AN: Thank you so much to everyone who has left kind and encouraging feedback on this story. Your support has meant the world to me as I tried to get this where I wanted it to be. I'm still actively working on this and want to finish it as much as I did the day I began it. I estimate there will be 4-6 more chapters (though how accurate are my estimates, really? ;) and I hope those of you still here with me continue enjoying it!

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Caitlin wasn't sure how long they stood there together, but Harry was the one who broke the comfortable silence, breath ghosting the top of her hair when he asked, "Do you know how much this kills me?"

"What?" She forced herself to look up at him, and even though she knew better by now, part of her always feared whatever she might find on his face when he said things like that. "The timeline changing? Or that I'm… That I can't remember?"

"Neither," he said firmly, neglecting to mention those were questions she'd asked in the past. He brushed a kiss over her forehead, like he wanted to erase her worry in whatever way he could. When he pulled away to meet her eyes, she saw the guilt in his own. "It kills me that I can't give you the answers you deserve."

"I know it does." And now they were back to something she'd heard from him before. (It seemed they were both destined to always circle back around to the same self-recrimination.) "But none of this is your fault."

"It's no one's fault," he agreed, "but I still feel like…I've failed you on this."

She barely stopped a wince at the actual twinge of pain she felt upon hearing that. For him to feel like he was the one who hadn't done enough… "It's ironic you'd say that when I'm the one who hasn't been able to retrieve any real mem–"

"Stop. Stop." He lightly ran his fingers through her hair, but not all the way, leaving his hand to cradle the side of her head. "The fact that you can't remember is irrelevant to me. I love you. Not your memories."

She dropped her eyes, even as she couldn't stop herself from leaning into his hand. "You've told me that before."

"And I'll tell you again and again. I'll tell you every hour, of every day –"

"– for the rest of our lives?" she finished, smiling up at him, shaky though it was. He'd first told her that two months ago, in a cold parking lot, at the end of their 'first date' (the first one she could remember). The exchange was seared into her memory and she prayed it always would be. "That is one thing I haven't forgotten."

"I'm never going to let you, either. Because it's true. And Caitlin –" He tugged so gently on her hair that she could barely feel it, but it ensured he had her full attention, "– it's okay to want the reassurance. It's okay to need it. I don't mind giving it. I'd do… I'd do so much more than this for you." He sighed, briefly shutting his eyes. "You can't even begin to imagine."

"Harry…"

"It's –" He abruptly broke off, curling his fingers in her hair. "It scares me," he admitted, once he found the words. "What I would do for you."

"It doesn't scare me," she told him, leaning incrementally forward.

He laughed ruefully and let his hand slide through the rest of her hair before falling away. "It really should."

"It doesn't," she insisted. Promised. And she held his gaze to let him know how much she meant it. In another life (another time?) his willingness to do the wrong things for the right reasons might have given her significant pause, might have caused her to reevaluate him, or worry about exactly what lengths he'd go to if he deemed it necessary. But here, now…it only reassured her. "The timeline dropped out from under me and left me in a world – in a life – that was somehow both the same and different in so many ways. It continues to surprise me on a daily basis and I'm still trying to figure it out." She swallowed, throat suddenly dry, reluctant to admit that… "I might be trying to figure it out for the rest of my life."

"And I'm going to be right here," he promised, "figuring things out with you." He'd spoken without disappointment, or resignation, or…resentment. (He was none of the things that she was always terrified he might be when it came to her.)

She took a moment to make sure she was composed before speaking again; he had this way of emotionally overwhelming her that she was still trying to navigate (and she wondered if her other self had ever gotten used to it). "After everything that happened to me? To both of us? I needed…" She took a breath, remembering their recent conversation about this, that it was okay to feel it as much as she did. "I need you."

"Same back at you."

She nodded, but she wanted to explain further, because she didn't think he fully understood what she was saying. "I need every side of you, Harry. Not just the intellectual side, so we can work through problems together. Or the gentler side, to help reassure me. Or the humorous side, so we can relax and alleviate some of the stress and turmoil that our lives so often become."

"To your last point, I think firing our whole team would go a long way in that regard, as well."

She was surprised into laughter and gave him a push light enough to ensure he went exactly nowhere. "This is what I mean."

He traced the curve of her smile with his thumb. "I couldn't resist."

"You can never resist," she said fondly. "It's the one of the many reasons that I love you."

"Well, if you want to start listing them, I'm more than happy to listen. But you might want to save it for when we're at home, because I have no doubt it'll take you a very long time."

"It actually would," she agreed. "So let me settle for reiterating that I need every side of you. That includes your relentless drive and persistence. It includes anger and your particular brand of focused intensity." She could feel her heart beating faster, hoping he'd take this the way she meant it. "It includes deceit, and manipulation, and…darkness." The humor was gone from his eyes now, just as she was sure it was gone from her own. "It includes the side of you that will do anything to keep your friends and family safe, that does whatever's necessary to keep everyone safe, including people who come to us for help – people we've never met before that day. What I'm trying to say, Harrison, is that your ends justify the means, to me, because I know you." She leaned up to brush a kiss over his mouth, and whispered, "I know who you are."

His eyes were shut when she pulled away, and it took him a few seconds to look back down at her. "I…try not to…" He trailed off, falling silent again, but she knew where he was going with it. There were some aspects of himself that he tried not to show too much.

She'd always been acutely aware that Harrison Wells was all of the things she'd said. They were as much a part of him as his passion for S.T.A.R. Labs or his genius intellect or his love for her and their friends. But she was equally aware that he often tried to suppress those darker tendencies, because his moral compass was a lot different from theirs, and he never wanted to do anything that would cause them to see him in another way. He never wanted them to question his decisions or his motivations or his love for them. Because he could be all of those things and still be a good man, still be the one she'd come to accept that she (that everyone, maybe the entire city included) didn't want to live without.

"I know who you are," she slowly repeated, giving each word its own weight. "And I don't know if you remember, but the day after the timeline changed, I told you that I like all the ways that you are. I was talking about all these same things back then, even before we became…" She lifted a shoulder helplessly, and he searched her eyes, probably looking for the truth. "I still feel that way now. The only difference is that it's…more." She willed him to believe her, because his expression wasn't giving anything away. "I love all the ways that you are."

"I never…" He swallowed, taking an uncharacteristically slow breath. "You never said anything like that to me before."

She instinctively knew he meant back when they were together before the timeline changed. "That doesn't mean I didn't feel this way. I always knew you, Harry. Even in my own timeline."

"I know you did, so I just assumed you were…willing to…look past those things."

She actually reeled backwards at that. "Did you think I married you in spite of all that?"

