Chapter 1

Choose Healing

"Grief is the price we pay for love. "

Queen Elizabeth II

Life presents us with an endless amount of choices. The great task in life is to determine which choice is right and which is wrong.

Oliver Queen found himself making choices, unsure if they were right or wrong. It all began a couple of months ago, on a hellish island that he just couldn't get away from. One man was able to turn his entire world upside down.

When arriving to Lian Yu, Oliver thought he knew how it would end. It was supposed to be him and Adrian, one final fight, while his friends and family all got away to safety. It was the end he was prepared for. What he wasn't prepared for was his wife appearing and changing the plan he pieced together before he even arrived on the island. He wasn't prepared to face what he thinks he would've forced her to face if his plan was successful. The fear and the nervousness overtook him the moment she appeared and then sent him away. It was so unbearable that he chose to go back for her, and he chose to tear her away from anything she'd been planning to do. He's spent the last five months since leaving that island wondering if his choices lead to the horrific outcomes. Samantha, Malcolm and Jacob were dead. Thea was in a coma. Their house of three became a house of five. Grief and sadness still in the air at the Queen household and Oliver was just trying to be there for everyone.

"Oliver?"

Oliver lifted his eyes to Nick. He found that regular weekly visits with the doctor, really did help him. To talk to someone, and to be able to vent to someone. In today's session, Oliver had zoned out. Once again thinking about the many choices that have lead his life to this point.

"Uh, sorry, did you say something?" Oliver sat back in his seat, coming back to the moment.

"Yeah, I asked you how things were going at home?"

Oliver let out sigh as he turned away. "It's...we're hanging in there." he looked back over to the doctor. "There's still a lot of grieving. Will and Ari...they aren't really talking to me or Katie, and we don't want to push, so we give them their space." Oliver let out a heavy sigh. "And Twinkie, she's...she's keeping a brave face, for the kids, but I know she's hurting." he shook his head. "She just won't let me in."

"And what about you?" Nick asked and Oliver turned to him. "How are you coping with everything that happened?"

Oliver thought of the answer to that question as he looked over to the doctor before dropping his eyes.

"I don't think I am." Oliver looked back over to Nick. "Maybe I'm locking away those emotions as well." he shook his head. "I kind of feel like I can't feel them. At least not right now. Not when my family needs me to be strong."

"So what I'm hearing, everyone in the Queen home is trapped in their own little personal emotional bubble." Nick shrugged. "Everyone needs an outlet. Everyone needs a way to let out those feelings that we don't like."

Oliver nods, because he knew he was right. He knew that they couldn't keep going on like this. Wallowing in the sadness and holding it all in wasn't a way to live. For any of them.

Tonight, Oliver decided to do something about it. He was going to make dinner and they were all going to sit down together as a family. He stopped by the grocery store on the way home. Walking inside, Oliver balanced bags in his hands that he took to the kitchen and sat on the counter. He stood there for a moment and let out a sigh at the silence. Their house was quiet all the time now. He hoped to change that. He climbed up the steps, venturing down the hall. He stopped in front of Ari's door first, knocking before getting her approval to come in. He pushed open the door, a smile coming to his face at the sight of Ari, Robyn in her lap at Ari's desk in front of her laptop.

"I'm almost afraid to ask what you've been teaching her." Oliver smiled as he walked over and plucked the girl into his arms, placing a kiss to her cheek making her squeal with laughter.

"Well it's never too early to learn the finer art of hacking." Ari laughed at the unamused look on Oliver's face before turning back to her computer. "I'm just finishing up this stupid history paper, and she was less likely to pull a houdini if she helped."

"So uh..." Oliver took a seat on the edge of her bed, still looking over to the teen. "How did it go today?" Ari stopped typing and turned to him with a quirked brow. "Yes, this is small talk. I just feel like everyone in this house is locking themselves away. So I want us to talk."

"About what?"

"About anything." he smiled over to the girl who still just looked put off by just the idea.

She turned away from him for a moment before meeting his eyes and nudging her head back to her computer.

"I really should finish this paper." she swiveled her chair and Oliver let out a deep breath before standing to his feet and heading to the door. "Did you bring food?" he stopped before leaving and turned to the girl.

"Actually, I'm going to cook." Ari turned to him with a slight frown. "A family dinner."

"Seriously?"

"Yep, seriously." he replied before walking from the room.

