My name is Oliver Queen. For five years, I was stranded on an island with only one goal-survive. Now I will fulfill my father's dying wish to use the list of names he left me and bring down those who are poisoning my city. To do this, I must become something else. I must become something else.

The police think they know who I am. They think I'm the vigilante. The man in the hood terrorizing this city's criminals. They also think they have me trapped. That I have no way out. They're only half right.

The media frenzy is expected. He isn't surprised to discover the police had tipped the media. In fact he has a feeling Detective Lance called personally. He wants to see him ruined. Quentin Lance has a vendetta. Oliver can understand that. He understands revenge better than most. If Detective Lance wants to do this then he'll let him. Give the man some time to deal with his anger. In the end Oliver Queen will walk free and Detective Lance will be back to square one.

He knows his family won't be far behind. His mother and Walter will be contacting lawyers and rushing to his defense. He's only been home for a few weeks and the lawyer will advise diminished capacity. He's not crazy. It will take some maneuvering to achieve his goals.

Lance is determined to make him suffer for this. Handcuffed to a table Oliver can only play bored or indignant. He needs to be innocent but knows no play-acting will convince Lance. He's guilty until the evidence proves him otherwise. The questions are silly. Lance is trying to make a point. He mentions the docks but Oliver manages confusion. The docks?

He lets Lance question him, hate him. He lets him tell him what evidence had him arrested. He knew about the video footage from Felicity's computer. He had not expected the police to pick up on it. He had an explanation but he did slip up not leaving the duffel behind. It could have cleared him. Being caught in general was the plan but he hadn't expected it so soon.

His mother and stepfather barge in and Oliver tries to look harassed. It's harder to do than expected. Moira is outraged. Her just returned son is being harassed by the cops for the second time in a few short weeks. Walter is the stern one.

"I know you hate my family Detective, but I had no idea that you would go so far as to arrest my son without any grounds whatsoever!"

"I have grounds Mrs. Queen and I have evidence."

"Well this interrogation is over until Oliver's lawyer gets here." Walter shuts down the discussion and waits for the door to close. "It appears Detective Lance has a personal vendetta."

"Sara, his daughter, is dead because of me." Walter barely moves at the remark and instead fiddles with his phone.

"Your lawyer should be here soon."

"I want Laurel." It's a gamble. Oliver knows it. Laurel might say no. At the same time Laurel will unsettle Lance. She'll be determined to prove Oliver's innocence. She'll never believe Oliver has it in him to be the vigilante.

"I think Laurel can get him off the vendetta. She was raised to do the right thing. That includes representing an innocent man."

They know he's made up his mind. There will be no other lawyer. Laurel or nothing.


Across town Felicity Smoak wakes with a groan. For a moment it is just another morning but then she sees it. The flechette is waiting for her. Her mind flashes back to the night before. The man in the hood was here. She bolts from the bed, rushing into the living room. The only evidence he was there was the bat lying on the floor.

The computers are still blinking but now there is a post it note on the middle screen.

Sorry.

She can't bother to be angry with him. He didn't harm her and really he just proved she was making him nervous. She had almost no evidence. Nothing that would get him arrested. He'd be under suspicion but they would need more than the video to get him.

While running the back-up drive, she turns to the small television and flicks it on. Commercials. Figures.

"Breaking news, the Starling City Vigilante has been apprehended. Detective Quentin Lance has just made an arrest charging the alleged vigilante with murder, attempted murder, breaking and entering,..."

Hmm.. she keyed in a few things absently as the news anchor continues to prattle on about more and more of the charges. Bagel or eggs? Pancakes? Who I am I kidding? Sure Felicity let's just burn the apartment down.

"Oliver Queen is being processed at the Starling City police department. He had no comment upon arrival and we will update you with more information as we have it."

Felicity spins in her chair and stares at the screen watching Oliver Queen get marched in handcuffs into the police station. She has suspected but now confronted with Oliver being arrested she is unsure. What if he is innocent? The news carries the story as his mother arrives, his stepfather. Thea Queen is missing in action.

