The Flash, Season 5

Nora:
[opening voiceover] Okay. Let's back up. My name is Nora West-Allen, the fastest woman alive. When I'm from, thirty years from now, I'm the guardian of Central City. I'm a speedster, just like my dad. People call me XS. Every day, I hope to live up to the legacy of the Flash. But I've still got a looong way to go.

Ralph:
Now I realize that you're all way ahead of me in this time travel business, but guys, I think I just discovered something. So, if, if Nora can time travel, that means she can create new timelines, right? New timelines means that parallel timelines can exist. So, guys, I think that... a whole other universe could exist. I know, I know, it sounds crazy, but think about it. There could be, ah, an Earth where we're all bad guys, or another Earth where there's no world hunger, or another Earth where... where they never made that last Indiana Jones movie.... Think of the possibilities. It's like some kind of... Manyverse. [looks around at the rest of the team] Aaand everybody knows about the Manyverse.

Iris:
Multiverse. And so do you, Ralph.

Caitlin:
Breacher, Gypsy, Harry. What did you think we meant when we said that Harry was from Earth-2?

Ralph:
That he is from Earth "also". [off everyone's looks] You guys really need to make, like, a "Welcome" pamphlet, or at least a Powerpoint or something. [bangs his head on a whiteboard]

Barry:
You know the danger that her being here poses to the timeline.

Iris:
Yeah, I do, but I also know you, Barry. Look. You're the guy that went back in time to borrow Snart before he died.

Barry:
I know.

Iris:
You're also the same guy that traveled to 2020 to figure out who Savitar was, and to 2015 to train with Wells. You changed fate to save my life. So, now that our daughter is here in front of us asking for our help, you expect me to believe that you're worried about the timeline?

Barry:
How old were you when it happened?

Nora:
I was born, um, a few years before you vanished, but I don't have any memories of you.

Barry:
So the wedding was–

Nora:
–was pretty much the first time I met you. Can imagine so many different things to say to you. Still can't believe I went with "Remember to say 'I do' ". I guess things don't always go the way you planned them.

Nora:
[closing voiceover] My name is Nora West-Allen, and I'm the fastest woman alive. When I was a child, my father disappeared in something impossible. Then I grew up and became the impossible. Now I'm trying to live up to the legacy he created, so that one day, I'll stop him from ever disappearing. I'm XS. How shui is that?

[Nora has just shown the rest of Team Flash the far-future newspaper article claiming that the Flash never returns after vanishing.]

Iris:
So what?

Barry:
Iris.

Iris:
So what that that article says you never come back? So what if the other one says you vanished? I mean, it's said other things before, right? We made it say other things before. So, whatever the future brings, we're gonna deal with it when it gets here. And change it if we need to.

Cisco:
She has a point. If there's anything Team Flash is good at, it's handing the future its own ass, and then some.

Caitlin:
What he said.

Cisco:
[emotional regarding Gypsy] We just had something so special. Shouldn't it have worked? 'Course, now it's not so special anymore, and now she's just rattling around... inside my head.

Caitlin:
I'm sorry this is so hard for you. But it's okay that you're still thinking about her.

Cisco:
I don't think you understand, Caitlin. I mean, she's literally... inside my head. I can't vibe. Everything I vibe connects to her. I put some music on, I hear her voice singing along. I'm painting my figurines, I see her face on Captain Kirk's body. Shhhh... do you smell that? Of course you don't. 'Cause that's her perfume, [laughing nervously] and I'm the only one smelling it.

Caitlin:
Of course. Your powers linked you guys over pan-dimensional space-time, so it makes complete sense that your vibe echoes would be–

Cisco:
–connecting us to each other, yes, I know. Thank you for the diagnosis.

Caitlin:
I'm sorry. You don't need a doctor, you need a friend.

Barry:
What are you doing?! You can't touch that, you'll contaminate the evidence.

Nora:
Sorry, you mean you don't have a scene-wide modified bosonic frequency field to avoid cross-contamination?

Barry:
I don't even think we have some of those words yet.

Nora:
... Oops.

[Nora tries to show Barry that she can throw speed-generated lightning, only to send Barry crashing through a whiteboard.]

Nora:
[rushing to Barry's side] Dad! Dad, are you okay?

Barry:
I'm okay. I've been hit with lightning before. [groans] It's okay.

Nora:
It's not okay. I guess... greatness isn't hereditary.

Joe:
Barr, all the information this girl has on you comes from that museum. There're literally statues of you on pedestals. How much do you think she wants to impress her hero?

Barry:
So what do I do?

Joe:
Well, show her it's okay not to be perfect coming out of the gate. There's no shortcuts. Takes time to get things right. And that's not a failure. That's life. And also, show her that no matter what, you're always gonna love her. That's what parents do.

[The little girl Nora of 2032 is seen walking through a Flash Museum wing exhibiting Flash's rogues gallery.]

Nora:
[voice-over] As a kid, there was a part of the Flash Museum that always scared me. I guess it's normal for children to be afraid of monsters. But this monster was different. [The young Nora walks to a display of a newspaper with the headline "Who Is Cicada?"] No one knows where he came from, how he got his powers, who he is. All that's known is his alias, and the last sound his victims hear.

[Jump to present-day S.T.A.R Labs, with the adult Nora talking to Team Flash.]

Nora:
[continuing] But that's not what makes him scary. What makes him scary is... you never catch him.

Cisco:
This is a waste of time. Thank you very much for coming, Cumberbatch.

Harrison "Sherloque" Wells:
I'm sure you would like it if I took my leave, right? Could have more time to recover from your recent heartbreak.

Cisco:
What are you talking about?

