Disclaimer: I don't own Arrow or the Lion King. I'm just borrowing for fun.

A/N: Only one act left to go in the pilot episode. Constructive reviews are appreciated. Thanks.


Part Four

Tommy told Oliver and Thea about his dream involving Diggle's son; a vision they called it. Then he had to back track to explain who John Diggle was and the vision he'd used to save John's life. Oliver and Thea weren't certain if he'd seen a distant future or one already playing out. Though Oliver knew what a prophet was and some of a prophet's abilities, he'd never met one before, and Thea had only heard of prophets in passing. "There's no point in making guesses when we don't know what's going on. We should go straight to the source," Thea cut in when Oliver started speculating why someone would be after the Diggles.

Tommy had learned the name of the hospital where the ambulance took Diggle from the paramedics. All it took was one call to learn that Diggle's wife had checked him out that morning. Oliver found John and Lyla Diggle listed in the white pages; Diggle was a rather rare last name. They piled into Oliver's low-key sedan and drove to the address on file. Thea wanted to go straight on the offense and push the Diggles hard for answers. Oliver reminded her the Diggles might be entirely human and unaware of the otherworldlies. They agreed to be discreet until they knew for certain. Tommy said nothing, still trying to wrap his mind around the supernatural world he'd discovered and trying not to cry hysterically from the terror this invoked. He'd just escaped a warring country and now it felt like he was stepping into another.

They parked on the street in front of a townhouse in a northern, more suburbia section of Seattle. Tommy climbed out of the backseat behind Oliver who spun his keys around his finger before pocketing them. They met Detective Dinah Lance on their way up to the Diggle home; she was on her way out. She had her hair back in a loose bun today and she carried her gun on her hip. She frowned at the sight of the three of them. Tommy still had trouble believing she was a real demon.

"Playing detective, now are we?" Dinah heckled Thea who'd taken the lead. Thea scowled right back.

"What are you doing here?" Tommy asked.

"Funny, I was about to ask you the same thing," Dinah retorted, her tone still sharp.

"We don't have to tell you anything," Thea shot back.

"This little badge says otherwise," she tapped her gold shield; "Unless you want to be hauled in for questioning?"

"We're here to see how Mr. Diggle is recovering and if his family needs any help in this difficult time," Oliver spoke up, standing protectively in front of Tommy.

"Of course, you are, and I'm a banshee," Dinah rolled her eyes; "Fine, try your luck. It'll just be a waste of time. The Diggles aren't talking to anyone."

Dinah shouldered her way between the barrier of Thea and Oliver. She paused in front of Tommy, looked him up and down; "When this blows up in your face, remember I asked what you saw first, and I know what I'm doing."

"We don't need your help," Thea snapped, keeping a distrustful eye on the detective at all points.

"Your mistake," Dinah shrugged, then walked away.

SR*SR*SR

Lyla Diggle opened her front door, her short hair covered in a pale-orange bandana. She blinked rapidly in surprise at having three complete strangers on her doorstep. After Thea elbowed him sharply in the side, Tommy explained how he'd helped save John's life and they'd come to check up on him. When Oliver asked if they could come inside, Lyla wordlessly stepped aside and let them enter. They milled about her living room. There was a chestnut brown couch, a couple of chairs, one with a knitting basket next to it, and a giant, brightly-colored throw rug which Rebecca Merlyn would've loved. A selection of family photos lined the wall and tables. It was a cozy, inviting room and Tommy felt like a snake for intruding.

"So, how is John doing?" Tommy asked, feeling awkward, hands in his pockets.

"He's good. He's resting," Lyla nodded in the direction of the stairs.

"And your son? How's he dealing with all this?" Thea indicated one of the many pictures of a toothy-grinned boy.

"He's fine, glad to have his dad home," Lyla replied. Tommy thought he heard an underlining tenseness in her tone.

"Is he here?" Tommy inquired, because that was one of their main objectives. To learn if the kidnapping had already happened.

"JJ? No, he's at school," and this time, Tommy was certain her voice wavered for a hairsbreadth.

"Do you mind if I use your bathroom?" Oliver piped in with a silvery smile. Lyla directed him to a half bath off her kitchen. Oliver thanked her and disappeared down a short hall, he passed the stairs on his way.

"Have the police any leads on why your husband was attacked?" Tommy tried to transition into their next objective. Lyla replied in the negative.

