Dedicated to @CamrynKissel, @joshuasmith943, @bloodypunkkk, @amorheartz, ThatSpiderKnight, and @Nicholas_Thawne, for all of their sweet views, votes, and comments on my Flash-themed stories! You are all fantastic writers yourselves :)

And a special dedication goes out to luciferandchloe2021 and damianflashpoint for their amazingly schway support of all my West-Allen stories! I truly love and appreciate every comment you both leave on my work :)

Author's Notes:

Hello to all my fellow Flash fans!

Hope you are all having a wonderfully great day (or that maybe if you're not then, this story can lift your spirits up a little bit) because you all deserve to feel nothing less than loved everyday :)

So, this particular oneshot you'll all be reading is centered around Barry and Nora's relationship towards the first episodes of the fifth season.

Which means that there's a lot of newly acquainted father-daughter antics, awkwardness, and most of all, love and it basically takes on a similar tone in story to that of the seventh episode of the season.

Which I can assume you all remember given Barry's iconic line of, "I'm The Flash for my family."

I mean, who could forget that?

So, be prepared to laugh first and ask quustions later on this one. Lol.

But before I do my whole outro thing about always believing in the impossible, I want to tell you all about the amazingly talented writer that I collaborated with to bring this story to life.

XSNoraWest-AllenFam is truly one of the most incredibly driven, descriptive, and just overall kind writers I've talked to on this app! I am literally OBSESSED with how sweet their West-Allen family centric stories are and am blown away every time I read anything they create using Nora West-Allen's character.

Which is lucky considering all of her character's parts in this oneshot were written by them!

It was so absolutely schway to write this story about one of the best pairings in the entirety of the Arrowverse together and I truly could've never done it without you!

In other words that aren't just me rambling, thank you!

Anyways, love you all and hope you have as much fun reading this story as I had writing it :)

And don't forget,

Nothing is Impossible as long as you believe in it :)

Two streaks of light, one orange, and one a mixture of that and purple, raced their way down the bustling streets of Central City, the warm noon glow of its bright sun shining along the many windows of various tall glass-paned buildings.

The busy streets seemed frozen in time as everything remained dead in its tracks, various people stopped in their everyday lives as if the world had stopped moving all together, all except for the two heroes moving along one of its paths.

Only that was just the way that a speedster viewed the world when running.

A strange, special feeling that felt as if you had the whole world to yourself, where you could run to your heart's content. Where you could leave all your feelings behind and just feel the rush of wind and thrill of electricity course through your veins.

One which Nora had only discovered she could feel recently.

But one that I can't seem to imagine life without now.

The first speedster, who was running steadily in the lead had orange sparks of electricity flowing across his slim form as his energy chained together to create the power that helped give him super-speed, his usually tousled brunette hair hidden by the heavily-armored helmet that covered his head. His body was covered nearly from head to toe in a scarlet red suit, the boots that outfitted his most important tool in his arsenal matching perfectly in color to the rest of his costume. Though, none of the bright colors of his suit could ever outshine the loving smile that always stayed on his face when he got to run alongside his daughter. Or rather, when she was just around in general.

The latter, her short semi-curly brunette hair flowing behind her, wore her white and purple jacketed supersuit, an electric and jittery lighting bolt emblem special just to her strapped to its center. Her bright yellow colored boots tapped against the ground at a rapid speed as she kept up with the man in front of her, her purple masked eyes making sure to never leave his sight as she watched her hero.

" That's my Dad," Nora thought, smiling widely as she looked admiringly at him from a few paces behind, seeing nothing but the perfectness of his run, the heroics that just seemed to shine with his presence, and most of all, the pure love and want to never leave his side that filled her entire heart. Like it had since she'd first gotten to meet him a few weeks ago.

He's everything that I wished he'd be, and so, so much more. I love him more than I've ever loved anyone in my life. He's my hero. I just need to try and show him that I can be one too. To make him proud. And what better way to do that than by taking down this new meta by myself!

The two speedsters sped to a halt, just in front of a public park, a large metal sign hanging above its open-gated entrance (though, none of its residents were quite sure why there even was a gate considering it was never locked in the first place). Written in printed black ink was simply the city's inspirational motto; In Our People, We Forever Trust Our Lives.

Which is such a schway motto considering it reminds everyone how much we all can help those in need!

"You'd think that for being three decades in the past this place would look a little bit different," Nora commented jovially, as she looked at the familiar looking sign of her city's park.

"Well, some things just never change, I guess," Barry laughed lightly before the two heroes sped through its open entrance.

All around them stood tall sycamore trees, their lime green leaves delicately attached to their long aged branches. A small portion of the wide area was devoted to a children's playground, plastic items of fun spread out across its grassy ground. Worn stone benches were scattered meticulously across the park, various citizens talking avidly as their eyes remained locked onto their cell phones. Though, what was a particularly strange sight was the black-cloaked woman near the peacefully sparkling fountain in its center, a large duffle bag slung over her right arm.

That must be the meta! I think? Or at least a crook? I mean, it's still stealing...

"Is this really the person that tripped the crime alert?" Nora asked her father, her voice ringing with a tinge of disappointment that she did her best to try and hide.

Which was admittedly not very well.

"Yeah, at least that's what Cisco said, but just keep your eyes peeled because we never know exactly how dangerous these metas can be. Regardless of how they might look at first," replied Barry, his attention still slightly taken by the woman's odd act of stuffing tiny silver coins into what one would usually think would be a body bag.

Though, that did bring up the question as to if there really were that many coins in the fountain or if she just brought a comically large getaway package. The latter seemed much more likely at this point.

"Don't worry Dad; I've got this," Nora told him, even if her heart sank a bit at the lack of spectacle that their new foe had brought.

How am I going to impress him by stopping a fountain robber?!

"I know you do," smiled Barry, reassuringly nodding at her before turning his attention back to their so-called criminal.

Nora felt a large glow fill her heart as she heard his words and briefly looked at her, feeling another swell of love and need to make him proud rush through her.

I mean, a fountain robber isn't the lowest of the low? It's something I guess.

"Since when did criminals start looking for gold in public fountains? Or is that just your preference of stealing?" The Flash quipped as he placed his red-gloved hands on his hips, XS watching him for a brief moment before, flipping her hair back slightly and trying her best to heroically do the same thing next to him.

"Hey, you're the one who decided to show up when whatever idiot called you here to stop their stupid wishes from being stolen," shrugged the woman, her red braided ponytail bouncing against her clothed back as she shoveled several more coins into her bag.

"Okay, firstly, it's not nice to call someone you don't even know an idiot and secondly, children's wishes are not stupid," corrected The Flash, jokingly.

"You're basically stealing kids' dreams," XS added, stifling back a laugh of her own.

"Can my first wish be to erase your awful onesie?" The criminal asked, sarcasm laced in her every word as she dramatically rolled her eyes.

"Ooh, I'm sorry but now I'm gonna have to lock you up just for that terrible use of a punchline," The Flash sighed as he easily got into a perfect running stance, one hand held steadily in front of him so as to give his body more momentum for his first move.

" I mean, do you know how many people use that?" XS added, putting one foot forward as she leaned ahead, quickly adjusting her sloppy posture to match her much more experienced father.

Now it's time to show him what I can do!

" Dad," Nora whispered over to him, trying to grab her father's attention before they lept into action.

"Yeah, is everything okay?" Replied Barry as he turned over to talk to his daughter, though he still made sure to keep a keen eye on the criminal, too.

" Oh yeah of course!" Nora reassured him quickly, repeatedly waving her hands back and forth dismissively to tell him everything was okay.

Oops. MMayyy have made it sound a little bit like something was wrong there.

"Oh, okay, yeah, no problem. What's up?" Barry asked, his voice sounding much lighter as he breathed a quick sigh of relief.

He was still learning the ropes as to what being a father to his time-traveling daughter exactly meant but the one thing he knew for sure that he was not going to mess it up. Which most certainly included never letting her get hurt.

