⊱ ──────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ──────── ⊰

𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗘 𝗢𝗙 𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗘

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
the tricksters

⊱ ──────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ──────── ⊰

THE NEXT DAY, after Barry's big revelation to Juliet and Joe about how he truly believed Dr. Wells had something to do with his mother's murder, the three of them gathered in Juliet and Barry's lab. Juliet leaned against Barry's desk, her arms crossed across her chest.

Barry pulled down a new crime board that was hidden on their bulletin board that had their map of Central City. This time, it had everything relating to Dr. Wells, which was basically just a bunch of news articles and pictures, including the one of Team Flash and Scarlet.

"All right, this is everything that we know about Harrison Wells, which is actually not a lot," Barry said.

Joe sat down in Juliet's chair. "Didn't you read a whole book about him?"

"Yeah, six-hundred pages and the big takeaway is he's enigmatic."

"Your mom was killed by a speedster. Wells' machine turned you into a speedster and Juliet into some kind of magical creature, but more importantly, you into a speedster. That's way too many coincidences for this old cop."

Barry put his face in his hands and sat down on top of his desk. Juliet frowned slightly at him and put his hand on his back, rubbing it comfortingly. Even though there was still a sort of tension in the air after what happened at Jitters, they seemed to be doing better. Juliet had started to realize she kind of sort of maybe overreacted. Now, she was more so confused as to how Barry knew about the whole fate and destiny thing. At the time, she had been so blind sighted by hurt and anger that she hadn't even stopped to consider that.

"Do you think he wanted me to become the Flash and Juliet to become Scarlet?" Barry asked.

"I think this is more so about you than it is me," Juliet admitted.

"Everything he's done since that night you two got struck by lightning — bringing you to S.T.A.R. Labs, giving you the suits, training you — it's all been to keep the both of you safe," Joe stated.

"And to make me faster," Barry argued. "Wells once said that he needed more speed from me. Why?"

"Yet he never said he needed more power from me," Juliet added. "He's always so focused on you."

"I don't know," Joe replied, standing up from the chair. "But he wants something from you, Barry. Something that Jules can't give him. We just need to figure out what it is."

"Well, let's go get him, then," Barry voiced. "Let's get some answers."

"We can't do that now as much as we might want to."

"Joe, you had your suspicions about Wells from the very beginning. You thought that he might be the man in yellow."

"Except the blood from your house didn't match him," Joe countered.

"All right, so maybe he's not the Reverse Flash, but you think he knows what happened that night," Barry continued. "He may have the key to getting my dad out of prison."

"Whatever Wells wants from you, it started fifteen years ago. He's been patient. Scary patient. You gotta listen to me on this. We have to be just as patient."

Juliet sighed. "Patience has never been a quality of Barry Allen."

Suddenly, loud explosions sounded from outside. Juliet's eyebrows knit in concern and she pushed herself off of the desk, walking over to the window with Barry and Joe. In the distance, black smoke was spiraling up towards the sky. She shared a look with Barry, and in the blink of an eye, the two were gone.

Juliet teleported into her suit at S.T.A.R. Labs before heading to the spot where the explosions were. Her heart instantly sunk upon seeing that it was a children's playground. A gift box that had a red parachute on it was falling from the sky. That must've been the bomb. Her eyes widened upon noticing a little kid was about to touch it.

She teleported herself over to the little boy, took his shoulders in her hands, and teleported them away just as he was about to touch the gift box. Juliet and the boy appeared away from the gift box, which proceeded to explode once it touched the ground. Barry sped in right next to her.

"Henry!" a man, presumably his dad, shouted as he sunk to his knees, pulling the little boy into a tight hug.

"Henry?" Barry repeated.

Juliet smiled and glanced up at Barry for a moment. "I like the name."

The two then went away, allowing the father to hug his son.

The next day, Juliet, Barry, and Joe went back to S.T.A.R. Labs to discuss what happened with Cisco, Caitlin, and Dr. Wells. On the screens was a video, apparently one that had been released right after Juliet saved the little boy Henry. She watched the screen, her jaw clenched in slight anger. A boy with quiffed hair, a black mask, and a spiked jacket was smiling at the screen like an actual psychopath. He was on top of a building, displaying Central City behind him.

