A/N: Good news, everybody! I survived my first week back at work… well, technically I'm still on that first week because I'm working the weekend, but you know what I mean. And in unrelated, but similarly wonderful news, there is a terrible funk coming from my side garden. And why is that good news I hear my ducklings ask in one voice? Well, because my fingers are crossed that said funk is caused by decaying rat corpse/s. I haven't seen D'Artagnan all week, which he's done before, but this time I'm hopeful he's shuffled off this mortal coil… or at least moved on to some other poor unfortunate's house. I'm not proud to admit this, but I don't care which, just as long as he's not in my house!
And in yet more good news – yes, my cup overflowth today! – I suppose most of you know about the release of the deleted Olicity kiss from 2x23. That'll teach Marc Guggenheim to dare a fan base to make something tweet trend. Lol Olicity lovers are ravenous beasts when it comes to getting their Olicity honey. ;) Jen (jbuffyangel) does yet another awesome meta comparing the kisses of 2x23 and 3x1 – truly, it's a work of art, check it out and you'll feel like you were a part of both Olicity kisses, trust me. :D
Okay, that's it, I'm all out of good news. Your turn. *listens politely*
Alright, back to me now.
Just remembered something about the last chapter. You know the dentist with the serial killer name? Well, I based that on the fact that in my town, we have a dentist called Steven King… yeah, it'd make you think twice about going to him, wouldn't it? Also, Cox, Cox and Weiner – that's a real law firm (don't sue me). Ted the taxidermist is all mine though. Also, I want to just thank one of my guest readers for pointing out that the MIT went to has a pre-requisite for all their students to know how to swim because they're near a river. That's fascinating to me. Man, I'm glad it wasn't a pre-req for my Uni, cause I'm not even an aggressive floater, I'm more of a tragic bobber… with occasional bouts of flailing. Of course, this piece of information creates problems for my 'Felicity can't swim' reality I've created… but never fear, it's given me an idea for something else to have fun with. See, that's why I like the back and forth I have going on with my ducklings – you give me ideas for my stories. It's a win/win situation. ;)
Now, about this story…
This chapter… well, it's one of those ones that I don't really love. I mean, I don't hate it, but yeah, it doesn't thrill me. I know, I know, I shouldn't say that to the people who are about to read the chapter but if you don't know by now that I have a tendency towards oversharing, then you may have some kind of comprehension issue. Just sayin'. I will say this though when it comes to some broad thoughts about the fic, I've done a lot of chapters of fluff and I must admit, I'm looking forward to getting into some meatier stuff… and once I've written a few angst filled chapters I'll be looking for the fluff again. I'm such a balance freak, too much of one thing always ends up not being very satisfying to me… unless that one thing is chips… obviously.
But, my potato fetish aside, here's the chapter, guys… have at it. :D
CHAPTER SEVEN
"And that's a wrap people," said Felicity into her coms. "Six more bad guys off the street. A good night's work. See you all back at the lair." She pulled the coms device from her ear, and placed it on the table. It always felt good to call them all home, knowing they were coming back to her in one piece.
"You should call it a cave," noted Bunny conversationally, as he strolled out from the back room, drying his hair with a towel. He was wearing a black silk robe with grey silk pajamas underneath. Bunny came to stand beside her, and smiled. "It's so cozy in here. You should definitely call it a cave… the Arrow cave."
Felicity smiled, and swung around on her seat to look up at the other man. "I'll bring it up at the next staff meeting."
"Of course, the place could use a little color," mused Bunny, looking around himself. "There are a lot of masculine overtones here." He winked at Felicity. "Not that I usually mind that kind of thing, you understand."
"Goes without saying," said Felicity in amusement.
"But still, a touch of color here and there can really bring a place to life." Bunny looked around himself. "What François and I couldn't do with this place."
"Who's François?"
"My little man who does my interior designing for my holiday homes."
"He's French?"
"No, Brazilian."
"Oh." Felicity looked around the place as well. "I think Oliver likes things as they are."
"Does he indeed?"
Felicity looked back at Bunny who was now looking at her with great interest. She frowned a little. "What?"
"It just seems to me that monkey would like things to change a little bit," said Bunny knowingly.
"How do you mean?"
"I mean, he seems a little on edge."
"That's just Oliver."
"On edge about you."
