Disclaimer: I do not own Arrow.
I am sorry it's been a while, I will try to update sooner.
CNRI
Afternoon
Laurel was at her desk, going over some case files as she was having a conversation on the phone.
"How is he John?" Laurel asked.
"Bad, really bad." Diggle said grimly.
"Define 'bad.'" Laurel said tersely.
"He doesn't seem to want to be The Hood anymore. And he doesn't really seem to care that Walter Steele is missing. Whatever happened when you fought the other archer, it spooked him, bad. I've never seen him like this. Can't you try talking to him, he'll listen to you." Diggle asked.
"Ever since the fight with the archer, I'm lucky if he so much as looks at me, never mind talks to me. I haven't even gotten a phone call since we got out of the hospital." Laurel said frustrated.
"You know…some of the guys I served with find it hard to open up, so they push people close to them away. You haven't given up on him yet; don't give up on him now." Diggle told her.
"I won't." Laurel promised as she hung up the phone.
"Everything okay?" Joanna asked as she walked up to her friend.
"Yeah," Laurel happened to look up and see her father walk in, "what are you doing here dad?"
"I need to talk to Jo." Quentin said in a solemn tone that set off warning bells in Laurel's head.
"Is everything okay Mr. Lance?" Joanna asked curiously.
"No." Quentin said as a man in a uniform with various metals walked in.
"What's going on?" Laurel asked as the man walked up to Joanna.
"Her brother Danny was killed on duty last night." Quentin explained sadly.
Laurel simply stood there, shocked for a moment until Joanna's cries of denial reached her ears. Laurel walked over and pulled her friend into a hug. Joanna broke down as Laurel attempted to comfort her.
Arrow Lair, next day
Morning
"What are you doing here?" Oliver asked as he walked into the lair to see Laurel already there.
"Well, this seems to be the only way I can get you to talk to me since you won't answer my calls. Relax, this isn't about us, it's about the job," Laurel said as she walked over and handed Oliver a file, "the other night, my best friend Joanna's brother was killed on duty. He's a firefighter."
"I remember," Oliver said as he opened the file, "is there something suspicious about this death or is it personal?"
"His turnout coat was doused in Turpentine, which wasn't in the factory. And a turnout coat is supposed to withstand up to five-hundred degrees but the fire didn't reach half that. And there was another firefighter who died under the same circumstances last week. One is strange, two is suspicious." Laurel told him as Oliver read the file.
"What do you expect me to do about this?" Oliver asked as he closed the file.
"I expect you to help me look into it. If not because that's the kind of man you are, than for me. If you care about me at all, even a little, you will help with this." Laurel said as she gave him a hard look.
"What's that?" Diggle asked as he walked in and spotted the file in Oliver's hand.
"Laurel thinks someone is killing firemen," Oliver said without looking away from Laurel, "you have a contact, right?"
"Yeah, I have a friend who has a friend in the fire investigation department." Diggle said as Oliver handed him the file.
"Reach out, have him look into it." Oliver ordered and Laurel beamed at him.
"Thank you Ollie." Laurel kissed him on the cheek before walking out.
"Looks all in the job." Diggle noted as he opened the file.
"If you find anything, send it to the police." Oliver said and Diggle looked at him sharply.
"The police?" Diggle asked skeptically.
"They just need something to jump start the investigation." Oliver said dismissively.
"Isn't the whole point of being a vigilante so you can do the police's job? I thought after six weeks, you'd be eager to hood up, I even prepared the 'you need to slow down' speech." Diggle told him.
Some commotion from upstairs stopped Oliver from responding. Without a word to Diggle, Oliver walked upstairs. Diggle stared after him, concerned for his friend.
CNRI
Afternoon
"He's still not there yet?" Laurel asked as she talked to Diggle on the phone.
"No. He's spooked, like I said. I've never seen him this spooked Laurel," Diggle paused, "Stagg Industries was lit up ten minutes ago. I was digging around earlier and eye witnesses report a seventy-two pickup at the scene of Danny de la Vega's murder. I hacked the security feeds; guess what I'm looking at?"
