Note: Hey guys! First off, I wanna say thank you to everyone who wished me a happy birthday two weeks ago and secondly, I want to apologize for not updating last week. As some of you might know, I had a huge test and school in general has been kicking my butt lately, so I needed to prioritize. This chapter might be a little shorter than the other ones, but it is still passed 8k, so hopefully, you'll accept that.
I had an awful day today, so I would really need some nice reviews to cheer me up and keep me going! Thank you for never giving up on me and for always supporting me by reading and reviewing my fics! I love you all!
Enjoy!
Hunted
Supernatural hunter Oliver Queen's latest mission's name is Felicity Smoak; a new born hybrid who has gone rogue and left her master. The new hunt brings unexpected twists and turns and when the young hybrid saves his life, Oliver realizes that there might be more to the girl than meets the eye. The hybrid might not be the biggest monster in Starling City and as their unexplainable bond grows stronger, he learns that you can't plan who you fall in love with.
Chapter 9: The Truth
There was a silence between them that he desperately wanted to break. Felicity was looking into his eyes, probing for a reaction from him, but he wasn't sure what he was supposed to say.
'They are planning something big and they are calling it an Undertaking.'
Felicity's words had made him freeze over as his mind went through a thousand different possibilities as to what this 'Undertaking' could be about.
This was what he wanted though, wasn't it?
Oliver had wanted Felicity to tell him the truth ever since she had joined him and Diggle on his crusade and now, here she was, willing to give it to him. Yet, a small part of him knew that they had been through so much during this evening, and really, ever since they had met each other, and all he wanted to do was let her rest and actually prove to her that he really trusted her.
"Oliver, I don't even know where to start," Felicity said, her voice shaking as she looked up at him from her seat. She was still wearing that golden dress, but her heels were off and for some reason, she looked so incredibly vulnerable. He understood that she wanted to tell him the reason that she came to him in the first place, but he was aware that it could wait another day. He was tired and she looked just as exhausted and they both needed some time to recover from what had transpired during the birthday party.
"Felicity," he began slowly, squeezing her shoulder. She still hadn't removed her hand from where it rested on top of his and for some reason, he was okay with that. The small gesture of support meant something to him, even though he wasn't sure what, just yet. "You don't have to tell me anything tonight."
"Oliver," Felicity sighed, "I've wanted to tell you for some while now, but I wasn't sure if I should until I knew for sure that you trusted me. Now that you do, all I want is to tell you the things I know."
"It's okay, Felicity," Oliver replied. "If it could wait for this long, it can wait another day. It'll be better if Diggle is here too, so that we can figure out our next move, together."
She watched him curiously for a moment, "Are you sure?"
"I am," he nodded, offering her a small smile, which she returns hesitantly. "Get some sleep and rest up. I'll see you down here tomorrow and then we can talk."
"What about work?" Felicity frowned. "Won't we see each other there?"
"Maybe you should call in sick and rest," he shrugged. "You've earned it."
"Oliver, no offense, but if I have to stay locked up all day in here," she motioned to the space around them, "I'll probably go mad. I'll see you at the office."
"Okay," he agreed. "I'll see you tomorrow... And thank you, again..." A confused look covered Felicity's face and he cleared his throat, "For saving Thea and for being there for her in general. Thank you for protecting her."
"You will never have to thank me for that, Oliver," Felicity told him confidently. "As long as I'm alive, I won't let anything bad happen to Thea if I can prevent it."
He didn't know what to say, but he hoped the look he gave her showed her how thankful he was for her promise. The small smile that bloomed on her face told him that she had heard him despite that he hadn't said anything.
"You should get some sleep too," Felicity whispered after a moment. "And I'll see you tomorrow."
Without saying anything else, Oliver headed up the stairs.
-§-
Oliver woke later than usual the next morning. Or rather, he was awake for quite some time before he actually got out of bed, reflecting once again on what had happened the previous night.
After leaving Felicity down in the lair, he had made sure to get Thea home safe and then gone to bed himself. He reached for his phone that he had felt on his nightstand in case Felicity– or Diggle– needed to get a hold of him for some reason. No new messages and no missed phone calls, which didn't come as a surprise since it was just seven in the morning.
He knew that Thea was most likely nursing a hangover after the drug the vampires had dosed her with, but his mother and Walter would be waking up soon to get ready for the office. If there was one thing he knew, it was that he needed to make sure that his Thea was okay. Even though Felicity had told him that the vampires hadn't used a high dose of the drug, it had been enough to actually knock his little sister and one could never be too careful when it came to these things.
Getting up from the bed, he decided to do a few push-ups, just to make himself look a little more tired than he looked. His mother, after all, would think he had been with Thea at Verdant all night long, which means that it would probably be better if he looked hungover too.
Forty minutes later, he had taken a shower and gotten dressed for work. He walked down the stairs to the kitchen, where he found his mother eating breakfast alone while reading a paper.
"Good morning, Oliver," Moira said, not looking up from her paper. "I'm guessing you had a good time yesterday at Thea's party?"
"Yeah, we had fun," Oliver shrugged, sitting down next to his mother. He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek, looking at the article she was reading. "Huh, that Vertigo drug seems to be going around in the Glades," he casually pointed out.