"Tricked ya," the boy said, letting out a laugh. "Look who's back. My tricks. My treat. But I'll give you something good to eat. Today's special, a city in ashes. The Trickster proudly welcomes you all to the new disorder."

"Talking in the third person," Cisco commented. "That's never a good sign."

"You're just mad because he named himself," Caitlin protested.

"Actually, he didn't," Joe announced. "Twenty years ago, Central City was hit by a series of terrorist attacks. One man killed at least ten civilians, two cops. That guy called himself the Trickster."

Cisco pulled up some pictures and news articles of the Trickster, which was dressed in a costume of varying patterns "Woah, someone was rocking the unitard."

"James Jesse?" Caitlin read aloud.

"Like Jesse James, only more twisted," Joe responded.

"Where is this Mr. Jesse now?" Dr. Wells questioned.

"He's serving several life sentences at Iron Heights. He was just about the most dangerous thing Central City had ever seen."

"You mean until the Particle Accelerator blew up," Barry said.

Juliet's eyes widened. She elbowed Barry, who merely looked down at her. Juliet then gave him a look that said, what the fuck?, stop it, and you're being stupid all at once.

"Um—" Dr. Wells began.

"Barry, Jules, and I will go see this James Jesse at Iron Heights, see if he can give us something that can help us catch his groupie," Joe interrupted.

"I'll analyze the video and see if I can figure out the source," Cisco added.

Barry then took Juliet's hand in his, dragging her with him out of the cortex. Juliet met Caitlin's eyes on the way out. Caitlin's face seemed to say, what is going on?, but Juliet shrugged. Once they reached the hallway, Juliet let go of Barry's hand and hit his shoulder.

"You can't be going around saying some shit like that," Juliet told him quietly. "I know you're upset, and I know you're angry. Trust me, I am too. But acting out is only going to give us away."

"He had something to do with my mother's murder," Barry insisted.

"And we're going to figure that out for sure, we just need time. And right now, you're going to shorten that time if you keep acting on your anger."

Barry sighed, caving under her intense gaze. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Juliet reassured him, squeezing his arm gently. "I get it." She glanced back to see Joe coming towards him. "Now, we have to go see a literal psychopath. Yay."

Juliet, Barry, and Joe went to Iron Heights and got permission to see James Jesse. An officer was leading them down a dark hallway in the prison, which was secluded from quite literally anything else. Juliet felt a shiver go up her spine from it. If this is where Jesse James stayed, she wasn't so eager to meet him. Not that she was eager in the first place.

"Never seen this part of the prison before," Barry admitted.

"Yeah, I had to have this cell specially built for James Jesse about five years ago," the officer revealed.

"Uh . . . why?" Juliet inquired.

"A criminal psychologist set up weekly visits with him." The officer turned to them. "James talked the shrink into committing suicide."

Juliet blinked in shock. "Oh."

The officer then reached into his pocket and pulled out a bag of Twizzlers, handing it to Juliet. "Oh, you're gonna need these."

Barry looked at them in confusion. "Okay."

Joe walked past Juliet and Barry. The door buzzed and opened. Barry gave the officer a small wave before following Joe inside. Juliet shook her head at his antics and walked inside, putting the Twizzlers in the pocket of her jacket. The room was quite large, situated with two chairs facing the cell portion of the room. It was separated by three panels of glass and a door for the cell. Sitting inside the cell was a man, who Juliet could only presume was James Jesse. He was sitting under a single light on his chair, his hands folded in his lap.

"Gentlemen," James greeted. His eyes trailed to Juliet. "Lady."

Juliet's stomach twisted uncomfortably. She didn't like this.

"Please, be seated. Or, well, one of you stand."

"I can stand," Juliet offered to Barry as Joe sat down.

Barry shook his head. "No, you sit."

"Are you sure? Because—"

Barry gave her a look, one that told her he wasn't really in the mood to argue. "Sit."

Juliet sat down in the chair, her heart racing against her chest from that. "I guess I'm sitting."

Barry stood behind her chair. Juliet shuffled restlessly in her chair for a moment at how she could practically feel his figure looming over her. Oh God, what was going on with her?

"I'm Detective Joe West," Joe announced. "This is Barry Allen and Juliet St. James. Uh, we'd like to ask you a few questions."