"That same pickup." Laurel as she stood up.
"Should I get Oliver?" Diggle asked.
"No, I sent him to get help. If he won't listen to us, then maybe he'll listen to someone else." Laurel said before hanging up.
Ted Grant's gym
Same time
"Laurel, hello?" Oliver called out as he walked into the gym.
"Laurel's not here." Oliver whirled around to see Ted walk out from behind the boxing ring.
"She lied when she said she wanted to meet me here, didn't she?" Oliver asked and Ted nodded.
"I think it's time we had a talk Mr. Queen…or would you prefer The Hood?" Ted asked and Oliver's eyes widened in shock.
Stagg Chemical
Later in the afternoon
Black Canary moved through the building, looking for anything suspicious. Well, she thought a man in a turnout coat holding a fellow firefighter and not pulling him up was pretty suspicious. She jumped off the ledge she was standing on but at that point the firefighter had already fallen, consumed by the flames. Taking out her side-baton, she swung at him but he dodged it before stepping out of the way and knocking her off her feet with a well-placed kick. She rolled out of the way as he tried to strike her with his axe. She stood up just as the man reached inside his coat and pulled something out. Black Canary just caught sign of a firefly tattoo on his hand before he threw down a small explosive. She jumped back as there was an explosion of fire and the man walked away as Black Canary growled irritably.
Ted Grant's gym
Same time
"Here." Ted handed Oliver a beer before sitting across from him in his office.
"Laurel told you." Oliver said but Ted shook his head.
"She didn't say a thing; I put it together on my own. It's easy to figure out if you know what to look for," Ted smirked at Oliver's face before becoming serious, "for a while now, I've wanted to thank you."
"For what?" Oliver asked confused.
"When you first started out, you saved Laurel's life. I wanted to thank you for that." Ted said and Oliver nodded.
"Somehow, I don't think that's why Laurel called me here." Oliver said and Ted laughed.
"You'd be right. Laurel has been…concerned about you since your fight with the other archer," Ted said and Oliver tensed, "I know you don't know me but you honestly remind me of myself. I was like you once. I was in the army and after I left it behind, I became a vigilante to try and help the city. I wasn't like you and Laurel though, I stuck to the Glades. If you won't talk to Laurel or your friend John Diggle, maybe you'll talk to me. I won't judge, I'm just going to listen."
"…when I was away, I had been near death multiple times," Oliver began after several moments passed, as though he was talking to himself, "and I never feared it. Because I had nothing to lose. But when that archer almost killed me, I thought about all the people I had reconnected with since I've been back. My mother, my sister, my best friend…Laurel. And I thought about what would happen to them if I died. And for the first time in so long…I had something to lose. And that scared me, terrified me."
"I can relate," Ted said and Oliver seemed to realize he wasn't alone in the room, "When I was a vigilante, I had no one, nothing to live for. I thought it made me strong, that I had no one my enemies could use against me. It wasn't until I started training Laurel that I realized I was wrong. Having someone to care about doesn't take your edge Oliver, it gives you one. A stronger one. Having something to live for is better than having nothing."
Arrow Lair
Later in the afternoon
"What's going on?" Oliver inquired as he walked in to see Laurel and Diggle at the computer.
"We have a lead." Laurel said without looking up.
"What is it?" Oliver asked and Laurel looked at him surprised.
"The first firefighter to die was named Garfield Lynns. I encountered the suspect, his arm was severely burned and he had a firefly tattoo. All the firefighters had alibies for Danny's murder, what if Lynns didn't die?" Laurel proposed.
"He would be angry…and vengeful.
Verdant
Night
"Hey man, how's it going?" Tommy asked as he stopped Oliver and Laurel.
"Great. Can you excuse us; we have someone we really need to talk to." Oliver said.
"Sure, I've got something I gotta do anyway." Tommy said before walking off.
