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1.
Barry bit his lip as he paced back and forth. They had just sent his future self back to the future and now they had a new addition to the pipe line that he hadn’t fully met though had helped save Cisco and Caitlin. He had offered to take care of the metas today, wearing the Flash costume to keep his identity secret. Plus Mardon would probably flip out seeing the adopted son of the man who killed his brother. Barry took a deep breath then walked in. He first took care of bivolo, tossing in a special pair of goggles that Cisco made that would block his powers. Once they were on Barry guided him to the bathroom where he was allowed to shower and such. After Barry knew for sure the goggles were back on he brought him back and gave him his dinner.
“What is it?” Bivolo asked.
“Spaghetti.” Barry replied, “Wait, you aren’t gluten intolerant or something right? Or like a vegetarian? I can run and get something else if you can’t eat this.” Bivolo gave him a strange look but shook his head.
“No, it’s fine. But could I have apple juice?” Barry was back with some boxes of apple juice. Bivolo nodded in thanks and sat down to eat. Next up was Nimbus who was a lot trickier. He had to put on a collar that suppressed the powers, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t still fight. Barry shoved him back on afterwards and gave him the food before moving on. Simmons was after, and he had special goggles just like Bivolo. Baez was a little trickier.
“Okay we have two options.” Barry told her, “We either have reflective lenses that are like your cell or we also have just black lenses, but either way they need to be on.”
“Blindfold I guess.” Barry quickly slipped it through and after making sure there was no way she could escape from the women’s bathroom he brought her there.
“You can take the blindfold off, I’ll be waiting outside. Knock three times when your done and have the blindfold back on, okay?” Baez nodded. It was about an hour before she was back in the cell.
“You don’t mind spaghetti do you?” Barry asked, “There’s a meat sauce.”
“It’s fine.” Baez replied with the same tone Bivolo had, “Could I have a soda though?”
“What type?”
“Rootbeer?” Barry came back with two cans that he gave her.
“You can take the blindfold off now.” He moved on to Mardon who was just as difficult as Nimbus at first. By the time he got back though he was just being rude.
“I know that he was your brother but that doesn’t excuse what he was going to do… Mark, he was going to destroy the entire city and at the time we didn't have this to put him in. He would have broken out and killed who knows how many more people.”
“Not like you know what it’s like to lose your only family.” Mardon spat. Barry paused and frowned.
“Actually I do.” Mardon snorted like he didn’t believe him, “I watched my mother get murdered in front of me and the guy who took me in was one of the officers who arrested my dad, who was innocent. I know what it’s like to want revenge, but I also know that killing isn’t an answer.” Mardon was quiet as he let Barry put him in his cell.
“Is spaghetti alright?”
“Gluten intolerant.” Mardon replied.
“Can you wait five minutes?” Mardon nodded. Soon Barry was back and gave him his meal along with some chocolate milk. Last but not least was Hartley. He was just sitting on the floor when Barry came by.
“Come on Rathaway.” Hartley stood up and followed after,
“Did you take care of the dementor?” He asked after a little while.
“Sort of.” Hartley gave him a questioning look .”It’s kind of complicated.”
“How complicated?” Barry chewed his lower lip before replying,
“Like, when I disappeared from the fight earlier it was because of my future self who ran back in time and the dementor was something that was hunting him down so now we have like a year to figure out how to stop it before then?”
“So what happened to you?”
“He knocked me out and I woke up in the middle of an alley.”
“Poor thought on your part. Make sure when you do it to at least shove yourself in a closet or something.”
“I’ll remember it for when I have to.” Barry paused to let Hartley in the bathroom, only just noticing that Hartley was giving him a once over.
“You really do look good in that suit. Have to give Cisco credit there. If the science gig never worked out he could probably make some pretty interesting BDSM stuff. Though maybe show a bit more skin.” Barry choked on air which Hartley responded to with a wink before heading into the bathroom. Barry’s face was still burning when Hartley came back out. Hartley kept quiet the rest of the way back to his cell.
“Spaghetti?” Barry asked.
“Alright, though no meat please.” Barry quickly whipped up some sauce without meat then gave it to Hartley. The other chose just some water.
“Oh,” Hartley spoke up as Barry went to leave, “Next time leave the suit. You’re a lot cuter under it Barry.” Barry refused to acknowledge the squeak or the laughter that followed as he sped from the room.
2.
