When she was just a girl
she expected the world
but it flew away from her reach
and the bullets catch in her teeth
-Paradise by Coldplay
--------

Athena's P.O.V.

I ran.

I ran and I didn't stop. I didn't even know where I was but I didn't care.

I had to find Barry. I had to get to him before it was too late.

Before the explosion.

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FLASHBACK
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"Dad?" I crocked. I didn't even realize how dry my throat was until now.

"Pumpkin," he smiled while extending his arms out for me.

I hesitated for a moment but then ran into his arms. I don't know what came over me. I just felt like a little girl again running over to my dad that I hadn't seen in years. I completely forgot about the fact that he was the reason for that.

"I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry, sweetheart. I just I, when I lost your mother and sister I dove into my work and became crazy and I didn't want to see you because you just remind me of them so much. I'm just..." he explained but was cut off.

My fingers curled on his back at the sound of an ear piecing scream. I slowly backed away to look at his face in fear. It was one of the worst screams I've ever heard and trust me I'm gonna be hearing a lot of screaming in my future. It was full of desperation and panic.

"Oh my god what the hell was that?" I panicked looking back and forth between him and the source of the scream, upstairs.

He was also looking up but looked down at me with annoyance at my question.

"Well, I guess this was quick end to our little foreplay," he sighed slowly walking up to me. Each step he took I would take one back.

What was happening?

We kept walking like this until I hit a wall. I  tried to grab anything in my reach for support.

"RUN!" the voice that screamed now yelled, "ATHENA, RUN!"

The voice sounded vaguely familiar but I didn't pay too much attention to that. I was more worried by the command. I immediately turned to run the other direction but in less than a second he grabbed my head and banged it against the wall. The last thing I saw was red lightning.

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Hallucination
------------------

I woke up and was sitting up against the same wall as before except everything was darker. My "dad" was gone.

I slowly got up rubbing my temple. Something felt very off. I can't explain how but I was so attracted to the front door. I had a need to go outside. So that's what I did. But once I opened the door I saw everything.

It's like all this information hit me like a huge gust of wind. Years of new memories were playing through my mind in seconds.

The truth about Nora's murder.

The truth about my parents' death.

The man in yellow.

His plan.

The rush was so much that I closed my eyes while pressing my hands on each side of my head. It was just so painful. By each second it just got worse and worse but one thing kept me holding on. Barry.

I had to make it through this so I could warn him. This man wanted to hurt him and I couldn't let him do this. I couldn't let him hurt the guy I would soon fall in love with.

The love of my life.

I finally took a hold of this, I knew what I had to do. I don't know how I did but I knew it would help.

I let go of my head and hissed in pain as it became worse. I squeezed my eyes shut and screamed. I screamed with all the air in my lungs and drowned out all the memories. In the matter of an instant they were all gone and I was faced with darkness when I opened my eyes.

"I'm proud. You're learning about how to use your powers before you even have them," I heard Thawne's voice say as a light appeared and I found myself in the middle of the Central City baseball field.

"Who the hell are you?" I whispered as his figure approached me in a yellow suit. I didn't even bother turning to him.

"I thought I already answered that," he chuckled while removing his mask and gloves, he was still wearing my dad's face.

"You're the man in yellow," I gulped slowly turning to face him.

"Yes I am," he wickedly smiled while bowing, "My name is Eobard Thawne but I'm mostly known as The Reverse Flash."

"How?" I asked barely able to open my mouth, my whole body trembling. I was so scared I completely ignored that fact that his last name was Thawne.

"How what?" he replied slightly confused.

"How are you moving so fast?" I questioned again, this was impossible. There's no such thing as people with super powers. Ya maybe a vigilante that kills drug lords and such but powers?

"Oh that'll take a bit more explaining but don't worry you'll learn about it all soon enough. Once your precious Barry gets his speed. Then you'll be helping me take it away from him so I can finally go home." he smirked down at me. God I hate being short in a situation like this, a situation where I can't fight back. A situation where I'm vulnerable.

"Can't you just take a plane or something?" I continued my timid interrogation.

"Sadly no, there's no such thing as a time traveling plane. You see I come from a different century," he laughed.

Centur.... WHAT??!?!

"Ya I know it's a lot to take in," he replied to my puzzled face.

