Chapter Three "The Forgotten"

Oliver has nightmares. For the past six months, they've been getting worse. He sleeps fewer hours every night, and he's not sure how long this can go on.

The dreams always feature two things: a dark haired child bleeding out in his arms and a pair of blue eyes always watching him. The images themselves always fade before he's even fully awake, but the feelings of horror and guilt remain. In some ways, he doesn't want to remember. Not if these are memories seeping through his consciousness.

When he wakes, Oliver can sense a nearby presence. He doesn't know how he knows his sister is watching him, but he doesn't have to turn and face the doorway to know she's there. The clock reads 8:00 am. At least he got a few hours' sleep.

He rolls over to face Thea, and she looks surprised to find that he's awake. "Is this something we do now?" he asks. "Watch each other sleep?"

"Hmm?" Thea asks as if she's been concentrating very hard on something. "No, I was just checking on you. I didn't wake you up, did I?"

"No." Oliver pushes back the covers and gets out of bed. "I don't sleep much."

"I was able to get you an appointment with a neurologist later today," Thea says conversationally. "It was Laurel's idea."

"That's funny," Oliver said as he pulled open all of his dresser drawers to inspect their contents. "I didn't hear her mention it to you last night."

"I—You were eavesdropping?"

"You were talking about me."

"Well, for your information, she texted me later. She said she forgot to mention it. I suppose because she was too busy being paranoid about Malcolm."

"About your father. The genocidal dead guy."

"I was planning to tell you slowly."

"I'm not angry at you."

"Really? I would be."

Oliver turns back to face his sister. "I know this has to be hard for you too," he says. "I understand why you want to trust him. He saved my life, so I know the feeling. It seems wrong, but..."

"But you think he's got good intentions. Yeah."

"Are we crazy?"

Thea shrugs. "You might be. I think I'm just emotionally traumatized, which could amount to the same thing."

Oliver tosses his clean clothes on the bed and crosses the room to Thea. "Maybe we can't trust him," he says, putting his hands on her shoulders. "Maybe we can't trust anyone else, but at least we still have each other."

Thea nods and blinks hard. "We're broken too, Ollie. I know you don't remember, but we are. I don't know if you trusted me, and I know we kept a lot of secrets from each other. I'm not sure exactly why. I'm all for fixing things, but just because you don't remember them doesn't mean our problems go away."

"Did anyone ever tell you that you're a ray of sunshine in the morning?"

Thea laughs in spite of herself. "You know," she says. "It's been a long time since you've made a joke."

Oliver smiles. "Then maybe amnesia suits me."

"Yeah, let's just hope you don't have serious brain damage. Not that anyone would be able to tell the difference."

Oliver lets his hands drop from Thea's shoulder and pretends to be offended. "You know, I was going to ask your opinion on what I should wear to have my head examined, but now I won't."

Thea grabs his arm and her eyes widen. "You can't possibly be thinking of wearing that shirt with those pants," she says in mock horror.

Oliver backs away from her to pick up his clothes. "Yeah, and tomorrow it's gonna be stripes and plaids."

Thea rolls her eyes. "Ha! You never wear stripes and you barely wear plaid."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I notice these things. You stick to solid, muted colors. Part of your whole brooding thing, I think."

"I don't brood."

"Yes you do! All the time."

Oliver thinks about that for a moment. She's probably right. He doesn't know what he was like before, but considering all the horrible stuff that happened—most of which he hasn't even heard about yet—maybe he has a good reason to be brooding. But he doesn't have to like it.

"Maybe I should stop doing that," he says, looking down at the jeans and blue shirt in his hand.

"It's not like I blame you," Thea says with a shrug. "Get dressed and we can go for breakfast before your appointment."

The way she ends the conversation makes Oliver think about all the things everyone isn't telling him. He knows what happened before but not why. He thinks he doesn't want to know why, but at times his curiosity out screams his dread.

~oOo~

Coffee and doughnuts seems like the best way to break the news in Felicity's mind. Last night, she told Roy and Diggle that Oliver was alive and that she would explain everything. At the moment, that seems like an optimistic promise.

As she stands in the middle of the Arrow Cave and gazes at the familiar landscape, Felicity feels a sense of displacement. She knows she belongs here, but not without Oliver. Not knowing when or if he will be back to himself leaves her in a strange state of limbo which doesn't feel much different from the last six months.

A set of clunking footsteps draws Felicity out of her thoughts.

"You know, I'm really more of a night person," Roy quips as he comes into the room.