The next time Barry decided to stop by the pipeline it was to give the metas some free time outside the cell, not that anyone noticed and it was everyone but Nimbus and Simmons. This time Baez was allowed to come out without being blinded since Barry had insured that there was no opening. Bivolo had his though, just to be safe. Mardon, Barry had been hesitant at first but decided that with the dampener he should be fine to come out.
“So where are we exactly?” Baez asked as she teleported around a bit.
“The particle accelerator.” Barry answered as he tugged on his glove.
“Thought this thing blew?” Mardon asked.
“It did, that’s why we got our powers.” Barry explained, “With the release of dark matter we got powers.”
“It should have never happened.” Hartley spoke for the first time, a glare set on his face as he scowled at the ground.
“Of course it shouldn’t have.” scoffed Bivolo. Hartley sent him a scathing glare.
“No, it shouldn’t have been turned on at all. I told Wells that there was the chance that it would blow. Want to know what he did?” Hartley didn’t wait for a response, “He fired me and told me if I told anyone he would personally make my life hell.”
“What?” Barry asked, looking shocked. Hartley’s expression softened.
“I get that you can’t take my word. I let my temper get the best of me and I’ve made some mistakes on how I dealt with the situation… but Flash… watch your back. You can’t trust Wells.”
“No comment on the others?” Barry asked, trying to gauge what Hartley was saying.
“Ramon and Snow are being deceived just like everyone else. Harrison Wells died the night Tess did, and whoever came back is not to be trusted.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” Hartley just gave a nod before pushing off the wall and wandering further around. Barry didn’t realize he was still staring until a giggle broke through his thoughts. Looking over he saw Baez with amusement clear in her eyes as she covered her mouth to keep from laughing. Mardon was giving him a strange look as Bivolo snickered quietly.
“What?” For some reason that caused Baez to burst out laughing and even Mardon let amusement come through.
“What?”
“Nothing.” Mardon replies. Barry narrowed his eyes to show he didn’t believe him but kept quiet nonetheless.
3.
Barry walked in with a stunned look on his face as he just stared ahead.
“What’s wrong?” Shawna asked as she was let out. Cisco and Caitlin had been livid when they found out that Barry was doing this but that stemmed from worry about their friend. When Barry admitted he’s done it at least ten times by now they were so done with the whole thing. At the very least though, after coming in and seeing first hand they agreed that it wasn’t so bad. Neither of them would do it without Barry around though, just in case.
“Flash?” Mardon asked, snapping his fingers in front of his face. Barry blinked out of his daze to see the others looking at him with something close to worry in their eyes.
“There’s a giant telepathic gorilla living in the sewers.” Barry blurted out.
“...what?” Barry nodded solemnly.
“There is a huge gorilla living in Central City’s sewers.”
“Grodd?” Hartley guessed. Barry nodded.
“Woah, hold up. You know about the giant gorilla?” Shawna asked Hartley.
“He was part of a research assignment that was a joint project with the military. The general though was also using him to test out a different type of experiment. Wells, from what I understand, blackmailed him into leaving Grodd with him.” Hartley answered.
“Which General?” Barry asked, sitting down.
“Eiling.” Barry sighed heavily as he rubbed his face.
“Of course it’s him. Everything leads back to him.”
“What do you mean?” Barry paused, hands clenching before he released his hand and spoke,
“There was a meta I met a few months back, she could turn plastic into a bomb with a touch.”
“She didn’t touch the suit did she?” Hartley asked. Barry winced a bit in response.
“Cisco was so not happy about that. At least he wasn’t the one who had to run through the city in boxers.”
“How did those survive?” Shawna asked. Barry’s face was burning.
“...” Mardon burst out laughing.
“He had to strip.”
“Now that I would love to see,” Hartley cooed, with a wink. Barry rolled his eyes, face still pink.
“Anyway it turned out she worked for Eiling and he wanted her back… she was shot by him and I had to run her into the lake before she exploded. Then Dr. Stein was kidnapped by him and now Grodd. Plus he’s been stalking me. He’s not good at it so there’s that.”
“That’s really creepy.”
“It sucks because I know he’s planning something. At least with Snart we made a deal.”
“Wait, Snart? Leonard Snart?” Hartley asked, “Captain Cold?” Barry nodded. Hartley beamed,
“I love him, and Rory.” Noticing the looks he elaborated,
“They stole a very expensive painting from my parents and burned their plane.”
“What do you mean you made a deal?” Shawna asked. Barry chewed his lip before responding,
“Snart knows some stuff but we have a deal. He won’t say anything and I won’t throw him in jail as long as he doesn’t kill or hurt my family.” Hartley snorted and rolled his eyes.
