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“I love you, Len.” There was no hiding the fact that she was crying as she said it. “I need you to remember that, okay? I love you. I love—“
A gunshot echoed over the line.
“Sara!”
Leonard’s eyes snapped open, the sound of his Earth-12 self screaming Sara’s name echoing in his mind. He ran a hand over his face and let out a breath, sitting up.
It was their last night on Earth-12 and in the morning, they’d be trying for their Earth again. Though, frankly, Leonard was fully prepared to end up on Earth-13. That seemed to be the pattern after all.
He wondered if they were really landing on the different Earths in order or if Gideon was just taking it upon herself to number them as they went. Maybe she just automatically numbered them. He wondered too, how many Earths they’d have to go to before they finally made it back to theirs.
Hell if he was going to give any of those questions another thought right now.
Leonard tilted his head back and took a deep breath before opening his eyes again. It wasn’t just the sound of the phone call that kept replaying for him. Every damn time he closed his eyes he saw his Earth-12 self kneeling over the body of Earth-12 Sara and it made him want to be sick.
“Gideon,” he said quietly.
“Yes, Mr. Snart?”
“Is Sara...” He trailed off, not sure how he wanted to finish that sentence. Awake? Alive? Did she magically disappear in the middle of the night? He sighed. “Never mind.”
“Ms. Lance is currently watching a movie in her room, Mr. Snart.”
Leonard considered that for a moment before nodding to himself. “Thanks, Gideon.”
“You’re welcome, Mr. Snart.”
He quickly got out of bed, sliding his feet into his slippers to avoid the cold floors, and left his room. It was only once he was outside Sara’s room that he hesitated. They had met up with each other when they both needed a drink or snack in the middle of the night but neither of them had ever actively sought the other out when they couldn’t sleep. It was a new line that he’d be crossing if he knocked and a part of him was tempted to just go make himself some hot chocolate instead.
He thought of Sara and how she hadn’t let go of his hand yesterday and knocked.
The door slid open and he stepped in, noting the surprise that flickered over Sara’s face before it disappeared. He couldn’t blame her. They’d given each other full access to their rooms a few months ago. The only time knocking was needed was if the door was locked, which was usually a sign that they weren’t dressed. He gave her a half smile and shrugged.
“I...” He paused as he considered what to say.
“Couldn’t sleep?” Sara said, keeping her voice light and he nodded.
“Yeah.”
“Well, I’ve just finished Coyote Ugly and Coming to America but you’re welcome to join me for the next one,” she told him, indicating exactly how long she’d been avoiding sleep. It might be that she slept last night. It might be that she was just used to going long periods on little sleep, he knew, but it could also be the fact that hearing an alternate version of yourself die and then seeing the body was damned disturbing.
“Are you going in alphabetical order?”
She grinned. “Hardly. Or else I’d be watching Dead Poets Society or Definitely, Maybe next.”
He hummed as he moved to the bed, kicking off his slippers and sliding in next to her, settling in so that he was leaning back against the extra pillow she kept there. “Then what’s next?”
“Labyrinth.”
“David Bowie as the Goblin King? Definitely sign me up for that,” he said, smiling slightly as she settled against his side, laughing a bit.
“Gideon, start the movie,” she said.
As the familiar music began to play during the opening credits, Leonard settled his arm around Sara’s shoulders and finally began to relax.
~*~*~
“So,” Mick said and Leonard raised his eyes to the ceiling because he could practically hear the smirk in Mick’s voice. “You spent the night in Blondie’s room.”
He knew that bumping into Mick on the way back to his room was going to bite him in the ass.
“We fell asleep watching movies,” he said, a slight edge in his voice as they headed to the bridge.
Mick stopped, putting a hand on his arm to stop Leonard as well. “Nothing wrong with spending time with her, Leonard,” he said, keeping his voice low so no one else would hear them. Leonard swallowed at the use of his first name and kept still, knowing that there was more. Mick hesitated for a moment and then added, “I’m happy for you two.” Off of Leonard’s look, he shrugged. “About time the two of you pulled your heads outta your asses.”
“We haven’t—“ Leonard shook his head and blew out a breath. “We haven’t actually talked about it too much.”
Mick studied him for a few moments. “Maybe you should.” Before Leonard could reply, he started walking again. “Then you can pretend that talk didn’t happen if you want. Just like we will about this one.”
