Chapter 76: We've taken different paths And travelled different roads I know we'll always end up on the same one when we're old And when you're in the trenches And you're under fire I will cover you
Notes:
I know it took me forever to update and I am really sorry about that. There has been a lot going on in my life lately and I've been struggling with this chapter for ages, I'm still not happy with it, it is very short but I'm at a point where I'm sure I'm not going to be able to improve it. So it is what it is. I hope getting this one out will help me move forward and get the next chapters done sooner.
Thank you so much to everyone who is still supporting this story! I really appreciate all the likes, subscribers, favorites, and commenters and everyone else who reads and enjoys it. You guys are awesome and it means the world to me. And I apologize for how long it has taken me to update.
Diggle
The drive to Oliver's apartment had been awkward, to say the least, and didn't help at all, given the current situation. It might have been smarter to use different cars. John had noticed Oliver shutting down his emotions and pushing the issue with Felicity to the back in order to aim all of his focus on Laurel and her missing friend. It was a by now very familiar tactic Oliver used on the regular. It was still fascinating and a little disturbing to him just how quickly Oliver could go from emotional, to turning his emotions off completely as if someone pulled a switch, and becoming rational, single-minded and mission focused.
He was grateful once they reached their destination and they could get out of the car and the very uncomfortable atmosphere that had been present during the entire drive, not that he expected it to become less awkward simply because they were no longer trapped in a vehicle. But no longer being confined helped, a little, until they reached the elevator and the feeling was even more intense. He was glad when they could step outside and faced the entrance to Oliver and Sara's very spacious apartment. Hoping this would ease some of the tension, plus the fact that they were going to focus on their newest mission, would probably help a lot, too.
John watched Oliver step over the threshold and continue his stride until he reached Sara, who had stepped into the corridor at the sound of their arrival, only stopping once he had reached her. Placing one of his hands on her pregnant stomach, wrapping his other arm around her and kissing her temple before pulling her fully into his chest. He watched Sara crumble in Oliver's arms for a split second, before she very obviously and physically pulled herself together, it was almost as if she had given herself this one short moment, while being enfolded in the Green Arrow's embrace to let herself go before pulling the same switch Oliver had, only it didn't work as flawlessly and well as it used to. There was a quiet and mostly silent conversation between the two of them before they pulled apart and turned towards Laurel, Felicity, and him as a united front. He watched Sara quickly take hold of one of Oliver's hands and hold on to it tightly. There were small cracks in her façade. And that was what it essentially was every time Oliver and Sara pushed their feelings aside in order to have their entire focus on the mission. They put on a façade. Rebuilt all the walls surrounding them to keep their emotions at bay so they could put all of their energy and attention on the issue at hand and the current crisis.
John wasn't sure when the last time was that this tactic had this obviously been displayed by Oliver that he almost felt like he had been slapped in the face with it. This was essentially what Oliver had done the past few months, only he had put the façade on before he entered the bunker, probably whenever he left the apartment, and they couldn't see the change in demeanor. Making it less obvious and more difficult for them to detect. Which meant Lyla might have gotten to see a different Oliver than he had whenever she had gone over to visit Sara. He pushed that thought to the back of his mind, like some of the ones he's had while watching the confrontation between Oliver and Felicity unfold to also focus on the matter at hand, and that was Joanna's whereabouts.
He stepped forward and walked into their living room and continued until he reached the dining room, as Oliver had instructed. He could see that space wise it made sense for them to be there, and given Oliver's tendency to be paranoid and the scene he had witnessed not too long ago he also understood why the Green Arrow wouldn't let Felicity use his office and equipment in there, even though it would've been helpful instead of needing to organize everything their IT-genius needed in order to find Joanna as quickly as possible. Especially since he knew Lyla had provided Oliver with said equipment, so it was probably on the same level as the one ARGUS used. Finding anything even in the ballpark was almost impossible as a normal citizen. He knew Felicity had connections and knew how to get her hands on the newest tech, but he wasn't sure who had the better electronics, ARGUS or Felicity or Cisco, who could probably help them out on short notice.
