"You sure you don't want me to stay?

"I'll be fine." Caitlin says, only partially paying attention, her focus on the unfamiliar S.T.A.R. Labs.

"Okay, well when you're ready to come back, make sure it's stabilized and you should be able to walk right through." Jay says. Caitlin hums in response, but doesn't turn around. Jay goes back to Earth 1, leaving Caitlin alone.

Caitlin walks into an unfamiliar office, looks around, and walks out to explore. When she walks outside one of the offices in the S.T.A.R. Labs complex, she sees elevated train rails, people dressed...similar to how Earth 1 people dress, but not quite the same. She looks across the courtyard and sees what looks like the main building in the complex. When she walks in she looks around to see a building that's twice as pretentious as their S.T.A.R. Labs. Apparenlty even Thawne can be outdone on theatrics. She looks around and overhears someone talking frantically about Harry.

"He hasn't been here in weeks. What the hell are we suppose to be telling people? Someone has to run this place." Some man in a disheveled black tux rambles. Caitlin walks up to them.

"Hi, I'm looking for Harrison Wells' office." She says, as officially as she can. The man and the woman he was talking to look curiously at her. They work for Harry, so surely they respond well to impatience and a superiority complex. "Considering you work here I assume you're at least slightly competent enough to know where your boss's office is?" They both look taken aback, but look more willing to answer her.

"Who's asking?" The man speaks up, straightening up a bit.

"Someone much higher than your paygrade, hon. Just point me in the direction and I'm sure I can find it myself." She says, offering a condescending smile.

The woman looks at the man and points to the elevator. "Fifth floor. Turn right. Big double doors. You can't miss it."

Caitlin nods and smiles, turning to the elevator. "Well damn." She mutters to herself. "Maybe Harry's onto something."

She walks into Harry's office and starts looking for anything she can find on his computer or in his files about Zoom. She looks up news reports, history on the accelerator explosion, anything she can think of. There isn't anything he hasn't already told her. She does, however, see a picture on his desk of him and Jessie, his daughter. She puts it in a bag she brought with her and continues looking through the recent news since Harry left. More of Zoom terrorizing the town. Talks of a curfew and mass distribution of Harry's meta detectors. She can't help but wonder if Zoom had been created on Earth 1 if Team Flash would've stopped him before he got this powerful. But Jay was here, so maybe Zoom was just that good.

She saves a few files off Harry's computer regarding his Velocity trials and recent news. While saving one news article she notices two familiar names mentioned: CSI Barry Allen and Detective West. She smiles, deciding on her next stop. She sends a map of Central City to her phone so she can find her way and leaves S.T.A.R. Labs. She walks through Central City, trying to figure out what she's gonna pretend to be when she goes in? Doctor? Reporter? Concerned citizen? She realizes she should've looked herself up to see if they would know her.

She walks in and sees a similar station to the one on Earth 1. She flinches when she sees Leonard Snart walking through in a suit rather than handcuffs.

"I'm sorry Mr. Mayor, but we do not have the resources to enforce a curfew." A cop apologizes, as Snart walks swiftly toward the elevator.

"Find them." He orders, in the same nasally voice that sounds almost more unnerving when it's making orders rather than threats.

"Can I help you, Miss?" A voice from behind her asks. She turns and sees a cop she doesn't know.

"Uhm yes, I was looking for Barry Allen."

"Caitlin?" She hears a quiet and shaky voice say behind her. She turns to see Barry wearing a bow tie and glasses, staring at her with eyes that are either really sad or really scared. She can't tell.

"Barry." She smiles and takes a step toward him. "Can I-"

He cuts her off by pulling her toward him. He puts his hand on the back of her head, forcing her to stare at the ground, and guides her upstairs. She can't see much but she can tell he's moving his head quickly. He's holding her head lightly, and he's taking small, quick steps. He's nervous. When they get to his lab he lets go of her.

"Caitlin, what are you doing here?" He asks. His voice is still shaky and slightly higher pitched than her Barry's.

"I-" She starts, but is cut off again.

