Hazel Queen left Starling City to start anew, to leave behind the heroics and the exhaustion and the heartache.
Unfortunately, her new start in Central City hasn't been nearly as peaceful as she'd hoped, what with the Particle Accelerator she'd pla...
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"COURAGE, DEAR HEART." - C.S LEWIS
*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ
They'd kept her promise to Caitlin, Barry speeding them back to the labs as soon as they'd finished at the station.
Instead of finding the usual bustle of people in the Cortex though, the place was eerily empty, silence ringing out through the walls.
Hazel bit her lip, her eyes moving across the various windows, until they landed on a very specific one, bearing a treadmill and a sad woman.
Pointing it out, she wrapped her fingers around Barry's, tugging him behind her in there, slowing down when she reached her despondent-looking friend and whispering, "Hey Cait. Can we join you?"
When the woman nodded, Barry took a seat beside her on the treadmill, while Hazel squatted down in front of her, her hands on her friend's knees, gripping reassuringly.
"I'm sorry," she whispered softly, waiting until Caitlin met her gaze before continuing, "I shouldn't have left as abruptly as I did. I know you worry."
"It's okay. I get it." Cait shrugged sadly, "You both had to go. It's just... that's the last thing that Ronnie said to me that night."
The auburn-haired girl swallowed heavily, blue eyes darkening in sadness, while Barry cleared his throat, inhaling shakily, "My mother died 14 years ago. I used to think that the further away I got from it, the less it would hurt. But some days, the pain, it's worse than the day that it happened."
Cait nodded, smiling at him shakily, before turning to Hazel, having felt the younger girl squeeze her knee. Swallowing heavily, the psionic whispered, "If life has taught me anything, it's that certain things demand to be felt, pain chief amongst them. But while we can feel it, we can't let it rule us, or dictate our actions." Her eyes dropped to her hands, the image of a red-haired, blue-eyed woman invading her brain as she finished softly, "Pain demands to be felt, but it's our job to keep it from owning us. Or we'll fall apart."
Palms laid over her own, squeezing lightly, and she looked up at Cait, only to find her nodding softly, "For so long, I've been terrified of going into that hole."
"What if we went with you?" Barry asked, rising to his feet.
Hazel followed through, one of her hands weaving through his, the other, extended towards her friend, "You're not alone anymore Cait, we've got you." As Caitlin took her hand, she pulled her up, whispering, "I've got you, Kitten."
And slowly, the three descended into the accelerator pit, coming to a stop right before the door, Haze' teeth digging into her bottom lip to keep it from quivering at the onslaught of memories, as she felt Caitlin take a shuddering breath, her hand tightening as she whimpered, "He saved so many lives that day, and no one will ever know what he did."
