Title- Let There Be Light
Author- Kim
Summary- What if Green Arrow responded differently when he found out about Speedy's drug addiction?
DC owns all characters.
Notes- Some quotations in the beginning are direct from the Green Lantern/ Green Arrow story "They Say It'll Kill Me But They Won't Say When" which of course belongs to DC
Part 3
Roy pushed open the door of the cabin and stumbled inside, he couldn't remember exactly how he'd found his way here but had a vague recollection of being dropped off by a rough looking bearded man who seemed happy to get the boy out of his car.
The cabin was dusty and cobwebs hung from the ceiling it was obvious it hadn't been used in a very long time. Staggering to a filthy bunk bed Roy collapsed on it and curled up, sweating and shivering and feeling miserable. He closed his eyes and tried to sleep hoping that if he could, sleep would relieve him from some of his misery, the stomach cramps had eased slightly, but he still felt rotten.
Roy tossed and turned, although he was exhausted that elusive sleep refused to come, after a while he sat up, suppressing a moan at the sudden wave of nausea that hit him. He sat still for a long time before reaching down to his duffel bag and pulling out a bottle of water, taking a drink he cursed when he realized there was no more than a mouthful left in the bottle, feeling a sudden rise of anger he hurled the bottle across the room, then picking up the duffel bag he threw it as well.
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Sweating profusely in the hot morning sun Ollie turned to offer Dinah his hand to help her up the embankment, they had spent the night sleeping in the car before going to the reservation and discovering that no one there had seen Roy. Dejected, they had been about to leave when a boy about Roy's age had mentioned the cabin they were now heading to, apparently the boy's father and Brave Bow would take the two boys to the cabin for weekend hunting trips, it hadn't been used in a long time, but the boy felt there was a good chance that if Roy wanted to be by himself that's where he would have gone.
The boy had told Ollie and Dinah how to get there, he hadn't however told them it was a good couple of hours walk from the reservation.
"I'm gonna kill that kid when I find him." Ollie puffed.
Dinah smiled slightly, she knew the archer was as worried as she was, what Ollie said wasn't always the way he felt "We have to find him first." she remarked.
"I'd forgotten how freakin hot this hell hole is." Ollie whined.
"How long has it been since you came here?" Dinah asked curiously.
"Haven't been back since I picked Roy up... not exactly the kinda place I like to holiday." Ollie said wryly.
Dinah stopped still "I thought you said this was the only place Roy would call home?" she asked.
Pausing Ollie replied "Yeah its his idea of a dream holiday, not mine."
"Oliver Queen are you telling me that boy has never been back here since the day you took him with you?" Dinah asked shocked.
Ollie stared at her, raising an eyebrow slightly, why was it that he could managed to get her angry with him without even trying? "Well I've been kinda busy, you should know what that's like.' he said sarcastically.
"I can't believe you don't you ever think Ollie? You took that boy away from his home, the only home he had ever really known and you never so much as bothered to bring him back to visit because you didn't like it here and you were too busy?...If you were so god damned busy why the hell did you take him in the first place?" Dinah said angrily.
"I took him because he had to go somewhere, Brave Bow was dying and the rest of the tribe wanted him to leave because he wasn't Navajo." Ollie snapped back.
Dinah looked stunned "They wanted him to leave? They didn't want him here anymore?"
"Nah...look it wasn't like they just decided to boot him out, they had his best interest at heart..he was almost thirteen they felt it was time for him to get to know who he was, were he came from, until then the kid was raised Navajo, but he didn't really fit in..he understood, he knew he didn't belong to the tribe and why they wanted him to go."
"He knew? Or he said he knew? Those are two different things Ollie...For crying out loud, have you considered what that boy must have been going through?" Dinah yelled, tears forming in her eyes as the realization that there was more to the whole situation than she had first thought.