" You get everyone here to safety. I've got this baddie," Nora stated confidently, leaning forward even further as her eyes locked onto the person that was about to make her impress her hero.

No way I'm going to screw this up.

"Nora, I don't know if that would be a good-" Began Barry before being abruptly cut off as Nora immediately rushed forward, her multi-colored electricity whipping into the air for a brief moment before she disappeared.

"So I guess I'm letting her take the lead like Iris suggested. Yay..." Sighed Barry, slight agitation hanging in his voice before he sped off to help evacuate any nearby civilians, lines of orange lightning zipping quickly behind his body as he left.

"Okay, so I guess we're actually doing this," the woman scoffed, angrily as she whipped her attention around to face the hero, the heavy black duffle bag still laden with mounds of its copper loot.

"Wait, who are you supposed to be? Another one of The Flash's dumb little sidekicks like that little boy? You know, Kid Flash," remarked the woman, raising an eyebrow in confusion.

" I'm the city's new speedster meta, XS!" Nora stated proudly, striking another quick pose confidently.

" And I am The Flash's new sidekick... partner? Trainee? Either way, I'm more than good enough to stop you," the heroine stumbled.

" But if you want, there's still more than enough time to just put the coins back over there," she added, pointing her white-gloved finger over to the fountain behind the meta.

" I'm pretty sure no one will really care."

I mean, it's like, what, ten bucks?

" What type of villain would just return everything they're stealing?! Plus, it's more fun when you get to play around with your loot," the woman declared, a wide grin of proudness covering her face as she effortlessly tossed a single gold coin into the bag's open mouth.

Needless to say between her flamboyant appearance to her snarky attitude, she was far from Central City's most humble criminal. Though, that general bar tended to be pretty low.

The kind of criminal that robs fountains, makes terrible one-liners, and's costume's a hoodie. Not exactly what I'd call Hall of Villain's material for the Flash Museum...

"Ok, but you asked for it!" XS exclaimed, before she felt a surge of electricity shoot through her body, charging forward at lightning fast speed as she raced straight towards the coin robber.

This'll only take a second. Then maybe Dad and I can find some other villain I can impress him with before lunch!

The woman rolled her eyes, impatiently as she flicked her right hand towards the stoned fountain. Two funnels of water immediately splashed forwards, their watery waves blasting the young hero directly in the face, sending her flying backwards as she hit into the grassy field a few yards away.

" Really?!" XS cried frustratedly, mostly to herself, small droplets of water dripping down from her short hair, her entire suit already drenched from head to toe.

How did I miss that?!

" Um, are you sure you don't need help, Nora, because we could probably do this together in like five seconds?" Offered Barry, hopingly as he ushered two more of the meandering citizens out of the park's grounds, his eyes carefully watching his daughter's every move to avoid her getting hurt.

" No, it's ok Dad! I've got her!" Nora said, quickly dismissing his suggestion, before rushing straight back at the robber, without giving her father any more time to object.

I'm not going to make myself look like a screw up over a petty thief!

XS raced towards the water meta as she dodged another of the criminal's attacks, the jet of water streaming past her in what she saw as slow motion as she side-stepped it, zipping around behind the meta as she tried to land a blow on her.

"Ugh, you stupid heroes really just don't know when to quit," the woman groaned as she threw both her hands forward.

Twin streams of water slowly moved up the black sleeves of her short trench coat, the power forming invisible gloves of sorts around both of her hands.

"Too bad, I have a deadline to meet!" She declared, punching both her closed fists forward as two beams of water blasted XS directly in the chest, sending her flying a bit further back as she tumbled to the ground, this time landing on some not so soft pavement.

" Oww..." Nora moaned quietly, holding her hand to her head briefly as she stood back up, her suit heavy from the waterlog it had been given.

Mom's gonna kill me...

" Nora, are you sure you're alright over there?" Called Barry, worry slowly creeping its way into his steady voice, though his concerns were met with even less of a response than the first had been.

Embarrassment, frustration, and desperation filling her chest, Nora charged straight back out towards their enemy once again, this time without even answering her father as she barreled straight at the coin-snatcher.

If I can't even stop this girl, then how am I going to be able to stop a true bad guy?!

Brashly, XS lunged straight towards the water-meta, narrowly dodging another stream of her persistent attacks as the heroine quickly closed the gap, colorful electricity fueling her movement as she channeled it all into her fist, which collided loosely with the side of the robber's face, making her slip backwards into the fountain that had once acted as her very best weapon.

" Looks like you're gonna need to reschedule," XS quipped, a large happy smile jumping to her excited face.

Yes! I did it! Which shouldn't have been that hard though...

" Hey Dad! I stopped the bad guy!" Nora called over to her hero as she cupped her hands around her mouth, leaving her enemy unattended while she turned her back to her.

"Great job! I knew you could do it!" Barry shouted back, a loving smile replacing the worry he'd felt prior for his daughter's safety.

Nora felt a swell of pride and happiness rise in her chest as she heard his praise and saw his proud smile, the feeling of having impressed one's hero.

I did it! He's proud of me! Well... maybe not yet. This was no Zoom. But it's a start.

Slowly, Barry's expression of happiness faded as he noticed a certain someone regaining their footing behind Nora, their enemy's fists clenched tightly as water rapidly rushed up both sides of her arms.

"XS, look out!" The Flash warned, dashing forward as quickly as he could towards their villain, lines of orange electricity sparking off his body with every step he took forward.

" What's wrong?" Nora asked confusedly, trying to figure out why her father was so concerned.

I already saved the day. What's Dad worried about?

Two rapid bursts of water blasted from both of the villainess' hands as she threw them forward once more, a wide smirk of satisfaction covering her slowed face. The Flash wasted no time as he quickly jumped in front of his unsuspecting daughter, letting the two furious waves smash roughly against his body as he tumbled down onto the hard concrete sidewalk several feet away.

" Dad!!!" Nora exclaimed in shock, as she quickly raced over to where her father lied with all of the speed her powers gave her, throwing herself down onto her knees next to him.

" Dad are you ok!?" Nora asked panickedly, as she placed both of her hands on his shoulders and shook him lightly, desperate to make sure that the person she loved so much was alive.

Come on, come on!

"I'm alright, Nora. Don't worry," reassured Barry, quietly as he let his breath from the blast return to his temporarily heaving lungs.

Nora didn't say anything as she just hugged her father tightly, pulling him close to her as she wrapped her arms around his form, never wanting to let him go, her entire body heaving as she left out a few rough sobs, fighting back the tears in her eyes.

"It's okay, Nora. I'm okay," he repeated softly, gently wrapping his arms around his panicked daughter's chest, too, as he tried his very best to calm her nerves, though it didn't seem to be helping altogether too much.

I'm not going to lose you. But I almost just did. And it's all my fault.

Because I just had to be excessive....

Star Labs, A Little While Later...

"And that should do it. Just make sure to take it easy for the next day or so and your speed healing should do the rest of the work," stated Caitlin as she carefully used the last strand of rolled beige medical tape to bandage up Barry's right leg.

His lower appendage was wrapped tightly in thick white gauze, the doctor taking extra care to avoid any chance of her patient attempting to make his injury heal any quicker than was advised by scratching and or prodding it.

" Though maybe it'll go faster if I give you a quarter and you make a wish," Cisco joked, bringing a laugh out of Barry and Caitlin, though not out of the fourth person occupying the room.

" Dad got hurt, and, and it's all my fault. I shouldn't have pushed so hard. I should've listened to him. He didn't get that badly injured; but what's to say next time he won't?" Nora thought upsetly, her worried eyes locked ever-moving onto her father's injured leg, the one of such that she had caused.

How long until I hurt him again?

"Okay, thanks for your help, guys. But just to be clear, when you say a day, is that in loose terms or..." Began Barry, though his words quickly trailed off at Caitlin's unmoving glare he and Cisco had officially coined her "don't even think about it" look.

