Disclaimer: I own nothing.

AN: Hey all! Got another update for you guys. I finally decided to take my stories one fic at a time. So I will be finishing this fic before moving onto the next. I'm going let you guys vote on which one I should do first. So if you guys have the time, go ahead and have your say. Thanks for the feedback from the last chapter. I appreciate it. You guys made me ralize that I did write a cliffie. Sorry about that. But here's the next one. There's no Chloe/Bruce interaction this time. Watch for that next chappie. For now, I bring you two uninvited guests...well three technically but details. Now on with the story...

Chapter 3

Resistance isn't futile

Oliver Queen knew there would be trouble the moment that Bart Allen dropped out of superspeed. And so he did what he could to prepare for the onslaught.

He looked around the penthouse to check that there were no movable objects within the area. It had been a while since he was in Metropolis. Star City had become his permanent base in the last three years. But he occasionally traveled to the Big Apricot for business, corporate and heroic alike.

Satisfied that objects would not be flying all over the place he sat comfortably on his chair behind the desk and waited. He glanced at his watch and knew that the package was due to arrive any moment.

And right on time Bart dropped out of speed and released one infuriated blonde sidekick from his arms.

There was a reason that Oliver rarely used this tactic. And it had a lot to do with the furious gaze she was shooting Bart with. He allowed himself a quiet chuckle when she started to pummel Bart with her clutch. The younger man allowed her three hits before jumping to superspeed and appearing behind his chair. It was a cheap shot but he didn't blame Bart. He was merely following orders. His orders. So trying to redirect her anger away from him was fair game really.

Oliver knew he would deserve the wrath of Chloe. He didn't like manhandling her, mainly because he respected her too much but also because it wasn't the way they worked.

"You!" She said the words with such venom. She was looking at him as though she wished she could mentally decapitate him.

Bart patted his shoulder. "Good luck, boss." He said quietly before he disappeared.

He shouldn't feel any resentment against him, he truly shouldn't. But as he saw Chloe's eyes flash dangerously, well he knew he probably shouldn't have had her kidnapped in order to talk some sense into her.

She took a deep breath, seemingly trying to clam herself down. "Why?" She posed the question quietly as her hazel eyes meet his.

Oliver looked at her, really looked. She had always been the grown up in the team, alongside him, and she always dressed the part. The rest of the guys credit him for forming the league, but it was truly her presence that seemed to cement the group. And now years since they had been introduced, she was still as striking as ever. He felt a mild sense of dismay upon seeing her all dolled up in her black dress. So Bart just snatched her from something fancy. No wonder she was furious.

"Typically, if someone wanted to talk to someone else they'd use cellphones. You know, those nifty gadgets that can get people talking to each other even if they're miles and miles apart." Chloe declared acidly as she advanced towards him.

At that point Oliver decided that he would need all the advantage that he could get, so he stood up. He nodded in concession to her point as he met her midway. "I tried that. But somehow you missed all my calls, made some of your own and left me messages that you'd try again." He looked at her meaningfully. "And yet we never seem to be able to actually talk to each other."

Chloe lowered her head at his pointed statement. "I was busy." She murmured in a low tone.

"Apparently." He remarked in the same tone as he remembered the articles he had on her 'hectic' life.

She looked up and has a stubborn expression at his word. "I don't owe you any explanations, Oliver." Her chin jutted out, reinforcing her defiance.

He felt slighted and he knew that his eyes grow cold at her comment. "And I would agree with you, if I hadn't known you were lying to me." He said coolly.

She bit her lower lip and did not blink. "I lied to you?" She looked at him critically.

His gaze fell on her hand and he did not resist the urge to take her hand in his. There were times when the two of them could have been…more. But somehow, something always got in the way, someone more like it. "I could take a lot of things in life." He murmured quietly as he watched their hands intertwine. Despite her irate demeanor she did not resist the contact and he felt better because of that lone fact. "But you, lying to me…" He shook his head.

All the fight seemed to dissipate at his words. "I…I don't know what you're talking about." She gingerly took her hand away and took a few steps back.

"Chloe," He said her name warningly.

"How about you start flinging your accusations of my lies so I can contradict them already?" She was obviously trying to inject some levity in their exchanged.

