoly on pain, Harrison. We all have our fair share." Piper's hold on the man hadn't loosened, but her glare wasn't as deadly.
Harry's stare softened on the heroine, his perspective of her shifting.
"What's going on?" Joe asked cautiously, not wanting the redhead to attack him next.
Letting out a slow and deep breath, Piper closed her eyes. "He stole Barry's speed."
Barry's eyes widened, as did everyone else's. "No, no, no, no, this isn't..." he whispered, taking an involuntary step back.
"What are you talking about?" Cisco demanded.
Taking the tube in her right hand, Piper opened her eyes, locking them with Harry's before throwing it at the wall. It shattered into a million pieces, and he winced. "The reason why Barry's been running slower is that Harry stole two percent of his speed. He couldn't save Iris tonight because Zoom now has his speed." Piper snapped.
Joe came up behind the woman, placing his hand on her shoulder. She reluctantly stepped back, dropping the scientist to the ground. Before anyone could protest, Joe punched Harry across the face.
"Joe, stop!" Caitlin yelled.
The detective grabbed Harry and dragged him out of the room, leaving behind the rest of the team.
Spinning around, Piper marched to where the Flash suit was on the mantle. She removed the small blue and silver compact disk, taking off the emblem. "Let me see that," Cisco mumbled, grabbing it from her hands in simmering rage.
Before anyone could stop her, Piper raced out of the room and to the pipeline where Joe was locking up Harry. A flash of red appeared behind her, and Barry, Cisco, Caitlin, and Erin stood there.
"Why did you lock him in there?" Caitlin asked, immediately walking forward as Joe locked the cell.
"Because if I didn't, Piper or I would've killed him," Joe said stiffly. "Let's go find this tar freak."