"The photo thing is still bugging him." Felicity pulled a face. "I'm not exactly over it quite yet either." She felt her cheeks heat. It was such an embarrassing photograph. Apart from the fact her physical assets were on display, the expression on her face had been pretty wanton. Not a total surprise considering what she'd been thinking in that moment.
"Well, yes, but it's more than that."
Felicity dragged her thoughts back from that moment to give Bunny a confused look. "More how?"
"He's on edge about you."
Felicity sat up straighter in her chair. "Me?"
"I think monkey feels like his hold on you is… tenuous."
Felicity blinked. "Then he's insane," she said unevenly. "Oliver has hold of me in every possible way." And then some.
"But you're holding something back from him," prompted Bunny.
"Has Oliver said something to you about us not having sex yet?" fretted Felicity.
"Darling, he doesn't have to." Bunny gave a small smile as he pulled up a seat next to Felicity. "That man simply radiates sexual frustration."
"Oh." Felicity bit her bottom lip.
"As do you, my darling." Bunny laughed. "If you could harness the sexual tension between you two, we'd solve that pesky energy crisis the world is facing down."
"Is-is he mad at me?"
"Oh poppet, perish the thought," said Bunny quickly. "That's just crazy talk. First of all, I think there is a considerable part of monkey that enjoys your little dance, enjoys holding off the inevitable. Plus, of course he knows you're worth the wait." He smiled. "The longer you wait, the more he gets to show you it's not all about sex for him, which, with the reputation which precedes my naughty little monkey, is a penance he's more than earned in my not so humble opinion. That is not the issue."
"Then what is the issue?" Felicity was the one on edge now.
"You're holding back something more important than sex from that boy, and it's driving him a little bit crazy. Again, monkey hasn't said anything to me, call it a romantic's intuition. All we love gurus have it." Bunny cocked his head. "Care to share, Ms. Smoak?"
"I think Oliver is waiting for me to say I love him," said Felicity quietly. "I mean, he knows I do. Pretty much from the moment we met." She moved uncomfortably in her seat. "I wasn't exactly subtle about it even though I tried to be."
"Subtlety is highly overrated, if you ask me. Especially in the matters of the heart. It's balls out or nothing at all, that's my motto."
Felicity's lips twitched at the gusto which Bunny proclaimed that last bit of information. "You must have a pretty interesting family crest if that's the case."
"Oh, I do," said Bunny with feigned seriousness. "We keep it behind a velvet curtain, and you can only see it if you're over eighteen years of age."
Felicity laughed. "You'll have to show it to me one day. Sounds like it'll be an education."
"Bunny is all about higher education," he said proudly, "but right now, he's all about finding out why you haven't let those three little words slip past those luscious lips yet."
"Oliver already knows how I feel," said Felicity unsteadily.
"But clearly he needs you to say it as well, because I'm guessing it's as obvious to him as it is to me that you're holding back with them for a reason." Bunny crossed his legs, and linked his fingers over his knee. "So, why the hesitation, my lovely? The love doctor is in, let me smooth the path to true love with my hoe of romance."
"Do hoes flatten paths?"
"I have no idea, but it's the only garden tool I know outside of a shovel, and a shovel of romance sounds vaguely threatening."
"It kinda does," Felicity agreed, and then sighed heavily. "Okay, it's a little hard to explain…"
"Do your best, poppet, I'll fill in the blanks with my vast repository of knowledge on the subject of love."
"I was basically raised by my mom." Felicity rubbed her arm distractedly. "She did her best, it wasn't easy. My dad… well, he just left one day, I don't really know why." Felicity looked away, staring blindly at the far wall. "My mom… it was hard for her… she was just, I don't know… broken afterwards." She looked back at Bunny. "It was like she was in all these little pieces, and she never quite figured out how to put them back together again. Don't get me wrong," said Felicity hastily, "my mom worked really hard to provide for us both, and she loved me a lot, a lot lot."
"That's a lot of lots." Bunny gave her a warm smile. "And completely understandable because you are absolutely impossible not to love, my poppet."
"Yeah, well, I wasn't always that lovable around my mom," said Felicity in regret. "She was just all over the place, particularly when it came to men. I think she was looking for that one to make the pain from losing my father go away. Turns out, he doesn't exist." She fiddled with her thumbnail. "But my mom, she keeps on trying."
"And that's your issue, you don't want to say I love you to monkey because you think he'll abandon you one day?"