He shrugged, and the look on his face…she wanted to go her whole life without seeing it again. "Caitlin, you are a far better person than I could ever hope to be. The things I've done… The things I would still do, without hesitation… What other conclusion could I have reached?"

She wanted to cry and berate her past self and fix this in whatever way she could. She wanted – she wanted. She didn't even realize what she was doing until she set a hand over the wedding ring she still wore on a necklace under her clothes. (She hadn't gone a day without wearing it since the first time she'd put it on, back on Christmas.)

"You were wrong," she said, with such fierce and vehement conviction that she barely recognized her own voice. "You were wrong. And if I married you today, it would be in spite of nothing." She reached up to press her hands to either side of his face. "It would be because of everything."

Instead of saying anything, he pulled her back in for a hug that was a little too tight, meaning he needed it more than usual. (And when her hold on him was too tight in return, it meant that she did, too.)

"I'd never be afraid of you," she whispered, returning to what was maybe the heart of the entire matter. Everything in her twisted as she remembered the way he'd tried to tell her that she should be. (Because he'd thought if he said it first, that would make it hurt less when he inevitably heard it from her.) "The person I feel safest with is you." And that was something she desperately needed in this timeline; she needed it in a way she'd never known before.

He pressed his lips to her temple, voice low when he promised, "No matter what happens from here on out, with us, or the timelines, or anything…we're going to be fine."

She felt all the building tension from their unexpectedly heavy conversation dissipate, because she'd heard what he hadn't said: they'd be fine because he'd make sure of it.

It immeasurably comforted her in a way she'd never be able to fully express with words.

"We will," she agreed, voice muffled in his shirt. "I'll make sure of it, too."

"We'll make sure of it together," he vowed.

"Oh great," came an irritated voice from a few feet away. Cisco's voice. "I leave you two alone in produce for fifteen minutes and come back to…" Caitlin couldn't see him, but she guessed he was probably gesturing wildly in their direction. "…whatever this is."

"I forgot he was here," Harry sighed into her hair, as Caitilin laughed against his shoulder. He continued much louder (and painfully slowly), "This is called a hug, Ramon. You might recognize it if you had anyone who wanted to be this close to you."

"Gypsy's on a job," Cisco plaintively whined. "I already told you this. Caitlin, back me up."

"Gypsy's on a job," she dutifully repeated, stepping back from Harry so she could see Cisco standing nearby, a foot propped up on the bottom of his own cart as he leaned on the handle. "And as I already demonstrated earlier, Cisco, I'll hug you anytime you want."

Cisco shot Harry a smug grin, but when he turned back to Caitlin, his smile transformed; it became something much warmer, with a hint of apology in it, and she knew he could tell that he'd unintentionally interrupted a moment much deeper than a casual hug. He held out his arm in invitation and she rounded his shopping cart, coming to a stop at his side where he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "I love you, Cait. So much so that I'm willing to overlook your taste in husbands."

"Please," she scoffed, nudging him in the side. "We all know you love him more than I do."

"Lies!" Cisco exclaimed. "Terrible, horrible lies. How dare you!" He made a show of pushing her away, though the exceedingly gentle way he did it took any bite out of his teasing action. He held up a hand to whisper behind it to Harry, "Call me later when she's asleep, okay?"

Caitlin started laughing as Harry tilted his head back, staring up at the ceiling and running his hands through his hair. She often wondered if he might run out of exasperation with them someday, but given the people they spent their lives with…it was highly unlikely.

"How are you people my life?" he complained, mirroring her thoughts. "How did it happen? I really want to know."

"You got lucky," Cisco smirked. "That's how."

"No, you got lucky when I happened to wander onto this Earth – don't try to spin it the other way around."

Cisco was tapping his fingers on the handle of his cart. "I don't remember it unfolding exactly that way."

Like usual, even though Harry knew he was being baited, he still had to point out that Cisco was wrong. "I saved S.T.A.R. Labs from bankruptcy," Harry needlessly reminded them, for the 300 millionth time, "and in the process, I saved all your jobs – and that led to a long list of undeniably beneficial things that I won't even bother naming, since we don't have infinite time to spare this afternoon." He ignored Cisco exaggeratedly scoffing in response to that. "But most importantly, rebuilding the lab directly led to revitalizing – most would call it saving – this city."

"Thank you, Oliver," Cisco said mockingly. "We're eternally grateful."

Harry paused (Caitlin suspected so he wouldn't accidentally laugh) then pointed at the younger man. "I bet you don't show Queen this level of disrespect."

"It's reserved only for you." Cisco was grinning, though it faded when he mumbled, "Not unrelated…but I think he could kill me with a handshake."

"I want to amend what I said before," Harry told them imperiously, "you're not just lucky – you're incredibly lucky."

"How about we agree we're all lucky to have each other?" Caitlin suggested, taking a few steps over so they were both forced to look at her instead of each other. She knew their entire 'argument' was a joke, like usual between them, but she still felt their team's mutual appreciation and love for each other was something they should acknowledge more often than they did. (As it was, they certainly did it more here than they did in her own timeline, and it was one of the things Caitlin loved most about this one.)

Both men switched their attention to her, then met each other's eyes over her head. After a few long seconds, Cisco confirmed, "We are lucky," though he seemed confused, probably because her serious tone didn't match the lightheartedness of the current conversation.

"We are," Harry agreed, beckoning Caitlin closer to him. He didn't hide his concern when he asked, "Was it ever in doubt?"

"No." She ducked her head, feeling suddenly self-conscious, and fiddled with the sleeves of Harry's pullover that she was wearing. She unfolded and refolded one of the cuffs three times before realizing she'd have to give in and explain or they'd remain at a stalemate for the rest of the afternoon (it was her luck that she had the habit of loving people more patient – and stubborn – than her). "I just like…when we say it. Or show it. That's all."

She belatedly realized that was something she never would have said before, that the need for that kind of reassurance was something she'd probably never even felt before. Because Harry was right; she knew how much they all cared about each other, so the inexplicable desire for further proof of it was unnerving to her.

But she could be forgiven, right? After everything that had happened? Harry had just told her it was okay to want reassurance, hadn't he?

Neither Harry nor Cisco were saying anything, and she couldn't make herself look at either one of them, second guessing herself as the silence went on. Try not to show the differences. It was a constant inner mantra when it came to things like this and she was trying not to be as overly conscious of it as she usually was, but –

She jumped and shrieked when Harry and Cisco both hugged her at the same time, from opposite sides. "Okay, okay!" she gasped through her laughter at their exaggerated display, which was close to an exact reenactment of their hug from when they first got to the store. "I get it, I swear!"

"You better," Cisco told her as he stepped away, allowing Harry to pull Caitlin back against him. "And we're never going to let you forget it."