Sherloque:
The subcutaneous undereye bruising which indicates you've been crying. A flaky skin which indicates dehydration, probably from alcohol consumption. Alcohol plus crying can only mean one thing: you have been duummmped.

Cisco:
Wrong, detective. I have not been dumped.

Sherloque:
Oh no?

Cisco:
It was a mutual decision, okay? Cynthia and I, we reached a decision together as a team–

Sherloque:
Of course.

Cisco:
–okay? And I haven't been sobbing. In fact, I can't remember the last time [starts to break down] I cried about it. Excuse me. [leaves the room]

Cicada:
You have a lovely family, Detective West. By not giving me what I want, by putting your life in danger, you're gambling their future with you. If you knew what I know, you'd cherish them more.

Joe:
I'm not luring Vibe into a death trap. You can threaten me all you want. I'm not afraid.

Cicada:
I believe you. But you should be. [fires energy bolts from his dagger at Joe]

Iris:
Still swirling around up there?

Barry:
I just don't get Nora. I mean, I thought our training was sinking in. I mean, she defeated Block, she was really making progress. And next thing you know, she wants to break into CCPD and kidnap a suspect in police custody. I mean, it's like she wants to... make Hersch Cicada.

Iris:
Barry, you really don't get why she's obsessed?

Barry:
Wait, should I?

Iris:
Think about it. She's been hearing about the ripple effects on the timeline since she got here. And at first, they were relatively small, but now, Cicada...

Barry:
Not so small.

Iris:
He's one of the worst serial killers in history, and now because of Nora, he's here early. And an entirely different person.

Barry:
With an entirely different set of victims.

Iris:
That is a huge weight to bear for someone who just wanted to spend time with a dad she never knew. She feels really guilty, Barry. She wants to try to fix her mistakes, whatever that takes. Sounds like another speedster I know, actually.

Ralph:
Listen, Caitlin, I'm... I'm sorry.

Caitlin:
For what?

Ralph:
For... all of this. Just, I felt like a complete joke after that hostage thing, and then "Sherloque" shows up and everybody swoons over his so-called master detective-ness. You were nice enough to invite me along, and I pushed you... into that. And... I'm really sorry.

Caitlin:
Ralph, this thing you 'pushed' me into gave me something I've never had before.

Ralph:
Your first felony?

Caitlin:
No, closure. It may not be pretty, but I finally know the truth. And that means everything. So for my buck, you're the best detective a girl could ask for.

[Nora uses her smartphone to take a picture of Iris' pancakes.]

Iris:
What, what're you doing?

Nora:
Uh, I am just getting evidence that you make lumpy pancakes in every time period.

[Ralph is investigating with Sherloque about a possible link between Cicada's mask and his real identity.]

Ralph:
We find out where this is used, we'e gonna find our man. Elementary.

Sherloque:
Elementary?

Ralph:
No shrap, Sherlock. [walks off]

Sherloque:
[more to himself] It's Sher-loque.

[Team Flash is reviewing the latest app article by Spencer Young about Nora fighting a fire at the Picture News building.]

Barry:
Hold on. Look at the time stamp on the post. Seven-fifty-two pm? Nora and I were still with Jonesy, and the fire at C.C.P.N. hadn't even been reported yet.

Iris:
I guess you'll always be the first one to the scoop if you're the one making it.

Caitlin:
So she's some sort of "Early Edition" meta who creates stories?

Iris:
Fake news taken to a whole new level.

[On his own, Sherloque has established the link to Cicada's mask and his possible identity, the clue Ralph had originally investigated.]

Ralph:
Well, listen, Sherlook–

Sherloque:
Sher-loque.

Ralph:
I, uh, I gotta hand it to you. That's... very impressive.

Sherloque:
Quite a breakthrough, aye, Monsieur Dibny? One that I cannot take any credit for. Hmm, all the credit, all the praise, goes to you, Monsieur Dibny. It was your instinct to follow the mask, right? Well, you were right, and I was... less right. I apologize.

Nora:
[emotional] Mom thinks that she had good reason to suppress my powers in the future. But she doesn't know what that reason is.

Barry:
I'm sure it's a good one. Look, Nora, I don't have to visit the future to know what kind of mother Iris is gonna be. She cares about family, more than anyone I've ever met. Okay? I support her decisions. Past, present and future.

Nora:
[shocked and appalled] Then I guess I need to rethink what the meaning of "family" is.

Iris:
Tripped alarm at Central City Art Gallery. Someone stole a Monet.

Barry:
[in disbelief] At 10 a.m.? That's bold.

Barry:
You know, Nora, I wish you would try to understand who your mom is today, and stop seeing her as who she becomes in the future.

Cecile:
All right, I'll make you a deal. For every chore you do, I'll tell you one thing Papa Joe told me about your father that didn't make it into the precious Flash Museum.

Nora:
Mama Cecile, the museum has a complete record of all of Dad's accomplishments.

Cecile:
Including the time when Barry ends up in an alternate past filled with golden giants called Grodans?

Nora:
Wait, what?

Cecile:
Grodans.

[Barry, his powers suppressed by metacuffs, is being held prisoner by Peter Merkel, his chair on a rooftop ledge.]

Peter Merkel:
Police man. Fancy cuffs.

Barry:
Peter, you don't want to do this. Look, I know how you got your abilities. The night of the Enlightenment, right? You were hit by a piece of the satellite, weren't you?

Merkel:
Crushed. Snapped. Broo-ken.

Barry:
Okay. Well, I know people who can help you. People who can stop your suffering.

[Merkel hits Barry, nearly causing him to topple off the ledge, but then pulls him back.]

Merkel:
Suffering can't be stopped. Especially hers (Iris).

Barry:
[hard] If you touch Iris--

Merkel:
Don't want to hear your pain. Only your wife's.

