Title: One and the Same
Author: QueencestQueen
Pairings: Oliver/Thea (aka Queencest and/or Tholiver)
Rating: M
Spoilers: for the episode, "The Climb"
Summary: "Why should I trust anything you say? Why should I trust this video?"

Malcolm's lips twitched slightly. "Let's go see Thea then. You can meet the Enchantress in person."

Notes/Warnings:

- Bold words are words that are meant to be stressed.
- Italicized statements are thoughts.

Disclaimer:
All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of this author. This author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.


Oliver had so many questions and the most honest answers would come from his sister. Unfortunately for him, she was out cold on the couch and he didn't dare try to rouse her. Until she awoke on her own, Oliver was stuck with the mysteries. In the meantime, he began working on the Christmas tree. Thea had handled all the other decorations and she'd even put the tree itself together, but the arduous task of untangling and stringing the lights had been left for him. He was grateful for the mind numbing chore simply because it gave him something to do. At the very least, untangling the complicated mass of wires and bulbs would be easier than finding a solution for all the problems he'd been handed.

On one hand, there was Ra's threat against Starling City: deliver Sara's killer to him or innocents would die. He couldn't allow hapless people to pay a price that should be Malcolm's. He couldn't simply give up the duplicitous man either. Then Ra's would receive that video and come for Thea; the Demon would hear no pleas for mercy if that came to pass. If the League was the only variable in all of this, Oliver would gladly take the blame for Sara's murder and Thea would be safe from retribution, but it wasn't that simple.

She was dealing with something that Oliver couldn't even begin to comprehend. It was obvious that she needed someone to watch her back, someone to help keep her safe. Malcolm himself thought it was so important that he had blackmailed Oliver to guarantee it. If he faced down the Demon, he would die and, while that mattered very little to him when compared to the life of his sister, it meant that he would not be able to be there for her. Who else could be trusted with such a vital task? Her sperm donor of a biological father certainly was not an option; he was the genesis for her troubles.

Failing that, he began to consider those closest to him. The first person to spring to the forefront of his mind was Diggle. The man had shown his ability to keep secrets as well as his loyalty to Oliver and his family throughout their acquaintance. His military experience and service record were positives when one considered the possible outside threats to Thea. However, John had no solid connection to the youngest Queen and Oliver couldn't be one hundred percent positive that if push came to shove that the older man would protect Thea over anything else. No, Oliver needed someone who cared about his sister, someone who would be devastated if harm should befall her.

Under that criteria, Roy was a top candidate. Though she'd called it quits with the younger man before leaving Starling City, Oliver knew Roy still cared for Thea a great deal. As far as Oliver knew, Roy had no greater connections in the city than Thea so there was minimal risk of him choosing someone else's life over hers. Yet, Roy was emotional, brash and angry at times, and between the former couple tempers often flared. What if they get into a fight and he storms off? She would be unprotected. Not to mention that, while progressing at an impressive rate, Roy was still in training. It would be unfair to put such a heavy task on him when he wasn't ready.

Then his thoughts turned to the Lances. Despite the vigilante's checkered history with the detective, Oliver trusted that the man would protect Thea. It was, after all, his job to keep the citizens of Starling City safe. If it were just average humans in the mix, Oliver would have truly considered Quentin Lance as an option, but nothing about the situation was average. Not to mention that the father of two was unaware that his youngest was dead and, without that tidbit, it would be impossible to explain why Thea needed protection. Not even Laurel, who was the most informed out of the tattered family, could take this on. This crossed Walter and Felicity off his list as well.

No, the only person capable of successfully keeping Thea safe now was Oliver himself. He was all out of solutions and the problems were just piling up. Right now, I'm stringing up lights. That's all I'm doing right now. Life had always been more manageable when he took things a step at a time.

He only had the first set of lights halfway strung up when his attention was snatched away from the job. Thea gasped as though surfacing from water and she was sitting up on the couch with her back facing him. Her head was on a swivel back and forth. He dropped the coded strands without hesitation; the bulbs making a small, but noticeable clattering sound as they impacted the floor. Thea's roaming focus snapped to him instantly.