Not for the first time, Caitlin considered how grateful she was to have these people in her life (and never more so than now). "Thanks, Cisco."

He nodded and then tipped his head in thought. "I mean, unless the timeline changes again and you forgot…uh, again? But we'd still remind you it was true!"

Caitlin smiled a little at his genuine sentiment, but she couldn't help the automatic frisson of fear that traveled through her at his vocalization of something that worried her so much of the time.

Harry must have felt her reaction, because he dropped his head onto hers and sighed in a way that spoke of the (supposedly) endless suffering he endured because of Cisco's presence in his life. "Ramon, try to be a little more sensitive, would you?"

"Ironic, coming from you," Cisco groused.

Harry ignored that, straightening again so he could turn Caitlin by her shoulder to face him directly. "He's wrong, by the way. When it comes to our team, you'll never forget…" He seemed to be searching for a word before finally holding his arms out, motioning all around them. "…this."

She carefully glanced left and right before meeting his eyes again. "…The produce section of Central City Neighborhood Grocery?"

He rubbed a hand over his mouth in a terrible attempt at masking his amusement. "All of us, Snow. The life we share. You, me, Cisco, our team –"

"Our family," Cisco corrected, in a stage whisper.

"Yes." Harry laughed shortly, maybe because he realized that was the word he'd been searching for. "Our family. You'll never forget us, Caitlin."

"But I already did," she whispered. The weight of his belief in her…she should have collapsed under it, but it only ever made her stronger. Like she could survive anything (or more accurately, like she already had).

"You lost access to memories. You forgot specifics." Harry motioned between them, then over at Cisco. "You didn't forget us and the ways we care about each other. You woke up one evening and didn't know where you were or why you were there, but you hoped – more than anything – that we were still in your life. Some part of you even expected us to still be an integral part of your life. And when you found out that we were…"

"I was so relieved." Her mind flashed back to how that feeling had overwhelmed her, to the point that she'd all but collapsed against Harry the moment she'd learned he was the Harrison Wells that she wanted him to be. That she needed him to be. (The only one she could have possibly accepted, because she'd known him. She'd known who he was.)

And he'd never left her. He was still here, right now, watching her intently as he asked, "Why did you feel that way?" When she could only look back at him mutely, he softly added, "It's not a trick question."

She glanced back and forth between him and Cisco. "Because…I love you. I woke up loving all of you, even though a lot of my memories were…different from yours."

Harry was nodding along with her words. "I'm pretty sure that our team is together, in some way or another, in most timelines. That's what we've found so far in all the possible timelines we've encountered, or heard about, on this particular Earth. Even if we're not together initially, we find our way to each other soon after the change. And it also holds true for almost every other Earth we've visited or had contact with." He spared a glance at Cisco, who was nodding in confirmation of Harry's explanation. "So, you see? I don't think you could forget. Not when it comes to this. To us. It's impossible."

"Impossible," she echoed, mostly to herself, as she replayed what he'd said. She'd always known she could get through anything as long as they were with her. And if they were with her in every timeline… She knew she'd never stop worrying about the possibility of things changing again, but maybe she didn't have to be so terrified all the time of losing everything. Maybe she couldn't lose everything if they would always be with her wherever she went. "I like that, Harry."

"Yeah," he agreed, as his growing smile matched her own. "I like it, too."

"I like it three," Cisco chimed in, "so don't forget about me." Too late, he flinched upon registering what he'd said. "That wasn't a memory loss joke, I promise."

"It's fine," Caitlin assured him. "I can even laugh about it. Most of the time."

"Okay, good." He was clearly relieved. "Now before you and Harry get lost in each other again, I want to clarify the check-out situation here. When we're done getting everything, should we meet up front, or…?"

The question had drawn Harry's attention to Cisco's cart, which he must have overlooked before, because he was now staring at it aghast. It was full almost to the point of overflowing – it wasn't quite there yet, but a few more items and it would be. "We haven't even been here a half hour! How do you have so much stuff already?"

"I hit all the best aisles," Cisco replied. "Alcohol, chips, candy, soda, cookies, the bakery, and of course, the most important: condiments."

"Condiments?" Caitlin muttered.

"They make or break a meal," Cisco said flatly, as if it were a statement of absolute truth. (Caitlin kind of had to agree.)

Harry crossed his arms (thankfully not remarking on the condiments, because knowing him and Cisco, they'd fight over which Earth had the better options for ten minutes and get nowhere). "To be clear: you expect me to pay for all this?"

"I actually came up with a solution that means you won't have to pay for anything."

"Oh, do tell, since I'm sure it won't be ridiculous in any way."

"I'm going to expense it all to S.T.A.R. Labs!" Cisco excitedly announced, like he'd just solved some insurmountable problem in a way Harry should be thrilled with.

Harry rubbed a hand over his eyes and said, very slowly, "That is me paying for it."

"No, that money comes from other sources, like investors –"

"I'm the major investor," Harry ground out.

"Oh. Right. Still…" Cisco scratched his chin in thought. "It's not just you, though. There are others. And government grants, and once we open, admission from the public –"

"Thank God I didn't make you the interim CFO," Harry interrupted again. "We're not going to charge admission."

That was a definite hitch in Cisco's well-thought out plan to get out of paying for groceries. "We're not?"

"They don't on Earth-2," Caitlin reminded him.

Or apparently pointed out to him for the first time, since Cisco seemed perplexed when he asked, "They don't?"

"You've been there, Ramon." It sounded like every word was a struggle for Harry. "How many times did you pay?"

"I figured I got in for free because I went with you," Cisco shrugged, which actually made sense.

"I guess you weren't listening during the last staff meeting; for the benefit of our new hires, I gave a ten minute explanation of my reasons for not charging admission."

"How often do I pay attention during any staff meeting?" Cisco mused. "Better question, how often do I go to staff meetings?"

"Not often enough – remind me to officially write you up tomorrow."

"You can count on it, boss," Cisco said, saccharine enough that Harry muttered something about writing him up twice.

"Most of the money to run the day-to-day operations of S.T.A.R. Labs comes from patents," Caitlin explained, hoping to stave off any further arguments between the two men, "most of which are Harry's."

"So yes, I'm the one paying for it," Harry summarized. "I never wanted to charge admission because it didn't seem right to set a bar for entry, no matter what that bar might be. Keeping out people who didn't have the same means as others? It's wrong on every level. Knowledge should be easily accessible to everyone." His tone was intensifying, a tell that revealed the extent of his belief in what he was saying. "It should be –"

"– free," Cisco interrupted, finishing his sentence. "That I do know. You say it often enough. And I happen to agree with you."