" I mean, I'm sure that you don't have to..." Cisco started, his words dropping just as quickly as Caitlin's glare passed to him too.

"The whole day, got it," conceded Barry, only slightly defeatedly as he slowly slung his long legs over the left side of the bed, Caitlin handing him a set of crutches right afterwards.

" No Dad! You need to rest!" Nora stated quickly, as she jumped up from her seat next to him, gently pushing both of her hands against his shoulders to prevent him from going any further.

" Caitlin says that you need to take it easy for the whole day, right?" She asked hopingly, as she turned to the doctor, desperate for her to back her up.

I mean, he does need rest, but if I'm being honest, it's mostly because I don't want him to have to push himself anymore after what I did.

"Well, yes, he does need to rest. But when it comes to both your Dad's impressively fast speed healing and his insistence on never staying put, using crutches should be fine for him," reasoned Caitlin, nodding understandingly at the young speedster.

So much for backup.

"I appreciate you caring so much about me, though. But I'm honestly okay," Barry smiled, reassuringly at his daughter before gently getting to his feet.

He teetered for just a few seconds due to sheer clumsiness before finally finding his two left feets' footings, balancing the middle of his arms on the crutches' gray padded handles.

"See, I'm okay," Barry added, softly looking over at his daughter.

Nora just waited quietly for another few seconds, a deep frown set sadly across her face as she looked at her injured father, before conceding to him through her bitten lip.

" Ok, but you're not going to be doing anything hard, okay! I mean it! Work, superheroing, at home! I'm going to take care of you until you're better," Nora told him, as she frantically labeled off everything she was going to do for him, careful to make sure she didn't miss anything.

Can I just include everything as a category?

" Isn't that a little excessive?" Cisco smirked, to which the room fell deaf to as the other three just blankly stared at him.

"Tough crowd."

I'm still not entirely sure how much I love the name considering how I got it from Mom.

"Um, guys, could you just give Nora and I a minute, please?" Barry asked, gently, his head inconspicuously nodding to his daughter's nervous expression to tell his two best friends why he was asking.

"Of course," smiled Caitlin, politely as she and Cisco both exited the room, the latter still moaning slightly about his friends' refusal to laugh at his jokes.

" I'm like zero for two today. Maybe I can at least name the new pond meta when we find her," Cisco sighed.

"I'm sure you will. And you were really trying," reassured Caitlin, the two friends' voices slowly trailing off as they got out of earshot of the father-daughter pair.

Um, I really, really, REALLY don't think we need to be talking about this right now.

"Can you please tell me what's going on? You know, father to daughter?" Asked Barry, softly, his caring blue eyes looking searchingly into her brown ones.

No thanks.

"What's going on? Nothing's going on," Nora said quickly, shaking her head vigorously side to side to let him know it was true.

"I just... am late for work! You know, intern and all. Singh won't be very happy. Or at least if he's anything like Captain Holt. Which I think he is. You know, off of everything I read. Not that it's a bad thing! I mean, they are my bosses, hehe! Ok, let's get going!" Nora rambled nervously, words flying out of her mouth faster than even a speedster could catch up, before she quickly raced through the Cortex's exit, leaving its white arches as fast as she could.

"So that's what that's like," remarked Barry, running his right hand over his face in thought, almost causing his klutz of a self to fall over without the balancing of both his hands.

"Guess I should probably start going now considering I can't just super-speed out of here. And I'm talking to myself, again," he sighed before carefully grabbing his crutches' handles and hopping his way out of the room.

Though, he would take crutches any day over being confined to staying still for even a few hours, instead.

That wasn't great, but at least I got his mind off me for now. What I'm feeling isn't important; he is. I did this to him while trying to impress him, and now I'm going to give him the easiest, most laid back day of his life. No matter what it takes.

CCPD Forensics Lab...

The Forensics scientists' lab was quite different than most of the kind could say, being an attic that had been converted into a workspace just for Barry when there hadn't been enough staffing space in the department once he'd been hired. And while some could call it a little drabby and unorthodox, there were definitely perks to it, such as the huge copious amounts of space they had all to themselves.

The tall ceiling's walls were lined with several rows of large glass window panes that let the late morning sunlight in, its gentle glow cast delicately down across the rows of equipment stacked messily across the space.

One such window was located on the building's roof in the form of a skylight, a simple metal chain that was used to close it hanging loosely down on the ground below it, a rack of chemicals placed nearby.

The spot where something impossible had happened.

Where THE event happened. Where Dad became The Flash. And happened to become both of my biggest heroes, though he'll always be first as just Dad to me.

"Ok, so you have five case files pending on completion with just a few forms left to fill out, three that still need chemical analysis and reports submitted for them, and two samples that need to be sent over to Coast City for cross examination with some other elements from their department," Nora stated, clapping the vanilla folder in her hands shut as she finished looking through all of the work spread out across the wide metal table, stacking rather high up on its makeshift home.

"Were you even working before I got here?" She smirked jokingly.

"First of all, yes, I was," he started, Nora giving him a playfully doubting look as he spoke.

One of which he couldn't help but smile at due to its subtle similarities to her mother's.

"But it just so happened that Julian dropped almost half of this stuff over last night for me to do so, he could take his yearly vacation to London to visit his family. Though, it would've been nice if you know, he gave me an actual heads up next time before just a few hours in advance," explained Barry, trying his very best to both extinguish his daughter's disbelief while also balancing his actual annoyance of Julian's lack of communication.

Something the two lab partners seemed to struggle with even years after they'd become coworkers.

"Luckily, that's why you have me!" Nora beamed happily, smiling as she lightly rolled her head on her shoulders, showing the most giddy excitement known to mankind in the process.

I mean, the CSI stuff Dad and Julain know is like elementary school for me. I definitely can take care of it myself.

"Thanks, but I was actually hoping that maybe we could do this together. You know, since you've been asking me if I could show you a few things? Plus, it won't exactly be the most "active" job I could be working on right now," Barry suggested, hope carrying through his optimistic tone as he awaited his daughter's response.

Even though he technically hadn't said the words yet, there was literally nothing he wanted more than to show his future daughter the ropes (even if they were outdated) of the job they both shared. Or rather, giving them another first to share with one another.

Nora ecstatically took in a lightning quick breath of air to answer before hesitating, her mouth hanging open for a brief moment as she thought about her answer.

Her heart wanted more than anything to say yes, to jump up and down excitedly as she and her father set to work on one of their first cases together. To get to learn from him, spend more quality time with him, just get to share another moment with him. But that was just the problem; that's what she wanted.

I told Dad that I was going to do everything for him, and that means that's what I have to do.

"It's okay Dad, I can take care of it," Nora answered, pushing his offer away in the same motion of a half dismissive wave, as she did her best to prevent him from seeing her heart sink.

"Oh, I know you can take care of it, I, well...um, yeah. You're probably right. Doing it with super-speed will be much quicker," Barry conceded as he awkwardly scratched the back of his head, successfully masking the disappointment that slowly pushed through his veins at his daughter's words.

"Yeah. And once all of that's done, I'll take care of anything else Captain Singh has for you today! And maybe the rest of the week while I'm at it!" Nora declared with some sense of real enthusiasm, focusing on what she was doing for her father as to what she was missing out on.

"And then who knows what! Maybe the whole month!" She exclaimed, throwing her arms out widely as she did a small spin in the gray desk chair, already picturing the month's worth of easy days she could give her father.

Now that's what I'd call giving him a break!

"That's great, but maybe just focus on today's case files for now because it might be a little suspicious if any of us get done an entire month's work in a day. Especially since we can't do the actual examination of the crime scene until, well, the crime is committed," reasoned Barry, half-jokingly as he smiled at her enthusiasm.

"Yeah, it'll stand out as you being a great employee! Taking a ton of time and commitment to do your job in the flash of an eye." Nora winked, happily.

