at superfly: I'll make sure to do that. Thanks for sharing your opinion. I'm happy to hear you think that Oliver is not out of character. It's hard to tell, because he changed a lot.
I don't own Arrow.
Arrow – Gotham Chronicles
Funny how a situation where you're strung up to the ceiling by your hands, bare from the waist up and awaiting torture is not the worst situation he's ever been in.
Oliver stares down at the brunette woman who is bound to a chair. The words "I'm sorry" haven't left her lips and Oliver is sure they never will. He still has a hard time coming to term with the fact that she betrayed him. And now he's here in the hands of some – Oliver assumes them to be mob – gangsters, most likely about to get killed. He tries his bindings but they are too tight to give him any space to move, they cut into his flesh and draw blood, it runs down his forearms and drop to the floor.
Cat seems calm but Oliver can tell from the way her eyes search frantically for a way out that she is anything but. He's not all too clear on the details, what he does know is that she tried to play ARGUS and the mob against each other by promising each of them whatever the hell is in that damned container. At least that what he got from the shreds of conversation he was able to understand.
He remembers the car, the cursing and how he got out to look for her. In the end he had to admit defeat. He slid back into the car and hit the steering wheel repeatedly. Then he drove around, still hoping against reason that he'd catch a glimpse of her. Oliver just couldn't believe she'd screw him over – they weren't exactly friends but still. Oliver only saw the head lights when it was almost too late, he cursed and jerked the steering wheel violently but managed to get the car to stop without it flipping over. How hadn't he seen the car coming?
Oliver wretched the door open and stormed out of the car.
"What the hell where you thinking?"
He could tell something was wrong almost immediately. He counted four men all armed that exited the car. Neither one looked particularly shaken or apologetic.
"You have made a grave mistake. No one steals from Don Maroni."
The name rang a bell but Oliver didn't have time to contemplate any further. He avoids the first fist meant for his face and punches the large man in the stomach while he doubled over Oliver turned and brought the second man off his feet. He wished his bow and arrow but there were stuck inside the car. Then a searing pain of a bullet lodging itself into his right shoulder takes his breath away. A silencer must have been used, because Oliver didn't hear a gunshot. It was clearly not meant to kill him. He produced a knife from inside his sleeve. Two more man fell but in the end Oliver had to give in to blood loss and pain.
He was shoved into a van and brought to this place – it looks like an abandoned warehouse or former factory. Cold concrete – dark and dirty. The bullet remains lodged in his shoulder. The blood loss is slowly making him dizzy, but he knows Cat has already been there before him. From the snippets of conversation he heard Oliver has been able to put together that they were mobsters and that Cat had made a deal with them regarding the content of the container. Whether she ever planned to abiding either of the deals she struck, Oliver would never know.
"Where's the YZD?"
Oliver could only assume he was talking about whatever was in that container.
The bullet hole in his shoulder burns and Oliver feels the wetness of the blood drip down his back. The man that has spoken looks like an enforcer though he's obviously not Russian Bratva or he would have recognised the tattoo over Oliver's heart. It takes Oliver a second to comprehend that the man is speaking to him. In the dim light he can barely make out his features. Strong build, bulky body, a strong chin and a shaved head is what Oliver can make out.
"Where's the YZD?" the man repeats and presses down hard on Oliver's shoulder. He yelps in pain but then grinds his teeth hard to stop the scream from making it past his lips. A lessons learned in the Bratva – show as little pain and emotion as you can. He closes his eyes and wills his mind to retreat. This wasn't the first time he endured torture, this wasn't the worst he'd ever been through.
He's losing count of the blows that fall on his body, of the shallow cuts that draw pain and blood, of the time spent strung to the ceiling.
"Won't talk, huh?" Oliver feels more than he sees that the man steps back. "Maybe I'll find a better way to make you talk?"
The resounding smack that echoes across the room snaps Oliver's eyes open in time to see Cat fall sideways to the floor dragging the chair with her. She hisses in pain but makes no other move. Oliver briefly wonders why she isn't simply giving up the location because there's no reason for her not to – it was to save her own skin after all, and if there's anything Cat values besides money it's her life. Unless she didn't have it anymore.
"She told us you have it, so where is the YZD?"
The man yanks her back up by the hair and she hisses again. Oliver realises that her betrayal is greater than he assumed. She told them he had it, so they'd let her go.