The computer fix sat forgotten as she heads for the door. She wants to see him. She couldn't. They'd never let her. She...where should she go? She has no one to talk to. She sighs and turns back to her computers. Oliver doesn't need her. He has plenty of people to worry about him. He doesn't need her. She holds the flechette and wonders if she could prove his innocence. One sighting of the Hood would prove his innocence. She could do that.


Oliver was hoping Laurel was just thinking it over. While he could make a go at defending himself it wouldn't be long before he was taken to jail. He needs to have time to brief Diggle and get things moving. Just because Oliver Queen being in prison doesn't mean the Hood could stop working.

Laurel is there in a moment, arguing with the D.A. and winning her argument. He checks out of most of the discussion only getting irritated by house arrest. He'd almost rather be in jail than be confined to the house. He needs mobility and access. Well...at least he'll have better access to the internet and Diggle. Fine.

The ankle tracker is troublesome. His family watches and Moira is clearly upset. Time to do a bit more damage. He makes his party plans, getting the details on the length of his leash, and jokes about accusations. He needs to play the part of the wrongfully accused, unworried by his potential jail time. Plus he needs an alibi for his plans to work. He needs to be seen and he needs to be seen by a large group of people.

He shakes off Tommy and his family and goes back to his research. The knock is right on time.

"Shut the door." Diggle moves into the space, ready to hang up his vigilante plans in under 24 hours.

"I guess it was just a matter of time before the police caught up with you. They got you on video."

"I knew the security camera was there. I returned to Starling City and a few days later the vigilante appears? Someone was going to make the connection."

"So what...you just go to prison man?"

"For now I play the part and we focus on the mission. Leo Mueller is a German arms dealer suspected of stealing a hundred M249 Squad Automatic Weapons. He's here to sell them."

"Don't you imagine you're in enough trouble?"

"Imagine our city's street turned into a war zone if the gangs get the guns. I want you to shadow Mueller. Just track him and let me know where the buy is."

"And how should I do that?"

"Well Dig. Us billionaire vigilantes love our toys."

After Dig leaves Oliver makes his way downstairs. Tommy is down there making party plans and chatting up Raisa. He turns and smiles at Oliver. Raisa pats his hand as she heads for the door. The vendors are running early.

"So you aren't worried?"

"Tommy do I look worried?"

"That's what worries me. Sometimes you don't take anything seriously."

"Tommy. I spent years starving and struggling to survive. This doesn't really worry me."

"You've been gone for five years Ollie. We all don't want to lose you again."

"I'm not going anywhere Tommy. The charges will get dropped. I'm not this vigilante Detective Lance thinks I am."

"Good." He turns and she's standing there. She's wearing what looks like yoga pants and a ratty t-shirt. She looks like she's been up for hours working non-stop. Her hair is frazzled and her glasses are resting at an angle. Raisa catches his gaze and frowns. This is that strange woman again who only comes to see him.

"Who is this?" Tommy moves to stand next to him but Oliver is only watching her.

"Are you him?" she demands. "Are you the man who broke into my apartment last night and wiped my computer? It took me hours to fix that."

"Felicity…"

"If you knocked me unconscious I'll hit you with that bat. It's in my car and I swear I'm in no mood to deal with you and your weird lies."

"Felicity…"

"I'm serious! I spent the last twelve hours trying to find proof you aren't the vigilante. A traffic camera. Anything! Do you know what I found? NOTHING!"

He pulls her into his arms then and she struggles. He can feel Tommy and Raisa's eyes on him but he doesn't care. She shaking whether from anger or from worry he's not sure. He doesn't care about the audience as he rubs her back and holds her close. Her arms hesitantly wrap around him and he just holds her.

"I shouldn't be here," she mumbles. "I don't know why I came."

"I'm glad you did." He realizes he's being truthful. He wanted to see her. Tommy and Raisa make their way out of the room and he moves Felicity to the couch. Her shoulders are still shaking and he takes her hands in his. "Everything is going to be fine."