"It's a good thing that you make sure the security is high enough so that no one manages to sneak in drugs in your club," Moira nodded absentmindedly. "A lawsuit or a police investigation is the last thing we need."
Oliver frowned. What a strange thing to say.
"Yeah, good thing," he replied anyway. "Has Walter already left for the office?"
"He had an early morning meeting," Moira answered. "But he told me to tell you that you didn't have to come in until later. He figured you would be feeling the aftereffects of the party." His mother finally looked up at him and nodded curtly, as if the way he looked confirmed Walter's suspicions.
"That's great," Oliver grinned back at her. "I should probably text Felicity and tell her she can come in a bit later too and then I'll go see if Speedy's alive."
"Ms. Smoak doesn't need to come in later just because you are," Moira said, narrowing her eyes.
"She was at the party too last night, Mom," Oliver retorted. "Thea wore her out on the dance floor."
"Just Thea?" Moira wondered, giving him a pointed look.
Oliver's mind flooded with images of him and Felicity dancing closely to each other. The way she had fit perfectly against his body, swaying and pressing at just the right times... His hands on her waist, her hands playing with his hair...
"Don't tell me you sent spies after your kids," Oliver joked, but knew very well that there could be some truth there. Moira was known for always trying to keep an eye on her children; especially now that Oliver had returned from the dead, two years prior.
"I didn't need to," Moira said. "Raisa's niece was at that party and apparently, she had seen 'Mr. Queen dancing with a pretty blonde' for 'a long time.'"
"It was one dance, mother," Oliver sighed, reaching for a glass of juice. "Thea practically forced us to."
"Mhm..." Moira hummed, still looking unimpressed.
Oliver put his hands flat on the table and rose from his seat, "I should probably go check on Thea and then head out. I'll see you later?"
"Yes, yes," Moira nodded and he once again pressed a small kiss on her cheek before walking away.
There was a strange feeling in his gut when he walked up the stairs toward Thea's room. He didn't like the fact that someone– even if it had been just Raisa's niece– had seen him and Felicity like that. Then again, he should probably be scolding himself for being the one to actually persuading her to dance with him. Also, one dance surely would have sufficed. There had been no reason for him to keep her all to himself last night.
Unless he simply wanted to keep her to himself?
He shook the thought out of his head before it could fester and knocked on Thea's door. Inside, he could hear a groaning sound and he chuckled as he opened the door a little.
"You okay in there?" he asked.
"I'm dying, Ollie! Tell Mom I loved her," Thea replied, her voice muffled by the pillow she had thrown over her face.
"I'll have the message delivered," Oliver grinned, stepping into the room. He walked over to her bed and sat down, brushing his hand over her hair lightly. "Do you need me to get Raisa to bring something up for you?"
Thea groaned again, "The only thing I need is a Bloody Mary and a pretzel and maybe an aspirin or ten."
"I'll see what I can do about that," Oliver answered, thinking back to the days he used to be hungover for days in a row after partying too hard. He was glad those days were over for him.
"Remind me to thank Tommy later, by the way," Thea piped up, lifting her head from the pillow. "It must have been a killer of a party if I can't even remember anything after watching you and Felicity grind on each other for half an hour."
"We did not grind on each other for half an hour," Oliver protested, staring wide eyes at his sister who just grinned lazily.
"Right," she said, "it was more like an hour and a half."
"I am not sending up those pretzels," Oliver said, standing up from the bed.
"Oh, come on, I was just kidding!" Thea giggled, but then winced, closing her eyes tightly again. "But you really shouldn't joke about those pretzels."
"I don't want Mom to think there's anything going on between Felicity and me," Oliver told her. "She's already suspicious as it is and we don't need rumors flying around at Queen Consolidated."
"If you missed it, there already are rumors going around," Thea replied. "Besides, it's not as if the two of you are being subtle with your flirting. It might be harmless, but others might read more into it."
"Are you always this insightful when you're hungover?" Oliver teased, deciding to ignore he words.
"Only when it's a question about my brother's love life apparently," Thea said.
"Oh, so it's okay for me to discuss your love life?" he asked, nudging her shoulder to check if she was still awake. "In that case, who is Roy?"
Thea quickly raised her head and stared at him with wide eyes, "No one!"
Oliver shook his head, chuckling, "See, don't start a war you can't finish, Speedy."
"Okay, okay. I'm sorry. I won't tease you about Felicity– Who I'm pretty sure is your soulmate, by the way– as long as you don't ask about Roy. I don't want you to scare him off from me," she said.
"And I think Felicity's rambling might be contagious," Oliver deadpanned, ignoring the quip on soulmates. "I'll send the pretzels up," he said, heading for the door.
"I love you!" Thea called after him, making him shake his head and smile.
-§-
Moira Queen was a woman of secrets.
Even before her first husbands demise, she had known how to keep things to herself. Infidelities, pregnant teenagers and blackmail were only three of the things listed on her hidden repertoire. If there was one thing Moira Queen knew, it was secrets.
And her son Oliver, was keeping a ton of them.
