Episode 10 - Running to Stand Still

It was late at night, Harry was running down the halls of STAR Lab with Zoom right behind him. He runs into the workshop and grabs his gun and gets ready for Zoom. When Zoom comes in, he knocks the gun out of Harry's hand. Zoom then lifts Harry up in the air by his collar. "Go ahead." Harry gasps. "Kill me. But... my daughter... is innocent. Please... Let... Jesse... live…" Harry gasps for air. Zoom lowers Harry down but he still holds him by his collar. "Go on. Say something!"

"Merry Christmas." Zoom growls.

Later at Jitters, Joe was paying for his coffee when Iris walked up. "Whoo." Iris grins as she holds up a Flash and a Thunder action figure and Joe laughs. "I had to fight some old lady for the last ones. They didn't have any Green Arrow dolls."

"Don't know why you'd want a toy of that crazy man." Joe told her as they walked over to a table. "I can't figure out what to get Barry."

"I was thinking you could give him this." Iris pulls out a dress shirt.

"Oh, that's nice. But I kind of want to get him something more meaningful. I mean, it's been a strange, emotional 12 months." Joe said.

"Yeah, you don't have to tell me." Iris replied.

"Oh, I know, babe. I miss Eddie too.' Joe told her.

"How about you get Barry a really nice watch? Like Grandpa Ben gave to you." Iris suggested.

"That ain't a bad idea. You know, my dad only gave me this watch because I was always late." Joe looks down at his watch.

"You?" Iris chuckles.

"Yeah." Joe smiled. "He always gave a gift with a not-so-hidden message, like this watch or the time he bought me free weights because he said I was too skinny. I told him, 'When I have a son, I'm only giving him fun presents.' This thing barely works. Don't know why I still wear it." Joe starts tapping on the watch.

"Because it's from family." Iris said sadly.

"You sure you're alright?" Joe asked.

"Yeah, yeah. I promise." Iris answered.

Late at night, Barry and Atchaco were in their lab in the precinct, they were taking a break from working and were currently kissing each other. Atchaco pulls away. "You know, we should really be more professional." Atchaco told him.

"You do realise you initiated that." Barry smiled.

"Yes, I did." Atchaco chuckles. "But you do know someone can walk in at any second."

"No one is going to walk in." Barry reassured her.

Suddenly, Iris walks into the lab. "You were saying." Atchaco grinned, both stepping away from each other. "Hello, Iris."

"Hey." Iris returns, smiling at them. "I am so happy for you guys, truely."

"Thanks." The speedsters said in sync.

"I don't know." Barry sighs. "Wells, um, he left me that message where he said that I'd never really be happy. And for a while I really started to believe him, but, now... I... I don't know. Maybe there is a way to…"

"Are you okay? What's wrong?" Atchaco asked, noticing that Iris was crying.

"I'm so sorry." Iris apologises as she sobs. "I can't keep this in anymore. I know I was so mad at you two and Dad for not telling me that you both were The Flash and Thunder, but when I found out about this, I didn't know what to do."

"What? What's going on?" Barry questions.

"When Francine came back, my Dad told me not to trust her and he was right. I didn't know how much. When my mother left us, she was pregnant. She had a son. Joe's son. My brother." Iris cries and Barry and Atchaco were both stunned by what she said.

"What's his name?" Atchaco asked.

"Wally. Wally West. When I found out, I told her to leave and never come back and to never tell my dad, but I feel... I feel like this is hollowing me out. Every time I look at Dad, I feel like I'm hurting him. I don't... I don't know what to do." Iris admits.

"I think you know what you have to do." Barry told her.

"I can't. It's gonna kill him." Iris replies.

"No, it won't. You don't have to do this alone. We can tell him together." Atchaco reassures him.

"Thank you." Iris said.

"Yeah." Barry replies and he and Atchaco give Iris a hug.

"Hey, look. Snow. Maybe it'll be a white Christmas." Atchaco noticed.

"That'd be nice." Iris smiles.

Later at STAR Labs. "I was thinking that if we could inject an unstable neutrino burst into the individual breaches, it might cause them to seal on their own." Jay explains.

"And stop Zoom from travelling back and forth between our worlds." Caitlin realises.

"At least then we wouldn't have to worry about him sending any more meta-humans over for Barry and Atchaco to fight." Jay replied.

"It means a lot." Caitlin told him.

"What does?" Jay asked.

"You looking after Barry. And Atchaco. Barry's been through a lot the last few weeks." Caitlin reminds him.

"Barry's not the only person here I want to keep safe." Jay told her.

"Oh, dear Lord, just kiss already. Oh, the thirst is real." Cisco groans.

"Is everything all right?" Caitlin questions.

"Yeah, I keep checking, but all is quiet on the meta-human front. Hey, you think Zoom decided to take Christmas off?" Cisco wonders as he walks into the Cortex.

"What's Christmas?" Jay asks.

"Oh, well, it's this holiday we have where we cut down trees and sing songs to celebrate the birth of a baby 2,000 years ago, and then the Romans killed him so we give each other gifts…" Caitlin starts to say as she and Jay walk into the Cortex.

"That's your explanation?" Cisco wonders.