Free and easy access to education for everyone was one of the core beliefs Harry had always held. It was a principal reason he'd founded S.T.A.R. Labs on nearly every Earth they'd encountered. Caitlin had always known that about him, going back to her own timeline, but she'd never seen it as plainly as she did here. It was more than just a passion for him, it was part of the fundamental make-up that comprised him as a person. It made him who he was, and it had always been a driving force behind everything he did.

(That list of reasons why she loved him? It was definitely near the top.)

Harry had caught her up on how the lab was run a few months ago, during one of their many discussions about the intricacies of this timeline that he believed she should know. When he'd moved to this Earth and taken over the lab from Barry, he'd set it up identically to his lab on Earth-2. That meant he'd not only reclaimed royalties from the original Harrison Wells' patents (and the ones Thawne had developed in his name to preserve the timeline's integrity), but he'd also brought some of his own over from Earth-2 (the ones he'd created after they'd unmasked Thawne and banished him from their timeline).

Harry couldn't bring over all of them, because not everything translated with technology between the Earths, but he'd done his best. (He loved to lament that technology on this Earth lagged significantly behind his own, and he also loved to claim it had to be a direct result of the absence of a 'real' Harrison Wells for a significant length of time.)

Harry and Cisco were still bickering over the groceries, though it seemed Harry had won, most likely due to his infuriating tendency to never give in.

"Alright, fine," Cisco was grudgingly relenting when Caitlin tuned back in, "I acknowledge that you're paying for it even if I expense it, but to be clear, this food isn't only for me. I'm going to restock the break rooms because the cafeteria is now three weeks behind schedule on renovation. That means everyone keeps stealing my snacks, and I'm starving to death every day, Harry. Do you want me to star– no, don't answer that. You always say 'yes'."

"Last time I checked we were two weeks behind, not three." Harry pulled out his phone to write himself a reminder. "I'll talk to the contractors this week – it should be the next priority."

"I agree," Cisco said, making a note on his own phone. "We've hired so many people these past few weeks that it makes sense to get the kitchen up and running."

"You misunderstand me," Harry said archly. "It's only the next priority so that I won't have to listen to you whine anymore."

Cisco glared at him before jamming his phone back in his pocket. "Just for that, I'm hitting the gourmet aisle next. And while I've been busy shopping – for the hungry souls at S.T.A.R. Labs, of course – I can see that you two have been taking your time." He was staring at their woefully empty cart. "What have you been doing?" He glanced between them, eyes lingering on Caitlin and softening imperceptibly as he took in her attire for the first time. "Besides sharing clothes, that is?"

"We've been shopping, too," Caitlin insisted, restlessly pulling the cart back and forth at her side. "We have…" she counted, "…six whole things."

"Technically, there are 23 items in our cart," Harry said, just to be difficult. "You know, if you count what's in each produce bag."

Cisco wasn't impressed by his math. "You two," he proclaimed, "are the slowest shoppers on the planet. I'm going to have to wait and get all my ice cream and frozen snacks at the very end or else it'll be melted by the time we check out of here in, oh, eight hours."

"At least what's in our cart could be considered healthy," Caitlin protested. "Is there even a single item in yours that has any nutritional value?"

"Hey, we've got potato chips," Cisco pointed at a couple bags, "which are vegetables. And let's see…" He rummaged around, moving things out of the way, then held up a bag of assorted candy. "Some of these contain almonds, which are good for you. Or so I've heard."

"We don't have this on my Earth," Harry said, taking the bag of candy to study while Cisco continued searching for items with which to prove Caitlin wrong.

"You guys don't have candy?" Cisco was distracted trying to keep a precariously balanced bag of Doritos from toppling out of his cart as he shoved things this way and that.

"Exactly," Harry said dryly. "We don't have candy on Earth-2."

"How do you all survive?"

"Sarcasm," Harry sighed, opening the bag so he could shake out a Hershey's kiss.

Cisco glanced over in confusion. "You survive on sarcasm?"

"Actually, I think he does," Caitlin was trying for serious, though her smile broke through when Harry winked at her and tossed her a Hershey's kiss. (She knew it was strategic on his part; if she was complicit in eating food before they paid for it, she couldn't complain as much. As such, she eyed him calculatingly while she tossed it from hand to hand, trying to decide if it was worth ceding the moral high ground… Her inner debate lasted all of five seconds before giving in and eating it – nothing said she couldn't still claim the moral high ground even if she didn't technically have it.)

"I was being sarcastic about us not having candy," Harry spelled out for Cisco. "What I meant was we don't have this brand."

"That makes more sense," Cisco said agreeably. "Sometimes I can't tell based on your delivery, and I know a lot of things are different where you're from." He reached into the bag to procure a piece of candy for himself. "You've obviously noticed all the ways that Earth-2 lags behind this one, so I wouldn't have been surprised if you didn't have candy."

"My Earth does not lag behind." Harry was, for lack of a better word, appalled. (And it must have been exactly what Cisco was going for, based upon the way he quickly ate the chocolate to try and cover his smile.) "It's actually far ahead of this one."

"I don't know," Caitlin hedged, because she enjoyed riling him up as much as he loved doing the same to her. "A lot of things are pretty…retro there."

"First of all, let's address the most salient point: Earth-2 is superior in almost every way." Harry glared at Cisco and Caitlin, in turn, when he caught that they were both mouthing that oft-repeated phrase along with him. "Secondly, Caitlin, you're referring to cultural design trends and those say nothing about our technological capacity, which has always been more advanced than here. On Earth-2, they're currently in a phase of retro-modernism, the simplicity of which is both understated and beautiful."

"How shocking that Harry would favor simplistic design," Cisco said in a deliberately loud aside to Caitlin, then had to flail to catch the candy Harry threw somewhere in the vicinity of his head. The attempt at a rebuke backfired when Cisco was only delighted, issuing a genuine, "Thank you!"

Harry went on, somewhat wistfully, "We should bring that style back on this Earth. Maybe I'll mention it in my next interview." He waited a beat, presumably to drive his point home. "I'm very influential, you know."

"So you say," Cisco hummed, making a show of unwrapping and enjoying his second piece of candy.

"Yes, I do say," Harry agreed, helping himself to some more candy before returning the bag to Cisco, "because it's a fact." He caught Caitlin watching them, and though his expression remained neutral, the light in his eyes betrayed that he knew exactly what she was thinking (and it amused him to no end). "We're sampling."

Cisco nodded along, able to tell that Caitlin was moments away from a lecture. "What he said. And I saw you eat some, too."

