Chapter 8 - Heroes

AN – This is the final chapter so thanks for sticking it out with me guys! I do hope you enjoyed their journey and, as always, I would love to get your feedback and ideas for future stories! Mic, it's been a pleasure working with you my dear – you really do make my stories better!

AN2 – This chapter is dedicated to all who are just as obsessed with Olicity as I am! Here's hoping the S2 finale contains the Olicity kiss that we all need and want! :)

DISCLAIMER – Alas, I still cannot claim CW's Arrow but I hope you'll read this anyway!

"It did all start with the three of us. I want it to continue to be the three of us." Oliver spoke softly and seriously as their laughed died down.

"I'm in." Diggle quickly agreed and offered a hand to Oliver.

"Me too." Felicity smiled then took the few steps needed to allow her to hug Diggle after he had shaken hands with Oliver. She then turned to Oliver and hugged him as well.

It started with the three of us and it would continue to be the three of us.

Team Arrow needed a break from the discussions as communication still wasn't one of their virtues. Oliver and Diggle quickly switched gears and were ready to train. Felicity encouraged them to spar together first as she needed more time to process and wanted to realign her memories with their explanations. She couldn't help but feel there was something still missing, something important.

Oliver and Diggle threw themselves into training easily as they no longer carried the same burdens and fears with regard to Felicity's safety and well-being. Instead they turned their focus inward and sparred with serious focus and determination. They moved quickly and often in sync as they exchanged strikes and kicks with startling ease and speed. Felicity had seen them train many times but she had never seen them train at this level.

The sparring continued for several minutes with both men landing several blows. Diggle was even forced to roll out of a fall but he had quickly regained his feet and continued to attack even as he defended. Felicity couldn't actually tell who was attacking as it seemed both men moved at once, sometimes even as one. She felt her heart pound even as tears gathered in her eyes as she watched them struggle together.

"You play the way you practice. If you don't take your training seriously then when you are in serious trouble you'll have nothing to draw upon." It was Diggle who offered the explanation when he read the concern on Felicity's face. He knew the tears were an extreme reaction but he also still expected it to take some time for Felicity find normal again. As long as they didn't appear concerned then he hoped Felicity would accept it as part of her adjustment as well.

"Cry on the training field, laugh on the battlefield." Oliver added another version of the training motto. He was also aware of Felicity's reaction but, like Diggle, he proceeded as if all was normal in order to reassure her.

"Okay but I'm not doing that…EVER! I've told you guys I'm not a soldier! I can't do that!" Panic edged into Felicity's tone and she fought to calm her breath as neither Oliver nor Diggle seemed as concerned as she felt.

"No, you won't." Diggle responded quickly but he continued before Felicity could collapse in relief. "Your personal fighting style won't be like ours and it shouldn't be. We'll focus on more of a defensive strategy for you as the majority of your time still won't be in the field. We still need you to be yourself Felicity." Diggle's voice was calm but serious as he knew that they still needed Felicity to accept that things were different now. They needed her to accept that she was a soldier.

"You will learn to use your attacker's momentum and strength against them. We never expected the Foundry to be compromised but it was. If our new location is threatened as well then you need to be able to defend yourself in your own home. That doesn't mean you won't be hurt—" Oliver hated saying the words but he needed Felicity to understand that learning to fight didn't lessen the risk by much. However, Felicity interrupted quickly.

"Obviously it doesn't. You're really, really good but you always end up injured after a fight." Felicity blurted that out without thought much to Diggle's amusement.

"I don't always end up injured." Oliver grumbled good naturedly as Diggle laughed and Felicity smiled. "The bottom line is that we need to make changes going forward. We'll improve the second location and make it our headquarters—"

"And this time we will all know where the new second location is as we all agree that we do need a back-up." Felicity interrupted again though this time with a chiding tone.

"Yes, we'll have two locations, better locations. We need to be better too." Oliver's words were serious and both Diggle and Felicity immediately nodded their agreement.

"Back to training then." Diggle gave the command and this time Felicity joined them.

The three fell easily into old and new habits as they trained. Having learned what it meant when they lost Felicity's bright eyes, easy smile, and frequent touches both Diggle and Oliver paid more attention to those things now. They didn't just accept them from Felicity as they had in the past, but they also returned them with easy affection and appreciation. For her part, Felicity was glad to be free from her solitary nightmare and back with her partners and she demonstrated her gratitude with even more looks and touches than normal. They were all grateful to have the others and to be together again - no one wanted to take that for granted as the temporary loss of even one of them had proven to be devastating to all of them.