Cisco:
Iris West-Allen, I know bad-assery when I see it, and that was raw, unrefined, cage-free, non-GMO bad-assery right there.

Caitlin:
You dove off a building.

Barry:
For me.

Iris:
Yeah, I guess I kinda did.

Nora:
What was going through your mind?

Iris:
Uh, "Please, God, don't let me drop this key."

Nora:
I mean, weren't you afraid? You're not a speedster.

Iris:
No, I'm not. But my husband and my partner and my best friend... is.

[Cicada attacks Raylene, a metahuman woman who can transform her arms into blades. She manages to knock Cicada's blade away, fight him off and slash his stomach.]

Raylene:
Should'a left me alone.

[Cicada's blade comes circling back, neutralizes Raylene's powers and impales her in the back, killing her.]

Cicada:
And you never should have existed.

Cecile:
What the heck happened back there? I froze up.

Ralph:
Look, when I got canned from C.C.P.D., I fell in with some... legally questionable individuals. These were some scary, scary people. But, they all had one thing in common. They were all terrified of "Cecile-Your-Fate" Horton. And I don't believe for one second that that woman has gone anywhere.

Barry:
Dude. Hey, we need to talk.

Cisco:
Why? I thought that dramatic confrontation worked perfect.

Barry:
Look, we all want to help Caitlin.

Cisco:
Oh, do you?

Barry:
Yeah, I want Caitlin to have a chance to be with her father–

Cisco:
Just like Nora got the chance to be with you? See, this is your problem. You think that this is just another perfect father-daughter pairing. Reunited.

Barry:
I'm not blinded by my feelings.

Cisco:
Well, they're not helping you to see any clearer. You gotta stop thinking this like Nora's dad and start thinking about it like a CSI. Please? Don't do it for me, do it for her.

Icicle:
My daughter. You've returned!

Killer Frost:
You're not my family. They are. You only gave a damn about me 'cause you wanted that serum.

Icicle:
But, I, I can share it with you. Just imagine. The two of us. Free to be ourselves without fear. You are strong. We can be even stronger together.

Killer Frost:
I'm strong because I have people in my life who actually care about me.

[The original S.T.A.R. satellite core has been recovered.]

Barry:
Uh, is it safe for this to be here?

Cisco:
[far too focused on the core] Yeah, a little dark matter never hurt anybody.

Barry:
What?

Caitlin:
Careful.

Barry:
[softly] I know, I know.

Caitlin:
This is a critical time.

Barry:
Okay.

Caitlin:
Steady hands.

Barry:
Aah... call time of death.

[Cut to an overhead view of two peach pies with lattice crusts; we see that Barry has completely failed to make his lattice crust as perfectly as Caitlin's.]

Caitlin:
It's okay. It's a pie. It's not supposed to be a piece of cake.

Barry:
Wow. [They both laugh]

Sherloque:
I don't understand. Explain again to me, what is difference between this day and every other day in America?

Cisco:
It's a holiday when we all get together and celebrate and eat a ton of food. Like, a gross amount.

Sherloque:
Again, what the difference between this day and every other day in America?

Cisco:
That's legit.

Caitlin:
Hi, guys. What's going on?

Sherloque:
This guy. He try to explain the Thanksgiving holiday, he's failing miserably. What is this holiday, please explain.

Caitlin:
It's very simple, actually. It's just about getting together to celebrate our loved ones and family.

Sherloque:
So simple, this why I don't understand this holiday.... Don't have any family.

Cisco:
Didn't you have, like, seven marriages?

Sherloque:
I did. Have seven marriages, five wives, seven marriages, but... no family. This holiday, it's a cruel holiday.

Orlin Dwyer:
Hey, uh, I know we didn't get off to the greatest start these past few months. [off Grace's look] Okay. It... it was a lousy start. But I want to fix all that. What I was thinking, while I work on this place (their house), we could work on this one (her doll house), too. Together. Listen, you were right, kid. I do hate me. I don't really know any other way to be, but I want to do right by you, Gracie. I want to keep you safe, warm, fed. You know, just... give you all the things a kid should have.

Grace:
Let's start with the doll house. [smiles]

Dwyer:
Okay. [relieved] Okay.

[Team Flash sees a photo of Jocelyn's van with her professional name on the side.]

Caitlin:
Ooo. "Weather Witch"?

Cisco:
I'll allow it.

Nora:
I get it. Sometimes you have to sacrifice yourself to save others. Even if it means leaving your family behind.

Barry:
Not exactly. Look, when I ran into that storm, I was thinking that I want to save everyone, but the person I was thinking about the most... was you.

Nora:
... Me?

Barry:
Yeah, I don't choose being the Flash over being with my family. I'm the Flash for my family. And I don't have to run to the future to understand why I sacrifice myself. I do it to save you. And your mom. All the people I love.

Nora:
You know, maybe one say, if I train enough, I'll be able to save you.

Barry:
I don't doubt it.

[As Barry and Nora prepare to enter the time barrier, Ralph plays the chorus to Huey Lewis and the News's "Back in Time".]

Ralph:
[off the others' looks] What?! When am I gonna get the chance to do that?

Thawne:
Who's your friend? Let me guess. Jesse Chambers... no, Libby Lawrence... wait, Danica Williams--

Barry:
It doesn't matter... who she is.

Thawne:
[stares at Barry, then at Nora.] She's your daughter. You've brought me your daughter. It's, uh.... Dawn, if I'm not mistaken. [bows to Nora]

Nora:
.... Nora.

Thawne:
"Nora". [regards her] Oh. That's nice. [to Barry] At least you still have one.

Thawne:
You know what's funny about your dad, Nora,... is he hates me. Hates me with a passion. And yet, a version of him is Savitar. A much bigger jerk than I ever was. Did you see the face?