Leonard smirked. “Maybe.” He glanced over as he and Mick got to the bridge and his lips twitched at the sight of Sara sitting on the counter and drinking coffee as she talked to Jax.
As if she could sense his gaze, she looked over at him and smiled. He watched as Jax followed her gaze and then rolled his eyes with a fond smile before he said something and then walked away to talk to Kendra.
It seemed they were a bit obvious to some people.
Rather than acknowledge that, he sauntered up to Sara and took her cup from her, smirking as he took a sip. He raised an eyebrow at her.
“Is there any coffee in that?” he asked.
She smirked at him. “Don’t like it, get your own.” She shrugged. “I missed coffee when I was in the League. But I really missed flavored creamers and sugar too.”
He took another drink of her coffee and fought not to laugh when she narrowed her eyes at him. “I see.”
She plucked the cup out of his hands and took a drink of her own. “Which means this is all mine, Crook.”
“Sharing is caring, Canary.”
“He steals your drinks too?” Barry asked, yawning as he stumbled in. “He stole my hot chocolate.”
“I made hot chocolate using your supplies and one of your mugs. There’s a difference, Barry,” Leonard said. “Besides, it barely counts. You were out of mini marshmallows.”
“As fascinating as this argument is,” Rip interrupted, sounding exasperated as he always did when he had to deal with how off track his team could get, “I’d like to get off of Earth-12 now so if you could all please finish up.”
“Wouldn’t want to keep Earth-13 waiting,” Leonard muttered to Sara, loud enough for a few of the others to hear. She snickered. Hell, even Stein looked a bit amused at the remark. At this point, none of them were expecting to just suddenly make it back to their own Earth.
“Thank you for your optimism, Mr. Snart,” Rip sighed.
Leonard smirked and dipped his head slightly in acknowledgement.
“Ship’s ready whenever we are,” Jax said, heading towards his seat next to Stein.
“Excellent,” Rip said, brightening a bit. “Everyone ready?”
Sara pouted slightly as she stared at her coffee before she sighed and drained it in one go. “Ready,” she said, leaning back to put her cup in the sink then sliding off the counter.
“Now that,” Leonard said, “was impressive.”
“There are so many jokes I could make right now but I don’t want to offend Rip’s sensibilities,” Sara told him, grinning at Rip.
“Thank you, Ms. Lance,” he said, lips twitching as he settled in the captain’s seat.
Barry drained his juice and then sped around the kitchen before settling in one of the empty seats. “Glasses are washed.” He grinned. “I figured I’d save us all time later.”
“Thanks, Barry,” Kendra told him, shooting him a grateful smile.
“Sweet,” Jax said as Sara and Leonard sat in the two seats across from him. Mick and Ray snagged seats on either side of Kendra.
“Strap in so we can get back to our Earth,” Rip told them. As soon as everyone had, he turned and took a deep breath. “Let’s hope,” he muttered.
~*~*~
“Gideon?” Rip asked as everyone unlocked their seats.
“As Mr. Snart predicted, we are on Earth-13, Captain,” Gideon announced after a few moments.
Rip sighed. “Damage?”
“Not as extensive as usual, Captain. However, this Earth is very similar to ours and Ms. Lance brought up a very good point on Earth-11 to Mr. Allen that needs to be considered.”
Barry straightened. “That’s right! We need to stock up. The damage is usually done to the same area so we know what we need. But Sara pointed out that there might be an Earth where we can’t easily get what we need for repairs so we should stock up on things we need, just in case. Save it for the Earths that don’t have them.”
“And just continue to get what we do need from each Earth that does so that we always have those parts stored away as a backup plan,” Jax said, nodding. “I like it.”
“I’m more than just a pretty face,” Sara teased making the others grin.
“Well,” Kendra said, “I may not have super speed but I can help you guys with getting those parts.” She stood. “Gideon, can you start a search for where we can find what we’ll need?”
“Searching now, Ms. Saunders,” Gideon assured her.
Sara turned to Leonard and tilted her head towards the rooms in question. He nodded and as the others began to move around and make plans, they slipped back to Sara’s room.
“So,” Sara said, turning to face him, “are you ready for Earth-13?”
Leonard thought of Earth-12 and blew out a breath. “Honestly?” he asked. Off of her nod, he shook his head. “Probably not. But I’d rather know.”
Sara studied him for a few moments and then stepped forward, sliding her arms around his waist, turning her head so that her ear was pressed up against his heart. He tensed and then, gradually, began to relax. His arms wrapped around her and he closed his eyes.
