#Whenever we reach the donation goal for me to go off about titles remind me about how warrior cats is sometimes just called “warriors”

[wacheypenaart]

Enchanted Romance Chapter 1

Summary:  A simple coldflash fairy!AU that features fanart to go with the story. Enough said.

Despite its title as "The Grand Temple of Spring," the church where citizens of the Primavera Kingdom came to worship was actually quite simple in its design. If anything were 'grand' about it, it would be the immense size of the trees used as columns inside of its hallways. Their leaves and edible nuts falling onto the cobble stoned pathways, and often times providing entertainment for bored young children waiting on their parents to finish with prayers.

All were welcome inside of its walls, regardless of what they were praying for. The most common pleas pertained to good fortune, health, offspring, protection and love. The very last being the reason for why Barry Allen was entering the temple.

It had been quite a few seasons since he last visited the establishment for his best friend's wedding. The event itself had been bittersweet for him, as he had been in love with Iris West-- now Iris Thawne-- and couldn't help but be reminded of it whenever he entered the building.

Fortunately, he had moved on, his friendship with Iris undeterred if not stronger than before. His loneliness, on the other hand, had grown unbearable. So after flying with his dragonfly wings around the nearby forest for the perfect flower to offer as tribute, he flew to the temple and met Iris inside. She had offered to join him in his prayers, wanting him to find love as she had.

Smiling in greeting, Iris's purple butterfly wings fluttered as she held back from hugging him, because she didn't want to crush his shrine gift. It wasn't necessarily required, but often times a small token such as a flower, food or cloth brought added luck.

"Is that what I think it is?" she asked, recognizing the flower instantly: a blue iris.

"Yes, it's supposed to represent faith and hope," Barry explained, giving a small smile that didn't quite reach his eyes in return.

Iris squeezed his shoulder in comfort, knowing her friend was feeling very little of either quality.

 The two of them proceeded to walk further into the temple to one of the main rooms, not noticing another fairy watching them as they went along.

This was Eobard Thawne, one of many relatives to Iris's husband, Eddie, and a fellow fairy with dragonfly wings like Barry. He hadn't been too thrilled when Eddie and Iris got married. In fact, he had downright protested against it. Their family was one of the strongest and purest, and her genes would muddle it up!

Then, he had been chastised by a very protective Barry Allen, who in his anger and passion had been the most beautiful sight Eobard had ever seen! Wanting to get into the man's good graces so he could pursue him in courtship, Eobard had swallowed his pride and went straight to Iris to apologize for all his negative behavior.

Convincing her of his sincerity had been tricky, but worth it as it earned him at least some respect if not tolerance from Barry. The following months after the wedding were then used to Eobard's advantage as Barry's broken heart was obvious to anyone with eyes. He didn't outright offer himself up as an alternative of course, because he was no one's rebound, but he had extended his hand in friendship. It was then just a matter of stalking and 'bumping into' Barry at the right times so he could provide comfort.

There was also the matter of driving off any rivals for Barry's affections. The yellow-winged fairy was attractive and an ideal mate for anyone. He had just been too blinded by his love for Iris to notice if others showed interest. Eobard, in contrast, noticed every look and flirtatious smile thrown his way, and did what needed to be done to drive them off.

He did not do so outright, because nothing was kept secret in this town and Barry would inevitably find out if he had mistreated someone or not. Instead, he resorted to acts of 'kindness,' such as pulling a few favors so Patty Spivot-- a fairy who had been upfront about her interest in Barry, which resulted in a short affair between them-- could get her dream job. Said job was in another part of the kingdom, so she had to choose between staying with Barry or following her dreams.

Barry, the kind sap, didn't begrudge her for choosing the latter. Either way, Eobard had brought over some of Barry's favorite sweets after the break up.

One could say at this point that Eobard had reached casual friend status. What he needed to do now was to perform more glorious feats so as to grab Barry's attention and paint him as perfect mate material. And it started with the temple.

When Barry finished with his prayers, Eobard intended to have a casual conversation with one of the priests in regards to his donation and service. Said conversation would be said within earshot of Barry and Iris so it would catch their attention. Ideally, he'd like for Barry to join in and express how impressed he was with the news that Eobard was volunteering and helping the unfortunate. But the most likely result would be a head tilt in their direction and perhaps a smile and a nod in acknowledgement.

Of course, when his plans did not go his way due to the priest not showing up around the time Barry and Iris were leaving, Eobard improvised by standing within sight and showing some signs of irritation.

