Authors Note: I do not own Arrow
July 1st 2009
Thea opened her eyes and cried out in pain, her whole head throbbed, along with her stomach side, and her wrists. She sat up suddenly, groaning. What the? It all came back to her, training, Daddy's gonna train me! Thea inspected her bruised wrists, a wave of nervousness washed over her. What would training be? Classes, fighting? Thea looked around, it was her bedroom at the mountain lodge, she hated the modern design, how impersonal the whole room felt, nothing like her bedroom at home, she loved the big pink canopy and large closet. On her nightstand was a clock that read 8:00am and the little black box. Damm that little black box. Thea rolled over on her side and shut her eyes tight. This was all so new, and yet she had felt the need to fight since she was a little girl. Thea saw good and bad plain as day and wanted to act on it, no she needed to act on it. Her Mother, her Mother had been murdered, the sound of her dying still echoed in her ears. Thea didn't think it would ever truly sink in.
She got up, got dressed and headed downstairs. Would they start training today? Her mind raced with the possibility. Thea felt giddy with excitement, she'd never trained any anything before, no combat experience or any skills with any type of weapon except for a couple years with her schools fencing club. Her hands shook in nervousness and at the idea she could possibly fail at stopped her halfway down the stairs. Her heart sunk, she imagined being a disappointment like Tommy, would her father ever be disappointed in her? He'd never exactly held up any standard for her, it wasn't like she was his oldest or...the thought that always bit at the back of her mind, it wasn't like she was his son. Thea tried to push the doubts out of her mind as she crossed the hallway into the kitchen. Her Father was sitting at the table when she came int, Ansari was sitting at the breakfast bar, lazily spooning large bites of some kind of white porridge into his mouth while watching the news, the blonde anchorwoman was reporting the weather and traffic. Her Father was sitting at the small table in the corner of the kitchen, only the top of his head peaking over the edge of the news paper. Thea froze at the doorway of the kitchen, a doubt had been creeping in her mind all morning, the image of a failed Tommy coming home from the "mountain lodge" with her Father. She feared he too would send her back. He flipped the paper back and smiled. No, she told herself, she was going to come in confidently and ask when they would begin training.
"Thea, good morning." A knife flew at her and Thea cried out,
'AHHH" she jerked back but it was still to late, the knife pierced the wall behind her and cut a gash across her face. She dropped down from pure shock, and gasping at both of them
"What the fuck!" She shrieked, she blinked at her Father, still smiling, she blinked at Ansari, who was grinning, a small knife in between his fingers, his other hand outstretched. She crouched against the wall breathing in harsh ups and downs. She reached up to the left side of her cheek and felt sticky blood. It felt deep and stung, Thea looked at her father, more shocked then hurt. He wasn't even fazed.
"Well," He said, taking a sip of his coffee, "Ansari just threw a knife at you," Thea looked at him, she didn't know how to react. He. Threw. A. Knife.
Its not like I can remember the last time some one did that! Ansari took another bite of the the white porridge, still looking smug, the second knife lying harmlessly at his side. "Get him back." Her father said, as if that were the most normal thing in the world. Thea started dumbly at them both for a moment.
"How?" She asked, her tone sounded whiny she knew. Her Father merely glanced over at Ansari, eating his breakfast and watching the news, acting as if he had not just thrown a knife at her face.
"Think honey."
"Think? Daddy? What? Ansari will just..." Thea looked up at Ansari and bounced up to her feet, he would see her coming right? Right? What did attack him really mean? Thea ran at Ansari, hands reaching out, he countered so fast, all she felt was one moment running toward him, and then feeling the cold tile collide with her body. She closed her eyes and brought her hands up to pat her throbbing head. "Daaadddy." She moaned, "I-I-I don't even." Her father helped her up and she looked up at him.
"You can't ever let your guard down with anybody honey, only we can trust each other Thea, treat everybody else as if they are going to kill you at any moment, because they will." Thea rubbed her fingers through her hair.
"We can trust Tommy though" She said, her father nodded after a moment,
"Yes, we can trust Tommy." She hoped her head wouldn't get a bump. She grinned,
"Everybody's gonna try and kill me?" She asked, standing up she looked over at Ansari, who went back to his breakfast. Her Father followed her gaze.
"I want you to know I don't trust anybody but you Thea." Ansari got up and scooped something into a bowl.
"Your going to want to eat some breakfast Thea." He said handing it to her.
"Eat up honey, we have a long walk ahead of us." Her Father took a seat back at the breakfast table and she joined him, trying the white porridge as he went back to reading the paper. The reporter began talking about the recent vigilante sighting. He had been surprisingly silent these past few weeks.
