Mia Dearden
He gathered the Green Arrow gear he'd need for patrolling and his next workout. He had a full day of training planned for Mia tomorrow and now that she was aware of his vigilante hero side he could incorporate some new things into their training regimen.
Until Vordigan reappeared he hadn't really thought of her as his disciple, he honestly just wanted to help her out. Watching her pimp drag her off after her fight had really pissed him off. Like so many scumbags he used fear and intimidation to trap her, keep her feeling cowed and hopeless. He'd recognized a kindred spirit when he saw her in the ring, someone trying as hard as she could to escape from the darkness. She was a good fighter too, who, with the right training, could be great. She just needed a helping hand, and who was he to pass on an opportunity to be a woman's knight in shining armor?
As the car raced down the street he almost regretted letting her drive the Aston Martin but he needed her to see a sign of trust from him. When he'd made his pitch about helping her make a better life she'd been skeptical, even sarcastic about him being "her hero," but she'd listened. He'd been straight with her because anything else would have been a waste of time.
Mia represented a lot of firsts for him: training someone to become a better, smarter fighter; assuming a long-term responsibility for another human being as a mentor; dealing with emotional pain with something more fulfilling than alcohol and empty sex. And for the first time he looked, not at the woman, but at the person. Mia was the first attractive woman (okay, he was vain, but he was Oliver Queen) with whom he'd purposely started a platonic relationship. She was like... a kid sister. And, strangely enough, he found he rather enjoyed the role of older brother.
But, old habits die hard. When he suspected someone was targeting people close to him he did what he always did, he pushed those people away. It was for Mia's own protection of course, but it was already too late. Vordigan had her and he had to face off with his former mentor. He wasn't afraid to die at Vordigan's hand to protect the ones he cared about; no, it was the fear that the darkness within him would push him to kill that worried at his mind. He'd wrangled with that demon because of Lex so he was determined not to take Vordigan's life, but every wound inflicted on a loved one - first Lois, then Chloe, and finally Mia - took a toll on his soul and fed that inner darkness. A darkness he'd spent most of of his life trying to outrun.
But Mia wasn't running. Not from her own personal demons (and he was pretty sure she had her fair share)... or his.
She might be his student but she'd imparted some wisdom of her own. "There's a dark place inside of everyone, Oliver. What we do with it depends, not on who our teachers are, but what we do with the lessons learned." Despite all the things he thought he'd be teaching her, he realized he could stand to learn a lesson or two from her along the way.
A/N: This chapter gives the last commentary on each important lady's influence on Oliver (unless SV adds someone else to the mix). It's taken longer than I thought but I'm happy knowing people are enjoying the story. I plan on wrapping it up with a final summary of sorts but am trying to decide if I should go with a general statement or point one of his relationships in a new direction. Any thoughts?
