Over the hours, she's changed the bandage over his head several times and checks on his damaged eye. She also has reapplied the topical ointment to help reduce the scarring.
"The skin is actually healing pretty well for the damage you've sustained there," she explains, keeping a careful eye on him. "I wouldn't move the bandage too much." Healing skin and all. "How are you feeling?"
He'll move his hand, then. Carefully. Thinks about her question. "Wonky?" But that's probably to be expected. All of those drugs to keep him from feeling less pain.
"Wonky sounds about right. I'll decrease your dosage, then." She fiddles with the bags until the drip is a lot slower. "You're lucky I've been working with metas for years in order to get things like anesthesia to work for speedsters."
From her own calculations, it seemed like it might take a while yet, maybe another day, before he would be up and running.
"Thanks." His hand moves to his shoulder, where the blade had gone in. The one injury he has that's completely healed. "Everyone's okay?" Iris, Cisco, herself.
"Iris is a little shaken but she's okay. She and Barry are home right now. He's got a clean bill of health. Cisco got a clean bill of health. Just a lot of bruising from being thrown around." Herself? "Luckily, Frost also heals pretty quickly. Any injury I've sustained has been healed up."
"I'm the only outlier?" Well, isn't that...horrifying to think about, honestly. "You stayed?" Nobody else did, apparently. Not that he expected them to.
"Clean bill after I fixed them up. That next order of medical supplies is going to be a big one." If he looked, he would notice her stock of medical supplies is running a little low. "And of course I stayed. Why wouldn't I? Everyone else just...wanted to go home to their loved ones after an ordeal like that."
Loved ones, huh. Awkward topic, that. He doesn't really say anything about that. What would he even say? That until yesterday, when he was still the 'real' Barry Allen, he'd had one? Yeah. So. Awkward.
"Okay." He's fine. He is fine. Is he fine? If he's so fine, what's with that weird little hitch in his chest? "Crap. I'm fine."
There's a crinkle in her forehead when he is trying to reassure someone that he's fine. Caitlin immediately checks over his vitals. They all..seem...to check out okay?
"Doesn't mean I'm leaving you," she replies. "What are you feeling right now?"
Because it's not a physical pain, more of a mental one. The kind that comes with the self-realization that everyone he loves, everyone he cares about technically 'belongs', so to speak, to the version of him that 'belongs' to this timeline.
"I don't know." There's a strange sense of panic that comes with that, and it's not something he's easily able to get a handle on. Not for the first time, he wishes his dad were here. For the perspective, if not for the calming presence. "Disjointed." Does that even make sense to her? It doesn't make sense to him. "Can I get up? I need to get out..."
That, by far, is the most ridiculous statement. Of course he can't get up, his leg is broken and his back is more than a little damaged.
Disjointed. The realization hits that he carries all of Barry's memories. That, according to him, he was Barry. And for him to hear that everyone else went home with their loved ones must have been jarring. Caitlin puts a firm but gentle hand on his uninjured shoulder.
"You should know that I don't let my patients get up and walk around before I give them the all clear. Your back and leg were broken. You need to rest and heal up," she says in her best doctor voice that did not sound unlike Joe's dad cop voice in tone. This was something she needed to bring up with the rest of Team Flash. What do they do with him? He's not some disposable life. He's someone. They can't give him a new past. His past will always be Barry Allen's. But maybe they could give him a future.
He could nod, agreeing that he did get that, he did understand that. He was hurt, really hurt. Bad enough that even his speed couldn't heal him fast enough. It was good he supposed that Barry Allen, the one that belonged with Iris West and Joe and Wally now in this new iteration of time, wasn't feeling this pain. Wasn't lying here.
Who knew better what a Barry Allen could handle than another Barry?
Satisfied that he'd stay down, Caitlin sits down again with her tablet,
drawing up her e-mail to start the process with establishing an identity
with Felicity. Just to start it and have it all waiting and ready for when
she discusses it with the rest of the team.
"...how do you feel about being called Bart?" she asks.
She receives texts from a few of the others, asking how the remnant is
doing.
"Not...great about it?" He's probably already forgotten, thanks to those drugs, the idea of establishing him his own identity. He's never been fond of 'Bartholomew', so Bart just seems like a harsher version of that.
He does, however, seem to understand who she's talking to. "...does Oliver know what happened?"
She thought she could try as that would be a name that would be close
enough to his own name.
"Iris managed to keep Team Arrow and the Legends updated from within the
Time Vault, actually," she replies, amused at how tenacious her friend is.
"So Oliver knows. What about..." She's interrupted with a message, frowns,
then looks at him. "...as your physician, I think you should wait for
visitors, but Barry wants to see you for himself."
He's honestly surprised the Legends didn't bounce in here and try to fix things themselves. Would anyone have? Probably not.
He looked...well, he looked unnerved at the idea of talking to what was essentially himself. Did he want to? Eventually, he'd have to. Might as well get it over with, whatever the other him had to say. "...okay? Okay."
Caitlin presses her mouth into a thin line and neatly taps on her tablet to
respond to Barry.
"Doctor's orders. You need bed rest and time to recover before talking
about anything." The corner of her mouth quirks up a little. "I will freeze
you to this bed if I need to."
He had, honestly, meant it was fine if she let him come. But. But, he is absolutely fine with her misunderstanding that. He's not really sure he's ready to talk to anyone.
Even if he really, really wants to talk to Joe. Or Cisco. Or Iris.
Her threat, however, gets a slightly amused look from him. "That doesn't seem fair." Or does it? "How long? Will it take, I mean." To recover. The last time he was this bad off was Zoom, and that took...entirely too long.