Oliver folded his arms across his chest and eyed her grimly. "You tried to quit the Daily Planet."

"I'm on sabbatical." She replied dryly.

"You're only on sabbatical because Perry refused to accept your resignation." He countered.

"How I got to be on sabbatical hardly matters. I don't ask you about the nitty-gritty details of how you clean your bow and arrow." She volleyed back tartly.

"It's not the same and you know it." Oliver insisted in a forceful tone. "A resignation means there's more to the story. I thought your decision to go to Gotham was to take a break from this." He gestured towards the penthouse's view of the Metropolis skyline. "It implied that you have every intention of coming back."

"Who said that I don't?" She assumed the same position as he was and eyed him archly.

He looked deep into her eyes and remained quiet.

Chloe sighed as she dropped her arms to her side again. "What is this really about, Oliver?" She asked, her tone tainted with such resignation.

He took a deep breath. "Are you trying to quit the league?" He posed the question cautiously.

Bruce Wayne stopped having fun half an hour ago.

When he saw Chloe Sullivan disappear out of thin air, initially, he planned on leaving the party and searching for her. But his mind mentally went over what happened on the balcony.

He saw the way she reacted to the intruder. She had placed her hands on her hip and seemed annoyed at the disturbance. Chloe did not seem the least bit afraid and that was what stopped him from spurring into action.

Yet it left him slightly irritated. Not knowing the full situation was grating on his nerves. Still, he plastered on a smile and waited another hour before he finally left the gala. He left the ballroom alone, all of his dates found prospects that were considerably more promising.

He went back to the manor and suited up. Patrolling would just have to keep him busy while he pondered the mystery that was Chloe Sullivan.

And if he happened to be around her neighborhood through the course of the night, well Gotham was his city.

Oliver was actually afraid of the answer.

He understood the need for normalcy. He knew that sometimes Victor, AC, Dinah and even Bart wondered about how a normal life would be like. He felt it too, but he had none of the powers that they had and so he could actually be normal if he wanted to. But he wasn't designed that way. He needed to be the Green Arrow and he had no way to explain why.

Chloe, her powers hadn't manifested for years. She too had a shot at normal. And the photographs he had of her and Bruce, well it actually felt like she was aiming for that goal. But at the same time he wasn't truly convince that it was the real reason.

Her eyes widened at his question. "Why would you even ask me that?" She asked incredulously.

The way she reacted was enough to set his fear at rest. "It's been a while since you insisted on being part of a mission." He countered. "You haven't exactly been hands on lately."

"I told you, I've been busy." She snapped at him.

"I know." Oliver glared at her for her tone. "You've also been accessing a lot of research, which you still haven't shared with the rest of the group." He folded his arms across his chest and eyed her speculatively.

"I've been working on something." Chloe admitted in a quiet voice.

"And this something, it had to get you within speaking distance with Bruce Wayne?" He gave her a knowing look. There was a reason why she was their watchtower. But it didn't mean that Oliver was incapable of connecting the dots.

"If you think you know what I've been doing, wouldn't you care to share?" Chloe assumed the same position as him and posed the question archly.

Oliver dropped his arms to his side and sighed resignedly. "I know Bruce well enough." He muttered quietly. Bruce was very different back in Excelsior. And now he couldn't help but think that his former schoolmate was playing a part.

Chloe looked at him and right before his eyes she seemed to deflate. "I love this place you know." She gestured to the window. "Metropolis had been my home even when I was not living here." She laughed humorlessly.

He approached her cautiously. He finally stopped right next to her as she stared out the horizon.

"But before I left for Gotham…I just felt like, this couldn't be all there is to it." Chloe looked at him as she finally confessed what she was feeling.

His brows furrowed as he looked at her, slightly puzzled.

Chloe bit her lower lip as she seemed to struggle to explain.

"Chlo'?" He prodded her gently.

"I was glad that I managed to get back into the Planet and everything. I really was. And I'm happy that Clark, well that he is who he is now." Chloe lowered her head, as if she cannot bear to admit what she was about to say. "But it's not the same."

Oliver placed his arm around her shoulders. "Nothing ever stays the same. You and I both know that fully well."

Chloe nodded. "I know that." She replied as she gave him a sad smile. "And I'm okay with that. But this…I don't feel like I don't belong here anymore."

