CHAPTER THREE

Eliza's words lingered long after she'd returned to her Earth, and Oliver found himself pondering his future and how long he wouldn't live and how he might be able to change it at odd moments - such as during the public comment period of the current city council meeting.

The man speaking - one Lee Wade Hayes - had been to every council meeting since long before Oliver became mayor. He was only concerned with billboards and their content, and could speak on the topic for hours at a time. Thankfully, last year someone had introduced a resolution limiting public comments to ten minutes per speaker per meeting.

Still, Lee Wade Hayes took every one of those ten minutes, and since Oliver had heard all of the points several times before, he found his mind wandering back to Eliza's words. He could only blame her scientific approach for how long it took him to realize there were other options.

"I'm an idiot," Oliver muttered - just loudly enough for his microphone to pick it up.

Lee Wade Hayes stopped mid-sentence to stare at him, and Oliver felt more than saw the other city council members turning toward him as well. He searched for a way to recover from his ill-timed realization, found one a moment later.

Oliver summoned a smile and addressed Hayes. "For not paying more attention to your concerns," he said.

"Really?" Hayes asked, his hooded eyes widening.

"Really," Oliver said. "If we want to build Star City into a vision of the future, we need to be looking at all aspects of it - visually as well as structurally. Please call my office to arrange a meeting to discuss this further."

"Uh - okay," Hayes said. Then, "Do I still get my last four minutes?"

"Absolutely," Oliver said, though his mind was already on the call he'd be making as soon as the meeting was over.

- S -

As soon as Oliver could get away from the reporters hurling questions about his new billboard policy at him, he pulled out his phone. It took only a moment to scroll through his contacts and find the number he wanted.

"Oliver." John Constantine's voice held a very British tone of mild surprise. "I wasn't expecting to hear from you again so soon, mate."

"I need a favor."

"Bollocks," John said. "Not another soul restoration, I hope? Those things are bloody exhausting."

Oliver chuckled. "Nothing like that. It's personal."

"Doesn't get much more personal than restoring someone's soul," John quipped. "I happen to be in Star City at the moment. Where do you want to meet?"

Oliver chose not to ask why John would be in Star City - he'd had his fill of magical adversaries last year thanks to Damien Darhk. Instead, he simply gave John the address to the loft.

"I can find that," John said. "An hour?"

"I'll have some Scotch waiting," Oliver promised.

- S -

An hour later, a strong knock sounded on the door to the loft while Oliver was pouring two fingers of a small-batch Glenlivet into each of two glasses. He took one and went to answer the door.

"I knew there's a reason I like you," John quipped. "I'm parched."

Oliver offered him the glass, watched as his visitor downed the Scotch in one long swallow. Personally, he thought that was a waste of good Scotch, but to each his own.

"Well, then." John handed him the glass back. "What kind of personal favor do you need?"

"It's a long story." Oliver turned to pour another shot for him, when another voice made him pause.

"Will you not offer me a drink as well?"

"Nyssa?" Oliver turned to stare at his … what was she to him, exactly? Not an enemy. Sometime ally. Onetime wife according to the laws of the now-defunct League of Assassins. Friend, maybe? He pushed that thought aside to focus on his visitor.

"Felicity contacted me," Nyssa explained without prompting. "She said you have something important to tell me, and it's best discussed in private."

Then she must have read Oliver's expression, because she added, "You did not ask her to contact me."

"No," Oliver said. "But that doesn't mean I'm not glad to see you. You might even be able to help."

"With what?" Nyssa asked.

"That's part of the something important," Oliver said. "Please, come in - both of you."

"I like your favors so far, Oliver," John said. "They all involve pretty girls."

"Deadly, too," Oliver quipped and made brief introductions. "John Constantine, this is Nyssa al Ghul."

John's eyebrows shot up. "As in Ra's al Ghul?"

"You have heard of -" Nyssa began, but broke off immediately. "I was the last Ra's. I am simply Nyssa Raatko now."

While they were speaking, Oliver had poured a second shot for John and a shot for Nyssa. He passed those to his guests before taking his own and gesturing them toward the conversation area by the fireplace.

And then he found himself taking a sip of the Glenlivet to moisten a suddenly-dry throat. Just say it.

"I'm getting married."

He glanced up to meet Nyssa's questioning gaze. John, of course, was more verbose.

"I wouldn't have bet on that," John said. "So what's the favor? A little wedding night mojo?"

"No," Oliver said firmly. "She's not … entirely human."

"Demon?" John demanded.

"Farthest thing from," Oliver said. "Alien - it's Supergirl. And her physiology on this planet means that she's aging a lot more slowly than normal humans do."

"You wish a fountain of youth," Nyssa said.

Oliver met her gaze. "I don't want to hurt her - and yes, call me selfish, but I want as much time with her as I can have."

Nyssa smiled gently. "It's not selfish to want to be happy."

Oliver sat back to regard them both when he continued, "I hope one of you has a solution."

"Not offhand," John said. "But I have resources. I'll see what I can do."

"I'll owe you a favor," Oliver told him.

"More than one, mate," John corrected. Before he could continue, his phone rang. He pulled it from his pocket and barely glanced at it before answering. "Runnin' a little late, love. I'll be there soon."

