Tommy's Dose
Of Reality
(And Kind
Of Oliver's Too)
Disclaimer: The long awaited moment is here in the next part of the Dose of Reality series! Featuring Tommy, McKenna, Laurel, and Thea! A recent conversation with ChangingDestiny40 finally put some motivation in me to get this out to you guys. And said recent conversation will bear some fruit in a future DoR fic as well. As always, I own nothing but what you see here! This takes place during Helena's second return when Tommy shows up at CNRI with his arm in a cast.
As Laurel left him after her speech to him about needing him but he's like a million miles away, Tommy Merlyn began to kick himself and made a decision then and there. "Wait, Laurel!" Said the man as he raised his voice slightly.
Managing to get her to stop and look back at him with glistening eyes. Something he rather hated seeing from her to be honest. "I'll, I'll tell you. But we need a little privacy. Thea, you need to hear this too."
Thea honestly looked confused but got up from her chair and came over to Tommy and Laurel as he pulled her into a hug. Whispering how sorry he was for failing her when she really needed him. "Th-Thanks Tommy." Whispered the Lawyer.
He kissed her on the lips and followed her to a room where they tended to store supplies at. Thea would leave the door open with a crack while Tommy began to pace a bit. Unsure how to even start. "Tommy?" Asked Laurel in concern.
"Sorry, I'm just… Just not sure where to begin."
"I hear from the beginning always works." Informed Thea dryly.
That got her a light glare from Tommy but she just grinned at him. Something Laurel couldn't help but smile at despite the seriousness of the situation. "You uhh, you remember Helena, right?"
"Yeah, Ollie's girlfriend for a little while until things went sour for whatever reason."
"Is she a hot Brunette who's first date with my brother was at Russo's?"
Tommy looked at her sharply and it surprised her. "You met her!?"
"Uhh yeah? She showed up at the house recently."
"Aww damn. That's, that's not good."
Both ladies looked at one another and then at him in concern. Laurel came over to him and placed a hand on him with her concern still showing. "Why's that Tommy?"
Looking at the girl he cares a great deal about with a grim look on his face, he raised up his bandaged hand. "Because, she pretty much did this to me down in Verdant's basement."
"WHAT!?" Shouted both girls and then winced at the high volume as they didn't want to get unnecessary attention at the moment.
He only nodded. "Why, why would she do that? She seemed like a really nice girl." Wondered Thea in confusion and anger.
Her question was one Laurel definitely wanted to know the answer too as well! "Yeah, one with a major chip on her shoulder where her dad is concerned."
"Her dad?" Thea asked in confusion.
"Yep. She basically did this to force Oliver to help her get to him so she can kill him. And if that didn't work, she would have gone after everybody in the club to get him to work with her." Informed the former Merlyn Scion in his continued grim tone.
That made the eyes of both girls widen. "What the Hell!? Why Ollie!? What could he possibly do to help her!?" Asked Laurel in alarm.
"Yeah, no offense to my brother, but he's not exactly the type of person who could help someone like that."
Tommy sighed. "Maybe, if he wasn't the Hood."
"I'm, I'm sorry, but what did you just say?" Asked Thea as she knows she couldn't have possibly heard that right!
Seeing the expression on Laurel's face told her she was feeling the same way too! They watched as he laughed a mirthless laugh. "You heard me, Speedy. Ollie is the Hood! And I've known since the night my father was attacked!"
"And if my dad hadn't of been poisoned by a Sniper bullet, Ollie never would have willingly told me otherwise!"
"That's… That's why you let him talk you into a blood transfusion!" Got out Laurel in stunned disbelief while Thea just wasn't quite sure what to think really.
But she did feel a large sense of betrayal sweep through her. He, he lied to me! How could he!? Wondered the girl in near tears.
Tommy just nodded. "Yeah, it… It hasn't been easy knowing that about the man I consider a brother."
Laurel found herself being hugged by a crying Thea as the young girl felt horribly betrayed by her own brother. Who was a damn killer for God's sake! She really and truly didn't know him anymore and it broke her heart into a thousand pieces. Her displeasure of Roy never showing up for work seemed so trivial now for her. Though she would still have a word with him later when she wasn't dealing with the third most horrible blow to hit her in her life. "My, my brother's a killer!"
"I know sweetie, I know." Soothed Laurel as gently as she could.
Tommy looked on with a saddened look on his face and knew that Ollie was not going to be happy they knew. But he just couldn't care at that point in time. Coming over, he wrapped his two favorite girls into a hug. "We need to talk with him. Find a way to get him to stop what he's doing. And what he's doing with her." Decided Laurel eventually after what felt like an eternity.