"I know what Christmas is." Jay smiles.

"Oh, right, of course." Caitlin chuckles softly and Jay chuckles in return. "Um, you know, Joe and Barry and Iris are having people over for Christmas Eve, and they said we could invite whoever we want."

"Who... who do you want?" Jay questioned.

"You. I want to invite you, I mean." Caitlin replied.

"This is so painful. Have you guys seen Harry?" Cisco asked as got the chair.

"Uh, no, I have not. I told him to rest. He's just as stubborn as all the rest of my male patients in this place." Caitlin tells them.

"I'm gonna leave you two alone, okay? I'm gonna go find Harry." Cisco turns around and sees Harry standing their. "Holy Hannah! Hi."

"Hi." Harry returned.

"Everything okay?" Cisco asked.

"Sure. Why wouldn't it be?" Harry answered, walking away.

"Why wouldn't it be?" Cisco chuckles.

Later at Iron Heights it was snowing really hard. There were two guards on duty when the windows suddenly shattered. Mark Mardon walked through the front door, he was who was causing the crazy snow storm. "Let it snow." Mark smiled. A guard tried to call for backup but Mark used his powers to shove the guard hard out of the way. "Knock, knock." He makes a ball of ice and throws it at the cell door and it opens. The cell belonged to Lenard Snart, or more famously known as Captain Cold. "So. Early parole. You interested?"

Minutes later, they were walking down the hallway of a basement as Mark was looking at a map. "Don't mean to be a noodge, but the exit is upstairs." Snart reminds him.

"Just need one more thing." Mark told him. They passed the maximum security ward sign. Then they entered a room where a prisoner sat in a glass cell with drawings of the Flash and Thunder being killed. The cell belonged to James Jesse, the Trickster.

"You got to be kidding me." Snart said.

James had a red vine in his mouth. "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas." He laughs evilly. Mark smiles as Snart rolls his eyes and James continues to laugh.

Hours later, Barry and Atchaco meet up with Joe in Iron Heights. "Please tell me this is not happening…" Barry groaned.

"It's official, Santa hates us. This sudden blizzard took out cameras and the security system. I mean, thank God nobody was killed, but there's no trace of Mardon, Jesse, or Snart. Speaking of which, with Mardon back on the scene…" Joe started to say.

"Yeah?" Atchaco wondered.

"Patty might not be thinking so clearly." Joe answered.

"What do you mean?" Atchaco asked.

"What does Mardon have to do with Patty?" Barry questioned.

Meanwhile, Patty was in Jesse's cell, she picked up some fragments of a snowball. "We should have expected this." Patty said, turning to see Barry, Atchaco and Joe. "The unexpected drop in barometric pressure had to mean Mardon was back in town."

"Patty…" Atchaco tried to say.

"Jesse was on full communication lock down, but that doesn't mean Mardon and Snart weren't in contact." Patty realised.

"Patty, Joe told us about Mardon." Atchaco admits.

"I can't talk to you about this." Patty scoffs, walking away and Atchaco and Barry follow her.

"Hey, Patty, it's okay." Barry reassures her.

"Look, Barry, you're a sweet guy and Atchaco, you are a lovely person, but both of you have no idea what's really going on in this city. I mean, you both don't even know that Harrison Wells... I'm sorry, I don't have time to bring you up to speed." Patty then walks away.

"That's ironic." Atchaco whispers and they run after her.

"Patty, Patty, look I care about you a lot. I don't want to see you do anything reckless." Barry informs her.

"I'm a cop." Patty reminds them. "Going after criminals is in my job description. It's not reckless. And powers or not, Mardon's gonna answer for what he's done." Patty then storms off.

Later at an abandoned toy factory, James was fiddling around with a toy as he sang. "♪ Deck the halls ♪ ♪ With body parts from a girl named Holly ♪ ♪ Fa la la la la, la la la la ♪" James chirped.

"I don't remember those being the lyrics." Snart said.

"I am tremendously creative. That I can tell you." James replied.

"You'd better be. I didn't break you out... I didn't break either of you out, because I was looking to make some new friends." Mark reminds him.

"That is not the holiday spirit, Marky-Mark. Christmas is a time for togetherness. And what says togetherness more than mass graves? Hmm?" James chuckles.

"So why did you break us out?" Snart asked.

"Well, I owed you one, and this guy, he's just crazy. It's a compliment. And we all want the same thing." Mark answered.

"Fashion advice?" Snart said sarcastically.

"To see The Flash and Thunder dead." Mark corrects him.

"Well, that was more of a New Years resolution, but, hey, I'm flexible." James smiled.

"That hasn't gone so well for anyone in this room. What makes you think you can stop them this time?" Snart wonders.

"Three against two. Plus, one of them isn't quite what he was. See, another speedster dressed all in black nearly took The Flash out a few weeks ago. He's vulnerable. He's weak. He's also Thunder's weakness." Mark replied.

"It's a mistake to underestimate them." Snart warns.

"With my power, his... flair, and your smarts, we can put him and Thunder into the ground for good." Mark tells him.

"Tell me your plan." Snart ordered.

"Tell me you're in." Mark retorts.

"I'm thinking about it." Snart admits.

