RP: The Flash: All I Need Is You (greenandgold x Dairypie)

G

greenandgold

Supernova
Joined
Mar 8, 2017
Iris let herself into S.T.A.R. Labs using her key that Barry had made for her after she had found out that he was The Flash. It was 10PM on a Tuesday night, and the young woman had been at the apartment for the last few hours, just thinking, and sad, after getting a phone call. It had been two months since Barry had gone into the Speed Force to save the world. And the phone call that she had gotten 4 hours ago, had thrown her off balance. She had been feeling off for a while now, but had attributed it to the stress surrounding her possible death that had been seen in the future.

But she hadn't died, and Savitar had. And now Barry, her Barry, was in the Speed Force, and was never going to know the amazing and sad news that she had found out. Iris wiped her eyes which had teared up, and she keyed in the security code to S.T.A.R. Labs. Letting herself in, the young woman locked the door behind herself and as she caressed her engagement ring on her finger, walked around the building, wondering if anyone was there. She had come here to be close to Barry, but to also see if Cisco was around. She needed to talk, and Iris knew that she was in no shape to talk to her father or Wally right now.

And since Barry's absence, she had become closer to Cisco who was Barry's best friend. "Cisco? Are you here?" Iris asked as she checked out the cortex, then the medical bay, followed by the pipeline. "Oh, hey." She said startled a few minutes later, upon seeing Cisco, on her return to the cortex, after checking the pipeline. "Can we talk?" The young woman asked her friend, and tried to give him a smile, but she wasn't sure her lips were cooperating. "I need someone to talk to and my father isn't ready to hear what I have to say. At least not yet."
 
Two months had passed, and it felt more like years. Life seemed to oddly enough move slower with one less speedster. Or maybe that was just how it felt, with everyone, including Cisco, hard to rally. Cisco wasn't going to complain and he never did. He kind of enjoyed helping Wally, actually out in the field for once. And Iris was pretty good at holding down the mikes with Julian when they needed her. They made a good team, a worn down one, but a team nonetheless.

It got easier day by day, they all seemed to be healing at their own pace. And Cisco, tried his best to lead. That was the hardest, because he found himself suddenly lost without his two best friends in the entire world, the ones he started this with. It stung.

So he spent his time at the lab, like 85% of it. It was easier that way. He was able to keep an eye on his data coming in, in case there was ever any spikes from the speed force or extreme temperature dips. He worked on upgrading Wally's suit every day and even his own gear, it was a way to pass the time. And sometimes, maybe, he would sleep, but that was a rare occurrence. He also spent time with Iris when she asked him too. Cisco had learned well how to comfort a grieving woman. He would stay with her in the beginning at her apartment, and he was just as thankful for her comfort to not be so alone.

Cisco was returning from the depths of S.T.A.R. Labs, his arms filled with bits of things he was tinkering with. When the lab was empty, he liked to work by the computers, just incase. he laid them up at the table and turned when he heard Iris' voice. He frowned. "Hey, You usually don't visit this late" he replied, his eye brows furrowing at her statement. "You can always talk to me. You know that. I'm guessing from the look on your face and tone of voice, its nothing good." Cisco raised an eyebrow. "Now you really have me concerned Iris, what can't you tell Joe?"
 
"Usually, this would be one of the easiest things in the world for me to say. But with how things are now, I can barely bring myself to believe it, much less say it." Iris wiped her eyes that had finally released the tears she had been holding in for hours, as she said it. "I'm pregnant," She said the words softly, still having trouble believing it was true. "I'd been feeling off for awhile now, and I decided last week to see a doctor and they ran a full battery of tests. I got the call 4 hours ago, and I didn't know what to do. I didn't know who to talk to."

"Telling my father something like this after losing Barry to the Speed Force, it would be too much for him. While I know that waiting won't make it any easier, I don't know what else to do. And since you're Barry's best friend and one of my closest friends, I figured that we could talk. We've all been struggling since he left. And I want to thank you for being such a good friend all this time. Not just to me, but to Barry, too. You've had his back since the very beginning, and I appreciate it, more than you'll ever know. I know that Barry did, too." Iris told him.

"And I know you're struggling with both Barry and Caitlin gone. I know they were both your best friend's. And if you ever wanna talk, let me know. I'm happy to listen." She laughed sadly. "I just keep thinking that there has to be a way to get Caitlin back. It's just wrong, knowing that she's out there, but it's not really her. And with Barry gone, Caitlin's absence just feels worse somehow, if that makes any sense." Iris sighed softly. "I'm sorry. I'm talking too much. I've been doing that a lot lately. I'm gonna stop talking now, so that you can talk."
 