Felicity smiles and hands him his coffee. "I think you can make an exception this once," she says.

"For you?" he smiles back.

"For Oliver." Felicity looks away from Roy and distracts herself by picking at the cardboard drink carrier.

Roy puts his free hand on Felicity's shoulder. The movement is so sudden, that it causes her to look at him again.

"Hey," he says softly. "It's good to see you again."

Looking unto his eyes, Felicity knows he can tell something's wrong. He's waiting for Diggle to show up before asking what's going on, but she can see that he wants to.

"Thanks," she says. "I honestly didn't think about it. It feels like everything is happening so quickly."

Roy lets go of Felicity's shoulder and reaches for the bag of pastries. "We'll figure it out," he says. "We always do."

Felicity had forgotten how much she missed Roy. He was like the little brother she never had. He had been there for her when Oliver "died", but she hadn't seen him much since she decided not to be part of the team anymore.

"You know when Dig is getting here?" Felicity asks as she walks over to the computer desk.

"I didn't talk to him," Roy replies through a mouthful of jelly doughnut. "He hasn't been around either."

Felicity nods more to herself than anything. She runs her fingers along the keyboard and notices that someone has been dropping food crumbs between the keys. "You've been eating at my computer," she says, only half joking.

"Not sure you can really say 'your computer' anymore," Roy responds. "It's not like I enjoy using them, but Laurel doesn't have the patience."

Felicity turns back to face Roy. "I'm sure you've done your best."

He nods noncommittally. "I picked up a few things from you. I can track a GPS signal and hack somebody's Facebook profile, but that's about it."

Felicity raises her eyebrows. "Whose facebook have you been hacking?"

"Persons of interest. You'd be surprised how much information they just leave out there in the open."

"I really wouldn't, but I just wanted to be sure you're using your powers for good."

"Always." Roy picks up his coffee and takes a long drink, ending it with a sigh. "I know how much you hate bringing people coffee, but you're really, really good at it."

Felicity has to laugh as she remembers her her time as Oliver's assistant. Roy hadn't been around for all of that, but Oliver must have told him about it. It was almost a comforting thought that Oliver talked about her when she wasn't around.

"I guess I can make an exception now and then," Felicity says.

Just then, the sound of the door opening causes Felicity to look up and see Diggle coming down the stairs.

"I miss anything?" he asks as he crosses the room to the table where Roy is standing.

"Just first pick of the doughnuts," Felicity says, punctuating it with a smile.

Diggle picks up his coffee and nods to Felicity. "So what's the news? Where's Oliver?"

Felicity sighs, not really want to talk about it because that makes it real. She'd rather just be joking around with the guys like old times. But things would never be the same, and she had to get used to that.

"He doesn't remember anything," Felicity says. "Nothing from the past eight years since the ship went down."

"Damn," Roy says under his breath.

"Does he know what happened to him when he left?" Diggle asks.

Felicity shakes her head. "All he knows is he was on a mountain somewhere and Malcolm Merlyn saved his life."

"That's... unsettling," Roy says.

"Just a little," Felicity replies. "Laurel and I tried to bring him up to date last night, but we kinda left out the part about running around in a green hood shooting criminals with arrows. I didn't know how to explain it because I don't think any of us really knows fully why he chose to start doing it."

"But he does know Merlyn is a monster?" Diggle asks.

"Yeah, he didn't take it all that well. When I left Laurel's place he was sort of... catatonic."

"That's not like him. You think Ra's al Gul did something to him, or was it Merlyn?"

Felicity shrugs. "Could be both. He says Merlyn helped him heal from an injury. Someone stabbed him."

"Then Ra's might think he's dead," Roy suggests. "That could be a good thing."

Felicity crosses her arms. "Possibly the only good thing here. Aside from Oliver being alive at all."

"So where is he now?" Diggle asks.

"With Thea. Laurel said they were going to see a doctor today, just in case Oliver's amnesia was caused by an injury."

"Knowing how many head wounds you get in this line of work?" Roy said. "I'd be surprised if it's not."

Felicity frowns thoughtfully. "With Malcolm Merlyn involved, I'd be surprised if it is."

~oOo~

Sitting alone in the waiting room, skimming through a tattered magazine is actually kind of relaxing for Thea. It probably says something about how screwed up her life is that she finds the hospital to be such a normal place. She can't count the number of times she's been here in the past few years. From Oliver's accidents to her own escapades to Walter's return, the hospital almost feels more homey than her own home did in the last days she spent there. Thea likes to think she's moving on from all that, but being here brings back a lot of memories.