By the time darkness fell, all three were ready for food and rest. Again, new habits merged with the old ones as Felicity joined them easily in their evening routine. The trio had always worked well together even if they hadn't intended for their association to be this close or this permanent. Now that they were all committed to their goal and to another, their connections grew even stronger. They all enjoyed the simple gift of sharing a meal and a camp for the first time since they had arrived.

They spent the next couple of hours discussing their future plans including both the immediate need to train and get off the Island, as well as their long term goals for rebuilding their headquarters and their city. Felicity was still struggling to see herself as a soldier, but she still felt like a Team Arrow partner so she voiced her opinions just as easily as she always had. There were several points where the Team didn't agree on the finer points for their approach, but their arguing felt natural and right as it had always been part of their bond. Each enjoyed the Team discussion and found themselves relaxed and happy when it was finally time to get some rest.

Felicity again fell asleep first and both Oliver and Diggle kept a faithful vigil over her sleeping form. They knew nightmares were a possibility and neither was surprised when Felicity again tossed and turned in her sleep before she jerked awake gasping for air. Oliver was by her side quickly and he easily pulled her onto his lap when she reached for him. He held her as he muttered very soft words of comfort as it seemed Felicity didn't wake up fully. Oliver felt her relax completely and knew she had again fallen asleep. He continued to hold her though and it took only a few moments before Diggle spoke.

"I'll take first watch." Diggle knew Oliver still wasn't ready to ask to stay with Felicity, but he quickly gave him the right to do so anyway. Oliver gave a quick nod and without even adjusting the small blond still cradled in his lap he fell asleep quickly. Diggle again watched as they did move in their sleep and just as last time they moved closer to each other. Without the sleeping bag as a barrier every limb became entangled and Felicity soon rested half on top of Oliver.

Diggle watched in amusement as Felicity actually woke up first. He knew her sudden jerk would have awoken Oliver, but the other man remained quiet and still while Felicity slowly tried to untangle her body from his. Diggle tried to smother a laugh as Felicity's face heated until her cheeks were flushed bright red. Much as Oliver struggled to know how to handle Felicity and his reactions to her, it seemed Felicity didn't quite know how to handle him or her own reactions either. As he continued to watch, Diggle noted that Oliver wasn't helping her, but instead making it harder for her as he tightened his arms and subtly adjusted his position each time she tried to separate away. He finally took pity on Felicity and spoke in a loud voice.

"Good morning sleepyheads – one of you want to take watch while I catch some sleep?" Diggle then moved to his own sleeping bag and pretended to ignore the couple.

"Oliver, wake up!" In her panic, Felicity didn't process that he was already awake and simply teasing her. "You need to get up and take watch for Diggle!"

"You're on top, shouldn't you get up first?" Oliver had been enjoying Felicity's struggles and couldn't resist the desire to tease her as he kept her close. It felt so good to be happy, to be free enough to be happy. He knew Felicity was the reason for both of those things just as he knew it felt good just to wake up with her in his arms. As things were already changing for them, he thought they could become closer without crossing any line that would hurt her or put any new burdens on her. He still didn't want to tell her he loved, her but as long as he didn't give in and completely act on those feelings he thought she would still be safe.

Felicity finally looked at Oliver's face and gasped in surprise. He seemed so relaxed, so happy and she had never seen him act this playful before – there were moments when Oliver was somewhat happy but never had he been this demonstrative. Felicity felt her heart race and she knew in that moment that she would happily be embarrassed every morning if it kept that look on his face. She wouldn't have to tell him that she loved him but she could show him…memories suddenly flooded Felicity's mind. She heard Slade's words when he told Oliver he planned to kill his "new love". She heard Diggle telling her that Oliver loved her and that she loved him. She even heard Oliver speak of their future together, heard Oliver when he said he would do anything for her.

"You love me?" Felicity spoke in a tone of pure wonder, but joy quickly replaced her surprise so she was unprepared when Oliver pushed her off him and jumped up as he shouted his response.

"That's what Slade thought and that was the reason he tried to kill you. I can't let that happen again. I won't be the reason someone else decides to kill you to break me. I couldn't take it if anything happened to you. I have enough ghosts with me already Felicity. Please don't ask me to accept yours. I wouldn't survive it if anything happened to you." Oliver's voice became soft as he was pleading with her to understand why he couldn't say the words. He was convinced that if he gave voice to his feelings and acted on them that it would certainly mean Felicity's death and his own eternity trapped in hell.

