Notes: I'm more than a little astonished at the reception this mini story within my drabble collection has received. I guess you never can tell when a little idea will spark and resonate with your readers. Thank you to everyone who took the time to write a review or favorite the series. Your feedback has been what's kept the story going.
The Arrow characters and universe do not belong to me.
The sound of the Foundry door slamming and Dig's feet echoing off the metal stairs had Oliver rising from the edge of Felicity's desk. He was relieved to see what he hoped was a friendly face. When he arrived twenty minutes earlier he'd received a very cold welcome from Roy who, along with Thea and Barry, were now giving him the sullen silent treatment. Dig held Oliver's gaze for a moment before he turned to address the others. "Give us a few minutes and we can run through the plan again."
"Did you see her?" Roy asked, ignoring his dismissal. Oliver perked up because the only her they could be referring to was Felicity.
Dig gave Roy a gentle smile. "I even got to speak with her. She's banged up, but alright." Dig clasped the younger man reassuringly on the shoulder. "She's actually more worried about you than herself."
Oliver watched as his family and friends sighed in relief. Clearly something other than Felicity's arrest had happened while he'd been in transit from Nanda Parbat. He moved closer to Dig, but was waved off with a warning glare.
"I hope you didn't tell her our plans. She'll be a nervous wreck." Thea said.
"I figured she had enough to worry about." Dig tilted his head towards the stairs.
Oliver waited for the door to Verdant to close behind Roy, Thea and Barry before he spoke. "Banged up? Is Felicity alright?"
Dig folded his arms across his chest. "What are you doing here?"
So, that was how it was going to be, Oliver thought to himself as he did his best to swallow his anger. He'd hoped that at least Dig would've forgiven him for leaving. "You should've contacted me the minute she was arrested. If Laurel hadn't contacted me, would you ever have contacted me?"
"You made your choice, Oliver. Besides, she asked me not to contact you."
The barely healed chest wound given to him by Ra's began to ache with Dig's words. Oliver stepped closer to his former bodyguard and pointed an accusing finger. "You should've been the one to let me know she was in trouble."
"I respected her choice."
"I don't give a damn what she wanted. You should've contacted me."
Anger flashed across Dig's face, but he kept his voice calm. "You not caring what she wants is exactly what's gotten you into this mess."
Oliver was so tired of everyone accusing him of intentionally hurting Felicity. He loved her. No, he loves her, but he doesn't know how to separate Oliver Queen from the Arrow. Felicity deserves a whole man who isn't going to die violently and bring death to all of the people he loved. He knows they think he accepted Ra's offer for the promise of immortality, but he doesn't want to live forever. He accepted the offer because he needs control over his destiny. From the moment the Gambit sank, Oliver has been powerless. It's only when he's the Arrow that he feels like he has any control. Becoming the Heir to the Demon has made him feel like he finally has power over his life. Or it did, until he received word that Felicity had been arrested. "That's not what I meant and you know it."
Dig chose mercy over anger when he said, "She doesn't want you here because she wants you to be safe. She's afraid that if you're here the police will finally put you and her together and get the Arrow." Dig pointed at the stairs. "We've got it handled."
As he embarked on his return to Starling he'd taken comfort in knowing that the others would be working towards a solution, but now that he was back, it just felt wrong that he wasn't part of the plan. Oliver began to pace between Felicity's desk and the table where he'd once sharpened his arrows. "I had a right to know that she was in trouble." He didn't care if he sounded like a wounded child.
"A right?" Dig moved to block Oliver on his circuit. "You gave up any right when you accepted Ra's offer. Why the hell did you come back?"
Hurt flashed across Oliver's face. He couldn't believe that things had changed so much between him and Dig that his friend didn't think he'd drop everything when he learned Felicity was arrested. "Did you really think I wouldn't come back the moment I found out?"
"Honestly, man, I thought I knew you right up until the moment you chose the devil over your friends and family."
Oliver had no desire to rehash his decision to join the League. "Is she hurt? You said she's banged up."
"She got jumped on her way to the showers last night. Fractured cheekbone, broken arm, broken wrist, a few cracked ribs and a sprained ankle. She'll be alright, eventually."
Oliver's knees went weak and he sat heavily in his old chair. When he'd left for Nanda Parbat he thought Felicity would be better off without him. He thought her relationship with Ray would have a better chance of making her happy if he wasn't around looking lovelorn and heartbroken. Now she was facing prison because of him and he'd been on the other side of the world when she needed him. The Arrow had made lots of enemies and the majority of them were in prison. Felicity would never be safe if she was convicted of being his accomplice. She absolutely could not go to prison. "What do they have on her?"
"According to Jean, nothing. Lance hasn't yet admitted that she was his intermediary with the Arrow. Everything else is circumstantial and speculation."