"Mmm," James said. "I can smell them in your pocket."

Juliet pulled out the bag of Twizzlers from her pocket. She inwardly took a deep breath and went to stand up, not really wanting to go any closer to him at all, because this guy was super fucking creepy. However, she felt a hand on her shoulder, forcing her to sit back. Juliet looked up to see Barry extending his hand out to her. She placed the bag of Twizzlers in his hand.

Barry walked up to the door, holding up a folder of pictures of the parachute bombs. "Yesterday, hundreds of these parachute bombs were released throughout Central City."

He opened the drop box and placed the folder and bag of Twizzlers inside before walking back over to stand behind Juliet again. Juliet's mind spun a little of the way he placed one of his hands on her shoulder, just leaving it there to rest.

"Huh, fun idea, but not an effective delivery system," James voiced. "How many died?"

"No one, luckily," Joe answered.

"You know, when I was free and at my height, a day without casualties was like — well, like the Cubs winning the pennant — it just never happened."

Juliet gritted her teeth for a moment at the way he was laughing before sitting forwards in her chair. "The bombs you set off twenty years ago have the same explosive composition as the ones they found in all the parachute bombs yesterday."

"That's impossible," James protested. "I never told anyone that formula."

"Tell that to the signatures, which are an exact match."

"He called himself the Trickster, too, just like you," Joe stated.

"He is nothing like me, Detective," James snapped. "Nothing!"

"Do you know who he is?"

James sighed and stood up, walking over to the door. "Oh." He picked up the picture and looked at it. "If I did, I would tell you, so you could find him, cut off his head, and throw it right in his face." He put the picture against the glass so they could see. "No, this is obviously the work of a rank amateur at best. A mere pretender angling for my throne."

Joe stood up. "I hear you. So . . ." He walked up to the glass. "Help us catch him. Prove there's only one Trickster."

James chuckled and swung around a Twizzler in his hand. "Trying to trick the Trickster, Joseph, hmm?" He ran the Twizzler underneath his nose. "No." He walked back over to his chair. "There's only one way this could happen. Whoever he is, he must have found my lair." James sat back down. "I ask only one thing. When you find this schtick stealer, this gimmick grabber, this pathetic wannabe, fake, make sure your safety's off."

He then started to laugh evilly while taking a bite out of his Twizzler.

Juliet was glad to leave James Jesse alone. However, she was not glad to be in his secret lair. The place wasn't so secret anymore, and it was filled with costumes and weird mannequins.

"This looks like nobody's been here since the nineties," Joe commented.

"Yeah, look at this thing," Barry agreed, touching a cape on one of the mannequins. "You really think Jesse doesn't know who this new Trickster guy is?"

"He seemed pretty ticked off that someone was besmirching his bad name."

Juliet's eyes then focused on the large wall that had a mural of a clown on it, and her head tilt in thought. "Hey, guys."

She walked closer to it, only to see that the paint had covered up there was a handle. Juliet grabbed the handle and pulled, but the door wouldn't budge. She then held up her hand, focusing on the lock of the door. Red energy traveled between her fingers, and she saw the lock in her mind. Juliet moved her hand, which therefore moved the lock, and a click sounded from the door.

"Let's see what he's got stashed in there," Joe said.

Juliet pulled the door open. However, there was a ticking sound. Her eyes widened, and the next thing she knew, Barry grabbed her and Joe and sped them away from the floor down to the ground, away from the explosion. She grunted in pain as her body slammed against the carpet.

"Damn," Joe let out.

"You good?" Barry asked. "J?"

She took his extended hand and pulled herself up. "Yep. Nothing like another explosion."

The three of them got up and walked back to the door. As the smoke cleared, it revealed a totally empty room, just nothing but shelves. Juliet let out a deep breath. Of course.

"The copycat — he took everything," Barry announced.

Unfortunately, they were back at Iron Heights to interrogate James Jesse once more. The same officer from before led them down the same path, which just so happened to pass by Henry Allen's cell.

"Hey, c-can we have a second?" Barry questioned.

The officer nodded. "Yeah, sure."

He continued on. Juliet stood next to Joe against the wall while Barry stood by the bars.