Cisco instinctively went to her seeing her beginning to tear up. He had the box of tissues already in his hands. They all cried sometimes, it was just easier to have one handy. She was rambling, something else he had grown used to. When she was thinking about Barry, her words would move quickly and fall out onto the floor. Cisco learned early on to let her get it all out before even trying to talk. Cisco's eyes went wide at her admission. Pregnant. He had so many questions, like could the baby have meta powers? He focused back on her, he nodded slowly, in quiet understanding. He reached out a hand and placed it on her arms.

His jaw tightened at the mention of Caitlin. He knew exactly what she meant, and that was why he avoided the subject all together. He figured pushing it to the depths of his mind was easier, then dealing with the idea that this time she was gone for good. "First, I'm going to say congratulations, because that's what you say when you find out your friends are pregnant. And I know, Barry would be over the moon." he said, smiling slightly. "This just means we'll have to redouble our efforts into the speed force project, and bring him home. I promised him I would look after you but, i didn't ever promise to help raise a child." He said, trying to make a joke.

"We're a team, we can figure this out together." Cisco said, handing her the tissues. "And we might want to run some tests for meta DNA in the future, since this is kind of a new feat in science and all. I honestly thought you are Barry were the beyond careful types when it came to protection." Cisco moved to the computer typing a few things in, making notes for himself. It was silent for awhile.

"She still checks her texts and her voicemail" he said finally. "Caitlin, I mean." Cisco looked over to Iris. "If she wanted to come back and help us through this, she would have."
 
"Thanks," Iris said softly, accepting the tissues when Cisco held the box out for her to take some. She took a few tissues and wiped her eyes, just holding onto the tissues as they stood there. The young woman smiled at her friend, though it didn't reach her eyes, when he touched her arms. She saw his expression when she mentioned Caitlin, and knew it was a sore subject. His words had a genuine smile turn up her lips. "Thanks Cisco," She told him. The sight of his smile, made hers widen a little. The action felt foreign to her, as it had been two months since any
of them had truly smiled.

She laughed and the sound was off in the large room. Smiles and laughter had been missing from their lives for some time now, and it already felt far too long. "Whatever you need for the Speed Force project, just let me know and I'll get it or do it. If you need supplies picked up, or information looked up or tracked down, I'll do it. I might not be able to do any of the actual science, but there has to be a way that I can help somehow." Iris sighed softly. "I feel selfish for wanting Barry to come back," She admitted. "While I would never want anything to happen
to Wally or Jay, I just can't help but wonder why Barry's always the one who has to make the sacrifices."

"As for using protection, we did. But one of the condoms broke. Barry and I were always careful."

The young woman ran a hand over her face. "You know, maybe this is all just some cosmic sign telling me that I shouldn't let myself get too close to anyone. That I shouldn't let myself develop feelings for anyone and fall in love with them. I mean, first Eddie, and now Barry. I don't understand why the people I love always leave or die. My mother left, and then she
came back, but died. Eddie died, and now Barry's gone. Maybe we should stop spending time together," Iris said and then moved away from the computers and over to the trash, tossing
her tissues into it.

"The people I get close to, things never end well for them. And I don't want that to happen to you. I'm sorry for coming here and dumping this on you. You didn't deserve that. I'm sure you already have enough going on without me adding to the things you have on your mind, or me interrupting anything that you're working on. I'll just let myself out using the back way again." Iris said and a few moments later, she turned and started to leave the room.
 
"You are always considered a good helper, sometimes its nice to have someone with investigation skills rather than just another scientist. You see things differently." Cisco paused in his typing to look up at her. He sighed, not this tangent again. He always hated when she started thinking she wasn't worthy of love. He had a sinking feeling this was only going to get worse as she got more pregnant. Cisco watched her carefully.

"If I was so worried about dying, I wouldn't still be working at S.T.A.R. Labs. If anything was going to kill me, its going to be this place, not you. Maybe we should stop having this place be our home base. And honestly, I wish we would stop loosing people we all love about." he said slowly and maybe he secretly had a death wish, but he wouldn't voice that to her. "I could kill any of you at any moment, if i'm not careful with my powers or even guiding Wally. Or tech could explode again."

"That never stopped us before and it shouldn't now. Barry wouldn't want that. He wants you to be happy. Iris, we promised to stand by each other through this. We need each other, and I know I don't always tell you everything you want to know about what I am thinking. But I would like your help." He looked up as she started to go.

"Do you want to help me go through some articles gathered from the multiverse?" he offered, trying to get her mind from the dark hole that was missing Barry.
 
Iris paused where she was, at Cisco's words. Then she shook her head. "You wouldn't kill me. I'm not afraid of you. You just don't have that kind of anger or hate inside of you. You're too good a person. As for the tech exploding, that was just an accident. No one could predict that that was going to happen." The young woman stopped speaking and continued to listen as her friend kept speaking. "I know that Barry wouldn't want us to give up. It's just so hard.." She said softly. "Being here every day reminds me of him, and on the one hand I'm grateful for it."

