A/N: I know, it's not a very creative title, but I couldn't think of anything else fast enough. We all know Nora is keeping something from the team, because of the end scene of 5x03, with Nora's talk with Sherloque. This is one possibility for what that secret might be (I think it's an interesting theory). It's at least two parts, possibly more if people want it. (Let me know, please!) I'll post the second part soon.

"How are you doing?"

Barry looked over at Nora's question. "Oh I'm fine. Why?"

"You look a little distracted." Nora sat down next to him.

"A lot's going on," he admitted. "Cicada's still out there, and his dagger basically stripped Cisco of his powers. Caitlin's been spending every free minute searching for Icicle or talking to Frost, to try and get her back permanently."

Nora's face darkened, and Barry automatically reached a hand out to her. He straightened as he touched her arm, trying to wipe all signs of worry from his expression. There was no reason for her to be thinking about this stuff too. "Do you know where your mom is?"

"I think she went to talk to Papa Joe."

"She did. About an hour ago," Sherloque said. Barry had almost forgotten Sherloque was here, he'd been so quiet. The detective had been in front of the crime board since Barry sat down at the computer, studying everything they knew about Cicada. Sherloque turned to look at Barry and Nora. "You two should go run."

"Why?" Nora asked.

"Because you are distracting me," Sherloque said, turning back to the crime board. "I feel I am very close to breaking the case wide open, as you say."

Nora looked at Barry, and her bemused expression made him half-smile, it was so much like Iris's. "I guess we could have a race," he said. "You know I raced Wally around the city once."

"When you were trying to make him fast enough to beat Savitar, to save Mom," Nora said, that giddiness she frequently expressed coming back as she proved her knowledge. Barry shouldn't have been surprised she knew that. "I'm not as fast as you," she said. "It wouldn't even be a race."

"Then we won't race. We'll just run." He wanted to keep her from sharing the stresses he was feeling, and one way was to keep her busy. He wouldn't mind being busy for a few minutes either. So they suited up and hit the streets.

Instead of staying at S.T.A.R. Labs after their run, they went to the West house to find Iris. Barry tried to sit down next to her on the couch. Nora beat him to it, sitting and hugging her. Barry smiled softly and sat on Nora's other side, reaching his arm behind her to hold Iris's hand for a second.

"You two seem happy," Iris said.

"Just went for a run," Nora said. "Dad showed me some of his old training spots. It was schway."

Iris chuckled.

"Now that's a picture," Joe said, from his chair a few feet away. He had a contented smile on his face as he looked at Barry, Iris, and Nora on the couch, and Barry realized he probably had a smile to match.

Until Iris bolted from the couch with her hand over her mouth. Barry was moving before he realized it, following her to the trash can. He swept her hair back and held it back with one hand as she heaved, his other hand pressed on her back. He could see Nora standing with her hands held out, ready to help if needed, and Joe walking over.

Barry rubbed Iris's back as she took a few gasping breaths, and when she started to stand up straight, he snatched a napkin from the table and held it out to her. She took it wordlessly, wiping at her mouth and throwing it away. Only then did she meet his eyes, and say a low "thanks."

"You okay?" he asked.

"Not too hot, apparently."

Barry kissed her forehead, hoping she took the action as pure affection – and didn't realize he was taking her temperature as well. She wasn't too hot at all, and instead seemed a bit on the clammy side. If he tried to make her take it easy, saying she might be getting sick… well, she wouldn't listen to him. If he proposed cuddling on the couch, however…

He started walking her back to the couch, wrapping his arm around her. "Do you feel sick?" Nora asked.

Iris didn't have a fever, as far as Barry could tell, but the slight clamminess did concern him.

"Not this second," Iris said. "I woke up a little nauseous." She frowned. "Sorry about that."

"Don't apologize for something you can't control," Joe chastised. He walked to the bathroom and returned with the wastebasket, which he handed to Barry. Barry took it and set it at his feet. "Just in case," Joe said.