"And as for the crimes that haven't been committed yet... well I haven't really come up with an answer for that yet. But I will!" She reassured him, before quickly zipping into a flurry of work around the lab, flashes of purple and orange light dancing across its tall walls as she darted between various pieces of equipment and samples.

Maybe some time travel too? Well I couldn't arrest them now if that happened. I'd have to put together the case in advance of the crime. Wouldn't that make me look like I was planning it? Or more importantly, couldn't I stop it first instead? Wait, should that be what I'm doing now?!

Stopping crimes before they happen? But that would be wrong! I could always try and help them change before they turn to crime though! But will that damage the timestream even more? But what if I'm already destroying it by not helping them?!?!

"Yep, she is definitely the best lab partner I've ever had. Well, technically I've only had two others and well, they weren't exactly "great." Wow, there really is a lack of CSIs in this city, isn't there?" Thought Barry aloud as he watched his daughter speed around the lab, completing the tasks that would usually take the average person hours to finish, his mind inadvertently letting his inner consideration of his few coworkers pass through his lips.

Then again, Nora would never just be an average person to him.

"All done!" Nora stated proudly as she sped to a stop in front of her Dad, posing with her hands on her hips happily at her record breaking time that no other officer was soon to match.

Wow, if I'd ever gone that fast for Captain Holt I would've been her favorite person. Well, showing up on time would've helped too.

"Are you sure? I mean, not that I'm doubting you or anything, that was just really quick," Barry asked, slight skepticism hanging awkwardly in his voice.

"Of course Dad, this is the kinda stuff I do on slow days," Nora laughed confidently, matched only by the light nod of her head to accompany it.

If there was anything I can impress him with, it's my CSI skills. Since I have a three decades edge on him.

Without warning, a foamy green explosion erupted out of a chemical vial across the room from the pair, splattering messily all across the piles of just completed paperwork.

They immediately began to sizzle from its acidic touch, all of the speedster's hard work disappearing within mere seconds, along with her previous hopes and dreams of confidence, and any potential for impression either.

So much for that.

"You know, maybe I didn't let the lithium concentrate sit long enough before mixing it with the rest of our other chemicals and the sample," Nora squeaked awkwardly, wincing at her own embarrassment, doing so even harder after a second smaller explosion followed the first in the background.

"Maybe."

"It's okay. Trust me, I used to do this type of thing all the time when I first joined the force," reassured Barry, gently placing a comforting hand on his daughter's back, taking extra caution not to lose balance for the third time in one day.

"You burned all of your work because you went too fast?" Nora questioned, light skepticism in her voice as she looked up at him.

There's no way he's not just telling me this to try and make me feel better.

"Well...no, not exactly. But I did get so wrapped up in figuring out the chemical compounds used in these types of cases that I lost track of exactly where everything was supposed to go. Which was especially embarrassing when I accidentally, you know, tripped and knocked one of them on the ground and kinda, blew a hole through the floor. Though, on the bright side, Singh got a sun roof for a few weeks!" Explained Barry, laughing awkwardly at the memory.

"That's also when he made it a police mandate for every compound to be fully labeled and categorized before being added to the accessible supply list which in hindsight, probably should have been getting done already," Barry added, his voice carried by a mixture of laughter and understanding.

"That explains why there was already such a strict mandate on the labeling before I got there! I tried to redo them myself, you know, us CSIs, and accidentally mixed one up with the coffee creamer. That was one long day," Nora laughed, before gasping embarrassedly as she covered her mouth.

"Um, did I just say that? Please tell me I didn't just say that! I just said that, didn't I?"

My big mouth...

"Trust me, I've done much worse," reassured Barry, squeezing his daughter's shoulders, comfortingly.

He knew what it was like trying to impress your dad (well, at least he did after Joe pointed out that's what Nora was trying to do, that is), but it didn't honestly matter to him what she did because there's no world in which he wouldn't think she was perfect.

"I don't really think that's possible, I mean, you're you!" Nora exclaimed, gesturing amazedly at her hero, also known as her father.

"But, you know, with that... maybe it wouldn't be too bad, if I got a little help?" Nora offered sheepishly, more than ready to take her comment back if it would be too much for her dad.

Why did I have to push it? You were supposed to be letting him take it easy!

"That sounds great!" Barry smiled widely at his daughter, rubbing his hands together lightly in excitement.

"But nothing stressful! I mean it!" Nora told him concernedly, barely able to keep a strict voice with him.

"I will tell Caitlin." she added, with a playful but truthful light finger point.

"Nothing stressful, I promise," replied Barry, not really thinking that he needed the extra rest but loving how intent Nora was on making sure he got it anyway.

"Ok," Nora conceded, letting out a pent up sigh of stress as she let her muscles relax ever so slightly, being replaced by the joy she felt by being next to her hero.

But as soon as we're done here, I HAVE to make sure that I do everything else for him. I may have messed up earlier, and here, but I can't do it again. He deserves more.

"Then let's get started," urged Barry as the pair slowly moved around the spacious lab, cleaning up the chemical mess that was splattered across the room's various surfaces, some parts of the prior's wooden desk missing pieces of its wooden structure.

Yes, they most certainly could've done it a whole lot faster with super-speed, but they both preferred to take this particular moment a bit slower.

Something which neither father or daughter was usually keen to do, yet couldn't help but find themselves wanting more than anything as they rebuilt their workstation, together.

West-Allen Loft...

The soft warm yellow glow of the various lamps positioned around the living combined with the late afternoon sunlight to illuminate the open loft of Barry and Iris West-Allen, which had recently become home to a third member of their little family.

It had all the feelings of home that someone could ask for, not because of the beautiful tan wallpaper that lined all of the high walls, or the fully built kitchen or second story bedroom, but because of the beautiful memories that had clearly been made there already, smiling pictures of the happy couple sitting atop various pieces of furniture as they showed the stories the pair had already been able to make together.

And they still have a lot more to go.

... I just wish it was more than what they'll get. But that's what I'm here to do! To change that, one day. But that's not for right now.

"Nora, I appreciate all of this, honestly, but really I'm okay," Barry protested gently as he watched his daughter quickly lay another one of the family's thick white wool blankets over his carefully bandaged leg.

He didn't really enjoy the feeling of resting in general (unless that resting included spending time with Iris, though that wasn't exactly something that he would prefer, much less Nora wanted to discuss further), even less so being buried under the massive mound of thick blankets and fluffy cushioned pillows Nora was nearly suffocating him under the comfortable weight of, but the main concern he was focused on was his daughter's guilt towards their accident fighting the coin thief earlier.

"I know you keep saying that! But you took a really bad fall out there Dad! The only way you're going to get any better is if you take some time and rest! And what better way to do that then just sit back and let me do everything for you!" Nora explained cheerily, as she skipped over to the couch, tucking another two pillows under his arms, completing the marshmallow man look she must've been going for.

Barry sighed a heavy breath, deciding to mostly concede at this point to his daughter's excessive insistence on taking care of him. Though, the fact of whether it was to make her happy or because he physically could not get out from under the many layers of bedding she'd buried him in was still a mystery.

"Thank you, Nora. I really appreciate it. Honestly, the only thing missing from this is just Joe's homemade chicken noodle soup," joked Barry, lightly as he remembered the many, many times his adoptive father had taken care of him while he was growing up.

"Then that's what's next!" Nora exclaimed happily, her mind already filled to the brim with the happy and proud smile she'd get from her Dad after she'd brought it to him, the two sharing a warm and loving hug as he told her how much he loved her.

Yes yes yes yes! This is perfect! Or, at least a start!

"Ok, ok! You just stay here, watch some TV, and I'll be back in just a minute," Nora told him, as she tucked him in one extra time, before flipping on the television, quickly dashing with her hybrid purple and orange super-speed into the kitchen.

