Things We Lost in the Fire

“...Feel the power of life...beautiful life...flow from your soul, to your body, to the rose”


 * ~Harrison Wells coaching Elizabeth through her plant enhancement test.

Things We Lost in the Fire is the third episode of Trial of the Elements, and the 3rd episode overall. It premiered on March 15, 2016.

Synopsis
Elizabeth discovers a new power and attempts to use it against a meta-human called The Mist. While learning how to control it, she reflects on her time with Mark and begins to get closer than she realizes to a member of the S.T.A.R. Labs team.

Plot
Elizabeth decides to spend her night with her newest friends, Gracie and Iris, as they hang out at her apartment watching her play a video game. The three decide to then watch a movie to end the night together. The next morning, Gracie drives Elizabeth to work after taking her the Jitters, on the way there, she accidentally makes her spill Hartley's green tea and asks her to drop her off near the CCPD. When she finally arrives at S.T.A.R. Labs, she talks with Hartley while she changes and they notice strange veins across her arms.

When the two rejoin the group, they are all talking about a meta-human that can control poison gas. After that conversation, Cisco comes up with the idea to remodel the particle accelerator as a makeshift prison for meat-humans. Cisco and Dr. Wells go down there to work on it, as Caitlin and Barry go to CCPD to try and discover the type of gas the meta can control. Hartley and Elizabeth have a heart-to-heart about everything that's happened as well as Elizabeth telling him she met Mark Mardon. After rejoining Cisco and Dr. Wells and talking to Cisco about how he feels he failed Caitlin by not saving Ronnie, Barry later returns from fighting the meta-human, unable to breathe, but the group is able to obtain a sample of the gas from his lungs.

After Barry wakes up and hurries to talk to Joe, Dr. Wells tells Elizabeth to go to the Violet Room. When there, as she waits for him, she reminiscences her time after jail when she started dating Mark. When Dr. Wells arrives, he tells her that she has abilities surrounding plant-life that could help her in her mission to protect Barry. Elizabeth then joins Cisco back at the Cortex and then talks to Caitlin about how Ronnie was truly a hero that night. Cisco then tells everyone that the poison gas they took from Barry's lungs was in fact hydrogen cyanide and the meta-human actually is Kyle Nimbus, a prisoner who was executed via gas chamber.

Barry hurries to Iron Heights to save Joe from Nimbus' attack and with the help of Elizabeth, does just that. After the newly nicknamed Mist is brought to the prison, Elizabeth in disguise officially meets Cisco and Caitlin. Cisco officially gives her the name of Mother Nature and before he could question Hartley on where Elizabeth was at during the current situation, Caitlin decides to pull him aside and the two leave.

Before the night is through, Dr. Wells takes Elizabeth to his office where he tries, once again, to get her to tap into her green thumb. After quickly remembering more time with Mark, after seeing Wells hand her a lavender rose, she goes on to revive the flower and Wells decides to let her have it, telling her she's special in the process.

After Hartley takes her home, he talks to Dr. Wells briefly about Project Dragon and warns him of what would happen if it failed. Meanwhile, a woman with ice powers is seen walking right outside S.T.A.R. Labs, freezing everything around her.

Differences from Things You Can't Outrun

 * Hartley Rathaway is not featured and it's unknown in that season if he ever really knew Harrison Wells was lying about his motives, while here, he knows that Wells is lying.
 * Iris and Gracie don't go to the movies with Barry, instead, they hang out with Elizabeth at her apartment.
 * The murder of the crime family and the judge is seen, while here, it's only mentioned.
 * Henry Allen once again is not featured in Trial of the Elements and Barry saving Joe is only mentioned, as well as the final hospital scene.
 * The flashbacks featuring Ronnie Raymond are replaced with flashbacks of Elizabeth's relationship with Mark Mardon, however, the events of the Ronnie flashbacks are still mentioned by Cisco and Caitlin.
 * The Barry and Caitlin scenes are only in The Flash, these are primarily replaced by Elizabeth/Hartley and Elizabeth/Wells scenes.
 * The ending is slightly different. While it still shows Harrison Wells with Barry's suit, Hartley is added to his conversation regarding Project Dragon and Lorelai Snart is shown at the end afterwards.

Trivia/References

 * The area before the core chamber of the particle accelerator is titled "Reactor Area 52", a reference to The New 52.
 * Elizabeth is playing a video game titled "Viola and Ute" a reference to the Rare Ltd video game franchise "Banjo and Kazooie". The characters are gender swapped and Iris even erroneously names them "Guitar and Kazoo" and "Cello and Piccolo" a reference to the characters' musical instrument sounding names. Strangely, Piccolo was the original name for a Banjo and Kazooie character named Tooty.
 * The girls watch "Mean Girls", a 2004 teen comedy starring Lindsay Lohan. The other optional movie, "The Dragon Princess" was made up for the episode as a reference to Elizabeth true identity as a Drakonian in the Drakonia comic book series.
 * Elizabeth mentions the shows "Pushing Daisies" and "The Bachelor" during both of her conversations with Harrison Wells regarding roses. Ironically, both shows aired on ABC.
 * Pushing Daisies was an American comedy series that aired from 2007 to 2009.
 * The Bachelor is a reality television show that debuted on 2002 and is still ongoing, spawning spin-offs such as "The Bachelorette", the now canceled "Bachelor Pad", and "Bachelor in Paradise". Coincidentally, Annabelle Blake, the actress who plays Elizabeth (in the Flash, not Trial of the Elements) has admitted to having a crush on the host all four shows, Chris Harrison, who has the same last name as the first name of her character's supposed love interest, Harrison Wells.
 * Cisco mentions Elizabeth's multiple elemental powers are similar to that of the Avatar, a character from the Nickelodeon cartoon "Avatar the Last Airbender". Strangely enough, in the comics, a purple (royal) Drakonian's duties were to not only rule Drakonia, but to also master the elements in order to bring peace to all of the mystical beings of that dimension.
 * As of the New 52, Elizabeth cannot bring plant-life back to life in the Drakonia or Flash comics.
 * The lavender roses that are given to Elizabeth by both Harrison Wells (and Mark Mardon in flashbacks) is a representation of her love for the color purple and a reference to that of her being a reincarnated Drakonian princess in the comics.