Iris looked like she wanted to argue that she wouldn't need it, but she just rested her head on Barry's shoulder – a sure sign that she wasn't feeling her best. The next sign was when she tensed, two minutes later, and Barry rushed to hold the wastebasket up for her as she was sick again.

Barry met Joe's eyes as Iris recovered her breath, and knew Joe recognized it as well. Iris had the stomach bug.

Iris actively had the stomach bug for four days, during which Barry only left her side when she was sleeping. And when he did leave her at those times, it was to run to S.T.A.R. Labs. Nora was a big help, bringing ginger ale and saltine crackers to the loft. She even ran Caitlin to the loft, when they first got Iris home to it, so the doctor could check her over.

As Iris slept on that fifth day of her being sick, Barry sat in the cortex with Nora, Cisco, and Caitlin. "She seems like she's getting over it," Barry said.

"She definitely looked better when I saw her this morning," Nora said, looking at Caitlin and Cisco.

"I just hope she's the only one to get it," Cisco said. "I hate the stomach bug."

"Don't most people?" Caitlin asked rhetorically. She looked at Barry. "She's been drinking lots of water, right?"

"Water, watered down Gatorade, and ginger ale," he confirmed.

Caitlin nodded her approval. "The bug doesn't typically last more than a few days, so it probably is on its way out of her system. She must be itching to get out of the loft."

"You have no idea," Barry said. Iris was never good with staying in one place for too long, even if she wasn't feeling good.

"At least it's not a bad time to be sick," Cisco said. "Cicada's gone quiet since we know who he is. Icicle's still off the radar. She's really not missing much."

"She's missing this," Nora said, gesturing between them. "Seeing you guys. Spending time here in the lab." She looked down. "It may not seem like a lot, but -."

Cisco half-smiled. "But it is," he finished for her. "You really are your father's daughter; you know that? So family-oriented it's almost sappy? I mean that in a good way."

"Oh, sure you do," Nora said, grinning. Barry knew what was coming, and saw that Caitlin wasn't surprised either when Nora and Cisco started yet another exchange of witty banter. Barry had to admit, Nora gave Cisco a run for his money, with how fast she was throwing shade. They scooted closer together, and Barry walked over to stand next to Caitlin.

"She does fit right in," Caitlin said, looking at Barry with a kind of amazement.

Barry watched Nora and Cisco as they laughed, over something he hadn't heard. "Yeah," he agreed, without really hearing Caitlin either.

"Penny for your thoughts?" she asked. "I can tell your mind's somewhere else."

"Sorry, Cait," he sighed, looking at her. "I'm just worried about Iris. You said the stomach bug is usually fast, and I've had it before, but this is a weird one. Iris seems to be just fine, and then a couple hours later she's sick again."

"I can run a few tests, if you want," Caitlin offered.

Barry found himself nodding. "If she's still sick tomorrow morning, I'd appreciate it."

Barry stayed there for a little while longer, talking with Caitlin until Cisco and Nora called it quits, and then he told them he'd be back in the morning.

Iris was awake when he got back, and Barry crawled over to her side of the bed to put his head over her shoulder, wrapping his arms around her from behind. "Sorry I wasn't here when you woke up."

She reached a hand up, fingering it through his hair. "Babe, I only woke up a few minutes ago. I figured you were at the lab."

Barry moved so he was sitting next to her. "Feel any better?"

"Good as ever," Iris said. "Again," she added emphatically, as she stood.

"Want to try eating some soup? I think we still have some of Joe's homemade chicken noodle in the fridge."

"Would you mind heating some up for me? I want to go wash my face."

Barry watched her walk away and went to go heat up that soup. He watched her eat it, and made her drink some ginger ale and watched a movie with her, a part of him tensed to run for a bucket if need be. But she seemed fine.

When she was nauseous and sick the next morning, after claiming she felt fine, Barry's mind started thinking of possible reasons for the strange sickness. He brushed Iris's hair back from her face as she finished being sick, and helped her to the couch before racing to S.T.A.R. Labs.

