Discovery Devotion Destiny

by kayemen22

In the blink of an eye, everything changed. Oliver now had to figure out how to balance being the Mayor of Star City with being the Green Arrow. He had to do it all while being the parent to a crawling baby and a mischevous teen. New enemies would threaten all of it. He's going to need his wife...except she doesn't even remember he's her husband. Or that she has freaky powers.

14. Protect the Family

Chapter 14

Protect the Family

"My family is my strength and my weakness."

-Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

---

Oliver's hands were paused in the place around his tie as he stared at the brown door that leads to their bedroom. The night before, his wife finally got her memories of him and their life back. He assumed that once she remembered, everything would just be better somehow. He thought that maybe that piece of their lives that was stolen by Damien Dark would come back. But that's not what happened. Katie was angry and he's not completely sure why. He assumed this was what she wanted, that she wanted to know everything and yet that trip inside of her head only confused him even more.

The door to Ari's room opened, and the teen stepped out only to stop at the sight of Oliver standing there frozen in the hall. She followed his eyes down the hall to the door and sighed. From what he finally told her once they came home was that Katie now remembered everything, but she wasn't taking it well.

"Has she come out yet?" Ari asked and Oliver turned to her and just shook his head.

"Uh, not yet. We'll give her some more time." he said and Ari simply scoffed before turning and heading down to the bedroom door. "Ari, wait, don't-" Ari pushed opened the door stopping with a furrowed brow. Oliver came into the room behind her, his eyes scanning the room only to realize it was empty.

"Where is she?" Ari asked. Oliver didn't say anything as he walked over to the bathroom door that was slightly cracked. He knocked and when he didn't hear anything he just pushed it opened to find it empty. Oliver felt his heart rate pick up, and he turned and stormed out of the room. "Where did she go?"

"Ari, just give me a minute." Oliver said impatiently. He was nervous, and he was scared and right now he just needed to know where his wife was. He came to the door of the nursery, pushing open the door and walking inside. The crib was empty. Ari came in right behind him, looking around the room only to state the obvious. "Ok, so wherever she is, she took the baby with her?" she turned to Oliver who let out a heavy sigh before once again stalking out of the room, forcing her to follow. "At what point should we start worrying?" They came downstairs, and Oliver's eyes went to the front door. He shook his head hoping that when he looked out the door, he saw her car. His hand had only touched the door when he heard the sound of something's crashing from the kitchen. He turned to Ari who turned toward the kitchen door before hurrying over and steps inside.

Ari stopped just inside the kitchen where she saw Robyn sitting in her booster seat, her face covered with milk. Her eyes looked down to Katie who was picking up Robyn's bowl from the floor before turning to see the teen and Oliver standing there. There was something in the look on their faces.

"What's wrong?" she asked, but neither answered her question. "Guys?"

"It's nothing." Oliver finally said coming into the kitchen and placing a kiss on the top of Robyn's head. Katie looked over at him before turning back to Ari who still looked strange and so she walked over to her.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing," Ari said as well before moving around the woman to grab some cereal. "So just so I'm clear on what's happening today-" Ari looked between Oliver and Katie and Oliver seemed to look to Katie who let out a sigh before turning to the teen.

"You're going to go to school with some extra security." she looked over to Oliver. "You're going to go to work with some extra guards as well."

"What about you and Robyn?" Ari asked and Katie turned back to her.

"I'm going to take Robyn back to the bunker." Katie said walking over to place Robyn's bowl in the sink to clean it. She felt their eyes on her, so she assumes her omission didn't go unnoticed.

"Twinkie-" Oliver said and she let out a sigh and she looked over to him. Ari looked between the couple seriously confused. Oliver held her gaze for a moment, and Katie felt as if he was trying to read her mind. He shook his head. "No."

"And what was the question?" Katie asked.

"I'm so confused right now." Ari said.

"Ari, finish your cereal in your room." Oliver said turning to the girl who looked as if she wanted to protest, but the man held that seriousness in his eyes and so she just sighed as she grabbed her bowl of cereal and headed up to her room. Once she was gone, Oliver turning back to Katie. "You're not going to look for Tobias alone?"

"I don't remember asking for your permission." she said attempting to leave the kitchen only for Oliver to quickly block her. "There is a man out there who has made it blatantly obvious that he would like to hurt you and anyone close to you." she lifted her eyes to his. "I am fully capable-"

"Except you're not fully capable of anything right now and you know that." Oliver said and Katie turned away from him. "Yesterday you opened your eyes with the memory of every detail of what happened to you. You and I both know that it is affecting you." she attempted to move around him, but he grabbed her arm, and she pushed away out of his grasp. Her eyes quickly went to her daughter who sat just across the room silently watching them. Oliver turned, following her eyes, and let out a sigh. Katie crossed the room and picked up the girl with a smile.

"It's ok." she placed a kiss on Robyn's head. "Everything is ok." she hugged the child to her chest before looking over to Oliver. "You don't understand."

"Then tell me." he said taking a step toward her, only for her to take a step away. "Twinkie, I can't help you if you won't let me." the woman let out a scoff shaking her head.

"I never asked for your help." she said turning and heading for the door.

"Twinkie, at this point we have to assume we're being watched." she stopped and glanced back over to him. "That means we can't go to the bunker." she looked at him for a moment and just rolled her eyes before continuing upstairs. Oliver stood there, unsure what to do next.

Oliver had already determined today just wouldn't be a good day. He couldn't stop thinking about Katie, couldn't stop thinking about how he was going to figure out how to help her even if she didn't want it.

Walking into City Hall today was different. Two guards now would accompany him where ever he went. He had to admit it was annoying, but it also kept up an illusion he thinks he needed at the moment. At the moment, Oliver was standing in the elevator heading up for his meeting, his eyes down to his phone reading the message of Ari's arrival at school. He didn't want to admit it, but a part of him had doubt of letting the girl go to school because Katie was right, it was risky and dangerous and just not for Ari, but the kids at that school if Tobias did decide to make a move. He let out a sigh before sending a message to Katie letting her know of Ari's arrival at the school only for her to respond that she didn't need his confirmation since she actually rode along with the girl to school. Oliver looked up from his phone with a shake of his head, because he should've thought of that. He looked back down to his phone wanting to say something else, something more, and yet he no longer knew what the right thing to say was anymore and so he just slipped his phone into his pocket. The elevator opened and there stood Thea waiting for him.

"Hey," she greets, her eyes glancing back to the guards before turning to her brother. "How did last night go?" Oliver asked over to her. "With Twinkie coming home?" Oliver just shook his head as he turned away. "Did you talk to her?"

"Talking doesn't seem to be working." Oliver said as they stopped. "How is the whole Ari fight video going?" Thea let out a sighed and that made Oliver nervous.

"Well, we keep getting requests for a statement about what happened-"

"I'm not giving a statement."

"Which I let every news source know. The problem is that without an actual factual statement, the news is just being filled with rumors and anonymous statements from kids at the party who probably didn't even see what happened." Oliver turned away with a shake of his head.

"It was supposed to be a nice birthday party."

"Have you talked to Ari about it yet?"

"Not yet, but I think we'll talk to her about it later tonight." Oliver said as he nudged his head toward his office. "Is Councilman Kullens in there?"

"Yes. He's waiting in your office with Susan Williams." Oliver frowned slightly at the name of the reporter he's become quite familiar with. He turned to his guards and gave them a nod.

"Thank you very much, fellas." the guards took the unspoken order and walked off before Oliver turned back to his sister. "I didn't agree to an interview. "

"Well, she's shadowing him for some type of profile, and I already tried to get her kicked out, but he was adamant about having her in there." Oliver looked over to his office door and let a sigh.

"Any advice?"

"Don't screw it up." Thea said and Oliver shook his head before heading for the door and Thea couldn't let that nagging feeling go. "Ollie-" he stopped and turned to her. "Try to talk to Twinkie again." he furrowed his brow at the woman's insistence because there seemed to be something she wasn't saying. "Trust me, just don't give up."

"I haven't and I never will." he said still looking to his sister. "Is there something you're not telling me that I should know?" Thea bit the corner of her lip because she's absolutely sure she should tell her brother about what happened on that roof last night, but she's also sure that right now probably wasn't the best time."Thea-"

"Later." Thea said and Oliver turned to her completely. "Seriously, it can wait." he stood there for a moment longer before giving her a nod and finally stepping into his office. "I hope." Thea muttered under her breath before following behind her brother.