He leaned against the wall closest to the table and watched Laurel and Felicity walk in right behind him and sit down at the table. They were all joined a short time later by Oliver and Sara, who asked them if she could get them anything, and left to get their drinks. When the blonde returned, she had Thea in tow, who was actually carrying the tray with their drinks and some snacks. Thea put everything on the table before sitting down, while Sara had once again taken up her place right beside Oliver and it was only then that Oliver began to share what he had learnt in the last couple of days. And it was mind-blowing and not at all what he had expected. But it looked like Oliver had been right when it came to his source and the trip had been somewhat successful.
Sara joining them with Oliver in the living room and then lingering surprised him. She had stayed out of Green Arrow business so far and Lyla and Laurel had mentioned why. So this was an interesting turn of events and change of heart on Sara's part. It made him wonder what it meant, especially given the situation between Oliver and Felicity and obviously Sara, too. Did it play a part in this or was it because Laurel's best friend was missing, and Sara wanted to help her sister? Or was it because she wanted to provide Oliver with moral support given the bombshell revelation he was sharing and the additional information Sara was providing? He took everything in and stayed mostly quiet during their recount, deciding to watch Oliver and Sara instead.
There was just something about what he had walked in on earlier that made him uneasy. This was why he noticed the way Sara would glance at Felicity, especially when the other blonde spoke up to get clarification for Sara's input about Ra's al Ghul's teachings, which was justified. He had wondered the same thing. But the look the Canary threw in Felicity's direction spoke volumes and definitely fit the 'if looks could kill' category and would've made bigger man cover in fear, which would explain Felicity's sudden silence during the rest of Oliver's explanation.
They had learnt early on that Sara was not someone you wanted to piss off. It was easy for him to recall their first meeting, and Sara threatening him when he tried to stop her from leaving the Foundry to find her father. To do as Oliver had asked her to. He hadn't been certain whether she'd be able to "put him down" as she had put it or not, but the little he had known about the Canary, and the rumors he had heard about the League, were enough to believe her. He knew for a fact now that she was more than capable of putting him down if she wanted to.
February 2014
His eyes were trained on the screen in front of him over Felicity's shoulders, while the blonde was trying to keep track of Oliver and Sara, who were in pursuit of Nyssa and the League, by using traffic cams and security footage. It always impressed him how easy and flawless Felicity managed to keep sight of Oliver while he was on a mission on his bike, usually ignoring any and all speeding or traffic laws, which made anticipating his route and road changes very difficult, especially since he not always used official roads and yet, Felicity rarely lost sight of him.
They watched Sara fall to the ground, get back up and run slightly into the direction the van with her mother inside went, just to stop and scream in anguish and desperation and then everything went black and quiet. All they heard was static.
What the hell just happened?
They tried to contact Oliver again, to fix whatever the issue was, but it was to no avail. Something was wrong with their comms on the Arrow's end. Felicity tried to at least get them back on the screen. If they couldn't communicate with them anymore, they would at least see them and possibly find out what was going on, but that was another fruitless endeavor. All the cameras within their immediate vicinity were suddenly offline, and all they got was a black screen.
"Felicity, can you go back to right before we lost them? Maybe we can make out what happened on one of the cameras." He hoped this would give them the chance to find the answer.
Felicity did as he had asked, and they watched the scene playing out from another angle now and what they saw blew his mind. The moment Sara started screaming, the glass of the cars, windows, and cameras all around her began to burst and shatter. What the hell… how was that possible? Had she activated one of her Canary-bombs? They went through the footage and several others again and again and they all showed the exact same thing.
Sara screamed, hands by her side, empty, and glass began to fly.
They were still going through the footage, perplexed, when they heard the door to the alley open and Oliver stepped into the room without Sara, though. He wondered where the former assassin might have gone and intended to ask his friend that, but somewhere between his mind and his mouth, that question was replaced by another.
"What the hell just happened, Oliver? How did she do that?!" this was probably the weirdest shit he's ever seen.
"I don't know, alright, but I need you to delete the security camera footage, Felicity." Oliver looked a little ruffled, but he was dead serious when he turned towards the blonde woman while making the request.