Her father had not been joking when he said they would be taking an actual walk. Thea was given a backpack and told to pack anything she might need in the front pocket. Her father gave her a pair of cargo pants, heavy combat boots, and a plain gray T-shirt to wear as uniform. Thea would have preferred something a little more...stylish but she dare not voice any remark that could be seen as "teen snark" as her father called it. She waited for her Father outside the house with Ansari, he looked slightly tired, his backpack weighing on his shoulders and the slight wind blowing his black hair back and forth across his eyes. She slung her pack over her shoulder, watching as her father came out accompanied by two others. She frowned, behind him, walked (well more swaggered) a punkish woman, wearing a black combat uniform of some kind, a whole side of her head was shaved and her eyes held a fire like danger, next to her was a very large oafish looking man wearing the same black uniform. She suddenly realized they were familiar. They had attacked her yesterday! They met her in a matter of minutes, standing behind her father in a soldier like stance.
"Thea this is, Ani." He said gesturing to the woman, who looked down on Thea and snarled. Snarled? Thea shrunk back slightly thin scowled. "And this is Mitch." He father pointed to the big man, standing a whole foot over even her father and four times the width. She noticed her father and a bow and arrow on slung on his back, and a sword of some kind on his hip. Ani had a large bow on her back and Mitch's pack was massive. Thea swallowed, her stomach churning with new emotions. Why all the people, she thought her father was going to just train her? She looked out toward the rising mountain, casting its shadow on her even now. The three others looked at her coldly, she didn't feel ready and she hated herself for it. Her father pulled her side.
"Thea," He said lifting her chin up. "I want you to know forever, everything I do is because I love you." She decided to play brave.
"I'm ready Daddy." She said, "I am not afraid, lets do this!" She hadn't noticed he was holding something in his hand. He slipped a very small silver locket into her palm She looked down at the tiny necklace. It was beautiful.
"It was your mothers." He said, so quiet, it was the closest thing her father got to a mumble. She immediately put it on, smiling as she felt the cold silver against her throat. Thea felt braver, stronger, suddenly ready to take on all of her fears. She smiled and her Father gave her one last gift.
A sheath with a long sharp knife, she buckled it around her waist with a sense of pride, she would return home this summer victorious. She wasn't Tommy, Tommy isn't strong enough. She though as she saw the look of pride in her Father's eyes. Thea had her mothers necklace and her silver knife. Her father lead her down the path into the shadow of the mountains. Her training began. The path began easily deceiving the girl who jumped to easily to conclusions. Thea followed her Father.
August 20th 2012
Thea burst in through the back kitchen door, the heat from the slowly fading summer quickly filling up room, she was dressed in the black hood and pants, her quiver hung on her back in her hand she gripped a bow. Ansari was completing his usual morning routine. The weather man was talking about heat waves coming soon, her father was reading the paper.
"Just in time for a hearty breakfast." Ansari said making a wide gesture to the stove corner. Thea nodded, leaning her bow against the wall and setting her quiver down. She walked into the kitchen, the smell of warm food making her stomach grumble. She reached for a bowl, her father flicked down the paper,
"Good morning Thea." A knife flew at her, Thea caught it between her fingers and in an insant had thrown it back, a startled screech of pain came from Ansari, he tumbled out of his chair, his hand rushing up to his stabbed right eye, blood to leaked out of his wound, deep red streaks rolling down his cheek. Thea didn't hesitate, she moved quickly, leaping across the kitchen and in a swift movement kicked him, Ansari screamed again. Thea crouched down and pulled the knife out, another shriek, and she attacked again this time a quick stab in the exposed neck, Ansari was quick too, blindly trying to counter her attack, Thea was simply better. He tried jumping up and she hit him right in the eye, he aimed a kick she dodged and with a much forced as she could muster slammed him against the wall of the kitchen counter and with the knife slit his throat. The movement was effortless once she sunk underneath his skin, front left to right a simple swipe and Ansari stilled, the hair falling out of his eyes, the light drained out and he mouthed something that only came out as a moan. Thea let go of him and stood him, his body sliding down the counter wall and slumping down with a crash. Thea walked to the sink, knife in hand and calmly washed the blood off. She set the weapon in the sink and washed the blood off her own hands, the cold water giving her goosebumps. She dried off her wet hands with a towel and moved on to the hot pot of oatmeal, it still smelled delicious. Thea made a bowl, put four spoonfuls of brown sugar and as many strawberries as her bowl would allow, before going to the table. Her father briefly glanced up when she sat down across from him.
"Good morning Daddy." She said taking a bite, he took a drink of coffee. They finished their breakfast with the soft sound of the morning reporter talking of the recent vigilante speculations, birds sung outside and the oatmeal was delicious.
It had been a well spent summer.