When she had been notified that they had found Oliver on some remote island near China, she had almost lost her mind out of cheer happiness. Her son, the boy she had believed to be dead, was coming home to her. She had gone out of her way to ensure that he traveled safely to the States and got transported back to Starling City as fast as humanly possible.
The man she had met that day in the hospital though, had not been the boy she remembered.
Her son, the Oliver Queen that she had known before he had supposedly drowned, was gone and as far as she could tell, he was not coming back any time soon. Still, he was her son and she was happy, because no matter what version of him had returned, he was safe and she could hold him, not just cry over an empty grave where she knew no one would ever hear her.
Then, the secrecy began. Oliver started sneaking out late at night and come back home early mornings. He thought she didn't notice, but she was his mother and she had just gotten her child back from the dead, so it wasn't as if she was going to let him out of her sight so easily during the nights. When she had confronted him about it, he had made up some excuse about seeing some girl, but she could tell by the emptiness in his eyes, that there must be more to it than just some silly dalliance.
Other, more powerful people, wanted to know what her son might have learned while he was 'away', and Moira was forced to do something drastic to find out if her son really did know more than he was letting on.
Having her own son kidnapped was quickly added to the sick pile of secrets, but she was happy to know that her son knew nothing of the things she and her husband had been involved in before the Queen's Gambit had gone down.
Guilt always weighed heavy on her shoulders when she thought about the yacht that had been rigged to go down, with her knowledge. She had loved her husband, but she had feared not only for her own life, but for her children's as well. The last minute change that involved Oliver going on that trip with Robert was something that she wished she could have stopped. Perhaps then, Oliver would never have brought Sara Lance along, which was another name she had to add to the list of people whose death she's caused.
Either way, Oliver had returned, but she would always live with the guilt of Sara and Robert, and the other crew members who had died that stormy night.
Her son was distant in the beginning, but over the two years that followed, he seemed a little more at ease with his family again. The bodyguard she had hired after she had had him kidnapped had clearly become a friend of his and she was glad that her son had someone to watch out for him when she couldn't.
She had realized that Oliver had a right to his own secrets, mostly because she didn't want him to start digging into hers, knowing that her son would push her away for all the horrible things she had done, no matter if it had been in the name of protecting him and Thea.
Then came Felicity Smoak, and suddenly, there was a secret that Oliver held that Moira craved to know. At first she had honestly thought that her son was simply having an affair with the girl, and hated that there was a risk of Oliver returning to the scandalous front page of celebrity gossip magazines. She had been highly skeptic as to what other reasons there might be for Oliver to hire such a pretty blonde, but when he had presented her and Walter with Felicity's resume, she had realized that there was more to the woman than met the eye.
Moira had never been very good at minding her own business, especially when it came to Oliver's girlfriends or flings, and she wanted desperately to know more about this Felicity Smoak. She had a private investigator look her up, but even then, the results came up spotless and Moira had to come to terms with the fact that there simply wasn't anything on record that could prove to her that there was something strange with the woman Oliver had hired.
Then she noticed how tense Oliver was around Felicity and how he always seemed to be keeping an eye on her, or having his own bodyguard do it for him. Moira started questioning if Oliver really was having a fling with the girl, or if he was simply trying to keep his eye on her, for some reason.
Moira was glad that Oliver wasn't involved with Ms. Smoak, because it would keep him out of the tabloids and thus her out of the news. She didn't want to become a liability, because dangerous people were still watching her every move, especially now that it had turned out that Oliver knew nothing of what was planned for the city.
Now, things were changing once again.
Moira watched with narrowed eyes as Oliver smiled down at Felicity when he handed her a file. The tension that was usually there in his shoulders when he spoke to the blonde was gone, and the blonde's eyes seemed to be shining as she met Oliver's. When he instructed Felicity to leave the folder back on his desk, the woman nodded enthusiastically and smiled at him before starting to walk away. The moment Felicity stepped away from Oliver, Moira saw that her son's hand was falling back to his side, which in turn meant that Oliver had actually been holding onto the woman by her elbow.
It was an intimate gesture that Moira didn't like one bit. What had changed? Why was Oliver suddenly so open to the blonde that he had insisted that he didn't like at all?
Moira couldn't help herself.
"Oliver, could you please follow me for a moment?" she asked, successfully getting his attention.
The dazed look on her son's face wasn't comforting at all. "Yeah, sure Mom," he replied, following her into her office. She closed the door and made sure to lock it so that they wouldn't be interrupted. When she turned to face Oliver, he was standing with a confused look on his face, "Is everything okay?"
"Oliver, I'm not trying to be annoying, but I'm your mother first and foremost and I need to know what has changed," she told him, in her no-nonsense voice.
"Changed?" Oliver questioned, his eyebrows furrowing.
"Between you and Ms. Smoak," Moira clarified, walking around her desk so that she could take a seat.
"Nothing has changed between Felicity and me," Oliver insisted, but Moira could see it the moment a mask covered her son's face.
"The two of you seem more open with each other," she pointed out. "You're smiling and touching and it almost looks like you enjoy her presence."
"I do," Oliver nodded. "She's kind of funny to be around, you know. She says the silliest things sometimes and-"
"Oliver, are you sleeping with her?" Moira hurriedly asked, wanting to get straight to the point.
