A/N: Welcome readers to Part 2 of Ollie's Story. For those who haven't read my first part, The Bartender, stop reading and start that one. Now that we're all here, I got a few things to say before you start reading.

First, for those who saw the newest episode, How Your Mother Met Me, (who didn't like that one? One of my personal favorites) I know that the episode negated several things from Ollie's Story, but I'm trying my best to work my way around and with the episode to make this story as canonical as possible (google it for those who don't know the word.) Second, I'm starting a new thing for each chapter. Each chapter begins with a quote from something. Quotes are my favorite in everything, because they provide inspiration for me. Each chapter's quote may not always feature a quote from HIMYM, per-say, but it will have a quote that I find inspiring and which helped me wrote the chapter it's attached to. And with that in mind, Part 2 begins now.

Chapter 1: Leap of Fate

"I gotta do what that guy couldn't; I gotta take the leap! Okay not a perfect metaphor because for me it's fall in

love and get married, but for him it's...death."

"Actually, that is a perfect metaphor."

Ted and Barney

"Pilot" 1x01 (2005)

May 25th 2013 10:00 PM

A crack of lighting lit up the sobbing sky as I walked through the dark road. I had changed back from my shirt and tie into my hoodie and jeans, but that didn't change the fact that I was soaking wet from head to toe.

My phone buzzed. I was getting a call from her.

"Hey." I said.

"Did you get a ride?"

"No. I'm stuck having to wait until morning for my ride."

"It's not too late to try to catch the train."

"I'm not gonna try to run there and hope that I don't miss it. My chances are slim"

"Ollie, it's better than having to wait. Come with me."

"I can't call a cab, or take the train when my wallet has been swooped up with what Robin's taking among the wedding gifts. She'll give it back to me when I get home."

"Ok. Just call me if you make it back to the city."

As I hung up, I felt hot salty water drip down from my eyes. I had failed both her and Ted. And now for all I knew, fate would never happen like I wanted it to. I had failed them...

59 hours earlier...

"Holding steady at thirty knots, with an altitude of 15,000 feet." Yelled Keith. "Arrow, you are clear for the drop zone! GO, GO, GO!"

I unhooked the cords on the crate, and kicked it hard. It rolled out the door, and out of the plane.

"MAY THE FORCE BE WITH ME!" I screamed. "GERONIMO!" I leapt out the plane, and saw Long Island below me after falling through a snow white cloud. I rolled onto my back to see the plane zoom away.

If you're just starting to read my story from this point, then it might be best for you to start at part 1; not a lot of this will make sense if you don't. But if you're still here, then welcome. Just so we're clear, my name isn't Arrow. My real name is Ollie Blake. It's short for Oliver. If you're confused here's what you need to know, or maybe just forgot.

I work as a bartender in New York City's Upper West Side, but I originally came from Port Angeles in Washington State. Estranged from my family almost 10 years ago, I travelled to New York with the dream of building and owning my own bar in the Big Apple. My dad wanted me to be a Wall Street broker instead. If you really want a good reason as to why I didn't belong on Wall Street, then I'll just say that my kind of character is the exact opposite of Leonardo DiCaprio in The Wolf of Wall Street, and my taste in clothes says "every day is casual Friday." So I couldn't see myself in a suit making money like those assholes I studied in Econ at Columbia. I hated learning it, and after getting my diploma, I left at once as fast as possible.

But I don't think that those years at Columbia were a total waste. I ended up meeting my now best friend, Juno through it. Sweet, funny, and pretty, we hit it off after we met during one of my shifts at the bar. It wasn't my best night to meet new people because I was at a new level of drunk, but despite this, we've been like brother and sister ever since then. I even made friends with her roommate, Cindy not long before we both met.

Things seemed to be slow in my life at that point, but then in 2005, I met someone that threw a wrench in my life forever. His name was Ted Mosby, and he crashed a party I was at, drunker than I had ever seen before on any person. Right when I least expected it, he stole a pineapple from the party, and I didn't see him again for several years. For five years I saw him on 3 other occasions which seemed like coincidences. Then I became a bartender at Maclaren's Pub, the one which him and his friends frequently went to. I knew it couldn't be a coincidence that I had been hired at this bar that he went to. Because I always believe that coincidences don't exist, and everything happens for a reason.

After meeting and befriending each of them, I had been a bartender there for 2 and a half years, and Barney then asked for something that changed everything. Earlier that year he had realized that he was meant to marry Robin and spend the rest of his life with her. He enlisted my help, and I agreed, doing everything I could. It worked, and to thank me, Barney gave me the job of bartending at the wedding. But I realized that someone didn't want the wedding to even happen. Ted was upset that the recurring feelings for Robin throughout his life kept kicking his ass, and would be going to this wedding as a single man. But I'll get to more on that later.