"No, Nora, wait! That's not what I meant!" Began Barry hurriedly before his eyes slightly trailed off towards the TV screen which was currently playing his favorite film, "Jurassic Park."

"Oh, Lan, why did you have to go left..." He thought aloud, his attention now fully grasped by the suspenseful scene racing across the screen just a few feet away from where he lay on the living room couch.

Nora took a quick glance back at her dad as she saw him completely entranced by the scene playing on the TV in front of him, smiling happily as she did a small fist pump silently to herself.

Yes! Now to make Papa Joe's famous Chicken Noodle Soup! Only one problem... how do I make that again? I'll just figure it out along the way. I mean, with the cooking Dad normally has to eat, it can't be that bad in comparison.

A torrent of purple and orange electricity filled the entirety of the loft's kitchen as Nora raced all around it, a frantic blur of motion as she dumped ingredient after ingredient into a large ceramic bowl before super-speed-stirring it as fast as she could, resulting in a large splatter of it across the tan-tiled walls, dripping down in its inedible chunky form.

"Okay, take two," Nora said awkwardly to herself, wiping some of the tan globs of it from her face and slopping it unceremoniously off her hand.

After another blur of motion and combination of ingredients, Nora slowly stirred the various vegetables and meats together, turning the mixture of food into a fine paste that looked at least...close to what her grandpa would've made.

I mean, it doesn't look that bad?...

But on her way over to the microwave, Nora clumsily slipped on the mess of the previous batch she had made a few minutes prior, her feet slipping out from under her as she went falling to the ground loudly, the ceramic bowl shattering next to her, and all of the pasty food inside landing directly on top of her head.

" Ewww..." Nora moaned as she tried to pull some of the glue-like substance out of her brunette hair, with very little success.

I really love my short hair, but I don't think I need to make it any shorter. But hey, at least Dad didn't hear anything!

After getting back onto her feet, the young speedster quickly whipped together a third batch following the same steps, the paste "perfection" turning out just like it had in her prior attempt, only Nora made sure to actually get it to the microwave this time, plopping it in for what felt like the longest five minutes of her life.

" Why can't I just, ugggghhh, use my powers to warm it up!" Nora groaned, as she pulled hard on the brick that now rested all across her hairline, having no more process in getting any of it out.

Maybe Dad'll have some hair product I can use...

The beep of the microwave jolted Nora back to her task as she looked back at the little electronic device that hung on the wall, carefully taking the food out of it as she (forgetting to use hot gloves) quickly dropped the bowl onto the counter.

She cocked her head slightly as she looked at the "meal" that she had made for her father, and its... untraditional look. And smell.

I mean, it's far from a Gordon Ramsey masterpiece, but if he can stomach Mom's cooking... at least it's the thought that counts?

And with that, Nora wrapped the bowl in a sunflower decorated hand towel, sprinkling a small amount of paprika (which she had learned was his favorite seasoning from Cecile) before bringing it out to her patient.

Hopefully he'll love this!

"I've got your soup!" Nora exclaimed excitedly, as she rushed over to him using her powers, barely able to keep all of the bowl's hot contents contained as she gripped the ceramic tightly.

"What? You did that for me? Nora, I really appreciate it, but I'm honestly okay," Barry repeated softly, his attention quickly turning back to the person it should've stayed on from the beginning.

Though, he was especially glad that Iris wasn't there to see this particular mess-up. Or really, any of the many embarrassing ones he'd had throughout the day.

"Yes I did and no you aren't. I know you keep saying that you're fine, but I hurt you this morning. And that, that's not okay," Nora blurted sadly, a rush of emotion she had been trying to hide accidentally slipping through.

Barry smiled sympathetically across at his daughter, but she pushed forward too quickly for him to actually get any words of reassurance in.

"But that's not what's important, what's important is that I'm going to make everything better. Or at least can start with this!" She exclaimed happily, her arms jutting out triumphantly as she presented him the contents of the supposed "meal" she had made.

The so-called "soup" seemed barren of the yellow liquid Barry was used to seeing in Joe's soup, or any for that matter, the starchy material of what was supposed to be the broth impossibly stuck to every corner of the bowl. Unevenly cut carrots lay messily at its bottom, soggy-soaked chucks of somewhat burnt brown chicken making up the rest of the interior's contents. Though, the true star of the dish was most certainly the murky orangish water which sloshed roughly inside its container, looking nothing short of an Iris West speciality dish.

"It looks great...thank you," smiled Barry warmly, successfully masking the uneven churning that seemed to be swiftly flipping around inside his stomach at the thought of actually eating the inedible dish that his daughter held in her hands.

Luckily, he'd had over a decade's worth of practice faking his enjoyment of not so wonderful food, though that didn't make his stomach hate him any less each time he performed said selfless actions, regardless.

"Really?! You think it looks good?" Nora asked hopingly, an expression that matched her tone hanging across her face as she looked expectantly at him.

"Of course! It looks exactly like the ones Joe used to make for me when I was kid," Barry replied, smiling thankfully at his daughter.

Though, he internally noted never to let Joe hear of their conversation due to the fact that he would either upset his adoptive father or, more likely, the latter would take it upon himself to get some playful revenge.

"Yes!" Nora thought happily, as a wide smile covered her face, tugging all the way up its sides as filled her entire expression.

At least I can do one thing right!

Unfortunately, Nora's want to please her father cost her again.

"Now just to hand it to - Woah!" Nora exclaimed, as her heeled boots slipped on some of the leftover soup that had stuck to it from earlier in the kitchen, throwing her into the air as her back collided with the nearby side table.

Oww...

But the bowl of steaming hot food landed fully on the cushioned speedster across from her.

"Oh, wow, um...that's really hot soup," laughed Barry, lightly as he slightly bit down on his lower lip, trying to unravel the monstrous amount of lovingly excessive blankets his daughter had buried his lower body beneath.

"No no no!" Nora exclaimed panickedly, as she quickly threw herself back onto her feet.

"Let me help!" she cried, as she rushed over to him, frantically trying to pull the colorful fabric from across his body.

"No, it's okay, Nora! I've got this," he quickly reassured her as he continued to pull the covers off himself, nearly having made it halfway in the time it had taken for his daughter to regain her footing.

"No... it's... not!" Nora cried loudly, as both her and her father's grips over the last blanket collided, both of them pulling temporarily before Nora's more forceful tug threw them both backwards and through the small once polished coffee table in front of them, falling down with a loud crash.

The two laid there for a brief moment before slowly stirring again as they sat upright, looking across at one another.

Nora felt a large swell of tears start to form in her eyes as she saw the mess that she had made, again, the person she was trying so hard to help and protect now sitting in a pile of splintered wood chips and soggy soup bits, both problems that she caused. Just like she'd felt multiple times earlier that day.

Just like every single one of them that's happened today! They're all my fault!

"It's alright, Nora. Your Mom and I didn't like this table anyway, got it from Oliver as a wedding gift," remarked Barry, softly as both of the two West-Allens started to stand up, though the prior nearly slipping back into the small pile of debris as he felt where his bandaged foot had twisted even more from the accidental fall with his daughter.

"Dad! Your ankle!" Nora cried worriedly, as she saw the painful wince flash across his face from when he'd tried to put pressure on it.

"No, I'm sure it looks much worse than it-" began Barry before his words were cut off by another wince of pain, making him take a quick second to breath as he dropped down onto their now baron couch.

Nora quickly helped brace him as she sat down on the couch beside him, the injured hero breathing lightly as he blinked his eyes a few times, trying to hide the pain that Nora knew he was feeling.

I did this! I hurt him! Again! Even after I said that I was going to take care of him! I still screwed up!

"No, no no!" Nora said quietly, her hands jumping to the sides of her head and gripping it tightly as her breaths began to become quick and frantic, her eyes locked on her father's injured appendage.

"I hurt you! Again!" She wailed, short-breathedly.