"That Harry gave me, I didn't take it myself," she protested, like that made all the difference. "Besides, it's hardly 'sampling' when you rip open a bag of candy and start eating all of it." She pulled the bag out of Cisco's hands, peering inside. She'd enjoyed it more than she thought she would, and the bag was already open… She took another piece for herself, then thought better of it and grabbed a couple more before tossing the half-empty bag back into Cisco's cart. "Not a word. From either of you."

"Watch," Harry faux-whispered to Cisco, "the next thing she's going to do is use pregnancy as an excuse for why it's okay for her to do it, but not for us."

"You have a death wish, right?" Cisco whispered back, without taking his eyes from Caitlin. "That's the only thing I can think of to explain it."

"Nah," Harry said, smirking as he met her eyes over their shopping cart. "If she tried, I could take her."

Caitlin actually had to pause before eating another chocolate, too afraid she'd inhale it if she gave in and started laughing. "You're ridiculous," she said primly. "I was not going to use pregnancy as an excuse."

"Sure you weren't," Harry said indulgently, and she cursed his ability to know her so well. (So sure, maybe she'd considered tossing in that excuse, but there was no way she was admitting it now. He already knew he was right; she didn't need to confirm it.)

"Never too late for a divorce," Cisco told Caitlin cheerfully, his recurring joke at times like these. (Or…at all times.)

"As we've already established, you're more attached to him than me," Caitlin reminded him. "I get the feeling you'd just move my stuff out of our house so you could move yours right in."

"Half his stuff already is there," Harry pointed out. "He's really taken advantage of that open invitation we issued last month."

After their chat about her wanting Harry to be around more, and that she'd be fine if their friends visited more often, too, they'd sent out a blanket invitation to everyone to visit or stay the night whenever they wanted. It meant, to Caitlin's immense relief, that there was usually someone in the house with her now. They'd stop by during the day or the evenings, especially when Harry couldn't be home, and they stayed the night more often than not. Jesse and Wally, Barry and Iris, HR if he was on this Earth (which he generally seemed to be), even Joe and Cecile would come by several times a week.

Caitlin was amazed at how close she'd become with Iris in just a few short weeks; they'd been bonding over everything from Caitlin's pregnancy to Iris's upcoming wedding plans. Cecile had been instrumental in providing guidance and helping calm Caitlin's nerves about becoming a mother (she'd only known the woman a couple months and she'd already become more of a mother to her than her own had ever been). She'd loved having extra time to spend with Barry and Cisco, who'd always been two of her closest friends before the timeline changed, and even Wally had been seeking her out for advice about his relationship with Jesse and the best ways to bond with Harry. ("Vaguely mention something about how much better Earth-2 is than here and he'll love you for life," had been Caitlin's most successful advice to date.)

Despite Harry's routine complaints, she could tell he appreciated having their friends around, too, and it wasn't only because he saw how much their increased presence had been helping Caitlin deal with everything. She'd always known that a lot of his supposed discontent was a front to keep up appearances. He'd been working in their home lab with Cisco and Barry a lot more; enjoyed chatting with Joe and Cecile over dinner ("Two actual adults in the house besides us, Snow!" he loved to proclaim, but only when Cisco was within earshot); and he absolutely loved the increased time he got to spend with his daughter – he'd been spending many an evening helping both Jesse and Wally with their college courses.

Cisco was the one who came over most often and he'd become something of a semi-permanent house guest, to the point that Harry had begun suspiciously accusing him of letting his lease go in order to save money. Caitlin now understood what Harry had meant about their friends more or less living with them, especially if they were given tacit permission to do so. She'd thought she might get tired of it, might start wanting some of her own space back, but…it hadn't happened. If she (or anyone else) wanted to be alone, there was more than enough space in the house, and even that was comforting to her, to know that someone was usually just a few rooms away if she needed them. To her relief, she'd even found that she slept better knowing other people were there when Harry wasn't home.

"What's the point of an 'open invitation' if I don't take you up on it?" Cisco was asking Harry.

"Open doesn't mean always," Harry informed him. "Though with the baby coming, maybe you can prove useful and actually earn your keep for once."

Instead of protesting, like Harry probably figured he would, Cisco only nodded enthusiastically. "I could be your live-in nanny," he agreed. He'd abandoned the candy and was now happily munching on some Doritos from the bag he'd just opened (and Caitlin mentally gave up on trying to stop either of them from eating all the food before they technically bought it). "It would be amazing, like some kind of 90's-era sitcom. I'll turn your kid into a genius."

Harry folded his arms. "I highly doubt our child will need any 'help' to become a genius. And certainly not from you." He shot Caitlin a world-weary look. "Can you imagine having Cisco Ramon as a teacher? Our poor child."

"You mispronounced 'lucky'," Cisco said, as he carelessly dropped the Doritos bag back into the cart, where it promptly tipped and spilled chips onto –

"Do you have three boxes of wine?" Harry asked, attention drawn to something they'd overlooked before on account of it being buried under a mountain of snack foods. "You really are a philistine, Ramon. Boxed wine?"

"It's delicious!" Cisco instantly protested. "Did you ever think that I'm not a philistine – you're just an elitist?"

"No," Harry immediately answered. "I've never once thought that, nor would I ever."

Caitlin and Cisco stared at him for a long moment, both with varying mixtures of disbelief. (Cisco's tended towards exasperated while Caitlin's was unmistakably fond.)

"Does having better taste than literally everyone else on this Earth make me an elitist?" Harry posited. When they continued to stare, he narrowed his eyes. "Fine, then I'm proud to be one."

"That, right there," Cisco said. "Excellent job of proving my point."

Harry flicked his eyes back to Cisco's cart. "You're the one buying boxed wine from a supermarket."

"I'm very sorry that Central City Neighborhood Grocery doesn't carry the $500 labels that you're used to, my liege." Cisco capped that off with a rather dramatic (and terrible) attempt at bowing.

"$500?" Harry's tone was blithely dismissive. "I can't remember the last time I drank wine that was under $1000 a bottle." In aside, he told Caitlin, "And even those are subpar, much of the time."

"You have to be joking," Cisco gaped, voicing the exact thought Caitlin had. But then again, knowing Harry…

"It's called having taste," Harry sniffed. "Not that I'd expect anyone to understand who chose to buy boxed wine."

"It's crisp and refreshing!" Cisco's voice had turned alarmingly shrill. "And I need it to get through the day. Lest you forget, I work with you."

"Should I address the implication that you're drinking at work, or should I continue to point out your numerous flaws in taste?" Harry pondered. "Decisions, decisions."

"I miss wine," Caitlin sighed. "An occasional glass after a long day…"

"You like that?" Harry motioned to the boxes taking up 75% of Cisco's cart. "I shudder to even call it 'wine'."

"Yes, Harry." She defiantly raised her chin in challenge. "I like it."

