Diggle's Return

CONTENT:

Rating: Teen

Flavor: Drama

Language: some

Violence: no

Nudity: none

Sex: none

Other: none

Author's Note:

I had a really wild, dramatic version of this conversation, then toned it down with a newer version... and then ended up using most of the dramatic one, anyway. What can I say? You know what I like!

Diggle's Return

===#===

Things continued, slowly improving. Forcrest had coughed up the money, though he'd cut it pretty close. Oliver was glad he didn't have to pay another visit to his apartment, not with Merlyn. He never did find out what was going on with the police that night. The police didn't advertise their work, and he couldn't just call up and ask. Felicity probably could have found out, but Felicity still wasn't back.

He'd gone up to Merlyn's eyrie a few times, at odd hours, demanding to see her. The businessman always accommodated him, always had a video feed he could turn on so Oliver could watch Felicity like an animal in the zoo. He'd spoken with her once more, but there wasn't much he could say. He tried to reassure her, but she did not sound happy.

Patience, he heard Yao Fei's voice tell him. Oliver was fairly sure that Merlyn wouldn't harm Felicity, the same way he had never truly harmed Walter. He was a dangerous man, make no mistake, but he was reasonable. Despite Oliver's instinct not to trust him, he seemed sincere. Oliver had to be completely impartial in his judgment. The man he was starting to know was so different than he'd expected.

===#===

Then came the day Merlyn kept his first promise: Diggle was being released, all charges dropped. Oliver met him outside the courthouse. "Welcome back," he said with a tight smile as the two men clasped hands and shared a brotherly embrace.

They didn't say much more on the way to the club. Only once they were in the basement could they be free to talk. Diggle turned to him. "Okay, Oliver, what the hell happened that night?"

"Merlyn discovered the Trojan on his system. He knew we were coming. It was a trap."

"All right, but he didn't kill you. Why?"

"Because of my father," he said. "Because of my mother. They're all old friends." Those ties ran deep, the loyalty and friendship between Merlyn and Queen.

"But he couldn't know it was you- could he?"

"Not until I was unconscious."

Diggle's face creased in concern. "So they took off the hood before they finished you. Guess that was lucky. But what about the Undertaking? Where's the Markov device? And where's Felicity?"

"The Undertaking is on hold." Oliver paced, uncomfortable with the direct assault of questions. Demands. "Merlyn still has the device. And Felicity."

"Well, where?"

"I don't know."

"If it's the same place he had Walter, we can raid it again and-"

"No!"

"Oliver-"

He faced the soldier. "We can't do anything that would put Felicity in danger," he said slowly, retaining calm control.

"She is in danger as long as she's a prisoner!" Diggle argued.

"He won't harm her, if we don't try some stupid heroic stunt."

Diggle gaped at him, taken aback. "What's gotten into you? Stupid heroic stunts were your bread and butter."

Feeling guilty and ashamed, Oliver avoided his eyes. He looked towards the empty computer stations.

"It's that Dark Archer, isn't it?" Diggle asked quietly. "He beat you again, and you lost that confidence it took you so long to build back up. Look, you can't let this cripple you. As long as you're alive, you can still fight. You will win." He moved closer, but Oliver still didn't look up. "Unless you give up. Do we know anything about this guy? Who he is, where he trained...?"

"It's him."

"Who?"

"Malcolm Merlyn."

Diggle frowned at him for half a minute. "You're telling me... Malcolm Merlyn... is the Dark Archer?" Not looking up, Oliver nodded. "So- let me get this straight," Diggle said slowly. "Malcolm Merlyn is the guy who- no offense Ollie- kicked the shit out of you last Christmas?"

"Yes." The word felt like lead in his mouth.

"And then...?"

"Yes, he kicked the shit out of me again! Is that what you want to hear?" Oliver flashed a look at Diggle, then turned and moved away.

"You're afraid of him."

He whirled back. "I am not!"

"What did he do to you?"

"Nothing!" Oliver raked his hand through his hair in frustration. He took a few breaths and marshaled his thoughts. Diggle didn't understand. "Malcolm Merlyn isn't our enemy. We both want the same thing."

