Frozen Flashpoint

Chapter 25: Liquid Improvement

Summary: A surprising character visits the lab and sheds light on important information.

Caitlin was quick to turn where she stood. She had to rub her eyes twice to believe what she was seeing. In the entrance to the cortex next to her frowning fiancé was standing her mother.

After their first honest conversation, thanks to Barry, Caitlin kept calling her mother to talk with her once a week and was always surprised when her mother did the same by choosing a different day and calling her to catch up.

Even though their calls were much less cold and more familiar than since she was a child, there was still some distance there. It was like talking to an old friend you got to meet again after so long rather than a mother and daughter reunion.

Caitlin wondered if she would have put in the effort and met her mother in person a couple of times, would that have increased the strength of their newly developing bond? Caitlin asked herself that often but always came back to the same realization—without knowing her fiancé was the Flash, her mother could not understand the presence of Lyra.

And Carla was a clever woman; she was surely going to inquire about a teenage girl living with them and spending her time in STAR Labs, and an explanation would lead back to things Caitlin wasn't sure she wanted her mother to figure out.

So, while they did get closer since Lyra showed up, there was this constant distance Caitlin always felt like she had to keep. But right now, as her mother stood next to Barry in the heart of STAR Labs, Caitlin could feel this distance beginning to disappear.

Cisco looked confused for a moment and asked, "And not to be rude, but who are you?"

Her mother took a step forward and introduced herself. "Doctor Carla Tannhauser."

Cisco's eyes almost left their sockets as he stammered out, "As... As in..."

Her mother's lips twitched slightly at the edge before she replied in what Caitlin could only describe as an amused tone, "Caitlin's mother. Indeed." Her eyes locked on Cisco's, and she said, "And you are Cisco Ramon. My daughter spoke very fondly of you."

Her eyes then moved toward Jesse and Wally. When did they get here?! Caitlin was so deep in her own thoughts she missed them. Her mother's eyes were soft as she said, "And you are Jesse and Wally. Caitlin told me a lot about your cleverness. Such traits in young ones like yourselves are always impressive."

The two young adults blushed under the praise. Then her mother moved her stare toward Harry and began to speak in the same soft tone, "You must be Jesse's father. I heard much about your mind, maybe..." She paused when she got a good look at his face, and with a scowl and cold tone she amended, "Are you not Harrison Wells? The man who admitted to the murder of many?"

Harry sighed and was about to defend himself while her mother's eyes already traveled toward the silent Lyra, who seemed to try and blend with the walls of the cortex. In the same cold tone she added, "And who are you? I don't believe Caitlin mentioned you..."

Wally cut her off this time and asked in a surprised voice, "She never mentioned your granddaughter?"

Barry shot Wally a look that caused the younger man to take a step back and hide behind his girlfriend a little, realizing he said the wrong thing.

Caitlin began to dread the situation, and the pit in her gut began to grow deeper and deeper. Her mother turned toward Barry, and her fiancé took a step back with a loud gulp.

Caitlin took a step forward, intending to interfere and stop her mother from causing any sort of damage to her fiancé, but she was stopped short when instead of the glare and chilling tone she expected her mother to use, the woman just let out a deep sigh and asked in a tired voice, "Mr. Allen, have you been messing with the timeline? You must understand the risk of..."