Oliver wondered idly if John were in Star City for personal reasons, rather than the business he'd originally assumed. But then John was slipping his phone back into his pocket.

"That's it, then?"

"That's it," Oliver confirmed. "Thanks."

"Ah, don't thank me until I've solved your problem." John grinned, then nodded to Nyssa. "Pleasure."

And then he was gone, the door closing gently behind him, and Oliver was alone with Nyssa. He turned to face her fully, suddenly uncertain.

But Nyssa was smiling - a Mona Lisa smile that made Oliver glad he'd remained on her good side. He hoped.

"And will you owe me, if I find your solution first?" she asked.

That, at least, Oliver could answer, and he met her gaze evenly. "I did make you Ra's."

"And I gave you the lotus potion in return." She blew out a breath and her shoulders slumped just slightly. "That was ill-done of me - to make your sister suffer longer than she needed, when she had done no wrong. For that I apologize."

"Accepted," Oliver said immediately, and her startled expression made him smile grimly. "I understand."

She studied him for a long moment. "Yes. I believe you do." Then her expression faded into uncertainty. "You know I destroyed the Lazarus Pit."

"I know." And he'd agreed with that decision when he'd first heard of it. A part of him still agreed with it. But another part could only think the Lazarus Pit would have solved his problem easily. Nyssa's voice pulled him from his reverie.

"But some of its waters may yet remain," she said. "I will inquire on your behalf."

"Thank you," was all Oliver could say.

Nyssa shook her head. "It is only because you are who and what you are that I would even consider this…husband. Do not make me regret it."

"Please," Oliver said, "tell me that before disbanding the League you annulled our marriage."

Her lips twitched, and then Nyssa was smiling a smile full of joy and humor, one that Oliver had never seen before. "Indeed I did. So - tell me of your love."

- S -

They were still talking an hour later when the door to the loft opened and Kara came in. Oliver rose to greet her, kissing her briefly.

"I didn't know we were having guests," she said.

"We can thank Felicity for that," Oliver told her. "Kara, this is Nyssa al - sorry. Nyssa Raatko. Nyssa, my fiancée, Kara Danvers."

"Very nice to meet you." Kara offered her hand. "How do you know Oliver?"

Nyssa smiled again, a sly expression, and for a heartbeat Oliver debated trying to cut her off, but then surrendered to the inevitable.

"He was my husband."

"What?" Kara turned startled - but not angry, Oliver noted thankfully - eyes to him. "Oliver -?"

"Not by any laws that anyone else would recognize," Oliver told her. "And even if they did, the marriage was annulled."

"More to the point," Nyssa said, "we made no vows to each other, no promises that might interfere with your happiness."

"There's a story there," Kara said, and Oliver chuckled.

"A very long one," Nyssa agreed.

"Then why don't we make Oliver order take-out, and you can tell me all about it?" Kara smiled, and for a moment Oliver thought it was the smile she'd given Agent Smith in the aftermath of the alien invasion - sweet and at the same time holding just a hint of vengeance.

But, no - when Kara sat across from Nyssa, her body language was comfortable, relaxed. Oliver allowed himself a small, silent sigh of relief before reaching for his phone.

- S -

When the door closed behind Nyssa and Kara turned back to him, Oliver's relief fled in the face of her scowl.

"Were you going to tell me?" she demanded.

Oliver could only be honest. "I didn't think it needed to be told."

"You didn't think I needed to know you were married before?"

"I don't know that it was a real marriage," Oliver countered and held up a hand to forestall her protest. "There were no vows, no promises, just a woman who said it was done."

Kara looked dubious. "No kissing the bride?"

"The woman, the priestess maybe, put our hands together. That was it."

"Then - what was the point?"

"The point," Oliver said, stepping closer to her and meeting her gaze, "was to get Nyssa's father to trust me enough to show me his plan to destroy Star City, so that we could stop it."

"Which you did," she said.

"Obviously." Oliver nodded toward the windows and the view of the city beyond. "It was a marriage - if you can call it that - only in the eyes of Ra's al Ghul and the League of Assassins, and when Nyssa became Ra's, she annulled it."

"How long?"

Oliver had to think. "Nyssa didn't become Ra's until … eight months after I killed her father."

"You killed her -?" Kara broke off, shaking her head. "Sometimes I forget how strange your world is."

Oliver didn't try to resist the grin tugging at his lips. "This from the woman whose world is full of aliens."

She smacked his chest. "That's totally different."

"A different kind of strange," Oliver allowed, and then caught her up in his arms to carry her back to the sofa, savoring the fact that she let him do it.

When he'd sat and settled her on his lap, he reached up to stroke his thumb across her cheekbone.

"For the record," he said, "I don't love Nyssa. I respect her and I trust her, but I don't love her. I love you."

"I know," Kara said. "And I love you. I just find it hard to believe you were married to her and didn't even kiss her."

"Would it help if I told you she tried to kill me during the ceremony?"

"She didn't."

"Aimed a knife right at my throat." Oliver bent his head to kiss Kara's throat.

"Well, then, I'm glad she missed." Kara's voice was steady, but her breath caught at the end of the sentence, and Oliver smiled against her neck.

"Forgive me for not telling you?" Oliver asked, and bit gently at her earlobe.

"Maybe. If you keep doing what you're doing, the chances go up to probably."

"Your wish is my command."