Oliver stood frozen for a moment, his mouth opened, but then closed again, lips tightly shut together. The frown was still there when he spoke, "Not that it's any of your business, Mother, but no, I am not sleeping with my Executive Assistant."
"Then why are you two acting so differently?" Moira demanded to know. "What has changed? You used to be so cold toward her and now you're openly smiling, which you haven't done genuinely since you returned from that Island."
"Are you making accusations based on the fact that I am smiling more?" Oliver asked, sounding as if it was the craziest thing in the world.
"I told you there has been a lot of other changes too, Oliver," Moira replied. "So tell me the truth. Tell your mother the truth."
Oliver shook his head and looked up at her in disbelief. There was a humorless smile gracing his face, which actually made the entire thing look more like a grimace. "In case you missed it, Felicity saved both Thea's and Walter's life," he said. "She had earned my trust, Mother and it had nothing to do with her looks, or her skills in the bedroom, which I may add, I know nothing about. I would appreciate it if you never brought it up again."
With those words, Oliver unlocked the door and stepped out of her office, leaving her to stare after him. She understood where he was coming from, because she had been nagging him about it ever since Ms. Smoak started working for him.
But there was still something about that woman that made Moira's skin crawl. She had had suspicions that there could be... darker forces at work, but she couldn't know for sure. All she knew now was that she would have to keep her suspicions to herself and not ask Oliver about it again. She didn't want to push her son away, but she sure as hell wasn't going to let go of her intuitions when it came to Felicity Smoak that easily either.
-§-
Tommy Merlyn waltzed into Queen Consolidated with a bright smile on his face.
He had just gotten off the phone with a still recovering Thea Queen, who had made sure that the birthday party he had thrown her had been the best birthday party in her life, and he was very pleased, to say the least.
The younger Queen had also filled him in on the conversation she had had with her older brother that morning and for a moment, the two of them had laughed over the fact that Oliver could get flustered so easily.
Tommy knew his best friend and from what he had seen, there was clearly something going on between Oliver and his new blonde friend. The last time Tommy had seen Oliver dance the way he had danced with Felicity at Thea's birthday party, had probably been some time before Oliver was shipwrecked. Since his return from the Island, Oliver had been more and more reluctant go out clubbing, and to be honest, Tommy was thankful for that.
Tommy was in a steady relationship with Laurel and they were in a good place. He wouldn't want to go back to the way things were before because he was happy.
His happiness with Laurel was actually the reason he was coming to talk to Oliver today, but that didn't mean that he wouldn't enjoy having a little conversation with Felicity, seeing as Oliver wasn't in his office at the moment.
"Ms. Smoak," he nodded, grinning from ear to ear as he took in the woman. She was sitting by her desk dressed in a bright orange dress, tapping away quickly at her computer.
"Mr. Merlyn!" she exclaimed, looking up at him immediately. "Oliver was just- I mean, Mr. Queen has been held up by his mother, but he'll probably be here in a moment."
"You're not going to ask me if I have an appointment?" Tommy raised an eyebrow. "I'm sure Mr. Queen is a very busy man..."
"Well, you are his best friend," Felicity pointed out and by the look on her face, he could tell that he was teasing her on the 'Mr. Queen' slip. "I don't think you need to have an appointment any less than his sister does. Besides, I know that his afternoon is free, since I keep his schedule and all that."
Tommy eyed her and grinned, "I think you're the first secretary that I've ever met who openly talks about her job like she's disgusted by it."
"I think you would be too if you were an MIT-graduate," Felicity muttered as a reply. "But still, I can't complain. As long as Oliver keeps paying me, I'll stick around." Her eyes widened suddenly, almost comically, "And by that I don't mean that he's paying me for anything other than my job! As his Executive Assistant, I mean! No extracurricular work being done here whatsoever, so don't get any strange ideas! Oliver and I have a very strict business relationship... Which now that I say it out loud sounds even worse than what I originally said." Burying her face in her hands, she shook her head at herself and groaned.
"Felicity," Tommy chuckled. "You're the one that's putting ideas in my head." She shot him a glare. "Hey, I'm just kidding. Oliver was very serious when he told me that you two just work together last night," Tommy said.
"That's good," Felicity nodded slowly.
"But can we at least stop pretending that you're on last-name-basis? It's kind of obvious that you're comfortable enough with calling him by his first name," Tommy said and Felicity nodded in agreement.
"I guess I'm trying to make a habit of calling him Mr. Queen here at the office so I won't slip up when someone else hears us talking," Felicity explained. "I mean, you should see the look on his mother's face every time I talk to him or he calls me by my first name."
"Well, Moira can be a little harsh, as far as I know," Tommy shrugged. "She'll come around when she sees that there's nothing going on between the two of you."
Felicity didn't look very convinced, but nodded anyway. Tommy wanted to shake his head, because as far as he could tell, there was clearly something there, but he wouldn't press. Tommy watched Felicity as she looked past him, a smile appearing on her face as she did.
"Oliver!" she said brightly, causing Tommy to turn around. His best friend was indeed on his way into the office. "Tommy is here to see you."
"Tommy," Oliver grinned, embracing his friend. "What brings you here?"
"I wanted to talk to you about something," Tommy replied.