Nora:
You really hate him (Thawne), don't you?

Barry:
Do you not know what he did?

Nora:
Well, I... I know he was your arch-enemy.

Barry:
He killed my mother. In our home. When I was eleven years old. An eleven-year-old boy. You know why he did it? He thought if I suffered a tragedy that was horrific enough, I'd never recover. I'd never become the Flash

Nora:
[getting emotional] I didn't... I didn't know that.

Barry:
There's probably a lot that's happened to me that's not in the Flash Museum.

Nora:
That's why you didn't want me to come with you, isn't it? It's not because it was dangerous, or because of the timeline. But because you didn't want me to know these awful things about you, so it's not what I would remember most when I went back. [Barry nods] You don't have to protect me from this stuff.

Barry:
Yes, I do.

Nora:
No, you don't.

Barry:
Yes. Yes, I do. You're my daughter.

Nora:
Yeah, and you're my father! And I just want to know my father! [embraces Barry, who hugs her in return]

Barry:
Cicada.

Cicada:
Is that what you call me?

Barry:
Not all metahumans are responsible for what happened to Grace.

Cicada:
Yes, they are. The destruction they cause. The death. The pain.

Barry:
I know about pain and death. Taking it out on the world, that's not gonna help. Think about Grace.

Cicada:
She's all I think about, Flash. And I'm making the world safe for her. Every metahuman must go.

Barry:
And what about you? You're a metahuman now.

Cicada:
I am. And after you're gone, I'll join you.

Nora:
I don't trust you anymore.

Thawne:
Have I not given you everything? A chance to go back and know a father you never knew? To learn from him. To run with him. To run with the Flash! I showed you how to time travel because... I want to help you.

Nora:
No, the only person that you ever help is yourself.

Thawne:
Who told you that? Your father? For as long as I can remember, all I ever thought about was myself. And that will not be my legacy. That will not be the legacy of Eobard Thawne! Let me help you.

Nora:
I don't want your help. Not anymore.

Caitlin:
Ralph's visiting his mom. He said to call if we need him. And Nora is....?

Nora:
[entering the room] Right here. I just stopped by the lab to pick up your blue suit. I figured you had enough of green.

Barry:
Hey, I made that green suit work, though.

Caitlin:
So the dagger has anti-dark matter properties.

Cisco:
Yes!

Caitlin:
Cisco, if we could synthesize that into a serum, we could get rid of Cicada's powers entirely.

Cisco:
And not just his powers! Everyone's!

Caitlin:
Everyone's?

Cisco:
Caitlin, we can make a metahuman cure.

Caitlin:
You think we need a metahuman cure?

Cisco:
Don't you?

Caitlin:
Um...

Cisco:
Okay, maybe not. But I seem to remember a time when you did?

Caitlin:
Sure, when I first discovered Killer Frost, I wanted to get rid of her. But when she was gone, it felt like a piece of me was missing. Besides, we've seen metahuman powers do really good things.

Cisco:
Okay, yeah, if you can build an ice bridge to avoid rush hour traffic... but what if my existence gives everyone around me radiation poisoning like Fallout? [pause] Those metas, we created them against their will.

Caitlin:
No, Thawne created the particle accelerator and he sabotaged it.

Cisco:
And who shattered the satellite full of dark matter and created God knows how many metas? We did that. This cure could give metahumans a second chance at having a normal life.

Caitlin:
Maybe not everyone wants a normal life, Cisco.

Nora:
After everything that you've seen, don't you think that bad people stay bad?

Barry:
Not always. When I first met Leonard Snart, he was a criminal. Probably the worst criminal in the city. But I, you know, I knew that there was a good person in there somewhere, and look at him. Turned out to be a Legend. Died a hero. If he can change, anyone can.

Nora:
You really believe that?

Barry:
Yeah, I do.

Nora:
What about... Eobard Thawne?

Barry:
[hesitantly]... I think... part of being a hero is being able to see the good in people. So, yeah. Maybe some day, in the future... even... Thawne... can change. Besides, if we don't believe in people... who will?

[Caitlin throws a parka over Cisco, covering him completely.]

Cisco:
Okay, well,... we can't both be the basket case.

Caitlin:
"We're all pretty bizarre. Some of us are just better at hiding it." [off Cisco's look] Come on, Breakfast Club? It's one of the only movies Killer Frost and I actually agree on.

Cisco:
Let me guess, she's into Bender?

Caitlin:
Totally. She loves him.

Cisco:
Hm. Makes sense. I'd ship them.

Ralph:
I've seen enough episodes of Sister, Sister to recognize a siblings' spat when I see one.

Caitlin:
So, I'm trying to help Cisco with his metahuman cure, but every time I start working on it, Killer Frost takes over and messes with my equations. [points to a whiteboard] Like this. She changed all my heterozygotes into asterisks.

Ralph:
Oh. I thought those were just tiny snowflakes. So she's not on board?

Caitlin:
No. And I don't know exactly know why.

Ralph:
Can't you just ask her?

Caitlin:
Oh, I've tried. But every time we start talking about it, she starts singing Barney's "I Love You" song.

Ralph:
Ooo, that's cold.

[Nora's body is speed-regenerating the nerves in her broken back, but the growth is slow.]

Iris:
Hey. Don't give up. okay? Growth is growth.

Nora:
Normal axon growth rate reaches five millimeters a day in a large nerve. My speed-healing might just be over a hundred.

Iris:
How do you know that?

Nora:
I took "Neuro Regeneration" in my fifth grade's temp class.

Iris:
I took... fractions in fifth grade. [Iris and Nora share a laugh]

Cecile:
Hey, we're almost through this. We're gonna get all of these people to safety.