A few weeks ago, I was asked by Barney to get to the wedding by skydiving with a massive crate of drinks. It took a bit of bribery, but I agreed to do it. That's where I left you, and that's where we continue the story.

Just as I went through a cloud, I came out sopping wet. That was something I hadn't expected, but I just considered myself lucky that my duffle bag and my guitar were safe in the drinks crate. Plus I expected the wind to dry me off at least when I got to the ground.

Then I remembered something. Earlier that day, before I left, I found an eagle feather. A large white one, longer than the length of my wrist to my finger tips. It had fallen right into my hand, and when it did, I had a certain feeling. A feeling that fate was on my side for this weekend.

As I looked at the feather, I wondered if fate took requests. Only one way to find out.

"Hey! If fate is listening, or whatever, I have a request. My friends are getting married this weekend, and another pair of them are meeting. I've done so much, so I was wondering if I had earned something?"

I'm not a seer, or an enlightened one, but sometimes fate has spoken to me. There was a good story involving my first brush with fate. But I'll get to that. I couldn't hear anything other that the howling wind past my ears as I fell closer to Farhampton, but I could feel like fate was saying "yes."

I grinned. "My friends have all found their love, or they will within a few days. I know I'll sound like a dick when I say this, but what about me? Is there a future for me in that area?"

"Maybe."

"I'm gonna throw this feather. I want you to send it to whoever it is that I'm supposed to spend my life with. Please?"

No response. Not even a murmur. I guess fate was uncertain about that. Only one way to find out.

I clutched the feather with a gentle grip, so not as to damage the fibers on it, and I hurled it with all my might. It soon fluttered out of view leaving me to focus on the real reason I was here.

I looked down towards the crate. It was a good ten feet below me. I leaned forwards until I was upside down in a dive position, and catching up fast to the crate. I was then level with it, after a bit of difficulty.

"ARROW! COME IN!" I suddenly heard. That was Barney, who I was in radio contact with at the time. He sounded scared.

"I'm here, Barnacle!"

"Ollie! Thank god! I thought I lost contact with you. You didn't respond for the last 30 seconds."

"Sorry, bro. Zoned out. What is it?

"You'll need to find a giant red ring to deploy the parachute. Can you find it?"

I looked over to the crate's side, and found it. I checked my altimeter, telling me that it was time to pull the cord.

"I got it."

"That's the crate's parachute. Make sure you're off to the side, then yank the ring off when you're ready to deploy!"

I did as I was told, and pulled the ring off the crate. The parachute shot out and opened up. I then grabbed my carabiner and hooked my line onto the crate. The parachute I was provided was only there as a last resort in the event the crate's chute didn't work. If the crate's worked, then the line would keep me with the crate, and slow me down as well.

As the crate slowed down to the falling equivalent of walking, I saw the drop zone indicators, and instantly laughed. Barney had put them together to form a giant hand so it would be like I was part of the biggest of fives. Many people were on the fingertips, but there were a few also on the palm. They all looked like ants.

"We see you, Ollie. Coming in hot."

I landed with a great thud. A blonde man in a suit, and a brunette woman in a jacket were standing right at the crate's position. The man handed me a megaphone, and I called through it.

"LADIES AND GENTLEMAN! THE DRINKS HAVE ARRIVED!"

There were a few cheers and a bit of applause.

Barney grinned. "Nice seeing you, Ollie."

"Yeah, you too, lovebirds. What's on the agenda today?"

"Got a poker game this afternoon if you're up for it. All my best friends will be there." Said Barney.

"You mean it, dude?"

"You've earned it, bro."

I then paused. Had I really? I hadn't been the nicest person in the world to Barney lately. There had been a bit of bad blood between us lately, and maybe that was my fault a bit. But if Barney said that I had earned that spot, then I should at least show him that I had.

Robin handed me a tall boy can of beer. Seemed like just the thing I needed after jumping from a plane. We walked from the field to the porch and into the inn.

"You have no idea what's happened so far." Said Barney.

I hate using Internet acronyms. They're tacky, childish, and it shows that people don't give a shit about speaking proper English. But I will say that when Barney and Robin gave me a short recap of what happened on the way there, I was rofling.

"Dude, that's not funny." Groaned Barney. "We were related for 20 minutes."

"Yeah Ollie. How is this funny?" Said Robin

I snorted as I sat back upright. "I'm sorry. I couldn't really help it. I mean, would being related really be that bad? You guys aren't gonna have kids, so at least you won't have an incest...thing like Joffery Lannister."