Oliver and Laurel walked off until they reached their target.
"Chief Raynes, so glad you could make it." Laurel said as Raynes turned around.
"Good to see you Ms. Lance," Raynes nodded before turning to Oliver, "Mr. Queen, this really is something. On behalf of the Starling City Firemen's Relief Association, I can't thank you enough."
"You guys are the real heroes. Like at the Nodell tower fire," Oliver said and Raynes began to look uncomfortable, "You know, I read that Garfield Raynes was the first firefighter to die. They recovered his coat but they never found his body, right?"
"Do you always interrogate your guests, Mr. Queen?" Raynes asked tersely.
"Do you feel like you're being interrogated?" Laurel asked innocently.
"I've been doing this a long time and I've seen a fire like that," Raynes said after a moment, "it was like some monster out of a science-fiction movie. I told my men to get out of there, but Lynns wouldn't do it. He begged me to send the unit back in but I couldn't do it. I left him to burn," Raynes said as he took a drink, "but I can't bring him back."
"You don't have to, he is back." Oliver said bluntly.
"What?" Raynes demanded.
"Lynns killed Danny and the other men on your unit." Laurel told.
"That's impossible; no one could have survived that." Raynes denied.
"You'd be surprised the power revenge can bring." Oliver said as he thought of a time on Lian Yu.
"You cannot die until you have known complete despair." Slade's words flooded his mind.
"You're insane; Gar did not make it out of that building." Raynes dismissed.
"Just like you won't make it out of this one." The three whirled around to see a badly burned man in a turnout coat.
Lynns threw an explosive and it detonated on the bar, setting fire. The crowd screamed as they ran. In the chaos, Lynns took of his hat.
"Gar what the hell are you doing?" Raynes asked as Lynns took out a nozzle.
"Run." Lynns told Oliver and Laurel.
They turned and ran, running over to the lair. They entered it and rushed down stairs, taking out their costumes and put them on. Once they had changed, they rushed back up. As they reached the scene, they saw Raynes, soaked in gasoline and Lynns threw a lit lighter. The Hood notched an arrow and fired, sending the lighter away and both firemen turned to them.
"Go!" The Hood ordered and Raynes didn't need to be told twice.
Black Canary took out two side-batons as the two vigilantes circled Lynns.
"I'm not afraid to die." He told them.
"I know. You're afraid to live," The Hood said as he lowered his bow, "let me get you out of here, let me get you help.
"Thanks, but I've already been burned." Lynns said as he turned around.
"Wait don't!" Black Canary called out but it was too late.
Lynns held out his arms towards the fire and they caught fire. It spread to his coat and silently, the man fell to the ground, dead.
Laurel's apartment, next day
Afternoon
"This is from Joanna," Laurel said as she handed the badge to boyfriend, "it was Danny's, she wanted you to have it."
"I'm not in this for the glory," Oliver said but taking it nevertheless, "you didn't tell me Grant knew my secret."
"I would have had you answered when I called." Laurel said sharply and Oliver winced.
"Yeah, I deserved that." Oliver admitted and Laurel sighed.
"Ollie, if this is gonna work, you can't shut me out. You gotta let me in. not trying to be pushy but that's the only way this will work." Laurel told him and he sighed.
"It's not that easy. When I was away, someone told me 'you can only trust yourself.' That is what I lived by for five years; it's what kept me alive. But I'm trying here Laurel." Oliver told her and she smiled softly.
"I know you are," Laurel said as she put a hand on his cheek, "are you going out tonight?"
"Yes. Are you?" Oliver asked and she laughed.
"Do you even have to ask?" Laurel teased and he smiled.
"I love you," Oliver said and she froze, "I know it's soon…but I love you."
"I love you to." Laurel smiled as she leaned in and kissed him.
Before either knew it, Oliver had her pressed up against the wall as they kissed fiercely.
So, what do you think? Please leave any thoughts or comments you may have in a review, feedback is greatly appreciated.