Title: The Essay
Rating: K
Summary: Olivia and Odyssia (Cia) Queen, daughters of Oliver and Felicity Queen, are entering in their school writing contest. For the contest the must write about what it means to be a hero to others.
The Writing Contest
"Mommy, Daddy!" 6 year old Cia and 8 year old Olivia Queen exclaimed as they ran into their home.
"What is it girls?" Oliver asked from his spot on the couch next to his wife, Felicity, and their dog, Marry, in between them. (Read about Marry, the dog who started this all, in my other Olicity stories; 4 Times Oliver Tries To Propose To Felicity and The Perfect Christmas Tree)
"The School's having a Writing Contest and we're gonna enter!" Oliver explained proudly.
"You are?" Felicity asked sounding both proud and surprised. The two of them both knew that the girls were very smart, but Felicity hadn't started writing till she was 9, dued to the fact that she usually stuck to her computers. She hadn't thought the girls would start so early.
The girls eagerly nodded.
"Well, what's it about?" Oliver asked curiously.
"What it's like to be a hero to others!" Cia exclaimed happily as she looked up to her dad from her spot on his lap while Olivia sat right beside him.
Felicity snorted at the ironic situation while Oliver smirked.
"When's the contest judging?" Felicity asked. Olivia and Cia both gave her the contest entry in their hands.
"Um, mom...dad?" Olivia said as her radiant smile suddenly turned into a frown.
"Yeah, Liv?" Felicity asked calling her by her nickname.
"Uh..." Olivia started. "There's a $10 entry fee..."
"Where are we gonna get $20?" Cia shrieked as she mentally did the math in her head.
Oliver chuckled as he ruffled Cia's long wavy dirty blonde hair, he then turned to Olivia, who was nervously messing with her fingers. A habit learned from her mother. The girls were always kind and sweet and didn't usually ask for money or stuff, but when they did they were always nervous about it.
Oliver turned to Felicity and gave her a smirk before he turned his face into a mock frown.
"Felicity, I think we can spare 20 dollars...right?" He asked a smile tugging at his lips.
Felicity let out a dramatic sigh to add the effect, "Well, they have been very good these past couple of days...why not?"
"Yay!" Both girls shriek.
"It's dued in 4 days so we should probably get started." Olivia stated.
Cia nodded in agreement. The girls ran to get some supplies.
Oliver smiled as his arm wrapped itself around Felicity's small waist and he watch as his two daughters eagerly chatted about their "mission".
After about 5 minutes of 'brain storming' they both called for Oliver and Felicity. His smiled grew wider. The girls were always pushing to do their best by themselves, but what he loved about them most is that they were always quick to ask for help. And he was glad that they ask for help, unlike him, who wasn't fond of help.
"What's wrong?" Felicity asked as she took a seat next to their oldest daughter at the kitchen table. Oliver took a seat across from her so he sat next to Cia.
"We can't come up with anything." Cia explained.
"Do you have any advise?" Olivia asked.
Oliver thought about it for a second before turning to Felicity when he came up empty. Math, he could help with...sometimes. But writing was never his best subject in school.
"Why don't you think of somebody who's a hero to you...and then use them as your inspiration." Felicity smiled.
Olivia nodded excitedly and went to get both her's and Cia's tablets.
"What does...in-spir-ation mean?" Cia asked.
Oliver chuckled, sometimes both he and Felicity seem to forget that their kids are so young dued to their great minds. "It means...kind of like...you look up to them and want to be like them." Oliver suggested.
"Oh I get it now Daddy!" Cia exclaimed. Oliver chuckled and ruffled the 6 year old's hair.
The Next Morning...
"Bye, Mom! Bye Dad!" Cia and Olivia shouted as they eagerly waved to their parents from Queen Manor's entrance, Thea and Roy waving as well as they stood behind their nieces.
"Okay, so your old folks will be gone for 2 days! You don't have school...right?" Thea asked her little nieces as she handed Roy the two matching princess suitcases, the small and simple ring on her finger glistening as light from the sun hit it.
Cia laughed, "Auntie Thea, it's Saturday! We don't go to school until Monday!"
"Oh." Thea replied.
Roy snorted, "Even I knew that, and I'm stupid."
"Oh, you...shut up." Thea said gently slapping him on the arm. "Okay, so what do you guys wanna do?"
"Well, we still have that writing entry to do." Olivia said.
"Okay, well why don't you guys go start on that with Uncle Roy, and I'll get some snacks." Thea suggested. The girls nodded and Roy put the suitcases by the stair way on his way to the dinning table.
Roy watched as Odyssia scrolled down on her tablet and then started to write small little notes on a scratch sheet of paper.
"What's the paper about kiddo?" He asked as he peered over to look at the screen.
"Well, we have to right about what it's like to be a hero to others." Cia replied, Roy snorted at the ironic-ness. "Mommy told us to get and in-spir-ation, and base it off of them!"
"Cool, who's your inspiration?" Roy asked.
"Starling City's, Arsenal!" Cia exclaimed. Roy immediately started chocking on the apple slice he had just put in his mouth and Cia handed him a water bottle. When he had calmed down, he noticed that she had been reading news reports about the Arrow and his partner, Arsenal.
"W-Why are you doing him?" Roy asked, feeling slightly honored that his niece had chose to write about him.
"Well, Olivia's doing The Arrow, already. But also because I think he's more important." Cia said. Roy smirked and he pulled out his phone to secretly video their conversation so he could rub it in Oliver's face later on.