"How did she do that?" he wasn't going to let up. What he just saw on said footage shouldn't be possible. This wasn't normal. And Sara had obviously not been using any device to create the sonic waves. It had come from her. From her screaming at the top of her lungs.
"I don't know, but it's not what's important right now. The League has Dinah." Dig really didn't like the fact that Oliver was trying to brush what had just happened off as if it were nothing. Sara had shattered the windows of the cars of an entire parking deck simply by screaming. Yes, her mother being kidnapped and getting her back was a priority, but this wasn't something Oliver could just pretend didn't happen. This wasn't just going to go away simply by pretending it hadn't happened.
"What do you mean, it's not what's important? I think it is, given the fact that your ex just destroyed all the glass within her vicinity, smashed all the lights, and fried our comms simply by screaming." Felicity decided to join in on the conversation and he was grateful for the support. Besides, she had a valid point.
"I don't know how she did it. I don't know what happened. But I'll figure it out. Until then, just drop it and focus on finding Dinah. That's what's important right now. Dinah's life is at risk. Whatever's going on with Sara can wait." His friend's persistence on how what happened didn't matter was rubbing him the wrong way. Yes, Mrs. Lance's life was their first priority, but this was nothing to just be brushed off.
"Oliver, I think it is very important to know what happened and how Sara ended up being able to do that. It could mean that she's compromised. I'm not sure we should trust her until we know…" But it didn't change the fact that they needed to know what was going on with Sara and Oliver had a huge blind spot when it came to the possibility that the people he cared about might not be what he thought. He had witnessed it firsthand with Helena and Moira Queen. So he wasn't just going to trust Oliver's judgment here. And he wasn't going to let him act as if it was no big deal and didn't matter. He never got the chance to finish his sentence until he got interrupted by the other man.
"John, she's not compromised and there is no reason not to trust her. Sara's Sara and nothing's changed. I trust her. Whatever's going on with her has nothing to do with that. Drop it." The tone of Oliver's voice made it very clear that he was done with the subject and that he wasn't going to get anywhere right now. Oliver's words surprised him and the conviction behind them and how offended he seemed just at the suggestion that Sara might not be someone they should trust. He wasn't entirely sure what he meant. The way his friend spoke was as if it was obvious. As if they should know this, but this made little sense.
Oliver didn't trust blindly.
John wasn't sure if he could trust Oliver's judgment here. Wasn't sure Oliver was still objective. It had been obvious from the moment he had let them know Sara Lance was alive that she meant a hell of a lot more to him than he or anyone else had ever let on. He had been in the belief that Sara had just been a fling, an immature, stupid decision Oliver had made. He had assumed it had been a spontaneous desire on Oliver's part to invite his girlfriend's sister along on the trip.
Maybe getting a kick out of it.
The thought that it might have been about more than just sex, that there had been a deeper connection, a previous friendship had never crossed his mind. Not until Sara had showed up the first time and Felicity had done some digging once she had left again, learning that Sara had had a pretty solid place in Oliver's life for years. They'd had history before they've ever set foot on the Queen's Gambit.
Yes, there appeared to be a lot more to the story than they had thought, and that meant Oliver was probably as rational about anything concerning Sara as he was when it came to her older sister, which meant hardly at all.
The knowledge that she was a former member of the League of Assassins was enough to give him pause and be weary of her. Especially since the League had showed up here and apparently was willing to do whatever it took to get her back. There was so much they didn't know about her, about the time since Oliver had last been with her. Anything could've happened and Oliver's blind trust in the blonde was worrisome and very surprising and out of character.
Oliver hardly trusted anyone. So that alone would be strange already, but this blind trust was highly bewildering and concerning.
He wondered if he should ask Lyla, maybe she'd know something… if it was a physical change to Sara's body, the chances that ARGUS would either be involved or aware of it would be very high, but he knew Oliver's view on anything government related and knew Oliver wouldn't like it at all if he let the secret government organization know that Sara had some weird special abilities, should they not yet be aware of it and the last thing he wanted was for the young woman to become a government experiment, if she wasn't already one. She had suffered enough already.
Still, this new development was making him very weary.