Felicity gave a sad little smile. "Not willingly," she said huskily, "but Oliver and this…" Felicity waved her hand around the round, "this isn't a choice for him, this is who he is. Oliver Queen is the Arrow and the Arrow is Oliver. You can't separate the two, and the Arrow is always going to have to put the mission, the welfare of others before his own needs… and that includes me." She saw Bunny frown. "I know that sounds awful, and I don't mean it that way. Oliver's a hero… heroes don't get to be selfish, they have to be selfless, that's part of the deal. I know he'll do everything in his power to protect me, but when all is said and done, I don't get to ask him not to go and put his life in danger, because that's not who he is. Oliver can't give me everything I want." A soft smile touched her lips. "But he gives me everything I need. Oliver is amazing. His capacity for forgiveness and loyalty is pretty much boundless. He's a good man, Bunny, at his very core, still… despite all the horrible, soul destroying things that have happened to him, Oliver is still a good man. I find that remarkable… I find him remarkable."
Bunny scratched his cheek. "Poppet, I'm still not quite seeing the issue here. If you've reconciled yourself to the fact that the crusade will always come first for monkey—"
"I have, it isn't always easy, but I have."
"And the fact that one day you might lose him to the cause—"
"I don't think anyone can really prepare for that," said Felicity somberly, "but I know it's part of the deal of loving anyone, superhero or not. I'm already in love with Oliver, there is no way of protecting myself from-from that." She wavered on the last little bit, not quite able to say the words. Oliver dying would destroy her, but that was a fact whether she said those three little words aloud or not.
"Then the hesitation is coming from…?"
Felicity drew in a deep breath. "My father was the love of my mother's life. She told me that once, when I asked about him. That was one of the rare times she talked about him. She hardly ever did, once he was gone. She wasn't being withholding." Feicity gave a self-deprecating smile. "My mother is kinda the opposite when it comes to that. Most of the time you have to hold her back."
"That's not a terrible trait, darling," said Bunny indulgently. "I'm quite a fan of over the top myself."
"You and my mom would get on like a house on fire," said Felicity dryly.
Bunny chuckled. "Of that I have no doubt."
Felicity's expression became more drawn. "I think, when it came to my dad, it was just too painful for her to talk about him. When my mom loves, she's all in, no holding back, and that was how she loved him." She fiddled with her nail again. "And then he left. I'm scared if I open the floodgates with Oliver, and say those words out loud, then I'm just going to swamp him in all that crazy Smoak love. What if it was that kind of love which drove my father away? Oliver thinks he wants all of my love, but I thought I wanted the 'Death by Ice Cream' sundae at this diner when I was nine. It had all twenty-one flavors of ice cream in it, whipped cream, a pint of chocolate fudge sauce, a bag of marshmallows, crushed nuts... it was almost bigger than I was. I was nearly had to be hospitalized with the severe brain freeze I gave myself, and that was before the vomiting started. I think there was more that came out of me of that sundae than went in."
"Well, I guess it was true to label then," said Bunny in amusement.
Felicity grabbed his arm. "But what if it's like that for Oliver and me? I say I love you, and that's it, he gets full-strength Felicity in love. We Smoaks don't love like other people, we're out of control."
"But you already love Oliver, as you said, the words don't change anything."
"The words change the fact that I've given myself permission to being all in with him, and Oliver says he wants that, but he can't possible know what that's going to be like," said Felicity fretfully. "To be honest, I don't even know what it's going to be like, but I suspect it'll be a lot like that movie where the rogue wave engulfs the Poseidon. He won't see it coming, and suddenly he'll be like Kurt Russell upside down, trying to climb out the propeller bay."
"I haven't seen that movie," said Bunny idly.
"You'd love it – it has Kurt Russell and Josh Lucas soaking wet 80% of the movie."
Bunny grinned. "That does sound like something I'd enjoy. We'll have to have a girl's night and watch it together."
"Sounds good."
"But, first, let me just put your fears to rest." Bunny put his hand over Felicity's which was still on his arm. "You don't have to worry about your love overwhelming monkey. Have you seen how broad those shoulders of his are? They can absolutely shoulder more than a little Smoak loving… and to be honest, that man needs more than a little love. You meet him, and the first thing you see is all that pain he carries like a suit of armor." Bunny pursed his lips. "Well, to be brutally honest, the first thing I saw was his heaving, sweaty torso pulling itself up and down that ladder thingy… everything went blank there for a moment when that happened."