Katie sat in the back seat of the SUV, still looking out to the high school through the tinted windows. All the kids were inside, but she couldn't help but linger a bit and look around for anything suspicious.

"Ma'am, my guys are in place inside and outside of the school." she turned at Steve's voice, the man sitting behind the wheel. "You just seem particularly nervous."

"Well a threat was made to my family, so I think being nervous is an understandable reaction." Katie says turning back to look at the school. She knew she couldn't sit out here all day...actually she could, but she also knew that she could actually be out looking for this bastard instead of waiting for him to make the first move. After a while of sitting there, she finally relented. "Ok, let's go home."

"Yes ma'am," Steve said before turning on the car and pulling off. The drive was relatively quiet. The only sound coming from the little girl strapped into her car seat, trying to tell her mother something very important.

"You have no idea how much I wish I understood what you were saying," Katie chuckled as she slid her fingers through the child's hair. "I wholeheartedly believe you probably have all the answers we're looking for." she felt the car slowing down and glanced up to see them pulling into heavy traffic. "What's going on?"

"I'm not sure," Steve said coming to a full stop. "I'll find out." he took out his cell phone and let out a sigh after a moment. "There's a car accident up ahead. No injuries, but they're still waiting to get the cars out of the road." the man lifted his eyes and glanced around. The lane to the right of them seemed to be moving a bit quicker. "I'll get us out of this." Soon they were driving down an unfamiliar street and Katie frowned as she looked out the window. She felt she was completely familiar with this city, but right now she felt nervous because she didn't recognize anything.

"Steve, at what point do we return to a part of the city I'm actually familiar with?" Katie asked turning to the man who seemed to nervously chuckle.

"Don't worry, I-" the car suddenly made noise, and then the car began slowing down. "What the hell?"

"What's happening?" Katie asked and the man didn't say anything as the car seemed to sputter to a stop. "Steve, what the hell is happening?"

"I'm not sure, but I will find out." he glanced over to her. "Just sit tight." and with that, the man stepped out of the car and popped open the hood. Katie sat there glancing around the car, suddenly realizing that there was not a soul around. She turned to look out the back and it was completely empty.

"This isn't right," she muttered before looking back down to her daughter and letting out a sigh.

Oliver wished he could solve some of his political problems by hitting someone. Especially now. He currently stood in front of Councilman Kullens and reporter Susan William who was shadowing him.

Oliver pulled on a smile as he continued. "Yes. Councilman, as you know, I ran on a platform of unity, but it is difficult for a city to be united when so much of the zoning within it remains exclusionary. We need to open it up, allow for more affordable housing, give the people a chance to start over and rebuild, but the second the money starts rolling in, those families get squeezed out by crony capitalists. That's not gonna happen here."

The councilman let out a huff. "Hard to believe considering your family's history. "

"I'm sorry, councilman. I don't follow."

"Well, the type of rezoning you're proposing happened downtown 25 years ago, but instead of affordable housing, we got skyrises, and one of them became the offices of Queen Consolidated."

Susan turned to Oliver. "Is that true, Mr. Mayor?" Oliver turned an annoyed look to her and she smirked. "I'll consider that a no comment."

"I can tell you have good intentions, but politics is the art of the real. I'm sorry. I'm not changing my vote." the councilman said before he and Susan walked out of the office.

Thea shook her head. "Ok. Maybe you should just put an arrow in him." Oliver just shook his head before walking around to take a seat behind his desk. "We're going to figure this out."

"I hope so," Oliver said looking back over to his sister.

"Why don't I see if I can find another way to come at this." Thea turned to leave but was stopped.

"Speedy-" Thea let out a sigh as she turned back to her brother. "Sit." the woman begrudgingly dropped into the seat in front of him. "What did you want to tell me?"

Thea dropped her head for a moment before looking back up to her brother. "The truth is I don't know. I keep going over the moment again and again and every time I question if what I saw I actually saw or maybe I imagined. it. "Thea sat back in her chair, turning away from her brother's eyes as she once again finds herself thinking of the moment she stepped on that roof.

"Thea," she turned back to her brother. "Tell me."

With another nervous breath, Thea spoke, "Last night, I went to check on Twinkie. She seemed kind of upset when she went up to the roof. I waited a bit before I actually went up there, and when I did I saw-" she hesitated for a moment because she knows her brother is going to freak out. "Look, like I said I don't know if what I think I saw is what I actually saw or- "

"Speedy!"

"Fine, she was close to the edge of the roof and it looked like-" she didn't want to finish the sentence, but Oliver saw the look on her face and didn't need her to. "Oliver I could be wrong. She had a long night and a lot happened. Maybe she didn't even realize she was that close." Oliver slid a hand across his face before looking back over to his sister. He shook his head before pulling his phone from his pocket and standing to his feet. "What are you going to do?" he didn't say anything as he headed for the door. "Ollie?" he stopped and turned back to her.

"Speedy I love you, but never keep anything this serious from me for this long when it concerns the safety of my wife." Thea just nodded and without another word, Oliver stormed out of the office toward the elevator, his phone pressed to his ear.

He spoke first when she answered. "Twinkie, we need to talk." the line was silent for a moment and she stopped. "Twinkie?"

"Do you have my location right now?" Katie asked instead.

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know. We were driving, but then there was an accident so we had to take some alternate route home, but then the car just stopped and we're in the middle of nowhere and this just doesn't feel right." Oliver turned and pressed the button for the elevator repeatedly trying to will the doors to hurry and open. "I'm sitting here with Robyn and I don't like this."

Oliver heard the tension in her voice and he had to force himself to stay calm.

"I'm coming right now. Just stay on the phone with me, ok. What's going on?"

"I don't- Steve got out of the car, and the hood is up, but I don't know what he's doing." she once again turned to look around outside. "I have no idea where we are, and I don't see anyone at all. I just feel like we're sitting ducks." a tiny whimper came from Robyn who seemed to be getting stir crazy. "It's ok," Katie slid a hand across her stomach. "Maybe I can just grab her and walk somewhere."

"No, just stay in the car and lock the doors. " Oliver said.

"Liver, I—what—do."

"Twinkie, the line is breaking up," Oliver's security detail could barely keep up with him as he ran to his car. "Twinkie, can you-" he pulled the phone back and looked down to see the call had ended. He let out a frustrated growl before dialing her number once again only for it to go to voice mail. Oliver felt his heart racing, but he couldn't stop and let fear take the time he needed to get to them. Without a second thought, Oliver went rushing out the door, no longer caring that he was leaving his guards behind.

Today was the day, Bruce thought. He'd gotten home the night before only to find that Felicity wasn't there. He figured she'd be late trying to help Oliver now that Church knew his identity. He was awake when she returned home. He'd walked in just as she stepped through the door. Her eyes looked over to him, but she didn't say a word as she kicked off her shoes and headed upstairs.

This morning, he'd made a fresh pot of coffee, the kind he knows she likes. She'd be walking in soon, that first sip always putting her in a good mood and that's when he'd apologize.

As expected the woman appeared, fully dressed. She looked at him for a moment before walking over and plucking her mug from the cabinet to pour herself a cup of coffee. He watched her closely as she prepared her cup with sugar and cream before taking a sip, a content sigh escaping her lips.

"Ms. Smoak-"

"You thought you could jump on my coffee high with your apology?" she asked turning to the man. "It's not happening Bruce." she turned to leave the kitchen, but he wasn't giving up.

"I'm sorry!" he called after her and she let out a sigh but turned back to him. "Look, you were right, I shouldn't make dangerous decisions without talking to you first and yes I know helping to break John out of that prison was risky, but if it makes you feel any better I didn't even step out of the van." Felicity let out a snort as she took another sip of her coffee. Bruce's brow furrowed. "Which doesn't seem to surprise you." she looked back over to him. "How much of it was you?"

"Enough." Felicity replied before taking another sip from her cup. Bruce began inching closer and the woman rolled her eyes.

"So what do I have to do for your forgiveness?" he asked. "I could sell one of my kidneys?" she turned away, but he saw the slight smirk. "I'd shave my head if it would get me back into your good graces." she still didn't say anything. "I could do that thing you like that you refuse to admit you like." she turned to him with wide eyes.

"I told you I don't."

"But you do." she let out a huff before stalking out of the kitchen and the man just laughed as he followed after her.

"You know you seem to be forgetting the other reason I'm upset with you." Felicity walked into the living room and turned on the news. "You, and your super buddies kidnapping my friend."

"That wasn't my idea, I wasn't even apart of the planning when it came to that." Bruce said walking over to stand beside the woman, his eyes on the television as well. "And because of it, neither one of them wants anything to do with me."