Felicity heard the pain and the pleading but she was more focused on what she didn't hear. Oliver hadn't denied he loved her – he only said he couldn't handle anyone using that love against them. Felicity just smiled as she stood up and spoke just as quietly as Oliver had.

"I love you too Oliver."

Oliver closed his eyes even as he pulled Felicity in for a tight hug. He knew he needed to get her to take the words back, he needed her to understand they couldn't give anyone that weapon against them. For now though, he simply let her love fill him and he felt whole for the first time in his life. Before the Island, he had only played at life and the Island was only about survival. After the Island, he found his cause, his friends, he found her but he hadn't admitted to his feelings. He still hadn't said the words. He hadn't heard her say the words either until now. Diggle had been right when he said love was about finding the person that was already the right fit – he felt like Felicity was the missing half of himself and with her he was finally complete. He knew it would be painful to push her away now but he couldn't risk losing her, couldn't risk losing the best part of himself.

"Felicity, we can't do this. We can't be that—" Oliver now avoided Felicity's eyes not because he didn't want to see the blank vacancy but because he couldn't stand to see her feelings. He even closed his briefly to gather the courage to continue so he was unprepared when he felt Felicity's lips on his.

Felicity moved in as soon as Oliver closed his eyes. She ignored his words as she usually did when they disagreed and, like usual, she was right and Oliver was wrong. She loved him and that only made her stronger, better. She wanted her love to make him stronger and better too. Those were Felicity's last thoughts as Oliver took over the kiss and she felt overwhelmed by his strength, his love.

Diggle remained quiet and unobtrusive as the pair had spoken and he even stayed quiet for their first kiss. He was glad his partners had admitted their love as lies and omissions had only hurt their Team in the past. None of them knew what the future held when they returned to Starling City, but he knew that they needed to be at their best. Oliver and Felicity were at their best when they were together. Diggle smiled as he realized they were certainly together now…as they continued to stay together, he was forced to wonder when they would bring an end to this increasingly passionate demonstration and actually require oxygen. When several more moments went by, Diggle loudly cleared his throat and spoke.

"So you guys know we'll need to get off this Island before you can get a room, right?"

It had only taken a day and a half to arrange for transportation off the Island. The trio was now packed and ready to board the first small boat to take them to the larger ship. They would need to change transportation several more times before they would reach Starling City, but they were ready for the journey. They were ready to return home, to again fight for their city.

Felicity remembered the final words that Lance had spoken to her when she had muttered her apology and shame that he had had to protect her. She had called him her hero but he had laughed weakly before he replied very seriously. She remembered the words now and knew she would always remember his last words, words she hadn't even shared with Oliver or Diggle yet. 'A true hero isn't just the guy on the front line. Oliver is your hero, Felicity, but you're his too.'

As she turned and gave one last look at the Island, Felicity smiled somewhat sadly then turned back to accept Oliver's hand into the boat. Felicity still didn't see herself as the hero Lance saw, but she had accepted that she was a soldier and she wanted to do her part on Team Arrow. She also wanted to do her part to honor Detective Lance. She kept a hold of Oliver's hand even as she turned and placed a hand on Diggle's arm. It really had started with the three of them and while things had changed, they had changed, it would continue to be the three of them.

Oliver tightened his hand on Felicity's after they were all in the boat. This was the first time he had ever left Lian Yu feeling hopeful for the future. When he had finally escaped and returned the Starling City the first time he had been too full of righteous anger, guilt, and even fear to feel much hope. When he returned with Felicity and Diggle after Tommy's death, he returned only for them without much hope that he could be the person they wanted. Now though, he felt he was finally putting the past behind him and he had every hope for a future that was better than the past. It really had started with the three of them and while things had changed, they had changed, it would continue to be the three of them.

Diggle smiled when he felt Felicity take his arm and he was grateful for the contact. This was the second time they had left this Island together and he had to hope they would never feel the need to return to it. A lot had happened since Team Arrow had formed – they had won some battles and they had lost some battles, they had also lost some friends, but there was still more to do. He had been lost when he left the military, lost even when he had signed up with Oliver as the Vigilante. Now though, he felt he had a cause greater than himself and he was ready to fight for it. It really had started with the three of them and while things had changed, they had changed, it would continue to be the three of them.