"But on the other hand, it hurts so much. I keep thinking that Barry's just gonna speed into the room any minute now, and make some kind of quip about a bad guy or his speed, but it never happens. And it's hard to deal with. You can't tell me that you don't feel his absence in everything we do. As for changing the home base, let's not do that. Barry wanted us here, so we'll stay here. As for Wally, he can take care of himself. While I hate it when he puts himself in danger, I know that he's doing it for someone elses own good. And while I can't stand it, at least it's happening for the right reasons."

Cisco asked if she wanted to help him go through articles that he had gathered on the multiverse, and after a moment of hesitation, Iris nodded. "Sure, just tell me what we're looking for." A few moments later, the young woman walked around the table and took a seat behind the computer's with him, and grabbed a paper and pen so that she could start taking down some notes. The two of them spent the next several hours going through the papers and the information. Iris had started reading all the papers Cisco gave her and took down notes on anything that seemed important.

Eventually, Iris rested her head on the desk and set aside the pen and paper that she had been using to jot down notes. She had planned to take a short break for a few minutes, before continuing going through the papers. It was only a few moments, before her eyes closed and she fell asleep.
 
Cisco was glad she sat beside him and took the offered stack of papers. It diffused the rising tension in the air between them. Of course he missed his best friend, they were inseparable he thought. And now, he's just vanished into thin air. "I'm looking for any mention of the speed force, any little thing could be useful" he said slowly. "I haven't given up on getting him back Iris. I miss him, I do. Why do you think I stay so busy and work all hours of the day? It's my way of coping with grief. Staying here, at least makes it feel more like the old times, when we were the three of us."

Iris was helpful, it made the work go by quicker. She was able to just scan mass quantities and he was then able to comb through whatever she marked as important to pull out anything useful to dive deeper into. It wasn't much, but it was a small start up the large mountain ahead of them. He glanced over to find her asleep on the desk. It was a little after 2 AM. Cisco sighed, getting to his feet. He didn't wake her, but draped a jacket over her. He would let her rest some before waking her up to take her back to the apartment.

He leaded back in his chair, looking over the next piece of research. Iris really didn't need more on her shoulders, and he knew that's why he wouldn't talk to her much beyond the surface of his own pain. Especially now, with her being pregnant. And with their lack of an actual doctor. Julian wasn't the same as having Caitlin. It was getting harder and harder to not give up. He felt his own eyes drooping closed and soon he was also asleep at the desk, his arms crossed over his chest.
 
The next time Iris opened her eyes, she yawned softly and stretched to get the kinks out of her neck and back from sleeping on the desk and in the chair. She glanced down at the watch on her wrist and saw that it read 4 am. The young woman got up from the chair and walked around the cortex, powering down all of the computers and any other machines that were on. After a few moments, she walked over to Cisco and placed a hand on one of his shoulders, and shook him gently. "Cisco, wake up. It's Iris. It's late. We should get up and go home. Get some rest."

When he opened his eyes and met hers, she gave him a small smile. "If you're too tired, we can both just sleep in the medical bay. There's two beds in there and we don't have to worry about driving. I can go and pick up some clothes for both of us in a few hours, when I leave to go back to the apartment and shower, before I go to work. Come on." Iris said softly, and she helped him up, knowing that Cisco was still tired. They both were. The young woman turned off all the lights as they walked to the medical bay and moved to lie down on both of the beds.

After getting a few extra blankets out of the hall closet, and covering Cisco with a few of them, she laid down on the other bed and covered herself. Her purse was on the table next to the bed and it had a gun it in that was registered to her. She had gotten a gun at her father's urging when she was growing up, but had given it to him, once she'd started dating Eddie and Barry and had moved in with them. But once Barry had left to go into the Speed Force, her father had given it back to her, and she kept it close by for protection. A few moments later, her eyes closed once more as she fell back asleep.
 
Cisco almost bolted upright when she tried to wake him, but his body was too exhausted for the energy needed. So the response was more confused mumbled, with a slight jolt of attempting to get up. He finally opened his eyes, more like squinting, at her, he nodded. They should get some rest in actual beds, sleeping in chairs only made the lack of sleep worse. He nodded at the mention of the medical bay beds. He usually used the couch in one of the other sections but the beds were far closer.

Cisco let her help him up and they used each other to make the trek to the beds. He collapsed onto one, his eyes closing again. "I keep extra clothes here, just in case" he mumbled. "But coffee, we'll need that tomorrow." He rolled to his side. "Thank you Iris, for staying." He let sleep take him under again, not trying to fight it anymore. He might regret it in the morning but for now, he appreciated the warm embrace of sleep.

