Connecting The Dots

Disclaimer: After having re-watched State V. Queen from season 2, I couldn't help but think about this one since its obvious the writers clearly dumbed down both Oliver and Thea for the sake of needless melodrama after their mother's big half reveal in regards to Malcolm and the affair she had with him.

Oliver and Thea sat across from their mother in a state of stunned shock after learning of her affair with the murdering bastard known as Malcolm Merlyn some years ago in the past. It honestly made Oliver wonder if there was any other skeletons about his family that hadn't been revealed yet. And if whether or not he wanted to know what exactly those skeletons are. The fact both his parents had cheated had also made the man wonder if he had been doomed from the start to be a cheater like he had been before the island. Now he knew what he did to Laurel with Sara had nothing to do with any of that, but the times before that pivotal moment certainly had him questioning things. For Thea, the fact she had been right in the end, even if it had been years ago, still stunned her and she hated it. Especially as it just shattered away another big piece of that image of her parents being the perfect pair. But wait… If the affair happened years ago, then why is mom acting like this is such a terribly big deal? Unless…

"Oh… Oh my God..." Breathed out the 18 year old stunnedly as she began to connect the dots in her mind.

This caused her brother and their mother to look at her. "Thea, what is it, sweetheart?"

"You… And Malcolm having this affair shouldn't even be that big of a deal, right?"

Moira stared at her with a frown. "Well, no, I suppose not." My how she hoped her baby girl wasn't coming to a conclusion that she wouldn't be able to deny.

Try as she might that is. Oliver continued to stare at his sister, even glimpsing at their mother as he started to think about the whole thing himself. Causing his eyes to slowly widen in disbelief. "You and Malcolm..."

"Had a kid together!" Finished Thea in realization.

Their mother winced as they stared at her in shocked disbelief. Oliver would speak moments later. "This is why you've been basically fighting against everything and we've had to convince you to fight. Isn't it?"

"I… Yes. Yes, it is. I feared that if it was brought up, it would be used against me and there would be no hope for me whatsoever as nothing I would try and use as my defense would be believed." Replied the mother of two with a heavy sigh.

Both knew she had a point, but Thea wasn't about to leave it be. "So how come we've never met this kid? Or have we and just didn't know?"

Oliver briefly thought back to when his mother had been pregnant and it slowly dawned on him as he looked from his mom to his sister. "It was you..."

His sister looked at him with a look of confusion on her face as Moira gave him a pleading look not to say more. "You're the reason mom's fighting so hard, cause you…"

"N-No… That, that can't be!" Denied his little sister as she stared at him before looking to their mother.

Hoping that she would be able to refute it as well but when she saw that her mom was looking downward, she knew then and there that it was true. She brought her hands to her face in stunned dismay as tears glistened in her eyes. "Oh, oh God… I'm… I'm Malcolm Merlyn's daughter..." Breathed out Thea.

Having great trouble comprehending it all. "N-No, he may be half of why you are here, but Robert Queen is who you are truly the daughter of, sweetheart. And that, that is the important thing here."

Oliver closed his eyes as a war of emotions went on inside of him that he tried to keep from spilling out of him. "Tommy was… Was my half brother and I never knew!" Cried Thea as her voice wavered.

And before anyone could stop her, she bolted from the table while ignoring her mother's calls for her to come back as she left the room in tears. Moira stared at where her daughter had been until she slowly turned to look back at her son, whose eyes were still closed but she could clearly see how much the whole thing was bothering him. "O-Oliver?" Moira asked hesitantly.

Her voice causing him to slowly open his eyes, revealing a coldness to them that frightened her as it reminded her all too much of Malcolm. He then leaned in and spoke. "You go in that courtroom and fight back. Do you hear me? Go in there and fight with everything you have. And if its revealed about Thea's parentage, you keep fighting. Cause Thea and I both know the truth now and there's no real reason for you to not do it. To do less would be a betrayal, understand?"

"I… Yes, I understand."

"Good." And with that, Oliver was gone from the room to go in search of his sister, leaving his mother at the table as she began to cry.

Because of this turn of events when Laurel began to cross examine her, Moira would willingly reveal the fact that Malcolm is Thea's father. Shocking many and making a few start to think that she did what she had to do in order to ensure her daughter would be safe from a maniac despite the potential repercussions. Laurel would question her on it and the mother's response would be one that those who had started to think a certain way, to believe it even more so. Now one might think this would change things for a certainty, but because of Malcolm's behind the scenes interference, she'd still be set free. Not that this would make Moira feel beholden to him in any way and getting her to reveal the fact that he's alive to her children so that they would be safe as she wasn't going to take chances where that man was concerned. The whole thing would leave the Queen family fractured for a time but they would eventually manage to get past it as time went on and other challenges arose.

Author's Notes: Hope folks liked this take on things!