Title: Tabula Rasa
Words: 2889
Genre: Comfort
Pairing: Laurel/Oliver, Canary/Arrow
Status: Done

Summary: Laurel loses all of her memories of herself as Laurel and only has the Black Canary, so Oliver must make the hard choice of dealing with a love that isn't quite true with the two side of Laurel without her memories or risk losing her by giving her her life back.

"How is she?" Oliver asked the nurse and he could see Quentin was there worrying about the exact same thing.

The nurse looked at both of them and gave them the fakest of cheery smiles, "The good news is that she could retain all of her memories and be back to normal in as little as a few weeks," She said.

"What does that mean for now?" He asked, seriously. Laurel was part of the team and he couldn't have her just being a vegetable right now. Not when there was more villainy than ever.

She sighed as she looked at Laurel, a poor little soul she thought, no doubt, "It means that until we have more information, it looks like she's forgotten everyone and we don't know when she'll have it all back," She said to them as she left.

Oliver kissed Laurel's head and she freaked out, sort of scurrying to try to find somewhere else or something else to amuse herself, but she definitely didn't want him around. Quentin pleaded with his eyes and Oliver knew to leave. He couldn't think of why she would do this, but he had to figure that it was to do with the loss.

"How's Laurel?" Felicity asked as she heard him come through the lair.

It was his turn to sigh. Oh boy, how was Laurel? that was a loaded question. "She's not good. It looks like they have her in the hospital for awhile. Don't expect her back at all." He said to Felicity. "She'll be fine though, I know she will. We just have to give her time to figure it all out."

They took her back to her apartment and laid her in bed where she smiled to them, "I'm tired," She said. They nodded and got out of the room. Still, someone needed to be with her. Quentin needed sleep for tomorrow, so Oliver took the first shift of watching over her.

Everything was quiet for awhile and Oliver went to go check on her, see how she was doing. He opened the door to find her out of bed, gone, and the window open.

"Felicity," He said into his phone, "Find Laurel. She snuck out,"

This was funny to Felicity, "Snuck out? Like a teenager? That doesn't like Laurel?" He could hear the typing regardless and then he heard her gasp. "You're not gonna believe this. She's in the middle of beating up a local gang. They were after a woman and she's stopping them. Laurel might not remember her life before, but she definitely knows she's Black Canary," Felicity told him.

Shit. He went to the foundry and got his costume and bow and tracked Laurel down. She was not going to like him when he did this, but quite frankly she needed someone to look after her.

He came in as she was about to be shot and pushed her out of the way. "I can handle myself, I don't need your help Arrow," She said in a huff.

"Yeah, well, you're getting it, so you might as well not even bother trying to slip past," He told her. He couldn't deal with another slip up.

She rolled her eyes. "Whatever," She said as she charged back into the battle, taking people out with her strength, getting on people's necks and strangling them till they were unconscious. He shot people with non lethal arrows and took some of them down, but this was her fight and it was one she picked, so he tried not to get too much in the way.

She took the hand of the woman after everything was finished and he followed them as she walked the woman to safety and hugged her after she was done. "You did good tonight," He told her, even though he didn't want her out in the field when she was damaged like this.

"She needed help. I'm here to help." Laurel chirped as the Black Canary.

He shook his head. "Do you even have any idea who you are?" He asked her. Because he wanted to know from her what was going on.

"I'm Black Canary. I fight crime with a team. I fight crime with you," She told him with a smile. Oh god, that smile. He was addicted to that smile. That was the smile that Laurel gave him to show him he was doing good and right in the world. He loved that smile so much. And he was wary of having to make it go away. He loved Laurel as the Black Canary. The Black Canary didn't know what he had done to her in the past. But it also wasn't right.

"You lost your memories you know that right?" He asked her.

She shook her head and laughed. "Don't be ridiculous. I have all the memories I need."

"No, you don't," He said to her. "You don't even know what you're fighting for. Why it's important. All you know is that you're the black canary."

"And what's so bad about that?" She asked him, defensively.

He sighed. "Because you don't know your family or me. Or the people who love you. Or the job you do outside of this, helping people."

"I don't care about any of that stuff," She cried to him, "Now leave me alone,"

He got behind her and knocked her out and took her back to her apartment and made sure to stay with her this time. She didn't wake up and she didn't try to go out the window again.