"What's the matter? A few months in the clink make you soft, did it, Snart?" Mark jokes. Snart takes out his cold gun and Mark starts making an ice ball. "You wanna dance?"

"Boys, boys, boys! Play nice! Mellow out, Mardon. Don't have a snit, Snart. Here's an idea. We all go out, have a few drinks, kill some carolers. We'll all feel better." James suggested.

"All right. So what's it gonna be, Snart?" Mark questioned.

The next day in the middle of the afternoon, everyone was in STAR Labs looking at mugshots of Mardon, Snart and Jesse. "Oh, yeah." Cisco laughs softly. "The Weather Wizard, Captain Cold, and the Trickster."

"There's three of them and two of you. I do not like those odds." Caitlin admits.

"And I'm gonna be no help without my speed, so…" Jay starts to say.

"Oh, oh, light bulb up here. I have an idea. Most weather phenomena are marked, no pun intended, by the change of electric charge and pressure in the atmosphere. We could just map out those fluctuations…" Cisco suggested.

"To pinpoint his location." Barry finished.

"Right, it would just be a matter of removing all…" Cisco starts to say.

"The electricity from his immediate surroundings." Barry said.

"Attracting it to one spot." Cisco and Barry say.

"The same way a lightning rod does. Only instead of a lightning rod, we could use…" Cisco goes to say.

"A wand?" Barry offers.

"Have we already had this conversation?" Cisco asked.

"Kind of."Barry replied.

"What does that mean?" Harry questioned.

"All right, so the last time Mardon attacked, he, um, generated a tidal wave that destroyed all of Central City." Barry informed him.

"So why are you not all sleeping with the fishes?" Harry asked.

"Earth-2 has 'The Godfather'?" Cisco questioned.

"Every Earth has 'The Godfather,' Vito." Harry answered and Jay nodded.

"So I ran back through time. One day into the past and I got a do-over and I stopped Mardon before he could hurt anyone." Barry explained.

"You shouldn't have messed with the timeline." Harry reminded him.

"That's what the other Wells said. So the good news is, in that timeline, you created The Wand and it worked. So you just got to do it again. For the first time." Barry told him.

"Yeah, no pressure." Cisco said.

"I can give you a hand." Jay replied.

"Best of both worlds?" CIsco wondered.

"I like that." Jay admitted and Harry looked kinda down as he walked away.

"You good, Harry?" Barry asked.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" Harry said as he walked away.

"Oh yeah, something is definitely wrong with him." Atchaco noticed.

"Holiday blues? It can't be easy knowing Zoom still has his daughter." Caitlin tells them.

"Yeah, all right, look, we'll be right back. We have something we have to deal with." Atchaco replied.

Back at the precinct, Barry, Atchaco were in Barry and Atchaco's lab waiting when Joe walked in. "Hey." Joe chuckles softly. "Okay, the last time the three of you were looking at me like that, it was when you all took my convertible on a joy ride and wrapped it around that big oak tree on Fairmont Drive."

"Dad, um…" Iris tries to say.

"All right, Joe, we have something we need to tell you." Barry admits.

"No, um... I have something that I need to tell you. It's about Francine." Iris clears her throat. "When she left us... she was pregnant."

"Did she have the baby?" Joe wondered as he eyes got watery.

"Yes. His name is Wally. Wally West." Iris told him.

"Short for Wallace. That's what we were gonna name you if you were a boy." Joe confesses.

"I only found out a couple weeks ago. Dad, I am so sorry that I didn't tell you sooner. That's why she reached out to us after all these years. She wanted us to know before…" Iris tried to say.

"Before she died. And I thought Francine was running out of surprises." Joe grabs his coat. "I got to get to work. " He then starts to walk away.

"Dad, listen... Dad." Iris said.

"I'm... I'm sorry. Just let me sit with it." Joe said, turning to face her. He then turns around and leaves.

Later at the West house, Iris, Barry and Atchaco all walk through the door. "Do you guys think that he's gonna be okay?" Iris asked.

"We do, yeah, I think... It's just a lot to take in." Atchaco said.

"Yeah. He just needs a little time to process it." Barry agreed.

"Ho, ho, ho." Snart chuckled. Barry, Atchaco and Iris's faces widen as they see Snart inside the house. Snart smiles as he holds up a squirrel mug and then he takes a sip of the coco he had in it. "Mmm. Cocoa isn't cocoa without the mini marshmallows. And you're out. I checked."

Barry gets angry, he super speeds over to Snart and shoves him up against the fireplace. "Are you out of your mind? Breaking into my home?" Barry wonders.

"Careful. I made an upgrade to the cold gun. If I release my grip from the handle, the core goes critical. You might make it, Atchaco will, she won't." Snart warns him. Barry lets Snart go and backs away. Snart then puts his gun down slowly. "Read your article on the disappearing middle class. Strong point of view. Nice prose style."

"Yeah, well, who needs a Pulitzer when you have a homicidal maniac's seal of approval." Iris jokes.

"Didn't Barry and Atchaco tell you? I had a rough childhood." Snart admits.

"Everyone in this room had a rough childhood. Get over it." Iris tells him.