"If someone sees you you're gonna, how are you even here right now? Like this? Oh my god, I brought you up here I'm gonna be an accomplice. What happened? How are you here?" He rambles, pacing back and forth in the lab.

Caitlin walks up to him. "Barry. Barry." She says, trying to get her hands on his shoulders to still him and calm him down. "Barry. Slow down." He stops and looks at her. "One thing at a time. I'm not-"

"Obviously. But what if you turn back. Caitlin they're gonna arrest you the second they recognize you. You have to get out of here." Barry rambles again.

"She's not going anywhere." Caitlin turns to see Iris standing in the entryway to Barry's lab. "Except with me. To Iron Heights." Iris holds a large gun pointed at Caitlin and takes a step toward her. "Caitlin Snow, you're under arrest for murder and being a known accomplice of the speedster, Zoom."

"What! Iris, wait I-" Caitlin falls to the ground, crying out in pain as a meta cuff wraps around her leg, shocking her.

***********************

Caitlin wakes up in a prison cell surrounded in blue lights. She recognizes it as Iron Heights, but this meta wing is definitely more high-tech than theirs. "Well that didn't go well." She mumbles to herself.

"How did you expect it to go, Cait?" She looks up and sees Barry leaning against the wall outside her cell.

"Barry, I'm not-"

"I know you're not her right now, but-"

"Barry Allen if you interrupt me one more time I'm going to cut your tongue out." Caitlin scolds. Barry looks taken aback, but she could swear she sees a small smile on his face. "Barry, I'm not the Caitlin you know." He gives her a confused look. "Have you noticed people going missing? Specifically criminals?" He looks around and nods. "That black hole that opened over your city," she starts. He nods. "It opened a bridge to another earth. An alternate universe. There are still bridges open and they're going to the other earth. My earth." His eyes are wide and confused. "Please believe me."

"Caitlin I want to, but you'd say anything to get out of here. At least now you would." He says sadly.

"What do you mean 'now'?"

"Since the accident. Since Zoom." He says softly, sounding defeated. He turns to walk away.

"Bar." Caitlin calls to him. "Please talk to me. What accident. How did I get involved with Zoom?"

He narrows his eyes and walks toward her. "You don't remember?"

"Of course not." Iris scoffs as she walks in to stand next to Barry. "How convenient."

Barry turns to her. "I think the accident affected her memory. Or maybe whatever turned her back gave her amnesia. Why else would she just waltz into CCPD?" Barry argues for her.

"To taunt us." Iris snaps. She looks at Caitlin. "Doesn't matter. Memory or not, she's still murdered seven people. Eye witnesses on all of them. Not to mention being an accomplice to countless murders with Zoom and his other henchmen. You're not getting out of here. No matter what mind games you play."

Iris storms out. Barry turns to Caitlin with sorry eyes. He takes a step toward her but stops when Iris walks back in. "Barry, c'mon. Let's go get some lunch."

Barry walks out, turning to get one last look at Caitlin who is leaning against the bars, looking pleadingly at him.

Caitlin sits back in her cell, trying to figure out how the hell she's gonna get out of there. About an hour later a guard brings her lunch. She pushes the food around, trying to think, biting her bottom lip in frustration.

"Still bite your lip when you're thinking?" Caitlin looks up to see Barry standing at the cell door.

"Thinking of a way out of here." Caitlin admits. "Need to get home to my earth before people miss me."

"Still sticking with that story huh?" Barry asks, sitting cross-legged on the ground in front of her cell.

Caitlin shifts and leans against the wall, pulling her knees to her chest. "Tell me your story." He looks at her confused. "You don't believe my story. So, tell me what you think happened."

"I think..." Barry starts, taking a deep breath. "This is all my fault." He says softly. "You're not a bad person Cait. Never were. After Iris and I got together you and I just...grew apart. I shouldn't have let that happen. And then after the wedding,"

"You two are married?" Caitlin asks.

