AN: This was really screaming to get out. One shot in light of last weeks episode 3x10. Posting while I continue work on she would know.

TITLE: They aren't whole. Not yet.


The trio tiredly made their way to the back entrance of the Foundry. It had been a difficult night. While they had successfully located Brick and his lair, it seemed he had already moved on but not without leaving a few off his newly acquired crew behind. They had left them for SCPD but Diggle couldn't shake how close they had come to losing Roy tonight. Luckily Laurel brought more than he thought to their little team and was able to react much quicker than he did. He needed to get his head back in the game, but he couldn't help mourning the loss of not only Oliver but now Felicity as well. He kept expecting her to turn up at the lair. To suddenly be talking in his ear. Guiding them , helping them to come home.

She's been avoiding their calls and he's not entirely sure what he would say if she did answer. Would he want to convince her to come back? To live though the pain of not having Oliver there? Could he trust her after she had shut the door that stopped them from getting Brick in the first place. For now all he wanted was to know she was safe and to support her in some way. To grieve with her.

"Um…..I locked that." Diggle is brought out of his thoughts by Roy's hesitant words, and they all ready themselves for what lies in wait within the foundry and he's really not in the mood to deal with Malcolm Merlyn again. In fact the way he's feeling right now, he'll probably just shoot him and save them all some trouble.

"I thought Felicity changed the code."

"She did before she left…" That prompts Roy to move forward a little faster, almost at a skip and hop and Diggle feels a slight calm move through him. If she is back then maybe they could do this. Team Arrow. They could Honour Oliver in the best way. Of course she wasn't done. This is who they are now. Heroes. Ready to work to save the City. This wasn't just Olivers crusade anymore. It was all of theirs.

He's just about caught up with his two partner's in crime when he notices the hesitation in their posture and the deadly silence in the room and then he's looking up at the impossible.

The figure before him stands slightly hunched over clearly in some pain but he manages a small smile and a shrug, which turns into a grimace, waiting for one of them to break the silence. But they all seem to afraid to break the mirage that stands before them, fear that the slightest movement with make him disappear. They can't believe that he's there, standing in front of them and then he speaks.

"Nice suit Digg - looks a little snug." And that's all it takes for Diggle to snap out of it and in two quick strides he's got his arms wrapped around Oliver. His brother, partner and friend. The pain of the last week all seems to come to a head and he doesn't care about the tears that flow freely down his face or the sobs passing his lips. Because He's back from the dead and Diggle truly believed that he would never see him again. "You ever do this again - I'm going to kill you."

Oliver gives a small chuckle and then groans as he eases Diggle off, clapping a hand on his shoulder. "it's good to see you. I didn't think I'd be here again." They spend another moment just staring at each other, just in awe of another miracle and Diggle can feel his face aching at the stretch of his lips into the biggest smile he's ever given. And then he's squeezing Oliver's shoulder and stepping away for Roy to greet their lost comrade.

Diggle watches from the side now, raising his clasped hands to his face in complete relief. Oliver was back and he was alive. He had survived. Despite everything, he was back with them. He sent a quick prayer up to whoever seemed to be watching over them. Then watched as Laurel hugged Oliver whispering that she knew he would be back, that Oliver was too stubborn to die which gets a laugh from them all. And there's more tears and hints of laughter and then Olivers looking around for the last missing piece, worry easing away his smile and Diggle feels his own fading.

"Where's Felicity?"

And then the crashing feeling returns. They aren't whole.

Not yet.


Felicity drags herself into the apartment, kicking off her heels with a relieved groan and places the mountain of files down on the side table before locking the door behind her. She hadn't realised how late it had gotten but this was quickly becoming a regular occurrence. Without the need to return to her nightly activities she found that her "free" time to be nothing but a period to think about Oliver or worry about Diggle, Roy and even Laurel. So instead she had thrown herself into the work of Palmer Industries which actually seemed to be a lot more than she thought. Which shouldn't have surprised her when the CEO was more focused on becoming some metallic fighting machine than running a billion dollar company. She didn't want to think about that either.

She was exhausted. All she wanted was to have a hot bath and then go to bed. But she was too tired to even run water. If she made any effort to get into her pyjamas before she collapsed she would put that in the win column. She makes her way wearily to her bedroom already making work of her pony tail and unbuttoning her blouse. She doesn't bother with the light, heading for the set of drawers and starting to pull off her blouse.