"Why are you here, Snart?" Atchaco asked.

"I got the Noel spirit, wanted to give you both a gift. Mardon broke Jesse and me out to kill you both. Jesse's on board, of course. He's shaking with excitement. Me, I'm gonna pass." Snart confesses.

"Why? You grow a conscience?" Iris questioned.

"Mardon wants revenge. Jesse wants chaos. I'm just not invested like they are." Snart answered.

"You mean there's no money in it for you?" Iris wonders.

"I was never much for non-profit work." Snart reminds her.

"If you're not in with them, then tell us where they are." Atchaco ordered.

"Nah, consider me more of a secret Santa. Besides, you and your friends love to solve a good mystery." Snart said as he started heading towards the door.

"You are full of it, Snart." Barry scoffs. "I think my friends, Atchaco and I saved your sister's life and you can't stand owing us a marker. I hate to break it to you, but that... that right there is called honour."

"Go on, make your pitch. I can see you're both dying to." Snart smiles.

"Help us stop them." Atchaco said.

"Sorry, I'm not interested in being a hero." Snart apologises.

"Well, you're doing a pretty lousy job of being a villain this week." Barry tells him.

"Merry Christmas, Barry." Snart replies.

Later back at STAR Labs, Barry walks into the pipeline where Joe was. "Hey." Barry greets the older man.

"I was just thinking about a big drug bust that me and Singh made about ten years ago." Joe admits. "Afterward, we went for a steak lunch to treat ourselves for a job well done and while we were ordering, I got this feeling in my chest. Like my heart was being squeezed. I knew something wasn't right. So I called your school and the nurse said to me that she was just about to call me. Iris was on her way to the hospital."

"When her appendix burst." Barry said.

'And I knew it. I could feel it, right here. I knew my kid needed me. So if I have that feeling as a parent, why didn't I feel it from my son?" Joe wonders.

"Joe, it's not your fault that you didn't know about him." Barry reassures him.

"Yeah, it was. When Francine left rehab that last time, I should've looked for her. I'm a cop. I could've found her. Brought her back here. Tried again. Tried harder." Joe told him.

"You were protecting Iris." Joe reminds him.

"I've been telling myself that for 20 years. A 20-year lie, but I wasn't protecting her, I was protecting myself. I couldn't stand it anymore. I couldn't... I hated not being able to help Francine. So it was easier for her to be dead. Out of my life. Out of our lives. But it wasn't for Iris. I was being selfish. And that poor boy paid the price." Joe said.

"Joe…" Barry tries to say.

"He never had a father... to read to him at night, show him to throw a football, to make him feel safe. and loved. Who taught him how to be a man, Barry? 'Him.' I can't even say his name. What have I done?" Joe ponders.

"Joe, look, you have been there for me every day since I met you. You have. You would have done the exact same thing for him if you could have, I know it. I'm sorry." Barry apologised.

Later the next day, Patty was at the precinct holding a bunch of files when Singh walked up to her. "Where's your partner, Spivot?" Singh asked.

"I don't know, I'm not his babysitter." Patty answered and then she looked up from the files and noticed it was Singh. "I'm sorry, sir. I'm not sure where Joe is."

Suddenly, the TV turns on and the trickster pops on the screen. "♪ Flash-y the red-nosed speedster ♪ ♪ Had a very shiny suit ♪ ♪ And if you ever saw him ♪ ♪ You might even want to puke ♪" James sang before pretending to gag. "♪And Thunder-y the cyborg used to be by his side.♪ But Zoom wouldn't let poor Flash-y and Thunder-y join in any speedster games.♪ Merry Christmas, kiddie-winks. I'm back! "

"Get TARU down here now. I want to know how he's doing this." Singh ordered.

"Citizens, you know, the holidays can be a time for gentle reflection on the year past. Our ups and downs, our triumphs and heartaches, but don't forget, it can also be a time for disembowelling our enemies." James chuckled.

At STAR Labs, they were all watching the broadcast. "We don't have a Trickster on Earth-2." Jay told her.

"He's one of a kind." Caitlin admits.

"My stocking won't be completely stuffed until it's filled to the brim with bloody Flash and Thunder parts. So what do you say, speed freaks? Want to roast chestnuts?" James grins.

Back at the precinct, Singh was giving orders to the other policemen. "I want all tactical units on high alert. Get in touch with other precincts, I want watch commanders coordinating deployment. Spivot, I need you to…" Singh turns and Patty is gone. "Spivot!"

Meanwhile, back at STAR Labs. "Are there any clues as to where he is based on the video?" Atchaco asked.

"None that I can see." Cisco answered as he started processing the video and by the looks of Atchaco's slightly darker eyes she did too.

"Guys, there's a reflection of something in his cornea, see?" Joe noticed as he looked at the video.

"What is that?" Barry questioned.

"Not sure." Caitlin said.

Cisco zooms into the trickster's eyes and sees a reflection of a teddy bear. "That's Mr. Jiggle Wiggle." Harry pointed out.

"Come again?" Cisco said.

"It's a doll. A stuffed children's toy. I gave one to my daughter when she was six." Harry replied.