Oliver looked down to Robyn who just turned to him and gave a toothy smile that just made him laugh. He placed a kiss to her cheek again as he headed down the hall, stopping outside of William's room. Oliver stood there for a few moments, hesitating. He knew this was a tough transition for the boy. His mother dying and now he's living with people he doesn't know.

Oliver and Katie wanted to take this as slow as Will needed and they wanted to give him the space he needed to figure out his feelings. They didn't want to push, but Oliver was feeling that doing nothing wouldn't help him either. Oliver knocked on the door and waited for William to say something, but he didn't hear anything. He was about to knock again, but his daughter beat him to it. Robyn used her small hand to pat Will's door.

"Will!" she squealed as she continued to hit the door. Oliver chuckled, but turned when he heard it open.

Will opened the door, looking up to Oliver and Robyn, and then without a word just walked back over to sit on his bed to grab his game controller. He just continued to play his game.

Oliver looked over to the boy before looking over to Robyn who turned to him as well. Oliver nods before walking inside.

"Hey kiddo, how was school?"

"Fine," William didn't even turn away from the television.

Oliver was hoping for more. Hoping the boy would open up, but as always, he just got either no answer or a one word answer.

"Making any friends?" that got him no answer from his son who seemed to sigh in annoyance at the interruption.

"This weekend. Let's go to a Rockets game. You know, as mayor, I get pretty good seats." Once again, he got no answer and Oliver wasn't sure what else to do. He once again looked over to Robyn whose eyes were on the screen. She began loosening her grasp on Oliver, a sign she wanted to be put down. He lowered her to her feet and watched as she walked over and dropped to the floor in front of the television, watching the game William was playing. A smile came to Oliver's lips. Robyn seemed to take to her big brother almost instantly. He thinks Will may feel the same way, but he isn't sure. "I'm uh, making dinner, and was hoping to get everyone down to eat together."

"I'm not hungry." Will replied, still not looking over to his father.

Oliver dropped his eyes for a moment before looking back over to the boy. "Well I'll let you know when it's ready, and I'll hope you'll choose to come down to have dinner with us. Otherwise, I'll save you a plate." Oliver turned to Robyn who seemed focused on the television. "C'mon sweetie." another one of his children just ignored him and Oliver shook his head. "Robyn-"

"She can stay." William replied and Oliver turned to him, a smile coming to his lips.

"Oh, ok. Just keep an eye on her. She likes to play hide and seek without telling anyone." Oliver headed out of the room, once again stopping and glancing back to look at his son and daughter with a smile before continuing down the hall.

He was headed for their bedroom, figuring that's where he would find Katie. When he pushed open the door, he stopped, because it was empty. He glanced around with a frown before turning and heading back down the hall. He once again poked his head in Ari's room.

"Hey, where's Katie?"

"I don't know," the teen replied, not tearing her eyes from her laptop.

Oliver sighed, heading back into the hall, trying to think of where Katie would be. He was about to head downstairs, wondering if she was down the basement. He'd find her down there ever so often getting a few rounds in with the sparring dummy.

Before heading down, he glanced down the other end of the hall when he thought he heard something. He quirked a brow before heading down to his office. The door was open, so the moment he walked over, he immediately saw Katie sitting there behind his desk in the chair, staring over to the window across the room. He let out a sigh. This was another room he'd find her in. The place he thinks she will always see as her father's office. She doesn't say anything as he walks inside and drops down to sit in the chair in front of her.

"How was your day?" he asks and she finally turns her eyes to him.

She doesn't immediately respond, turning away for a moment as if to think of an answer before turning back to him.

"Ok, I guess." she stood to her feet, and he knew she was doing what she always did. She was going to leave. He didn't want that to happen this time, so as she headed for the door, he stood to his feet to block her. Katie met his eyes for a moment before turning her back to him and walking back over to sit on the edge of the desk.

"I don't want to do this?"

"Do what, exactly?" Oliver walked over to stand in front of her. "Have a conversation with me? Because honestly I think we're due for one. A real one. Where you tell me that you're angry and that you're sad and that—that you blame me for everything that happened."

Katie scoffed turning away from the man as she shook her head. She turned back to him.

"I think that's the voice in your head Oliver, not me. I don't blame you for anything that happened." he looks at her unconvinced. She'd placed a distance between the two of them in these last five months and he knew there had to be a reason. Katie attempted to move around him, but he moved to block her, grabbing her waist and placing her back on the desk. He turned, walking back over to close the door to the office before walking back over to stand in front of Katie.

