Hi! Hope you enjoy this- it's set Pre-S1 through to Post.
NOTE: This is a spinoff from my Flash fanfiction called Ghost. It's not compulsory, but this will probably make more sense if you read that first! :)
If you don't, oh well, you'll understand it eventually!
Ash Grey – Prologue
2004 –
Cecilia Black stood next to Thea Queen, both the girls whispering in short and quiet giggles as they talked. The two nine-year old girls stopped as Oliver Queen walked into the room wearing a suit with his hair combed back, he wore a grin.
"What do you think, girls?" Oliver grinned, "Do I look handsome?"
Cecilia laughed, "Ollie you look pretty."
Oliver mocked a bow, "Thank you, Ace- what do you think, Speedy?"
"I think you look great," Thea grinned, a mischievous glint lighting up both of the girls' eyes.
"Knock-knock." The trio turned to the door to a see an impish looking Tommy Merlyn.
"Tommy!" both the girls beamed.
"Tweedle-dee and tweedle-dum," Tommy replied with grin before turning to Oliver, "You ready to go, man?"
Oliver snatched his phone from the side before facing his best friend, "Yup, is Maya meeting us there?"
"Blondie's already on her way," Tommy nodded as he started ushering the Queen from the door.
As soon as the doors closed, Cece turned to Thea, "You think Ollie will like his surprise party?"
"He'll love it," Thea assured her, "It'll go great."
How wrong she was.
"-It's been established that the car belonged to Maya Black, daughter of the millionaire Peter Black."
An image of a golden blonde, green eyed girl grinning brightly next to Oliver Queen appeared on the screen by the reporter.
"The car has been recovered and police have confirmed no body or remains have been found. It is unclear whether Maya Black survived the crash, but for-."
The TV died, the screen going black and blank as the sound cut out. Cece Black looked up from where she was sat on the couch inside the Queen's mansion, her face emotionless as dried tears marked her cheeks; behind her stood Oliver Queen, his face was unreadable as the red eyes he was looking at her with.
"You shouldn't be watching this rubbish, Ace."
Ollie's nickname for Cece had always been "Ace" due the small blonde always being "full of surprises", and Oliver- and Maya- had joked about it, saying she was the "ace up their sleeve".
Cece pulled her legs up to her chest, "I-is Maya gone?"
At Oliver's silence, Cece shot off of the sofa and crashed into him, wrapping her small arms around his torso as warm salt-water started tumbling down her cheeks again and wetting his shirt. He didn't mind though, he held the girl he thought of as a sister as she wept and slowly wrapped a hand around her shoulders, smoothing her blonde hair down with the other.
"Shh, shh," Ollie whispered as he pressed a kiss to the top of her hair, "Of course she's not gone. You know she'd never leave her baby sister."
But the older blonde couldn't help the few tears that slipped from his eyes down his cheeks as he still processed the idea of his best friend being gone, of the blonde teenager so full of life not having any at all.
"Is it true?" Thea's trembling voice asked quietly from the doorway.
Breaking down, Cece looked up at her best friend and one look at the tear streaked face was all Thea needed to know it was and her own water works to start up. The brunette ran to the blonde and the two embraced, holding onto each other tightly, as if for dear life, as they cried into each other's shoulders.
Oliver wiped his eyes, sniffing once before he blinked a couple of times. He straightened his jacket and pushed his messy hair back to make himself look presentable. Half decent and plastering on a fake smile, Oliver took one last look at the grief-stricken best friends before he marched towards the doors and flung them open, stepping out.
Immediately, paparazzi and photographers were flashing bright lights as they snapped pictures, news reporters and journalists were shouting questions at him as they stuck their microphones and recorders in his face. Oliver just smiled brightly, not letting them see him weak.
He'd be damned if they saw him cry.
2007 –
Twelve year olds, Cece Black and Thea Queen, leapt over the sofa, bolting out of the room as a blonde haired man walked into it. The two girls stopped abruptly in front of him grinning widely.
"So, Ollie," Cece grinned, wiggling her eyebrows.
"Oh, God," Oliver Queen groaned, running a hand over his face.
Thea beamed at her brother, "How was your date with Laurel?"
Cece mocked confusion, "Or was it Sara?"
"I'm not sure," Thea frowned sarcastically.
Oliver rolled his eyes, "You're not funny, guys."
"You're right," Thea nodded with a grimace.
Cece smirked, "We're hilarious."
"God. You know what? I'm just gonna go get ready for the Yacht trip," Oliver shrugged, holding his hands up.
"Wait, so which one of the Lance's are you taking?" Cece tilted her head.
"Sara?" Thea questioned, "Or Laurel?"
"I get enough grief from everyone else," Ollie cut in, "So can you two quit it?"
The two girls laughed before they slowly walked out of the room, whispering hurriedly and grinning. Cece paused at the door as she saw a picture hanging from the wall, it was a fairly old one of Maya and Oliver- they were outside the Queen's Gambit, and both of them were grinning widely.
Cece blinked rapidly to stop the tears before chasing after Thea.
2007 –
Grey.
Ashen.
Colourless.
They were the tedious, drained hues that ricochet around Cece's sluggish mind as she sat next to Thea Queen, the two girls gripping each other's hands so tightly their knuckles were white against the dreary grey sky.
Drearily, the priest droned on in a monotone of how much Oliver Queen would be missed, how much he would be remembered and how much of an amazing person he was- what the pastor failed to mention was just how damn much it hurt, how much agonising pain Cecilia was feeling as yet another piece of her heart was torn away. How much pain she was in as yet another black hole was ripped into her heart.
Soon enough, Thea was moving her hand away from Cece's and striding on weak legs to the front to say her tribute to her older brother. She was standing in front of the mourning and staring straight ahead, using every bit of willpower she had to keep the salty tears from tumbling down her cheeks.
Yet, before she knew it- it was Cece's turn to stand in front of the sea of black and grey to speak. To say a eulogy about the older brother whom was now gone, about Oliver Queen- the presumed dead millionaire whose funeral they were attending.
Cece took a deep, shaky breath as she looked up.
"You'd think on my second round of saying a word about another dead sibling- blood or not- I'd be better at this. B-but unfortunately I am not," Cece's voice broke as she spoke, "O-Oliver Queen was an idol to me, one of my few. He was also my older brother. It didn't matter to me, or him- the fact we didn't share blood was not relevant; we were family."
"Oliver Queen was many, many things; a socialite, a millionaire, a boyfriend, a brother, a son, a best friend, a partier, and some might even say a drunk. But most of all, he was loved. And he will be greatly missed. As you all know, three years ago I lost my older sister, Maya, I hope that they find each other wherever they end up- God knows they'll need one another. I smile at the idea that they may have found their way back to one another now."
Cece cleared her throat, wiping a stray tear from her eye and giving them all a watery smile, "I can say without a doubt that I will miss Ollie with my whole heart, as I am sure everyone else here will."
Turning to jelly, Cece's legs nearly gave way as she moved back towards her chair. Her black chiffon dress brushed her tan skin as she stumbled back to her chair, nearly collapsing onto it as she took a deep breath to relax herself and keep back the tears.
Biting her lip to stop them from stuttering, Thea reached her hand back over and gave her best friend's a squeeze; Cece and her shared smiles that seemed more like grimaces as the two of them kept blank faces in front of the photographers- crying could be done behind closed doors, away from prying lenses.
So Cece let the darkness wash over her body and mind, let it cloud her vison and block out all the pain, all the agony her heart was screaming at her.
And finally the numbness took over.
First chapter! So this is the prologue, lemme know what you think? Do you want another chapter? It'd be time-skip to S1Ep1! Review? ;P