Ollie stood quietly, taken aback by Dinah's reaction. "Dinah..I..Look I spent a real lot of time with the kid for the first twelve months or so, I knew he was missing his life here so I made sure I put the time into him."
"And after that first twelve months? How much time did you spend with him then?" Dinah asked.
"Still a lot, maybe not as much cause he had the Titans to keep him busy..." Ollie paused a sudden thought hit him "The Titans disbanded almost twelve months ago." he said quietly.
"And you've been running around the country side for most of that time..on your damned crusades, righting everyone else's wrongs, while your boy has been slowly falling apart back home...For gods sake Ollie what were you thinking..."
"He was almost sixteen..he didn't need a babysitter, I taught him to be strong, to hang tough..he didn't need me around to hold his hand all the time." Ollie said,cutting Dinah off.
Dinah stared at Ollie a tear running down her face. "Fifteen, and he was so tough that he needed drugs to cope with feeling abandoned...his father dies, the man who raised him dies, his tribe rejects him, his friends disband and the man who took him in makes it clear that he isn't worth sticking around for..." Dinah brushed tears from her eye's "If anything happens to that boy I'll never forgive you Ollie."
Ollie stood stunned by Dinah's outburst as she stormed past him pushing him out of the way.
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Roy jumped at the touch on his shoulder, automatically striking out at the person leaning over him.
Dinah easily dodged the poorly aimed strike.."Hey it's ok kiddo..It's all right it's just me" she soothed.
Roy sat up stunned as his brain began to remember the events of the last couple of days...his eye's slowly adjusted and he could see Ollie silhouetted in the bright light coming through the doorway.. "W..What...How did you find me?..What are you doing here?" he finally managed to stammer.
"You lead us on a merry chase kid." Ollie said gruffly as he began to open the shutters on the cabins windows to let some light in.
Roy moaned and put his hand over his eye's to protect the from the light.."Why?" he asked hoarsely, wiping his watery eye's and pushing himself up to the end of the bunk, sitting with his legs bent, he wrapped his arms around his knees and rested his forehead on top of them.
Dinah reached out to touch his shoulder, frowning and removing her hand as the boy winced and pulled away from her touch.
"We came to take you home kid." Ollie stated.
"You don't have any use for me remember." Roy snarled, reminding Ollie of the words he had said to him a few nights before..the shivering began uncontrollably again and Roy hugged his knees tighter.
Dinah shook of a dusty blanket and draped it over the boys shoulders "Roy Ollie was upset..." she began.
"This is none of your business lady." Roy snapped.
"Shut your mouth...and get your gear together, your coming home with us." Ollie snapped back.
"I'm not going anywhere with you." Roy yelled.
"How stupid are you kid..you can't stay up here..you could die up here and no one would know." Ollie said a touch of concern creeping into his voice as he realized yelling at the boy would do no good.
Roy looked up..his eye's locking with Ollie's briefly before looking away."Die up here?...Do you really think I care about that?..That would be a relief..I woulda done that ages ago, but like you said I'm weak.. to weak to do it myself." Roy broke off.
Dinah reached out to touch the boys arm, as she looked at Ollie seeing the horror of Roy's words settling into a mask of shock on the archers face.
"Roy I..." Ollie started.
"Go away..leave me alone...dammit I just wanna die." Roy snapped as he stiffled a sob.
Ollie quickly walked over and sat beside the boy, placing a hand on his shoulder and leaving it there even though he could feel the boy tense at the touch. "I'm sorry I can't do that...I mightn't show it cause I'm a stubborn ass, but... I care about you too much to let you throw your life away...I'm sorry Roy" He said quietly.
Dinah moved to pull the boy into her arms.."Please let us help you Roy?" she asked desperately her voice breaking as her own tears spilled down her face.
Roy stiffened for a moment before slowing wrapping his arms around Dinah's neck, Dinah hugged him tightly as he sobbed against her shoulder.."Please Roy?" she begged again, relieved to feel the boy's nodded agreeance.
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