"Then you're especially fortunate the timeline changed when it did. I'll be able to save you from a lifetime of mediocre taste."

"You sure?" Cisco asked skeptically. "After all, she married –"

"Stop using the same joke!" Harry railed.

"But it irritates you more every time, so why would I stop?"

Caitlin paid them no mind in favor of more closely examining Cisco's choice in wine. "This kind's really good. Very sweet."

"Sweet?" Harry almost choked on the word. "If that's your primary requirement for 'good' wine, then I take back what I just said – I don't know if even my intervention can save you. Your palate might be beyond hope." He glanced imploringly between Cisco and Caitlin. "Maybe we can save this – tell me," he nodded at the boxes in Cisco's cart, "what do you prefer to pair that with?"

"What do we pair it with?" Cisco shared an amused glance with Caitlin. "I don't know, a glass?"

Caitlin, for her part, was racking her brain trying to remember. "A lot of nights it was whatever I had on hand for dinner, so I don't know… Crackers? Take-out? Some random frozen meal from my freezer?"

"Oh my God," Harry whispered, setting a hand on Cisco's shoulder to steady himself. "I was right. There's no hope."

Caitlin purposely ignored his antics, as difficult as it was. "I was busy all the time," she said, shrugging. "We worked late a lot of nights, trying to stop dangerous meta-humans. I didn't see much point using what little free time I had to cook elaborate meals if I was getting home at 8 or 9 or later. Or not at all." She grimaced, remembering the frequent all-nighters they'd pulled at S.T.A.R. Labs, back before the city adapted to the existence of meta-humans. (Before Harry came along and ensured that most of those same meta-humans had a safe place to seek help at his lab instead of angrily lashing out at the world or being tempted to use their powers for the worst possible ends.)

"I don't miss those days," Cisco shuddered in agreement.

Harry was watching Caitlin with concern that hadn't been there a minute ago, and she belatedly remembered that he hated hearing how alone she'd been in her own timeline. She tried to give him a reassuring smile and wasn't sure if she managed. She hadn't minded those days back when she was living them, but the loneliness… The loneliness had overwhelmed her at times. And now…

Well, it was hardly a secret that losing this life had become one of her greatest fears.

She crossed her arms, hoping it might come across as guarding against the store's unnatural chill, but it was probably too late for that to work, especially considering she was wearing Harry's (incredibly warm) pullover. Sure enough, she was fooling no one, least of all Harry, who'd proven he could read her better than anyone. He came around the cart, stopping at her side and draping an arm around her shoulders as if he just so happened to need a place to rest it and she was of convenient height.

She leaned more into him, enjoying the wave of emotion that swept over her whenever he did things like that – without comment, without making a big deal out of it. Never expecting anything in return. He only wanted to help her, to make sure she was okay, and it was more than she knew what to do with sometimes.

She wondered where she'd be right now if the timeline had never changed. Maybe she'd still be with Harry, at this very moment. They could be closer friends than they'd been before; they might even be dating… She allowed her mind to drift, imagining how things might have unfolded, and slowly uncrossed her arms so she could wrap one around his waist in return. She spared a brief thought to how natural such casual intimacy had become to her, and wondered what her former self would think of her now.

"My eating habits haven't always been the best," Harry was admitting when she paid attention again, and she realized that he and Cisco had moved on to discussing their (not so healthy) food preferences. "But thanks to repeated nagging –" He feigned a cough. "I mean encouragement from Jesse, and then you," that was said with a glance down at Caitlin, "I've gotten a lot better at it. I can't believe there were nights you only had snacks for dinner."

"Some nights it was dessert," she said, trying for levity. "I was partial to ice cream."

"You eat a lot healthier now," Harry remarked, an unspoken question in it.

"Yeah, I'd been trying before all this. And then the timeline changed and I had the strangest urge to try and ensure you were eating healthier." She furrowed her brow. "I still have no idea where it came from."

"Your heart knew," Cisco murmured, with the same awe as when he'd shared that sentiment with her the first time she'd 'met' him in this timeline. (Cisco had always been convinced that she loved Harry, no matter what she couldn't remember.) "I told you. Did I not tell you?"

"Before all this, I would have been absolutely certain that you can't remember things across timelines," Caitlin said, as she tipped her head back to look up at Harry. "But now…"

"There are few other ways to explain it," Harry agreed, clearly mulling that over in his own mind as he spoke. "And we already know that 'time' itself seems to, for lack of a better word, remember. It's why we end up with the same people, in the same places…"

"Do you think there's some…correct timeline?" Cisco speculated. "You've said before that time… How do you like to put it, Harry?"

"It wants to unfold in a certain way," Caitlin answered for him, recalling that Harry had reminded her of that exact thing not even twenty minutes ago.

"I've always believed that," Harry told them. "All the evidence we've seen about timelines seems to support it. Though I really have to wonder what the hell I was doing in your other timeline, Snow." His frustration was evident. "I wasn't fixing S.T.A.R. Labs, so what did I do with all my time?"

"You were saving people's lives and helping to protect the city from rogue meta-humans," she reminded him, because she'd told him that before, but his complaints were nothing new. (He was perpetually unhappy with the version of himself from her timeline, whom he always said had wasted too much time instead of trying to win her over, or rebuild the lab, or "any of the numerous other things that actually mattered.") "It's what we all did and it consumed the vast majority of our lives. It's why I worked so late and barely got home. We slept at the lab half the time."

"You have told me that," Harry admitted, with some reluctance, most likely because her answer hadn't changed at all from what she'd told him in the past. "I suppose single handedly keeping this city intact has consumed me in every possible timeline."

Cisco eyed him with no shortage of disbelief. "That's what you took from her explanation?"

Harry frowned at Cisco, genuinely confused. "It's what she said."

Cisco turned to Caitlin. "Tell Harry that's not what you said."

She smiled sweetly up at Harry. "Cisco claims that's not what I said."

"Your phrasing is a little off," Cisco grumbled.

"Sounded fine to me," Harry said, with obvious approval.

He was saved from (what would no doubt be endless) further argument when Mierra appeared in their aisle, sidling up to them and coming to a stop between their two shopping carts.

"Hey Cisco," she said brightly, gracing him with the same welcoming smile that her doppelganger used to greet visitors at Earth-2's S.T.A.R. Labs. "How's it going?"

"Fantastic, Mierra." Their easy camaraderie meant they knew each other, probably from the store. "How are you?"

"Same old," she said, sparing a glance at Harry. "Busy day trying to keep shoplifters at bay."

"Seriously?" Harry asked. "Seriously." When she merely shrugged, he pointed at Cisco. "Half the packages in his cart are open and there are Doritos all over the place."