"Did I fall asleep?"

A soft smile graced his lips as he rounded the arm of the sofa. "Only for a little while."

Thea mumbled under her breath, "He must not have made her do much then."

"What?"

Thea turned her body slightly as she said, "The longer she's left in control of my body, the longer it takes me to wake up. Once, I woke up and it turned out that I'd been out of commission for a whole month."

He tilted his body towards hers in response to her angle adjustment. "Do you know what she does when she's…in charge?"

"No," She reached up and ran a single hand through her short hair, "It's like I lose consciousness as soon as she takes control. After I come to, I get vague impressions of her emotions for a few minutes but then she fades away until I call for her again."

"So you feel her right now?"

"Kind of," Thea said with a small shrug, leaning her right side against the couch as she did so. "Right now, she's…curious. About you I'm guessing." She tilted her head slightly as if trying to analyze what she was getting from the witch possessing her. "You intrigue her. There's something about you that she finds…appealing."

Oliver wasn't sure how to feel about being 'appealing' to an ancient being, but there were more pressing matters to deal with. Like Thea herself. He leaned back, resting his elbow on the back of the couch, as he looked down at her face more closely. There was a pallor and slight shine to her skin that he'd not noticed until he cared to look hard enough. "And you, Thea? How are you?"

"I'm fine…I guess."

"You guess?"

The corners of Thea's lips descended, "It's not so simple a question, Ollie. Everything's more complicated now that I'm not the only one in my body." Green eyes met blue as she explained, "Sometimes it feels as though my skin is stretched too tight over my bones, trying to accommodate both of us." A long-suffering sigh escaped Thea, "I guess you want to know how this happened, huh?"

"That'd be a good start, yeah."

She took a moment, gathering her thoughts and Oliver let the silence stand. "Malcolm summoned me into his office and he handed me this weird statue thing. He told me that I had to open it, but I had this feeling, you know? Somehow I knew that opening it was stupid, but he kept insisting, pushing, telling me that inside was something that would make me better, stronger."

Oliver wanted to object to the idea that Thea wasn't strong enough on her own. She didn't need any mystical powers; she was amazing all by herself. He didn't think that she would appreciate his thoughts right now.

"I wanted so badly to be stronger that I ignored my own instincts and opened the damn thing." It was clear from the look on her face that Thea was angry, but he suspected that it was inappropriately placed upon herself. She should be angry at Malcolm for putting her in this situation instead.

"She was right there all of the sudden: all swirling black mist and intensity. It was the only time that I've ever seen her for myself. The way that she looked at me was so…it was like she could see into my soul and was trying to decide whether I was worthy of her. That's all I remember. The next thing I knew I was waking up on the floor and a few hours had passed."

Before Oliver could think of anything to say to Thea's story, she was jumping up from the couch and heading over to the tree, "Need help stringing up the lights?"

He knew a deliberate topic change when he heard one; Oliver figured it was best to let Thea talk to him in her own time. He made his way over to the tree too and picked up the dropped strings. He suggested, "You hold and I wrap?"

Thea switched places with him, holding the length of wire in her hands, while her brother circled the tree. He placed the strands within it, as close to the trunk as he could manage. For several minutes the duo just worked in tandem, just staying quiet.

"Out with it," Thea said as she screwed in a loose bulb on the string, "I can practically hear your brain buzzing with questions so just ask them."

"Can it be undone?" He made a slow circle around the fake Douglas-fir, "Somebody put that genie in the bottle once so we could put her back, right?"

"Not according to Doctor Moone, no. She's the archaeologist that found the totem in the first place. She works for Malcolm, but she felt guilty because I was possessed so she shared her research with me…what there was of it anyway. Not much is known about what she was exactly." She let the wire slack in her grasp as she talked. "As far as Doctor Moone can figure, she's an 'evil entity from another dimension.' There is no removing her."

"But someone trapped her once, didn't they? Surely we have to be able to do that again." If Thea trusted the word of this doctor woman then Oliver trusted her too, but he couldn't help hoping that there was some way. Something that just hadn't been thought of yet.