"I should be saying that to you. You're the one facing life in prison."

"Everything is going to be fine Felicity. Detective Lance will realize he's wrong and then the ankle monitor will be gone."

"I thought you were the vigilante," she admits. He watches her as she wrestles to explain. "I was so sure because you came home and the vigilante showed up. Then the Exchange building and the computer. I was so sure."

"Felicity...do I seem like I'm the vigilante?"

"I...I don't want to think you could be that guy. He's dangerous and I don't want to think I would be…"

"What?" She smiled hesitantly and rubbed his hands with hers.

"I…"

"Where do you want the alcohol set up Mr. Queen?" The three guys have kegs and crates of alcohol on dollies. He glances back and sees the anger on Felicity's face.

"You're throwing a party?! You're facing life in prison and you're going to get drunk?! Why do I do this to myself? I keep thinking you're this guy who isn't what everyone thinks he is. Why do I keep doing this?"

"Felicity."

"No. I shouldn't have come. I hope they find you innocent Mr. Queen. Goodbye."

He could chase after her but he knows it's a lost cause. Plus she's probably already on the driveway and he doesn't want SWAT jumping on him.

"So who is she?" Tommy is leaning against the doorframe and smiling. "You said there was a Russian model and while she's cute, she's no Russian model."

"She's...I don't know what she is."

"Man it's the ankle monitor. Jail time always gets girls interested."

"She was worried Tommy. It's for the best. I'm not good for her."

"Well there's always Laurel."

"You don't have to joke Tommy. I'm not interested in Laurel. I'm fine with you and her."

"There's nothing going on Oliver. Laurel hasn't been interested since you came back."

"So go after her Tommy."

"Go after your girl then. When this is over. Go get her and be bad for her. She's still interested even when she's chewing you a new one."

Oliver doesn't know why he didn't lie to her. He had been so careful wording his responses so he wouldn't be lying to her directly. Lies bother her and he didn't want to be that guy on top of everything else.


It's the polygraph that will sell him to Detective Lance. He knows that. Even while his mind is struggling with why Felicity's disappointment means more to him than it should, he knows he needs to beat the polygraph. He can do it, he knows he can. It's just a matter of directing the reactions he wants, the questions he wants to be asked. It's just a waiting game until Laurel has it set up.

Speedy is worried. His jokes fall on deaf ears and she looks at him like she's about to lose him again.

"When you and Dad left on the yacht, you promised you'd see me in a few days. Here we are."

"Speedy I'm going to beat this. I'm not the vigilante."

"You're never here Ollie. You have all those scars and since you've been back you've been acting weird."

"None of that makes me him."

"You gave me an arrowhead Ollie."

"Speedy, I bought that in Beijing airport. It's not from the island. I did think about you there. I just...I didn't have anything to give you to prove it. I had nothing left by the time the boat found me."

"I can't lose you again Ollie. It...I can't. You have to promise you'll come home. When you go...you have to come home."

"Always. I'll always come home Thea." She's hugging him then and he's holding her tight. He's still amazed by her. He thought of her always but he never realized she would still be a kid even though she is grown up. She needs him in a way no one needs him. It's humbling and worrying all at once. One night he might not make it home.


The polygraph comes towards the end of a heavy day. Felicity and Thea are on his mind when he takes the seat in the interrogation room. Laurel's face tells him she hates this idea. The polygraph could backfire. It won't. He's calm. He sees the slip before he realizes it was a slip. Laurel's face tells him that. What did he say that was wrong? Iron Heights? Why would she think he had been there?

Lance is on him about the picture before he can reason it out. He has to stay calm. Beat the test. Lie.

Each question he turns away. No. No. Yes. No. No. Yes. It doesn't matter. All that matters is convincing him. He's waiting for the question.

"Are you claiming your scars were self-inflicted?"

"No. I didn't want to talk about the island."

"Why not?"

"Because the people who were there tortured me."

