I do not own any of the material from the Arrowverse.

A Bolt of Light

Prologue

Bartholomea "Barry" Allen was chatting with Joe West and Fred Chyre after delivering her lab report when her phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out and glanced at the caller ID.

It read, M. Thompson.

"Excuse me," she said with a smile to her foster father and his partner. "I have to take this."

She stepped away and swiped the screen to answer.

"Hello?" she asked.

"Oh, Barry!" Moira Queen responded. She sounded like she was crying.

"What's wrong?" Barry asked immediately, alarmed.

"Nothing, nothing," Moira said, sniffling a bit. "Oliver…they found Oliver. He's alive."

Everything went numb. Barry didn't even notice as she dropped her iPhone in shock. She paid little attention as she sunk to her knees, and tears began streaming down her face. She picked up the phone, which was thankfully still connected.

"How? Where? Is he home yet?" she asked, her voice now just as teary as Moira's.

"He called me from China a few hours ago," Moira replied. "He's going to be in the hospital for a few days, but he said he's going to be okay. I already sent the private jet out to China for him. Some fisherman found him on an island in the North China Sea. He's coming home, Barry. Our Oliver's coming home."

"I…thank you," Barry said. "We'll get there as soon as we can."

"Do you want me to send another jet?" Moira asked.

"No, that's too much," Barry said. "We'll fly out, or take a train. Probably tomorrow. We need to pack, and I need to arrange time off work, and I have to call the schools…"

"Fly," Moira ordered. "I'll arrange for tickets, and send someone to meet you at the airport. I'll email you the flight information."

Moira hung up the phone before Barry could argue, but she found that she didn't much care. Oliver was alive. He was alive and coming home.

Barry barely noticed the hands that pulled her off the ground and guided her out of the bullpen. Why would she? Oliver was coming home. Livvy would finally be able to meet her father.

"Barry?" a concerned voice asked. Joe. "Bare, what's wrong?"

Barry shook her head, tears streaming down her face, and began to smile.

"Nothing. Nothing's wrong. He's alive, Joe."

"Who, Barry?" another voice asked. Barry glanced up to see Captain Singh watching her concernedly. They must be in his office.

"Livvy's father," she said. "He…he went missing before I even knew I was pregnant. We all thought he was dead. But his mother called me and they've found him. He's coming home."

Captain Singh sat back in his seat.

"Take ten days," he offered. "I doubt he'll be back immediately, wherever he is, and you're probably not going to be useful for a bit." He looked over at Joe. "Joe, why don't you take Allen to the school and then home?"

"Thank you, sir," Joe replied. He prodded Barry. "Come on, sweetheart. Let's go get Livvy."

"How do I tell my four-year-old her father's alive?" Barry asked wonderingly as Joe led her out of Singh's office and up to her lab to pack her things. She packed in a daze, and was still mostly dazed when Joe got her into the car and drove off.

"Thea or Livvy first?" Joe asked.

"Thea," Barry said. "She deserves to know her brother's alive. And it'll be easier to explain it to her before we have Livvy."

Joe simply nodded and adjusted their course toward McFeely High School.

After losing her father and brother, Thea Queen had been lost in Starling City. Her mother was distant and grieving, and none of her spoiled, elitist friends knew how to support Thea in her grief. After Livvy was born, Thea had turned to Barry as her rock. She had flown out to visit Barry and Livvy at every opportunity. After spending spring break with the West-Allen household, Joe had invited her to stay for summer vacation.

Their household was well-used to grief, after all.

Over the summer, Barry, Thea, and Livvy had moved out of the West house. When Oliver died, Moira had given his trust fund to Barry, despite her protests, and the trust fund of a billionaire's son was no small amount. It was easy enough to buy a house a few doors down from the West home.

At the end of the summer, Thea hadn't wanted to go back to Starling. There were too many memories there, everyone knew her there. She had begged and pleaded with her mother, and Moira Queen had finally agreed to allow Thea to stay in Central City with Barry. While she didn't want to lose her daughter so soon after her husband and son, she recognized that she couldn't be what her daughter needed then. She had been a bit grouchier at the fact that Thea was going to attend public school, but had still allowed it to happen.

As far as anyone in Central City knew, Thea Queen was Theodosia "Thea" Thompson, Barry's maternal first cousin from Keystone City. She'd been living with Barry for four years now. Thea had protested the name, but Barry had pointed out that females in her family had long, terrible names. It was still better than 'Bartholomea' after all.

Barry didn't come out of her daze until they parked at McFeely High School.

"Do you need me to come in with you?" Joe asked.

Barry took a deep breath.

"No. I've got this."

Barry walked purposefully into the school and straight to the office.

"I need to pick up my cousin, Thea Thompson," she told the woman at the front desk. "I'm her legal guardian. We have a family emergency."

"Do you know which class Thea is in?" the woman asked.

"Not off the top of my head," Barry said apologetically.

"Give me a few minutes to look it up." The woman was silent for a long moment as she typed on her computer. "I'm not finding anything. Is 'Thea' her full first name?"

"Oh! Sorry. It's Theodosia. T-H-E-O-D-O-S-I-A."

It only took a minute before the woman was on the office phone. "Mrs. Stone? Could you please send Thea Thompson to the office for dismissal?" She hung up the phone and told Barry, "Thea will be her in a few minutes. The chemistry wing is on the other side of the building."

Barry barely resisted the urge to pace while she waited for Thea. She occupied her mind by checking her email on her phone. She had one new message: Moira Queen had emailed confirmation of airline tickets from Central City Airport to Starling City Airport at eight o'clock that evening, first class. Barry snorted slightly at that. Moira Queen was horrible at acting 'plebeian.'

"Barry?" Thea asked as she walked into the room. "What's going on?"