"You can't say you weren't warned." Felicity said looking over to the man. "All you had to do was be the person who called him and told him what was going on. Or I don't know call me, tell me your idiot friends are going to take my friend into some moving house." she swats his arm. "You made choices Bruce. Those choices are the reason so many people are upset with you." Bruce turned to her with a sigh. "So no, you don't have a sell a kidney or shave your head. I actually like your hair the way it is." he looked at her for a moment before a grin came to his face and she just shook her head. "And I will never admit that I like when you do that thing."

"Ah, Ms. Smoak that doesn't sound like someone who doesn't like it." Bruce said and Felicity let out a sigh. He inched closer to her, placing a kiss on the skin of her exposed shoulder.

"I haven't forgiven you." she said, trying to hide the fact that she actually missed the man and just wanted to wrap her arms around him and never let him go.

"I know, but you being mad at me has never mattered much in the past once I-" he brought an arm around her and he felt her breath hitch as his fingers grabbed the zipper of her dress and began sliding it down. "Get you naked." she heard the sound of her phone ringing and Bruce stopped. Felicity moved quickly to find her phone hoping it wasn't news of Tobias finally making the move. Her heart sank when she found her phone and saw Oliver's name, but she quickly answered.

"What's wrong?"

Katie continued looking around, but with every passing second, she couldn't help the feeling that something wasn't right. She looked forward wondering what was taking Steve so long. Katie looked over to Robyn who'd nodded off to sleep, but she figured she'd be up soon. With a shake of her head, Katie turned and stepped out of the car, still scanning the area as she walks around to the front of the car.

"No, I understand," Steve said his phone pressed to his head. "I-" he turned when he heard footsteps. "No, that's all I need. As soon as possible." he quickly hung up the phone and turned to Katie. "Mrs. Queen, you really should stay in the car."

"Who was on the phone?" the man let out a sigh as he looked down at his phone.

"The second detail that was following us got stuck in traffic behind the accident, but they said they're finally moving. They're on their way here. Shouldn't be too long." Katie looked at him for a moment before she turned to look under the hood. "It's the fuel pump. It's clogged."

"I thought these vehicles were inspected regularly?" Katie asking looking over at the man. "At least that's what I assumed would happen to prevent moments like this."

"They are, but obviously something was missed." he said and Katie looked at him for a moment. "I will deal with the team in charge of vehicle maintenance and I will ensure this never happens again."

"Never ha-" Katie turned at the sound of her daughter's cries and let out a sigh before turning back to the man. "This will be a conversation later." she hurried back inside the car to check on her daughter.

They were sitting there longer than Katie wanted and she shook her head. She rolled down the window.

"How much longer will we be waiting for that team?!" Katie called over to Steve who still stood outside of the car.

"They will be here soon ma'am," he replied, and she could've sworn there was annoyance laced in his tone. He kept his back to her, so she couldn't see his face. "Please raise the window, it's-" he turned with a frown at the sight of a car he didn't expect to see. Katie turned as well and let a relieved sigh at the sight of Oliver. She strapped Robyn back into her car seat, and not long after she heard yelling. She quickly turned to see Oliver dangerously close to Steve and it looked as if he were going to hit him. Katie opened the door and ran out to grab Oliver's arm.

"Hey, this isn't happening now." she said and Oliver stopped and looked down at her. "Just take us home." Oliver gave a nod before turning a glare to Steve.

"You are going to take care of the car and then you are going to see me so you can explain why I was never informed that my wife and daughter were forced to sit in a car in the middle of nowhere when I explicitly told you to be extra cautious because of threats made to me and my family. I have no idea what's going on with you Steve, but this should absolutely never happen."

"Sir, I apologize, but-"

"When it comes to my wife and daughter, your excuses mean absolutely nothing to me. Take care of the car and then find me and explain how this happened. Explain why the additional guards assigned to protect them, aren't even here right now." Oliver shook his head, once again feeling Katie tug his arm. He let out a sigh before bringing his arms around her in an embrace that helped secure his sanity.

Oliver slid a hand over his face as he peeked through the window of his house and looked out to see the guards that were patrolling around the neighborhood.

He turned, phone pressed to his ear. "No, Thea, I'm sure. They're both fine, I just think I should stick around here for a bit."

"Fine, I will have everything settled here, but Ollie, I know you're planning on trying to get Katie to talk to you, I just think you shouldn't push too hard." Oliver turned at the sound of footsteps coming downstairs.

"I got to go Thea." Oliver said before ending the call and walking out to the hall where he saw Katie coming downstairs. She stopped when she saw him and almost looked surprised to see him.

"You didn't have to stick around." Katie said coming down and stopping for a moment to look at him. She shook her head. "I probably blew everything out of proportion." she turned and headed for the kitchen. "If you need to head back to City Hall, you can just go." Oliver followed her into the kitchen and watched as she moved about to make coffee. Once the coffee was in the coffee maker, she let out a sigh before turning to find his eyes on her. "Yes, Oliver?"

"I don't think you blew anything out of proportion. You and Robyn, sitting in a car in the middle of an open street is beyond dangerous especially if Tobias Church was watching you." Katie dropped her head and turned to look out the window that viewed the backyard. She let out a sigh as she looked out to the guards that moved about the yard. "I'm not going back to City Hall." he watched as Katie dropped her head and sighed. "And I can see how happy that makes you." she turned an unamused look his way and he couldn't help but smile. "We need to talk."

"Do we?" she moved across the kitchen to grab a coffee mug. "Can't we just not talk and focus on the crazy person who is targeting our family?"

"Thea told me about last night." Oliver said and Katie paused, her back still facing him. "Twinkie, tell me what happened?"

"Nothing happened." she muttered taking her mug and walking over to the coffee maker. She felt his eyes on her, and she knew her answer wouldn't be enough for him.

"I don't believe you." he said and Katie placed the mug on the counter before turning to him. "Just tell me." she looked at him and there were so many words inside of her, so many feelings, and she feels letting them out would be too much for her to handle. "C'mon Twinkie, we've done this before. You locking everything inside hurts you." he moved around the counter to stand in front of her. "You do not have to handle this alone." Katie looked at him for a moment before dropping her head. She turned around, grabbed her mug, and poured herself a cup of coffee before taking a long appreciative sip. She turned back to Oliver, her cup still in her hands as he watched her waiting for her to say something.

"You know I remember everything." she finally said looking over to him before dropping her eyes to her coffee. "Even when-" she shook her head before looking back up to Oliver. "Even when that thing, that "It" controlled everything. It was like I was strapped to a chair, forced to watch this thing say and do terrible things." she let her fingers slide across the hot mug as memories of that time flood her thoughts and she let out a shaky breath. "And the rational side of my brain tells me that, it wasn't me because I wouldn't-" she looked up to see Oliver's eyes still focused on her. "I hurt you, I know I hurt you." Oliver walked over to stand in front of her and she shook her head.

"That wasn't you." Oliver said and Katie just turned away from him.

"Yeah, but it still hurts." she turned around to once again look out the window. She felt Oliver appear behind her, wrapping his arms around her. "Oliver you want me to tell you everything that's going on in my head right now, but I don't think I can do that without completely falling apart which can't happen." she turned away with a shake of her head. "People are targeting our family, we have a toddler who will soon be able to have actual conversations with us, and then we have a teenager who has been focusing more on being a vigilante than being a teenager." she turned in his arms and looked up to his eyes. "And my husband, the mayor is stretching himself very thin with all the hats he wears." she pulls out of his grasp and walks around the counter away from him. "So I don't get to fall apart. Let's just drop this. I'm going to call Felicity and see if she has had any luck with-" she turned back to Oliver who stood there watching her. "You're not letting this go."

"I'm not." he replied before walking over to her, taking the coffee mug out of her hands and sitting it on the counter. Without a word he grabbed the woman and tossed her over his shoulder fireman style.

"What-" Katie squawked, her legs flailing. "What the hell are you doing? Put me down!"

Oliver gave her a slap to her butt. "Hey, will you hold still!" he said carrying the woman out of the kitchen and down the hall. He only stopped when he stepped in front of the basement door.

"I'm so gonna kick your ass when you put me down." she said as he carried her down the basement. "You're so annoying." he didn't put her down until after he opened the sliding wall that hid the combat room. Once her feet touched the mat she didn't hesitate to shove him before flipping her hair back from her face. She attempted to move around him to leave, but he moved to block her. "So you actually want me to kick your ass?"