"I wasn't done picking them up," Cisco said, defensively, "I was just about to finish." He picked up a chip from the top of one of the wine boxes and ate it.

"Cisco's good for it," Mierra told them cheerfully, voice the pitch perfect tone of every 'customer service associate' in existence. "I trust our valued customers."

"I'm a valued customer," Cisco smirked at Harry, as he took another deliberately slow bite of a Dorito. "And I'm good for it."

Harry's expression had crossed into incredulous. "You mean I'm good for it. I'm paying!" He turned to Mierra somewhat accusingly. "I wasn't aware you knew one of my most problem employees."

The young woman was confused, needing a second to work out what he meant. "Cisco? He works for you?"

"Cisco is the 'Ramon' Harry mentioned earlier," Caitlin supplied. "The one that he said is always breaking things?"

"I break things to make them better," Cisco claimed, in a way that probably made sense to him, while he tried in vain to pick up pieces of broken chips and throw them back into the package. "And what are you telling people about me, Harry?"

Harry pulled Caitlin closer for a brief, fortifying hug, then let go of her in order to go push Cisco away from their cart when the younger man tried to drop a handful of chip crumbs into it. "Only the painful, painful truth."

"I didn't know your last name," Mierra said to Cisco, watching him haplessly attempt to finish cleaning up Doritos before he gave up on the entire useless endeavor. "Seeing this…I can understand what Dr. Wells was talking about."

Before Cisco could decide if he wanted to take affront to that, Harry recaptured the young woman's attention. "So you two know each other?"

"Just in passing from the store," Mierra explained. "He's in here a lot."

"Buying food for the hungry employees of S.T.A.R. Labs," Cisco haughtily reminded them all, managing to sound rather impressed with himself (despite the dubious nature of his claim). "It's very generous of me."

"It's generous of me," Harry corrected, then rounded on Mierra. "I can't believe you let him get away with eating whatever he wants, but I get a lecture and a threat to call the police over an apple."

"You threatened to call the police on him?!" Cisco's eyes had lit up to an unnatural degree. "And you couldn't have waited until I was around to witness it? For shame, Mierra."

"How about this," she offered, "next time I'll page you to whatever aisle he's stealing from before I call the CCPD."

Cisco nodded with exaggerated seriousness. "Acceptable."

"What do you mean by 'next time'?" Harry accused, though Caitlin could tell he was trying not to laugh.

Mierra wisely skipped past answering him. "Do I have to remind you that you're never going to pay for that apple?" she asked him. "At least in Cisco's case, we can scan a cart full of half-empty food packages."

"They're not all half-empty," Cisco was mumbling, "and Harry and Caitlin ate some of this, too."

Harry didn't seem to buy Mierra's argument about why it was fine for Cisco to eat food before paying, but it wasn't fine for him. "I offered you $20 for that apple."

"You thought an apple cost $20?" Cisco blinked at him. "Is food really that much more expensive –" He broke off, casting a look at Mierra. "– uh, where you're from?"

"It was a bribe," Harry groaned (and nope, he was definitely never running out of exasperation when it came to them). "How do none of you get that?"

Cisco glossed right over that as he asked Mierra, "So that's how you and Harry know each other? Because you caught him stealing?"

"Sampling," Harry said, through gritted teeth.

"Right, 'sampling'," Mierra repeated, with air quotes. "And yes, Cisco, he even offered me a job to ensure my silence." Her smile widened, humor playing across her face. "Which was a much better bribe than the $20."

"You offered her a job at S.T.A.R. Labs?" Cisco asked, as Harry nodded. "Finally, something you've done on this shopping excursion that I approve of." He turned away from Harry's instant frown to advise Mierra, "Take him up on it, we'd love to have you. Anyone who wants to call the cops on our boss is an employee we need over there."

"Uh, Cisco, you realize I wouldn't be issuing regular threats if I worked there…" Mierra's tone had turned uncertain. "…right?"

Cisco made a show of sighing. "Alright, well, you can't blame me for having a dream of Harry being dragged away in handcuffs…"

"Might have to rescind that job offer if you're friendly with this guy," Harry warned, jerking his head in Cisco's direction.

Cisco's laughter was genuine, telling Mierra conspiratorially, "He says that like we aren't best friends."

Mierra smiled a little, but it was a lot more unsure than it'd been a minute earlier, which abruptly caused Caitlin to realize that despite her participation in the teasing, the girl wasn't actually familiar with their particular brand of interaction. By now, she might be worried she'd gone too far, or even ruined her chances of being hired altogether.

She caught Harry's gaze, nodding slightly towards Mierra, and it took him about five seconds to replay the conversation and understand her concern.

Like a switch had been flipped, he completely dropped the act. "Not actually rescinding the offer," he promised Mierra. "And I still hope you take it."

"Here's a helpful hint," Caitlin warmly told the other woman, "when they're acting like they just were, don't take anything either of them says seriously."

"Okay," the girl laughed, more at ease, "I'll remember that."

"Not to put any pressure on you, but have you thought about it?" Caitlin asked, hoping Mierra would agree, and wondering how best to convince her if she seemed on the fence. Despite having no idea what was going on with the timelines, Caitlin's talk with Harry had convinced her that Mierra belonged at S.T.A.R. Labs on this Earth.

"It's only been like fifteen minutes…" Mierra said, biting her lip nervously. "Would you – that is, I mean would it be okay if I said yes, already?"

"Not at all," Harry said easily. "We need people like you to counteract people like him." The last was said with a nod in Cisco's direction. Instead of arguing the point, the younger man just grinned and waved at Mierra.

"Then I officially accept," she said, with newfound confidence.

"Come by anytime this week and we can get you set up." Harry had taken out his phone, typing something as he glanced at her. "I was thinking you'd be great in one of our visitor assistant positions, but we won't actually open to the public for several months, at least. There are plenty of things you could do to help out until then. Or you could keep working here and we'll set your start date for when we officially open."

"Hmm, tough choice," Mierra murmured. "It's going to be hard to leave the glamour of CCNG behind."

"CCNG…?" Caitlin trailed off.

Mierra's smile became half-humoring, half-confused, and it was an uncanny reenactment of the way she'd looked at Caitlin in the lobby of Earth-2's S.T.A.R. Labs (since Caitlin hadn't been making much sense then, either). "Central City Neighborhood Grocery."

"Oh, sure." Caitlin could feel the heat rising in her face. "I knew that."

Cisco looked at her askance, not without amusement (and Harry took the opportunity of his distraction to grab the bag of candy from his cart again). "Did you, though?"

"Go back to stealing food," she ordered, hoping to deflect from the fact that a simple acronym really should have been something she was able to figure out. "It's, uh…pregnancy and…any other excuses that make sense."