I decided to ignore it and ask the other question in my mind, "What makes you think I'm gonna help you hurt my best friend. I would never help you, even if it wasn't Barry. But it is and that gives me more of reason not to. I love him, he's family, " I answered. I then accumulated a good amount of spit in my mouth and spat at his feet.

This just made him throw his head back and laugh like a maniac. I took this moment to run, maybe I could get away while he was distracted. I was so wrong. He quickly grabbed me and pulled me to the ground.

"Funny you say that you love him like family," he laughed while dragging me across the dirt, then whispered in my ear, "In my time you guys had gotten married. But that's another life, a life I plan to destroy." I screeched and gripped at the grass as bruises and scratches formed on my body.

He rapidly grabbed me by the hair and forced me to my feet. I yelled in pain trying my best to push him off, with no luck. My throat was killing from all this screaming but it was nothing compared to all the stinging from the rest of my body. My dress was covered in blood.

"Your part in all this is very simple, just do everything I say or else," he threatened me.

"Or else what?" I whispered barely audible.

"Or else I kill The Flash, you and the girl in the room," he replied as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

"I'll never work for you," I answered, anger flowing through every vein in my body.

"Suits yourself," he smiled before sending a vibrating hand through my stomach and then pulling it back out. My eyes widened in shock and I fell to the floor.

Dead.

------------------------———------------------------
END OF HALLUCINATION AND FLASHBACK
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When I woke up for real I was in the middle of the forest which lead me to here, running. Soon enough I found myself in the city and I could finally make out where I was.

By the time I had made it to Jitters it began to rain.

"I'm not gonna make it," I whispered to myself as I ran past a bunch of civilians who were giving me strange looks for running around the streets barefoot, without a coat and umbrella in the rain. I probably looked crazy. I'm sure my makeup was running and I had twigs in my hair.

10 minutes later I had made it to CCPD. As I ran up the stairs I felt the earth shake. I looked over my shoulder and saw the explosion all the way from Star Labs.

I rapidly made my way into the station and ran upstairs. A new detective tried to stop me cause he though I needed help so I punched him in the face knocking him out cold. I glared at everyone else in the station and they stood down knowing it wasn't wise to mess with me. Rolling my eyes I continued up the stairs and entered Barry and I's shared lab.

It was too late. I witnessed my best friend, the man who I would soon call the love of my life, get struck by a lightning bolt that would change his life in more ways than ever. But at that moment I though he was dead. I was convinced he was no longer with us. There was no way he could of survived that, even if the man in yellow tried to convince me otherwise.

"NOOOO!" I screamed running over to him as his body was thrown across the room and onto a rack of chemicals that fell with him.

I was almost there when it hit me.

This huge blast of orange energy hit me as that two letter word left my mouth and it sent me flying. I landed right next to Barry but I couldn't move. The energy was embedding itself in my DNA and there was nothing I could do about it.

Finally after a few more seconds it was gone and all that was left was a small glow coming from outside. I watched it disappear as I held myself up by my shaking arms.

Once the room because completely dark I fell back to the floor while looking over at Barry. I noticed that there was a bit of lighting that went up the side of his face from the inside of his body.

"I'm sorry," I croaked, knowing he couldn't hear me, "I'm sorry this happened."

And just like that I passed out with my head resting on his shoulder. We looked like Romeo and Juliet but I was no Juliet.

This was just the beginning of our journey. This was the inciting incident. The problem was that I was not the hero to this story, Barry was. I wasn't even the damsel in distress. I was the villain's sidekick. People have tried to convince me otherwise. They've told me that I didn't have a choice, he was holding two of the most important things in my life against me, but I never saw it that way.

I saw it as it was.

I had a choice and I made it. I chose the wrong side to save my ass. I was scared of this man and didn't stand up for myself. I didn't stop him. That's the reason why I ended up the way I did. That's why I died. Because I was stupid and I let myself get manipulated.

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A.N.

Hey guys hope you like it. It's a bit short but I felt like this was the best part to stop. I usually make my own gifs but I wanted to finish this quickly for you guys so I only own two of them the rest aren't mine so credit to the owners.

And sorry for the shitty editing on the main picture. It was rushed, I tried.

Sincerely,

Sabrina 🏹