Thea let out a slow breath, "June couldn't really find anything about where she came from, what she did to get put in the thing in the first place or how she got there. The best that she can deduce though, it must have taken magic and many, many people behind it to put her inside the totem."

"What's in that briefcase of his?" As far as he could see when Malcolm opened it earlier, it had looked like a small bundle of hay. It had to be more than that though.

"It's her heart."

As he finished wrapping the lights around the tree, Thea slid underneath it to flip the switch on the surge protector. The colored bulbs flickered to life within the branches. "Now it really feels like Christmas."

"It does." Thea agreed softly, moving to stand beside her brother. They still had a long way to go decorating the tree, but at least it was a start. "I almost feel normal."

"You are normal, Speedy." Oliver objected, turning towards her and placing his hands on her shoulders. "Look, what Malcolm did, convincing you that what was in there was some kind of fix-all, that was wrong. Yes, it's not commonplace to have an evil being in your body, but that doesn't change who you are."

"Doesn't it?" Thea said nothing more than that; she just looked up at him with the most blank look he'd ever seen. His heart squeezed painfully in his chest in response. He'd said once that he never wanted her to lose her pure heart and she hadn't, but harboring the Enchantress was tarnishing it. He'd give anything to trade their places; she didn't deserve the burden that Malcolm had placed on her.

"I'm getting some wine," Thea said after a moment, breaking his hold on her shoulders as she turned toward the kitchen. She took a glass out of the cabinet before heading to the refrigerator and removing a bottle of half empty wine. The bottom of the bottle clinked against glass as the two items were set on the counter. She sat down in the high-backed barstool and poured the wine into her glass immediately.

"Look, Ollie, I don't know what Malcolm said to you before, but I'm not your responsibility." She squared her shoulders, hands closing tighter around the glass that she clutched. "I made the decision to leave Corto Maltese, where there were people to watch over and train me, for Starling City. It was my choice. That does not make me your burden; no matter what he claimed."

For a long moment, he stared at her blankly. "Thea, you've never been a burden to me. You're my sister. While I don't trust Malcolm for a second, even I have to admit he isn't wrong. The witch or God or whatever inside you is valuable to anyone seeking to overthrow the planet. Anyone could come for her at any moment. Even if, by some miracle, no one comes to take her power for themselves, I don't trust her."

"What?"

"Look at it from her side of things, she's spent God knows how long imprisoned in an object only to finally be released and forced into doing whatever Malcolm wants her to do. I have no doubt that she's plotting her escape every moment that she can."

Thea froze, her green widening, "I never considered she'd be actively trying to escape. I know that she hates Malcolm with a staggering vehemence. I just never thought beyond that."

Oliver shrugged, "she has to be plotting though, right? I mean, who wouldn't?"

"I'm just another prison for her, a walking, talking prison, but still," Thea leaned upon the back of the high kitchen chair, "I don't know how to feel about that. I've got to assume that she did something truly bad once. Otherwise, why go through all the trouble of locking her away like they did? But I feel guilty for being her living, breathing tomb. Maybe I shouldn't; maybe that guilt should belong to Malcolm, but it's still there."

"Hey," Oliver said, moving to stand behind her chair. He put his hand on her shoulder, squeezing lightly, "You're right. That guilt should belong to Malcolm. You feel it because you're a good person, Speedy. Try not to think about it too much, okay? There's other things to think about..."

"Like how I keep letting liars into my life and then, somehow, being surprised when I end up getting burned?" She took a long drink off the red wine in her glass. It clinked against the surface of the island as she set it down. "Yeah, that's a much better train of thought. Maybe I should just...go live in a cave somewhere, you know? Just me. That way the only person who can lie to me is me."

Thea's words made Oliver's stomach drop. Guilt was like lead weighing down his very soul. He always hated lying to her, but most of the time, years of doing so had dulled it to acceptable levels. Whenever she said things like what she just had, however, his guilt roared to life inside of him like a blazing inferno. Of course, Thea was never talking about him, but somehow that made it worse.