"Told you," Harry was saying as he helped himself to more candy, quickly dodging a few steps when Cisco lunged for the bag in his hands, "she always goes back to that. She's going to be using the pregnancy excuse when our kid's 30."

Cisco (bless him for always being on her side) wasn't willing to let that go by without comment. "And how old will you be when your kid's 30, Harry?"

Harry just stared at him, Cisco began smirking, and Mierra was unable to contain herself, bursting out, "You're having a baby?!"

Until that question, Caitlin hadn't even registered that she'd given the news away to someone who had no idea. She glanced at Harry for his reaction, but all he did was smile at her before he became distracted by a tug of war with Cisco over the candy.

Of course Harry wouldn't care if she told people, and she supposed it didn't matter if others knew, especially those who worked at S.T.A.R. Labs. It wasn't like she could hide forever, nor did she want to. Besides, even if she could manage to keep it a secret, most people would probably figure it out when she showed up one day with an actual infant.

She determinedly pulled her thoughts away from that picture and steadfastly met Mierra's eyes. "Yes, we are."

"That's so exciting, congratulations!" Mierra clasped her hands together in obvious joy, and her mood was so contagious that Caitlin wondered why she'd been hesitant to confirm it in the first place.

Caitlin was so overwhelmed by a sudden flash of their son (the one from her dream) skipping around an entirely renovated S.T.A.R. Labs (just like the children on Earth-2) that she almost forgot to respond. "Thank you," she murmured, trying to tell herself that the images meant nothing. She didn't even know if the baby was a boy or girl yet – had even considered letting it be a surprise – but it must be natural to fill in the blank spaces with a picture her mind had already conjured in her sleep…right?

"Great job, Snow," Harry was saying, somewhere in the background, "my whole fanbase will know by tonight."

"Your fanbase?" Mierra asked skeptically.

He huffed in agitation. "They exist."

"You know, I like this idea of turning really long names into something short and catchy," Cisco said, contemplating. "We could do that for S.T.A.R. Labs. Come up with a really cool name. Maybe add a hashtag. I think it'd help engage the youth of the city."

"Do you think you're the best to come up with ideas to…engage the youth?" It sounded like Mierra was tripping over those last three words as she spoke. "Aren't you like…30?"

"Oh, I like you," Harry told her, eyes glinting.

"30 is young," Cisco protested, clearly not enjoying being on the same side of the age divide where he'd unceremoniously shoved Harry two minutes earlier without a second thought. "What do you guys think of my idea? Something like, hmm… Slabs." When the three of them stared at him in bewilderment, he sighed egregiously. "Do I have to spell it out? S.T.A.R. Labs." He gestured like he was unveiling a theater marquee. "Slabs!"

"Is two syllables really too much for you?" Harry asked, tone indicating Cisco might have lost it (so nothing unusual there). "And S.T.A.R. Labs is already an acronym."

"Right, yes, I know that," Cisco claimed. "I've worked there for years, obviously I know that it stands for… Science and…"

Harry briefly pressed a hand to his eyes. "Science and Technological Advanced Research Lab–"

"–oratories," Cisco hastily finished along with him. "See, I knew that." He tilted his head from side to side, glancing around the group. "So no one's in favor of Slabs, then? I really think it could catch on."

"It sounds like a meat packing plant," Mierra offered. Then she added encouragingly, "Which is great if that's what you're going for…?"

"It's not what I'm going for," he sulked, then brightened with sudden hope. "Have you considered it with a hashtag in front of it?"

"Trust me," the girl said, unduly grave, "it doesn't help."

"And this is why I'm never making you the director of youth engagement," Harry told Cisco, with an air of finality.

"I might have some ideas on that, Dr. Wells," Mierra offered. "If you're interested?"

"Sure, bring a list when you stop by," Harry told her, talking right over Cisco's complaints that they weren't giving his suggestions ("they're out of this world – get it, out of this world?") the consideration they deserved. "I'll definitely be there on…" He glanced at Caitlin.

"Tuesday," she answered. "We all should be."

Mierra's grin was positively blinding. "Sounds like a plan, I'll be there! Though now I should probably…" She vaguely nodded down the aisle and then bid them goodbye, though Caitlin figured it was likely they'd see her around the store again at some point.

Cisco was still grumbling to himself as he tried to right the wreckage of his cart, and Harry watched him with a certain look that Caitlin recognized; it meant he'd solved something that was vexing him.

"On Earth-2, we have a mentorship program for new employees," Harry reminded Cisco (or maybe told him for the first time, given the younger man's penchant for tuning out during the few staff meetings he bothered attending). "What do you say you help out Mierra? You two could collaborate on ideas and then work together on implementing the best ones."

Cisco glanced at him suspiciously. "What's the catch?"

Instead of throwing back an insult or acerbic quip, Harry maintained his neutral expression. "There is no catch."

"There's always a catch."

Harry gave a put-upon sigh. "Do you want there to be a catch?"

"No, I…" Cisco faltered, having realized too late that their discussion had moved from its typical bantering into something actually serious. "Mierra's a good kid. And she's smart. I suppose she'd have some insight from a younger perspective." He reconsidered his wording. "A slightly younger perspective."

"I know her from my Earth," Harry said, "and I agree with you. I think with some guidance, she could become an invaluable, trusted employee, hopefully for the long-term."

Cisco hadn't missed Harry's compliment to him and was obviously pleased. "Consider it done." He paused. "Thanks, Harry."

"Consider it your priority for next week," Harry said, waving off his thanks. "Now it's going on 4, so go finish shopping –"

"For our employees," Cisco interjected.

"Right, go finish shopping for them, and leave us to our date."

"Grocery shopping as a date, let me consider if that's turned romantic in the last half hour…" He hummed in thought, then shook his head and merrily answered his own question, "Nope, still as strange as the two of you are."

"Then it's a good thing we're not dating you, isn't it?" Harry asked, then continued thoughtfully, "Though God knows you're around enough that we might as well be."

Cisco just laughed and waved over his shoulder at them as he headed out of produce, following the direction Mierra had gone.

"Cisco Ramon as a mentor," Harry murmured, once the younger man was out of earshot. "What a brave new world we're entering."

"He'll be excellent at it," Caitlin said, which Harry obviously knew already; he'd never have suggested the arrangement otherwise. "And I don't know about you, but 'brave' or 'new' or whatever else you want to call it…" She waited for him to meet her eyes, wanting him to see her conviction. "I happen to love this world."

"Good thing." He drew her closer, wrapping his arms around her, and grinned as he dipped his head to press a kiss near her ear. "Because this world happens to love you."