Cisco then looks up the doll. "Mr. Jiggle Wiggle was manufactured by Okamura Toys... Yahtzee! Okamura once had a shipping facility in Central City that shut down four years ago; it's been abandoned ever since. What if Weather Wizard's there? The wand's not finished." Cisco told them.

"Well… The Trickster is." Atchaco reminds him.

Late at night at the abandoned Okamura Toy Warehouse. Patty just walks in with her gun out, ready to shoot someone. Suddenly, Barry and Macanese show up. "What are you doing here?" Barry asked, disguising his voice so she wouldn't recognise it.

"Same thing as you two. Trying to catch a murderer." Patty answered.

Then suddenly, a toy doll turns itself on. "♪ Dreidel, dreidel, dreidel ♪ ♪ I made it out of clay ♪" The doll chants.

"We can't let Christmas hog all the holiday fun! Happy Hanukkah!" James's voice comes out of the small speaker on the doll. Very quickly a lot of Dreidels start spinning towards them. "♪ Dreidel, dreidel, dreidel ♪ I made you out of C-4!" The dreidels started to surround them and soon they were trapped. "♪ Oh, dreidel, dreidel, dreidel ♪" The dreidels kept singing higher as it got closer to them. "I'm afraid we are definitely looking at closed casket funerals."

"There's nowhere for us to run us to!" Macanese said.

"So what should we do?" Patty asked.

Barry looks up. "Hold onto me." Barry orders.

"Just do what he says." Macanese tells her as she understands what Barry was thinking. Patty grabs onto Barry as he and Macanese start moving their arms around. They make small tornadoes with their arms. They then fly out of the factory as the dreidels explode, taking the factory with it. They all land safely a few feet away.

Patty starts walking towards her car as Barry and Macanese stay in the shadows. "Detective." Barry said.

"It was all just a trap for you two. Mardon and Jesse aren't even here. They're still on the loose." Patty told them.

"How did you know to come here?" Macanese asked.

"Because there was a reflection in Jesse's eye of Mr. Jiggle Wiggle. And that's the thing that my dad... It doesn't even matter." Patty continues to walk to her car.

"That's why you came here alone without any backup? Because of your father?" Barry questions.

"You both don't know anything about me." Patty reminds them.

"We know that you're being reckless. And we're sure the people in your life care enough about you to not want to see you get hurt." Macanese told her.

"Except Mardon didn't kill my father." Patty said as her eyes watered. "I did. See, he had a little shoe shop, and we didn't have any money, so I worked there after school. Except one day I decided not to show up, because I was being stupid and silly with my friends. I didn't even call to tell him that I was ditching. So he brought the deposits to the bank, not me. He was shot and killed by Mardon, not me."

"That's why you became a cop. Joined the meta-human task force." Barry realised.

"It'll be legal when I kill Mardon. I have made my whole life about getting justice for my father, I don't even know why I'm telling you guys this." Patty admitted.

"Sometimes it's just easier to say things to some people with no face." Macanese told her.

"Thank you both for saving me." Patty replied.

"You know, even if you get this guy that wronged you, it doesn't always make things better." Barry informed her.

"It has to be better than this." Patty cries, tears in her eyes as she gets in her car and drives away. Barry and Macanese take off their masks as soon as she can't see them. They both had worried looks on their faces as they watched her leave.

The next day, they are at STAR Labs. "Patty, it's me, Atchaco. I'd really love to talk. I'm worried about you. Anyway, just give me or Barry a call when you get a chance, all right? Thank you. Bye." Atchaco said, hanging up.

"Still not answering?" Barry questioned.

"Nope." Atchaco sighed.

Jay then walks over to Caitlin with the wand for Mardon. "Barry." He said.

"Yeah?" Barry wonders as he walks over.

"How's it look?" Jay asked.

"Wow, eerily familiar." Barry admits.

"How's Patty?" Caitlin questioned.

"She is hiding a lot of pain behind her smile." Atchaco said as she walked over to them.

"They say friends start to resemble each other after a little while." Caitlin replied.

"The thing is, I mean, she only opened up to Flash and Thunder, not us. So even if either of us could got her on the phone, I don't know what to say." Barry told her.

"Well, it's been my experience that just being around you can be a big help." Caitlin replied.

"Thank you." Atchaco said.

Later in the city, children and their parents were lined up to meet Santa without knowing that behind the white beard was the Trickster. "I want an iPhone, an iPad, and an iTouch." A kid told him.

"Ho, ho, ho, dial it back, Mr. Greedy." Santa chuckled. "Those are a little out of Santa's price range. How about this?" He hands him a box. "Now remember, don't open it until tomorrow. It's a surprise." If his gift was going to be anything like the dreidel it was going to be deadly.

At STAR Labs, Harry was in the basement, standing in front of the breach when Zoom jumped out of it. "Have you decided?" Zoom asked.

"I need more time." Harry answered.

"Don't we all. Decide." Zoom ordered.

"I need more time." Harry admits.

"Maybe if I go up there and kill a few of your new friends…" Zoom started to say.

"No!" Harry shook his head.

"One more day. I'll tell your daughter you said, 'Hello.'" Zoom said. He then turns and jumps back into the breach.