As if to give her something else to think about, three new occupants enter the waiting room and come straight toward her. Thea didn't tell any of them they would be here, but Laurel probably passed on the information. And in spite of Malcolm's warning, Thea isn't exactly upset that Oliver's friends decided to stop by.

"We've all got to stop meeting like this," Thea says, tossing the magazine back on the coffee table.

"Is Oliver okay?" Felicity asks.

"Define 'okay'. He's having a brain scan right now. I guess we'll find out."

Felicity sits down beside Thea while the guys take a couple of chairs across from them. Thea can't help thinking about how she's never really been "in" with these people. She knows they're Oliver's friends—which is weird considering that Roy was her boyfriend—but she's not entirely sure why. They don't seem to have a lot in common. Oliver is, well Oliver. Felicity is some kind of genius who speaks in word vomit which is actually really cute. Diggle is an ex-military, no nonsense type of guy. And then there's Roy who Thea knows better than he probably thinks she does. He thinks of himself as the loner, dropout who never caught a break. But he's more than that. Thea just wishes he wasn't quite such a hero.

The awkward silence that falls is to be expected. Thea doesn't really have anything to say to them, and they are the ones who have been keeping Oliver's secrets all this time. They're not about to start being honest with her now.

"Thea, do you know what happened to Oliver?" Diggle finally asks, sounding all businesslike.

Thea shrugs. "He came home with a new scar," she says. "Looks like a stab wound. Malcolm saved his life. That's all I know."

At the mention of her father's name, it was as if a chill spread through the room. There was a tension in the air that wasn't there before.

"I know you all hate him," Thea adds. "I'm not saying he's not up to something. I mean, maybe he just cares about Oliver, but I don't know. He said Oliver was like a son to him, and..."

"And we all know how well that turned out for his actual son," Diggle fills in with a humorless smirk.

"That's kind of what I told him. Is that a terrible thing to say to your father?"

"When your father murdered 503 people, I think the bar is kinda low," Felicity says flatly.

As if this conversation weren't awkward enough.

"It'd be great if Malcolm was sincere," Roy says in an even tone. "But we don't know."

The way Roy says it makes it seem like he does know but just wants to make Thea feel better. She doesn't appreciate it, but it's not like she can argue with him now without causing a scene in the waiting room. Normally, she wouldn't mind, but it might upset Oliver if he walked in on something like that. Especially since he had no clue who these people were or that they really did care about him. At least, Thea was pretty sure they did. They wouldn't be here if they didn't. And it was kind of painfully obvious that there was something between Felicity and Oliver that went both ways. Before Oliver lost his memory anyway.

Another period of silence falls over the room, but this time, Thea is too busy thinking to feel awkward. She doesn't know what she is going to do about Oliver's friends. He would have wanted her to bring them in on whatever this is if he could remember them. But the fact that he can't will probably make him uncomfortable around them or at the very least, confused. How is he supposed to trust these people when he doesn't know them? And how is Thea supposed to trust them when they keep so much from her?

When Oliver comes into the waiting room, he looks exhausted. He's looked like that for a long time, but somehow this seems worse. Thea gets up and crosses the room to him, hoping to create some kind of buffer between him and all the awkwardness that is about to ensue.

"What's they say?" she asks, trying not to sound too anxious.

"They'll call me with the results," Oliver replies. "They said I have had several head injuries and—hello?"

Oliver seems to have just noticed they have an audience. Or perhaps he was pretending not to notice until now.

"Uh, yeah," Thea says. "You met Felicity last night, and this is Diggle and Roy."

The way they're staring, Oliver must feel like a bug under a microscope.

"Hey man," Diggle says. "How you feeling?"

Oliver gets that all too familiar deer in the headlights look at an apparent stranger talking to him like a friend.

"Fine," Oliver finally says—which isn't true, but it's very Oliver.

Diggle knows it, but he doesn't press. He seems to sense that he's making Oliver uncomfortable and backs off.

"I think we should go back to my place and talk," Thea says. "I'll order pizza or something."

"I have to get to work," Felicity says with a touch of disappointment in her voice. "I'll stop by later though."

Oliver looks almost sad to see her go. Maybe meeting once was enough to establish some kind of familiarity between them. Thea isn't sure how they became friends in the first place, but she has a feeling it must have been like that. Oliver didn't let people in, period. Felicity must have been special.