"Have you killed anyone?"

"Yes. Sara. It's my fault she's dead and I'm sorry." The conversation is too heavy for him or it should be. Sara should be alive and it is his fault but he accepted that years ago. He hopes the damage has been done and Lance will rethink the accusation. Laurel's face tells him otherwise. Time for Plan B.


The party is raging outside and he can't help but dig it in a little more for Detective Lance. He's on top of the world and he wants Lance to see just how much he's not worried. Moira's disapproval can be felt from the second floor but he's ignoring that. Thea wants nothing to do with the party either so he has to play the role without his family. He's not sure where Tommy found all these people since he doesn't know any of them. It doesn't matter they're just the smoke and mirrors.

"If you think this is what prison is like, you're in for a rude awakening." Diggle follows him through the house.

"Oddly enough I understand what prison is like. Trust me."

"Mueller's car has been parked in the warehouse for 45 minutes. It's a good place for an arms deal. So should we alert the cops."

"No. The Man in the Hood is going to stop them."

"I don't know if you've forgotten but you can't leave the house."

"It doesn't have to be me in the Hood."

"That's why you threw this ridiculous party. You're going to have a hundred witnesses while I'm sticking my neck out dressed as the vigilante?!"

"I thought you being seen in the Hood would be enough. But Mueller wants to flood our streets with machine guns. Look. It was never my intention to put you in harm's way."

"Oliver I didn't think joining your crusade was ever going to be risk-free. You might have gotten used to lying to everyone else in your life but there are people you just can't lie to. I'm one of them."

"You're right. I'm sorry. Now am I going to jail?"

"No man. I have to stop an arms deal."

Oliver knows Diggle will do what is necessary but the fact he has to explain himself is troubling. He did not expect to take on a partner and now that he has one he doesn't know how to treat him. That's a problem for tomorrow. A drink would be nice.

Laurel is waiting downstairs and Oliver knows she'll want to 'talk'. She wants something or expects something and he's just tired. Regardless he takes her upstairs to talk. He needs to handle this before it gets out of hand.

"I can't remember the last time I was in this room."

"I can. Halloween 2005. We were getting ready for Tommy's party."

"I wore those horrible fishnets."

"I thought you looked good. Why are you here Laurel?"

"I just wanted to come and apologize for my father. You have to understand when Sara died, Dad threw himself into his work. He wanted to catch bad guys and...then Mom left and we just fell apart. I don't want you to feel bad but I want you to understand."

"Why don't you hate me Laurel? You should hate me."

"I did. I...wanted to. You did this horrible thing to my family but I forgot what happened to yours. What you went through Ollie. I can even...imagine."

"I don't want you to. I don't want anyone to imagine it. It's over."

"Ollie I need to see your scars. I need to know." He lets her because she's not going to leave until she knows. She'll only see some of them. Her hands brush over the scars from Wintergreen, Yao Fei's arrow, the Bratva tattoo. She doesn't notice the others. She's too startled by the ones she does see. She remembers his body before the scars and she can see the damage.

"How did you survive all of this?" She's crying and he doesn't know how to comfort her. He doesn't know if he wants to. Sometimes he still feels dead inside like the island is there, hovering over him.

"There were times I wanted to die. In the end there was something I wanted more"

She kisses him. He doesn't expect that. She's kissing him like he never left and he's letting her. Then he remembers. A flash. A moment. She's there in his mind. Felicity. His hands push her back. He needs this to stop.

"Laurel I'm sorry…" he begins. "There's someone. I can't do this with you. I...there's someone else."

She rushes out of the room, slamming the door behind her. He caught the embarrassment on her face but he doesn't bother to rush after her. He slides onto the arm chair, rubbing his mouth. He wants something he can't have. He shouldn't have. He's just started his crusade and he can't be distracted by this no matter how much he wants to be.

The phone rings and Diggle lets him know Mueller has been momentarily stopped. It's time to head back to the party. The gunman is unexpected. It's too soon for Mueller. It's too late for others. Anyone he can think of who would want him dead is already taken care of by the Hood. When Lance shoots the man he is surprised again.