Barney looked at me angrily. Then I remembered his stupid perspective on movie characters. Bad guys were heroes and good guys were pussies in his book. Whatever.

"Not that Joffery is a bad guy." I continued. "But like I was saying, would it really be that bad?"

"Are you even listening to yourself, Ollie? Yes it would be bad!" Said Robin.

"Here's the worst that could happen: your kid has some kind of birth defect. But since you're not having kids, that's fine. The way I see it, as long as you love each other, that's all that matters."

Barney was about to retort, but then stopped.

"Uh huh. You see my point?" I said. "As long as you love each other, then marriage with you two, within family or not, is all that matters."

I got up with my beer and headed out. As I started out to the lobby, I bumped into an African American man with a sole patch.

"Is Barney Stinson in there?" He asked.

"Uh, yeah. I'm Oliver Blake. Who are you?"

"James Stinson, Ollie." He said. He shook my hand. "Barney's told me a lot about you. The best bartender at Maclaren's, he calls you."

Okay, now I felt really guilty about the recent events with Barney. I owed that guy an apology.

"Does he really?" I asked.

"When you give free drinks and advice to guys like that, there's bound to be some form of favoritism among bartenders. Nice to finally meet you. Excuse me." He headed into the restaurant while I walked out onto the porch. I looked out onto the water.

"You didn't tell me that you were literally 'dropping in'." Said a voice.

I turned. A petite brunette with her bag, a bass guitar, and a canary yellow umbrella stood waiting for me. Juno. Of course, that wasn't her real name, but she refused to say what her real name was.

"Well, puns aren't what I usually do, but I couldn't resist. How was the ride over?"

Juno pointed at her wrist. A few marks were on it. At first I thought it was a regular scratch, but then I realized that those were bite marks.

"Aw, shit." I said. "Let's get you cleaned up."

I took Juno over to a table on the patio, overlooking the water. I managed to get some rubbing alcohol from Linus. Apparently all the other bartenders carried that there. Now I knew what Maclaren's needed.

"I don't need to tell you that this will sting." I said.

"I can take it." She replied.

I dipped the rag in alchohol and pressed it closely on the wound. Needless to say, Juno did wince from that. But I think a lot of people usually do.

"What are you doing here, J? I thought you had a place to stay."

"Yeah, but I thought I'd head over to the hotel just so I could find you first."

"Can't let your big brother of your sight, eh?"

It was a joke of ours. We always saw ourselves as a sort of big brother/younger sister duo.

"Not today." She replied.

"So who thought that they were a shark and decided to take a good chomp?" I asked.

Juno smirked. "It's funny. This crazy redhead. Kept talking about her baby being in Minnesota. Made friends with her on the train over Sumbitches."

I laughed. I guess fate decided that Juno wouldn't just meet Ted. She'd meet the whole gang as well.

"What's so funny?" She asked.

"You just met the Maid of Honor." I replied.

"No shit? Well then, I think the bride has an interesting taste in friends."

"Oh, you have no idea." I grinned.

Once I got Juno bandaged up, we both headed down to the water. One thing I learned about Juno over these past 10 years of knowing her is that she loves to skip rocks. Always does when there's a beach.

"One day, I'm gonna teach my kids how to skip rocks like this." She said as she flung a rock out onto the water. It skipped seven times.

"Really? Lemme see if I got this." I chucked the rock out, and it fell right in with a kerplunk.

"Noob." Laughed Juno.

"Says the one who can never win an argument." I shot back.

"You make some good points." Juno replied. "So who's the redhead? Didn't she say her name is Lily?"

"That's the one. Lily Aldrin is her name. She's an art consultant for George Van Smoot. Funny story: that guy used to be married to one Zoey Pierson."

"You kidding me?" Said Juno.

"Hell no."

Not too long after I started working at Maclaren's, I made enemies with Zoey Pierson, a local protestor, I guess you'd call her. Ted was hired by Goliath National Bank to design a new headquarters for them, but in the process of building it, they would tear down a shithole building called the Arcadian. It was defended by an army of deluded New Yorkers, and leading the charge was Zoey Pierson. I sided with Ted on the fight, because I heard the guy had a rough time in the past few years, and needed something to make things better. Juno and I made efforts to make Zoey look bad by spraying the Arcadian in graffiti, disfiguring the whole thing room by room. GNB met us after the building was torn down and thanked us for our help. They were convinced that without the spray paint, the building would have been nice enough to be declared a landmark.

Juno seemed really interested in Lily I proceeded to tell Juno all about her and how I knew her for the past few years, when she suddenly interrupted me.

"I lied."

"What?"

"I never broke up with Louis."