Barry:
Even if we do, Cicada's not gonna stop killing. Not until–

Cecile:
[getting an empathic feeling from Barry] –until he's... dead.

Barry:
... I didn't say that.

Cecile:
You didn't have to. The anger that I feel from you says it all.

Barry:
How am I supposed to feel?! He almost killed Nora.

Cecile:
Barry, I understand. I do. That man hurt your child. But this anger that you're feeling, I have felt it before. From Cicada. Honey, if you let it, this rage will consume you, the same way it's already consumed him.

Killer Frost:
Just like Norvock didn't ask for his snake, Katie didn't ask for me. So, if one day she wakes up scared of being a metahuman and decided to take that cure, her powers don't just disappear, I do too. That's what I'm really afraid of. Because if I'm gone, who's gonna protect her?

Ralph:
I get why you're scared, but... you need to know that when DeVoe made you disappear, all Caitlin talked about was getting you back. So maybe, as much as you want to protect her, Caitlin wants to protect you too.

[Jones has been summoned to a meeting with Singh and Cecile after helping Cicada kill metahumans.]

Singh:
Care to tell me why you decided to aid and abet a murderer?

Officer Jones:
No, thats... you don't know what you're talking about.

Cecile:
Really? A woman used metahuman tech to take control of your mind. She made you do things you were certain you would never do. And that frightened you, didn't it? It frightened you and it made you angry. And you went ahead and you embraced that anger and you let it drive your every move. Betrayal, revenge. [gets an empathic feeling] Escape.

Jones:
[tries to escape and is captured by the other officers] Look, [enraged] The metas in this city have no respect for human life. They don't deserve to breathe our air.

Singh:
You swore an oath to protect the citizens of this city. Every one of them! Get him out of my sight. [other officers take Jones away]

Nora:
I want you to think about the biggest secret in your life. The one that you keep from the people that you love. Or even from yourself. I want you to imagine what would happen if that secret got out.

Ralph:
One drink? I'm paying.

Cisco:
[skeptical] One drink. But only because you never pay for anything, ever, and I'm really curious to see what Hell looks like frozen over.

[Barry and Iris are inside Nora's childhood memory of the Flash Museum.]

Barry:
[awestruck] No way! Look at this. Flash toys, and Flash phones. Flash rings! Are you kidding? Wow.

Iris:
This is all gonna go to your head, isn't it?

Barry:
Oh, you know what? [shows Iris a Flash bobblehead doll ] It looks like it might.

Iris:
[deadpan] Oh, that is very cute.

Nora:
I was angry all the time. Angry for not getting to have a dad. Angry 'cause... nobody seemed to understand what I was feeling. And it didn't matter what you did or said, Mom. I was always gonna be angry at you. Because you were there.

Iris:
You were going through a lot, Nora.

Nora:
But so were you. I mean, I thought you were trying to stop me from being me, but you were trying to stop me from being Dad. I mean, ending up like him. You guys had a whole life together. And a child, and... he vanished. I can't imagine how hard that must have been for you. I mean, from that day, you... you were protecting me, and I... I get that now. I'm so sorry for the way that I treated you. Both back then and now, when I first got here. You didn't deserve that.

Iris:
Thank you. You're an amazing woman, Nora West-Allen. I will always love you. Past, present and future.

Nora:
I love you, too, Mom. [hugs Iris]

Nora:
It's hard to keep a secret. But it's a lot easier when you're reminded why you're doing it. I met someone who told me that she would do anything to protect her family. She helped me see that... so would I.

Thawne:
A man does not wear another man's face unless he understands his mind. Not just through time, but across infinite Earths. This "Sherloque", yes, he's brilliant, but to redirect his gaze, one only has to nudge him toward his weakness: love.

[Barry and Ralph are walking around Goldface's secret high-tech weapons market.]

Barry:
So nobody, including us, knows where we are right now.

Ralph:
And we are totally powerless.

Barry:
Dude, if we make the wrong move in here, these cuffs are gonna be the least of our worries.

Ralph:
New game plan. The anti-hero of our dynamic duo will find the field generator. And you're just gonna stay here and try not to look like a cop. Or a superhero.

Barry:
Okay.

Ralph:
Or really, anything you actually are.

Goldface:
So here's the thing: scum... recognizes scum. I'm scum. And I've survived this long by recognizing same. [to Ralph] Like you. You're scum, I sniffed you coming a mile away.

Ralph:
Thanks.

Goldface:
But your partner... I don't sniff nothing on him, and that worries me. So, the question is [to Barry] "who are you?"

Ralph:
Look, uh... I don't have to ask you how you feel about this. Stealing from a hospital, that's... that's way more than we bargained for. So, if you don't want to do this, I'm–

Barry:
I'll do it.

Ralph:
You will?

Barry:
Yeah, what choice do I have? You warned me to get my head on straight for this job, and I didn't. You had Goldface ready to give us what we needed, I blew it trying to get those guns off the street, and here we are.

Ralph:
Barry, this is not your fault.

Barry:
Yeah, it is. And you were right. If I want to stop Cicada, I can't be so precious about getting the Flash's hands dirty. Sometimes the ends justify the means, I get that now.

Nora:
Sherloque, you know that stuff your ex-wife said isn't true, right?

Sherloque:
No. I'm destined to be alone.

Nora:
No, you're not.

Sherloque:
Yes, I am.

Nora:
Listen, you treat love like it's a mystery that can be solved, but you can't deduce your way to a happy ending. You just have to let it come one step at a time, and enjoy whatever step you're in.

Barry:
We have to wait how long before we can use the metahuman cure?

Cisco:
Not even that long.

Iris:
Cisco.

Cisco:
It's gonna go by [snaps] like that.

Iris:
Cisco!