"Caitlin here?" he asked Ralph, in the cortex.

"Talking with Frost and Cisco," Ralph said. "Something wrong?"

"I don't know," Barry said, running to find them. Cisco and Caitlin both had the neural devices on their foreheads (Caitlin had the primary, Cisco a secondary receiver so he could hear Frost too). They'd done this three-way conversation once before, and Caitlin had said it helped weaken the mental barrier DeVoe had set up. Barry felt a little guilty interrupting them now, but he didn't want to leave Iris alone for long.

"Okay, Elsa, I wasn't that harsh," Cisco was saying when Barry walked in.

"Hey, guys," Barry said.

They turned to face him.

"Caitlin, can you come check on Iris?" he asked.

"She's still sick?"

"It looks like it," Barry said. Caitlin's brow furrowed at his response. Of course she heard the hesitancy behind his response. Something made Cisco's expression change as well, and Caitlin explained to Barry:

"Frost thinks you're not sharing something."

"Tell Frost I just want to make sure my wife is okay."

Cisco waited a second, and then nodded. "Didn't need to vibe to predict that one. She said she can hear you."

"We'll pick this up later," Caitlin said to Frost. She listened for a few seconds, and smiled to herself before taking off the neural device. She set it down and walked over to Barry. "Sorry to make you wait. Just let me grab a few things, and we can head right over."

He carried her to the med-bay and let her get what she needed, and then brought her to the loft.

"Barry, what are we – oh, hey Caitlin."

Iris stood in the kitchen, a mug of coffee in her hands. She was dressed for the day and looked… well, normal. She didn't look sick at all.

"You're okay?" Barry asked.

"Babe, you worry too much. I think this morning was just the tail end of the bug." She looked at Caitlin. "I'm guessing he wants you to check on me."

Caitlin held up her medical supplies. "Good guess. Do you mind?"

Iris sighed and sat down at the table. "We both know Barry won't stop worrying until you do it."

Barry watched as Caitlin took a variety of samples: blood, urine, and skin scrapings from inside Iris's cheek. She also took Iris's temperature and checked her lymph nodes. "I'll have results soon," she said when she had everything she needed.

"Thanks, Caitlin," Barry said.

He brought her back to the lab and found Iris waiting for him with her arms crossed.

"Aw, don't be mad," he said.

"I had blood drawn, and I peed in a cup, because of you." She walked up closer.

"Iris -,"

She shushed him by kissing him. "I know, babe," she said, a few seconds later. "You just want to make sure everything's okay. And I love you for it. But Nora's not freaking out. Caitlin didn't really seem concerned, and she's a doctor."

Barry held her close. "There's something we might need to think about," he started. "They're thinking you just had the stomach bug, but what if there's something else? What if you're…?"

She stepped back, her mouth open. "Oh my God, you think I'm pregnant?"

"That's not what I said," he said quickly.

He could see her thinking fast. "I need to take a test."

"Is the math right?" he asked.

She took another few seconds, and then nodded slowly, twice. "It might be. It's close, and it's not always exact, so…"

Barry picked her up and ran her to the lab. They surprised Caitlin so much she dropped one of the samples, but Barry caught it before it hit the floor.

"What are you doing here?" Caitlin asked with slight shock.

"Can you look at the blood sample first?" Barry asked. He used his speed to put it on a slide and load it into the microscope.

"Sure, yeah," she said, sounding slightly flustered. "I'm guessing you have a reason?"

"We want to know if I was actually sick," Iris said.

"Why wouldn't you be…" Barry saw it click for her, and she leaned into the microscope with slightly pink cheeks. It was quiet for a few minutes, as she looked at that sample and the results she'd already loaded into the computer, and then she turned to them. "You were definitely sick," she said. "Your white blood cell count is higher than normal, suggesting your immune system was fighting something very recently."

Barry felt Iris looking at him. "So it's just a weird stomach bug, that attacks in waves?" Barry asked for her.