The lab would stay quiet most of the night, the hum of some equipment to help them sleep. It is kind of peaceful at night, like a world away from the rest, despite the hard memories here. And will all the alarms and security newly added, they could rest in somewhat comfort, at least for awhile anyways.

And like clockwork, Cisco was confronted again with the nightmares and the vibes. He wasn't really sure anymore which was which. Sometimes, he would think maybe he was vibing Barry, but no, it would be some other Barry or just a dream. He would constantly relive the night his friends left, and the evenings that followed. In the beginning he would wake up, hoping it was all just a dream, but it never was. The headaches were coming back, and things were getting harder to not control, but to be useful. Despite trying to see if he could reach the speed force, he never could. He could only ever see Caitlin.

And so, Cisco was awaken by his dreams at 7:30 AM. But hey, that was the most sleep he had gotten in three days, a new record since everything fell apart.
 
"You were talking in your sleep," Iris said softly, and rolled over onto her side, when Cisco woke up and opened his eyes at 7:30 that morning. "It's not a complaint. I just thought you should know. You were talking to Barry and Caitlin in your sleep," She told him. "And as for this morning, you don't ever have to thank me for staying. We're friends and that's what I'm here for. Besides, you've gone above and beyond the call of duty as a friend for me and Barry, since we met. So, it was past time that I repaid you. What kind of coffee are you feeling like this morning?"

"I'm gonna head to the apartment, shower, and pick up breakfast for everyone, before I leave for work. Oh, and uh.. Can we keep the news about the baby between us for now? I've
gotta figure out the best time to tell my father and Wally. My father's gonna take it hard. He's been wanting Barry and I to get together since we were teenagers. And now that we
have and now Barry's gone, it's gonna be a tough pill for him to swallow." Iris sighed and moved to get up from the bed. "If you need a friend or company at night, or just don't want
to be alone, don't hesitate to call me."

"I'll be back in about two hours. Gonna grab that shower and change of clothes, then get breakfast and leave for work. I always have my cell phone if you or anyone else needs anything.
I'll see you tonight when I'm off of work. If you need something during the day, leave a message and I'll get back to you ASAP. Oh, and Cisco? Thanks for last night. I don't handle being
alone at night well, and I know that last night was probably more for my benefit than yours. So, thank you." After speaking, she grabbed her phone and slipped her shoes on, before leaving S.T.A.R. Labs.
 
Cisco sat up, rubbing his eyes. He ran a hand through his hair. He closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. "I had figured that had stopped. Sorry if I woke you" he said thoguhtfully. He sighed, getting off the bed. He stretched his arms and adjusted his neck. "I like the sweet stuff usually, and an extra shot of espresso."

Cisco turned when she asked him to keep quiet about the baby. "It's not my news to tell, I'm used to keeping secrets for all of you from each other." he replied, shaking his head. His hand tightened. "You just keep me updated on how you are feeling because...Barry has different DNA and i don't know how it will affect you."

"I"ll call if I find anything" he promised. "You know I am more then happy to come sleep on your couch." He smiled a little bit at her at her offer for him to call whenever he needed her. Maybe one day, he would take her up on that offer and let her in. "We just need to make sure we both take care of ourselves sometimes. Have a good day at work, feel free to come back here on your lunch break if you need too."

Cisco sighed, going to his secret stash of clothing, getting changed and freshened up. He started up the computers, settling in to continue the research and figure out the next step. People came and went through out the day. He spoke to Julian briefly about his new findings to which the other man only shrugged. Julian sometimes seemed to be off in his own world, just like Cisco.
 
Iris grabbed her shower, and changed, and then picked up breakfast for everyone as promised, dropping it off at S.T.A.R. Labs two hours later. After setting the food down carefully away from the computers and beside Cisco, she reached out to her friend and hugged him close. "I know that we're not as close as you and Barry were, but I'm here when and if you need me. I don't want to replace him, and I can't. But you can trust me, when you're ready to stop holding things back. I'm tough, I can handle more than you think.." She said softly, and released him a few moments later.

The young woman released her friend, after kissing his cheek. She sat down in one of the chairs beside him, as the others trickled in. Julian was the first to shuffle in, followed by her father, then Wally. "I got breakfast, lots of breakfast. So, dig in.." Iris said and motioned to the donuts and pancakes that she had brought, along with coffee and the others favorite drinks. She brought fresh fruit for herself and a bottle of water. Breakfast was pretty quiet between the five of them. They discussed a few random things, and then Iris kissed her father's cheek, hugged Wally, Cisco, and Julian, and then left for work.