Dinah had been saved, and Sara released from the League. Neither Oliver nor Sara were forthcoming with the details, though. Just like they were both pretending nothing was wrong.
He had tried to talk to Oliver again after he had come back the night before but Oliver had brushed him off again, told him he needed to go home and talk to his mother and that he should go home himself.
So he was back at the Foundry, earlier than usual, but he really needed to talk to Oliver about Sara again and he had not been at the mansion. He punched in the code and stepped inside, descending the stairs, when he heard voices.
He recognized Oliver's right away, grateful his assumption was right and Oliver was here. He walked all the way down and it was only then that he realized the other person wasn't Felicity as he had expected, but Sara, who was sitting on Felicity's desk while Oliver was sitting in her chair, some distance away. Oliver was wearing a pair of sweatpants while Sara appeared to be wearing one of Oliver's shirts and another pair of his sweatpants.
"I don't know, Ollie. I told you... I don't know. I swear." Sara sounded exasperated and troubled. She used one of her hands to brush her hair back. She looked worried, so did Oliver.
"Sar, I never meant... hey... we'll figure it out." He rolled towards her and placed his hand on her cheek, forcing her to look at him before bending forward and kissing her softly.
This wasn't what he had expected at all, and he was completely taken by surprise.
Oliver had spent good a year chasing after Laurel, trying to get back together with her. Feeling guilty and remorseful about his actions involving Sara.
And now here he was... Sara had been back for barely a couple of days and they seemed to have fallen right back into whatever it had been they'd had before... what was very unexpected was how natural it looked, they looked. Their conversation appeared to have been serious, but they were both relaxed, completely comfortable around each other. Dig wasn't sure if he had ever seen Oliver as relaxed as he did right now.
The way Oliver had addressed the woman in front of him had not slipped past him unnoticed. 'Sar' it sounded personal, almost intimate in a way he had never before noticed Oliver address anyone. The way he called Thea Speedy was the closest he had come but that had been different, she was his sister.
It also confirmed his suspicions that Oliver might not be as rational about Sara and her situation as he would be were she someone else and had he not a personal connection with her. Even less a romantic one.
"Is there something I can help you with, Dig?" Oliver's voice ripped him from his thoughts and he looked back at the couple in front of him. Both of them were looking at him expectantly. He wasn't sure why he was surprised that they had noticed his presence, given who they were, but he was. Maybe it was because they had appeared so focused on each other.
He wasn't sure how to reply to that. He had meant to talk to Oliver alone, and he wasn't comfortable addressing the issue with Sara around. So he decided to go another route and asked them how they were doing after everything that had happened the previous night. Postponing his talk with Oliver until the two of them were alone.
He had tried to talk to Oliver again about Sara and her situation on several occasions unsuccessfully and once he had finally managed to get his friend alone and in a mood that seemed well enough to bring the subject up again; the result hadn't really been helpful. Because Oliver wasn't sharing. Except that Sara apparently didn't know what was going on with her and had no idea what or how this had happened. He also told him once more to drop it, that he was taking care of it and it was nothing he needed to worry about. That whatever was going on with Sara had nothing to do with his trust in her. Dig didn't agree with his friend here. And their obvious rekindling of their previous involvement did little to ease his worry about his friend's judgment where the Canary was concerned.
But it wasn't until Felicity made a comment about it while Sara was around that they began to actually look into it as a team.
Felicity had brought up the particle accelerator explosion and that it might play a role in what was going on, when Sara had mentioned that she had been in Central City around that time to make sure her mom was alright before disappearing again. After Felicity had come back from another one of her trips to Central City to visit a still comatose Barry Allen. But they had their issues trying to figure out how it might have played a part in whatever was going on with her, but then again, it had led to Barry Allen ending up in a coma. So who knew?
Fact was from the moment he first witnessed Sara's powers, he knew just how dangerous she was and knowing just how much faith and the sheer blind trust Oliver had in her had made him very uneasy. It was something he was still struggling with. Not that he didn't trust Sara. She had more than earned that trust over the years. He was just worried about the influence she had on Oliver and still her powers. In the end, neither he nor Felicity or Roy, for that matter, had been confronted with Sara's powers often. She had rarely used them and whatever training Oliver had come up with for her was never done around any of them. He wondered if Sara still had her powers or if her resurrection had led to her losing them again. Maybe Lyla knew the answer to that question.