"Sorry that I kept you waiting," Oliver said, motioning with his hand for Tommy to follow him to his part of the office, on the other side of the glass wall.
"It's alright; Felicity kept me entertained." Tommy sent a wink Felicity's way, making the blonde blush lightly. When Tommy turned back around to face his friend, Oliver had an unreadable expression on his face, which usually meant that he was trying to conceal either annoyance or jealousy.
Yeah right, Tommy thought. Nothing going on at all.
"By the way, Felicity," Tommy smirked, "if Oliver ever gives you a hard time," he grabbed a pen on her desk and a paper, scribbling down a few digits, "give me a call and I'll tell you some embarrassing stories from his childhood that you can use against him."
Felicity took the note from him and smiled, "I'll keep that in mind."
"Tommy," Oliver groaned, rolling his eyes. "I'm sure Felicity could have found out everything about me within just a few minutes, especially since she has access to a computer."
"Ah," Tommy said triumphantly, "there are things not even the Internet knows about!"
Felicity laughed at that and Tommy witnessed something amazing.
The corners of Oliver's mouth lifted in a genuine smile. Those moments were very rare since his return from the island. Tommy had only seen it happen a few times, usually whenever Thea was around.
"Let's go then," Oliver suggested, "before you actually reveal something to Ms. Smoak that she'll be able to blackmail me with later." There was something in Oliver's tone that suggested that Felicity already knew something that no one else knew and it made Tommy curious. He didn't press however, because he needed to have a conversation with Oliver about something important.
They walked into Oliver's office and Tommy closed the door after them, looking over at Felicity who once again started tapping on her computer. Tommy had been in Oliver's office a few times already, but the view of the city always impressed him immensely.
"So what did you need to talk about?" Oliver wondered, walking up to stand beside Tommy, looking out at the city.
"I don't want things to be awkward between us," Tommy began slowly, "but I really felt like I needed to talk to you about it first."
"Oh?" Oliver raised his eyebrows.
Tommy nodded, "Yeah..." He paused. "Oliver, I want to ask Laurel to marry me."
"Oh."
Tommy let the silence hang for a moment, waiting for Oliver's reaction, but his best friend's face remained neutral. After a moment though, Oliver's lips tugged up, once again in that rare, genuine kind of way and Tommy had never felt more relieved.
"Are you asking me for your blessing?" Oliver wondered, sounding amused.
"Is that weird? It's weird, right?" Tommy chuckled, shaking his head at his own antics.
"I am happy for you, Tommy," Oliver grinned. "You and Laurel both." Oliver opened his arms and Tommy didn't hesitate for one second to embrace his friend in a manly hug. "You got a ring yet?" Oliver asked and Tommy nodded, taking out the small box he had been carrying around with him for weeks, afraid that Laurel would somehow find it.
He opened the box for Oliver to see the simple princess cut diamond ring with a golden band. "Do you think she'll like it? I know it's not something extravagant, but-"
"Laurel will love it," Oliver nodded, squeezing his shoulder lightly. "You know she will."
"I sure hope so," Tommy laughed.
"So when are you going to do it?" Oliver wanted to know.
"Soon, hopefully," Tommy replied. "Laurel's been working a lot at CNRI lately and I asked Detective Lance a week ago, so soon."
"You asked her father for permission?"
"It felt like the right thing to do," Tommy shrugged. "Especially considering that the man is authorized to carry a gun."
"You do have a point," Oliver smiled. "You deserve to be happy, Tommy."
Tommy watched him and for a moment, he hesitated. Oliver had been through so much in his young life and for some reason, even though the Island horror was over, it still felt like Oliver kept re-living the nightmares time and time and again.
"You deserve to be happy too, Oliver," Tommy said. For a brief second, Tommy thought he saw Oliver's eyes flicker to the glass wall that separated his and Felicity's offices, but Tommy chose not to look too deep into it for now.
"I'm happy," Oliver defended, but it sounded a little halfhearted.
"In that case, you deserve to be even happier, man," Tommy told him, clapping him on his back. "Hopefully you'll find someone who keeps putting those smiles on your face, because I need my best man to not look grumpy when he holds his speech."
"Best man?" Oliver grinned.
"Did you think I'd pick someone else?" Tommy asked.
Oliver shook his head lightly and chuckled under his breath, "I just figured you would at least wait until Laurel said yes."
Tommy's smile fell, "Do you think she'll say no?"
Oliver put both of his hands on Tommy's shoulders, forcing him to look at him. "I think Laurel would be stupid to say no, and if there's one thing we can all agree on, it's that Laurel Lance is anything but stupid."
Tommy smiled, thankful for his friend's reassurance and then checked his watch. "Well, I need to head off. I promised my father I would meet up with him for a late dinner to talk," he grimaced.
"Malcolm is still insisting you two work on your relationship?" Oliver wondered.
"Considering that he cut me off and then refused to talk to me for six months, I'd say there's a lot to work through," Tommy deadpanned. "Besides, the other year and a half he's been having a lot of meetings and shit that I don't even want to get into. The man is seriously full of secrets and I don't know if I've ever had an honest conversation with him."
"Maybe it's still worth working on," Oliver shrugged. "My mom isn't exactly the easiest person either, but we work through it."
