Chloe looked at the airfield concrete through the hatch window.

They'd elected to seat on the plane as soon as the authorities had approved their flight plan. The jet was far more comfortable than the airport, and much more private.

It was close to ten now, and they were still waiting for a green light to get to the taxi area. Hal was relaxing in the cockpit. Chloe was pretty sure he'd been texting back and forth with Tess for the past hour since they apparently had plans he needed to either cancel or delay.

Oliver had been right that her redhead friend knowing about the League made things much easier for everyone. A part of her wished she could be in Metropolis right now to witness the giddy look she was sure the beautiful marine biologist turned metahuman counsellor was sporting. For all her bravado and free-spirited attitude, Tess Mercer wanted a prince to sweep her off her feet like most women, and it seemed she'd finally accepted that prince was Hal.

Chloe casted a quick glance toward the bedroom door. She'd persuaded—cajoled— Oliver into stretching out for a while. He hid it well, but she knew he was hurting. It'd been an easy sale, considering. She'd given him a choice between the bed and her using her ability. He'd taken door No. 1 fast enough with the wary look of a pet about to be caged to go to the vet.

She silenced the nasty hissing in her head that insisted her power put him out. Oliver didn't care if she was meteor-infected, he'd proved that time and again. If she stopped to think about it, she could list several good reasons why he'd stopped her from healing him. Their "connection" came to mind first. Who knew what might happen if she shared her vital energy with him again?

Chloe's thoughts drifted back to the bathroom of the VP lodge. Her body tingled and the cabin felt just a little warmer. She rubbed her knees together to ease the insisting pull between her legs. He'd barely touched her and she'd come apart in seconds. Her pulse sped up as more heat crept to the cheeks.

"They say we should be allowed to take within the next hour."

Chloe started at the sound of Hal's voice. "Oh, all right."

"All good here, Gorgeous? You're kind of flushed. Need me to adjust the temperature?"

"I'm fine!"

Her voice squeaked embarrassingly. Hal crooked an eyebrow. He, too, glimpsed at the bedroom door before he leaned against the seat in front of her, ankles crossed.

"How much trouble are you two really in?"

Choe nibbled at her bottom lip. Oliver was a very private person when it came to his personal affairs. So was she. And this was very personal. She considered the man patiently waiting for her to talk. Hal was Oliver's best friend. Her friend as well. And a good listener with his two feet firmly planted on the ground, as surprising as that might be for those who didn't know him well.

She shifted on her seat so she could lift her shirt and expose the small of her back. "We discovered that the tattoo you see is a Shenu, a protection sigil. I always had it. I… transferred it to Oliver when I healed him a couple of days ago."

"Oliver always had a sort of sixth sense when it came to you. It didn't start last week."

"He said as much."

She just had a hard time believing someone like her could have caught Oliver's eye. If she could blame—thank— the Shenu for that, she didn't have to admit Lois had been right all along about her self-esteem and well… everything else.

"And?"

Her face grew hot again. In for a penny…

"I am not sure how it works exactly, but we were told it's incomplete for now because we haven't…" she dropped her hands, soothing the wrinkled of her shirt absently. "You know."

Hal smirked at her then he grew serious again. "What happened when the sigil is complete?"

"Nothing? It's a magical ward. I'm still vulnerable to non-magical weapons."

"And Ollie?"

"We don't know."

Will the protection be extended to him as well? Will his own marking disappear? Was love-making a way to return it to her? She wanted to curl into bed with him and sleep for a week. Lay with him and not sleep.

"Do you know who yield it?"

Chloe returned her attention to Hal. "Who yield it?"

"Yeah. You said it's a magical protection. So who is the protector?"

"I… I don't know either."

They never looked at it this way.

Hal grinned. "And she calls herself Watchtower."

"Oliver nicknamed me Watchtower. I'm five feet two. I barely tower over ants."

"Whatever you say, Tink."

"Don't call me Tink," Chloe grumbled.

A ping from the cockpit broke the confrontation. Hal pushed away from the seat. "I think that's our call. Do some research, Chloe. You excel at it."

He surprised herself by dropping a kiss on her cheek. "And trust me, Ollie doesn't need some omnipotent magic force to know what's good for him."

She stared at him saunter away in shock. Hal Jordan was one of a kind, she decided. In one simple question, he'd stripped her fears bare, and assuage them. He'd also given her a new avenue to explore. Hal was right, she excelled at research.

The little girl slipped her hand in her father's. A great number of people had gathered at dawn to honor the Bright son of Geb and Nut, but only those of royal blood like her father and herself were allowed to follow the priests inside the temple.

She'd learned the pray to the winged God who watch over her family. Even as the priest started to recite, the words echoed inside her head.