“We’re okay,” she said quietly.
Leonard took a deep breath and tightened his arms around her briefly. “We’re okay,” he agreed, his voice just as low as hers. “Gideon, can you locate Earth-13’s Sara Lance?”
“Of course, Mr. Snart,” Gideon said. He noted that her voice was also low as if she didn’t want to disturb them. After a few moments of silence, Gideon announced, “Ms. Lance is, based off her phone’s GPS, located in Sierra Park. I also took the liberty of checking for Earth-13’s Mr. Snart and he is there at the park as well.”
“What a shocking development,” Leonard muttered. He felt Sara shake with laughter against him. “Thanks, Gideon. We’ll be taking the comms with us in case we can’t get too close.”
“I believe that’d be wise, Mr. Snart.”
Sara pulled back just enough to look up at him. “I should probably raid the fabrication room for a good wig to change my hair color. It’s one thing to be in a crowded room or on the street. But I’ve been to that park on our Earth and it’s big enough that people will be spread out. It’s easier to blend with a crowd. We might be noticed by our other selves in a park. I know I’d notice if I saw a girl that looked just like me wandering around.”
Leonard frowned as he tried to remember whether he’d already known Sara had been to Sierra Park or not. “When did you go to that park?”
She smiled. “After I was brought back. I stayed in Star City for a bit and then I left to start looking into ways to control my bloodlust. My first stop was Central City to visit my mom. Let her know I was alive. Again.”
He wondered if he’d seen her and just simply walked passed her back then. It was hard to imagine just walking by Sara Lance with how she had always drawn his eye but it was a definite possibility.
The rest of what she’d said registered and he sighed. “I suppose if you’re changing your hair color, I should get a hat or something.”
“Ooh, another cowboy hat?” she teased.
“Sure because that wouldn’t draw any attention at all,” he shot back, smirking. “Shoddy planning skills there, pretty bird.”
“Maybe I just like the way you look all dressed up for the Wild West.”
Leonard thought back to the smirk she’d given when she’d put her own cowboy hat on and gave her a small smile. “Likewise.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead and stepped back. “But I was thinking more along the lines of a baseball hat.”
Sara tilted her head and narrowed her eyes as she considered it before she hummed in approval. “I think I’ll like the way you look in that too.” She grabbed his hand and pulled him out of her room and in the direction of the fabrication room. “Now come on. I want to see how I look as a strawberry blonde.”
~*~*~
Sara, Leonard decided, looked fantastic as a strawberry blonde. It had been suspiciously easy to leave the Waverider without being seen by anyone but Ray, whose doppelganger was also at the park according to Gideon he’d told them. He’d said he was going to go check it out but separately and Leonard wasn’t going to bother him over that though his lips had twitched when he’d seen that Ray had also grabbed a baseball hat for himself along with a backpack in an effort to look like he was a student.
“Where do you think we’ll find them?” Sara asked as her eyes scanned the area they were in.
Leonard frowned. “We should start heading for the center of the park. Gideon said it was a barbeque party and all the grills and picnic areas are scattered along the edges of the park.”
“Leaving the big grassy areas in the middle open for other things,” Sara said.
“And the creek that cuts through it is open for kids to play in.” He sighed. “And without knowing more about our lives on this Earth, I can’t say which ones we’d be more likely to pick.”
She paused. “Did you ever come here for barbeques or picnics?”
He hesitated. “Mick and Lisa would usually bring me here for my birthday. Lisa liked it because it was usually perfect weather for it.”
“Why don’t we look in that area first?” she suggested. “Even if they’re not there, it gives us a starting point.”
Leonard nodded and motioned in the direction they should head. Neither of them said anything as they walked, each of them scanning the area as subtly as they could.
It didn’t take them long to reach the area that Leonard had been thinking of and he sighed as they stared at the empty area.
“Looks like we’ll need to start searching the other areas,” he said.
Sara glanced over and then paused for a moment before she shook her head. “Actually, I think we should sit down.”
Leonard’s eyes narrowed and he pulled her towards the table, glancing around as he did so and immediately spotting what Sara had spotted.
There, leaning against a tree not too far from the neighboring picnic/barbecue area (where he could see another version of Lisa, Mick, Ray, and even Sara’s sister) was his Earth-13 self. And sitting between his legs and leaning back against his chest was Earth-13 Sara.