"Dad, hey," Barry greeted.

Henry looked up in surprise. "Barry, hey." He stood up. "What are you doing here?"

"Uh, Joe, J, and I have some questions for an inmate about a bombing case." He then lowered his voice. "Dad, listen, I'm close. The man that put you in here, I'm getting close, closer than I've ever been."

"Barry, we have talked about this."

"I know, and I'm done talking," Barry stated. "You're not gonna pay for another man's crime anymore."

Juliet shared a look with Joe, and she sighed, walking up to Barry and placing a hand on his shoulder. He was being too loud. Barry instantly got the message.

"Just hang in there, okay?"

Barry walked off down the hallway. Juliet watched him go for a moment.

"Jules, what's he talking about?" Henry questioned.

"You heard him, just hang in there," Juliet responded. "Love you, Henry."

Juliet, Barry, and Joe were let back into James Jesse's cell. She was not glad to be back in there. This time, there was no sitting. The three of them walked right into the room and just stood there.

"What, no candy, fellas?" James inquired. His gaze then set on Juliet. "Oh, sorry, and lady."

"That storage space you sent us to was booby-trapped," Joe voiced.

James laughed. "You can never be too careful with your private things."

"You were protecting nothing," Barry argued. "Your secret stash was empty."

"What do you mean?"

"What do you think the word empty means?" Juliet asked. "There were no firearms, none of your explosives — there was literally nothing."

Barry walked right up to the glass. "Whatever you had in there, it was stolen, all of it."

"No," James said. "He's stealing my legacy. Whoever this is, you need to find him. I will not let this — this—"

"Trickster?" Joe suggested.

"That is my name! Mine!"

"What was in that room? What were you keeping there?"

"A bomb," James responded. "A really big bomb."

Juliet's eyes widened. "And how big are we talking, exactly?"

"Bye-bye, Central City."

Barry's phone then started to buzz, and he pulled it out of his pocket to answer it. "Cisco." He went quiet for a moment, which meant Cisco was talking. "Okay."

He pulled the phone away from his ear and walked up to Joe by the glass. Barry gestured Juliet to come, and she walked up, standing on Barry's other side. He turned his phone so it was horizontal, only to reveal another video of the copycat Trickster.

"Denizens of Central City, or those of you who remain, welcome to Boom Day," the copycat Trickster stated. "I'm very proud to report that my first trick was an exploding success."

Joe pointed at the glass. "Show him."

Barry turned his phone around to show James the video and pressed it against the glass. James stood up and approached the glass to see it better.

"But I think you all deserve something much, uh, bigger," the copycat Trickster continued. "So for my next trick . . ."

"No, no, no, no, no," James muttered. "Take off my mask, you fraud. Pretender. Sham. Take off my mask. Take off my mask." He pounded his fists against the glass and raised his voice, making Juliet slightly jump in surprise. "Take off my mask!"

James screamed and sunk to his knees. Juliet stared down at him before sharing a look with Barry and Joe. Whatever what was going on, she really didn't have a good feeling about it.

〖   ϟ   〗

juliet really said: I'm sat

OKAY SOME OF Y'ALL ARE ABOUT TO BE REAL MAD AT ME BUT JUST HEAR ME OUT HEAR ME OUT

so I said last chapter that they get together in two chapters which means that they would get together next chapter. HOWEVER I did not realize how jam-packed this episode was so I have decided to split it into three parts which means they actually don't get together next chapter

BEFORE YOU YELL AT ME JUST UNDERSTAND OKAY SOME OF Y'ALL ARE RUTHLESS AND I'M SCARED

nah fr I've never had a group of people terrify me about a book in a way that you guys do with this one (and I mean that in the most loving way possible)

I actually get BULLIED on this story please chill I'm sensitive lmao

I felt like their scene deserved more than just an extra thing at the end of a chapter full of action and whatnot. this will make it more heartfelt I promise you!

so now: there are really two more chapters until st. allen becomes what you've been waiting for them to become!!!

*I will see if I can get two updates out next week to make up for the LIE THAT I ORIGINALLY DIDN'T MEAN TO LIE ABOUT but please understand that I am also a student and have other books to write! these chapters take a pretty long time for me to write and shit*

gif by zcndayas!