Barry looks at her. "You know we are." He sighs, running his hand through his hair. Caitlin smiles at the familiar gesture. "You got..." He chuckles. "As ironic as it is, you got cold. You shut everyone out. I've noticed a pattern with a lot of metas. Their powers coincide with a trait of theirs. Maybe their personality. Their job. Their location at the time. It's not random." Caitlin nods, having noted the same thing about their metas. "I think you," he takes a deep breath. "Turned into what you did because of how cold your personality had become. You froze everyone out. And I just let you. Then after the accident, you...well you literally starting freezing people." He laughs guiltily, rubbing the back of his neck. "And I never fought it. I didn't try to bring you back. I didn't give you the benefit of the doubt I just...accepted that you were gone. Then helped them look for you."

He hasn't made eye contact with Caitlin at all. She scoots over to the cell door and sits directly across from him. He flinches when he sees how close she is. Her face is soft and kind. "You really have no idea what I'm talking about, do you?" She shakes her head. "Who are you?"

"Caitlin Snow." She says softly. "Just not your Caitlin."

Barry chuckles. "She hasn't been my Caitlin in a long time." He looks up at her and she can see the sadness and regret in his eyes. "You're not her." He finally realizes.

"What gave me away?" Caitlin softly jokes.

He smiles weakly. "The way you're looking at me. Caitlin...my Caitlin...she hasn't looked at me like that in years."

"What happened between you and her?"

"We met our senior year in high school. We went to early orientation for the criminal justice program at Central City University." He smiles, staring in his lap and fiddling with his hands. "We got all the same classes and stayed in touch over the summer. We just...had this immediate connection."

Caitlin smiles at him while he talks. "Iris and I grew up together and she started going to CCU our junior year. She had switched into criminal justice from psychology at Coast City. Caitlin and I had become...close. We had internships at the same departments the last two summers, me with CSI and her with the medical examiner."

"So what happened?" Caitlin asks.

"Iris and I started dating and she didn't like me seeing Caitlin too much. Then she tried to set her up with this hothead named Ronnie." Barry doesn't notice Caitlin's surprised reaction to this. "Cait was in a dark place when they met so she just let him get away with everything and it just made her worse. More isolated."

"They broke up and I thought she was doing better. She was a junior M.E. at CCPD and I was a junior CSI. I thought we were gonna get to reconnect y'know. But Iris got hired on as a cop and I never got to see Cait around much anyway. Then when Iris and I got married..." Barry sighs. "She brought Ronnie to the wedding. He got drunk and made a scene. Caitlin tried to calm him down, but Iris kicked them out and Caitlin got fired the next day for all of it. When she came in to get her stuff she snuck into my lab. We had the first real conversation we'd had in years and it was the first time I realized how lost she was. How sad and confused." Barry swallows and rubs the back of his neck, pulling his knees up and burying his head in them. "I told her to leave." He chokes out. "I wasn't there for her. She was my best friend and I just pushed her away."

"She went down to the coroner's lab to be alone and when the accelerator exploded that night..." He pauses and takes a deep breath. "The refrigeration unit malfunctioned and turned the room into a freezer. She almost died. But she might as well have. When she woke up she wasn't Caitlin anymore."

"Barry, it's not your fault." Caitlin says softly, reaching through the bars to grab his hands. "You're not responsible for what happened to her."

"Yes I am." He says sternly. "Because I was too much of a coward to stand up for myself and my friends. She was kind. Wanted to help people. She was funny and hopeful. Then I abandoned her and she turned cold and..." His eyes are sad. "You remind me of her. A lot actually."

"I mean I am her, kinda."

Barry just laughs softly. "What are you doing here?"

"Zoom has been sending people over to my earth to kill you. Or my Barry Allen. Came over himself not long ago and almost succeeded."

"Why would he be after me?"

"You're the Flash." Caitlin says. Barry gasps and leans back. Caitlin smiles at him. "We're trying to stop Zoom, but we really don't know that much about him. I thought maybe if I came over here I could find out more."

"I can help you." Barry says, standing up quickly. "We have a file on him back at CCPD."

"I have to get out of here first." Caitlin says.

"That won't be a problem." Iris says walking in.

"Do you just always hide around the corner?" Caitlin asks in disbelief at Iris's entrance again.