"I need you to talk to me. A lot happened five months ago. And everyone trying to deal with it on their own isn't working. So lets start here, you and me. Just tell me what you need."

Katie just looked at him for a moment and scoffed.

"I already did." she shrugged. "But here we are." she slid from the desk to leave again, but Oliver once again grabbed her and sat her back on the desk, and she let out a huff in frustration. "Oliver Queen, I'm really not in the mood for trying to fix a problem that you just can not fix. So just leave it alone."

"Twinkie, I know you wanted to leave, and I know I promised you-" she sneered as she turned away, because it was yet another promise he didn't keep. It was a promise she really wished he would've kept. "We'd just learned of a possible threat."

"Right, Felix Faust, some guy, another homo magi, I somehow brought here because of my powers. Or at least that's what the woman who has my mother's face says." Katie scoffed as she turned away.

"Twinkie, if he is as powerful as she says, we're going to need as much help as we can get." Katie turned back to him. "We're going to need the team." he placed his his hands on her waist and leaned in a bit. "That is not to say that we will never be out, because we will. That is one promise I will not break. Right now, I just need to make sure that when that happens, there's nothing that will pull us back in. I need you to understand that, because I really need us in a better place than we've been in." he let out a sigh. "Because I miss my wife, and right now I need her, and I know she needs me." Katie held his gaze for a few moments before turning away. Oliver dropped his head to the side of hers. "I'm supposed to be cooking a family dinner right now, but I'm also prepared to never leave this room until you forgive me." he placed a kiss to her cheek before pulling back as she turned to meet his eyes again.

"Oliver, I wasn't lying when I said I didn't blame you." her eyes suddenly glistened with tears. "You did exactly what I knew you would if given the choice." she let out a sigh. "I should've taken that choice away and because of that I blame myself." she tried to move once again from the desk but his hand on her waist kept her in place. "Oliver-"

"Take away my choice...what does that mean?"

"I mean that I should've anticipated that when you're presented with the choice of saving me or saving yourself, that you would do the stupid thing and try to save us both. I should've sent you far enough that you wouldn't have been able to find me."

A smile came to Oliver's lips. "You honestly think that would've worked?" he placed a hand on the side of her face. "Twinkie, I think you underestimate how much I love you. There is no place on that island you could've sent me, that I wouldn't have come looking for you."

"Your kids were on that island. They should've been your priority."

"William and Ari were safe."

"So was I, but you couldn't see that. You thought I'd snapped and went dark and assumed you needed to save me from myself."

"Maybe I was partially wrong, but the truth Twinkie, you had no way off that island, so I think you did need to be saved."

"And yet in the end, I'm the one who saved you and your idiot friend Bruce." she pointed to him. "In that moment, I just needed you to trust me."

"Twinkie, didn't we have a whole escape room marriage counseling conversation with me using that exact same argument? An argument you shot down multiple times. The truth, my beautiful wife, the tables were turned and I think we both got to see the situation from the other's point of view."

Katie rolled her eyes, turning away from Oliver's gaze, making him smile more because he knows, she knows he's right. He pressed another kiss to her cheek, lingering there for a moment before pulling back.

"I'm going to get started on dinner. Maybe we can talk more later." she turned to meet his eyes and he slid a thumb underneath her eye to wipe away a tear. He fought the sudden emotion that tried to rise in his own throat. He knew she was hurting, and he wished so badly that there was a way to take all that pain away.

Katie nods knowing her husband was determined. And a determined Oliver doesn't give up on anything easily.

Oliver was happy he decided to cook. He was embarrassed at the amount of take out they'd been eating lately. After whipping up some chicken alfredo and pasta, around their table sat most of the house's residents. Oliver still wasn't able to convince William to come down for dinner. Oliver sat at the head of the table, looking over to Katie who was laughing at Robyn who seemed to be enjoying her dinner, with most of it on her face and clothes. He looked over to Ari who kept her eyes on her plate, obviously avoiding eye contact in hopes of avoiding any conversation.

"Ari, we should probably head out this weekend to get you some new gym shoes." Katie said over to the teen.

"Oh, me and Jamie were actually going to head to the mall, and I was just going to get them then." Ari replied before looking back down to her plate.

Ari missed the look of disappointment that passed on Katie's face, but Oliver didn't. Katie had been trying and failing to connect with Ari and William in some kind of way, but neither seemed to be receptive at all. Katie glanced over to Oliver who just gave her a slight smile that she returned before turning back to Robyn.