"It's not your fault. It was just an accident," spoke Barry softly as he swiftly propped his injured ankle up on the sofa cushion beside him so as to allow his full attention to return to his worrying daughter.

"Yes it is! It is my fault! My fault that you got hurt here, that I messed up in the kitchen, back at the lab, that, that you got hurt in the first place!" Nora exclaimed, quickly spiraling as her heart started to beat rapidly against her chest.

"All I've done is hurt you today! I just keep pushing and pushing, being too... excessive!!!" She blurted, wiping a tear out of her eye.

"Which is why I shouldn't have even come with you in the first place this morning," Nora finished, quietly, averting her wet stained eyes from her father's gaze as she looked down at the brown carpet that rubbed against the soles of her sticky shoes.

"I don't deserve to train with you. You need someone who can be a real hero."

Someone who isn't me.

"Hey, hey, hey, look at me," urged Barry, gently as he immediately pushed himself back into a sitting position, ignoring any pain that shot through his right leg in favor of helping his daughter.

He'd never really seen her look that upset before, or really, he hadn't known her for long enough to have seen it, but that didn't stop his heart from shattering at the sight of seeing the regretful tears slip down her cheeks. Or the constantly pulsating necessity that raced continuously through his entire mind, beating like an instinct he'd always had, even if he hadn't really acknowledged it until recently. The need to protect his daughter.

Though the two's conversation was abruptly interrupted by the sound of the live TV channel changing, switching over to an ongoing news report as the anchor stood in front of a bank, two large funnels of water creating a large arch over its gold encrusted entrance.

"We interrupt this program with breaking news," the man stated, as faint cries from panicked people echoed in the distance, making the reporter stammer slightly at the sight.

"We're downtown at the Hanos City Bank where some kind of new meta appears to be using her powers to force her way inside," he continued, as the camera zoomed in on the criminal as she blasted several jets of water into the sturdy structure, her hooded form a familiar sight to Nora's eyes.

"That's the meta from the fountain earlier," Nora voiced aloud, her watery eyes locked onto the screen as she looked across at it, an ill-thought through plan quickly forming inside her head.

A look that did not in the slightest go unnoticed by her worried father as he quickly pushed himself onto his feet beside her.

"Okay, we will be having this conversation as soon as-" Began Barry, his hands placed comfortingly on his daughter's slightly shaking shoulders.

"There's nothing to talk about!" Nora protested, fully believing in the wrong she had done.

"There's only one way for me to fix this," she told him, her mind made up as she looked at the television screen once more, letting her father follow her gaze.

"I have to do this alone. I-I'm sorry," Nora stuttered sadly, before whipping off and out of the cozy loft she called home, already on her way to the bank robbery to try and fix her mistake, her emotions carrying in her every movement, every flicker of lightning, and every step that seemed to power her forwards.

I've already made way too many of them since I got here.

Barry watched as his daughter's purple and orange lightning quickly disappeared, letting his hands slowly drop to his sides before the speedster breathed a heavy breath.

"This wasn't your fault, Nora. And there's no way I'm ever letting you go through something like this alone. Not again," he whispered to himself, determination carrying the entirety of his voice before he raced after his hurting daughter, a faded trail of orange lightning dissipating into the loft's empty air.

XS whipped to a stop at the front of the Hanos City Bank, digging her yellow-booted feet in as she barely skidded out of her Flashtime, her motions and breath still charged with the panicked and frantic feelings from her conversation with her father only moments prior.

All of which she knew were her fault, no matter what her dad tried to tell her.

But that's why she was doing this alone. To try and at least make up for some of it.

I'm going to do at least one thing right today.

"C'mon, just a little more power!" The coin thief shouted furiously as dual water streams blasted from her hands, the uneven waves moving across her arms like a snake's tail coils.

The heavy metal bank doors creaked ever so slightly in their hinges, though their so-called "attacker" seemed to think much higher of her skills for she let out a small evil chuckle as she watched her success coming closer to fruition.

"You really came back again? On the same day? Even after you got away the first time?" XS huffed, her hands shaking slightly as she tried to focus like her hero would.

"And you didn't even go through the front doors?" she added, gesturing to the open sign written in bold black letters that hung on the outside of the water blasted door.

Even for a low level baddie, this is really, really, really down there. Like cartoonishly bad.

"Ughhhhhhh, you again," moaned the criminal, her long red ponytail whipping swiftly around as she locked eyes with the speedster.

"Why can't you just let me have my fun? Break into some banks, steal some coins...You know, the usual coin thief type of things and then, I'll be on my way. Or are you goodie-two-shoes going to lecture me about stealing kids' dreams or whatever stupid thing you and your partner were rambling on about earlier?" The woman remarked, her entire voice being carried solely by sarcasm that could match the level of an Harrison Wells'.

"Not this time; this time you're going straight to the CCPD Precinct," XS stated, with as much of the little pool of confidence that she had left inside her, resulting in a much more squeakish tone than she'd hoped for.

"Aha, sure...And how exactly are you planning on doing that without the actual hero here, huh?" The villain questioned, tauntingly.

Nora felt a small chill go down her spine as she realized she was alone, even if it was only with an easy-going bad guy.

Only it wasn't because she was afraid that she missed having him there. Or why she regretted he wasn't.

Focus! You want to make it up to Dad? Prove you can do this!

"Luckily for you, you got the XS special tonight," XS stated, putting one foot backwards as she leaned forwards, ready to charge forwards at her foe.

Just don't screw up.

XS blasted forwards as she dodged around the villain's peripheral vision, making a full loop around her black-cloaked body as the hero's lightning backed fist slammed into the black dressed woman's back, knocking her down the small flight of stairs and onto the concrete sidewalk below.

"Okay, small fry, I'll admit that that wasn't an awful shot, but if you're gonna beat someone like me, you're going to have to do better than that," the criminal announced as she quickly shot back onto her feet, the heel of her silver boot slamming roughly into the concrete ground beneath her, causing a large shockwave of water to blast towards XS.

The speedster darted to the left as the jet of water blasted forwards, before seeing a crowd of civilians holding their phones up and filming the exciting event, right in the way of the attack.

XS quickly raced forwards and past the now slow falling tunnel of liquid as she zipped the citizens to safety, a light zap of multicolored electricity sparking off of her as she stopped in front of the water meta once more.

Superheroing One-O-One, always put the people first. Any comic geek knows that.

"Okay, I'm done messing around with you, Spandex. You're going down!" The villain shouted, fury now fueling the water spirals that raced up her arms.

"Um, hello? It's obviously not spandex!" XS protested, gesturing to the superhero jacket that covered her body.

Dad's is a little bit though...

"Whatever," the crook groaned, rolling her emerald eyes in agitation at the hero's lack of focus on her mastermind plan, as the two got ready to battle once more, before a streak of orange lightning interrupted the pair's duel.

"XS, there you are! You can't go running off like that," Barry breathed, concern still carrying his slightly tired voice.

"Dad! I mean, uh, Flash." Nora quickly corrected, her eyes temporarily darting to the meta nearby, though she honestly doubted that she had heard it more than the next city block over would've.

"What are you doing here?! I told you I had this; you need to go!" She pushed urgingly, her face slowly starting to become covered in panic once more.

"I'm not going anywhere when there's still someone attacking the city," Barry stated, just barely catching himself before he said the words, "until I know you're okay," to his daughter that by all accounts, wasn't.

Though, his tone just may not have been as convincing as he'd hoped it to be.

"Well, I have her this time, so please Dad," Nora begged him, lowering her voice as she took the few steps over to him, her sparkling teary eyes looking up into his imploringly.

"Don't let me hurt you again. Let me make a mess of everything again. I have to prove that I'm not a screw-up."

The words felt raw and painful to say, finally voicing them aloud to the person she'd hoped to never hear them the most, one of her most vulnerable sides completely out in the open for her father to see.

Letting him down.

I just want to be like you.