"Eobard, is everything alright?" Barry asked, as the concerned friend he tended to be.

"Hm? Oh, Barry, Iris! What a pleasant surprise! I was just waiting on the head priest to discuss my donation to the temple," he explained.

"You're donating to the temple?" Iris questioned, a little suspicious. She may have forgiven him for his behavior towards her in the beginning, but she still reacted warily around him.

"Yes, because my riches would do far more good helping those less fortunate instead of rotting away in the treasury," Eobard responded in a neutral tone. Getting defensive would only encourage conflict between the two of them and would dampen his chances with Barry. Her approval was key.

"Oh, that's wonderful, Eobard! I'm sure what you give will go a long way," Barry said, nearly giving a full smile.

"I hope so," Eobard replied, beaming at receiving such praise. Before he could say more though, he spotted the head priest headed his way, so he politely stated: "It was lovely seeing the two of you, but I must be off to my meeting."

And so with a small nod in farewell, he departed, his mind scheming further to make himself appear more gracious and kind, at least in Barry's eyes.

Iris waited till they had exited the temple before letting a shiver run down her body as she proclaimed: "That man irks me."

"Eddie's whole family irks you," Barry pointed out, but he knew why. Eobard hadn't been the only one who had objected to the marriage, he was just the only one to have been stupid enough to voice it.

"Anyway, now that we are officially away from temple grounds, what type of person did you pray for?" Iris said, preferring this topic over her issues with her in-laws. It was a little taboo to reveal one's wishes inside of the church, as it could prevent their prayers from coming true. Outside of it was free game.

"The usual, a kind and honest person," Barry replied vaguely, shrugging his shoulders. Taking to the air, he intended to go hunting for some grub for dinner.

Iris followed after him, struggling a bit since her wings weren't designed for speed like his. He wasn't flying as fast as he could, but it still took some effort for her to keep up.

"Don't be vague with me, Barry, you know what I meant," Iris softly chided.

"I know, it's just-- I figured being less specific would increase my chances of finding someone," Barry explained.

"Okay, I can understand that," Iris replied, biting her lip as she looked away.

"What did you do?" Barry questioned, knowing that look.

"I may have prayed for some specific stuff," Iris admitted giving her friend a sheepish smile.

"What type of stuff?" Barry asked, pausing mid-flight and crossing his arms. It was his 'don't you lie to me,' pose, which he had copied from his adopted father, Iris's dad Joe.

"Just that they were beautiful, had a kind heart, an honest soul, a dorky sense of humor to match yours, and that they grew up similar enough to you so they'd get you and not get all sympathetic or judge-y," Iris listed off rapidly.

"So basically Patty?" Barry replied, remembering his previous relationship.

"Hence me adding that they had similar goals and would stay with you," Iris countered.

"Thanks, Iris, but the last thing I expect is to find another person like her," Barry said, the darkness in his heart contributing to his words.

"Right, you'll find someone even better for you," Iris stated with confidence. She had enough faith for the both of them.

Spotting her home, she bid her friend farewell, giving him a firm hug before returning to the dwelling she shared with her husband.

Thus, leaving Barry to fly alone as he resumed his hunting for a meal. Small insects, fish, nuts and berries were the go to food for fairies and he was currently low on everything. He had been so caught up in finding a flower this morning that he hadn't gone with the daily raid to stock up on supplies. Hunting and gathering on his own wasn't necessarily a bad thing, it just meant he had to be extra cautious and aware of his surroundings.

It was common knowledge that birds found fairies to be ideal food, and sometimes a flock or murder of them would attack the kingdom. There were safety protocols for such attacks, but that didn't guarantee that everyone would survive. In fact, Barry's parents had both fallen victim to such an assault.

Shaking his head of any further dark thoughts, as he had had enough of those lately, Barry concentrated on finding something to eat. Discovering some juicy berries, he reached for his satchel only to realize he wasn't wearing it. He forgot it at home!

Groaning, he was about to turn back for home when something white caught his eye on the ground below. It looked like a dead fairy!

Landing quickly, Barry was able to take in more details and noted the clothing on the individual was very different from his own as they wore boots, long sleeves and a long tunic. They also had quite a few injuries, very fresh, from some form of attack. Barry couldn't tell what type though as he wasn't an expert. The only thing he could guess was that this fairy was from the Invierno Kingdom, judging by his white wings and the fluff around his neck.

Carefully, Barry placed his hand in front of the fairy's face and was relieved to feel breath against it. He was alive!

 -tbc