"If that will help you." he said as he took off his jacket and tossed it on the floor. "Or you can yell and scream, you can throw things and you can break things." he turned back to her. "I can't imagine what you're going through, and I won't even pretend to, but I won't allow you to ever feel as if you can't take the time to feel what you're feeling. I don't care what's happening in our lives, if you need to fall apart, you can fall apart and I will help put you back together." Katie looked at him for a moment before turning around and sliding a hand over her face.

"Except I don't want to feel what I'm feeling, Liver." she turned back to him. "I get you want to help me, and you want me to feel better, and you want me to just be who I was, but I-" she turned away, suddenly struck with the image of holding a bloody knife above a dead Thea. Oliver's hands on her shoulders brought her back to the moment and she turned to meet his eyes.

"Twinkie, what I want is for you to just be ok." she shook her head before pulling from his grasp. "Just tell me what you need."

"I want you to yell." she said before turning back to him. "I want to scream. I want you to tell me how much I hurt you." Oliver looked at her for a moment, but he didn't say anything. "Oliver, neither one of us wants to feel what we're trying not to feel. Let's just-"

"We shouldn't have come back to Star City." he said interrupting her. "We were happy in that house in Coast City, and we were fine. We had friends, and I cooked you dinner and it was just normal." Oliver reached up and loosened his tie before pulling it off. "And you didn't want to go, but you didn't-" he shook his head before turning back to her. "You-"

"I agreed to come back."

"But you didn't want to and instead of telling me that, instead of being honest with me with how you felt, you chose to not say anything. Much like you're doing now."

"You were needed, and what I felt-"

"What you felt, what you feel is important to me." Oliver said taking a step toward her, but she moved away and he shook his head at the move. "You didn't want me to run for mayor-"

"So has this conversation veered to our best hits because I don't see the point. "

"No, you accused me of not wanting to feel what I feel, and right now I'm choosing to feel it." he said and Katie let out a huff. "I'm frustrated that you hide from me even though I've told you that you didn't have to. We're partners, you and me and all I want is for you to share with me how you actually feel about the decisions in our lives." he took a step toward her. "I don't want you to view me as another person in your life who doesn't allow you to actually decide where your life goes." she turned back to him. "Yes, I'm angry, at you and me, and at the fact that this wasn't as easy as I hoped it would be. And I'm sad that you pull away from me when I touch you and I don't know why. I'm heartbroken that you would rather be trapped in the twisted hell in your head than here with me and your family."

Not saying a word, Katie looks at him. Her eyes locked onto his and he can tell that she's trying to figure out a way to finally open up. She just shakes her head before turning and walking over to sit against the wall. Oliver let out a sigh before walking over and taking a seat on the floor in front of her.

"What happened on the roof?" he asked again and she once again met his eyes.

"The roof," she whispers before turning away. "I wanted it to stop." she bites her lip to stop herself from just falling apart at that moment. She turns back to him. "The hell in my head was easier to handle because that was all there was. It's easier to feel guilty and self-pity when you have no one elses' feelings to worry about. " she slides her fingers through her hair. "Here, every memory is vivid. Every sick and demented thing- I had to just watch and it's so clear in my mind and it plays on this loop in my head. And every second I have to somehow not let those horrible memories totally consume me. And while doing that I have to make sure bad guys don't hurt my family, I have to make sure my daughter and my cousin are safe and feel loved," she reached forward and took his hand grasping it. "I have to make sure I don't lose the love of my life in all of my craziness and his and it's hard." she dropped her head when the tears she knew would fall from her eyes at some point finally did. Oliver reached forward and brushed the tears away with his fingers. "I pull away from you Oliver-" she looked back up to meet his eyes. "Because I don't feel like I deserve to be loved the way you love me, and I don't deserve to be touched or kissed because of what I did-" she shook her head as more tears fell. She pulled her hands from his and stood to her feet about to walk away, but Oliver caught her arm, before once again wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her back to him. "I don't deserve your forgiveness."

"Good, because you don't need it." Oliver said before pressing a kiss to the crook of her neck. "I know it's hard for you to understand this, but what happened was not your fault."

"I let myself be taken away from you." she whispered. "Taken away from Robyn and Ari and I can't get that time back." Oliver spun the woman around to face him and he took in a deep breath as he looked at her. He just wanted her to feel just an ounce of what he felt for her. He placed a hand on her cheek.

"You're here now and that's all that matters to me." Oliver said before placing a kiss on her lips. He dropped his forehead against hers. "I just need you to be here with me." Oliver wrapped his arms around her, and Katie couldn't help but sink into the embrace.

Ari was actually surprised nothing out of the ordinary happened at school today. Of course, there were looks and whispers about the party and that fight, but she didn't really care about that. Tobias Church knew Oliver's identity which meant the possibility of some sort of attack on the Mayor and his family, which meant she was a possible target.

She hated that she actually wanted one of his thugs to pop up so she could beat the crap out of them. But it was pretty much quiet. When school was over, she stopped by her locker to retrieve the books and jacket. She was about to head for the door when she was stopped in the hall by Principal Harris, who she tried to avoid all day.

"Principal Harris, hi, I was just heading out. I'm not supposed to be late or people freak and I-" she began moving around the man. "I wouldn't want to get in trouble."

"Well, then I won't keep you." Principal Harris said before holding out an envelope to Ari. "I've made calls to both Oliver and Katherine and haven't gotten any responses so I have this note I would like you to give them." Ari took the note nervously before looking back at the man. "It is important that I speak with them."

"May I ask what about?"

The man gave her a knowing look. "I think it's best I spoke with your guardians." and with that, the man turned and walked away. Ari looked down at the envelope and let out a heavy sigh.

When she walked outside, she didn't expect to find Oliver standing on the side of his car, a small group of teens around him as he laughs and talks to them. He looks up and meets her eyes, saying something so all the teens turn to her and her eyes widen as she walks over. Oliver pulls open the passenger door and she steps inside. Once he gets inside and pulls off, she finally turns to him.

"What the hell was that?" she asks and Oliver turns to her with a furrowed brow.

"You know I thought it was obvious, but how about you lay off the swearing." Oliver said with a shake of his head before turning to the road. "And what are you talking about?"

"You never pick me up from school." She said as she turned to look out the window. "And you never wait for me outside so all the sheep can fangirl over the Mayor Handsome gag." Oliver once again looks over to her with a quirked brow.

"I think I should be offended, but I didn't understand half of what you just said." Oliver said. "And I decided to pick you up after an incident that happened this afternoon." Ari turned back to the man.

"Was it Tobias?"

"No, he still hasn't made any moves." Oliver said letting out a sigh. "It was just an issue with the car that Katie and Robyn were in and I just didn't want to risk anything so I decided to pick you up." he glanced over to her and she just nodded. "So how was school."

"It was school." Ari turned away before holding up the envelope. "I got a note for my guardians from Principal Harris." Oliver frowned as he looked over to the envelope. "So there's a chance I could be expelled."

"You're not going to be expelled. We'll talk to him." Oliver turned back to the road. "After you talk to us." Ari looked over to the man as the car stopped at a light and he turned to her. "Which you are going to do." the girl just rolled her eyes before turning away from him. The teen remained silent for the rest of the drive.

Without a word, Ari stepped out of the car the moment Oliver stopped in front of the house. Oliver followed her inside and watched as she started up the stairs.

"Ari, kitchen!" Katie's voice called and the teen stopped mid-step before looking over to Oliver who glanced up to her before heading into the kitchen. With a huff, Ari stomped down the stairs and into the kitchen where she found Oliver and Katie sitting at the table. "Sit."

Ari dropped into the chair across from them. "Before you even start, it wasn't my fault. She showed up to my party to mess with me and then she-" Ari shook her head.

"She kissed Jamie." Katie said and Ari turned to her. "A boy you liked." Ari didn't say anything. "So you hit her because that was the rational way to handle that situation."

"No," Ari muttered. "But after the day we had, it was the only solution I had at the moment." she looked over to Oliver who was speaking. "Look, you want to punish me, whatever, but you can't let her just get away with-"

"With kissing a boy you liked?" Oliver asked and Ari's eyes widen before standing to her feet. "Ari, wait, don't-" the girl was about to walk upstairs. "You walk up those stairs and you're off the team!" the girl came to a halt and turned to him. "Sit down." Ari begrudgingly stomped over back to sit. "I will deal with Evelyn, but right now we're dealing with you."