"Yeah, yeah," Tommy agreed. "At least my father doesn't accuse me of sleeping with my secretary though."
Oliver groaned, "Will everyone just cut it out already? First off, Felicity is my Executive Assistant, and secondly, I am not, nor will I ever be sleeping with her."
"You're right," Tommy said. "I don't get why anyone would think that a girl like her would actually go for a guy like you. She's way out of your league."
"You're free to leave, Tommy."
"I'll see you around, Oliver."
-§-
After the conversation he had had with his mother, Oliver had been agitated, to say the least. He didn't want her to think that there was anything going on between him and Felicity.
The thing was, that even though he had accepted Felicity now, it still didn't change the fact that she is a hybrid. He trusted her, but that didn't mean that he had to like her.
Or at least not in the way everyone else seemed to think he did.
He had spent the last seven years of his life fighting the darkness that prowled in the night and now he trusted one of the Dark Ones enough to listen to her and leave her alone with his sister. If someone were to ask him, he would call that an accomplishment.
He was well aware of the fact that Felicity was attractive. If his dreams about her were anything to go on, it was clear that at least his body felt attracted to her. His brain though didn't want to complicate things further by allowing his body to explore said attraction and he was glad for that. It was bad enough that it was there, but he didn't want to walk around with it on his mind constantly.
So yes; he trusted Felicity, but he didn't like her. At least not in that way.
He was willing to trust her when it came to Thea and to their work, but he didn't dare think to develop the understanding that the two of them had come to together without actually speaking about it. As long as she knew that he trusted her enough so that he wouldn't kill her, they were good.
Tommy had made his day a little easier. The news that his best friend was going to propose to Laurel wasn't unexpected, but it sure was a happy surprise. When Oliver returned from Lian Yu, he might have believed that he wanted to give him and Laurel another try, but truth be told, he had known that five years had passed, and the chances that Laurel had waited for him for those years while she thought he was dead, were slim, if at all existing.
A wedding, whenever it would take place (because Oliver was sure that Laurel would accept Tommy's proposal, no matter how corny it might be), would be a happy occasion and hopefully by then, Oliver would have come a long way on his own crusade against the Darkness, so that he would be able to attend without having to think about protecting everyone he loved.
"Oliver?" Felicity suddenly spoke up beside him. They had decided to catch a cab together today so that people who recognized Felicity's mini cooper wouldn't find it suspicious as to why she's always parking her car outside of Verdant. Diggle was running an errand, so he would be joining them in the Foundry when he was done.
"Yes, Felicity?" His voice was surprisingly soft, even to his ears, as he looked out the window at as the cab driver drove them through the Glades. He didn't want to think about the conversation that was about to come, but he knew that it was inevitable. Felicity, Diggle and he would have to talk about the thing that made Felicity look them up and make them hunt her. She had been keeping the secret for nearly two months now, all so that she would make sure to build his trust before revealing anything.
"I want to ask you something, but I don't want you to get mad at me," she admitted slowly. "I know that even though we trust each other, we aren't exactly friends." Oliver turned his head sharply toward her and stared as she rolled her eyes, "I'm not that naïve, Oliver."
"Feel free to ask," he said instead of commenting her statement, because he knew that he couldn't add anything other to it that wouldn't just make the matter even more confusing.
Once again, Felicity hesitated, biting her lip, "How do you really feel about Tommy and Laurel potentially getting married?" Oliver eyes her confusedly and she simply tapped her ear, giving him a look.
Ah, he remembered, hybrid hearing.
Of course Felicity had overheard every word that Tommy and he had said in his office. After all, the walls were made of glass, which wouldn't block out the sounds that she was able to pick up with her enhanced hearing.
He thought about what would be the better answer, deciding to go with the truth, "I am happy for them, Felicity. They both deserve the happiness they've found in each other."
Felicity's head moved in an affirming nod before she looked out the window on her side of the cab. "Tommy was right, you know," she said after a moment.
"About what?" Oliver wondered, realizing that he had still been watching her even though she had turned her head away from him.
"You deserve happiness too," she replied, her voice so low, that he had barely heard her. She turned her head and met his eyes, connecting for what felt like an eternity. His fingers itched to reach out and touch the blush that appeared on her cheek, which always managed to make her look so human.
Realizing what he had been thinking, he quickly turned his gaze away, staring straight ahead. Her words still echoed in his mind and in that moment, Oliver didn't know what to think anymore.
-§-
Felicity was pacing in the Foundry.
Oliver was sitting on the stool he normally sat in when sharpening his arrows and Diggle was leaning against the med-table, while Felicity paced, surprisingly looking graceful while she did.
The hybrid had been walking back and forth in front of them for the better of ten minutes as she tried to figure out where to begin with her story. Every once in a while, she would stop moving, open her mouth to speak, and then shut it again, only to start walking again.
Oliver had had enough of it. She was only prolonging the conversation that they all knew that they needed to have. Diggle shot Oliver a warning glare though when Oliver opened his mouth to speak, and he promptly sat down on his chair again, respectfully waiting out Felicity, who cracked her fingers, shaking them lightly afterward.