If he let her in on his secret Thea would only want to be a part of it and that was dangerous. There was also a high probability that she would see him as she now saw Malcolm. He didn't want to be just another liar in her life. The longer that he continued to keep his secret, the higher his chances were of alienating his little sister. I can't lose her; she's too important.

Her safety, however, was paramount. Whatever he felt, be it discomfort or guilt, meant nothing compared to that. She deserved to live a normal, happy, healthy life. Remembering that though was difficult when faced with Thea's sorrow and hurt. Oliver just wanted to fix it for her. It was what big brothers were supposed to do.

"I should have known he had an ulterior motive when he agreed to take me with him. I saw how he was with Tommy. Why would he treat me any differently? I should have known he was just using me. A daughter's no good to him."

"Why you though? That's what I can't figure out. Why not just possess one of his employees? Like that Doctor Moone?"

Thea frowned, "She is much too kind for that. Hosting you-know-who inside her would destroy her." Having objected to the idea so strenuously, a long drawn out sigh escaped her, "I've given 'why' a lot of thought since being told what happened. I've come to one conclusion: he can control me."

An objection was on the tip of his tongue, but it turned to ash as she continued to talk.

"If he'd put her into someone who worked for him, they would probably quit on the spot and he'd have to hire people to watch them. I, on the other hand, will always be his daughter. Even if I cut him out of my life, he'd always be there, hovering on the edge. No matter what I do, I'll always be connected to him. There's no escape for me." There's nothing that Oliver could say to that. He wanted to tell her that she wasn't trapped as she believe, but he couldn't. What Thea had said was the unfortunate truth.

For a few minutes, they were both silent; Thea taking long sips of her wine and Oliver watching helplessly, unable to make things easier for her even though he wanted to. He could see that she was about to spiral down into some dark emotions. He had to distract her in any way possible.

"Come on," he reached for her unoccupied hand, "I've got something I need to show you."

"Now?" She held the wine glass aloft, "I'm drinking."

"Yes now." He took the glass from her and set it on the island, "you can continue drinking later."

Thea feigned a sigh, but she stood anyway, still holding onto Oliver's hand all the while, and let him lead her from their apartment.


The roar of his motorcycle died down as they pulled up to the darkened club. He waited for Thea to unwrap her arms from around his waist and climb off before he disembarked as well.

"Verdant? I hate to break it to you, but I've already seen it." There was a small smirk playing on her lips as she looked over her shoulder at him.

"Not that," Oliver said with a slight laugh, "Just come with me."

He led their way through the empty former warehouse, keeping his eyes straight ahead. Oliver feared that if he caught sight of her, he'd lose his nerve and that couldn't happen. It was time that he shared this with her.

"Where are we going?"

"The basement."

"I... thought that you said that it was flooded." Oliver punched in the code that would allow him to open the heavy metal door.

His voice was flat as he replied, "I lied."

"Ollie, what's going on?" Thea's heels clicked with every step that she took down the metal staircase. Oliver took solace in the fact that, despite his admission that he'd once again lied to her, his sister was still following him. "You're kind of- kind of making me nervous."

Oliver didn't say anything to ease her nervousness. He made his way over to the electrical box and put his hand under the lever. After taking a second to gather his courage, he pushed the heavy switch upwards until it clicked and the lights in the basement came to life.

He watched from behind as Thea took in the enormity of his deception. She took careful steps into the room and Oliver wished that he could see her face to gauge her reaction. He wanted desperately to know what she was thinking, what she was feeling. Will this be the final nail in our relationship?

"I know that this isn't going to mean much. I've given you no reason to believe me when I say it," His voice was raw and thick with truly terrifying emotions as he watched her, "but I lied, all of this time, to protect you."

He squared his shoulders and steeled his spine in preparation for her anger and rejection. Even though it would kill him to see betrayal written on her face yet again, Oliver knew he would bear it. He deserved every negative thing that she would unleash upon him.

Thea's steps continued to be slow and measured as she looked around at all the weaponry and technology that the foundry contained. As soon as her eyes landed upon the glass case that contained his green leather suit, she came to a stop in front of it.