The day was spent in meetings between her boss at Central City Picture News, and then driving around town to get information on a new story. By the time her day was over, it was 7:00PM. She called Cisco to let him know that she was on her way to S.T.A.R. Labs with a change of clothes and dinner, and would change and stay there with him again tonight, as they worked on the Speed Force project. Iris had gotten both of their favorite dinners, and called him again once she had arrived, to have him meet her at the door to open it for her, while she carried their food inside.

"How did things go with Wally, Julian, and my father today?" She asked once they were inside the labs with the doors closed. The young woman carried the food into the cortex, and handed Cisco the bag with his favorite food, and his favorite drink. "I figured you had forgotten to eat, and that you could use a little pick me up." They resumed their seats from that morning and
dug into the food. "Do you want to continue looking for information on the Speed Force like we did this morning?" Wally was currently training in another room with their father, and Julian
was around somewhere, so it was just the two of them.
 
Cisco hadn't realized he had been kind of starring off into space until Iris returned. Where at the time gone? He hadn't gotten much done. He at least had the police scanners and such up, in case there was a morning emergency. He was a bit started by the sudden hug from Iris. He listened to her quietly whispered words. He nodded carefully, he hesitated He had opened his mouth to maybe tell her something when the others started to join them. He picked of his coffee and a doughnut settling back into his chair. They chatted about the usual things. if there was anything Wally needed to do. Cisco mentioned he was researching something new to help them all, not going into further details. He didn't want to get all their hopes up.
The day passed rather uneventfully. There was one whole fire, and Wally had that well under control. Joe was solemn as he usually was and left Cisco be. Julian at one point tried to learn more about his project but Cisco snapped at him and that ended there. Julian was getting more and more on his nerves. In the first month they fought often about if he did the right thing letting Caitlin choose to not take the cure.

Overall, Cisco was able to focus most of his attention on the research. He did have to do a little multiverse traveling but he was finally tracking down an actually useful lead. Cisco was letting himself grow excited. When Iris would arrive, the cortex would be in a bit of a disarry. With everyone doing their respective tasks, he was able to spread out his research, even pulling an old white board out to properly map his new ideas. He was full of energy. He almost ran to meet her at the door to help her in. He paused to smell the food. "Mmm burritos. thank you" he replied quickly. Cisco went back to his board.

"Nothing of interest to note." he said shrugging. "I didn't see them much honestly." His voice was quick, tripping over the words. "I went over what you helped me with last night and after following through on a few leads...."He moved his fingers over the white board. He pointed to an article. "I found some concrete Iris. Something actually useful. I don't know how I didn't see it before it was right there in front of me! I had this article hidden in the back of a drawer, I think Caitlin once gave it to me to read and..." He turned quickly. "There might be someone we can actually talk to who might know what to do!"
 
"You're welcome. Now, how do we find them?" Iris asked Cisco, a small smile on her lips. She loved how excited he was at this new information. And while she, too, wanted to be excited, the young woman was saving her reaction for later and until they knew whether or not the information they had was useful. She was afraid to get excited about this idea and the information, in case it ended up being unfruitful in the end. "Tell me what I can do to help," The young woman said, wanting and needing to do something to make herself feel useful, even if there wasn't all that much she could do.

"I can run down leads, or look up information. I can go through any files we have on hand, and save you some time if you have other things that you need to be doing." She was
eager to help, even if it was just in this small way. Lost in her thoughts, she jumped, startled, when the alarms went off on the computers, letting them know that a robbery was
in progress at the Central City Bank. "Tell Wally and my father," Iris said and got up a few moments later. She grabbed a pen and paper. "I'm gonna try and track down Tracy and
see what else she can tell us about the Speed Force."
 
"Well, right now its only a rumor going through the multiverse." he began. "That someone pulled a speedster from the speedforce." Cisco ran to the desk pulling out a few papers. "Now I did more reading, and I haven't gotten 100 percent the exact source. Gypsy knew someone, who knew someone, who heard from someone, who once knew the scientist. But I did find what Earth they are from. Earth 27." He turned back to Iris. "Someone who might actually know something about the speed force and not just theories!" He reached into the bag of food and pulled out a burrito. He unwrapped it and took a few bites.

"You don't seem nearly so excited as I hoped." he murmured. "I know its a lot of hoping and what ifs that someone can point u in a direction but its better then all the nothing I found before." He shook his head. Cisco was brought back from his thoughts about what they needed to do next, with the loud alarm, he jumped to put the research away. He nodded. "Right" he agreed, they had a job to do first, before all of this. He raised an eyebrow as Iris mentioned Tracy.

"If you think it will help, go ahead." he agreed. "I think we are finally making progress. I guess it could be good to go in with all me know before we poke around others research." Cisco was soon hurrying to the training area to get Wally and Joe. He then set up camp at the computers. It seemed like a simple enough heist for just Wally to go out on. And Wally always enjoyed solo missions, he was proving to all of them that he could do it, as well as to the city.