Minutes later, in the Cortex the computer started beeping. "What's that? Is that Mardon?" Barry asked.

"That's definitely him. Atmospheric pressure just dropped 200 hectopascals." Cisco informs them.

"Where?" Atchaco questions.

"Central City Square." Cisco answered.

"The tree lighting ceremony." Caitlin said.

"There's thousands of people there." Barry realised. Atchaco grabs the wand as she and Barry super speed out of there.

A few minutes later, Barry and Macanese arrive on a rooftop of a building in Central City Square where Mark was making thunder in the sky. "Oh, glad to see you two. Maybe you both can help me." Mark said.

"Help get back in to a jail cell? It'll be our pleasure, Mark." Macanese smirks.

"No. No, see, I'm trying to decide if I should kill everybody down there with a deadly hail storm, or... little trickier, with acid rain, what do you think?" Mark wondered as he stood on the ledge.

"Ah, let me think, um... How about neither? You see this wand here? Guess what?" Barry said. Mark smiles and then falls off the ledge.

Macanese and Barry run over to the ledge and see Mark flying away, but doing what they do, making small tornadoes with his hands. "Um... guys? He's flying." Macanese noticed.

Back at STAR Labs, everyone looked at each other with surprised expressions. "He can fly? Since when can he fly?" Caitlin asked.

"Well, he's using his powers to alter the air pressure around him to create pockets of updraft that can…" Cisco started to say.

"No, he can fly." Harry said.

"Barry, Atchaco, get him." Jay ordered.

Barry and Macanese run after Mark, they were catching up to him when they jumped over a helicopter. They reached the tree lighting ceremony where it was being held in Central City Square. Then Mark was just about to land when Barry used the wand on Mark, knocking him to the ground and Mark groaned. "You didn't really think we'd let you hurt all these people, did you?" Barry wondered.

"No, of course not, but bet you both are gonna let me hurt you two." Mark said.

Suddenly, two Christmas gifts wheel over Barry and Macanese, they turn to see where it came from and see james. James was still in his Santa suit and he was sitting down. "Feliz Navidad! Time for a real war on Christmas." James chuckled.

"What is this?" Barry asked.

"That is a box with a bomb in it." Mark answered.

"Yup, I've handed out about 100 of them today It feels so good to give." James laughs.

"You see, right now, there are 100 random children who've each taken home a box just like that one and are shoving it under their Christmas tree. There's no way for either of you to get all of them, even if you knew where to look." Mark told them.

"Oh, no, Please don't do this." Macanese begged.

"What? Me? kill 100 families? No, that's up to you both. I'm happy just to take your lives. So this is how it's gonna be. You two are gonna stand there and let me end both of you. Very publicly and very painfully and I'll let everybody live, but if I see even a little flicker of electricity on the two of you... the casket makers in this town are gonna have a very merry Christmas. So, Flash, Thunder... what's it gonna be? Huh?" Mark wonders. Barry looks at Macanese and she nods. Barry then hands the wand to Mark. "There you go." James then chuckles.

Mark makes two snow balls of hail and then throws it at the two speedster. It hit them both hard on the chest and they got thrown to the floor. "They're gonna kill Barry and Atchaco!" Caitlin gasped.

"Unless we find those bombs. Cisco?" Jay said.

"Jay, there's no way." Cisco replies.

"There is a way." Harry tells him.

"To find 100 randomly-placed bombs?" Cisco wonders.

"We don't have to find 100. We just have to find one. And then we get rid of them all." Harry said.

"How?" Caitlin asked.

"A breach." Jay realised.

"That's right. We sent Grodd away. We can do the same to these bombs, all of them. Do you have a drone in your workshop?" Harry said.

"Yeah." Cisco nods.

"Does it fly?" Harry questions.

"Yeah." Cisco answered.

"Good. I'm taking it. You're not getting it back." Harry said, walking out of the Cortex.

"I'll warm up the van." Cisco replied.

Meanwhile, Barry and Macanese were still being attacked with hail balls by Mark. Mark then uses the wand to enhance his powers to hurt them even more.

Somewhere else, Jay and Harry were driving down the road in the van. "I'm cross-referencing credit card statements with toll road usage and families with children under ten. Hold up... Make a U-turn. Two streets back." Cisco said. Harry then quickly does a U-Turn and drives really fast. Then minutes later, Harry knocks on someone's door and a little boy answers. Harry rudely tells the kid to give him the toys.

In the Square, Barry and Macanese groan from where they lay on the floor. "Flash, Thunder, you all right? You two don't look so good. I know... I'll give you both a jolt." Mark smiles. Mardon then uses the wand to create a huge blot that hits Barry and then Macanese. They both scream in pain as they collapse onto the floor. Caitlin was in STAR Labs as she saw their vitals. She became worried because they were not good. "Oh!" Mark seemed to be enjoying their suffering.

Meanwhile, Cisco was with Harry and Jay. They were in the middle of the street as Jay carefully took the bomb out of the gift box as Harry was tinkering with Cisco's drone. "Harry, what is the plan?" Cisco asked.

"One of the 52 breaches opened by the singularity is 1/4 mile directly above the city. We are gonna use your drone to put this bomb into that breach." Harry told him.