"I was thinking of making this a regular thing." Oliver said and they turned to him. "Family dinners could be a great way for us to come together, talk...maybe help each other move forward." he glanced over to Ari who just looked down to her plate. "Ari..." Ari sighed before lifting her eyes to him. "Is there anything you've wanted to say? We know a lot has happened, but we want you to know we're here, and we're listening."

Ari just shook her head. "I don't have anything to say."

"Not even about your mother?" Katie asked the question and Ari turned to her. "Ari, we don't want to push-"

"Too late for that." Ari dropped her fork to her plate before standing to her feet and heading upstairs to her room.

Oliver and Katie sat back in their chairs, looking over to each other.

"And you really want to make this a regular thing?" Katie asked and Oliver couldn't help but to smile before once again turning to his daughter who was totally oblivious to everything but enjoying her dinner.

"I think I do." he replied before his phone suddenly rang.

Katie glanced over to him and watched as he pulled his phone from his pocket. He looked at the screen, and sighed at the sight of Curtis' name. He didn't say anything before looking back over to Katie. She doesn't say anything either, but he knows this was one of the reasons she wanted them finally out of the vigilante life. They'd returned to a life of him walking out the door, and her wondering if he would make it back. She instead turns a smile to Robyn and picks her up.

"I think it's time for a bath and then a bedtime story." Katie stands to her feet with the girl before looking over to Oliver who lets out a sigh. "Answer it and don't worry. I'll come back down and clean all of this up." she places a kiss to Robyn's head before turning and heading upstairs.

Oliver brings the phone to his ear for news of their current bad guy, Alex Faust. It was his name that peaked Oliver's attention. He didn't know if there was a connection between this Alex and Felix, but he was going to find out.

"I'm on my way." Oliver replied before standing to his feet.

Oliver headed upstairs, stopping at Ari's door once again, knocking before she pulls it open.

"If you're back for more family bonding, I'm going to shut my door."

"No, I was just letting you know that I needed to head out." Oliver replied and he noticed her expression grow serious. "I guess at some point we should talk about you and the team and if you want to come back."

"I still haven't decided. I'm not even sure I see the point anymore. I mean what's the point of trying to go out there and save people, when we can't even save the people who matter to us?"

"Ari-" she just knew he was heading for another heart to heart and just didn't want to go there and so she took a step back and closed her door.

Oliver sighed before turning and heading off, stopping at William's door. It was cracked a bit, and so he pulled it open to see the boy already asleep. He stood there for a moment before pulling the door closed. When he found Katie, she already had Robyn in the bath.

Katie glanced back to Oliver, and could tell from the look on his face what he was about to say. She didn't say anything before turning back to Robyn.

"Twinkie-"

"I still don't want to know." she said smiling as Robyn plays with her bath toys. "When I told you I was ready for it to be over, I was telling the truth." she glanced back to him. "So just be careful and make sure you make it back to us."

Oliver nods, "I will." he kneels down beside her, before leaning forward and placing a kiss to Robyn's head. "I'm sorry I'm going to miss the bedtime story, I promise I will read the next one." he turned to Katie.

"I love you." Oliver placed kiss to her lips, surprised when her hand grabbed his shirt, pulling him closer. It didn't take long to get lost in the emotions before the tiny giggles of their daughter pulled them out. When they pulled back, Oliver and I Katie had their eyes on each other.

"Eww, mama tiss dada." the girl continued to giggle.

"Yes she did," Oliver said, a smile on his face before turning to Robyn and chuckled. He turned back to Katie. "Maybe we could uh...continue this conversation later tonight."

Katie turned grabbing a towel before reaching forward and using it to pick up the child as she stood to their feet.

"Sure," Katie turned to Oliver who stood as well. "Tonight." she took step toward him. "Not a minute after." she began walking for the door.

"You giving me a curfew, Twinkie?" Oliver turned to her with a quirked brow and she just chuckled before turning back to him.

"No, I'm giving you a choice." she shrugged. "I guess we'll see what you decide." she turned back to Robyn. "C'mon lets get you into your pjs."

Oliver stood there for a moment before looking down to his watch and let out a sigh before hurrying out of there.

Robyn seemed to fall asleep after one story. Katie turned on the girl's star night light, before tucking the girl into her bed. Robyn had began climbing out of her crib more frequently, so they decided to finally transition her into a toddler bed. Katie toed out of her room, quietly closing the door behind her.

She headed downstairs to begin cleaning up. First, gathering the dishes from the dining room, then taking them to the kitchen, only to stop when she realized there was someone there.