"A day, at least, for bed rest. I think we should be able to find an older
power chair for you after that if everything looks well enough for you to
sit up for longer periods of time," Caitlin replies. She recalls when Zoom
broke Barry and left him wheelchair bound for a while. "Until then, I'm
afraid you're stuck with me until you're ready to take on visitors."
A slightly amused and tired snort. "It's not like your bad company, Caitlin." He can't think of anyone else he'd rather be helping him. Though. "What about Julian? Isn't he waiting for you?"
That was something she hadn't shared with Team Flash.
"Julian and I aren't seeing each other anymore. We haven't since Savitar
showed up and we needed to concentrate on making sure Iris was safe. He's
much more interested in finding a cure for me and insisting that Frost is
some kind of disease." Something neither of them were big fans of.
That was in fact something he didn't know. He looks concerned, or as best as he can with half his face covered in gauze. "I'm sorry. I didn't know." A slight frown. "Probably doesn't help, the Alchemy...thing."
"Yeah, that was...something I as willing to look over as part of who he
was. It wasn't something that determined who he is and who he could be,"
she explains. "But I guess he didn't see it that way for me." Caitlin gives
him a small smile. "I haven't had a chance to tell everyone yet. But..I
don't think it'll be a big deal."
"His loss." Certainly not Caitlin's. It wasn't like he had ever been fond of Julian. "It's a big deal. You should be with someone who wants you." All of her. Not just the parts that are good.
"It's a little difficult to find people who would be comfortable with both
of us. Let alone accept both of us." Caitlin gives him a small smile.
She glances at something that had been tucked away and was gathering dust.
She sets down her tablet and reaches for it, pulling out the chess board
that she played against Barry when he first got his powers.
"If you're up for it, I believe this means that I can play chess against
you at a normal speed," she teases.
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"The skin is actually healing pretty well for the damage you've sustained there," she explains, keeping a careful eye on him. "I wouldn't move the bandage too much." Healing skin and all. "How are you feeling?"
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From her own calculations, it seemed like it might take a while yet, maybe another day, before he would be up and running.
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Barry?
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"Okay." He's fine. He is fine. Is he fine? If he's so fine, what's with that weird little hitch in his chest? "Crap. I'm fine."
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"Doesn't mean I'm leaving you," she replies. "What are you feeling right now?"
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"I don't know." There's a strange sense of panic that comes with that, and it's not something he's easily able to get a handle on. Not for the first time, he wishes his dad were here. For the perspective, if not for the calming presence. "Disjointed." Does that even make sense to her? It doesn't make sense to him. "Can I get up? I need to get out..."
That, by far, is the most ridiculous statement. Of course he can't get up, his leg is broken and his back is more than a little damaged.
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"You should know that I don't let my patients get up and walk around before I give them the all clear. Your back and leg were broken. You need to rest and heal up," she says in her best doctor voice that did not sound unlike Joe's dad cop voice in tone. This was something she needed to bring up with the rest of Team Flash. What do they do with him? He's not some disposable life. He's someone. They can't give him a new past. His past will always be Barry Allen's. But maybe they could give him a future.
"Doctor's orders," she affirmed.
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Who knew better what a Barry Allen could handle than another Barry?
"Okay. Sorry."
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Satisfied that he'd stay down, Caitlin sits down again with her tablet, drawing up her e-mail to start the process with establishing an identity with Felicity. Just to start it and have it all waiting and ready for when she discusses it with the rest of the team.
"...how do you feel about being called Bart?" she asks.
She receives texts from a few of the others, asking how the remnant is doing.
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He does, however, seem to understand who she's talking to. "...does Oliver know what happened?"
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She thought she could try as that would be a name that would be close enough to his own name.
"Iris managed to keep Team Arrow and the Legends updated from within the Time Vault, actually," she replies, amused at how tenacious her friend is. "So Oliver knows. What about..." She's interrupted with a message, frowns, then looks at him. "...as your physician, I think you should wait for visitors, but Barry wants to see you for himself."
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He looked...well, he looked unnerved at the idea of talking to what was essentially himself. Did he want to? Eventually, he'd have to. Might as well get it over with, whatever the other him had to say. "...okay? Okay."
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Caitlin presses her mouth into a thin line and neatly taps on her tablet to respond to Barry.
"Doctor's orders. You need bed rest and time to recover before talking about anything." The corner of her mouth quirks up a little. "I will freeze you to this bed if I need to."
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Even if he really, really wants to talk to Joe. Or Cisco. Or Iris.
Her threat, however, gets a slightly amused look from him. "That doesn't seem fair." Or does it? "How long? Will it take, I mean." To recover. The last time he was this bad off was Zoom, and that took...entirely too long.
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"A day, at least, for bed rest. I think we should be able to find an older power chair for you after that if everything looks well enough for you to sit up for longer periods of time," Caitlin replies. She recalls when Zoom broke Barry and left him wheelchair bound for a while. "Until then, I'm afraid you're stuck with me until you're ready to take on visitors."
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That was something she hadn't shared with Team Flash.
"Julian and I aren't seeing each other anymore. We haven't since Savitar showed up and we needed to concentrate on making sure Iris was safe. He's much more interested in finding a cure for me and insisting that Frost is some kind of disease." Something neither of them were big fans of.
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"Yeah, that was...something I as willing to look over as part of who he was. It wasn't something that determined who he is and who he could be," she explains. "But I guess he didn't see it that way for me." Caitlin gives him a small smile. "I haven't had a chance to tell everyone yet. But..I don't think it'll be a big deal."
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"It's a little difficult to find people who would be comfortable with both of us. Let alone accept both of us." Caitlin gives him a small smile.
She glances at something that had been tucked away and was gathering dust. She sets down her tablet and reaches for it, pulling out the chess board that she played against Barry when he first got his powers.
"If you're up for it, I believe this means that I can play chess against you at a normal speed," she teases.
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