"Okay, how does that work? One down, 99 to blow." Cisco replied.

"Basic physics, Ramon. Magnetism. Magnetism. Magnets of opposite poles attract one another. Help me out, Garrick." Harry said.

"If we can change the dimensional frequency of this bomb and get it through that breach…" Jay continued as he carefully started connection the bomb to the drone.

"It'll drag all the rest of the bombs right along with it. I'll drive. Okay, hold on." Harry then pushes a button on a tablet to make the drone rise up.

Back at Central City Square, Barry and Macanese were still on the ground in pain. "I'm done. They're all yours." Mark said.

James smiles as he skips over to them. When he reaches them he chuckles as he pulls out a knife. "Oh, God... To think this city worships you two!" James chuckles. "But, when I kill The Flash and Thunder, they'll realise I'm the man who saved Central City!"

Suddenly, the breach opened up and Henry flew the drone into it. All the other gift's that had the tricksters bomb inside started getting pulled out of the peoples house and into the breach. Once they were in the breach the bombs started exploding. "It's working." CIsco laughs.

"Was that you?" James wondered.

"No! Gut them!" Mark yelled.

"All right, I'm gutting already." James replied.

Suddenly the breach closes and the bombs were gone. "Barry, Atchaco, the bombs are gone." Cisco tells them.

Then electricity crackles in both Barry and Macanese's eyes. "Uh-oh…" James mutters. Macanese then super speeds James to a pole and ties James to a pole with Christmas lighting. Meanwhile, Barry tackles Mark to the ground and uses the wand on him, stopping his abilities to use his powers. Meanwhile the others were relieved and headed back to STAR Labs.

"How do you like the magnets, bitch?" Cisco chuckles.

Meanwhile, Barry and Macanese watched as James and Mark were taken care of as they heard police sirens wailing. Patty drives up with the boot device that Cisco had made for metahumans. "Detective, it's taken care of. They can't hurt anyone else." Macanese reassures her. Patty hadn't brought the boot device for Mark or the trickster, she had brought it for the Flash and Thunder. She then shoots them with it and it attaches to their leg meaning they couldn't move or use their powers.

"What are you doing?" Barry groans.

"What are you doing?" Macanese repeats.

Patty drops the boot device and takes out her gun and aims it at Mark. "This is for my father." She tells him.

"No, no, no, Detective! Detective, no." Barry ordered.

"You can't do this." Macanese said.

"He killed my father for a couple hundred dollars." Patty replied angrily as she looked at Mark. "What was so important that my father had to lose his life?"

"Mardon will get what he deserves." Barry tells her.

"He deserves to die!" Patty yells.

"Not like this!" Macanese screamed.

"You don't have it in you, pretty lady." Mark smirks as he looks at Patty.

"I've been asking myself that for the last four years, and now I know." Patty said.

"No, Patty! You pull that trigger, your life ends too. You will go to prison. Everything and everyone that you could have had in your life will be taken from you. Again." Barry reminds her.

"Mardon can't take anything else from you unless you let him. I didn't know your father, but I know he wouldn't want this. Not over him. Please. Please." Macanese begged.

Patty had tears running down her face but she quickly put her gun away. She then kicks Mardon. "Mark Mardon, you're under arrest." She then slaps handcuffs on Mardon. Barry and Macanese sigh in relief and happiness that Patty had made the right choice.

"That was beautiful." James sobs from where he was still tied up.

The next day, Barry and Atchaco had just finished changing out of their suits in STAR Labs. They were both sore from all the beating but overall they were fine. "Barry, Atchaco, hey." Joe greeted them as he walked in.

"Hey." Barry and Atchaco return.

"Everyone's heading over to our place for Christmas. You two okay?" Joe wonders.

"Yeah, no, nothing a little meta-human regenerative healing capabilities won't cure." Barry answers.

"How'd it go with Francine?" Atchaco asked.

"It was good. It was really good, actually. I mean, I spent so long lying about her being dead that I started to believe it myself. But the truth is, those feelings were always there. That anger, that regret, the guilt... I just didn't realize how much I needed to forgive her. And now... there's room for another West." Joe admitted.

"Did you meet him?" Barry questions.

"No. He still doesn't know. That'll come." Joe told him.

"Wow. You have a son." Atchaco said.

"I know, right?" Joe smiles.

"It's crazy." Barry replied.

"Speaking of which, take this." Joe said, taking off his watch.

"What? No, no, no, no, I can't take that." Barry told him.

"I've always said that one day I would give this to my son... And now I have. Merry Christmas." Joe then gave Barry the watch.

"Merry Christmas. Thank you." Barry said before Joe embraces him in a hug.

"I Love you both." Joe reminded them.

"We love you too." Barry replies.

"See you two at the house." Joe said, walking away.

"Yeah. " Atchaco nods.

"I'll meet you later at the house. There is just something I have to do." Barry told him.

"Sure." She gives Barry a quick kiss. "Bye." Atchaco then walks away.

"Bye." Barry returns.