"Ari, I'm all for you feeling empowered, but this is the second time you've reverted to violence to solve a problem when there were other options." Katie said and Ari looked over to her with a shake of her head. "Please tell me you understand that?"

Ari let out a huff. "Yes, believe it or not, I get that I screwed up. I shouldn't have started those fights. But you both have to see that in both situations I was the one antagonized and in both situations, I think I proved that I won't just stand there and take it."

"Ari, what we just heard wasn't you taking accountability for your actions, but justifications." Oliver said and Ari turned away from him. She didn't say anything and Oliver and Katie just looked at her waiting for her to just get it, but she wasn't.

"A couple of months ago you and Oliver had a conversation." Katie said and both Oliver and Ari turned to her. "When I...when I wasn't me, you were confused and curious and so he finally revealed to you the truth of our lives. " Katie dropped her head for a moment before looking back over to Ari. "And I'm sure he covered all of the important parts, but it doesn't change the fact that I wished I was there. The truth Ari, if I were around you would never have known about the Green Arrow or the Guardian or any of it." Ari looked confused. "If I were around you would not be a member of that team."

"What are-" Ari started but Katie held up a hand to stop her.

"But we can't change what happened and we can't change what is. You know the truth, and you are now apart of a team of heroes and I don't think me or Oliver-" she looked over to Oliver who still watched her. "Understood how this would work." she turned back to Ari. "But I think I know where we should start. You will not be kicked off the team, but your time as Fire Light will be reduced."

"Are you kidding me?"

"I am not."

"She's right." Oliver said and Ari turned to him. "Ari, you're too young to have your entire focus be fighting the lowlifes in this city. You deserve to hang out with friends, to join a school club. Ari, you deserve to live in the light for as long as you can before you decide you want to dive into the darkness."

Ari shook her head. "You want me to be normal when that's impossible." she turned back to them. "My father stole millions from his family's company before trying to kill a man." she turned to Katie. "After he was killed by my cousin, my mother thought justice would only be served by forcing the police to arrest her using a restaurant full of people as leverage. So you see I was forced into the darkness a long time ago and I think I should get to decide how I navigate through it. I choose to fight." Ari turned from Katie to Oliver, waiting for them to say something.

"I get your life has been tough Ari, and you've had to deal with way more than you should, but this will be a moment when we play the guardian card." Katie said and Ari huffed and stood to her feet. "This is happening. You are going to focus on the life you have without that mask. You may not believe it, but you can make more of a difference without it."

"Is that it?" Ari asked, clearly upset. "Can I go to my room now?"

"Yes, I will be up later for your phone and laptop and any other device you could use to take over the world." Katie said and the teen didn't even respond before turning and stalking upstairs to her room. "I'm sorry, I didn't talk to you about any of that before-" Oliver reached over and took her hand and she turned to him.

"I'm sorry I told her about all of this without you." Oliver said and Katie shook her head.

"Don't." she squeezed his hand. "You made a parental decision and I know you wouldn't have done it if you didn't think it was for the best." Oliver slid an arm around her and tugged her into an embrace that Katie simply sank into. "I almost afraid now to ask her what she thinks of us adopting her."

"She just needs some time. She will see that this was for the best." Oliver placed a kiss on her head. "I should get started on dinner." and with that Oliver stood to his feet and Katie looked over to him with a slight smile.

"I can't remember the last time you cooked." Katie suddenly said and Oliver stopped for a moment before looking back over to her.

"Neither can I." Oliver said with a shake of his head before looking over to her. "I'm going to change that."

"I know." Katie said before standing to her feet. "I should go check on Robyn." Katie headed for the steps, but stopped and turned back to Oliver. "Oh, just a heads up, I will talk to Evelyn." Oliver looked over to her with a furrowed brow.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea." Oliver said and Katie simply smiled. "What are you going to do, Twinkie?"

"Don't worry I'm not going to beat her up." Katie said turning. "I mean when I'm done with her, she may wish that I did."

Dinner in the Queen household was quiet. The only sounds that could be heard were the clinking of silverware against plates and the playful mutterings of little Robyn who seemed to be wearing most of her food. Oliver looked up from his plate with a slight smile. Katie was right. They hadn't sat down for a meal in what feels like forever. He glanced over to Ari who avoids their gaze as she silently picked at her food.

"So I'm thinking this should be a regular thing." Oliver said breaking the silence and they turned to him. "Us, sitting down and eating dinner, like a family." Ari let out a snort before looking down at his plate. "I'm sure you'll like the idea more when you're in a better mood."

"Don't hold your breath." the teen muttered.

"How was school?" Katie asked, hoping to veer the conversation. "Any sign of Tobias?" Ari looked over to her and shook her head.

"Nope, it was a quiet normal day. Well except for the letter from Principal Harris which I'm sure was a note calling for my expulsion."

"No, he just wants to meet with me and Katie." Oliver said and the girl turned to him. "It seems like that video was brought to his attention and he would like to know what it's about."

"The fight didn't happen at school or on school property, so legally there are no grounds for expulsion." Katie said as she looks over at the teen. "So did you see Jamie?" Ari rolled her eyes as she looked back down to her plate.

"I don't want to talk about it." the girl said before letting out a huff and dropping her fork. "Actually, I'm not really that hungry, can I just go back up to my room, or does that like violate the terms of this ridiculous punishment."

"You can go up to your room Ari, and I expect a very different attitude when you talk to us again, is that clear?" Katie said and Ari turned to her and just gave a nod before turning and heading upstairs. Katie turned to Oliver who sat back in his chair and let out a sigh. "And you want to make this a regular thing?" the man couldn't help but laugh. Katie turned back to Robyn who was pretty much covered in mashed potatoes. "I think it's bath time, what do you say little bird?" Robyn muttered something totally unintelligible that made Katie smile. "I'm going to take that as a yes." she turned to Oliver. "I will get this kid clean and to bed and I will help clean up." she stood to her feet and plucked Robyn from her booster seat. "Have you talked to John? Any luck with Rene?"

"John says he isn't getting much from Rene, but he isn't being that helpful." Oliver said and Katie looked over to him and sighed. "You want to see him."

"I want to talk to him. He's been through a lot and I understand what that feels like. Maybe I could help." Oliver dropped his napkin on his plate and looked back over to Katie who just shook her head. "Which you don't agree with?"

"Twinkie, I just think it's safer if-" she didn't even let him finish before she turned to carry little Robyn upstairs. "So I guess that's what family dinners are like." Oliver lifted his head at the sound of the doorbell and stood to his feet to see who was at the door. He pulled back the curtain of the window beside the door to see Steve standing there. Oliver suddenly felt that surge of annoyance and anger but took a deep breath before pulling open the door.

"Sir." Steve greeted and Oliver simply took a step to the side to allow the man in.

"Come in, Steve." Oliver said.

Felicity Smoak was confused. She sat in her home office, her eyes on the monitor of her computer. The door to her office opened and she glanced over to see Bruce before turning back to the screen.

"You've been in here for a while. " he said taking a seat in the chair across from her. "Any chance you'll be coming down for dinner?"

"I'm busy at the moment, Bruce." Felicity said, her eyes still scanning the screen.

"Well, that's a serious look. News on Tobias?"

"No, everything is quiet on the Tobias front. This is-" Felicity tilted her head as she looked at the screen. "Well, I'm not quite sure what this is." Bruce stood to his feet with a furrowed brow and walked around to see what had the woman confused. "After the whole weird car issue with Katie, I decided to do a bit of digging."

"Didn't Steve say it was a clogged fuel pump?" Bruce asked as he looked down to the screen to see what looked like a data file on all things Steve Miller. "You're doing a search on Steve. I thought you ran background before he was chosen."

"I did, and everything came back clean when I did." Felicity said.

"So what are you looking for now?"

"Steve is the lead guard for the team that protects Oliver and Katie and the kids. He's formal military, and then went into personal security for the last ten years." Felicity said. "Today, he deviated from their normal route, got separated from his team before the car carrying his boss and her daughter stopped in the middle of some unknown street and absolutely no one from his team or Oliver was notified." she looked over to Bruce. "That's not the type of mistake someone with Steve's experience would make." Bruce frowned because she was right. He turned back to the screen. "And then it got me to thinking. He and his team not able to catch Ari when she sneaks out, or the mysterious stranger slipping a death threat under the door."

"Wait, what?" Bruce turned to Felicity. "There's a death threat?"