He looked at her worriedly. "Chloe-"

"It's no one's fault." Chloe declared hurriedly, probably prompted by his expression.

"Do you want to go back to overseeing things over at Isis?" He asked eagerly. "Or I can always use your help back in Star City."

She smiled at him, a tad brighter than the other one. "I appreciate it, Ollie. But what I'm doing right now, it feels right."

Oliver ran a hand through his hair in agitation. "Gotham's too dangerous. I guess with Superman running around here, I don't know maybe you're not used to that. But going the opposite direction? How is that right? You don't even have back up." He let go of his hold on her and started pacing.

"Oliver," She said his name quietly. "You don't have to be so worried about me." She stood right in front of him to make him stand still.

He rolled his eyes at her words. "Of course I would worry about you. Do you know how maddening it's been since you moved out there?" He demanded.

Chloe smiled at him, slightly amused and mildly offended. "You know I can take care of myself. You've made sure of that." She raised a hand to cup his cheek to force him to meet her gaze.

He covered her hand with his own. "Not enough to keep me from worrying."

Before they could say another word a tap on the window interrupted them.

Oliver once again rolled his eyes and squeezed Chloe's hand before letting go. He opened the glass doors that led to the balcony and let the interloper in.

"Am I interrupting something?" The man looked at the two of them critically.

Chloe finally flashed her megawatt grin as she rushed to hug the man before them. "No you're not." She rolled her eyes as her hug was received with open arms.

"Don't you think it's a good idea not to go knocking on people's windows wearing that?" Oliver gestured towards what the other man was wearing.

The other occupant of the room looked at his own clothes. "I guess I was too excited to see Chloe again that I forgot to change." He replied sheepishly.

Chloe laughed happily. "That's the farm boy I know and love." She stood on her tiptoe and kissed Clark on the cheek. "And I missed you, too."

Oliver made a face at the blush that graced Clark's face. "So, took you long enough to get here." He commented lightly.

"I was on patrol." Clark replied.

Chloe took a step back at the exchange. "Are you telling me that you were in on the kidnapping thing?" She looked at the two of them through narrowed eyes.

"Now Chloe, haven't we moved beyond that already?" Oliver asked in a placating voice.

"I told you I should have been the one to pick her up." Clark shot him an annoyed look.

"But didn't you say you had to patrol?" Oliver countered.

"Yeah, but I-"

"You both set this up." Chloe interjected before Clark could finish his sentence.

The two men looked at each other and then nodded.

"And you did that because?" She looked at them expectantly.

Once again, Oliver and Clark looked at each other. Oliver also looked at him expectantly. He got the initial wrath of Chloe and she was right to suggest that they both set it up. He was worried about her presence in Gotham and then Clark discovered that she tried to quit the Planet and so they planned an intervention.

"We were worried about you." Clark placed an arm around her waist and guided her towards the couch. "When Perry told me that you were going to resign from the paper…" He shrugged helplessly.

Chloe took a deep breath. "You thought you can second guess my decision and maybe convince me to move back where Superman can save me and Green Arrow can drop by any time he wanted to check up on me and make sure that I am behaving like a good little girl." She looked at them testily.

Both of them remained quiet. Oliver knew better than to say that yes that was exactly what they were doing.

She shook her head in disapproval. "Heroes!" She muttered under her breath. "Look, I'm a grown woman. You guys cannot dictate how I live my life." She declared heatedly.

Clark raised both hands in surrender. "Look Chlo,' we're not trying to tell you how to live your life. We're just," He looked towards Oliver. "We're merely looking out for you. If caring for you is a crime, well then consider us a bunch of criminals." He concluded with such earnestness.

Oliver fought to keep a smile off his face at the tone that Clark was setting. There was no way that Chloe would fall for what he said. But it was a worthy attempt. "No one's trying to tell you what to do." Oliver kept on the offensive. "We know better than that." He shot her a pointed look.

"So what exactly are you two trying to do, then?" She folded her arms across her chest and eyed them critically.

"We were hoping that you'd understand why we had to do this." Oliver met her gaze full on. "Whatever you're doing, it's not worth your life." He concluded passionately.

Clark looked at him curiously. He shook his head imperceptibly, hoping that his friend would get the message not to ask so their attempt to get her to see reason would not get derailed.