A sigh came from her boyfriend as he knew she was right. But he had very little doubt any of them would be able to get through to the man. None of them realized that McKenna Hall had over heard their conversation as she had shown up there to have a word with Laurel about a case she she was involved in thanks to a client. The Detective wasn't quite sure how to feel herself but she knew she couldn't go and arrest her boyfriend. At least not without getting his side of things first. As she had to know why. Not even caring that this was her feelings talking more then anything else as she just had to know before doing anything else. She'd make her leave and then follow the trio straight to Verdant after they'd composed themselves. Though she would make herself known once they made it inside and none of them would be all that happy about it either! "Are, are you gonna arrest him?" Asked Thea weakly.
"No, not, not yet."
That answer was the best the girl could hope for at least. Letting out a breath, Tommy took them to a door and punched in a code and opened it as quietly as he could and indicated for them to tread lightly so that they wouldn't be heard coming down the stairs. And as they made their way down, they could hear angry yelling that was coming straight from Oliver himself. "I know its a bad idea but I have no choice! Not only could she drop a dime on what we're doing like you think she might, but she would hurt everybody I know and care for just to get back at me for not helping her get her father!"
"Then you need to do what you know you need to do! Even if you don't like it!" Argued back another voice that sounded vaguely familiar to them.
"I can't, I can't do that John! I have to believe there's still a way she can be saved!"
"She clearly doesn't want to be saved! All Helena wants is revenge and you know as well as I do that she'll stop at nothing to get that. No matter who gets hurt in the process!"
John would have said more but his eyes widened at the sight behind Oliver, causing the man to frown and wonder if Helena had shown up again. Or perhaps Felicity, which was a really bad idea right now. Turning around, his eyes widened at the sight of his sister, Laurel, Tommy, and McKenna on the steps. "What… How? TOMMY!" Roared the archer angrily in realization.
And causing the four to flinch. Tommy made his way over with an angry expression on his face shortly after that. "They deserved to know! Because I refuse to lie to them for you!"
Any retort Oliver would have made was cut short as Thea rushed him and slapped him hard in the face. "How could you!? YOU LIED TO ME!"
"I lied for your own safety. For the safety of everyone in my life!"
"Clearly that's worked out really well for you." Bit out Laurel acidly.
Letting out an angry sigh while holding on to his sister's crying form complete with various things she was saying into his chest, he looked past Laurel to McKenna. Who was taking in everything around her and wasn't feeling too impressed by what he had down there. "You here to arrest me?"
His question startled her out of her observations and made her turn to look at him with an unhappy expression on her face. "No, I… I can't. Not yet. I need to know why. Why do all this."
"They deserve to know, Oliver." Added Tommy with his arms crossed.
"The Hell they do! There was a REASON I kept this to myself! And now you've gone and destroyed that! For what? To get back at me cause you can't stomach the things I've done in order to try and save this city from those would who use it for their own purposes without a damn care towards others!?"
The anger and loudness in her brother's voice made Thea flinch and pull away from him. Feeling frightened by him and hating even feeling that way. "I didn't do it cause of that, damnit! I did it cause they deserve to know what you've been doing!"
"And then cold shoulder me when I try and explain my reasons? Like you've been doing?" Asked Oliver angrily and causing the other man to flinch as he knew how true that statement was.
"Wh-Why Ollie… WHY are you doing this!?" Screamed out a tearful Thea.
Oliver looked down and then back at his baby sister. "Because, our father asked it of me. His last words… His last… Request before he died was that I survive and return home to right his wrongs."
"Do you honestly think your father would want you to do it this way!? Ollie, for the love of God that is insane!" Yelled Laurel in disbelief with McKenna nodding in agreement.
"She's right, Oliver. There's no way he would have wanted you to right his wrongs this way."
He just shook his head at that. "There are some who operate in extreme measures, and it would be naive to think one could deal with them through lesser means. You all know just as well as I do that the men I've gone after are not the best of people and would have kept doing what they were doing and not given a single damn about it!"
"That doesn't justify you killing them!" Yelled Tommy irately.
Which got him an angry glare from his best friend. "I HAVE ONLY KILLED IN DIRECT DEFENSE OF MY OWN LIFE IF THERE WAS NO OTHER CHOICE! I have NEVER killed any of the men on my father's List AND YET YOU CLEARLY FORGET THAT! SO YEAH, LET'S CALL ME A MURDERER DESPITE THE FACT ITS BASICALLY SELF DEFENSE!"
Everyone minus Diggle flinched at the angered yelling from the man they all thought they knew. Or somewhat knew in McKenna's case. "You have a list of names from your father? I'm not sure if I should be disgusted by that." Muttered the Detective.