Her lip is sprung and the side of her face has gotten scratched but otherwise she's fine – so far. Oliver knows their plan is to use her against him – he's seen it before, had to do it before and it ripped away a part of his soul that he'll never recover – because they think she's important to him. Tough luck, he thinks dryly and he can see in her eyes that she knows it as well. Maybe it's that resigned look but Oliver decides there's no reason for both of them to die. She's not a good person, but he's a dead man either way, if Waller finds out he's failed the assignment. Maybe that way he can score off Amanda Waller in death.
"Fine," his voice is hoarse and words feel foreign on his tongue. "I'll tell you where it is, if you let her go."
Cat's eyes snap to him and he sees the surprise on her face.
"No, you'll tell us, then we'll let her go."
Oliver smiles the most intimidating smile he feels able to conjure, "Listen up. I'm the only one who knows where the YZD is, and the only way I'll tell you is if I know she's safe. You can do whatever you want to me or her, but trust me this is child's play for me, I won't talk unless you let her go."
The man regards him intently. From the scars that mar his body he can tell, that Oliver isn't lying.
"What do you propose?"
"You let her go and once she's reached a safe distance she'll call here, you give me the phone and once I know she's safe I'll tell you. I warn you not to play any games, we got a code word that lets me know, when she's not really safe and believe me you won't get her not to use it," his eyes are hard and focused entirely on the man in front of him.
Cat's stares at Oliver with wide eyes. They both know he has no idea where the container is (the content is destroyed with the formula to make it) and they don't have a code word. She's betrayed him and yet he endures torture for her and allows her to leave while he will surely face death. It's not a gift she won't take but for the first time in a long while her consciousness is pleading its case for someone else.
The man gives Oliver a curt nod and starts unfastening the bonds that tie his female prisoner. She can take him out, she knows, but he's not alone and the place they are in is bound to be filled with armed guards. She won't make a move to help Oliver and he knows it, still he decided to save her.
When the lights goe out Cat looks up to see if maybe the bulb has burned out, but that's not it and she can tell her captor knows it. His gun is drawn and Cat tenses.
What happens next is mostly a blur of darkness and shadows around her only lightened by the muzzle flashes of the gun. After that it's eerie silent but Cat knows it's him instantly. Oliver groans and she can make out that he's been let down and shifted onto someone's shoulders. Batman – she doesn't think she'll ever be able to forget the atmosphere that encompasses him. But he has only seen the burglar cat, she doubts he knows they're the same person.
"Are you alright?" he must have laid Oliver down because his fingers work her bindings and she shivers. His voice is deep and rough – she hates it.
"Fine," she snips back.
"What are your names?"
She wants to tell him that it's none of his business but she's supposed to be the shaken victim.
"His name is Oliver Queen," he's familiar with the name, surprised by the information, she can tell from the seconds in which he freezes up. "I'm Selena Kyle." Her name is safe, because Selena Kyle hasn't existed in so long, it doesn't matter if she uses it.
He stops untying her and moves back. The light blinds her for a moment before she lays eyes on his masked figure. "Selena? Cat, of course, you're the burglar cat."
She blinks and barely realises that the ropes come loose. There aren't a lot of people who know her real name, even less that know her real name and her chosen name. As a matter of fact she can count them on one hand. There's Ivy, but well, Cat's pretty sure she can eliminate her as Batman. Then there's Detective Gordon, actually Commissioner Gordon, but he's too old to be Batman, there might be someone from her former foster home, but they hardly know her as Cat. Then of course there's that Wayne boy and his butler – she's stayed with them when they still thought she saw who killed his parents…
"Bruce…," it's a realisation, that should have been obvious from the start, now that she thinks about it. Batman had taken up his work a while after Bruce Wayne had reappeared and who else had the resources?
He's taken Oliver over his shoulder again, Cat doesn't know if he's finally passed out from the blood loss but he doesn't make a noise. She goes after them and comes to stand in front of his… for a lack of better word she calls it a car.
"Seriously? How discrete," she rolls her eyes as she helps putting Oliver in the backseat.
Arrow
"So? What did you want to talk about?" Laurel slides in the seat opposite of him. She picks up the menu and orders a Classic Big Belly Burger.
Oliver smiles tentatively. He's not sure how he and Laurel stand exactly.
"Oliver?" Laurel shakes her head. "Oliver, what is going on? You're back from Gotham for only a few hours and you told me it's urgent. I had to postpone a meeting for this."