"It's pretty distracting, isn't it?" agreed Felicity readily.
"Darling, Godzilla rampaging through downtown Tokyo is distracting. Oliver Queen dangling from a bar, every muscle on his body straining and glistening like…" Bunny gave a little shudder. "I'll stop there, but I think you know where I was going with that."
"It's a well-worn track," said Felicity, still loving watching Oliver do the salmon ladder to this day. It just never got old. "In fact I've got a booth on that track. Sell bottled water and t-shirts that read 'Your Work Out is my Warm up.'"
"I'll take one of those t-shirts in every size you've got," said Bunny cheekily. "But that man, physique of a Greek God or not, is hurting, and in need of large doses of love. It's a match made in heaven. Sweetie, monkey is more than ready for your rogue wave, you're not going to capsize him."
It made Felicity feel better to hear Bunny say those words to her. She really hoped they were true, but there were still some lingering doubts. She pulled an unhappy face. "I told you it didn't really make sense."
"Darling, you feel what you feel, there is no right or wrong," said Bunny philosophically. "One day you'll just look at that man of yours, and know it's the right time to say those words he's waiting for. You can't rush these things."
Felicity sat back in her chair and sighed. "As long as Oliver doesn't get sick of waiting around."
"Poppet, that boy is stuck on you like pretty on George Clooney. Trust your Aunty Bunny, he's not going anywhere, no matter how long it takes."
Felicity smiled, really appreciating Bunny's optimism about everything. She just hoped he was right.
#
The man pulled out his cell phone as he walked out of the Starling City bus depot, suitcase in hand. He flicked through the various screens until he found the address of a hotel within walking distance from the terminal. Getting his bearings, the man briskly walked the darkened six blocks until he was at the Barrett Hotel. Walking inside, there was a red-headed woman who looked to be in her early twenties behind the reception desk, and he made a beeline for her. "Hi there. I rang earlier about booking a room. I spoke with a Claire. I'm Felix Finlay."
"That was me," she confirmed. "And I have your booking right here, Mr. Finlay." She tapped away at the computer screen in front of her. "I'll just need to see some proof of ID."
Felix reached for his wallet, and handed her his ID, looking around himself as Claire put his details into the computer. The hotel wasn't exactly in its first flush of youth. The wallpaper was tired and outdated, the carpet well-worn, but none of that mattered to him. The place was affordable, and affordable was something he needed right then. Claire handed back his ID, and Felix pocketed it. "Is there a bus line around here which can get me into the city easily?"
"Whereabouts in the city are you looking to go to?"
"Queen Consolidated."
"That's right in the heart of the city. Up a block there is a bus stop. It pretty much runs every half hour into the city during the day. At night it's every hour. You won't have any trouble getting in."
He smiled. "Thank you, Claire, I appreciate your help."
The woman smiled back at him. "Are you in town for long?"
Felix blinked, pushing back his dark fringe from his face and readjusted the brown leather satchel over his shoulder. "I'm not sure," he said slowly. "It kind of depends on a few things."
"Well, I hope you have a lovely stay with us," said Claire, brightly. "Starling City has a lot of fun things to do. If you need any suggestions, just ask."
"I'll do that, thanks, Claire."
Felix collected his suitcase and key, and walked over to the elevator. He stepped inside, and pressed the button for the fourth floor. The old contraption rattled and swayed a little with the effort of carrying him to his floor, but they made it, despite the groans of complaint from the ancient mechanisms. Felix stepped out onto the stained carpet, and hastily made his way to his room. Once there he laid his suitcase on the bed, and then opened it. He took out the newspaper he'd brought from Gotham City, sitting on the bed. He turned to the entertainment section. Felix studied the picture carefully, probably for the fiftieth time. "They spelt your name wrong," he murmured, finger absently brushing the blonde's arm. "You hate that… almost as much as you hate obvious puns." Felix looked over to his suitcase to the large white envelope resting there, and pursed his lips, thinking how that wasn't the only thing one Felicity Meghan Smoak was going to hate. The next few days were going to be more than a little interesting, that was for sure.
A/N: So, mystery man has a name now. We'll see more of Felix as this story unfolds. I have more than a few plans for our Mr. Finlay. ;)