"Killer Frost was just spotted at the waterfront." Iris states, unlocking the cell. "So just who the hell are you?" She stares in angry curiosity at Caitlin.

Barry and Iris walk Caitlin back to CCPD while Barry explains who Caitlin is to Iris. Caitlin watches the way he talks to her. Carefully. Nervously. She's not sure if he's nervous talking to Iris or about Caitlin. Iris keeps a clenched jaw and doesn't face Barry during the entire walk.

When they get back Iris turns to Caitlin. "You're working to stop Zoom?" Her voice is now very official. Caitlin nods. "Well...as much as I hate it, we can use all the help we can get. But if you come to this earth, you come straight to CCPD. We don't need people panicking over Killer Frost walking around." She turns to Barry. "Show her the file. See what she knows." She turns to Caitlin. "Then you need to go back to your Earth."

Caitlin nods. Iris storms away. "She's much nicer on my Earth. We're actually friends." Barry looks at her in surprise. "At least I think we are." Caitlin looks down.

"What happened?" Barry asks as the two head up to his lab.

"We uh, we lied to her for a long time about you being the Flash. She just recently found out and....she's understandably pissed at all of us."

"We're still close then?" He asks. "You and me? I mean if I told you and not Iris. But I guess things would be pretty different over there."

Caitlin smiles as she sits back and watches Barry start pulling up files on Zoom. "Yeah we're close. But I met you because of your powers, so you really didn't have a choice but to tell me. You and Iris...Joe kinda ordered you not to tell her."

Barry scoffs. "Of course he did." He doesn't look back at her, but his jaw clenched while he continued searching on his computer.

"What?" Caitlin asks. "I take it you and Joe aren't close."

"I mean he's my father-in-law. But that's about as far as that relationship goes. He doesn't approve of Iris marrying me."

Caitlin laughs and Barry turns to look at her. "Sorry, I just...Joe practically raised you on my Earth. He's like a father to you."

Barry narrows his eyes. "What happened to my parents?"

Caitlin's face drops. "Um...your uh, mom was murdered when you were eleven. Your dad was arrested for her murder. He wasn't proven innocent until a few months ago. So you went and lived with Joe and Iris."

Barry nods, his face sad. "I guess our earths are pretty different." His voice is flat. "Here. You can come look through this."

He rolls back and lets Caitlin walk up and look at the files in his computer. She copies them over to a flash drive. She scans through them, not noticing anything immediately helpful.

"So who is Killer Frost?" Caitlin asks. "Iris mentioned her and she's in a lot of these reports."

"She's uh...she's you." Barry says hesitantly. Caitlin turns to him. "She's what you turned into after the accident."

Barry pulls up his profile on Killer Frost. In the corner of the screen Caitlin sees a picture of someone who looks just like her, but with stark white hair, pale skin, blue eyes, and a cold stare."

"That's me?" She asks in disbelief.

"No. That's Killer Frost. Who, looks aside, doesn't resemble Caitlin at all."

"I noticed you don't have her name on here." Caitlin points to the blank non-meta-identity box. "Don't want people to know it's Caitlin?"

"Cuz it's not her." Barry says quickly. "And if she ever gets better, she doesn't deserve to have to answer for what Killer Frost did."

Caitlin smiles at him.

Caitlin and Barry work in silence for a while, Caitlin scanning through reports and Barry making note of what metas Zoom has sent over, trying to look for a pattern. After a few hours they decide to go get dinner.

"Iris said I should stay here." Caitlin points out.

"Eh. No one knows she's...what she is. You won't draw attention." Barry assures her.

They go to a nearby lounge that Caitlin recognizes as Jitters. She walks in and looks around in awe at how different the place looks. Barry smiles at her as he watches her look around. They sit and eat, talking about the different metas they've encountered. When they're done eating they walk outside to go back to the station so Caitlin can pack up and go home. Up ahead they see some people arguing on the sidewalk, and it looks like it might turn violent.

"Here, we can cut through here." Barry says, grabbing Caitlin's arm and pulling her into a side alley.