Moira and Walter are outraged and rightfully so but Oliver's mind is whirling. Who could want him dead? Thea is on his arm and is clearly worried. Thankfully she was in her room when the man attacked. He won't risk her.

The ankle monitor is taken from him and he's relieved. Tomorrow night the Hood will return and Mueller will be handled correctly.


He's not sure the door will be open to him. He has to try anyway. He has to talk to her. She does open the door but she's weary. She looks tired and he's pretty sure he's the reason.

"I saw the news. You're not him."

"No."

"I'm glad you aren't going to jail." She moves to close the door.

"Felicity please." He stops the door with his hand. "I need to talk to you."

"You should go back to your life Mr. Queen. Go be a billionaire playboy and have fun."

"Please. I just…"

"Fine. Come in." He follows her into her apartment. Her baseball bat is still lying where he left it meaning she lied earlier. For some reason that makes him smile. She hadn't brought it with her. Her computers are up and running and if he's right he can see his lie detector results.

"Felicity."

"I saw your results. I don't know how but you were lying at least some of the time. Your heartbeat fluttered on a few of the questions. Not enough to flag but enough. You weren't nervous or the flutter would have been on more questions. Only the hard ones."

"I thought I was too much a playboy or the guy everyone thinks I am."

"You lied. I don't know why and I don't know how. You might not be the vigilante but you're hiding something. You're evasive and you hide from any question about what happened to you there."

"Do you know why I don't talk about what happened to me there? Felicity...if people knew what happened there, what was done to me, what I became...they would look at me differently. You would look at me differently."

"It doesn't matter to me."

"It will. I'm damaged Felicity. I barely sleep. I can't stay indoors for long periods of time. I barely eat. I can barely function and everyone wants me to be something, to explain something, to be this healthy miracle. All I want is to feel normal again but I don't even know what that means anymore."

"Oliver." She's hugging him and he lets her. He knows he's not forgiven but he lets himself enjoy one moment of normalcy. "Why me Oliver?

"I don't know," he whispers against her hair. "I don't. Maybe it's because you don't know me. Maybe it's because you treat me like a person instead of a story. Maybe it's because you're just amazing. I don't know."

"Oliver...I'm here if you need to talk but I don't know if I can do this. If I can be whatever it is you want me to be."

"I understand. I was going to ask you to dinner but I can see it would be a waste of time."

"Tonight," she agrees. She steps out of his arms and leans against the couch. "Go be with your family Oliver."

"Yeah." He's almost to the door before she stops him.

"Oliver. Not tonight but maybe some other night. I...there's something here and I don't want to throw it away."

"Thank you for worrying about me."

"Of course Oliver." He kisses her forehead before he leaves and she stands there feeling like an idiot. She could have said yes to him but in the back of her mind, she knows he needs to figure himself out first.

She watches him leave her building and sighs. The flechette is in her pocket and she can't help but wonder if its owner just left. The Man in the Hood was seen last night while Oliver had an alibi. How can someone be in two places at once? She ponders the question while she sits in front of her computer listening to the call about Mueller being taken out by the Hood. He's out there tonight and she feels safe.


"So you lied to her. Or maybe you just gave her a version of the truth."

"I told her what she needed to know Dig. She's getting too close to me."

"Sad thing is I think you actually believe that. I think things didn't go down exactly how you planned. You didn't count on so many people having questions, doubting you. You didn't think about what happens when you lie. When you were stuck on that island plotting your grand plan to save the city, I don't think you stopped to consider the effect it would have on the people in your life or how it might hurt them."

"You're wrong. I think about it all the time. Every time I lie to any of them, it hurts me because I know I'm a little less now. I'm a little more lost and I worry one day I might not come home."


Okay now the updates will slow down. I happened to have this one finished today. Chapter 6 by Wednesday hopefully. We'll see. Thanks for reading!