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Barry didn’t leave Gem Cities very often.
Or rather, the Flash ran all across the world and up to space with the Justice League- Barry could not deny the little thrill of excitement he got every time he was in space- but as far as most people knew, Barry Allen mostly stuck to Central, unless he was in Keystone with Wally, or just outside but not that far outside the city visiting his dad.
He wasn’t in costume this time though. He’d travelled to Opal City as plain old Barry Allen.
Opal’s crime lab had wanted an expert opinion on what seemed to be a spree of robberies committed by the Rogues. So, Director Singh had sent Barry over personally- probably because David knew Barry was the Flash now and also had a vested interested in his fiancé not being arrested again- and Barry had been shown a lot of evidence that did look like the Rogues had been up to their old tricks. Hartley included, though Barry knew Hartley wasn’t involved, Hartley had an alibi for last night’s theft because he and David had been in bed together at that point and neither of them had been asleep and Barry had cut David off there saying he trusted Hartley, he was Wally’s best friend and regular babysitter of his great-niece and nephew, and he did not need any more details.
Barry was fairly certain it wasn’t his Rogues. It looked like Leonard’s gun had been used, but he was mostly using those cold powers rather than the gun these days, and they had evidence Trickster, Captain Boomerang, and Top were there. It could have been James, but Axel was in Iron Heights, Barry was pretty sure Digger had been dragged off with the Suicide Squad again, and it definitely wasn’t Roscoe, he was dead again. Unless he wasn't. Barry could check that with Lisa, but she was the only Rogue who was actually likely to try and murder him, and bringing up Roscoe would be the thing to make her do it.
And they’d killed the two security guards that were the only witnesses. Barry’s Rogues avoided killing people. They had rules.
Maybe he should talk to Wally, he had some other Rogues who’d picked up the mantles while Barry had been dead.
Or it was someone framing them. Or it was time travel. It could have been time travel.
He had a few days in Opal City. And a hotel room that had been paid for for him he should probably use.
The bed had seemed so empty without Iris there. Barry had called her before he went to sleep, like a normal person, and then he’d run home, kissed her goodnight, then run back to the dingy hotel room.
What was the point in having superspeed if he wasn’t going to use it to run home and kiss his wife goodnight every night?
He’d been dreaming about her. He was fairly sure that was why he was lying on his side and had an arm draped over him.
Barry stayed very still as he looked at the material of the shirt the arm was wearing.
He sighed and rolled over, expecting his new bed companion to run, but he actually had his eyes shut, like he was genuinely asleep.
“Hello, Eobard,” Barry said.
“You’re dreaming, Flash,” Eobard mumbled from under floppy ginger hair this time.
“No, I’m not,” Barry said. “I was having a nice dream, and now I’m awake and you’re here. And you stole my shirt.”
Eobard’s eyes fluttered open and Barry grabbed his wrist before he could run.
Eobard would never run while Barry was touching him. He would spend as long as he possibly could like this.
“I borrowed your shirt,” Eobard said.
“I do not want that back,” Barry said.
“Let me go, Flash,” Eobard said.
“What are you doing here?” Barry asked.
“I thought you might get lonely. You must be, you haven’t kicked me out yet.”
He looked smug.
“You want me here, Barry, you just won’t admit it.”
“You keep telling yourself that,” Barry said. “Framing all the Rogues at once seems more likely to drag all of us out here, not just me, doesn’t it?”
“I’m not doing this,” Eobard sounded insulted. “Is it so hard to believe I might actually be here to help?”
“If you’re here, it’s because you want something.”
“You know what I want.”
His eyes locked on Barry’s lips.
“No,” Barry said. “Why are you offering help?”
“Why would you believe me?”
Barry shrugged.
“Who’s behind this?”
“I don’t know,” Eobard said. “Not the Rogues.”
“Eobard.”
For a moment, Thawne almost looked sad.
“I don’t know, Flash,” he said. “I know time rippled and that’s it. Do you want my help or not?”
Barry studied him closely. His eyes were bloodshot, and there was the shadow of a too slowly fading bruise under one of them.
“I think you and I need to talk to Iris and Wally,” Barry said.
Thawne groaned at Wally’s name.
“But it’s the middle of the night,” Barry carried on, ignoring him, “and they should both be asleep. And I know you can’t be causing trouble out there if you’re with me the whole time, so-”
Eobard wrapped his arms around Barry and pulled him into his chest like a child clinging onto a teddy after a nightmare.
“Eobard, let me-”
“Let me pretend, just for a night,” Eobard said, a waver in his voice and honesty behind it. “Just for one night, Barry, please.”
Barry nodded and patted Eobard’s arm. There were tears clinging to his eyelashes. He could be lying again, he did that. He was lying about not knowing more about this ripple in time, and whatever he wasn’t saying was enough for him to come to Barry to offer help.
Something told Barry he could trust him this time.