~oOo~

Taking a trip down memory lane sounds like the last thing Oliver wants to be doing right now. The guy who talked to him at the hospital—Diggle—genuinely unnerves Oliver. The way he spoke with such blatant concern when Oliver had no idea who he was... well, it was exactly like waking up and having your family and friends replaced by strangers.

On a practical level, Oliver knows that spending time with these people could help him remember who he is; but on a more selfish level, he doesn't want to. He wants to be alone more than anything else in the world which is shocking to him because he's spent most of his life trying to avoid solitude. Before the shipwreck, he did everything he could to keep from hearing himself think because then he might know what a useless human being he was. But now, it's as if he needs that time alone. He needs to think so he can plan his next move. Whatever the hell that means.

Perhaps it's for the best that Oliver is forced to sit through lunch with his new/old friends. The younger one—Roy—barely talks at all while Diggle tells Oliver about their first meeting and how obnoxious he was. That Oliver believes.

"I really knocked you out?" Oliver says, not sure how much Diggle might be embellishing.

"You really did," Diggle replies, dead serious. "Your social skills left something to be desired when you came back from the island."

Oliver doesn't really want to know what happened to him to cause that, and thankfully he never seems to have told anyone because they don't elaborate.

"Obviously I grew on you though," Oliver says, doing his best to keep the conversation light.

Diggle huffs. "Yeah, like a persistent bacteria."

"Bacterium," Roy suddenly says.

"What?" Diggle replies.

"Bacteria is plural."

Everyone stares at Roy for a moment and his face turns a little red as he looks away from them.

"I liked science in high school—before I dropped out," he defends.

"You never told me that," Thea says.

"I didn't exactly want to talk about it."

"I did too," Oliver says. "Like science, I mean."

"Is that why you two became friends after we broke up?" Thea asks, raising her eyebrows.

"I have no idea."

Roy only shrugs.

While Diggle is becoming clearer, Roy maintains a sense of mystery. Maybe he just doesn't like talking, or thinks he has nothing to say. Oliver can sense a measure of insecurity with him, though he's not sure how. Since when did he get so good at reading people?

At this point, the pizza is all gone, and Thea begins to clear away the plates. As Oliver watches her, he remembers something that seems odd to him. Why did Felicity go to work and the others didn't? Why are they sitting here in the middle of the afternoon on a workday like it's nothing? And why does Oliver even notice? He hasn't worked a day in his life. That he remembers.

"So, Diggle you're in security. What about you, Roy?" he asks, thinking it's an innocent question.

Roy looks even more uncomfortable than before. "Oh, you know. Stuff."

"Come on," Thea says. "Everyone knows. You might as well tell him."

"Tell me what?" Oliver asks.

"That he works with the Arrow," Thea says with a smirk.

"What's that?"

"Not what," Diggle says. "Who."

"He helps people," Roy says, still sounding defensive. "He saved my life more than once."

"He's a vigilante," Thea clarifies. "But the police like him because he fights the bad guys and saves the good guys. Most of the time."

"And the rest of the time?"

"Well, no one can save everyone, I guess. He's only one man."

"Not if he's got Roy," Oliver points out.

"True. I think he's got other friends, but Roy won't tell on them."

"It's dangerous," Roy says. His discomfort with this conversation hasn't abated. "It's better if no one knows who we are. It keeps them safe."

"But Thea said everyone knows who you are," Oliver says.

"Uh, yeah, I wasn't exactly subtle when I started out. I mean, not everyone knows, but the police and a few other people. It's not like I got any family the bad guys can target."

Oliver doesn't know what to make of all this. He's friends with a member of a team of vigilantes. Maybe it has some connection to the Undertaking or his mother's death. No one seems to want to explain how that all makes sense, and Oliver doesn't have the mental energy to ask about it right now.

"We should probably get going," Diggle says to Roy. "Maybe next time you can help him with that meditation thing."

"Yeah, what's that all about?" Oliver asks.

"Something you taught me when I needed to remember something," Roy said vaguely. "I'll explain later."

By all appearances, Roy can't wait to get out of there, and Diggle has obviously picked up on this. Oliver kind of wishes they had been more specific, but he's glad he finally has the chance to be alone.

"I think I'm gonna go for a walk or something," he tells Thea after the others leave.

She looks up at him from loading the dishwasher. "You shouldn't go out alone."

"Just around the block, Speedy," Oliver says earnestly. "I need some fresh air and quiet for a while.'

Thea seems reluctant to agree, but finally nods. "If you're not back in an hour, I'm coming after you."

Oliver smiles at her. "Thanks."