"Okay, okay," she said, almost to herself. "It's just so weird talking about this since I've been keeping the secret for so long. I don't even know where to begin," she told them.
"Why don't you just start in the beginning?" Diggle suggested, giving her one of those comforting smiles that Oliver was sure he would never be able to give her.
"Okay," Felicity nodded, "alright." She took a few more deep breaths, closing her eyes before turning to face them. "I was turned into a hybrid approximately five months ago, give or take a week or two," she said. "During the first month, I was being kept in some kind of underground base and I overheard some of the wolves that were guarding talking about some kind of Undertaking."
"Werewolves stood guard?" Oliver frowned. "For hybrids? Aren't you supposed to be stronger than them and vampires combined?" He had seen Felicity use her strength; he knew just how strong and how quick the petite blonde could be.
"I was in isolation," Felicity explained. "After I was turned, I... Well, let's just say that I wasn't as accepting as the other hybrids," she bit out. "Either way, they usually patrolled the hallway, sent in food and such so that I wouldn't die of starvation before they could get what they wanted."
"What did they want?" Oliver wondered, but Felicity only stared at him. "Damn it, Felicity! Just tell us whatever the hell they have planned so that we can plan our next move!"
His frustration was getting the better of him, but he could still see the hesitance in Felicity's eyes. They narrowed at him, probably on instinct, briefly flashing yellow before turning back to their normal shade of blue.
"I was weakened," Felicity continued, "and I couldn't hear everything that they were saying. All I know is that I heard them mentioning an Undertaking and plans of attacking the humans, to take over Starling City."
The breath he had been holding left Oliver's lung as he turned to look at Diggle. The older man held an expression on his face that was probably similar to the one that was covering Oliver's own.
If the People of Darkness were really planning to take over Starling City completely, it would take a lot more than just a vigilante in a green hood, a former soldier and a hybrid hacker to take them down.
"Once I realized what they were going to do, I quickly decided to submit," Felicity explained. "I tricked them into believing that I was loyal to the Master, and tried to gather as much information as I could, but it was difficult because they never spoke about it in my presence. I guess they were still not sure of where my loyalties were," she shrugged.
"Who is the Master?" Diggle asked. "Your Sire?"
"There might have been a man that caused me to turn, but I have never had a Sire, nor will I ever have one," Felicity snapped, eyes flashing, this time staying yellow as she watched them. "The Master is a man without a face. No one ever saw him and the only time I heard his voice, it was when I used my hearing to listen in on one of the other lamia vampire's conversations with him through the phone."
"Doesn't sound like a hell of a lot of information to me," Oliver said, raising from his seat. "You've told us nothing yet that can be useful. You mention an Undertaking, but know no date, nor real plan. You talk about a nameless, faceless Sire that we can't locate. How are we supposed to use anything that you've told us, when we have nothing to go on?" His voice was harsh and Felicity took a step toward him.
"I know it's not much, Oliver," she growled at him, "but at least it's more than you had yesterday."
He shook his head in disbelief. How could he have been so stupid to think that the hybrid would actually come forward with useful information? Sure, it might be more than he had known before, but he had just gotten a bunch of fancy words and another mystery person to look for. He was back right where he started when she had first sent him a text message for him to come and find her.
"Why look us up?" he asked her. "Why contact the Hood and reveal your identity– Why expose yourself like that, if you had nothing to give us in return?"
"I have something to give," Felicity protested. "I give you my skills, I give you insight on the Dark Ones that you never would have been able to figure out and I've given you the knowledge that they are planning something huge!" She took a few deep breaths, to calm herself, but her eyes were still honey colored as she continued, "I knew I couldn't be a part of the death of hundreds, thousands of people, Oliver. I needed to do something to help save them and the solution came to me when one of the vampires mentioned how Bertinelli's club was safe from the Hood. I heard the fear in the other vampire's voice when he talked about you and I could smell it all around the room." She closed her eyes and opened them, revealing once again her blue irises, "I knew that you would be the only one brave enough to take on the war that is about to go down. I still believe that."
Oliver sighed, pinching the brig of his nose as he did. What was he supposed to say? He had been expecting something that he could use to pinpoint an exact location of the person who was behind the entire thing, but now all he knew was that the Dark Ones would try to take over his city at some point.
"Do you have anything else to add, Felicity?" Diggle asked before Oliver could even bring himself to start forming words with his mouth. "Something that might give you a clue to when things will be going down, or anything on how they are planning to do it?"
Felicity looked deep in though before nodding, "Toward the end of the year, after winter."
"How do you know?" Oliver asked.
"Deduction, I suppose... One of the less intelligent wolves mentioned that he was glad that he would have time to see his family, his old pack, for Christmas before he came back to fight," she said. "And as far as how they are planning to do it... There's a reason they turned me."
"What are you saying?" Oliver frowned. "They turned you so that you could join their army of Dark Ones?" When he said it out loud, it didn't actually sound that crazy.
"They have been rounding up werewolves for months, Oliver," Felicity replied. "Lone wolves, wolf packs, any kind of wolf they can find really, just so that they can try turning them into hybrids to make a stronger army."
"An army of hybrids," Diggle acknowledged.