Caitlin looks at him in surprise at the fact that he didn't want to make sure the fight didn't get out of hand. But then again, this was a different Barry. They start walking through a dark alley and are suddenly stopped by a patch of ice appearing on the ground in front of them. Barry's eyes are wide, but Caitlin just looks at it in confusion.

"Barry Allen." A cold voice says, drawing out the words. The voice almost sounds like a whisper, but is too loud to be one.

Neither of them see anybody. Suddenly a figure surrounded in cold fog emerges from around the corner at the end of the alley

The girl Caitlin saw in the Killer Frost profile on Barry's computer walks toward them.

"The missus let you out this late?" Killer Frost taunts. "Bad idea."

"Cait." Barry says softly.

"That's not my name." Killer Frost snaps.

"I wasn't talking to you." Barry says.

Caitlin walks out from behind Barry and makes eye contact with Killer Frost. Killer Frost narrows her eyes and walks toward them.

"You don't belong here breacher." She growls.

Barry takes a step toward Killer Frost. "Caitlin, please. Don't hurt her."

"Didn't ask you, bow tie." Killer Frost says, not taking her eyes off Caitlin. "Now, give me a minute with Caity here, would ya?" She shoots a blast of ice out of her hand toward Barry who is knocked unconscious.

"Barry!" Caitlin yells, running back to help him, but she's blocked by a wall of ice.

"Not so fast." Caitlin takes a deep breath and turns to face Killer Frost. "What brings you to our lovely earth today?"

"Just visiting." Caitlin says under her breath.

Killer Frost laughs. "Not likely. You came for Zoom. Alone." She laughs again. "That was stupid."

"I didn't come for Zoom." Caitlin says, begging the world to let Killer Frost believe her.

"Don't worry. He doesn't want you dead. Just your friend." Killer Frost assures her.

"Why doesn't he want me dead?" Caitlin asks, both grateful and nervous.

"You've been taking a lot of weight off his shoulders. Kinda like the Earth 1 branch of Team Zoom." Killer Frost taunts. "Killing his failed minions. Setting the Flash up for a trap. Even got him back on his feet so that Zoom could steal his speed. He really was worthless to us as a cripple." She turns to Caitlin and smiles. "So, thanks for that."

Caitlin opens her mouth to argue but Killer Frost freezes the breath in her mouth, blocking her ability to talk.

"I didn't know it was you until that one's wife let slip a clone of me was in town. But now that I see you, I can't say I'm surprised. We're opportunists, aren't we Caity?"

Caitlin's eyes are wide. She's focusing on breathing through her nose so she doesn't suffocate. "We find someone who makes us feel good about ourselves and we do anything to please them."

"Protect." Caitlin chokes out. Killer Frost lets her speak. "Protect them." She coughs, gasping as Killer Frost freezes her breath again.

Killer Frost scoffs. "Whatever you want to call it. We're not so different." Killer Frost is circling Caitlin. "I used to do it for good. You know what broke me? Heartbreak. Abandonment." She gets closer to Caitlin. "I wonder what will break you." She whispers menacingly to her. She steps back smiling. She turns to see Barry waking up. "Keep up the good work, Caity." Killer Frost encourages as she walks away around the corner.

"Cait?" Barry asks softly. He gets up and walks up behind her. "You okay?"

She's still trying to catch her breath. Her throat still feels frozen. He puts his hand on her shoulder. "We should go." He says softly.

She shakes her head, and looks up at him, her eyes wide and wet. "I'll see ya, Bar." She breathes out, her eyes unfocused and walks quickly away from him.

She walks to S.T.A.R. Labs, sneaking into Harry's office to grab her bag. She stops on her way out and stares at a picture of him on the wall.

Dr. Harrison Wells
Founder of S.T.A.R. Labs

She looks at the picture of him in glasses and a suit, a cold stare looking back at her. She swallows the breath and walks out to the courtyard, crossing it to the other building to get to the breach. Her breathing is picking up again, her breath feels thick. She turns to look back at the room. Back at her day. Then she stumbles through the breach back to Earth 1.

A/N:

Like I said, I have a tendency toward writing long chapters, but it felt weird breaking this one up.