Cisco:
Twenty-nine days.

[Sherloque does a spit-take.]

Nora:
A month?

Cisco:
I know, right? Just one teeny, tiny... month until we stop Cicada's purge. You know, historically speaking, this is way faster than we've ever stopped a Big Bad.

[Ralph wants to help Cisco with his first date with Kamilla using "The Book of Ralph".]

Ralph:
Chapter one: "Initial Planning".

Cisco:
Initial planning? It's a first date, Sun Tzu, not an incursion.

Ralph:
Trust me, Grasshopper. Love is war.

Cicada:
Told you.

[repeated in each time loop after he kills a member of Team Flash]

Nora:
I keep trying my absolute hardest to change the outcome, but I end up failing every time. What if we can't fix this, Cisco?

Cisco:
Nora, sometimes we fail because... all we can worry about is not failing. I'm so worried about my first date since Cynthia that I don't feel free to be myself around Kamilla, and then I'll just end up screwing it up even more. This, this "Intelligence and Reconnaissance" mess? I don't need this. All I need is to be myself. Duh.

Barry:
Yeah, it seems like things worked out this time, but that's not always gonna be true. And it's impossible to know how these changes are gonna unfold. The ripples you'll cause, whose life you're gonna affect. No one can do that.

Nora:
No one?

Barry:
No. We're not gods, Nora. We've just been given extraordinary abilities.

Barry:
Oh Lyla, um, this is... my daughter, Nora.

Lyla:
Your daughter.

Barry:
Yeah.

Nora:
I'm from–

Lyla:
–the future, I'm guessing.

Nora:
Yeah. Weird, right?

Lyla:
No weirder than waking up one day to find out that your son used to be your daughter.

Caitlin:
We oughta talk.

Cisco:
Don't you know you shouldn't interrupt others while they're brooding? I'm trying to get my Oliver Queen on here.

Tanya Lamden:
I don't love Shay. We're friends.

Sherloque:
All right. Well, let's take a look at that, too, shall we, hmm? So this is a friend from another Earth, for whom you left a high-paying job, and for whom you have dedicated every waking moment of your life trying to help. It doesn't quite add up.

Tanya:
I can't love Shay. He's my dead husband's doppelgänger from Earth-2. How crazy would I have to be to fall in love with him?

Sherloque:
No crazier than marrying the same woman from five different Earths. [off Tanya's look] Oh, I know. Very good at marrying people, but not so great at staying married. Along the way, though, on these countless Earths and countless doppelgängers, I learned there is one thing that makes all of us unique. And if that... is what you fell in love with, well, then,... perhaps a face doesn't matter that much.

Iris:
Look, I get it. I'm supposed to take out my frustrations on that bag and... somehow get over it, but it's not that easy.

Joe:
To confront what ails you? No. It's not. It's hard. I had to go all the way across the world to do it.

Iris:
You're talking about Tibet? [Joe nods] I thought you went there to see Wally.

Joe:
I did, but that's not the only reason I went. I went there to heal.

Iris:
Is that why you were gone for so long?

Joe:
Wally convinced me to come East with the baby. He said that it would help me repair my mind, my body, restore this old soul of mine. So, with Cecile's blessing,... that's what I did.

Iris:
Did it work?

Joe:
I bent, baby girl. But Cicada ain't gonna break me. [hands Iris punching gloves] Ain't gonna break you, either.

Iris:
[checking her phone] "King Shark vs. Gorilla Grodd". Are you kidding me? I missed that?

Nora:
This is gonna be one of the biggest challenges of your career as a hero. Do you know what you're gonna say?

[long pause as everyone stares at Barry]

Barry:
Uh, yeah, you know, yeah, I... I've got some loose... thoughts.

Sherloque:
Oh, great. Well, that instills all of us with confidence, right. 'Loose thoughts'. What you going to say? "Hey, most bloodthirsty enemy... Stop"? [Cisco scoffs]

Iris:
Guys. It worked for Marlize. Maybe not so much for Savitar, but...

Barry:
I will figure out what to say to him, all right? I got this.

Nora:
I know you do, Dad.

Cisco:
You know, I have a bit of experience with these, uh, long-distance relationships. I got one word for you: holocube. [presents a holocube] These things work–

Sherloque:
I must request that you stop speaking. Possibly forever.

Barry:
Our whole plan depends on me being able to convince Dwyer to just take the cure. Last time I tried [nervous laugh], I don't think I've ever struck out so hard.

Joe:
Wow, that's saying a lot considering your track record at the plate. Wait, what exactly did you say to him?

Barry:
That he was creating a legacy of fear. One that would go down in history. But that we could work together to change that.

Joe:
That sounds like something the Flash would say.

Barry:
Well, I am the Flash.

Joe:
Look, that man's a zealot. He sees you in that suit and all he sees is the thing he hates. Metahumans, super powers, the thing that took his niece away from him. He can't see past the Flash. But what he doesn't know, there's a whole lot more to you than that. Be more Barry Allen: human.

Joe:
Ever since she got her powers, it's like she's a human lie detector.

Barry:
How is that a bad thing?

Joe:
You know I've always prided myself on being able to read people, right? With Cecile and these powers, I mean... she puts me to shame.

Barry:
Well, you just got to remember that you guys are a team. That makes her strengths, your strengths. And yours, hers. So if you let her do what she's great it, it's only going to create more room for you to do more of what you're great at too, right?

Joe:
Well damn. You're getting real good at these pep talks, Bar.

Barry:
I know, I had a pretty good teacher.

The Flash:
I know how much you care about Grace. You're trying to make the world a better place for her. She didn't choose to be a meta, but she is. Does that mean she deserves to die?

Dwyer:
No, I would never hurt Grace.