Frowning to himself, Oliver looked towards Diggle who gave a nod and walked off to grab the List and then bring it back. Oliver then handed it over to McKenna. "That is a list of names my father wrote down. Apparently… He and several others had these names written down for their own purposes that was meant to help save the city. I have looked into every name on that list and none of them are good people."
"What… What wrongs could daddy have done that he needed you to right for him with this list!?" Asked a distraught Thea.
"I honestly don't know, Speedy. But I wish I did."
While McKenna and even Laurel busied themselves with looking at the List and Thea was surprisingly holding on to her brother to try and deal with everything, Oliver gave a stony glare to Tommy. "Thanks to you, these three are at risk now that they know my secret. You had NO RIGHT to tell them. I'm sorry Helena involved you in a situation you had no place being in but any issues you had over it SHOULD HAVE BEEN BROUGHT TO ME! SO IF ANYTHING HAPPENS TO THEM, ITS ON YOUR HEAD!"
Tommy flinched, knowing his long time best friend and brother in all but blood was right. But he just couldn't lie anymore. Not to Laurel when she needed him and he couldn't be there for her cause of the whole thing with Oliver's being the Hood. "We… We had every right to know, Ollie." Murmured Thea.
"We had every right to know. Cause what would happen if you died!? What if they took off your hood and saw who you were!? They would come after us and we wouldn't even know why!"
Sighing to himself, Oliver began to speak. "Thea, I… I..." Began the man but trailed off when he couldn't think of a response to that as she was unfortunately right.
"You have to stop this, Oliver. Before you get killed." Spoke Laurel as she looked away from the List to him.
Her words being something Thea heavily agreed with! "I can't, not until every name on that List is taken care of. To do otherwise would dishonor my father."
His words made McKenna look up at him with an incredulous look on her face. "Considering all the names, there's no telling how long that'll even take! Hell, you could end up dead before that even happens!"
"I've come to accept the possibility of that happening, McKenna. I knew the risks when I first started this. The things I'd been through before returning home helped prepare me. Things I could never tell any of you about because of how horrible some of it was."
Not to mention being under oath not to reveal anything as well. But he wasn't going to say anything about that. Looking down at his sister who still had her face buried against his chest. "I especially don't want to give you any nightmares. Bad enough you saw some of the scars I have."
"What, and you think this isn't gonna give me any nightmares!?"
Her brother sighed as he closed his eyes and feeling even more annoyed with Tommy then before. "I'm, I'm sorry about that. Speedy. I really am."
"Not to add to the whole thing, but this List is something we've got reason to believe for why Mr. Steele hasn't been heard from in awhile." Spoke up Diggle.
"What!? What do you mean!?" Asked Thea in alarm as she pulled away from her brother and completely missed the dark look he was giving the man as well.
John just gave him a look in return that basically told him to tell her and the others. Causing Oliver to sigh in annoyance. "Walter… He, he was looking into a few things he found suspicious. One thing led to another and he ended up finding a copy of the List in mom's things. Its part of why he went on that business trip so he could deal with everything. And now he's missing." He informed the horrified girl.
"Oh God!"
"Have you made any leads on him?" Demanded to know an alarmed McKenna.
"Unfortunately we haven't as that's been slow going. But we hope we'll be able to find out something. And soon." Answered John before Oliver could.
Everyone present hoped like Hell that happened really soon. "Anything I can do?" Asked McKenna.
"Not unless you can do it discreetly enough so that my secret's not in jeopardy. I especially don't want another repeat with that other archer if he was to find out who I am under the hood."
McKenna just sighed at that while the gears in Thea's head turned to a certain conclusion and looked at him with wide eyes. "That's why you ended up in the hospital during Christmas!"
He grimaced at that with a sigh. "And why you weren't out as the Hood for awhile after that." Added in Laurel thoughtfully.
"Mmm. But enough about that. I need to know, will you four keep this secret to yourselves? Because no one, not even mom can know about this."
"I… As an Officer of the Law I am duty bound to report this. But, I won't. As much as I hate to admit it, this city does need you. Even if you could do things a little less violently. Unfortunately, I can't be with you anymore." McKenna told him sadly as she just felt she couldn't handle that too well.
Oliver just let out a tired sigh as he closed his eyes for a short time before opening them again and nodded. "Understand. I don't like it as I do care for you but I understand."
Coming up to him with glistening eyes, she handed the List to him and then kissed him on the lips one last time. A kiss he himself savored and returned while Laurel tried to squash down any jealousy she was feeling at the sight of the two. Pulling away, McKenna gave him a saddened smile and went to stand by the stairs where Tommy still was. "I'm gonna need time, Ollie. Time to try and deal with knowing what you are and what you do. Honoring Robert is one thing but I can't wrap my head around him being okay enough with you doing it." Laurel told him and getting a nod for it.
"Same here." Added Tommy.