Will was seated, eating his dinner that he found wrapped on the counter. He stopped eating and glanced back to Katie who looked at him for a moment before heading over to the sink.

Katie wasn't sure what her relationship with Will would be. Whenever she attempted to connect with him, he only pulled away. She finally decided to just stop pushing and to let him come to her if he wanted. After getting the dishes loaded into the dishwasher, she dried her hands, turning and glancing back to the boy who kept his eyes on his plate. She let out a sigh before placing down the towel and heading for the door. She stopped before leaving, deciding to give it one more shot.

"You know I heard your video game last night." she walked over to take the seat beside him and he glanced over to her. "It was kind of late. Trouble sleeping?" He turned away with out a word. "Bad dreams." he stilled his movements, and Katie figured she was right. "Want to know a secret?" he looked over to her once again. "I've been having bad dreams too." she turned away because that was the truth. "Every day since we've left that island."

"What...what are your dreams about?" William asked and Katie turned back to him. Her dreams were of the same moment over and over again. Her father being stabbed and her not being able to do anything about it.

"My dad." she replied honestly, deciding to avoid the details. "What about you? What are your dreams about?"

"The bad man." William once again dropped his eyes. "He's why my mom is gone."

Katie reached over a placed a hand on his arm, but he pulled away. Will stood to his feet about to run upstairs.

"Will, wait!" Katie called and the boy stopped but didn't turn. "The bad man, he's gone, I promise you. He can't hurt you."

"He's not gone." Will said looking back to Katie who was unsure what he meant. Will turned to the refrigerator and Katie followed his gaze to an old picture of Oliver and Ari from some City Hall event. "He's not gone." with that Will turns and hurries upstairs to his room.

The night wasn't a complete failure. Oliver and the team were able to capture Alex Faust. The guy truly did turn out to just be some nut who likes to blow things up. Oliver had mentioned the name Felix but Alex had no idea who he was.

Back at the hideout, Oliver stood, his eyes on the display case that held the Guardian's suit. Faust was able to let off a missile tonight, that they were safely able to contain, but seeing that explosion...it just took Oliver back to that island. Since, he once again finds himself sinking into the guilt of the choices he made that day.

Oliver turned at the sound of footsteps, to see Rene holding out a folder to him.

"What's this?" Oliver asked, taking the folder and flipping it open.

"Remarks for the graduation ceremony." Rene said walking with Oliver as the man skimmed the remarks. "Seems my promotion came with speech writing duties."

"You can write?" John joked.

"You can read?" Curtis joined in.

"I can kick both yall asses, is what I can do." Rene glared over to the two men.

"This is uh—this is really good." Oliver said and Rene turns back to him and nods.

"It's like I keep telling you, Hoss, I got the soul of a poet."

"I'll make sure to remember that." Oliver replied just as his phone beeped. He slipped it from his pocket to see the reminder he set for himself to head home. "I have to go."

"Everything alright?" John asked and Oliver looked over to him and nods.

"Yeah, I just can't be late getting home." Oliver began backing out. "Good job tonight guys." with that he turned and ran for the door.

Once he was gone, Rene turned back to the guys, his eyes on Curtis. "I thought you were going to ask him?"

"I was. I was just trying to find the best moment and then he left."

"Ask him what?" John asked looking between the two men.

"Rene and I were just uh wondering about Ari and Katie. We haven't seen them for months and we were just wondering if they were really off the team."

"I mean the pipsqueak was annoying, but I kind of miss her." Rene shrugged as he looked over to John. "You know anything?"

"I know Oliver and his family lost a lot a few months ago. And even though he's shooting around here like he's alright, I'm sure he's not. I'm also sure his brave face has more to do with keeping his family together. There's no time limit on grief. We just have to give them time."

Oliver should've planned better. He set his reminder to give him just enough time to make it home before midnight. What he didn't plan for was a water main break that slowed down traffic on his way home. It was exactly 12:05 am when he pulled into his driveway. He cursed when he looked at the clock before hurrying inside.

When Oliver stepped into the house, he was about to head upstairs, but stopped when he heard something from the living room. He slowly walked inside, now seeing Katie sitting on the couch watching tv. She didn't turn to him, or even acknowledge he was there. He walked over and took a seat on the couch, his eyes still on her. She still hadn't even turned to him, which he knew meant she wasn't happy.