"There's a death threat." Felicity said before pulling up the surveillance video. "This happened while you and Oliver were in the middle of your prison break." Bruce watched the hooded figure move up the walkway before slipping something under the door and simply walking away without any intervention. "According to Steve's report of this, there was a mix up with the posts and the guard who was supposed to be in the front of the house was in the back and the guard that was supposed to be in the back was down the block."

"Seriously? That was his explanation."

"He said a few members of his team quit and so he had to bring in some new guards and apparently they have no idea what they're doing." Felicity shook her head before turning back to the screen. "I have a bad feeling. I have nothing definite and I think I should have some kind of proof before I bring this to Oliver."

"You need proof?" Bruce said and Felicity turned to him and gave him a nod. "Then let's get you proof, Ms. Smoak."

"And how are we going to do that?" Felicity said standing to her feet.

"Well, you and I are going to do some investigating." Bruce said with a smile. "So what do you say partner?" he held out a hand to the woman who simply looked at the man with a shake of her head. She knew this was part of some elaborate plan to get her to forgive him. The truth was she'd already forgiven him, but she just hasn't told him yet. She thinks she likes a groveling Bruce Wayne. Felicity simply took his hand and shook it, not expecting him to pull her to his chest.

Felicity squealed at the sudden move before swatting his chest. "Where do we start?"

"He's an old army buddy of John's right?" Bruce asked and Felicity nodded. "Then I'll start there."

"I guess I can do some even deeper digging. Him being a friend of Johns and having his sign of approval and I didn't think I needed to go that deep, but maybe I was wrong."

"We're going to find out, but first I feed you." Bruce slid an arm around the woman, glad she didn't pull away as they headed out of the office.

Oliver once again found himself standing near the window of the living room as he watched the guards patrolling. He'd just heard Steve's description of events.

"Sir, with the threat level you informed me about, I felt deviating from the route was the best course of action. I wasn't aware of the issues with the vehicle, but I have reprimanded the team responsible for maintenance. I was told it was mistakenly missed during the vehicle inspection." Oliver didn't say anything and that just made Steve even more nervous. "Sir, I assure you nothing like this will happen again."

"Steve, you just listed off several mistakes, that you as the head of security should ensure never happens." Oliver turned to the man. "Everything you told me was preventable, and yet my wife and daughter were both put in possible danger." Oliver dropped his head before looking back up to Steve. "Steve, I brought you on because John told me that you were the guy that I could trust to protect my family, and the fact that it came from John only made me so quick in my decision to hire you and your team. When I interviewed you and every meeting we have before your hiring, I've stressed and stressed how important the safety of my family is. When I am not around, I entrust in you and your team the most important people in my life, so I don't care about who messed what up, or who didn't inspect the damn car. I care about situations like today never happening." Oliver took a step forward. "Steve I asked you before I offered you this job if you thought you could do it and you told me you could."

"Sir, I completely understand that these things can not and should not happen. I take personal responsibility for my team. You can believe that I will make sure nothing like this happens again." Steve replied and Oliver looked at him for a moment. At the moment, he still needed security and with Tobias Church lurking around, there wasn't much time to vet a new team. Oliver slid a hand over his face because he wasn't completely sure but he looked back up to the man.

"Fine, but any more mistakes, any more inspections get missed then I'm afraid I'm going to have to let you and your team go." Oliver said and Steve gave a nod. "Steve, seriously just do whatever you have to do to make sure that when I'm not around, my family is safe."

"Yes, sir. You have my word." Steve said with a nod before turning and leaving. Oliver watched as the man headed for the door but stopped.

"Was there something else?" Oliver asked and Steve stood there for a moment before looking over to the man and just shaking his head.

"No sir," Steve said before walking out the door.

That night Oliver once again found himself standing in front of their bedroom door. He let out a sigh before turning about to head back to the guest room but stopped when the door pulled open.

Katie stood there in her pajamas looking back over to the man. "I got tired of waiting for you to work up the courage to actually come in."

"I wasn't sure I should." he replied honestly. "I wasn't sure you wanted me to." Katie looked at him for a moment before turning around and walking back into the room. Oliver stood in the hall for a moment before finally walking into the room, closing the door behind him. He watched as Katie walked over to lie on the bed on top of the covers.

"This morning when you came into the kitchen and you and Ari had these looks." Katie looked over to the man. "You thought I had left, right?"

"Honestly, I wasn't sure what I thought." Oliver said walking over to lie beside her on the bed.

"You're a terrible liar." she said lightly swatting his arm. They sat there in a comfortable silence until Katie once again spoke. "I didn't sleep last night." Oliver looked over to her, her eyes looking straight ahead to the door. "I took a shower and I put on my pajamas and I just stared at the bed." she frowned slightly. "I was terrified of lying down and falling asleep and dreaming about it." she glanced over to him. "When I'm awake, I can stop the never-ending hell loop in my head with a distraction, but if I fall asleep then I-"

"No longer have a choice." Oliver said and Katie gave a nod, her eyes turning back to the door. "Twinkie, you're going to get through this." she once again turned to him. "You're strong, and I know it seems impossible, but I promise you are going to find your way out of all of those emotions that you don't want to feel." he reached over, taking her hand in his and placing a kiss on her fingers. "And so am I." He pulled his hand from hers, only to slip it around her back and tug her closer to him. He was glad she didn't pull away as she dropped her head on his chest and brought her arm around his middle and even crossing her leg over his. He placed a kiss on top of her head.

"You know I really love you." Katie said nuzzling her head against his chest.

She felt his grasp around her tighten a bit. "And I really like you, like a lot." he said and they both laughed, and soon after they both fell asleep.

The next morning, Oliver opened his eyes, a smile instantly tugging at the corners of his lips. He tilted his head, slightly craning his neck to see his wife's body tangled around his own and he wouldn't dare move her. He turned his body slightly, bringing his other arm around her. The move seemed to stir the woman who let out a sigh as her grip around him tightened a bit.

"You're awake," she muttered through a sleep-filled voice. "Did you need to get up?"

Oliver placed a kiss on the top of her head. "Not yet." he tightened his grasp around her and they laid like that for a while longer.

The couple wished they could lie in bed for the entire day, but the reality was, there was a toddler who was just as impatient as her father and wanted to be changed and fed. There was a teenager still giving them the silent treatment, and there was still that gray cloud hanging over their head that was Tobias Church and the attack they knew was coming.

After everyone was up and ready for the day, Oliver decided he would drive Ari to school, Katie, and Robyn with him. There was a team of guards who followed close behind, but after what happened the day before, Oliver wasn't chancing any more mistakes.

The car ride was silent, the only sound coming from the low volume of the morning radio station. They were stopped at a red light when Oliver glanced up to the rearview mirror to see Ari's eyes looking out the window.

"So how long do you plan on giving us the silent treatment?" Oliver asked and the girl glanced over to him only to roll her eyes and turn back out to look out the window. When he finally came to a stop in front of the school, Ari jumped out of the car without a word. Katie watched the girl with a shake of her head.

"I so want to scream an, "I love you honey' at her right now, but I'm afraid she'd kill us in our sleep." Katie said with a sigh before looking over to Oliver whose eyes were scanning the area. She turned and did the same. "We can't keep this up." Oliver glanced over to her and she turned to him. "I can't spend every day worried about some psycho sneaking into her school and taking her and hurting her."

"Felicity says there are still no signs of him. He's going to make a move and-"

"And I can't just sit and wait for that to happen." Katie replied turning to look back to the school as all the kids filed inside. "I don't like that he knows how to hurt us."

"Neither do I, but at this point, there's nothing left to do but wait. I've got in touch with John's friend and there's a plan." Katie looks over at him with a furrowed brow. "I have to steal another page out of your playbook."

When Katie noticed they weren't going home, she looked over to Oliver. "Where are we going?"

"I have a go to City Hall," Oliver said before turning to her. "And you and Robyn are coming with me." Katie looked at him for a moment to see if he was serious. "I know what you're going to say."

"Which makes this all the more upsetting. Oliver you can't just bring us to work with you."

"Except I can. I'm the boss." he says with a smile before turning and continuing down the road.

Oliver stood in the elevator beside Katie, his eyes down to Robyn who was happily playing with her stuffed toy, his two guards in front of them. He was blatantly ignoring the look on Katie's face. She'd argued with him the entire drive and only stopped once they stepped inside of the building. Once the doors of the elevator opened the guards step out, and Oliver brought an arm around Katie to follow.

"This is ridiculous." she whispered over to him and he looked over to her with a smile. "And now you're smiling. I don't want to hit you while you're being the mayor, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to."