“If he found what I did he wouldn’t have said anything anyway.”
“What are you talking about?” Mardon asked with a frown. Hartley thought it over for a few moments before sighing. He looked at Barry.
“You have an older brother. Well brothers”
“What?” Barry asked, ice running through his veins as he listened in shock. Hartley chewed his lower lip as he thought about how to word his response.
“Mick Rory’s real parents were Lewis Snart and Nora,” Hartley spoke softly, letting that settle in for Barry. Barry could only stare, a lead weight in his stomach.
“Mick…?”
“Lewis was not a good man and Nora didn’t think she could be a good mother so she set him up for adoption. It wasn’t a coincidence that Mick was in jail the same time as Len.”
“You just have one bombshell after another.” Mardon noted as he got up. There wasn’t any complaint as they went back into their cells, knowing Barry had to figure things out. Once they were locked up Barry was gone.
4.
Barry looked devastated when he came in.
“What’s wrong?” Roy asked as he came out. Barry opened and closed his mouth unable to say anything as he let Mark out. Tears burned his eyes as he collapsed, Mark grabbing him to keep him up. Mark looked scared as he tried to calm the crying hero. Roy quickly let Shawna and Hartley out. Roy and Mark moved back to let the others deal with the situation.
“Hey, hey, what’s wrong?” Hartley asked in a soft voice as SHawna rubbed his back.
“Wells…”
“What about him?”
“H-He-”
“Bivolo!” Shawna called. Roy removed his glasses, looking Barry in the eye, forcing him to calm down. Barry slumped against Hartley, still clearly miserable but calmer.
“What happened?”
“Harrison Wells… He isn’t Wells… His name is Eobard Thawne, someone from the future who came back in time to kill me… He couldn’t and he killed my mom instead… The man I looked up to, someone I thought was my mentor and friend, killed my mom and was the reason my dad was in prison. He caused the accelerator to blow up on purpose to make sure I became the Flash, he killed so many other people, he killed Cisco in a timeline I rewrote and he kidnapped Eddie, Iris’ fiancee.” A sharp gasp had Mark staring at the man in red with a penetrating look. Hartley knew Barry had no idea how much he gave away with his words, but Mark stayed back.
“I have no idea where he took him.”
“It will be okay.” Shawna soothed. Barry nodded miserably, still leaning into Hartley.
“Scarlet?” A voice called out. Len was standing there with Mick close by. Mick had a hand on his gun but otherwise made no move. Len was assessing the situation. They both came down.
“Mick.” Mick obviously understood what Len was saying as he went and picked up Barry, who was obviously emotionally and mentally drained. They turned to leave but Len paused, giving them a look.
“Well? Are you coming?”
“...Just like that?” Mark asked suspiciously.
“The idea was rehabilitation, considering you haven’t tried to kill him or injure anyone that bodes well. Try anything though and you will be well acquainted with the effects of frostbite.” Len warned. The group nodded as they followed after. Hartley kept close to Barry, not noticing the knowing looks that passed between the others.
5.
Hartley stood inside the accelerator, several months after the singularity. Since then a lot had changed. All of the criminals were pardoned for helping with the disaster and saving people. Shawna and Mark were dating as were Cisco and Lisa Snart while Iris and Eddie finally got married. Caitlin and Ronnie had a proper wedding with their family. Len, Lisa and Mick had actual jobs as consultants, for both police and firemen, and breaking into building to see where the weakness lay. They still pulled the occasional heist of course, but it was more a game. Something fun for the four siblings to do. Barry had yet to look at the video Eobard left him, but they were all going to sit down and watch it together, as morale support. All in all everything was good.
“Hey.” Barry’s voice called out softly as he came up behind him.
“Hi,” Hartley greeted back, not turning around just yet, enjoying the feeling of Barry’s heat against his back.
“I can’t believe it’s been four months already,” Hartley nodded in agreement, “I’m… I’m actually happy.” Hartley glanced back at him. Barry shrugged with a small smile.
“I have three awesome siblings, amazing friends… and you.” Hartley turned to face Barry whose face was flushed but didn’t move back.
“And what am I?” Hartley asked, watching Barry.
“Something special.”
“Really?” Hartley asked. Barry nodded with a soft look in his eyes, moving a little closer.
“Yeah.” Barry’s breath brushed against Hartley’s lips causing them to tingle.
“Kiss me?” Hartley asked softly. Instead of responding Barry gentilly wrapped his arms around Hartley and kissed him just as carefully. Neither noticed the flash of light or the smiles that were shared before disappearing around the corner.