"Twinkie, I know I'm late. I actually left the bunker with enough time to make it here, but there was traffic and I-" he wanted her to look at him, and to see how bad he felt right now, but she just didn't. He noticed the remote on the coffee table, and so he grabbed it to turn off the television. With the television off, he expected her to finally turn to him, to finally tell him how she was feeling. "Twinkie, I'm sorry."

"Why?" she turned to him with a quirked brow, honestly curious about the answer. "Oliver you're rarely home before midnight when you have a case, and I didn't expect tonight to be any difference. There's nothing to be sorry about." without another word, she stood to her feet and walked into the kitchen.

Oliver sat there for a moment longer, before he stood to his feet and followed behind her. Inside of the kitchen, he found her standing by the sink, looking out the window. He doesn't say anything, and neither does she. She lets out a sigh, before turning to face him.

"I can wait as long as you need." Oliver stepped forward and took a seat at the counter as he kept his eyes on her.

"You think there's some big conversation that we need to have, but honestly there isn't." she shrugs shrugs.

"No, I think it's time you stop hiding from me. Stop hiding what you're really feeling."

"Yeah, the last time I did that, it didn't really turn out the way I thought it would." Katie began heading for the door and Oliver stood to his feet, moving to block her.

"You know pushing me away won't keep me away, right?" Katie turned away from him and Oliver brought his hands to her waist. "I know you're hurting and I know you're sad and angry, but for whatever reason, you won't show it." Oliver sighed when she refused to look at him. "We both lost a lot on that island, and right now it feels like you were one of them." she turned back to him and he wanted her to say something...anything to reveal what she was feeling or how he could help her. Instead she silently pulled out of his grasp and headed upstairs.

The next morning, Oliver got a call about an attack on the police station that ended with causalities and the escape of Alex Faust. He had to leave before everyone was actually up for the day.

Katie was left to get everyone up, and ready for school. It was a silent morning, like always. Ari and William both eating their cereal, Robyn in her booster seat happily eating her cereal as well. Ari glanced over to the back door that was cracked open. Katie had went out to check on Harry, but hadn't come back yet. She stood to her feet and headed out the back door where she found Katie knelt down beside Harry.

"Is she alright?" Ari asked and Katie glanced over to her.

"I'm not sure. I think I'm going to take her to the vet later today to make sure." Katie scratched the top of Harry's head before standing and turning to Ari.

Ari stood there for a moment looking at Katie before she just turned around and walked back into the house. Katie let out heavy sigh before stepping back inside as well.

"Will, you almost done, we should be heading to school." Katie walked over to the sink to wash her hands.

"I was kind of hoping Ari would take me." Will said.

Katie stopped washing her hands and lifted her eyes out the window, a sudden urge to cry. Every day she felt like they hated her and she had no idea what to do to change it. She swallowed the bundle of emotions in her throat and just turned to him with a soft smile.

"Sure, whatever you want." she turned to Robyn who looked as if she were finished with her food. "Alright, little one, lets get you changed." she picked up Robyn and glanced over to Ari and Will. "You two should be leaving soon so you're not late." she nods before turning and heading upstairs.

Once she was gone, Ari turned to Will. "What was that about?" he looked over to her. "I mean I have no problem taking you to school, but why didn't you want Katie to take you?"

"Maybe the same reason you didn't want her to take you to buy gym shoes."

"You eavesdropping now?"

"I heard you talking to your boyfriend. You said you didn't want to go shopping with her."

"That's not—that has nothing to do with her."

Will just shook his head as he turned back to his cereal. "She's not my mom and I don't need her to pretend she is." he grabbed his bowl and stood to his feet to take it to the sink. "I'm going to grab my backpack and I'll meet you at the door."

"Hey Will," Ari said and Will turned to her. "I used to think the same, but I realized she's not pretending to be anything. She just is who she is. No matter what we do, or say, she's always going to be there." Will didn't say anything for a moment before heading upstairs.

Oliver was pulling into the driveway just as Ari and Will were coming out the door. Oliver jumped out of the car looking between the two before glancing over to the front door.

"Where's Katie?"

"Inside, I'm taking Mr. Annoying to school." Ari said ignoring the glare from William. The boy didn't say anything to Oliver before getting in the car. Ari looked over to Oliver and just shrugged before getting into the driver's seat.

"Drive safe!" he called as the girl backed out of the driveway and headed off.