He let Quentin take over the next night. And saw her out again. He didn't even bother calling until later. What was the point? To worry him. Nope. Besides, Laurel needed the exercise and she was good at making sure people didn't murder or maim again.

Oliver took her back to her apartment and put her back in bed.

This went on for about a month with no signs of her memories coming back and in that time, he got to know Laurel as she was without her memories who was surprisingly unjaded by all of the past. She was so happy to see him most days, even if it was an act, at least it was an act that seemed real.

But he couldn't let her live like this. Sure, she might not know all the pain she'd been through, but she didn't know how capable of job she was and that was a damn shame.

She looked at him with those big eyes and smiled, "Are you seeing someone?" She asked candidly and to be honest he didn't know how to answer that question.

"I was, but she got hurt and she doesn't really know who I am anymore." He told her with a blush.

She touched his cheek and smiled, "Well, I'm sure someone like you would fight for her," She told him and then went back to playing with the handheld video game that Sara gave her.

"I'm gonna step out into the living room for a minute," He told her, "Don't go anywhere," She nodded and he left the room and quickly dialed on his phone. "Sara, I need you to make a video for me. No, we need to jog her memory. And don't leave anything out," He told her.

"Okay, but why?" Sara asked. "I mean wouldn't it be easier if she didn't know all the pain she went through. All the pain that we put her through?" She asked.

He sighed. It would be easier. But it wouldn't be true. "This isn't about easy. This is about fighting for her, Sara. And that's what we need to do. It's what she would do for any of us."

Sara seemed reluctant still. "I don't know. I just got a sister back who doesn't see all of the pain of the past and you want me to inject that into her? I mean I think that's a little bit risky."

"It's not about you, Sara. This is about her." Oliver said in a stern voice. "Now you can do it and make the pain as minimal as possible or I can ask Felicity to do it,"

"You know what?' Sara said into the phone with that voice that said she already made up her mind. "Ask Felicity to do it. I'm not pouring pain into her."

And then she hung up.

Felicity was much more understanding, though she two also had a few protests about pouring what was essential emotional hot wax onto Laurel. "She said something to you right?" Felicity asked.

"Yes, she did. And I need to fight for her like I should. I've been trying to fight the Black Canary, but I need to break into Laurel's head, not Canary's." He told her as he put his hand in his pocket and went to go check on Laurel who was still happily playing her game. "She deserves people who will fight for her,"

"Got it boss." Felicity said. "I'm gonna have you check this tonight after you and Canary doing some vigilante stuff,"

"Right," He said. And clicked off the phone. He went over to Laurel and sat in the bed with her and she seemed happy about this arrangement. "So what are you playing?" He asked.

"Mario," She told him, determined not to let a Boo touch her character, Daisy. "So did you fix things with the girl?" She asked.

"No," He chuckled, "But I've started to. And that's the important thing. I'm dong what she would do."

She looked at him and for a second it was like she could see something and remembered what it was, but then she went blank again and he got out of the bed. God, she was going to hate him for doing this to her, but she needed help. She needed her memories back. Her love was divine when she thought he was the best person in the world her making sure she was safe, but loving her, he had to set the record straight.

Quentin had a shift tonight so it was all about him and Laurel. He cooked dinner for them and they ate and then he let her use the phony, I'm tired excuse to get out of talking to him and go to her bedroom. She used the window to make her escape and he used the front door.

"What took you so long?" She asked and it was like a totally different person than the sweet girl who was playing the video game in her bed. "Babysitting the vegetable?" She joked.

He rolled his eyes. "You know, that's not a nice term, but yes, I did have someone I had to take care of," He told her. He should tell that he was taking care of her, but she wouldn't have believed him anyway. They'd had that fight before and it wasn't pretty.

"Right," She said in a bored voice, "Well, we have a serial killer whose M.O. is to look like a vampire. He also take their heart." She told him.

"So how do you suggest we get him?" He asked.

She laughed a little, "Well, that's the thing. We already know who his next victim is, so all we have to do is get there before he chomps and then we're good," She told him.

They took the motorcycle and she told him when to stop. They heard a loud crash inside and they knew they hadn't made it before the killer. Well, that was always the worst. "Come on," He said to her.