The Flash:
Then you'd let her grow up in a world of fear, where there's someone out there, hurting people like her? The cure, it will heal Grace. And you.

Dwyer:
And why should I believe you, Flash?

[The Flash unmasks, revealing Barry Allen's face.]

Barry:
Because I'm a father, too. My daughter, I love her more than I ever thought possible. I would do anything to make the world a better place for her. And I think you would, too. So do it.

Barry:
Hey, by the way, this might not be our only lead. Do you remember that time-sphere that we built for Thawne?

Joe:
That big hamster ball thing?

Nora:
Someone stole one in the future to come here.

Cecile:
Like our... our Cicada copycat?

Joe:
Makes sense. I can't even believe I just said that.

Cisco:
[accosting Ralph] You listen to me and you listen good, you turkey-on-stilts. It is not your job to get my girlfriend on the TEAM !!

Barry:
I used to think that keeping secrets from people for their own good was a noble decision. That it would protect them. But when you do that, you just rob those people from making their own decisions. I even did it with you.

Nora:
Like when you didn't want to take me to your past.

Barry:
Mm hmm. I didn't want you to see how painful things got for me as the Flash, or how bad things got for your mom. But secrets are like walls, and... you can't really know someone with walls between you.

Cicada (Grace Gibbons):
I've always wanted to go up against the Flash and his legendary team. I guess I wasn't missing out on anything after all.

[After her association with Thawne has been revealed, Barry imprisons Nora in a Pipeline cell and starts walking away.]

Nora:
[calling out] I'm sorry I lied to you!

[Barry stops and turns around.]

Barry:
So am I. [turns and leaves]

Dexter Myles:
[over the Flash Museum's speaker] Thank you for visiting the Flash Museum today. The building will be closing in five minutes. All guests should make their way to the exit now. And, Nora West-Allen, your mother called. Please, for your sake and mine: call her back.

Cecile:
The one person in the world she thought she could trust died in her arms.

Caitlin:
Nora must have felt completely alone.

Barry:
But she wasn't.

Iris:
Yes. she was. Because I wasn't honest with her.

Barry:
Iris–

Iris:
After all I did, she gave me a second chance. It's the least we can do for her.

Nora:
[shows Iris the power dampener] Lia found it before she died. You put this inside of me, mom. To dampen my powers? You lied to me my whole life.

Iris:
I know.

Nora:
Who else knows? Who else?

Iris:
Everyone.

Nora:
Everybody? Everyone that I love has been keeping this from me? Why?

Iris:
Because I told them to.

Nora:
Why would you do that?

Iris:
Nora, I was trying to protect you.

Nora:
From what?

Iris:
From this city. From... from meta-humans. From... from yourself.

Nora:
Wow.

Iris:
Nora, you don't understand.

Nora:
No, I don't understand. How did I get my powers? What do you have against speedsters?

Iris:
Nora, I have already lost so much. I can't risk losing you, too.

Nora:
Well, you just did.

[Barry's final video message to Nora]

Barry:
Nora. I don't have much time. [an explosion in the background] If you're watching this, it means you're like me. You have powers. It also means I wasn't there to help you learn how to use them. I wasn't there for a lot of things. Remember, ... my sweet Nora,... always remember: I love you. And I always will.

Thawne:
You can't blame the little runner, Barry. She just wanted to spend some time with her Dad. Don't hold that against her. Consider it a condemned man's last request.

Barry:
You always thought you were so much smarter than us, Thawne. But you lost. And now you're finally gonna get what you deserve.

Iris:
You took our daughter back to the future?

Barry:
I didn't have any other choice.

Iris:
I? It's "we", Barry. We. She's our daughter, not just yours.

Barry:
I know that.

Iris:
But you left her there anyway?

Barry:
I can't trust her, Iris! That puts all of us in danger.

Iris:
That's how you feel, Barry! How about asking how I feel?

Barry:
I didn't think I had to!

Iris:
Of course you didn't. Of course you didn't, Barry. You always see one way through a problem and damn what I think.

Barry:
What the hell does that mean?

Iris:
You know, we've been through so much crap, we've been through so much therapy, and you are still, still making decisions based on your emotions.

Caitlin:
The right choice? What the hell are you talking about? You lied to me for twenty years and told me my father was dead. How the hell is that the right choice?!

Carla Snow:
Your father is trapped inside an ice monster, Caitlin. What was I supposed to do? Split custody with him on the weekends?

Thawne:
Listen to me, Nora. Breathe. Breathe. You're reaching out and nobody's there. The loneliness is pain. Pain racing through your mind. Crushing you, wrecking you, shattering your soul into a million, little, pieces. And suddenly, you are no longer you. You are part of something different now. Part of a negative force.

Nora:
Do you know what it's like to want something more than anything else in your whole life? [starts crackling with yellow, purple, and red energy] To know your father? To do your best to follow in his footsteps? To make him proud? [more energy crackles] How could he leave me?

Thawne:
Wait! Wait, that's enough !!

Iris:
Nora–

Nora:
How could he stop loving meeee?!?!

[Nora's eyes fill with Speed Force energy and she runs off.]

[Caitlin's father Thomas has been mortally wounded saving Caitlin's life.]

Caitlin:
[emotional] Dad, I told you to go.

Thomas Snow:
I already left once before. I left both of you. Worst mistake I ever... ever made in my entire life. Wasn't gonna make that again. Family shouldn't leave family. I'll always love you. [Thomas dies]

Ralph:
On that note, I'm happy to help you follow that lead on the atomizer.

Caitlin:
Really? What about... Sher-luck?

Sherloque:
"Sherloque". Do you think any of you are gonna get this right at any point at any time in your life? "Sherloque" !

Joss Jackam:
[referring to Brie's motorcycle] Pretty paint job.