"You said it yourselves," Felicity nodded, "hybrids are hard to kill. You two didn't even know for sure what would be able to kill them before I joined you."
"We wouldn't have stood a chance," Diggle realized, looking over at Oliver.
Oliver clenched his jaw, but found himself nodding. He couldn't deny that this final piece of information that Felicity had given them was useful. They knew what they were going to stand up against and they had a few months before the Undertaking would be taking place, so they would have time to prepare and get ready. By then, hopefully, Oliver might be able to locate the Master and kill him, to prevent the Undertaking from taking place at all.
"I'm sorry for keeping this from you for so long," Felicity said. "I hope you understand that it wasn't easy for me either, to keep you in the dark."
Oliver didn't want to dwell on how the hybrid had kept the truth from them for so long, because the important thing was that it was out there now and he trusted Felicity enough to know that she would do everything to help him and Diggle stop the Undertaking from taking place.
"You've given us something to go on," Oliver told her, moving to her automatically. He wanted to reach out to her, put his hand on her shoulder to show her how thankful he was for the little information she had managed to give them. Instead, he settled for looking her in the eyes, pouring as much earnest in his voice as he murmured a soft, "Thank you, Felicity."
Felicity let out a shaky laugh, not sounding amused at all, "Where are we even supposed to start?"
Oliver looked toward Diggle, who raised his shoulders in a shrug, stepping away from the table he was leaning on. The man who had turned Felicity had had so much time to create his army, that he wasn't sure if there was anything they could do now except for prepare. Who knew how many werewolves the Master had managed to turn by now...?
An idea formed in Oliver's head suddenly.
"Felicity," he drawled, "is there any way that you might remember any of the wolves that they captured while you were being held?"
"Some of them, yeah," Felicity frowned, "but most of them are probably dead though. They didn't manage to turn properly into hybrids, so the two species burned each other out."
"All we need to know is where they were snatched," Oliver said. "If we can maybe somehow pinpoint the last place they were seen, we might be able to see a pattern," he explained.
"Or we might see a familiar face," Diggle joined in. "A common denominator–"
"–the wolf snatcher!" Felicity exclaimed, grinning from ear to ear before frowning. "Sorry, that's just what I usually called him in my head. I never saw him, but I heard the other wolves talking about him."
"There are security cameras all over Starling City," Oliver said, deciding to ignore the way Felicity had started slipping off topic. "If some of the wolves that were captured were taken here in Starling, we should be able to see where most of them are being taken from."
"I bet it's close to the Black Rose," Felicity said. "Usually, the wolves that randomly drop into town visit the club because they hear it's safe there. At least that was what one of my old pack members told me."
"Also, there are cameras all around the world, so Felicity would probably have no problem checking though those recordings either," Diggle said, turning to look at the hybrid. "Will you?"
"Of course I won't," Felicity said. "I'll do anything it takes to help you guys, and stop doubting my skills. I found you without a problem, didn't I?"
"You did," Oliver confirmed. "I don't think either of us are doubting your skills, Felicity. It's just that this is still a long shot and it's not as if you can just write how someone looked so that you can find them online, right? You need names to know where to start looking."
"I have names," Felicity smiled. "One of the wolves that didn't make it... Her name was Alison Greene. I'll start there and then I have a few more to go on."
Oliver almost smiled, feeling a tiny bit of hope blossom inside of him.
"Oliver could use the disguise of the Hood to try and learn more names on the street," Diggle suggested. "Interrogate Dark Ones instead of just killing them. I'm sure there are some out there who have heard a thing or two. If wolves are disappearing, someone ought to have noticed."
"You're right," Oliver nodded. "I can hunt them and get names while you search for them Felicity. Diggle can help with looking up potential targets that might have information."
"A well-oiled machine," Felicity grinned, sitting down by her computer. "Team Arrow."
Oliver scrunched his nose up as he looked at her, reaching for his jacket. "Don't call us that," he told her. "I need to head home, but we can start looking though things tomorrow, alright?"
"Sure thing," Diggle said and Felicity confirmed it with a nod.
Shooting one last glance at Felicity, Oliver headed up the stairs and out into the chilly night. There would be no patrolling tonight, because he needed to gather his strength. Something told him that they would be having busy nights ahead of themselves and he needed to rest.
When he got into the cab he had called for himself, he found himself smiling once again.
Team Arrow, he though, remembering how cheery Felicity's voice had been when she had called them that. If anyone had asked him, he would never have been able to explain why it had brought a smile to his face.
Note: Yeah, I had a lot of trouble with this chapter because I honestly didn't know how i wanted it to play out. Having a part from Moira's point of view was totally unplanned, but I went with the flow. I hope you guys liked that and got a little more insight on her thoughts and can see that she isn't completely heartless.
And before you get mad, I want you to know that yes, Oliver is still not considering Felicity a "real friend", but he DOES trust her, so we're getting there okay? He isn't going to become an ass again like he used to be earlier on, but you need to understand his frustration, because he was promised information and truth be told, Felicity didn't have THAT MUCH to reveal. At least they have something to go on and now, the story can really pick up! =)
But you need to know that I barely have time to write anymore, so updates might not come as regularly as they usually do... Although I will do my best!
Thank you for reading and don't forget to leave a review! =)