He turned to the front door, unsure how the next conversation with Katie would go. He took a moment before deciding to go find out. He glanced around, before lifting his head at the sound of steps from above. Oliver headed upstairs, smiling at the sound of Robyn's voice as he headed down the hall. When he stepped into Robyn's room, he smiled at the sight of his daughter who sat on the floor playing with her blocks. He glanced over to her closet to see the light on, and when he walked inside, he saw Katie, her back to him, looking down to something.

"Twinkie?" she startled at his voice and he heard her sniffle before lifting her hand. "Hey, Twinkie, what's-" she turned around and the moment he saw her, he could tell that she'd been crying. He looked down to her hand, now seeing what looked like one of Robyn's old booties. His shoulders dropped and he lifted his eyes back to hers. "Twinkie-"

"I'm fine." she replied before dropping the bootie into a drawer and closing it before moving around him to leave the closet. Oliver followed behind her, watching as she picked up Robyn and headed out of the room.

"You're not fine Twinkie, and that's ok. You just have to stop and actually face it and I can help you."

"I don't want to face anything and I don't want you to help me." she stopped and turned back to him. "I just want to go about my day and not think about any of the bad things anymore."

Not knowing what else to do, Oliver just nods before watching her walk away.

Katie caught some of the news on the police station attack from a television in the vet's office waiting room. She could barely hear anything with all the barking, but she saw the mugshot photo of Alex Faust.

"Harriet Queen!" at the sound of the dog's name, Katie stood to her feet, grasping Harriet's leash, while also holding Robyn's hand as they headed back.

Inside the exam room, Katie had to hold Robyn in her arms to keep the child from getting into mischief. While the vet was examining Harry, Katie gently rubbed the dog's back.

"Well from what you're describing, it sounds like Harriet might be pregnant." The vet looked over to Katie. "I can get an ultrasound to confirm. Just hold here one sec, and I'll be right back."

When the veterinarian stepped out of the room, Katie looked down to Harry once again trying not to completely fall apart.

"The universe really has a sick sense of humor, doesn't it?" Katie dropped back into her seat, Robyn in her lap as she looked over to the dog.

When they returned home, Katie didn't expect to see Ethan sitting on their porch steps. She glanced back to see Robyn asleep in her car seat before stepping out of the car.

"Ethan, hey, what are you doing here?"

It had been a few months since Ethan moved back to Star City. He told them the story of what happened to Laurel and how he thinks there's another Laurel roaming around. Given everything they'd been told about this whole multiverse, they assumed that there really were more people out there pulled from different universes.

When Ethan told them about Laurel, Bruce and Felicity started a search for her and they were surprised to find that she'd been spotted in various places in Star City before the trail went cold. Right now, they figured she was still in the city some where, which is why Ethan quit his job in Metropolis and moved back to Star City where he was now the medical director of SC General.

Ethan walked over to her, helping as she opened the backdoor to grab Robyn.

"Did they tell you?"

"Tell me what?" Katie hoisted Robyn into her arms as Harry jumped out of the car and headed to the backyard.

"It's Laur." Ethan closed the door and Katie turned to him. "Well the other Laur, she's made a move."

After putting Robyn down, Katie sat in the kitchen across from Ethan as he told her how John called him and told him about the jail break.

"Wait, so she's the one who broke Alex Faust out?" Katie asked and Ethan nods. "But why?"

"No idea, but it can't be good. They said they'd give me a call when they got something." Ethan dropped his eyes down to his cup of coffee. "It's been months." he looked over to Katie. "I don't know where she is, I don't if she's somewhere hurt or scared, and this woman is here with her face busting people out of jail."

"Hey, they're going to find this woman."

"And then what?"Ethan huffed in frustration. "There's still no lead on how we send this evil Laurel back to where ever she came from and get my Laurel back." he looked over to Katie. "Has there? I mean I've been hearing about you and your-" he wiggled his fingers and Katie just shook her head. "It's just, there's a woman who has your mom's face, who seems to know more than anyone about what's going on. Maybe she could help."

Katie turned away. Since leaving ARGUS, she hadn't seen the other Grace. She actually had no desire to look into the face of the woman who wasn't her mother.

"I don't—I don't think I can do that." Katie turned to Ethan who looked confused. "Look if Oliver and the team think she has answers, I'm sure they will talk to her. But I can't go there and look in the eyes of my dead mother." Katie stood to her feet to take her cup to the sink.

"Kit-"

"Ethan," Katie turned back to see him standing behind her. "I know you want to find Laurel. I just don't think I can be much help. Whatever is happening, this whole multiverse thing seems out of my wheelhouse, and dangerous. And I can't do that anymore. I now have three kids and I can't—I won't put myself in a position that could take me away from them."