They made it up and the victim had fought back. A pretty woman that sort of looked like Laurel in the right light. Someone who was victimized by people she didn't know. Oh the sense of deja vu was strong, but he let Laurel do her thing as Canary because that was what she knew. That was the only thing she knew for sure right now.

And then the bastard got her on the floor and started choking her and he had to leave the girl alone for a minute. "Hey!" He shouted and the guy looked up to him and sneered.

Oliver barreled his entire body weight at the guy and got him off Laurel who went to the victim and he put an arrow in the guy's chest, right through the heart. "She'll never understand you," That was the last thing he said and Oliver looked away.

"Hey," Laurel said as he looked up and realized what he'd done. He'd just killed again. "You okay?" She asked.

"He was about to kill you," Oliver said.

"But he didn't." Laurel whispered to him in that sweet voice and she looked at him with the sweetest eyes. "He didn't because you saved me. I know how much that means to you. The killing."

"With you, there was never even a choice. He was going to hurt you. I needed to stop him," He told her as he held her cheek. This was probably the last time she'd be this loving, but who knew? "Come on, let's go back to the cave." He told her and she nodded.

The foundry greeted them with warm lights and he looked over to Felicity, "I'm guessing creepy vamp guy, down for the count?" She asked.

"Down for the count," Oliver nodded. "How'd the thing come along?" He asked.

"Great," Felicity told him as she popped out the DVD from her computer and gave it to him. "That's it. Take her home and let her watch it. I didn't leave anything out. She'll know everything. Including how many times you broke her heart." She said, a little sad.

He looked down at the thing and for a minute he thought about crushing it in his hands, but as much as he wanted to, he couldn't. "She deserves to know. She deserves the life she had before. The one she built. She was proud of it."

He took her back home and settled her into bed, thankfully the knocking out hadn't been that long this time. "Hey," She said, waking up. "I thought you would have been gone by now. Trying to save the day for that girl you like." She said, sleepy.

He smiled at her, she didn't know anything in this form, "Well, actually, that's what I'm trying to do. I have something for you." He told her.

"Oh yeah?" She asked.

He nodded. "It's a movie. About your old life." He said.

"Well, pop it in," She told him and he did just that.

It was pretty gruesome. Didn't leave any details out. Felicity was thorough and this showed just how thorough. It told her about the drinking problem and how he'd been gone for five years, but how he'd gotten on that boat with Sara. And what he tried to do was look at her face which was almost always in complete shock.

When it ended, he was looking down at his feet and he looked back to her and she looked ready to cry. "Do you have any questions?" He asked her.

"A lot of them," Laurel said, blinking away the tears. "My main one is why did you do this?"

He shrugged. "Because I love you."

"You put me through that, because you love me?" She asked him, not believing it for a minute.

He sighed. He had to tell her the gritty details. "Look, I know that doesn't seem like love. I've been not the man you deserve, but I couldn't let you not know. Love means putting someone else before yourself and I knew you needed to know exactly who you were. And so I had a friend of mine make this for you and not leave anything out because that's a part of who you are. Even if it means I don't have a chance anymore," He told her, looking at her with the brightest eyes he could muster.

And then she got that trademark Laurel smirk on her face, "Well, it looks like the Queen really does have a heart. Save me twice today." She said.

He looked up at her and smiled a little, "Laurel?" He asked.

"Yeah," She said. "It's me. I'm back." She cried and he hugged her. He didn't know though.

"Tell me something only Laurel would know," He told her with the stupid grin on his face.

She rolled her eyes, but smiled to him, "When we went to Cabo for our Senior trip, you, tommy, and I got way too drunk on Tequila and had a threesome." She told him.

It was his Laurel. She was back. "God, I missed you." He said, letting a tear fall onto her shirt.

"Thank you," She whispered to him, "For loving me enough to risk it all."

He rested his forehead on hers and beamed like an idiot. "I'd risk it all again in a heartbeat. Whenever you need it."

She kissed him on the cheek and smiled. "I got a pretty good hero."

"You did," He said as he got out of her bed and smiled. "Get some rest,"

She looked at him as he was about to to turn of the lights. "Ollie?" She asked and he turned around. "I love you too."