"Do you know why anyone would want to hurt your husband?" Thea jumped straight for the jugular. Apparently, without Oliver there to keep a leash on her, she preferred to stick with her original plan of pushing for answers.

"No, of course not," Lyla shifted into a defense stance, arms crossed; "John's a good man. All his students love him, and he volunteers at the youth center on the weekends to teach basketball. That's what he'd been doing when someone decided to try and kill him," Lyla all but snapped the last sentence out, but Thea didn't care. She kept on the offense.

"What about your son? Who might go after him to get to you or your husband?" At that, Lyla Diggle noticeably paled.

"JJ's fine. He's just a boy," she denied, her voice soft. For a heartbeat, Tommy thought she was going to breakdown and cry, but the Lyla stiffened; "I don't know what you're trying to suggest here, but I don't appreciate it."

"We apologize for the intrusion," Oliver returned and shot a glare at Thea; "We'll just be leaving now. We hope your husband has a speedy recovery."

Then Oliver ushered them out the door and back to his car under Lyla's watchful, stressed gaze. Thea stayed quiet until they were about a block away. "Why'd you stop me? Something otherworldly was definitely going on in that house and instead that entire excursion was a bust," she groused from the backseat.

"Not entirely," Oliver replied mysteriously. Then he held up a stuffed, blue rabbit.

SR*SR*SR

After Oliver made it clear he was protecting the newly awakened prophet, Dinah resorted to her detective skills. Merlyn's timely intervention in the assault on John Diggle seemed more likely to have been vision-led than lucky coincidence. Add in the fact Mr. Diggle claimed shock-induced amnesia of the attack, and no one had been able to spot the knife until Merlyn pointed out the weapon, and Dinah smelled a witch. A witch wouldn't try to kill under a cloak unless something important was going on, so Dinah decided to re-interview the Diggles without her partner present. Technically, she'd been off-duty at the time, but they didn't need to know that.

She'd asked Lyla Diggle about her son on a hunch. She was told he was at school, but that seemed rather unlikely with his backpack and lunch box sitting next to the kitchen counter. When she confronted Mrs. Diggle, the woman had clammed up. But Dinah had known she was on the right trail to figuring out the witches' game. The arrival of Oliver and the others only confirmed her suspicions. A pity the hunter was so distrustful of her offer to help. Oh well, the tracker she'd snuck on their car would help her keep an eye on them. If her research turned up nothing, they might still lead her to the witch in their blundering attempts to play Sherlock Holmes.

"Lance why are you digging into Lyla Diggle?" Detective Lucas Hilton asked peering over Dinah's shoulder to look at her computer screen. He was her dad's older partner and when she'd managed to secure a transfer to the Major Case division, he'd volunteered to be her partner and show her the ropes.

"Since John Diggle came up clean, I thought his wife might've been the real target. Killing him could've been about sending a message to her."

"That's a possibility, have you got anything yet?" Hilton smiled proudly at her. At least this time he hadn't made a comparison to her father.

"Before she married, Lyla Michaels testified against Frank Bertinelli. Her testimony sent him up state for fifteen years and ruined his family's business. She's continued to receive threatening letters from his family and even took out a restraining order against his son, Frankie, last year."

"Now that's a good lead Detective Lance. I think its time we had a chat with Frank Jr."

Dinah shrugged into her gray blazer and followed Hilton to their assigned car. The name Bertinelli was more than a lead to Dinah. It was the proof she needed, and she understood exactly what was happening. The time had come.

SR*SR*SR

Oliver set the blue rabbit onto the table. They'd commandeered the Queens' rec room after Oliver explained how he'd seen signs that JJ Diggle hadn't been home in a couple nights. When Tommy had asked how he'd managed to slip upstairs and back down with no one noticing, Oliver had grinned: "Trade secret."

"And how exactly does this help us?" Thea gestured, unimpressed, to the rabbit.

"I found this on JJ's bed. Looked like it might be his favorite toy," Oliver explained, and when Thea shrugged, he elaborated; "Tommy should be able to get a vision of JJ. If we're lucky we'll get an idea of where he is now or where he will be. Maybe we'll find out who took him, if nothing else."

"Sounds like a good plan, there's just one tiny problem," Tommy pointed out; "I have no idea how to control my 'visions,' as you say."

"But you've had visions before, when?"

"When I'm asleep, mostly."

"Are you suggesting Tommy sleep with the rabbit?" Thea suggested, then snickered at her double entendre. Tommy glared at her.

"No, all he needs to do is relax," Oliver interrupted their glowering contest.