The soldier folded his arms. "Last I recall, we were about saving lives, not destroying half of Starling City."

"I know it's a little extreme..."

"A little?"

"But the original purpose of the Undertaking was to wipe out crime and corruption. Merlyn's agreed to hold off on his plans while we try less drastic measures."

"We?"

"I've agreed to work with him t-"

"Oliver, you what?"

He huffed in frustration. "He and I have the same goals," he explained.

"You were supposed to defeat this guy, not join him!" The anger in Diggle's voice rang through the basement. He wasn't listening.

"He's not some Pol Pot."

"No, of course not. I was thinking more along the lines of a Hitler!"

Oliver raised his own voice. "You don't know a thing about him!"

Diggle started ticking off points on his fingers. "I know he murdered two guys after they agreed to the Hood's terms; I know he tried to kill you- twice; I know he planned to cause a city-wide disaster that would kill thousands of innocent people. And what about those UNIDAC employees that were killed? The people who invented the device? That was hardly a coincidence." He threw his hands in the air. "What else do I need to know?"

"He's made some mistakes, but he's suffered a lot from violent crime in the Glades."

"That is not an excuse for murdering innocents, Oliver. Innocents!"

"I know that!" he snapped, trying to keep his footing as his convictions were shaken. "But he has agreed to put the Undertaking on hold." That had to be worth something. Not the slayings at UNIDAC, nothing could ever atone for that, but it was worth something. Merlyn was willing to come back from the brink.

Diggle only shook his head. "Put on hold? Oliver, that's businessman bullshit for 'we're going to hide this under the rug until resistance dies down.'"

"You don't understand him like I do."

"What, have you guys been dating?"

Oliver gritted his teeth.

"Because you know, that's just what the abused wife says about her bastard husband."

Rage flashed through Oliver, but when he spoke, his voice was quiet, calm. "You know what, Diggle? I really appreciate the times you've been there for me. You've had my back. You've covered for me. You've pulled my ass out of the fire; I'll never forget that." He squeezed the heat of anger down until his words were ice cold. "But I don't actually need you any more. He can do that now."

"He can? The Dark Archer is going to watch your back?" Diggle asked dryly. "The last time he saw it, he put three arrows in it."

"He's not our enemy."

"He's such a good, trustworthy guy, that you're going to let him 'go green' and stand in for you when you need it?"

Oliver's anger began to slip its leash. "He'd be a damn' sight better than you. At least he can shoot!"

"What has gotten into you, Oliver?"

"If you don't like how I run my operation, you know where the door is."

Diggle actually turned away in disgust. He stopped after only a few steps, then sighed and turned back around. "Is this some bullshit ploy to get me to leave, so Merlyn can't use me as leverage against you?"

Oliver clenched his jaw.

"This is not the time to be pushing your friends away. We're not beaten, Oliver. We can still win this." He returned to Oliver's side. "If we get Felicity back-"

"He'll use the Markov device."

"Well, if we find that-"

"He'll hurt Felicity."

Diggle let out a growl and clenched his hands behind his head. "We can't just sit here doing nothing!" He flung his arms out in frustration.

"This isn't a game," Oliver told him. "The stakes are too high."

"There must be something we can do."

"I'm trying to get him to trust me. Once he knows I won't do anything, then he'll let Felicity go."

"Do you sincerely believe his word on that?"

"I trust his promise to harm Felicity if we don't uphold our end of the deal." Oliver held Diggle's gaze. "Do you doubt that?"

"No." He slumped in defeat. "But the Oliver I used to know would not just sit around while his friend was held prisoner. What the hell did he do to you?"

Oliver shook his head. He didn't feel different. It just seemed more prudent to help Felicity by not forcing Merlyn's hand. "You should go home, Diggle. Get some rest. Celebrate your freedom. If you can't trust me to handle this my way... then don't come back."

===X===

End Notes:

If you want to read the Green & Black AU/AU snippet entitled "The Prisoner," now is the best time. Just remember it's not canon to this story. "The Prisoner" is an AU that explores what might happen if someone breaks the deal with Merlyn. Warning: contains evil!Merlyn and Felicity in Peril.