Once they reached one of the tables, Leonard sat with his back to the tabletop and sprawled out, leaning back on his elbows as Sara straddled the bench so she was facing him as well as their doppelgangers.
“So,” Earth-13 Sara said, “I hear Ray is going to propose.”
Earth-13 Leonard nodded. “Today actually. I told him he could use the party if he wanted to.”
Sara grinned slightly and glanced over her shoulder. “You gave him permission to hijack your birthday party? Leonard Snart, have you gone soft on me?”
Leonard scoffed. “Please. If I let him use the party to propose, that takes the focus off of me. It was self-preservation.”
She laughed. “That makes much more sense.”
“I thought so.” He leaned to the side slightly to meet her gaze. “By the way, what did your mom call me earlier?”
Sara laughed. “What she’s always called you.” She leaned back a bit more against him. “She asked me how my thief was doing.”
He paused. “She calls me your thief.”
She nodded. “Always has. The first time she did it was the day after I killed Lewis.”
Leonard’s lips twitched as he pressed a kiss to her temple. “Now, see, that was one of the best gifts I’ve gotten.”
“It wasn’t even your birthday.”
“I considered it a belated anniversary gift.” Despite his light tone as he said it, his face was serious and she remembered the look mixed with awe and love that he’d given her that day just minutes before she’d slid a knife into his father’s heart.
Her expression darkened as she thought of the scars that littered Leonard and Lisa’s bodies. “He deserved it,” she said, voice hard. “I only wish I’d made him suffer more before ending it.”
Much as he’d done years ago, he gave her a small smile and pulled her closer. “Sara,” he said. He couldn’t bring himself to say anything else but it didn’t matter. He could see that she understood just by the look in her eyes.
He’d never needed words with Sara.
Walking up to her at Saints and Sinners seven years ago was the best decision he’d ever made.
Leonard closed his eyes for a moment, reaching down to tangle their left hands together. She squeezed his hand and he opened his eyes, staring down at the gold band on his finger and the glint of the diamonds that were on hers.
“Coming up on five years,” he said quietly.
Sara smiled. “Regrets?”
He laughed. “None.” He paused and then added, “Maybe Raymond.”
Sara burst out laughing. “Len!”
“We’re going to be related, Sara,” he pointed out. “Because we both know that there’s no way that Laurel is saying no.” His eyes lit up. “Has Laurel told him what your mom’s side of the family does? And if she hasn’t, can I be there when she does? I’m sure it’ll be hilarious.”
“I think you underestimate him,” Sara said. “But I have no idea if Laurel has told him. Mom didn’t tell Dad until he proposed and then she offered him an out. He told her he didn’t care as long as she didn’t bring her work to Starling City and that was that.”
Leonard hummed at the story he’d heard once before. “Funny, I don’t remember being given an out.”
“You got turned on watching me silently threaten your father,” Sara pointed out, shooting him an amused look over her shoulder. “I didn’t think an out was needed.”
“That look definitely did it for me, that’s true,” he acknowledged.
Sara turned so that she was facing partly to the side, absently making a note of the couple in the next picnic area talking to each other, and looked up at Leonard with a small smile. “Never change, agapi mou.”
“I don’t plan to,” he assured her, pressing his forehead against hers.
Ray’s voice rang out from their picnic area as he asked everyone to quiet down. They glanced over to see him jumping off one of the tables as he walked over to where Laurel was standing and dropped to one knee.
“Here we go,” Leonard whispered, lips twitching as someone lowered the music that had been playing which allowed Ray’s voice to carry towards them.
“I had a speech prepared,” Ray said. He tilted his head and smiled slightly. “But I can’t remember a word of it which explains why I use notecards when I have to give one. So I’m just going to wing it.” He took a deep breath. “It’s pretty simple really. You amaze me, Laurel. You have the kindest heart of anyone I’ve ever met and yet I know you wouldn’t hesitate to take out someone that was hurting others. You...you believe in me. And I don’t think I’ll ever be able to tell you how much that means to me. That I can tell you all the ideas that I have and you’ll listen and you’ll support me and,” he grinned, “when I need it, you’ll pull me back.”
Laurel laughed, wiping at her eyes as she continued to hold his gaze.
“You don’t make me want to be a hero,” Ray said. “You make me feel like I already am. And I hope...I hope I make you feel even a fraction of what you make me feel because I didn’t know it was possible to be this happy.” He took a deep breath. “I love you. More than I thought was ever possible. Will you marry me?”
