Felicity, caught in her daydream, didn't hear the scufflings at first. Caitlin's foot brushed against hers beneath the table. Felicity pulled one of the bags, which had been left piled on the table, towards her.
"Working at Star Labs doesn't lead to sunlight and healthy living," Caitlin said, smiling. Her smile was small, and a little tired. How hard had she been working? Trying to ignore Felicity stood to fetch the scissors. They had been somewhere in the counter drawer, last time she checked.
"You need to take a break over Christmas. Barry won't expect you to be fighting crime then, right? Even Oliver takes a break, and you know how - "
"What was that?"
"What?"
Caitlin's face had frozen. Her hand was curled around the cup. Slowly, she rolled her eyes towards the ceiling. She pointed upwards, hissing, "There."
Where was there? The upstairs bedroom? How quickly could she call the team? How quickly could she find her gun? The cupboard in the hall was shut. Could they risk crossing into the hall and undoing the lock without being seen?
Caitlin's mouth was pinched. Her phone was halfway to her ear. Felicity's screen had gone black. She swiped, pressed call.
There - another sound - something moving. Footsteps? Boots - someone creeping lower. Another silence, but there was no denying it; someone had been there. Someone was there.
Should they stay still? Could they move? It had been wrong to be quiet - had the attacker picked up on it? Should they have continued as though everything was normal, and waited to be stabbed or shot?
Caitlin stood. Felicity reached out. They advanced towards the door together, pressing themselves against the far wall. Caitlin's hand was soft. Slowly, Caitlin stepped forwards, shoving the phone into her pocket. There had been no reply.
What was in the room? The lamp was too large to carry. But the kitchen drawers - the knives - were close. Felicity stretched her hand. Caitlin realised; she stepped to the side and began to edge towards the counters.
"Felicity?" Diggle said.
The footsteps halted.
"Diggle," Felicity said, "there's someone in the house, tell Oliver, fetch - "
Caitlin, knife in hand, shouldered open the door and cried out. Felicity dropped the phone, grabbed Caitlin's arm, and saw only Thea, who was crouched at the foot of the stairs, arms wound with lights. They flashed red and yellow, red and yellow.
"This looks bad," Thea said. "I know that."
Caitlin gripped the hilt of the knife. "What are you doing here?"