"Why's he so important?" Roy asked.
"Well, The Arrow's great and all, but he wouldn't survive without back-up. Arsenal watches his back and keeps him alive, you know?" Cia asked. Roy nodded. "I really just need to know what he's like, I mean...is he kind or scary? Nice or mean?"
"Well, I have a friend who works with both The Arrow and Arsenal, maybe I could convince Auntie Thea to let me take you guys to her and ask her some questions." Roy said.
Cia's eyes lit up. "Really!? You would do that for me?" Roy nodded and Cia jumped off her chair and gave him a really big hug. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! Uncle Roy, you're the best!"
Cia and Olivia bounced up and down in their seats as they waited to see Laural. Although, they had seen her sometimes at the little charity events their parents had made them come to, they never actually spoke to her. They looked to Thea and Roy, who were chatting to Laural outside of her small office space while the girls were inside waiting. They saw them all shake hands and then Laural came inside her office.
"Hi." Laural said as she knelt down and greeted them.
"Hi." They replied back.
"Well, I hear you guys are doing a paper on what it means to be a hero to other?" Laural asked. They both nodded. "So you guys wanted to ask me some questions? I'm all ears!" She smiled eagerly.
"Um, how do you know The Arrow and Arsenal?" Olivia asked.
"Well, I work as a lawyer and sometimes I do some detective work now, so we kind of work together sometimes." Laural said. (She knows the identity of both Oliver and Roy and the rest of Team Arrow)
"Um, could you describe Arsenal for me? Is...Is he nice?" Cia asked.
"I can do better." Laural smirked.
"You can?" Cia asked.
"I could let you guys meet Arsenal, but The Arrow's alittle too busy. But, I'm sure that Arsenal will be happy to tell you guys how working with his partner is like." Laural replied. The girls looked at each other before giving Laural a big hug.
At night on the roof of the D.A's building...
"Arsenal, this is Odyssia and Olivia Queen, their really good friends of mine and their doing this paper on what it's like to be a hero. Do you mind helping them out?" Laural asked Arsenal. She stepped aside so that Arsenal (Roy) could see the two girls.
Roy turned on his voice modulator and nodded.
"What would you like to know?" Roy asked.
"That's not your real voice is it, because that would be really really REALLY weird." Cia pointed out. Roy chuckled, it coming out as a low growl through the modulator.
"No, it isn't, I have to do that so people don't know who I am and they won't come after my family. Everyone that works with me has to do it. Even the big scary Arrow." Roy replied.
"Do...Do you like helping people? Even know you guys can get hurt badly?" Olivia asked.
Roy kneeled down in front of both of the girls. "I think I speak for both me and The Arrow when I say yes. It's worth it."
... ...
"Thank you so much...Mr. Arsenal!" Cia said as she gave him a hug.
"Yeah thanks!" Olivia added as she ran to hug him too.
"No problem, just promise me that you guys will send us your papers so we can read it to okay?" Roy said, holding out his pinky.
"PROMISE!" Both girls proclaimed as they pinky promised him.
A Few Days later...
"WE WON! WE WON!" Olivia and Odyssia exclaimed as they ran home from the bus stop and into their house.
"Great Job, girls! We have to go to Auntie Thea and Uncle Roy's house (Queen Maynor) for a dinner party, maybe you guys can read your great reports to all of us." Felicity suggested as she hugged both of her daughters.
The girls nodded enthusasticly.
"Mommy, I won 1st place out of all the 1st graders!" Cia proclaimed happily.
"And I won 1st place out of all the 2nd graders!" Olivia replied showing their mom the blue medal that hung around both their necks.
"That's great, girls!" Oliver said as he knelt down and wrapped his arms around all of them.
"You don't have to be a superhero to be a hero. You have to be kind, when others aren't. You have to make wrongs right and put others before yourself. I know a hero who cares about his family so much that he has to conceal his identity so they won't get hurt. I also know that might be hard because he can't get all the credit, but he still does what he does because that's a part of being a hero." Cia read. Thea, Roy, Oliver, Felicity, Diggle, Lyla, Olivia, and Laural all clapped for her.
"That's really good kiddo! Who's this mystery hero?" Lyla asked.
"I can't say." Cia replied as she tried to wink but ended up blinking both eyes at Laural. Laural understood though, and winked back.
"My turn!" Olivia said as she started to stand up.
"Anyone can be a hero, even me or you! A hero is a normal person. A normal person who has to keep fighting for the greater good no matter what people say about you. Although, some people might say mean things and make you want to give up, a hero stays kind, nice, and keeps doing the good that their doing. I think that if everyone acted like a hero, the world would be a much more amazing place." Olivia read. Everyone clapped again.
When everyone was saying their goodbyes Olivia and Odyssia went up and gave Laural two envelopes, one green and one red.
Cia handed her the red one which had the words "To: Arsenal From: Odyssia 'Cia' Queen" written messily in Black pen. Olivia handed her the green one that read "To: The Arrow From: Olivia"
"What's this?" Laural asked.
"Well, we did promise. Could you give it to them?" Olivia asked hopefully.
"I-" Laural paused, "Sure."
Next to all the reminders and notifications in 'The Arrow Cave', taped to the wall were two 1st place winning papers. One green and one red...
I didn't intend for it to become so long, please read and favorite! I really love this story and I hope you do too!