"I'll tell you in the car," Barry said. "Do you have all your stuff? You're probably not going to be back for a week or so."

Thea looked even more confused, but she nodded.

"Thank you," Barry said with a smile and a small nod to the receptionist, even as she wrapped an arm around Thea's shoulders and guided her out of the school to Joe's car.

"Joe?" Thea asked. "Barry, what's going on? What's wrong? Did something happen back in Starling?"

"Sort of," Barry said. "But it's good news. Thea…Oliver was found. Alive."

"Alive?" Thea asked, choking up. Barry passed a tissue back to her as the girl began to cry. Barry felt herself tear up again as well.

"Are we…are we going to Starling?" Thea asked once she found her voice again.

"Your mom already sent plane tickets for you, me, and Livvy," Barry said. "We fly out at 8 tonight. Joe, could you take us to the airport?"

"Of course," the detective nodded. "Would it be faster to get to Carmichael by Cross Street or Mayberry?"

"Cross," Barry replied instantly.

Joe nodded as he turned the car.

"After we get Livvy, we'll head home to pack?" Thea asked.

"That's right," Barry said. "Make sure to email your teachers and ask for your homework. I have ten days off. Hopefully we'll have a few with Oliver once he makes it to Starling City."

"Where is he?" Thea asked.

"Still in China. Fishermen found him yesterday on an island," Barry said. "I'm sure your mom will tell us more when we get there."

They arrived at Carmichael Elementary, the same school that Barry and Iris had gone to, a few minutes later. The high school was only a few minutes away, which was why Thea had been picking Livvy up from kindergarten since she started.

"What about my car?" Thea suddenly asked. The teenager had gotten a used Volkswagen Beetle for her sixteenth birthday. It wasn't anything like the convertible BMW Oliver had gotten for his eighteenth birthday, but it was hers, and she adored it.

"I'll bring Iris back and she can drive it back to your house," Joe offered. "You take care of packing."

"If she crashes Speedy, I'm going to be very upset," Thea promptly informed him. The teenager was very attached to the red bug, which she had christened with her own childhood nickname.

Joe pulled into the elementary school.

"Be back in a flash," Barry said, before impulsively reaching out to squeeze Thea's hand. The younger girl still looked dazed. "It'll be okay," she promised. "I don't know if the Oliver we lost is the same one we're getting back, but there isn't an Oliver anywhere who can't help but love you."

Thea smiled weakly. "Thanks, Bare."

Barry smiled back before heading inside the elementary school.

"I'm here to pick up Olivia Allen?" she said. "She's in Mrs. Perkins' kindergarten class."

"Reason for pick-up?" the woman at the front desk asked.

"Family emergency," Barry replied. "She won't be back for a few days, probably a week."

"Can I see some ID?" the woman asked.

Barry pulled out her driver's license and handed it to the woman, who looked it over carefully before handing it back. She called Olivia down to the office. Thankfully, the kindergarten wing was close to the office, so it was only a few minutes before Livvy was in the office.

"Mama!" Olivia exclaimed. She had her blue Merida backpack on and was carrying the matching lunchbox. The four-year-old ran to hug her. Barry knelt down to wrap her in her arms. She was probably holding a bit too tightly as Livvy started squirming almost immediately.

"Hey, baby," Barry greeted, picking her up. "You, me, and Auntie Thea are going to go see Grandma and Grandpa, okay?"

"Now?" Livvy asked with a tilt of her head.

"Tonight," Barry replied. "We've got to go home and pack right away. Grandma sent us airplane tickets."

"I like airplanes!" Livvy cheered.

"I know, baby. Come on. Poppa and Auntie Thea are in the car waiting to see you."

"Yay!"

Joe and Thea both managed to greet Livvy with appropriate amounts of excitement, though Barry could tell from the pile of tissues in the floorboard that Thea hadn't been composed for long. Joe asked about Livvy's day, and they spent the entire ride home being regaled by the tale of how Stevie Anderson had chased her around the playground at recess, telling everyone that she was his girlfriend.

"I can go talk to him with my cop uniform on," Joe offered. "Tell him that nobody dates my granddaughter before talking to me."

Livvy giggled.

"It's okay, Poppa. I can handle Stevie Anderson. Auntie Thea taught me judo."

Joe looked at Thea in his rearview mirror.

"When did you learn judo?"

"I've been taking classes for ages. I'm on my fourth black belt," Thea replied.

"Poppa, will you teach me how to shoot a gun?" Livvy asked.

"Not until at least middle school," Joe replied promptly.

Livvy sighed heavily. "But how will I get rid of all the boys? It's not just Stevie Anderson you know."

"Who else is there?" Joe asked.

"Well, Mrs. Perkins says George is pulling on my pigtails, even though I don't wear pigtails, and Roberto gave me a pretty ring with an orange jewel, and Owen always says that I look pretty when I wear a dress. And William from first grade gave me some flowers he picked."

As they pulled into Barry's driveway, Joe looked over at her and said, "I think we need to have a talk with Livvy's kindergarten teacher."

"It's kindergarten. She's fine," Barry reassured. "Iris and I had that many boys following us around when we were that age."

"What?"

Barry resisted the urge to laugh as she got out of the car. Thea was already helping Livvy out.

"See you tonight, Joe! Be here by five to take us to the airport!"

"Bye, Poppa!" Livvy yelled.

Joe had to halt whatever he was about to yell at Barry in order to reply, "Bye, sweetie!"

Barry successfully escaped into the house with her daughter and ward before Joe could start yelling again. It wouldn't be much use, since her foster father would be back in a few hours, but a girl could dream.

The thought of dreams made tears well up in her eyes again. An impossible dream had just come true. Oliver Queen was coming home. Livvy finally would have the chance to meet her father.