"Twinkie, you can rant and threaten to hit me all you like, but it's not changing anything." Oliver said and the woman turned away with a roll of her eyes. They stopped when Thea stepped from her office, her eyes going wide at the sight of Katie and Robyn.

"Hi, I didn't know-" she looked over to Oliver. "I didn't know they were coming in. Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, we're just being cautious." Oliver says looking over to Katie who looks over to him. "So Katie and Robyn will stick around here until it's time for us to pick up Ari from school." he turned back to Thea who gave him a nod before turning to Katie who was avoiding her gaze.

"Uh, why is Susan Williams in your office?" Thea asked turning back to Oliver.

"I agreed to an off-camera interview." Oliver said and both Katie and Thea looked at him in confusion.

"Susan Williams?" Katie said with a furrowed brow. "Isn't she that reporter who accused you of not making any decisions around here?" Katie turned away in thought. "I think I was supposed to beat her up."

Oliver turned to her with a shake of his head. "You're not beating her up."

"Ok, come here." Thea said before stepping into her office and they all stepped inside. "Ok. So did you go out last night as the Green Arrow and get hit really hard in the head?" Thea asked and Oliver let out a sigh.

"Thea, Susan Williams is in our lives."

"Well-" Katie said and Oliver turned back to her and shook his head.

"You're not beating her up." he said before turning back to Thea. "And if we don't make her an ally then she will remain an enemy."

"But she's poison."

"Well, it turns out that if you ingest small amounts of poison over time you can develop an immunity." Oliver said and Katie turned to him with a furrowed brow.

"No you can't." she said with a shake of her head. "You could and could is even a stretch, somehow develop a tolerance, but even that isn't a sure-fire way to not get yourself killed." Oliver and Thea both looked at her and Katie shook her head before turning to Oliver.

"Ok, but I'm still going." he turned and held out a hand for Katie to follow, but she didn't move. He turned back to her with a furrowed.

"Seriously, you have an interview right now. We're not going in there with you. This woman already has this perception of you that you have no mind of your own. If you're doing the interview, we shouldn't be there, plus we'd be a distraction."

"They can wait here until the interview is done." Thea said and both Oliver and Katie turned to her.

"We don't want to distract you from your work either," Katie said before turning back to Oliver. "We should just go home. Remember that whole thing about you not making me feel as if I didn't have any control." Oliver looked at her with wide eyes. "Well—"

"This is different, and I will tell you how, after this interview I'm going to be late for it if I don't leave now." Oliver said before looking over to Thea before turning back to Katie. "Fine, you should stay here, that will at least prevent you from trying to beat her up." he brought his arms around her waist and pulled her to him before placing a kiss on her lips. He turned and dropped a kiss to Robyn's cheek causing the girl to lightly giggle and reach her hands out to him, making him feel that much more guilty for having to leave. "I'll be back before you know it sweetie." he turned back to Katie. "Just wait for me." and with that, the man turned and hurried out to head down to his office.

Thea let out a sigh before turning a smile to Katie. "So, could I get you guys something while you wait?" Katie didn't say anything as she looked over to the woman and Thea visibly deflated. "You're upset with me, I get it, but I was freaking out. I didn't know what happened on that roof. I just thought Oliver should know so he could help you."

"It's fine Thea," Katie says turning for the door. "Seriously, if you're busy we can find somewhere else-" she opened the door, stopping at the sight of one of the guards standing in front of the door. "Why aren't you guarding the mayor?" the guard turned to her.

"Mayor Queen instructed that I was to stick with you and your daughter ma'am." the guard replied and Katie let out a sigh. So much for a clean getaway. She just shook her head before closing the door and turning back to Thea.

"He's just worried." Thea said.

"I know and I get it." Katie looked down at her daughter before looking back over to Thea. "Ok, we'll stay, but we don't want to distract you, so just work on whatever you're working on and pretend like we're not even here." Katie grabbed the handles of Robyn's stroller and pulled her to the other side of the room where she took a seat on the couch before unstrapping the girl and bringing her to her lap.

Oliver was regretting this interview but just continued to tell himself to remain calm and just tell the truth.

"You seem like a nice guy, but you're not a real politician." Susan accused and Oliver just let out a breath with a nod.

"I am underqualified."

"Vastly, and the city, my home, is suffering because of it." Oliver wanted to say so much, but bit his tongue and continued with trying to keep the room calm.

"I appreciate the fact that I haven't earned your trust yet. Susan, as someone who professes to care about Star City, I think that you owe it to the people of Star City to give me an opportunity to earn that trust, and I promise you I can't do that if I'm spending all of my energy dodging all of these grenades that you're lobbying at me, so here's my idea. You give me one month with no attacks. Let me show you what I can do, and if I don't deliver... It's open season." the woman looked at him for a moment before standing to her feet and he did the same.

"One month." the woman agreed before holding out her hand. "You should know Mayor, that if you have not shown me and this city that you're up to this job, then I will not be holding back." Oliver shook the woman's hand with a nod before walking her to the door. He opened the door for the woman only to stop when he noticed Katie pushing Robyn's stroller toward them and she stopped when she saw them too. Katie came to a stop in front of them, her eyes going from Oliver to Susan.

"Mrs. Queen, I didn't know you were here." the woman said pulling on a bright smile before holding out her hand to Katie. Katie pulled a smile of her own, even though she has no idea where it came from. She couldn't help but subtly look the woman over. She'd seen the woman on television before, but to see her in real life and to see just how pretty she was and just how perfect her hair was and she couldn't help that slight twinge of insecurity as she looked at the woman standing beside her husband.

"Yeah, I came in to visit this guy." Katie says shaking the woman's hand before turning to Oliver. "I was with Thea, but we were becoming a bit of a distraction and I thought it best if we found somewhere else to wait." she turned back to Susan. "If we're interrupting, we can go-" she glanced down the hall. "I could find someone to give me an actual tour of this place."

"No, it's fine, we just finished up the interview." Oliver said and Katie turned back to him.

"Great." Katie said turning back to Susan before moving out of the way to let her out.

"You know Mrs. Queen, I'm just going to come out and say it since I don't know when I would get the opportunity again." Susan reached into her purse and pulled out a business card. "The entire city is so anxious to hear your story."

"My story?" Katie asked and the woman looked back up with a nod.

"Of course. You helped the police catch a monster and then you ended up in a coma and woke up months later with no memory of the last couple of years of your life. But here you are trying to get it all back." the woman handed Katie the card and Katie unsure what to do just took it. "When you're ready to share your story, please call me and I will help you tell it." the woman gave a nod before moving around the woman and headed down the hall. Katie turned and watched the woman for a moment.

"She seems nice I think." Katie said before turning to Oliver. "She's pretty too." Oliver looked down at the woman who he thinks was waiting for him to react to that statement.

"I didn't notice." Oliver said, bringing an arm around the woman to pull her into his office. He placed a kiss on her cheek, before turning to his daughter and unstrapping her from her stroller.

"Sure you didn't." Katie says. She smiled as she watched as Oliver carried the girl with him to his desk and sat down. Robyn's eyes lit up at all the things on her father's desk and couldn't wait to try to grab them, but Oliver kept a firm grasp around her to stop her. Katie walked over to take a seat in front of the desk and Oliver looked over to her with a smile. "I find it hard to believe that the Mayor doesn't have anything important to do and can spend his day playing with his daughter."

"Don't forget staring at his wife and thinking dirty thoughts." Oliver replied and Katie turned away with a shake of her head, heat on her cheeks. "Twinkie, it's fine, I have a meeting a little bit later-" she turned back to him. "And sure I'm supposed to be reading over some city ordinances, but I can do that-"

"Now, you're going to do it now." Katie said standing to her feet and walking over to pluck the child from his hands. "Work and if I even think you're getting distracted from your very important work, we're going to find someplace else to hide out in here." with that the woman turned and walked over to sit on the couch. She sat Robyn back in her stroller before grabbing a blanket and spreading it on the floor where she tossed out some of Robyn's toys before she lowered them both on the floor.

Oliver was trying his hardest to focus, to keep his eyes on the screen of his computer, but he would hear Robyn's tiny laugh and he couldn't help but turn his head. He smiled as he watched Katie playing with Robyn and soon he turned his chair and just watched them, content that this was how he could spend the rest of his day. He remembers imagining a moment like this and believing it would never happen. Katie lifted her eyes and he didn't have time to turn away and pretend as if he weren't just staring at them.

"Before you say anything, I'm taking a break." Oliver said and Katie shook her head not even believing him. They turned when the door to his office opened and in came Thea who glanced over to Katie and Robyn before turning to Oliver.