Who then got punched in the face by Oliver as he was still none too happy with his best friend for spilling the beans on his secret. Causing him to stumble back and getting a few alarmed yells. "No, its fine. Its fine. I uhh, I probably deserved that a little."
"I'd say more then a little."
"We'll just have to agree to disagree."
"Does this mean you're actually willing to fully hear me out now? Or are you gonna keep your head buried in the sand about it?"
Tommy stared at him and then let out a breath as he rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, I will. But don't leave these three out of it. Alright?" Requested the man firmly.
Narrowing his eyes at him, Oliver merely nodded. "Fine. I don't like it but I'll do it."
"Ollie… I don't know if I can keep this kind of a secret from our mom."
"Considering you kept the drugs you were doing a secret from her, I'm sure you could manage just fine." Replied her brother a bit sarcastically with some bite to it.
Frowning at him unhappily over that, she punched him as hard as she could in his stomach. And glared when he barely reacted to it. "Barely felt that. And besides, you have these three to talk about it with if it gets to be too much. I know you hate it, Speedy. I do. But I can't stop until every name on that List is crossed out. And I can't promise any lessening up on the killing as things do happen while fighting guards. But I can try to avoid it as much as I can."
His words were meant for more then just Thea and thankfully they got that. Now they weren't satisfied but they would take it for now and hoped that he'd be able to do it. As there was always another way. He just needed to realize that for himself. "What do we do now?" Asked Thea in a worried tone.
"Now… Now I go help Helena. Maybe if I'm lucky I'll come across her father first and keep her from killing him. As that's a path she does not need to go down."
"Even though she's already pretty much on that path anyway." Quipped Diggle and not even flinching at the glare he got.
"I didn't mean with her, I meant for us knowing your secret."
"Nothing. You stay out of it. I don't want any of you near this as much as I can help it."
"Clearly you don't know us as well as you think you do then, Ollie. Cause whether or not you want to admit it. You need us in order to keep from falling further into the darkness you think you're already in." Declared Laurel with her arms crossed and surprising him a bit.
As she always did know him possibly better then anyone else. "Its a struggle I deal with each and every day since Lian Yu."
"Well, now you have us, Ollie. And I won't tell mom cause that's your place to do."
Oliver just sighed, not wanting to get into that right now. "She's right, you know." Piped up Tommy.
"Yes, thank you for that brilliant observation."
"Oh, no problem. Anytime buddy." Came the cheeky response.
"Don't make me throttle you."
"And here I thought you would have gone with an arrow instead."
"Well, I know how much you value your body's lack of blemishes."
"Soul mates you and I."
Sounds of amusement could be heard from the others. Though Diggle was feeling a little disbelief over the sudden turn of events. But he figured it was just the shock of it all more then anything else. "I might have to disagree. But if you'll excuse me, I have to get ready."
The group nodded but made no move to leave aside from Thea. "I don't know about them, but I prefer NOT seeing my own brother get dressed. Besides, I need to have a word with someone anyway. And doing that will help keep my mind off you being… Well, you know."
"Be careful Speedy."
"You'd better be careful too. Or I'm telling a certain cranky Detective everything I know."
"Fair enough." Boy wouldn't that be fun!?
Unfortunately for Oliver, things would go a bit South with Helena. Forcing him to have to break her out of Police Custody much to his and everyone else's dislike. This would also end up seeing McKenna's career being pretty much over due to not waiting for back up and being in the wrong spot at the wrong time. Thankfully she wouldn't end up feeling resentful towards Oliver but he would none the less feel guilty for what happened to her. Something she told him was unnecessary as she blamed Helena and her own decision not to wait for back up more then him and always would. Whether or not she actually got through to him on that was something she wasn't sure of but would make sure to tell the others about that part of their conversation in order to make sure that he wouldn't keep on blaming himself for her injury. Tommy would later apologize and explain his reasons for why he had spilled the beans. Reasons Oliver wouldn't necessarily be too happy over but at least he was able to understand where Laurel was concerned.
Not that it stopped him from hitting his best friend again of course. And even letting him hit back in return. Thea would keep leaving hints about telling their mom until her dear brother ended up saving Roy from 'The Savior'. Making her pretty much decide that she wouldn't bother him about that anymore cause of what he did for her and Roy. Something that made Oliver quite pleased about as well and even told Roy to keep her as happy as possible. Mostly so that way, she wouldn't end up focusing on dropping hints towards him again about telling their mother. Granted, that worked until he dropped the bomb about Walter being supposedly dead. Leading to quite the screaming match afterwards between him and their mother.
Author's Notes: I'm not quite sure this turned out like I originally envisioned it. Which was a good while back. But here we are none the less. I do hope you all will have enjoyed!