147

"I stared at that newspaper for so many years." Barry was sat on the ground of the Time Vault, staring into nothingness, "First it felt like a guide- you know, like proof that things were headed in the right direction."

I looked away from Nora's jacket and at him when he spoke. I dropped everything, pushing my thoughts to the side and walked over to him, dropping gently onto my knees, giving him my undivided attention.

"Then it became a sword hanging over my head." Barry continued, his hands folded, hugging his knees, "A part of me always felt like if I vanish in whatever crisis is coming- ."

I looked down at my hands, not knowing what to say.

Barry inhales sharply, "According to The Monitor, that doesn't happen."

"Barry, just like you said- you've been staring at that article for years- we all have," I looked back at him, "It's changed so many times- and, the last I remember, that article said that you were in a fight with Thawne, not some cosmic disaster."

Barry stares at me, "The article changed."

"I was supposed to die May 23rd, 2017." I stared right back at my hopeless husband, "So was Iris- but, we've changed the future before Barry. And we can do it again, so tell me, what do we do first?"

Barry nods and sits up a little, pinching the bridge of his nose for the second, clearing his throat, "If a doctor told you you were dying, you'd get a second opinion."

I nod once, "And so?"

"So-" Barry looks at me, "I'm gonna go see this Crisis for myself."

-

I watched Barry as he walked over to me at the pipeline the next day.

I was dressed in a black shirt, leaving the first two buttons undone, the shirt lightly oversized and tucked into rip-less medium wash jeans, black boots on my feet, my hair straight.

I played with the necklace I have on every day, the small gold lightning bolt against the pad of my thumb, "Barry, are you sure?"

Barry readjusts his black jacket, "Yeah."

I looked up at him, "Where will you go?"

"December 11, 2019." Barry told me, looking down at me, "It's the day after I'm supposed to disappear."

"I don't like that we're not telling the rest of the Team." I drop my hand and cross my arms, "Can we let them in on this, please?"

"No, not until we know the truth, okay?" Barry stepped closer to me and placed his hands on my arms.

I stare up at him, "I don't feel great about you going in there alone, I mean- who knows what could happen?"

"I love you for being worried about me." A small smile formed on Barry's lips as he pulled his hands away and grabbed a clear comm earpiece, placing it in his ear, "I'm not gonna be alone."

"Hello, Barry Allen." Gideon's voice filled my ears, "Preparing for temporal observational protocol."

I was almost surprised, "Is that Gideon?"

"It's a mobile Gideon unit I built from salvaged parts of the plinth." Barry told me, giving me a smile.

"You'll come right back to this moment, right?" I asked, him only nodding, "Right to this second?"

"I promise." Barry assured me, as I sigh deeply, opening up the wall that blocked him from the particle accelerator.

My eyes watched him as he turned to run off, my voice quiet for some reason, "I love you."

Barry halts, turns and grabs my face gently, pressing his lips into mine for a small moment, then pulling away, "I love you too."

Then, I felt a gust of wind as he ran off into the accelerator, as I watched his lightning from where I stood run around over and over.

What didn't even feel like a few seconds later, Barry ran back by me, falling to the ground in pain, grunting, "Zee-"

"Barry-" I shut the door, dropping to my knees as he groans, forcing himself into a sitting position, showing me his knee, "What happened?-"

"I don't know- Gideon said it was a disruption barrier and it wouldn't let me go any farther than December 1st." Barry hissed at the pain, leaning his back against the wall, holding his leg.

"Gideon." I called, moving to sit cross legged as I let Barry lay his leg across my lap.

Gideon replies almost right away, "Yes, Zee Allen?"

Despite the pain, there was a hint of a smile on Barry's lips when he heard Gideon's reply.

I rubbed Barry's leg in comfort, "Why isn't Barry's wound healing?"

"My readings indicate he was exposed to an extra-universal material that destroys positive matter on contact, a substance known as antimatter." Gideon told us, sparking confusion in me.

"Antimatter?" I repeated, "Haven't heard of that one."

"There's a wall of this stuff clogging up the Speed Force." Barry grunts, "Gideon, how do I get past it?"

"Not without additional assistance." Gideon's words made Barry look at me, "Fortunately, there is an expert in the field, Dr. Jay Garrick, formerly known as the Flash of Earth-3."

-

I sat on the ground, wrapping up Barry's wound, Jay walking over to us, "Good to see you again, Barry."

"You too, Jay." Barry watched me wrap his leg, his eyes watching my every move.

"As it's always a pleasure seeing you, I'd except Barry coming here, not you, Zee." Jay softly smiled down at me, "What brings you here?"

"She-" Barry places a hand on my shoulder, using his thumb to caress it, "-wouldn't let me come alone."

"The power of not letting go of his arm really comes a long way." I teased softly, giving Jay a small smile, "Oh, and you know- holding onto the extrapolator for dear life."

Jay chuckled at me, before grabbing the papers from the desk, "You were right."

"You were hit with a dose of pure antimatter." Jay told him, "Lucky you have speed healing, or that scratch could've wiped you out of existence."

My hands froze, as I looked between Jay and Barry, after finishing wrapping him up.

Barry inhales sharply, "So- is there a way that I can time travel past the barrier?"

"See, now-" I clear my throat and look at Barry, "This is where my disapproval comes in."

Barry sighs, "Zee-"

"You want to tell me why the hell you were time traveling to begin with?" Jay leans against the walking cane he held, setting down the papers.

Barry began, "I needed to see for myself if The Monitor was telling the truth about what happened to me, and I know what you're gonna say about time traveling-"

"Actually, I was gonna tell you you made the right call." Jay cuts him off, catching Barry and I off guard.

"What?" I pushed myself onto my feet, "I thought you were on my side."