Cisco couldn't stop his fingers tapping at the desk, waiting for the heist to be over, for everything to be won. He had so much other research to do. He had to find whoever the rumor was about and figure out what they did. Maybe they would help them. Maybe Barry could be back within days! Cisco felt for the first time in weeks, filled with hope, more like himself. He figured it was coming off him in waves, that everyone who notice.
 
An hour later, Iris and Tracy returned to S.T.A.R. Labs. They had had a long talk and Iris had taken down a lot of notes about the Speed Force and what the other woman knew about it.
"Hey Cisco, everything go okay with Wally and the robbery earlier?" She asked as they walked into the cortex and both of the women took a seat near him. She set down the notebook
with the notes she had taken earlier, and relaxed back into her chair. "You and Tracy should really talk about the Speed Force," The young woman commented to him a moment later.

"She gave me all this information on energies surrounding the Speed Force, weather fluctuations, temperatures needed to sustain it. There all kinds of crazy science that goes into it
and most of it was over my head. But once Tracy explained it to me, I couldn't help but get excited. Maybe we can use some of the Speed Force's own energies to get Barry out. Have
you had any luck getting more information on that person who was able to pull someone from the Speed Force?" There was a new light in her eyes. One that had been missing for some
time.

It was hope, plain and simple. She let several minutes of silence pass and then asked something that she had refused to ask for the last few months that Barry had been gone. Iris had
been hesitant to ask this, because it was a lot to ask her friend. "Cisco? Can you vibe Barry in the Speed Force, and see how he's doing?" The young woman silently promised herself that whatever Cisco said, she would go along with it. She might not like it, and he might try to protect her from the reality of what was happening to Barry, but she needed to know how he was.
 
Wally was a good kid and he was good at being The Flash. He was handling the mantle well. And he handle this robbery, with not the best kind of grace, but the fact he was trained enough to go alone made Cisco a little more confident in taking time away from helping him. It was hard being split between the two tasks. Finally, finding Barry could come first with Wally finding his rythmn. He looked up as Iris and Tracy returned. He shrugged. "He did fine, the bad guys were caught. He's been doing really well flying solo." he offered. Cisco hesitated looking to Tracy. "We talked briefly when Barry first left." If Cisco remember it had been a very heated debate.

Cisco twisted his face in concentration. He looked at the notes and over to Tracy who nodded. She seemed to have kept researching despite never being asked too. He was thankful for that small gesture. That Tracy didn't abadon them, when they needed her. "Using the energy to power something to crack it open?" he repeated thoughtfully. He got to his feet going to his board writing down a few notes. He tapped his chin. "I think being able to track the energy single of the speed force would be helpful and being able to channel the power, may weaken the barrier." He nodded.

Cisco shrugged when she asked about the person. "I think I'll have to actually go to Earth 27, there haven't been any mentions of a speedster since the rumor started going around. It's more of an in person hunt then something I can do from here. But with Wally and Julian, I feel a little more comfortable at the idea of leaving the lab. They've both been doing well." he continues shaking his head. "I have one lead though, they started as a geologist and now work exclusively in multiverse studies, so they shouldn't be too hard to track down."

Cisco held the marker still in the air at her question. The one question he never wanted to answer. He carefully capped the marker, but didn't turn to her. "I can't control them as much as we'd all like to believe, I try to channel them but...I've been distracted." He took a breath "I can't vibe the speed force" he said after a long silence. "I've tried before, even my subconscious mind has tried when I sleep. I just get like...a feedback loop. Just the snow you get on the TV. It's like the speed force is out of range." He paused. "It seems separate from all the rest of the worlds. I wonder sometimes if all the verses, have the same single speed force we have." Cisco turned to her. He smiled sadly. "I know that's not what you wanted to hear...but maybe we can boost my range."

He scribbled a new note on the board. He nodded thoughtfully. "Its something, a month ago we had no leads at all."
 
"Thank you for being honest," Iris said softly. "I figured that it was a long shot, but I just had to try anyway." After a few moments she said, "I know that you're busy. Do you need me and Tracy to get out of the way? We don't want to distract you from anything that you have going on." The young woman ran a hand over her face and pushed some of her hair behind her ear.
"I have another idea," She said and then got up once more a moment later. "It might be crazy, but I'm gonna try and track down Caitlin. This version of her as Killer Frost knows more about the Speed Force than she's saying."

"Keep going the science route, and work with Tracy. She wants to feel useful, just like I do. I'll be careful when looking for Caitlin. She just needs to be reminded that we're her family and it's in both her best interest, and Barry's best interest to tell us everything that she knows about the Speed Force. I have a gun in my purse if I need it, but I'm hoping it won't come to that. When my father and Wally come back, don't tell them where I've gone. I don't want them to worry about me. I'll check back in in a few hours and let you guys know if I've found something or not."