Caitlin hesitated. "You were sick, but the white blood cell count wasn't as high as it would be for an active immune response. It's in the median zone, falling back to normal rates of reproduction. I started the analysis of your blood just before you got here, and it just finished. It looks like your estrogen and FSH levels are higher than normal."

"Estrogen," Barry repeated. "Meaning…"

"Meaning if I take a pregnancy test, it'll be positive?" Iris asked, looking now at Caitlin.

Caitlin bit her lip. "From the hormone levels, and the fact that you're sick in the morning… it's likely."

Barry could see it setting in as he looked at Iris, in how her eyes were growing distant and her mouth was parted slightly. "Do you want me to get a test?" he asked quietly.

She nodded mutely, and he ran to the convenience store, throwing money on the counter as he passed by with the box.

"I could have done the test with the sample I got earlier," Caitlin said when Barry ran back in, ripping open the box.

Barry handed one of the test sticks to Iris, and another to Caitlin. "It's good to double check, and this way we won't have to wait to do the second test."

Iris went to do her test. Barry watched as Caitlin used some of the urine sample from earlier on the second test, and paced as he waited for the result. Iris came in and put her stick next to the first.

A few minutes later, Barry grabbed the sticks and held one out to his wife. "Look at the same time," he said. She nodded, and he looked at the one in his grip.

"Positive," he said, looking at Iris searchingly.

He could see tears swimming behind her eyes when she met his, but she was smiling. "Mine too," she said.

Barry stared at her as he realized what this meant. Two tests, combined with the morning sickness and the hormone levels… He ran up to her and embraced her, grinning. "Iris, this is great."

"What's going on?"

Barry looked at Nora as she appeared in the doorway.

"I'm better!" Iris said quickly, separating from Barry. She looked at Barry and Caitlin. "Right, guys?"

Barry stepped slightly in front of Caitlin, well aware that the scientist would need a few more seconds to compose herself to the lie. "Caitlin just did a final test for us, and Iris is in the clear," Barry confirmed.

"That's awesome!" Nora said. She went up and hugged Iris. "I knew nothing would keep you down for too long."

"Yeah," Iris agreed. "I'm definitely ready to be back."

"Do the others know? I'm gonna go tell them," Nora said, and ran out.

Iris turned to Barry and Caitlin quickly. "Okay, I know I didn't say it, but I think we should keep it between us for now," she said.

"Why?" Caitlin asked.

Iris's hand went to her stomach. "Because we might need to send Nora back to the future. I don't know, but we have some things to talk about. So please, keep this between us?"

"Of course," Barry said.

Caitlin nodded. "Whatever you think is best."

They kept it between them for about two more weeks, until they'd decided to just tell Nora and the others. Barry understood Iris's fear. If Nora was here as an adult when she was born, it could complicate things. But he convinced Iris that they needed to just talk about it with her, to get an understanding of what they should do.

Caitlin realized something, before they met with the others to do the big reveal:

"You're six weeks," she said to Iris. "We can see if it's a boy or a girl," she said with a teasing smile, "unless you want to be surprised."

Iris put her hand to her belly almost instinctively, as she'd begun doing since finding out she was pregnant. "That's just through a sonogram, right?" Caitlin nodded, and Iris looked at Barry with an amused half-smile. "Why not? We'll want the picture for the baby book anyway."

"We're doing one of those?"

She fixed him a look, and he nodded. "Of course we're doing one of those. I think we should do two!"

She chuckled, and he walked over next to her as Caitlin did the sonogram.

"So what are we having?" Iris asked, still smiling.

Caitlin had her back to them, and Barry looked at her when she didn't say anything. "Caitlin?"

She turned to them, and she seemed… confused? "I don't…"

"What is it?" Iris asked, sitting up.

Barry walked over to Caitlin. "Cait, what's wrong?"

"It's a boy," Caitlin said in a low voice. "The baby – you're having a boy."

"What does that – how is that possible?" Iris asked.

Barry froze, and then sucked in a breath as fear coursed through him – if this was a change from the original timeline, where before they'd had a girl… "Nora."