"I… We have a plan regarding Ra's al Ghul," Oliver tells her.
"We being you and Batman – and Catwoman I suppose?"
"I need your help," Oliver looks at her seriously and lays down their plan.
"That's risky. It might not work," Laurel leans back and takes a deep breath.
"I know," Oliver admits. "But it could work and that's more than I can say for any other plan I've had so far."
"What does this mean for Malcolm Merlyn?" Laurel asks, cutting to the chase.
Oliver sighs, "Laurel." Her eyes lock with his and Oliver is reminded how determined Laurel can be. "I couldn't let Thea be the one responsible for his death. I couldn't!"
Her eyes soften as he continues. "But he did kill hundreds of people. My mother might have been found not guilty, Merlyn won't be. That's all the revenge I can offer you."
Laurel takes a sip of her drink before she speaks up. Her voice is even, her words chosen carefully. "Remember when I said I couldn't remember I time I loved you."
Oliver flinches and looks away.
"That's not exactly true. But it's hard to find the man that I loved in you," then she lifts the corner of her mouth. "There's not much Ollie, left in Oliver. But I do wonder if that's a bad thing. Because – no offense – my taste in men was terrible. You were such an asshole."
Oliver chuckles darkly, Laurel is really right about that.
"I always thought you'd change for me, but now I see you wouldn't have," she says thoughtfully. "But Oliver, he's not Ollie. I don't agree with you saving Merlyn, I don't think I ever will. Still, I… understand why you did it. If there had been a way for me to restore Sara's innocent, the lightness inside of her, I wouldn't have hesitated a second. You're a good man, Oliver Queen." She rolls her eyes, "But take a page from Ollie's playbook from time to time. Laughing isn't a disease you know."
This elicits a genuine bark from Oliver. He regards Laurel warmly. "Thank you. And thank you for loving me back then, when I was nothing but an idiot. I don't think anyone else would have been able to."
"Well, I always knew you could be better. I hoped I would made you, but…"
"I really wish that had been it," Oliver smiles sadly.
"That makes two of us. But we can't change what happened," Laurel thinks about her father and their destroyed relationship – because of her. "We can only ever move forward and survive."
"He'll forgive you," Oliver comforts her.
Laurel's brown eyes fill with tears, "I'm so scared that he won't."
Oliver grabs her hand over the table and squeezes once. "He will."
She forces her tears down and nods, "I'm in, in case that wasn't clear. And – thanks for including me."
Arrow
Diggle rings the doorbell only once before Thea opens the door.
"Oh! Hi Diggle, Oliver's… somewhere in there. I think he might have taken a shower or something. Make yourself at home," her jacket is already on, so clearly she has plans. "Oh, and tell Oliver I'm with Roy."
She whirls out, leaving John to close the door. Diggle stands in the room unsure how to proceed. In the end he shrugs and takes a seat at the kitchen table.
"Diggle!"
Thea had been right, Oliver had been showering. Thankfully he had dressed himself even if it was only sweatpants. Oliver ran a towel to his still damp hair and make his way to the fridge.
"If you're not careful your lack of awareness will kill you," Digg points out.
Oliver grins, "I knew you were here. I heard you talking to Thea at the door."
Diggle chuckles and Oliver hands him a beer.
"What brings you here?"
"Look Oliver, we need to talk," Digg sighs and Oliver looks at him seriously. "I'm not sure it's my place to… I'm not sure I should come with you to…"
"Diggle, what are you talking about?" Oliver interrupts.
"I'm not like you or Roy, I don't wear a costume and I don't'…"
Oliver furrows his brows, "Listen John, I understand if you don't want to confront Ra's with us, if it's because of your family. You're a father now, and your first concern is your family and if you're afraid something will happen to them if you make a stand with us, then I understand. But that's the only reason, because if either one of us deserves to be there, to be called a hero – then that's you. I'd be dead without you, I would have given up without you and I need you, Digg."
Diggle smiles, "I don't know, Oliver."
"The choice is yours, but…" Oliver gets up and comes back not even a minute later with a small rectangular and flat box. "In case you change your mind, I thought you'd need this."
John opens it and holds his breath, "Oliver…"
"I asked Barry, for another one. Don't worry it doesn't come with a costume," Oliver grins.
Digg takes out the simple black mask, similar to Oliver's and regards it intently.
Let me know, what you think.