"What exactly are you working on in Gotham?" Clark assumed the same position as Chloe, projecting the very same image that had been splattered all over Metropolis.

Chloe was staring at Oliver thoughtfully as she digested his words, but the moment that Clark asked the question; Oliver could tell that her guard went up instantaneously. "Knowledge of what I'm doing is need to know basis and you," She looked at him and then Clark. "Two do not need to know." She finished softly.

Oliver shook his head in consternation. "Chloe, we're not trying to intrude on your privacy. You are free to do as you please, but Gotham isn't safe. I've already gone over the statistics with you before you moved there."

Clark nodded in agreement. "You said you were only going for a limited period. It's been almost two months already. Do you know how hard it is to wonder if you're getting yourself in one danger or another and know that there's nothing I can do about it?" He asked with such feeling.

"I'm not a damsel in distress, Clark. I haven't been for a long while now." Chloe approached him and placed a placating hand on his arm.

Oliver watched the exchange and felt like he should not be there at all.

"I know that." Clark tried to nod convincingly.

He had an idea of what Clark left unsaid. Their quest was to ensure the safety of millions of people. It was no surprise that they would want their loved ones safe as well. He cleared his throat to gain their attention. "You have firsthand knowledge on how if feels to endlessly agonize about the safety of the people we love." Oliver concluded quietly.

A guilty expression crossed Chloe's face. "I didn't mean to worry you guys."

"We know, Chloe." Clark placed his hand on top of her.

"But it doesn't stop us from doing it anyway." Oliver commented wryly.

Chloe gave him a small smile. "I can't leave Gotham." She shook her head sadly. "I know how troubled the city is. And I'm sorry for worrying you guys, but I…I can't leave."

"But why? What are you doing there that's so important?" Clark looked at her searchingly.

Oliver knew the determined look on Chloe face very well. There was no way to convince her not to go back to the city that was earning the reputation as 'no man's land,' and he could not help but get the feeling that whatever she was doing, it was important. Important enough that Chloe was not going to listen to what they say, convincing though they may be.

"Clark." He shook his head at his friend. It was a good try. But Chloe was not going to budge.

Clark nodded in understanding. "We had to try." He said ruefully.

Chloe let out a choked laugh "And I appreciate you're concern. But this, it's just something that I have to do."

"As long as we find out what this important mission is, somewhere along the way." Oliver looked at her hopefully.

"You will." Chloe answered reassuringly. "And it's not something so bad. In fact, I think it's quite good."

Batman was on patrol.

He had already gone through Suicide Slums. And somehow he ended up right where he was. Right across from Chloe's apartment.

The neighborhood was not the most upscale but it was not as dangerous as the others in the city. He had arrived a few minutes earlier and the apartment was showing no signs of life.

So she wasn't back from wherever the intruder took her. No matter, he could wait. He was a man of infinite patience.

As it turned out, he did not have to wait long.

So she was telling the truth.

He watched as Chloe Sullivan, the woman who offered him a place in a group of 'likeminded individuals,' was just being dropped of by a man who could fly. Well, perhaps not really a man, if his interview on the Daily Planet was any indication.

Bruce stared as Chloe and Superman dropped right into her balcony. He stared as Chloe talked animatedly with the Metropolis hero. He stared as she kissed him on the cheek. He stared as the alien cupped her cheeks with both his hands and gave her an Eskimo kiss. He stared as Chloe laughed and then slapped the man on his arm, finally sending him on his way.

If he had been journalistic he would have captured the moment and sold it to the tabloids. Maybe Chloe's cousin would be less enamored with the hero if she knew that he was smitten with a different woman.

At least he found another grain of information about her.

He was just about to resume his patrol when the next thing he knew Superman was flying across from him. He remained unmoved.

"I have a feeling that you're the reason she's here." The alien from another planet remarked.

He remained still. Bruce had no intention of giving anything away.

"Keep her safe." Superman said in a no-nonsense tone before flying away.

He watched as the man disappeared into the night. He was by no means anyone who would just take orders from someone else. But the words felt less like an order and more like a request. He could tell how much the hero cared for Chloe. To what degree, he was still uncertain.

He just might be able to work with those likeminded individuals.

TBC