She grabbed her purse and left S.T.A.R. Labs a few moments later, a renewed sense of hope inside of her. There had to be a way to get through to Caitlin... Killer Frost. There just had to be, and Iris would find out what that was. Even if she had to dig deep and go back to three years ago and the worst day of Caitlin's life, and use the Ronnie card. Reminding the other woman that her husband wouldn't want her like this, and neither did Julian, or Cisco, who both cared for her deeply. Not really sure where to start off, she decided to take a look at crimes around town.

Sure, Central City had a lot of meta humans that committed crimes. But there were certain characteristics in some crimes, that let her know what Caitlin had been up to as Killer Frost. For the most part, Iris wasn't scared of the other woman, as she trusted Caitlin with her life. But this was Killer Frost, and though she was sure there was still part of her friend deep down inside, it would require some digging and coaxing for more of that side to come out. The young woman got into her car a few moments later and drove home to the apartment.

After calling Felicity over in Starling City, she had gotten a crash course in hacking the CCPD's firewall, to get in and look at casefiles. She wanted current cases, only ones with meta humans, and especially those that had some kind of temperature issue. An hour later, she had the start of a timeline for Killer Frost and a few ideas of the places the woman was going to hit next and rob. With that in mind, Iris got her cell phone, gun, and purse. She got into her car, and went to start looking for the other woman.
 
Cisco froze up at the board. "Iris, Don't." he said firmly, his voice tight "You don't need to go looking for her." Cisco turned to look at her. His eyes very serious. "Tracy and I are good at the science, but I really need you to come with me to Earth 27 to help me find the lead. You are good at that." The plead fell on dead ears. His hand in a tight fist by his side. "...Call if you need something" He said finally turned back to the board. He wouldn't speak or look at her again as she left. His whole body tense.

If only Iris knew, he had found her. Ages ago. He had a whole folder on his computer hidden to finding her. He searched and searched in the first week Barry left. And maybe it was the help of the vibes, but he always knew where she was. Cisco even kept his locks to his own apartment the same in case she ever wanted to come to his apartment, where he knew she still had a key. He was always ready if she wanted to come home. And maybe that's what hurt the most. She choose to not come back and told him to leave her alone. And that was the one thing he couldn't do.

Cisco worked with Tracy, fine tuning all the research they had. She was going to get to work on trying to track the speed force and any storms that could be around the world. That was what they needed to know, so they can be there at the right time to break him out. Tracy never asked about the renewed search into the speed force and that he was thankful for. Holding all of his own secrets and Iris' were a lot to ask of him. They worked for a few more hours and now all that was left to do was to find the next lead. Whether that was Caitlin or the mystery person on Earth 27.

Cisco hesitated, but called Iris. "Hey" he began when she picked up. "Are you alright? Tracy and I, are done here for now. My offer still stands to take you to Earth 27 with me..." His voice trailed off.
 
After making sure that Tracy was in another part of the building, she disabled the alarm code to S.T.A.R. Labs and let herself inside. She also disabled the cameras and headed for the cortex. The heels of her boots made a small clacking sound as the young woman pushed her platinum hair out of her eyes. Killer Frost walked over to Cisco, took the cell phone out of his hand and hung it up. "You need better security on your computers. It was easy to hack them and find out that you plan to go to Earth 27. You're only going to find part of what you're looking for there."

"By the way, tell Iris to stop tracking my movements. I got a ping last night on the files of robbery cases that I've pulled off. I don't like being watched. There's only one person that I don't mind watching me. And I haven't told him to stop keeping track of me yet," She said and gave him a knowing look. "Oh, and you'll need this when you go to Earth 27..." Killer Frost said and tossed a pair of glasses to him. "I know your vibes haven't been working properly. Use this when you and Iris leave, and you'll have a better chance of tracking down the woman you're looking for on Earth 27."

"Don't let the woman's appearance get to you. She's what you're looking for, for help, but not for anything else." Killer Frost sighed. "I know you miss your Caitlin, deep down, she misses you, too. But it's better that she's locked away and inaccessible. It hurts too much, being her. Ronnie, her mother. It was too much pain. I'll leave you with one piece of advice. Don't give up.." Killer Frost leaned over and grabbed Cisco by both of his arms. She turned him to face her, and kissed his lips for several moments, before releasing him. After kissing him, she pulled back, and turned around and left S.T.A.R. Labs a few moments later.
 
Cisco starred at her, his heard pounding loudly in his ears. He didn't fight her when she took the cellphone from his hand and hung up on Iris. He swallowed hard. "I boosted the security with Felicity when we rebuilt. I'll have her take a look again. Or maybe I want you to know" he said shaking his head. That was a lie. He didn't want her to know anything about what they are looking into. He shifted and crosses his arms over his chest.