"Well that shouldn't be too hard then," Thea quipped with a playful grin.

Turned out finding a way to relax Tommy required some regressive thinking. He tried clearing his mind of all thoughts first, then Thea taught him some yoga, and he attempted to rest on the couch without falling asleep. In mild exasperation, Oliver stuck Tommy on the couch with the toy bunny in the crook of his arm and turned on the television. The Lion King started to play. Tommy and Thea were singing along to "Hakuna-Mata" when the vision doubled him up.

He was back on the street with the brick warehouse and its mural wall. This time it was night, the streetlights that still worked just flickering on. Lyla Diggle walked purposefully down the sidewalk in the orange bandana she wore that morning; her face was taunt with stress and fear. She carried a slim box under her arm and appeared to be muttering under her breath. After a glance around the vicinity, she ducked into an open door at the warehouse.

Inside the shadows grew, but Tommy could still see enough. Lyla's purposeful walk stuttered into a careful shuffle forward. She paused near the mouth of an overhead crosswalk. The dark-haired woman who'd attacked John melted out of the darkness, she pulled JJ with her but kept a firm hand on his shoulder. Lyla held out the package she carried and held her other hand towards JJ.

The vision faded before Tommy could see what happened next. He shoved the blue bunny away from himself and massaged his forehead. The headache quickly faded as he related what he'd seen. "Now what do we do?"

"We stop that exchange and rescue JJ," Oliver declared. Yeah, Tommy had had a feeling he was going to say that.

SR*SR*SR

Frank Bertinelli Jr ended up having an alibi for the time of the attack on John Diggle, which put him half the city away. However, a helpful, nosey neighbor informed Hilton and Dinah of a recent argument between Frankie Jr and his sister, Helena, over someone named Michael, possibly Michaels. The busybody put the argument happening a day after John Diggle was attacked and said Helena stormed away vowing she wasn't done. That made Helena Bertinelli their new prime suspect and put Dinah in a bit of a bind. She knew what Helena was and intimately understood the risk of trying to arrest a witch. It would be best for all involved if Helena simply disappeared, permanently. And Dinah knew just how to accomplish that, all she needed to do was find the witch first.

Tracking down Helena's whereabouts proved difficult by legal means. Not that that meant Hilton and Dinah were giving up after one afternoon of searching. Lucas though called it a day when their shift ended, certain they needed some rest and a fresh perspective. Dinah wished him a good night, then checked her phone and swore when she saw Oliver and his merry band were on the move again.

Dinah shadowed them back to the street where she'd first met Merlyn. Once there no detective work was required. This close she could sense all three of them; Oliver a painfully bright blot against what remained of her soul. She found the door they used to sneak inside, then jimmied a window and ghosted up a set of stairs. She preferred an overwatch position when she wasn't certain what was going to happen; easier to observe without being seen and leave if she didn't want to fight. She traced the anti-hex amulet she'd bought in blood. She was prepared no matter what happened.

The same could not be said for the bumbling trio below her. The hunter carried a stake and silver dagger on her person as well as a crossbow fitted with salt-loaded quarrels. All useful weapons when dealing with most otherworldly beings, Dinah included, but not witches. Oliver was apparently relying on his supernatural durability, forgetting there were some magics he wasn't immune to. And the prophet, he was so green he still reeked of denial. She could've warned them but didn't see the point. If they couldn't survive a minor tussle with a witch, then they were of no use to her.

Dinah watched as they spread out to hide. Based on Merlyn's gesturing she guessed he'd seen the main action happening below the walkway she crouched on and a pace to her left. Dinah shifted her position to gain a better line-of-sight and remain out of view. The little Queen disappeared under the crosswalk, but Dinah heard her clamoring into a crossbeam a short while later. Oliver positioned Merlyn at the double doors to Dinah's left, behind a conveyor belt and can seamer, farthest from the potential action – the warehouse had last been a canning factory before closing its doors for good. Oliver took cover in the main floor office, the second closest position to the meeting area after his sister.