Ethan nods, before his phone beeps. He pulls it from his pocket to see a message.

"It's from Felicity," Ethan looks over to Katie. "I guess she's back. She says they have a lead on Laurel."

"You should go." Katie placed a hand on Ethan's arm. "This Laurel seems hell bent on hurting people since she got here, but she didn't hurt you. Maybe you're the key to getting through to her." Ethan nods before turning and hurrying out.

Katie stood there before turning at the jingling sound of Harriet's collar. She glanced over to see the dog come into the house and head over to her water bowl for a drink. Katie let out a heavy sigh before heading into the living room to lie down.

At some point, Katie must've nodded off to sleep because soon she found herself standing in Lian Yu. The smell of burning trees wafting past her nose as she spins around looking for someone else.

"Help!" she screams, her voice seeming to echo around her. "Somebody, please!" she's scared and nervous. The last thing she wants is to be stuck on this island alone. She looks around again for Oliver. He wouldn't leave her, so she knows he has to be here somewhere. "Oliver!" soon she hears voices and she doesn't hesitate to run to find the source.

Katie doesn't expect to see her father. He turns to her with a smile when he sees her.

"Dad." Katie feels relief when she sees him and quickly runs over to him. She nearly trips over her feet the moment she sees the grim look on his face when the blade of a knife comes out of his chest. He drops his eyes to the blade before looking up to Katie. "No! No, daddy, please!" Katie runs as fast as she can, but it's not fast enough. Jacob drops to his knees in front of her, before falling to his back. Katie looked down to his body before looking up to the woman who looked just like her still holding the bloody knife and laughing.

"We should have stopped this!" the double spat angrily. "And because we didn't, we're the one that killed him."

The sound of the front door closing snapped Katie awake. She quickly sat up from the couch and turned to see Ari and William walking into the house.

Ari spotted her in the living room and stopped. "Hey, were you sleeping?"

"Uh yeah," Katie stood to her feet and walked over to them. "How was school?" she glanced over to William who just shrugged.

"It was school." he replied before turning and heading up to his room.

Katie sighed before turning to Ari, "How about you? How was your day?"

"Frustratingly normal." Ari replied and Katie chuckled. "I'm going to head upstairs to study."

Katie nods before watching the girl head upstairs as well. Katie slides her hand through her hair before turning to figure out what they're having for dinner.

"Hey Katie,"

Katie stops and turns back to Ari who comes back down the steps to stand in front of her.

"I'm sorry."

Katie looks at her in confusion. "Sorry about what?"

"It's just—I don't-" Ari sighs dropping her eyes to the floor. "I didn't want to go back with my mom." she looked back up to Katie's eyes. "A part of me wanted her to just stay in jail, so this could be my life." Ari shook her head. "But she came back and she did what I knew she would." Ari lifted her eyes to Katie. "I spent those weeks with my mom, just praying she would just go away, so I could have my life back. The one I had with you and Oliver." soon tears pooled into her eyes. "And now she's dead and I feel like I somehow made it happen."

"Hey, no-" Katie brought her arms around Ari, and pulled her into a hug that the girl seemed to fall into. "It's not your fault. You didn't make anything happen and your mother wouldn't want you to believe that." Katie pulled back to look down to the girl. "She loved you. Despite all of her flaws, the one thing I absolutely knew was that your mother loved you and would do anything to protect you." Katie sighed. "What happened to her was terrible, but I know she wouldn't want you to blame yourself for any of it. She would want you to be happy." Katie slid her fingers through the girl's hair. "Which you're going to be. One day it's not going to hurt as much and you're not going to want to cry every second of every day. One day you'll think about her, and just smile." Ari nods, but continues to cry and Katie just pulls her back into an embrace.

Author's Note

And so it begins... first chapter down!

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(Chapter 38 Discovery, Devotion, Destiny)

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Welcome all new and returning readers! My apologies for the delay, but we're back! Prepare for twists and turns and an ending that will not expect!

Sneak peek

He stopped and looked over to Ari who was sitting in his chair, her feet on his desk as she looked at her phone, and then over to Will who sat propped up on the couch playing his game boy.

"Hey...guys." He walked further into his office, suddenly more nervous. There could be a bomb or multiple bombs in this building...a building where his kids now were. He turned when the door to his office opened and in came Katie pushing Robyn in her stroller and he let out a deep breath as he slid a hand through his hair. "Uh, hi."