John brought the new equipment he had gotten Felicity on Oliver's credit down to the Bunker and he couldn't help but let the scene that had greeted him when he had stepped in here several hours ago pass through his mind again and it was in that moment, in connection with Oliver's behavior at the apartment and some of the things Lyla had shared or not about Oliver, her silences sometimes said more than any words she could speak. That he realized just exactly what he and Felicity had witnessed.
Oliver had had an emotional breakdown.
His friend had been holding it together for months, keeping everything inside, while more and more was piled on him and today he finally broke. Whatever it was he was accusing Felicity of, whatever had happened between the three of them, it had been the thing that had pushed Oliver over the edge.
He knew Lyla had been worried about Oliver for a while. Interestingly enough, she'd brushed any of his worry about Sara off most of the time, but was very concerned about Oliver. She hadn't told him anything. It was more her reactions or arguments when he was complaining about his friend's attitude or actions. John was sure Lyla knew a lot more than she let on, which confirmed his assumption that his wife had become Sara's confidante. It was still a little strange for him, their friendship in general, but especially the knowledge that Lyla was the person Sara shared information about Oliver with that no one else was privy to, still he was glad. Glad his wife had a friend she enjoyed spending time with, that she could also share her struggles with, without having to redact or lie and also glad that Sara had someone she could talk to, someone she trusted enough to confide in, besides Oliver. Someone she could talk about Oliver with. He may have his issues with the blonde, but she was someone he had a lot of respect for and she was a very kind soul. And his heart went out to her because of everything she's been through. And she deserved to have a friend like Lyla.
It did make him wonder what his wife shared with the blonde, especially about himself.
What was very bewildering for him was the thought that his wife knew more about Oliver's life, understood more about Oliver's state of mind and emotions than he did. Oliver was his friend, his brother and yet, his wife was better informed about anything concerning him than he was. And that bothered him. Especially now. Looking at the sheer amount of destruction Oliver's mental breakdown had caused.
It had been a breakdown in the makings for months; he realized. And it was in this moment he realized just how troubled Oliver really was. Just how much he was struggling. And just how blind he had been to it all.
He was pretty sure, given the interactions between Oliver and Sara, that she wasn't going to leave, that she had changed her mind, or at the very least that they had rekindled their relationship once again. He was glad, especially now that he realized just how much Oliver had struggled, and he was certain, a lot of that had to do with the weight he had carried, knowing he was going to be responsible for a baby in just a very short amount of time and he would have to raise her all by himself. It was a lot of pressure, especially for someone like Oliver, who'd surely worry about anything there was and probably still doubt whether or not he would be fit to raise his daughter all alone.
He needed to talk to Oliver after they've found Joanna. The way the situation was between him and his friend was not how he wanted it to be. They needed to sit down and talk, find out what had happened between them and to their friendship and what they could do to fix it. His brother had struggled so much and he hadn't been aware of it. Oliver hadn't shared it with him, and he needed to find out why.
Notes:
As always I'd love to hear your thoughts.
I was seriously struggling with John's POV and writing this was very difficult. I thought about just skipping ahead but that would've felt like cheating and changed the entire tone of the story, at least in my mind, so I did the best that I could. I hope he is in character and I got him right.
I also hope this helps you understand some of the changes Flashpoint made with this little flashback and why Dig is more weary of Sara in this story than he was in the show. I know that it wasn't actually a parking garage in that scene but I honestly couldn't figure out where exactly they were and figured this would add to the dramatics plus, it might as well be a parking garage here because of Flashpoint. So that's that. lol. Blame it on Flashpoint.
Thank you so much for your guys continued support and patience with me, it means the world and I really appreciate it.
Okay, there's a slight change in timing of events in Season 4 that will be mentioned here, Oliver leaves Star with Sara before Felicity's dad shows up. Just as an FYI. This will be important later on.
And again, I am so sorry it took me this long and for how short the chapter is.
Chapter title is from the song "Brother" by Kodaline.