"I should probably stop you there" The voice laced with sleep stills her fingers and she feels her heart skip a beat. She knows that voice and she wonders how tired she is that she's now conjuring up ghosts. She takes a deep breath and turns slowly, steeling herself against the pain of an empty room and an overactive imagination. But the Reality hits her that much harder. Sitting in the chair at the corner of the room is Oliver and then she hears a strangled cry, only just realising that it has come from her own throat.

He stuggles to stand having clearly fallen asleep while he had been waiting and she wonders how long he's been there, how much time had she wasted in the office, but then her mind is moving on to the slowness of his movements and the way he favours one side over the other.

"You're hurt" She doesn't even remember moving but suddenly she's there in front of him, supporting him and he leans heavily against her.

"It's nothing" His fingers move to her cheek and she bats away his hand. "You need to rest."

She moves him to her bed, helping him to ease himself down and lean back against the pillows. He closes his eyes in relief, and it's a testament to the pain he must be feeling. She runs her gaze across his face and down his chest still unable to fathom that he is really here. That he's alive and lying in her bed. And then all she can see is the sword. The sword Malcolm had laid before them. The instrument of death. The weapon covered in Olivers blood. A lot of Olivers blood and then she has to see it. She has to see the wound that it left. The wound that Ra's Al Ghul inflicted to take him away from her. And then she's pulling hurriedly at the bottom of his shirt with a determined will.

"Felicity" he moans and tries to still her hands and her eyes flash up to meet his, both looking scared and in pain.

"You died." Her voice breaks and she pleads with him to tell her it's not true. To tell her they're safe. That he'll never leave. That she'll never lose him. Her eyes burning with the tears she refuses to let fall.

"I'm here…" She shakes her head and drops her gaze back to his chest, pulling once more at his shirt and this time there's no resistance. She runs her fingers over the still healing deep wound. The dark line inflicted by Ra's Al Ghul. Caused by the sword that still lay in the depths of the foundry. She could almost see it in her minds eye. Feel the pain as it tore though his skin. The loss as the life drained from his eyes. Because this wound meant death. This wound meant loss and she couldn't see anything else.

"How?"

"It doesn't matter" he says and then his hands are on her face, turning it up to meet his determined gaze once again "I'm here. I'm ok." he shifts, leaning forward, pressing his forehead against hers. Just a breath away from her lips. His thumbs rubbing against her cheek bones and she's taken back to another moment in time. A time of maybes, nevers and goodbye kisses. She pulls back before he can brush his lips against hers because it would just be too much right now. She's still processing that he's here and she doesn't know what any of it means. What will happen next. And she's too tired to think about anything but just him. Being here. With him.

"You should rest.."

"Felicity." He pleas with her, his eyes roaming her face, fingers brushing against her skin almost as if he needs her as much as she needs him.

"Please" Her whisper is almost desperate and she's not really sure what she's asking. She closes her eyes as tries to gain back some semblance of control and then she's moving away out of his reach. His face fills with loss and anguish and she can't think about what he's feeling right now or the last words he spoke to her before he left for the duel.

"Don't go" She barely recognises his voice, broken and full of despair as if he can't handle the emotions playing though him, his body aching and exhausted.

"I'm just going to change." She reassures him because she knows she can't be anywhere else but right here. Not now. Not at this moment.

He watches her through hooded eyes, before he drifts off again and its not until she's slipping under the covers that he wakes and turns his head towards her. Watching as she burrows down into the covers, lying on her side to face him. Their eyes lock for a moment and she feels a flood of words bubble up into her throat but she doesn't make a sound and she swallows past the lump where they've stuck. She wants to tell him how much she missed him. How every moment has been filled with an unbearable ache. That she can't lose him again. That she loves her. But nothing seems to convey the deep emotions that seep through her and then she feels him move, his left hand seeking hers and she interlaces their fingers squeezing them. She gives a light squeeze back and then she can see that he knows. His own eyes reflecting the same unspoken words and so much more. He seems to fight to keep his eyes open for a few minutes longer but then sleep takes him and she can see his whole body sag, tension seeping away and he's never looked more relaxed than in that moment.

Felicity lays awake a little longer, watching as his chest moves slowly in time with his breaths and she shuffles a little closer, pressing her nose against his shoulder and takes a deep breath, breathing him in. The scent that can only be associated with Oliver Queen. He's back. He's alive. She doesn't know what this means for the future. For him. For her. For the arrow. So many questions of what happens next. She's afraid of some of the answers. Of the choices they will make. But what she can't deny is the love and joy that fills her soul and a few minutes later she finds herself drifting off to her first peaceful sleep since he left. Tomorrow can wait.


A/N: This was knocked out pretty quickly Hope its ok. Please review