"You are not and could never be a screw-up, Nora. At least not to me," Barry reasoned softly, placing his red-gloved hand on her shoulder, caringly, who half-smiled back at him.

"I've had enough of this emotional sappiness for one day!" Declared the villain before she released two furious blasts of water tunnels towards the heroes.

"As if your coin robberies are any less corny!" Nora exclaimed quickly, as the water came straight towards them.

The speedsters swiftly dodged to opposite sides as the funnels of water slammed into the door behind them, before they raced behind a nearby silver sedan, regrouping as they planned their next attack.

Or more accurately, Nora tried to convince her father one last time.

"Okay, now that you're safe back here, I'm gonna go stop her," Nora stated quickly, as she tried to turn to leave before her Dad could protest, though his hand gently grasped her arm.

"Nora, stop, please," Barry pleaded as he tried his very best to keep his voice soft, despite his internalized anxiety towards keeping his daughter safe.

"I know that you want to do this by yourself and I fully believe that you can, but you don't have to. We're family which means we're always here to help each other and as your dad, you have to know that I'm never going anywhere, okay?" Explained Barry, his heart glowing vibrantly with love as he spoke the words he so strongly believed to his daughter.

The person he loved more than he could ever possibly be described to her or anyone else.

"But how can you say that?" Nora protested, watery eyed.

She was of course referring to the future, her future, where there was no Barry Allen to run the CSI department. No Flash to keep Central City safe. No husband for her mom to lean on.

No father she had ever known.

How can he promise after all of that?

"Because, no matter what happens in the future, whether we can change it or not, being right here, right now with you is all that matters," Barry stated softly.

"And I can't imagine any world that I'd ever leave you unless I had no choice. Unless I was doing it to save you," he added, bittersweet tears slipping down his cheeks, too.

Never would he ever want to leave the wonderful life he had in Central City as The Flash, with his friends, his family, his wife. And the one thing he was sure of is that no villain, no future newspaper article, no predicted death was ever going to keep him from becoming the father his daughter wanted to hold tightly onto for the rest of her life.

The father he wanted to be to get to be, for her.

Words couldn't seem to leave Nora's lungs as she just looked back at her father, what seemed like the still doomed future casting its dark shadow across her like it had done every day of her life since Crisis had come.

But somehow, despite still not knowing if it was possible to change the past, to save the future, despite knowing that she may still lose him again, something about the way that he looked at her, the kind and loving eyes that had always remained faceless in her dreams until recent days, the warm glow of his smile, the man standing in front of her, her father, filled her with an unmatched love that she'd wanted her whole life.

And that feeling, that person, that was something she had right now. In the present.

So I guess Dad's right. He is right here, with me.

Nora jumped into her father's arms as she threw herself into a hug with him, wrapping her arms tightly around him as she buried her head closely against his chest, the comforting beat of his loving heart sending a warm and soothing sensation through her whole body.

The unrequited love of a father.

Of my Dad.

Barry just wrapped his lean arms around his daughter's form, holding her tightly against him as he felt her head burying deeper into his chest. A feeling he couldn't possibly love more than he already did.

Then again, he didn't think he could love someone as much as he loved Iris until they met Nora.

And now, she was his everything, too.

"It's okay, Nora. I love you," reassured Barry, softly kissing her on the top of the head, his hands placed lovingly on each of her shoulders as they embraced each other's loving warmth.

"I love you too Dad." Nora smiled back, a few small tears of happiness dripping down the side of her cheek.

Just like I know you always will too.

"I thought I said no more emotional pep talks!" The criminal shouted, twin water blasts of fury erupting from her hands before slamming against the speedsters' current cover, sending the heavy silver vehicle flying through the air.

The large object's hood crashed roughly against the concrete road, its glass windshield shattering across the open space with a loud hiss of the shards clattering all around it.

"Well, luckily for you, we only do things quick," The Flash quipped, nodding swiftly at his partner, the two speedsters charging forward at the villain from opposite sides as their brightly colored lightning streaked in elegantly uneven lines of violet and orange.

The villain fired short water bursts from all sides of her as she tried to follow the quick-footed heroes' movements, the two always seeming to stay one step ahead of her.

The Flash and XS stayed close to one another as they ran next to each other, the electricity that pulsed through their bodies and crackled across their chests growing with each step they took forward.

And through the streams of colorful light, her own special form of lightning expression mixing beautifully with her father's as she viewed it in her own slowed time, Nora once again found herself smiling up at her Dad, the pure love that she had for him shining as perfectly as the two hearts that were bound together in the little world the two had created. Barry's smile was nearly as loving as his daughter's, only there lay a distinct hint of proudness behind his bright blue eyes. A proudness of the woman his beautifully excessive daughter was becoming, both as a hero and a person, in general.

The water meta quickly began to get dizzy as the flashing lights raced all around her at lightning fast speeds, until the tornado of electricity suddenly came to an abrupt stop, the pair channeling all their speed as they darted back in a straight line together.

And then, before the criminal could react, The Flash and XS charged forwards in unison, putting all of their power into their lightning charged fists as they punched the woman's chest.

The combination of orange and purple electricity transferred itself through their arms and into the villain's body, before she launched down the short steps of the bank, landing on her stomach as she laid in the large pool of water that she had formerly created.

"I guess you can say crime doesn't pay," XS quipped, immediately regretting the pun as soon as it left her mouth.

It's okay. I'll get it someday.

"Okay, not gonna lie, that one hurt a bit more than I expected it to," moaned the coin thief as she rolled over on her side, her long hooded black cloak now drenched in soggy water.

"But it doesn't matter! Because no stupid little heroes are going to stop me from getting the money that I rightfully deserve!" The woman exclaimed as she angrily pushed herself back onto her wobbling feet, quickly regaining her balance so as to seem more "professional."

"You know that if you rightfully deserved something you wouldn't have to be stealing it, right?" The Flash remarked, his hands casually placed on his hips, XS quickly following suit once again.

Dad's so schway.

"Well...yeah! But the money belongs to the people of Central City! The ones of us who can't get help like some of you spoiled brats!" The villain shouted, throwing her right hand down in exasperation.

"Dad," Nora whispered quietly, getting her father's attention.

"Do you think she's telling the truth? Is she honestly just trying to make a living?" Nora asked her father, her young and impressionable eyes quickly searching his expression so as to figure out what context clues she should be picking up on and which were just deception.

"Just wait for it," Barry answered, understandingly as he nodded for the inevitable add-on he had a distinct feeling was about to follow their criminal's angry protests.

"Or the criminals who just have other ways of working for it," the coin thief muttered, inconspicuously scratching the back of her head.

"And there it is," Barry sighed, rubbing his temple, disapprovingly.

There was nothing that was more important to the lightning-hearted hero than helping the people who couldn't help themselves, the ones that sometimes even the CCPD couldn't help. But those natural instincts also came with his keen eye for telling when a criminal was trying to guilt him into giving them what they wanted. Though, that latter skill was definitely a long learning curve.

"But that doesn't mean I'm done, yet..." The woman groaned as she tried to regain a calm posture before the heel of her left boot slipped slightly in the puddle of water beneath her, making the villain fall face first on the wet concrete pavement, both Nora and her father wincing slightly as she fell.

"Nevermind, I think I see what you were saying," Nora giggled lightly, trying her best not to laugh at their foe's misfortune.

"Ugh..." Grunted the criminal, her determination finally yielding as she just laid on the ground, a look of frustrated defeat covering her face.

"Well, I'm pretty sure this problem's done for the day. Do you want the special honors?" Barry offered, smiling softly at his daughter as he nodded encouragingly towards their fallen foe.

"Wait, but isn't she already down? You want me to... " Nora rambled confusedly, making a punching motion with her left fist.

"Oh, Oh! You mean with the meta cuffs! Duh!" Nora laughed, realizing her mistake once again after having already let it slip out, as she slapped the pair of meta cuffs on the criminal, effectively neutralizing her powers as it lit up a bright sky blue.