Barry then walks into the other room and sees Harry working on something when he puts on the watch. "I know that you're not him... But he's not here and I have to say this for me. In that video message, you said that... that I would never really be happy... And I've been trying... I've been trying really hard." Barry breathes deeply. "After what Joe said, and helping Patty, I realise that you're still in my heart. How much I hate you for what you've done. I don't want to hate you anymore, I can't. Can't hate you anymore. I forgive you."

Harry looks up and sees Barry. He pushes a button on the intercom. "You need me for something?" Harry wonders.

"No, no, I'm good. You know, you should come over for Christmas tonight. You shouldn't be alone." Barry told him.

"It's a nice offer. I can't celebrate without my daughter." Harry replied.

"All right." Barry said.

Late at night, Iris was putting a special decoration to Barry and Atchaco on the Christmas tree in the West house while Joe and Cisco were drinking Grandma's special eggnog. "Strong enough?" Joe asked.

"We'll see." Cisco answered.

Caitlin was struggling to hand the mistletoe when Jay walked up to her. "Hey." Joe greeted her.

"Oh!" Caitilin gasps as she sees him in front of her.

"What do you have there?" Jay questioned.

"Mistletoe." Caitlin replied.

"What's mistletoe?" Jay asked.

"Oh, um, it's a hemiparasitic plant from the genus Santalaceae family in North America, I think." Caitlin answered.

"Caitlin, I'm kidding. We have mistletoe on Earth-2." Jay told her.

"Right, of course." Caitlin replies.

"Um, we also have this tradition over there." Jay told her. He leans in and kisses her and she kisses him back.

"We have that tradition here too." Caitlin smiles.

"Aww." Joe said.

"Finally." Cisco grinned when there was a knock on the door.

"Oh, let me get that." Iris said. She then walks over to the front door.

"Eggnog, please?" Caitlin smiled.

"Yeah." Joe nodded.

Iris opens the door and sees it was Atchaco with Patty. "Hi." She greeted them.

"Hey. Look who I happened to run into on the way over here." Atchaco said.

"Hey Patty, I'm so glad you could make it." Iris told her.

"Aw, thank you for having me. Merry Christmas. This is for you." Patty handed Iris a pottle of wine.

"Thank you." Iris replied.

"Of course." Patty said.

Barry walks up to Patty. "Hey." He greets her.

"Hi." Patty returned.

"We've been really worried about you. I've been calling." Barry informed her.

"We both have." Atchaco corrected.

"I know…" Patty sighed. "And I'm really sorry. I just have been dealing with something by myself, but I want to tell you both about it. I think that I'm ready to. Because I consider both my best friends. Some people reminded me of what's important, so if you two want to hear, I would like to share it with you guys."

"That would be the best gift we could get." Barry told her.

"Yeah?" Patty wondered.

"Mm-hmm." Atchaco hums.

"I don't know. These are really sweet sweaters." Patty said.

"Wow. I hope it's as sweet as this one." Atchaco replied.

"Well, their matching. So it is pretty awesome." Patty smiled and Atchaco and Barry laughed softly.

"Thank you." Barry and Atchaco said.

"Of course." Patty replies.

Joe then walks up. "Detective Spivot." He said.

"Hi!" Patty smiles.

"What brings you here?" Joe asked.

"Well, Barry and Atchaco invited me." Patty answered.

"Well that is great. Thanks for coming." Joe tells her.

"No problem." Patty told him when suddenly there was knocking on the door again.

"Are we expecting anybody else?" Joe questioned.

"Not that I know of." Iris answered.

"Maybe Harry changed his mind." Barry suggested as he put his arm around Atchaco.

Joe then opened the door and a young man was standing in the doorway. "Hi, I'm Wally. I'm Francine's son." Wally introduces himself.

Joe's face widens. "I'm... I'm... I'm Joe." Joe stuttered, shaking his hand as Iris walked up. "This is Iris."

"Hi." Iris greeted him with a surprised look on his face.

"Hi. Uh, I just wanted to... I don't know. I guess now's a bad time. You've got company, so…" Wally tries to say.

"No. No, no, no. Come in." Joe tells him. Wally nods as he walks in and Joe closes the door behind him.

Later, Harry was waiting in an alley when a breach opened up and Zoom jumped out of it. "Time's up, Wells. What's it gonna be?" Zoom asked.

"I know what you're doing." Harry admits. "I know why you keep sending villain after villain from our Earth to this one. You want Barry to get faster. You want him to get stronger. You want him to become more powerful, more full of... speed force. You're fattening him up like a Christmas goose."

"The more power he has, the more I can take." Zoom reminds him.

"And what Atchaco?" Harry questioned.

"She's a god and even I have boundaries I won't cross. But it is always nice to have an extra battery and you're going to help me." Zoom answered.

"Let me see her first." Harry ordered.

Zoom then jumps into the breach and comes back with Jesse. "Daddy?" Jesse sobs as she runs into Harry's arms and hugs him.

"Are you okay? Did he hurt you?" Harry asked.

"Please help me. Don't let him take me back there." Jesse begs as she continues to sob.

"I won't…" Harry started to say but Jesse was taken out of his arms by Zoom.

"Now decide. In return for your daughter's life…" Zoom goes to say.

"I'll do it. I'll help you steal The Flash and Thunder's speed." Harry tells him.