Brie Larvan:
Predators know these colors get you stung.

Joss:
Yeah. It's always a great idea for a thief to call attention to herself.

Brie:
At least I don't fly around in a fuzzy green sweater. Didn't think I'd recognize Weather Wizard's kid?

Joss:
It's "Weather Witch". I have a name, okay... Bug-Eyed Bandit.

Brie:
Don't call me that! That's their name.

Cisco:
[being held captive with Sherloque by the Young Rogues] Well, we got a Rag Doll. A Weather Witch. And, uh... hold up, is that... Crazy Bee Girl? Hey, girl, what's going on? What a throwback.

Caitlin:
Yeah, but the minute you got "The Book of Ralph" back from Cisco, you tried to give it away again. Don't you want to use it? Try to find someone special for yourself?

Ralph:
[strained] Caitlin,... look,... "Book of Ralph"... works great for other people, but... never actually worked for me. I know I'm not... built for love.... And that's okay.

Caitlin:
Ralph Dibny. You are kind, intelligent, and compassionate. And most of all, you put the needs of others before yourself. So that means you are built for love. And you deserve someone who loves you back.

Barry:
Hey, look, I'm sorry about, um,... how I was acting earlier. I just... seeing Nora looking so much like him (Thawne)--

Joe:
I get it, Barr. That guy's always gonna be in your head. Mine, too. And you were right. Nora broke the law, and there should be repercussions for that. But whenever you guys step out of bounds, I always have to remind myself... the detective side says "There's the law", but the father side says "There's also what's right". And I'm always gonna choose to be your father first.

[Sherloque walks up to Renee unexpectedly, startling her.]

Renee Adler:
Sherloque! You scared me to death.

Sherloque:
Well, I apologize, but when you don't answer my many emoticon pictograms, no, I fear the worst, huh?

Renee:
I was in the library. What could have happened to me?

Sherloque:
Stacks collapse. [Renee laughs] Livid librarian.

Renee:
[amused] Really?

Sherloque:
Death by dewey decimals.

Renee:
And a life loss by late fees?

Sherloque:
Ah, there you go.

Ralph:
Nora, where would you find this hyper-conduit in 2049?

Nora:
Probably Ollins Laboratory. Ollins won a Nobel Prize for quantum engineering.

Cisco:
Ollins? As in Sebastian Ollins?

Nora:
Yeah. Do you know him? He is a true genius.

Cisco:
[scoffs] A genius, you say. The guy couldn't even stay awake through a single physics lecture. In fact, I'm pretty sure if it wasn't for his very smart, very considerate college roommate lending him notes, helping him study, he wouldn't have made it through his finals! Nobel Prize, my ASS!!

Barry:
Yeah, he knows him.

Nora:
I can't stand around and do nothing.

Barry:
Yes, you can, because that's what we're telling you to do.

Nora:
When I first got here, I would rush in to fix things, and by doing that, I always ended up making them worse. But I am not that person anymore. Because of you. You showed me how to use my powers. You taught me how to make the right choices. And right now, I am choosing to face this risk.

Iris:
Nora, this is a terrible idea.

Nora:
I know you feel that way. But I don't. I'm an adult, capable of making my own decisions. I've made up my mind about this. So I am asking you, please, as my parents, stop trying to keep me away from this danger and start helping me face it.

Barry:
[regarding the speedster trap] Man, this thing brings back memories.

Ralph:
Good ones? Bad ones?

Barry:
Thawne ones. We trapped the Reverse-Flash in this thing before we even knew he was Thawne.

Cisco:
Well, we actually ended up trapping his speed mirage, while his real self just sat there chilling in his wheelchair.

Ralph:
Man, Thawne's plans got plans.

Barry:
What're we gonna do?

Ralph:
Breach in, lose our powers from the dagger, stop Cicada from Supergirl-ing away, then regroup for the emotional fallout.

Nora:
How do I fix this?

Barry:
I don't know if you can, Nora. You made a mistake, you know? A big mistake. Sometimes in life, all we can do is just live with the consequences. So what you have ask yourself is... what kind of hero are you gonna be? One who takes a do-over after every mistake, or one who lives with it and moves forward?

Cisco:
[on how to revive an injured Ralph] We blast him ?!

Sherloque:
Yes, you blast him. Like, the vibrational jolt, it will be more than enough to [snaps his fingers] kick-start his consciousness, I'm sure of it.

Cisco:
Can't we just play some Gaga and hope he wakes up?

Thawne:
This is nice. Team Flash, back together again. With a new guy. Ralph Dibny. Welcome. You should be dead.

Ralph:
Yeah, I guess we have that in common.

Barry:
She (Nora) was my legacy all along. And us, together as a family, that's how I want to be remembered. As a good man. A loving husband. And a supportive father.

Iris:
You're already all those things.

[Nora's final message to Barry and Iris]

Nora:
Hi, Mom and Dad. If you're watching this, it means that something went wrong. But I don't want you guys to be sad. I'm not. I always wanted to be a hero. To use my extraordinary abilities to help people. That's why I came here. To meet my family, stop Cicada, help fix the Flash's legacy, and save him from disappearing in the future. I believed I could do the impossible. But I never imagined it would turn out like this. I'm glad it did. I wouldn't change anything about my time with you. My sweet parents. The most important people to me in the world. I wish I could be there to celebrate every new chapter. To witness every success. Just know, that no matter where I go in my life, you'll always be by my side. Because of you, I know I will never, ever truly be alone. And I will feel your love and support like a warm hug, comforting me, pushing me to be the best person I can be. Thank you for everything. For making me a hero. And for loving me even if I wasn't perfect. Please remember that I love you both. And I always will. No matter what the future brings.