"Yes! We did it! This is so schway!" Nora exclaimed, as she jumped into her father's arms once more, the smiling hero wrapping his arms around her with just as much elated love as the younger hero's heart held.

Another tally for XS' defeated Rogues!

"Most importantly, I got to do it with my daughter," Barry added, proudly looking at his daughter's excited face.

The two speedsters soon heard the sirens of their favorite police team's cars, their black and white vehicles slowly coming to a stop a few feet away from the heroes.

The two shared one more quick smile between each other before they blasted off in unison, the vibrant trails of their colorful lightning soon fading as the police pulled up to arrest the criminal, the late afternoon sun shining gracefully in the background over the protected city.

Two Hours Later...

"And there you go!" Nora exclaimed as she finished putting the last ice pack around her father's slightly swollen right ankle, his sturdy frame resting gently up on the family's couch once more, only without the excess of pillows and blankets this time.

Though one or two didn't hurt.

"That's perfect. Thank you," Barry smiled warmly at his daughter, feeling the cool sensation of the ice soothe the soreness in his injured foot.

For even though he hadn't exactly been as hurt as his daughter's reaction may have first entailed, that didn't mean the speedster wasn't appreciative of the help, regardless.

Especially if said assistance was coming from his favorite person in the world, after all.

"Only the best for the best Dad," Nora smiled happily, as she plopped herself down next to him, taking in a deep breath before deciding to talk about what had gone down all of earlier.

"I'm really sorry, about everything," Nora started, continuing quickly before her father could interject.

"About all of my babying, and freaking out, and excessiveness," Nora laughed awkwardly, rolling her eyes lightly as she brushed a strand of her still gooey hair to the side of her face.

"I just... I really wanted to make you proud today. I want you to see me like I see you; perfect. Great at everything you do, giving more love to everyone else than you'd think someone even could, being a true hero. The best hero. My hero," Nora explained, her sparkling hazel eyes telling Barry how rawfully true her words were.

"And well, my Dad," she finished, smiling up lovingly at her father.

And that's greater than all the rest combined.

"Well, not me being like your Dad, since that would be weird since I'm your daughter and he's my grandfather, but in the way that you love your Dad! Well not like that since you're mine and I'm your kid but..." Nora rambled nervously, awkwardly rubbing the back of her head only for her hand to get temporarily stuck in it, before she painfully pulled it loose.

Barry just laughed lightly at her rambling, an appreciative smile covering his face as he listened to her sweet words.

"Oh, no, I totally get where you were going with that," reassured Barry, understandingly.

"And it couldn't have been sweeter, especially coming from a daughter as great as you are. Thank you," Barry added as he smiled lovingly at Nora.

"And you never have to worry about making me proud, because you just being your amazingly excessive self? The person who spends every minute of every day just looking out into the world, trying to help everyone she can. Who never stops smiling, even when things get harder. The woman who never stopped believing in...in me. That's the person I'll always be the proudest to call my daughter," spoke Barry, softly as he extended his hand across the sofa and rested it caringly on top of hers, their loving warmth for one another shared by even just a single touch.

"And as for the whole trying to impress me thing? Yeah, trust me, I tried to do the exact same thing with my parents too, which was especially a feat considering I have three of them," joked Barry, though he would only ever think fondly of any moment he got lucky enough to share with any of his parents.

Just like he would any moment he got to be there for his own daughter now.

"I'm sure you got it the first try," Nora replied, softly.

"Yeah, I really wish I could say yes, but that would be so far from the truth, especially with Joe. I'll never forget that mechanical plane incident in middle school," Barry sighed, slightly embarrassedly.

Things had not landed smoothly that day, to say the least.

"Well now at least you can feel how they felt when you tried to show them how much you looked up to them. And it's not that bad, right?" Nora asked, the full beauty and inner glow of his daughter's heart suddenly striking the red and golden speedster as she looked up at him.

"No, it's the best feeling in the world," replied Barry, a smile of pure happiness covering his face that only his daughter could bring out of him.

And without another word, Barry just pulled his daughter into a tight hug, holding her entire body close to the only place he ever wanted her to be.

His heart.

"I love you Dad," Nora said softly, as she just listened to the beat of his warm heart.

"I love you, too, Nora. And I always will," Barry whispered back, giving his daughter a gentle kiss on the forehead.

And now I know, that just like how I'll always love him, and always see him as the hero he really is, he'll always feel the same way towards me. There never was a way to not make him proud. Because he loves me.

The two stayed locked in each other's embrace for several minutes more, neither father nor daughter wanting to let go of the person they loved with all their hearts, the latter nestling closer into her father's arms, though making sure to avoid reinjuring his currently resting leg, of course.

The quiet click of the door unlocking was soon followed by the nosier clicks of the next several locks, until the loft's oak front door was finally available to open, the third member of the West-Allen's little family stepping inside as she shut the door behind her.

"Hey guys, did you have fun... today." Iris started, before stopping dead in her tracks, the gooey mess of the kitchen, the broken chunks of their coffee table, her daughter's sticky mess of hair, and her husband's broken ankle all coming into view at once.

Though all of her questions and confusion soon disappeared as she saw the heart-warming scene between Barry and Nora.

"Hey Mom!" Nora cried, still not getting up from her position in her father's arms.

"Hi Iris, how'd your case go in Coast City?" Asked Barry, his attention turning to his wife, though his arms still stayed around his daughter.

"Great, but still no leads on Cicada yet. Though it sure was fun listening to Ralph and Sherloque go on about it for hours on end," Iris sighed annoyedly, dropping her black purse down onto the nearby coat rack.

"So you didn't do any arguing with them?" Nora smirked, knowingly.

"Not that wasn't to break them apart, not that it did much to help." Iris laughed.

"Yeah, that sounds like them," laughed Barry, his mind evidently envisioning the very same type of conversations he'd been forced to endure via Cisco and Harry's arguments for years.

"So, it looks like you guys had a good time?" Iris laughed once again, gesturing to the large mess that had consumed the open loft around them.

"Yeah, um, it was a long day," Barry smiled awkwardly, Nora shaking her vigorously in an awkward agreement.

"Well, as long as you guys are happy," Iris responded, giving Nora a light kiss on the forehead and then Barry on the lips, before gesturing down with her eyes to his injured leg, of which he just shook his head to tell her he was okay.

"Then I'm going to go take a shower and get the smell of fish out of my hair," Iris stated, with an exhausted groan.

"Don't ask," she quickly added, cutting both her husband and daughter off before they could do just that.

"And when I'm done I can help with your hair Nora," her mom added as she finished climbing the staircase to the second floor, disappearing into its wide spread of space.

I love you too Mom.... wait, what's wrong with my hair?!

"Wait, what's wrong with my hair? Is it that bad?" Nora questioned suddenly, as she turned back to her father, little droplets of the encrusted goo splattering against the back of the couch as she did so.

"Oh, no, it looks great," reassured Barry as he swiftly rubbed the gooey tan substance off his right cheek, something which had inadvertently been smeared on during their loving father-daughter hug.

His voice may not have held the most convincing of tones, but luckily, Nora didn't quite know what his overly polite way of saying something looked bad really was yet.

Though, he hoped someday she would.

"Ok, good," Nora said, sighing a breath of relief.

"Hey, do you want to clean this up, you know, together?" Nora asked, hopingly.

"Yeah, of course," smiled Barry, knowing exactly what his daughter was trying to do, yet still not having the willpower to say no.

"Especially since you were doing it for me, after all," he reasoned as the pair slowly pulled out of their hug, the prior gently lifting his leg off the couch and back onto the carpeted ground, the wound almost completely healed.

And then the two set to work cleaning up their mess, one which even though Nora had caused, even if out of good intentions, her father was still there to pick her up and help her through it. Just like he'd always be.

Because the love he has for me, that'll never, ever go away.