The smile on Laurel’s face could have lit up the entire city. “Yes,” she said, not bothering to wipe away her tears as she threw herself into Ray’s arms. “Of course I’ll marry you.” She pulled back and put her hands on his cheeks. “I love you.”
“Hey, maybe now would be the time to put the ring on her finger,” Barry called from his spot near Lisa. He grinned when Ray’s eyes widened.
Leonard smirked and pressed his lips to Sara’s shoulder. “It's always surprising to me how much of a little shit Barry is.”
“Really? He’s related to me. I’d think you’d expect it at this point,” Sara said, amused.
He shrugged. “He’s just so...puppies and sunshine.”
“And the fastest one in the family when it comes to getting rid of a body,” she sighed. “I’m so glad he’s usually available for my areas.”
Leonard didn’t bother to hide his laugh as they watched Ray slide a ring that had belonged to his mother onto Laurel’s finger.
“Your family never fails to amuse me,” he said before nudging her. “Come on, let’s go offer congratulations or else they’ll notice we’re gone and come looking for us.”
“They already knew we were gone,” she pointed out.
“But they were pretending not to,” Leonard countered. “Which means we need to go offer congratulations before they have to pretend to notice we wandered off. Because if they don’t have to point it out, they can pretend not to notice it again later.”
“Well,” Sara sighed as she stood up, “I can’t argue with that.”
Leonard simply smirked at her and stood up as well before turning back towards the party where a number of people were hugging Laurel and Ray as they congratulated them. “He better not hug me,” he muttered. “Newly engaged or not, I might punch him if he does.”
Sara grinned. “You’re terrible,” she laughed.
“You love me.”
She slid her hand into his. “That I do.”
Turning his head so that he could watch their Earth-13 selves make their way towards the Earth-13 Ray and Laurel, Leonard blew out a breath at everything they’d overheard.
But the thing that stuck out wasn’t that they were married—after all, it wasn't the first Earth that had happened on and it probably wouldn’t be the last—but that Sara had killed Lewis on this Earth.
Painfully from the sounds of it.
“I only wish I’d made him suffer more before ending it.”
“A bit poetic after the last Earth,” Sara said as if he’d spoken out loud.
“More than a bit,” Leonard said, smirking at the thought. “And it doesn’t sound like he went painlessly.”
“If I had to guess, I’d say she used a knife.” Off of his look, she shrugged. “I’d have used a knife.”
The fact that she’d thought of how she’d kill off Lewis if she ever had a chance didn’t surprise Leonard one bit. Sara didn’t like it when the people she cared about were hurt and he’d accepted that they more than just cared for each other.
He smiled. “Really?”
She nodded. “I’d have made him hurt first. But I’d have ended him with a knife.”
Leonard probably shouldn’t find Sara calmly explaining how she’d have murdered his father to be at all comforting but, well, he’d already killed the man himself and Lewis was a bastard no matter what Earth they were on it seemed so he didn’t let it bother him. Instead, he tilted his head towards her and said,
“I almost wish I hadn’t killed him just so you’d have had the chance, Assassin.”
Sara considered that for a moment before she shook her head. “No,” she said, “no matter how much I wish you hadn’t had to kill your own father, I’m glad you were able to stop him from hurting you and Lisa anymore.”
Leonard stared at her for a few moments, thinking of that moment when he’d known Lisa was safe and how it had felt to watch the life fade from his eyes. He remembered what his father had been like before he’d gone to prison, that younger version that had confronted him and ordered him to stay the hell away from his son. That man hadn’t been an abusive bastard. Caught up in making an easy buck and ignoring little things like his actual job? Sure. But he’d never raised a hand to Leonard or his mom until after his stint in Iron Heights.
A part of him had wanted to mourn that man. Lewis Snart had never been Father of the Year but there’d been a time where he’d wanted better for his family rather than just himself. He had drank too much and he hadn’t been able to hold a steady job but he’d kept his family away from the people he’d gone on jobs with. They’d been safe from that for a few years. Then Iron Heights had happened and the only person Lewis Snart had cared about after that was himself.
Yes, Leonard had wanted to mourn that man. But that man had died when Leonard was five years old.
Instead, he’d felt relieved and satisfied that he’d never have to worry about Lewis hurting Lisa again.
“Yeah,” he said quietly. “Me too.”