"I'll tell her to back off again." he replied softly. "I told her not to go looking. You could have just told her yourself." Cisco hesitated as he mentioned keeping track of her. He ignored it, pushing the feelings down staying focused on the woman in front of him. The one he was quiet not sure was evil or not. He shrugged, catching the glasses. "Thanks..?" He began slowly. "Why should I trust you?" Cisco set the glasses on the table, he would inspect those later. "You're not my doctor anymore."

There was a soft vulnerable sound to her voice. And that almost got him. He wanted to hug her so bad and hold her close. Cisco kept his eyes trained, going over his form. "I can help you, I've always been there to help you through the pain" he said quietly. "You can come back Cait. You have a home here." He began but was silenced by her lips pressing against his. He let out a startled sound, but it was over as quick as it began. He reached out to touch her but dropped his hand as she turned away. "I need you, let me help you. If she misses me why won't you let her come back?!" He was now shouting at an empty room, he pushed a piles of papers off the desk and fell to his knees.

That was the one thing he didn't want to ever admit to himself, that he wanted Caitlin because he loved her.
 
The text she sent to Cisco's cell phone a few moments later said: Her going back wouldn't work. It's too dangerous. Losing you would be more than she could take. Her father's gone, her mother's a cold fish, and Ronnie and Jay/Hunter are gone, too. If you wanna help, keep doing what you're doing. Work with the kid, get your other friend back. Take comfort in the fact that she will always love you. PS: Meeting you and working with you for all these years has been the best part of her life. Don't ever forget that.

After sending that message to Cisco, Killer Frost turned off Caitlin's cell phone and tossed it on the bed beside her in the apartment she was staying in. She wanted nothing more than to go back to S.T.A.R. Labs and be with Cisco, in every way possible. Not just as long time friends. But she couldn't. Her staying away was for all of their safety, but especially Cisco's. The small
part of her that was still Caitlin inside, had asked to stay away from them and for the most part, Killer Frost had complied. But she couldn't stay away entirely. Both the feelings of love and friendship were imbedded deeply into the woman, and that made it hard to stay away from him.

For the first time in a long time, her eyes were wet with tears. Her Caitlin side was coming out, and showing just how much Cisco meant to her. She hadn't cried since her father had died.
She'd refused to let herself fully react to the pain. But she was alone now, with Savitar dead. And so Caitlin and Killer Frost would do what she had always done when it came to emotions
that she couldn't deal with. She shoved them deep inside of herself and forced herself to focus on something else. As she did this, she kept reminding herself that she was staying away for Cisco's safety. For all of their safety. But mainly Cisco's.
 
Cisco stayed on the floor for a long time. He felt like everything he ever wanted was right in front of his fingers and then snatched away again. He felt tears falling from his eyes and down his cheeks. He didn't even realize how distraught he was until he felt their wet warmth on his cheeks. He tfinally pulled himself up hearing his phone ping. He reread the message over and over. His hands shaking. He could tell it was still her, somewhere. The way she wrote about the pain, how afraid she was. And then the words he always wanted to hear from her, an addmission that he still mattered to Killer Frost despite what she said.

He took his time rewriting a text over and over before finally pressing send: You'll never loose me, not even when you tried to kill me, did you ever lost me. I will be here when you are ready.

He wanted to tell her more to pour out his feelings. But he wasn't sure he should. It could all be a rouse to get to him like Savitar tried to use his feelings. He was conflicted. But how many egil supervillains broke in to help you out?.give you warnings? And secretly leave new medication on your beside table (that one he always pretended wasn't her but knew it was)?

He then noticed the numerous missed calls from Iris. He swore softly answering the newest call "Iris, I'm fine." He said quickly. "I have alot to talk to you about. I'm ready, can we meet at your place?"
 
"Yeah, we can do that. Meet me there. I'm on my way back from running down some leads for a story. I'll be there in about 10 minutes." Iris paused for a moment. "Cisco? Are you okay?
You sound a little off. Did something happen?" The concern and worry was clear in her voice, as she got into her car, buckled up, and put her cell phone on speaker phone so that they
could continue to talk to each other. True to her word, 10 minutes later, she pulled up in front of the apartment. The young woman got out of her car, grabbed her keys, purse, and files,
and exited her car.

She locked it behind herself and then started into the building. Another 5 minutes later, and she was standing beside Cisco in front of her apartment. "Hey," Iris said softly. She unlocked the door and motioned for her friend to go inside first. Once he had, and she went inside too, she locked the door behind them and motioned for Cisco to have a seat on the couch. She put her purse and files down on the dinner table and then went to join him in the living room once more. "What's going on and how can I help? You seem a little shaken," She said to him, voicing her concern.
 
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