"You're... You're him."

It was not a question.

"Yeah." Unable to stand still anymore, the eldest Queen kept his eyes on her as he walked forward. The silent seconds that followed his admission filled him with a whirlwind of worrisome thoughts. What is she thinking? What's she feeling? He was terrified to know, but at the same time, he needed to know.

When she finally did give her thoughts voice, they were fragmented, "That night with the-the hoods, and... that woman in black, that..." He stood several feet behind her, folding his arms behind his back to keep himself from doing something stupid, like reaching out for her.

"Was Ra's al Ghul's daughter."

"That was you." It was her voice that provided him the most information; her words were soft, but wobbly, like she were torn between sorrow and fury.

As he watched her reflection in the glass case, Oliver felt like his heart was going to shatter in his chest. Her expression gave away nothing of her thoughts. "All those times I got so mad at you," he dropped his eyes for a few seconds, needing to once again gather himself, certain that her rage was soon to rain down upon him. "for being...a flake, or telling me something I knew that had to be a lie."

She finally turned away from the case to look at him. Now that he could see her face with his own eyes, Oliver saw that she was emotionally raw. He wanted to believe that it was a good sign, but hope was the most dangerous emotion; he couldn't allow himself to feel it.

"You were saving someone's life," She took deliberate steps in his direction and it took everything he had within him to stay still. No matter what intentions she had, he was determined to take it. He deserved whatever she dished out. He had betrayed her, lied to her for years. She had every right to be furious with him.

Her next words shocked him, surprise making him raise his blue eyes to her green. "Thank you." In a single heartbeat, she bridged the remaining distance between them and wrapped her arms around his waist. Mystified by her reaction, Oliver instinctively wrapped his own arms around her back. She kept whispering, "Thank you, Ollie. Thank you."

A genuine smile molded to his lips, unshed tears glittered in his eyes, as he hugged her tighter to himself. He had never been more relieved or grateful in his life. Nothing in the world compared to knowing that Oliver told the truth and he still had his beloved sister by his side.

For a few moments, the two remaining Queens stayed silent. They held each other and just breathed. Oliver was acutely aware, though, that there was still more that he had to tell her. He needed her to understand that she wasn't alone. She never would be, not as long as there was breath in his lungs.

"You aren't the only one of us with darkness in them, Speedy," Oliver whispered into her hair, "at least yours doesn't belong to you." He tightened his arms around her. "I have so much blood on my hands, and there's nothing I can do to ever wash that away."

"Ollie," she muttered into his shoulder. It was clear after a few heartbeats that Thea didn't have an end to that sentence.

"I didn't ever want that for you."

Thea froze in his hold, undoubtedly picking up on his use of past tense, "Didn't want that?"

In for a penny…

"No one blames you, Thea. You weren't in control of yourself at the time."

She stepped back, his arms dropping uselessly to his sides. His fingers curled into his palms, angry that he could do nothing to help her. Her face was blank, but Oliver could still see pain etched behind her eyes. "What- what are you saying?"

"Thea, the Enchantress killed Sara."

"I killed Sara?" Thea's voice was as weak as he'd ever heard it. The instant that the words left her mouth, her face lost color and Thea scrambled backwards as if she could escape the knowledge by moving. Unconsciously, she shook her head slowly back and forth muttering, "No, no, no," over and over.

His desire to comfort her was almost undeniable; yet, he held himself still, knowing his touch would not be welcomed. "Thea, it wasn't you. It was her. It was Malcolm's will, not yours, not even hers. You aren't to blame for this."

A hysterical laugh tore from her throat as she raised her wild eyes to his own, "Oh no? It was my hands that ended her life. My face that she saw." Her hands fluttered up to her neck. "She must have felt so betrayed."

Unable to stand by and let Thea suffer alone, Oliver bridged the distance between them. As he tried to wrap his arms around her shoulders, she fought him. Tears of anger, desperation, and soul-scorching sorrow streaked her cheeks in rivulets.