'O eldest of the Falcon Gods, ancient of worship, ancient of name, whose left eye is the sun, whose right shine as the moon, I call to you for favor, I call on you for strength. Upholder of the right and good, defender of order, guardian of Ma'at whose work is unending, I honor your might. I pray to you, O kind of Gods, O god of kings…'

Charming. Devastatingly handsome. Beautiful as sin. Chloe had heard—and used, at least in her head— a lot of epithets to describe Oliver's good looks. She'd never thought she would add angelic to the list.

He rested on his back with one arm under his pillow, his other hand on his flat stomach. Even in sleep, his perfect mouth curled at the corner in a tempting smile. He must have showered before hoping into bed, since his hair were half flattened, half spiking. She longed to thread her fingers through them.

"Hey."

Chloe startled then smiled, fighting a blush at being caught staring. "You sleep like a cat."

"Sorry. Habit." Oliver smiled back. He rolled to the edge of the bed to seat. His stretch turned into a wince Chloe did her best to ignore. "Are we there yet?"

"Almost. Hal is arguing with the control center. They're not happy with the change of plans."

Oliver lifted an eyebrow. "We changed direction?"

She nodded. Oliver's rumpled tee-shirt was lopsided so she had an enticing view of his oblique muscles. Her eyes rose as he straightened up fully, along his forearm and shredded biceps, to his jaw, then settled on his face. His gaze enveloped her in warm velvet.

Oliver lowered his head to brush a kiss on her mouth. The barely-there caress ignited every lustful nerve in her body. Chloe blushed furiously when she realized the needy little moan was hers. He gave her another kiss then stood. "Better stop before giving Hal more ammunitions to tease us. Show me what you found?"

Chloe nodded again and took the hand he offered, not trusting her voice to do anything but beg.

Her browser was still opened. She turned her screen so he could read over her shoulder. His hand settled in her back absently. Chloe refrained a content purr.

"Hal asked me who was Annurefret's protector."

"Horus." Oliver provided without even reading.

Chloe glanced up. "How do you know that?"

"I… didn't. The name keeps popping up. It makes sense, right? Hawkman and Hawkgirl and all that…"

"Yes. It's him. It was right under our nose the whole time. Even written black on white in that fable. "Then Fleet Horus, Bright Son of Egypt, extended his benevolent wings…"

Oliver gripped her shoulder. "Tell me we're not going to Egypt."

"We're not going to Egypt."

"Chloe…" The warning sent a shiver down her back she had troubled to ignore.

Chloe licked her lips. "We're heading to London. And then, Leeds."

"Leeds."

"Leeds. Do you remember what Zatanna said? Go to Leeds and pray and weave to their temple?"

Oliver motioned for her to continue. Chloe leaned forward and scrolled up the page. "Edfu or Idfu was Horus' principal sanctuary. The actual structure is built on the spot of a much older one. And it served as a model for the Flax Temple in Leeds."

She motioned to him to read the description of the ancient monument.

"That's… kind of brilliant."

"Thank you."

"Brilliant, except for one thing."

"What's that?" Chloe tried not to resent the comment. She was right. She knew she was. She could feel it.

Oliver sat facing her, wrapping her petite hands in his to play with her fingers. "If we show up in Leeds right after he attacked us, or at any time until things die down, Savage is going to know. After tonight, you can be sure he's going to scrutinize our every move." He offered a tight little smile that made her heart pang. "You said so yourself, I don't really blend in the crowd."

She hadn't thought of that… Her face fell. Oliver kissed her cheek. "Let's get situated first."

He released her hands to grab the plane phone. Chloe wondered what he was about to call. It was past midnight. The obvious solution was to sleep near the airport then to plan their next move in the morning.

"Mark? Oliver here… Yeah, thank you. Look, we changed our plans and we're about to land in Heathrow. Could you… Yeah, yeah, that would be great… Perfect, thanks… Yes, I'll tell her. Thanks again, Mark… Yeah, you too. Bye."

He hanged up with a satisfied clasp of the tongue. "Mark is booking us an hotel. He'll email the details. And he's wishing you a happy birthday."

Chloe gaped at him. "You told you EA it's my birthday?"

Oliver shrugged. "Yes, why not? He has the memory of an elephant. I tell him these things so he makes sure I'm not stuck in never ending meetings on important days."

Chloe doubted Oliver himself would forget. His assistant knowing little things about her got to her. As if Oliver had upgraded her to serious girlfriend status before she'd even thought of looking his way.

"But—"

Her argument died under the pointed look Oliver gave her.

"Thank you?" Chloe tried for innocence, without much conviction.

Oliver grinned. "See? Wasn't so hard."

"You always say that as if you knew what a struggle it is."

He winked, she pouted and he was leaning toward her when Hal interrupted. "Ladies and Gentlemen, we're about to begin our descent toward Heathrow Airport. We remind you at this time that you should close your seat trays and return your seatbacks to the upright and locked position. All electronic devices should be shut down and… Okay I can't remember the rest. Twenty minutes to get your clothes back on, guys."

Oliver lowered himself in the seat opposing hers with a sigh.

"I would apologize for him, but it would take longer than we apparently have before landing."

Chloe laughed.