~oOo~

The cool fall air feels like home when Oliver steps out onto the street. Thea's apartment is nice, but it somehow seems like Oliver is a guest there. He's not sure if he felt that way before he forgot everything, but he almost believes he did.

The sidewalks are quiet as the late afternoon sun begins to fade. Soon enough there will be endless lines of five o'clock traffic. For now, Oliver enjoys the peaceful sensation that he knows is just a facade, a disguise of smooth concrete and shimmering glass to hide the truth of how ugly this city has become. Perhaps it has always been this way.

Across the street, there's a parking garage with signs over the entrance saying it's closed for repairs. Everything else on this block is in pristine condition as if it has all just been made. Oliver doesn't know why he notices this. Before he can contemplate it any further, a scream echoes through the empty street. It sounds like a woman, and she's crying for help from inside the parking garage. There's no one else around, which Oliver knows without needing to look. He doesn't even think about what he's doing until he's crossed the street and starts to look for a way inside. It's easy enough to push aside the signs and climb over the barrier.

Inside, everything is dark, and the screams are louder. Oliver follows the sound, not knowing what he'll do, but not worried about it either. He feels more angry than nervous which is a strangely welcome relief. He can do something with anger.

Oliver finds the stairs to the second level where he thinks the noise is coming from. There's more light coming in from outside when he comes out of the stairwell, but it's disappearing fast.

"Hey!" he shouts.

The screaming continues, but oddly there are no other sounds. That can't be right.

Oliver comes around one of the support pillars to find an empty space. There's no one here. The sound is coming from a speaker that's duct taped to another pillar. Oliver rips it off the wall and throws it on the ground where it cracks, snuffing out the noise. He turns back to face the way he came in only to be greeted with four masked figures. The setup part is pretty obvious, but the why is more of a mystery that Oliver doesn't have the luxury of contemplating right now.

The men circle around him slowly, as if treating him with caution. It makes Oliver wonder what kind of a person he was before his trip to the mountains. The man directly facing Oliver draws a sword and the others follow suit.

"It will better if you come quietly," the leader says. His voice has a quality Oliver feels he should recognize, but he doesn't.

"Haven't you noticed?" Oliver says. "Getting stabbed with swords is something I do now."

The man hesitates, which Oliver really hadn't been expecting. That fraction of a second's pause makes all the difference. There's a low grunt from behind, and something wet hits the back of Oliver's neck. He turns to see another man standing over the body of one of the masked swordsmen. This newcomer is wearing a dark blue jacket with a hood that covers his face. The other two would be kidnappers rush at him, and Oliver finds himself facing the leader alone.

He manages to duck the first blow, using the skills Malcolm taught him. In the process, Oliver notices that the man is using the flat part of the blade. He's not trying to kill Oliver. There isn't time to wonder why as the sword comes around again. Oliver jumps back, but the tip cuts into his right shoulder and across his chest. He falls backward and lands hard on the concrete floor, scraping his hands and forearms on the rough surface. There's blood running all over his shirt, and Oliver is starting to reconsider the idea that this guy doesn't want him dead. He tries to think of anything he could say to make this stop, but he doesn't know why it's happening. He doesn't know if maybe he deserves this.

The man pulls off his mask, revealing a face Oliver doesn't know. He looks angry and sad all at once as he points his sword at Oliver's throat.

It's me or him, Oliver thinks.

He leans back with his head almost touching the floor, and at the same time kicks the man's hands as hard as he can, sending the sword flying across the parking garage. Oliver then leaps to his feet and uses his momentum to tackle the man. He wraps his arm around the man's neck, and it's like a reflex to bring his other hand to the man's forehead and twist.

It happens so fast, Oliver doesn't really know how he got here. He's standing over the body of a stranger with black, dead eyes staring up at him. Oliver wants to throw up, but he pushes it down far too easily. He forces himself to look around and finds that the man in blue is still standing. He holds two long knives, covered in blood as he turns to face Oliver.

"What do you want?" Oliver demands before this guy can attack him too.

Instead, hood guy only laughs. "That's the thanks I get for saving your ass?" he says. His voice is rough like he ate a few strips of sandpaper, but it's one Oliver would know anywhere.

"Tommy?"

I'm so sorry for how long this took. I kept working on it little bits at a time, but it's been hard to get big chunks done lately. I'm working on a writing schedule that I'll try to implement next week which should help with that. I want to say a huge thank you to all the great reviewers I've had. I appreciate every comment so much. The support has been overwhelming, and I hope this chapter is worth the wait.