"No. No. Don't touch me. Don't." She was screaming her pleas now, but Oliver ignored her. He wasn't about to leave her unmoored as her emotions swallowed her whole.

"I'm right here. I'm right here, Thea." He crushed her to his chest, his arms wrapped around the back of her shoulders to keep her from fleeing. She tried to break his hold as she continued to sob, but he didn't give her the slightest leeway.

"Let me go."

"No."

"Let me go!"

"No!"

Oliver felt her shuddering breath, her body heaving with sobs against his own, "I ruin everything, Ollie. I am poison. I'm dangerous. I don't want to destroy you too."

"You aren't. Speedy, listen to me," Oliver leaned his head back slightly to look down at her; she didn't look up at him in return. "She did this. Malcolm ordered her to do it. You had no part in it."

Thea put her hands on his chest suddenly and pushed him away. She turned her back on him, her shoulders shaking as her tears continued to fall. "I let her in. I did that. If I hadn't been so damn stupid Sara would still be alive!"

"Malcolm would have found another way to possess you in the long run." Oliver objected, "You know that. This isn't on you. Sara's death belongs on Malcolm's shoulders alone."

After a few seconds, Thea asked in barely a ghost of a whisper, "How do you know it was me?"

"Malcolm sent me a video of it today." Oliver removed his phone from the pocket of his jacket. He pulled up his text thread with Malcolm and fitted the video to his screen before he passed the device to her.

They both fell silent as Thea pressed play.

"Why did he send you this?"

"As insurance. I was furious that he put you in harm's way. To protect himself from my wrath, he sent the video. He said that if anything happens to him, the League of Assassins will receive that video and that's a risk I can't take."

Yet again, the siblings lapsed into silence. Thea deserves so much better than what her life has become.

"So give me to them."

"Absolutely not." His response was immediate and steadfast. The mere idea was abhorrent to Oliver and the fact that Thea would even suggest such an action proved to him that she wasn't in her right mind. "You're upset; you're not thinking clearly."

"You're the one not thinking clearly," Thea objected, turning swiftly on her heel to face him. The expression on her face was one of determination. "This would solve everyone's problems. Think about it for a minute. The League would get their blood. Sara would get her justice. With me dead, you-know-who would have nowhere to go so she couldn't hurt anyone else."

A small, vengeful smile plastered to her lips, "Malcolm wouldn't have his precious weapon anymore."

"I don't care."

"Oliver," Thea countered, rolling her eyes in frustration.

"No, Thea. I don't care what it would solve. Your death is never a solution for me." He shook his head and bridged the small distance between them. "Do you remember that conversation we had a few years ago, after Quentin arrested me for being the Vigilante? Do you remember what you said to me then?"

Her eyes narrowed slightly as she searched her memory for the conversation in question. He could see the instant that Thea recalled her own words. She echoed the sentiment in a soft voice, "I can't lose you again."

"Exactly and that is true for me too," he rested his hands on her shoulders gently, wanting to keep Thea from running off to act recklessly, "I lost you once when Malcolm whisked you away. I can't lose you again, Speedy. I just can't. You are all I have. You can't give up on me, Thea."

Thea peered up at him and for a terrible moment was silent. Then, "Alright, Ollie."

"Alright?"

"Yes, alright. We'll think of something else."

After that the two of them stayed in the basement and talked about everything late into the night. While they didn't come up with any solutions, at least Oliver felt secure in the knowledge that Thea wasn't about to run off on some misguided suicide mission. It was enough, for now. By the time that they returned to the loft, Oliver and Thea were both emotionally and physically exhausted. Their only plans were going to bed, but as soon as Oliver opened the door, he knew that they weren't going to be sleeping anytime soon.

Standing in their living room, looking as arrogant as ever, was Amanda Waller and she had the handle of Malcolm's silver case in her right hand. "Mister Queen, Miss Queen," a knowing smirk played on her lips as Oliver shoved Thea behind him instinctively, "welcome home."


A/N: In the next chapter, Oliver and Thea will discover what it is that Amanda Waller wants. Thanks for reading & please take the time to review if you enjoyed this chapter.