"Why do I get the feeling you didn't read over any of those ordinances for this meeting we have to go to."

"I did." Oliver said standing to his feet and walked around to his sister. "Well I read the titles, that's more than I thought I would do."

"I knew this wasn't a good idea." Katie says picking up Robyn and walking over to them. "We should find somewhere else to wait." she turned to Oliver.

"You know you say that as if he'd focus on anything other than trying to find out where you two were." Thea sighed before turning to her brother. "So I think I may have something we can hit Councilman Kullens with. I'll explain it on the way to the meeting." Oliver nodded before looking over to Katie for a moment and Thea could see a slight hesitation. "You're not sitting this meeting out Oliver."

"But what if I-" he turned to his sister who just shook her head before he turned back to his wife. "You know sometimes I feel like I don't have any control." Katie's brows rose at the comment and she couldn't help but laugh. "Fine, I'll go."

"And I'll see if someone can give us a tour of this place." Katie said and she saw that look in his eyes again. "I don't want to be stuck in your office all day."

"You won't, I promise. These meetings don't usually run long and when it's over I'll give you a tour myself." he said, placing a kiss on her cheek before kissing Robyn's cheek as well. Katie watched as he and Thea turned and left the office. Katie looked down at Robyn and let out a sigh.

"You know I think we could sneak out of here without your daddy knowing. What do you say?" a foul smell passed Katie's nose and she sighed as she walked over to the diaper bag. "You could've just said you thought it was a bad idea you know."

Ari was spending her lunch break inside of the library where for just a little while she could avoid everyone's stares. She was looking for a book to read for her English essay and she didn't know which one to choose.

"Hey," a voice spoke causing Ari to jump with a clenched fist. "Whoa, whoa, it' just me." the girl turned to Jamie who she hadn't seen since her party. She thought for sure he was avoiding her.

"What do you want Jamie?" she asked plucking a book from the shelf and walking away from him.

"I thought we should talk...about what happened."

"What's there to talk about? You came to my party, made out with the bane of my existence, and then I kicked her ass." Ari dropped back into her seat, flipping open the book.

"Well, I only remember about thirty-five percent of what happened that night. Someone spiked the punch and I was totally wasted. I don't even know that chick's name or why I was kissing her. All I remember is seeing that fight before I think I passed out." Ari didn't say anything and Jamie let out a sigh before taking the book from her hand. "You can't just ignore me."

"Yes I can." she said grabbing the book from his hand and turning to grab her backpack. "Look I'm fine with pretending that night didn't happen."

"Except it did and now my friend doesn't want to talk to me." Jamie said and Ari stopped and turned back to him. "And I'm not completely sure why." Ari looked at him for a moment before turning away too afraid of the words she wants to say right now. She turned back to the boy and opened her mouth to speak when suddenly the lights went out. "What the hell?"

"Alright students, stay calm." The librarian came from the office with a flashlight. "I'm sure the lights will be coming back on soon. Everyone will need to stay here until they do. "

Jamie turned when he saw Ari going for the door and he went to follow. "Hey, what are you doing? Ms. Baker said to stay here. "

"Then stay here." Ari said back to him. "I just want to see what's going on." and with that, the girl slipped out of the library, and unsure what else to do, Jamie followed after her.

The meeting lasted a bit longer than he anticipated so when it was over he tried his best not to look like he was in a hurry even though he really was. He only stopped just as he was about to go into his office.

"Oh, Mr. Queen," the man stopped and turned to his assistant. "Mrs. Queen isn't in there." Oliver turned to face the woman fully and she saw the seriousness on his face. "She said she was a bit hungry and wanted to go down to the cafeteria. I offered to go get her something, but she insisted on going herself. The guard is with her and your daughter."

"Thanks, Maddy." Oliver said before turning for the elevator.

"She told me to tell you not to go looking for her." Maddy said and Oliver stopped and turned back to her. "She said you should be working and that she could find her way from the cafeteria back to your office without your help." Oliver noticed the slight smile on the woman's face.

"Did she say anything else?"

"Nothing I feel comfortable repeating sir," the woman said with a slight laugh as she walked back over to her desk. Oliver turned back to the elevator, the doors opening and he let out a nervous breath. He wanted nothing more than to step through those doors and find her because the nervousness and the fear only went away when she was with him. He's also certain that she really will hit him if he goes searching for her and so he takes another deep breath before heading back toward his office.

Oliver had only stepped inside of his office when his cell phone rang. He pulled it out to see Hank's number and he felt his heart drop. Hank was leading the team watching Ari at school. Oliver quickly answered.

"Hank, what's wrong?"

"I'm not quite sure sir." Hank said. "There's a power outage at the school."

"Where's Ari?" Oliver asked turning about to leave.

"Still inside the building. I caught her and some kid walking down the hall alone so I grabbed them both and we're secured in the gym. My guys have gone around the building and nothing seems to be up. It's looking like just an electrical issue, but I thought I would let you know what's going on."

"I appreciate it, Hank. Just stay with Ari."

"Yes sir. I was going to call Mrs. Queen and give her the update as well."

Oliver turned when Katie came back into the office, Robyn secured with one arm, a bag in her other.

"That's not necessary, she came to City Hall with me. I'll let her know what's going on."

"Yes sir."

Katie walked over to Oliver when he pulled the phone from his ear. "What's going on?"

"There's a power outage at Star City High." Oliver said and Katie's eyes widen. "Ari's fine, Hank is with her. He thinks it's just an electrical issue."

"Well excuse me if I'm not trusting the opinions of our security team." Katie says walking over to sit Robyn on her blanket. "I'll call Felicity to check it out." she turns back to Oliver. "I'll let you know what she says." Oliver didn't say anything before he took a step toward the woman. "Don't you dare, this doesn't change anything. Get back to work." He didn't stop and she really didn't expect him to as he brought his hands around her waist and pulled her closer to him. She relented, bringing her arms around him.

"You're right, when you're here, and I can look at you and touch you, I will choose to do those things over working," Oliver said and Katie just smiled at him.

"Which is why we should go home." Katie said and Oliver just shook his head. "You know we can't just hide out in your office every time someone threatens to hurt you."

"But you can." Oliver replied and Katie laughed at him. "Twinkie, it wouldn't matter if you were at home or standing here in my arms. I would always think about you."

"I remember once upon a time, that would've scared the crap out of you." she replied and Oliver chuckled but gave a nod.

"Once upon a time it did, but now I accept that I am completely and entirely in love with my wife and I will do anything for her. Even bring her and our daughter to my office so I can make sure they're safe. And I know it's not a permanent solution but for now, it works."

"You working has to also be apart of the plan because Mr. Mayor, you have an important job. Now go back to your desk and read boring reports."

"Fine, but I will take a second or two...or three, to watch my wife and daughter."

"I can live with that." Katie says pulling out of his grasp and walking back over to take a seat on the floor beside Robyn. "No dirty thoughts though. At least while there's a child in the room." Oliver smiled as Katie turned to him with a smile.

"I'm sure Thea wouldn't mind spending some Super-aunt time with her niece so I could share these thoughts with you. In great detail." Katie bit the corner of her lip before turning away. "And if you want me to get any work done, you're not going to bite your lip again." Katie turned to him with a quirked brow and he can see that challenge she wants to set, but instead, she just shakes her head and turns back to Robyn. Oliver let out a sigh before walking back over to sit at his desk to once again read over the never-ending list of unread emails in his inbox.

---

Author's Note:

So sorry for the wait!

Review Replies:

BlueBloodsSVUOrder: Thanks so much for the review and I'm glad you're enjoying the story! I hope you're having a happy New Year as well!

Guest: A lot did happen! There's more to come with the second half of this story arc! Thanks for the review!

Special thanks to everyone who has added this story to your fav/follow alerts! And as always my most gracious and appreciative thanks to those who left me reviews! You all are awesome!

Sneak Peek

"What's wrong?" John asked and Oliver turned, looking around and they all turned as well trying to figure out what he was looking for. "Oliver, what's going on?" Oliver walked around them, back out to the display of suits, his eyes going to the Guardian's suit still in its case.

"We just figured out a time and a place Tobias Church is going to be." Oliver sighed before turning back to John. "And now my wife is gone." the sudden realization hit John and he began looking around the bunker for any sight of Katie, but Oliver was right she was nowhere to be found.

"You don't think she'd go there on her own?" Felicity asked standing to her feet and walking over. Oliver let out a sigh.

"She was waiting for a starting point, and she just got it."