Dark power heralded the arrival of Helena Bertinelli and two of her sisters. Dinah saw Oliver stiffen when he sensed the building power. He stepped of the office to signal the danger to the hunter in a shorthand Dinah didn't know. He hid from even Dinah's sight a second later, deep in the office. Then the black magic users shadow-walked into the building, right where the prophet had predicted. JJ Diggle puked on arrival, the dark power not agreeing with him. The witches wrinkled their noses in disgust. Helena jerked the boy in front of the mess and kept a strong grip on his shoulder. He whimpered. Dinah gritted her teeth, silently snarling. The two other witches took positions on either side of the crosswalk. One was ebony-haired, she stood near the door behind the floor office. The other, an unnaturally white-haired woman, stayed close to the door Oliver and the others had entered through. Dinah recognized the white head: Chien Na Wei. Both witches cast powerful cloaks. Strong enough that even with her amulet, Dinah could only see faint outlines. Oliver and his sister would be completely blind to them, as would anyone else outside their coven, except for a prophet. Unfortunately, he was too inexperienced with the occult to realize what had just happened, thereby negating any advantage he'd held.

Lyla Diggle skittered into the warehouse maybe ten minutes later. She skirted around Chien Na Wei, probably aware of the dark magic even if she didn't suspect what it held. The sight of her son under Helena's clutches only made the stress lines in Lyla's face deepen. Dinah nearly hissed when she sensed the powerful object under Lyla's arm. How had a woman like her come to posses something so powerful? Did she even realize what she had? The danger it posed? And how foolish was she to believe black-hearted witches would honor any deal once they had their hands on the object they desired?

"Stop there," Helena commanded when Lyla was within a few yards of her and JJ.

"Please, I brought it as you asked. Let my son go," Lyla held up the packaged relic in one hand with the other she reached pleadingly for her child.

Oliver must've sensed danger, because he chose that moment to act. He burst out of the office, a burning sword of light in his hand. He cut in half the tendril of a hex – Dinah hadn't even seen it forming, how clever. Then chaos descended. The hunter dropped from her hiding place, shooting a bolt at Helena. A shield caught the quarrel and burned it to ash. Lyla Diggle reached for her son, fingers snapping a counter-hex against the shield. JJ jerked against Helena, trying to run to his mom. But Helena's grip pinned JJ to place and a hex from behind tossed Lyla off her feet. Chien Na Wei and the ebony-haired witch tightened their garrote.

Oliver and his sister blocked the ebon-head. They seemed to be relying on his ability to sense imminent danger as a means to deflect the witch's attacks, even though they couldn't see her. Lyla rolled to her feet, the relic still clutched under her arm. She cast her own shield and engaged Chien Na Wei in a spell battle; she may have been blind to the white-haired witch's exact location, but she could see the curses flung her way and returned fire. After a hungry glare for the package in Lyla's care, Helena enacted a cloak around herself and JJ, having decided this fight was already lost. This cloak wasn't as strong as the others, so Dinah could still make out their blurry bodies when Helena started to haul JJ to the third exit, passed the conveyor belt.

The air crackled with power and hexes. Sparks flew, and booms rattled the warehouse as the combatants danced across the floor using their preternatural abilities. Merlyn should've been freaking out and cowering the entire time at the sudden exposure to an otherworldly clash. Instead the fool poked his head up in time to see Helena pushing JJ out the door. He saw that his allies were otherwise engaged and then made the stupid decision to play hero. Dinah grumbled under her breath; she needed him alive, that was all, the only reason she put herself at risk. She jumped from the crosswalk into the melee below.

Dinah landed on her feet, her off-duty weapon already drawn and chambered. She took aim and fired. Blood sprayed as her bullet nicked the ebon-haired witch's arm – now the hunter would be able to use the blood scent to attack head on. Then Dinah turned to wave at Chien Na Wei. She distracted the white-haired witch long enough for Lyla Diggle to blast her with a hex that fractured her cloak. Finally, Dinah charged after the wayward prophet.

She found him up to his ears in trouble. Or more accurately she found him on his knees, clutching his ears as Helena Bertinelli stood over him, chanting. JJ Diggle looked on in terror. Dinah raised her weapon and cocked it. Against a witch as powerful as a Bertinelli, her gun wouldn't do much damage. She fired anyway. The projectile caught Helena in the shoulder, forcing her back a step and wrecking her incantation. Helena shot a curse at Dinah. The anti-hex amulet glowed and countered the magic. Helena glowered at Dinah. Dinah smiled icily in return.

Helena backed away first, cast a spell with her free hand, then shadow-walked JJ and herself to safety. The sounds of a fight continued back in the warehouse, though not as ferociously as before. Dinah hauled the prophet to his feet, then half-carried him back to her car. She kept a magic malady kit in the trunk and he certainly needed it. This would've been a lot cleaner if he'd simply told her what she wanted to know the other night. Bloody do-gooders.