Lance's behavior was a mystery to him. He knew the man had a soft spot for Felicity and Oliver had always believed that if push came to shove, Lance would protect her. "Why is he doing this? He knows Laurel and Roy work with the Arrow too. Why hasn't he gone after them? Why Felicity?"
Dig arched an eyebrow at him. "Lance is in a world of pain over Sara. He wants to punish someone and making the Arrow suffer is his way of grieving. Even if he doesn't know that you're the Arrow, he knows that Felicity is an effective weapon to wield. You wouldn't have come home if he arrested Laurel or Roy. Felicity is the best way to lure you out."
Lance was right. Felicity was his pressure point and he'd be willing to risk his own freedom to secure hers. He moved to stand in front of the case that still held his green leather. "Well, it worked."
"Revealing yourself won't help her. If anything, it might make it worse."
Oliver lifted the bow Felicity had made for him. He'd left it behind when he left to join Ra's because he feared it would be too painful of a reminder of what he'd given up. The familiarity of it as it balanced perfectly in his hand gave him comfort. "I won't let her rot in jail for me. She deserves better."
"We're not planning on letting her rot. If the judge doesn't drop the charges or grant her bail, we'll extract her."
Oliver shook his head as he imagined Felicity's life in hiding. For a brief moment he thought that they could run away together, but he knew better than most that a life lived while constantly looking over your shoulder was not a life at all. "So she can be a fugitive? No, I won't let her live the rest of her life on the run."
"She won't be on the run." Dig looked away and Oliver saw something he'd never seen on his face before, shame.
His blood ran cold as he understood what had been planned in his absence. "No, absolutely not. How can you even think that?" Oliver roared.
"She won't be on the Suicide Squad. She'll get to work with all the cutting edge technology she loves and she'll have her freedom. She won't be able to live in Starling, but she'll have a shot at a life."
His heart began to race as he thought of his former captor holding her heel to Felicity's throat. "Waller will destroy her." He spun to face Dig. "Did Felicity agree to this?"
"Not yet. I was going to wait and see what happened today. If the charges are dropped, the conversation won't be necessary."
"Absolutely not. We're not handing her over to Amanda. There is another way." Oliver rubbed his hands over his face and head. "If they don't drop the charges today, I will tell Jean that I'm the Arrow and have her make a deal. I'll agree to confess to everything in exchange for immunity for the rest of you. I'll tell them I threatened all of your lives if you didn't cooperate with me."
Dig looked worried. "Have you thought about this? You will go to jail for the rest of your life. You'll have to remain in solitary confinement until everyone you ever put away is dead."
Oliver knew that Dig was thinking of one of the stories he'd told his partner over vodka about his time away. After Waller pulled him from the freighter but before he went to live with Maseo, she'd placed him in solitary confinement. For two months he didn't see, hear or speak to another human being. He was locked in an eight by four cinder block room that had a cot, a toilet and a sink with nothing to distract him from the waking nightmares that played endlessly in his mind. He'd nearly lost his mind as the memory of the deaths of his father, Sara, Shado and Slade played on a continuous loop. Maseo was the first person he saw when he was released. As an introduction, his new handler had punched him and knocked him to the ground. As Oliver lay panting on the ground he knew that he'd agree to say or do anything as long as it kept him from being returned to his cell and his own thoughts. "I know what it means and I don't care. John, this is Felicity. I don't have any choice."
For the first time since he entered the Foundry, Dig's face softened. "Let's see what happens today."
"How long are you going to be angry with me?" Oliver surprised himself with his own question. The hardest thing about his new life in Nanda Parbat wasn't the brutal training, but waking every day knowing that there wouldn't be an easy conversation with Dig or a smile from Felicity for him to look forward to. He was alone, but more than that, he was lonely. He missed his friends more than he thought possible.
Dig snorted in an approximation of a laugh. "I don't know. How long are you going to keep making decisions that hurt yourself and all the people you love?"
"I never wanted to hurt anyone."
"I know, but that's exactly what you did. Oliver, make a better choice."
Oliver wished it was that easy. More than anything he'd like to do the last six months over. "It's too late."
"As long as we're all still breathing, it's not too late."
Oliver wanted to believe that Dig was right, but then he remembered that Felicity was with another man. "How are things with Felicity and Ray?"
"As good as things can be between two people who are in love with other people."
A spark of hope flared in his belly before he remembered it didn't matter if Felicity was no longer with Ray. Eventually, she'll find someone who'll be able to give her everything he couldn't. Dig was wrong about it not being too late. Dig hadn't been there when Felicity told him that she didn't want to be loved by him. "She'll never forgive me."
Dig sighed. "She loves you. She just needs to know that you're going to choose to have a life and stay."
Oliver knew that there was no going back for them. He would make sure Felicity was safe and then he'd return to the League. For Oliver Queen there'd never be a happy story.
Notes: Thank you for reading. Your feedback is always welcome.
Up Next: The story continues when Oliver and Felicity are reunited.
