Chapter 1: Into The Ring
Chapter Text
Laurel bobbed and weaved, as she had done every night since she became an assistant district attorney. She threw her first punch, before she knew it, her fists were colliding with the heavy bag rapidly. She had been using her friend’s gym since she had enough of being used and assaulted by numerous criminals.
She had known Ted through CNRI since he was a prominent community leader down in The Glades. She had started training with him before the Undertaking.
“Keep your arms up, Dinah,” His gravelly voice echoed across the empty gym. “Or I will ring in your head like a bell.”
It wasn’t long before Laurel heard Ted smacking his gloves together, his not-so-subtle signal that he wanted to spar with her. Laurel rolled her eyes and stretched out her arms before jumping into the ring.
She bumped her gloved fist with his before they started. Laurel pivoted to the side dodging Ted’s first swing. She retaliated with a hook. Ted blocked.
“What’s on your mind? The District Attorney's office, not all it's cracked up to be?”
Laurel huffed as she ducked beneath a swing. “More like sitting on your hands, and hope that the Glades will fix itself. “
“Sounds about right. They can pretend it isn’t happening. As long as their wallets and bank accounts aren’t bleeding. It’s not their problem.” Ted attempted to knee her, only for Laurel to push against his hip and followed it up with a punch to his stomach.
Ted groaned and pulled back with a wide grin across his face. “Good girl.” He then jumped back in with a jab, Laurel blocked it. “Isn’t that why you accepted the position? To change things from the inside?”
“I have to try, if I don't, who else will?” She narrowly missed Ted’s kick. Laurel Lance, always trying to save the world. Tommy was gone, Sara had long been dead, and Ollie just up and left her.
“Don't do that,” Ted said softly. ”You're not doing this for your dead friend, nor for your Casanova boyfriend. Who are you doing this for? Why have you accompanied me on a few nighttime patrols?”
“To make sure that people get the justice they deserved.” Her mentor gave her a knowing look before he moved away and tossed her a bottle of water. “Thanks,” she murmured.
“This life you are entering…or entering completely. It is not for the faint of heart. Questioning yourself, your drive, who you are? You will burn out. I love this city,” Ted shook his head, his eyes watering. “I love you like family. I won’t watch as the city starts to thrive under your watch, only for you to burn the wick at both ends.”
“I won’t,” Laurel replied adamantly. She took another sip. “You know the guys that mugged a couple of Mom and Pop restaurants and business?” Ted nodded slowly, Laurel continued. “The DA won’t touch them and the SCPD are worried about losing their numbers while the region is in anarchy. I am going to stop them. “
“No.” He replied quickly. “Organized crime is a different beast to knocking out a mugger or a rapist.”
Laurel brushed her tongue across her teeth. She wasn’t asking for permission. Laurel grabbed her towel and ducked under the ropes and left the ring. “Good night, Ted.”
“Don’t do something stupid, Dinah. Please.”
Laurel slowed down and turned her head to look over her shoulder. Laurel squeezed her eyes shut and exhaled. She would give Ted some time to acclimatize to the idea that she wasn’t a wilting flower. She didn’t want to be coddled. She wasn’t raised that way. “I won’t.”
::-::-::
Quentin was doing his patrols as a beat cop. He exhaled as he drove by a local park to see people looking happy despite all that had occurred in the city. People were always anxious to return to their status quo.
Lance moved towards the food truck that was selling tacos. As he waited in line, he could hear the radio of a local talk-back radio show.
“ Commissioner Nudocerdo, the city has been plagued with vigilantism. The Hood may have disappeared and it seems more and more likely that he perished in The Undertaking. Martyrs always cast a long shadow. How is the SCPD handling not just the highly publicized Hoods, but also the resurgence of the old urban legend about the Wildcat?”
The commissioner chuckled. “ Well, first of all, Mr. Ryder, I want to assure you, and everyone listening to this, that my predecessor, and a man that I admire greatly, Thaddeus Cable, has debunked that claim. There is no vigilante stalking around The Glades at night.”
“Speaking of Vigilantism, Commissioner, The Undertaking took a toll on our city, what would you tell the people of Starling?”
Nudocerdo coughed. “I…uh. What happened due to Malcolm Merlyn’s Undertaking was nothing less than a terrorist attack. The SCPD will protect you, the belief that vigilantism being necessary for our city is quite frankly an insult to our brothers and sisters in blue.”
Quentin snorted. Without vigilantism, the city would be ruined, and not just a part of the Glades would have been destroyed.
“And before you go, sir. A two part-question.” There was a pause and some shuffling of papers. “You deny the fact that there are no vigilantes at night. What would you say to the men and or women that have taken up The Hood’s banner? Or the alleged other vigilantes in the city?”
“The Starling City Police Department is one of the most tenacious and respected police force on the western seaboard. Vigilantism won’t be accepted, and there are plans in motion to curb that. As for other vigilantes other than The Hoods? They will be dealt with.”
“And what of the Woman in The Glades, a new person who is said to be added to the mystery of the Wildcat?”
“Women can be a great asset as a part of a team, but alone, against men twice their size? It is ludicrous to even suggest that this woman is able to hold her own."
Quentin’s eyes bulged as he stared at the radio. He couldn’t believe that he had heard that tripe came from his institutions’ leader. The man, like Quentin, had daughters of his own, and sure Quentin may have had issues with his daughter’s but he had never raised them to think of themselves as lesser to any person. They had their own minds, and a mouth to voice their opinions. He had also served with women in the police force, who had been able to hold their own.
Lance hoped somewhat in vain that the police force wouldn’t be shunned for the man’s statement and beliefs.
Jack Ryder was silent for a few awkward minutes. “Well….erm… We appreciate you taking the time to speak to us, Commissioner. Erm... W e will be back after a word from our sponsors, where we will discuss the future of Queen Consolidated and how an Australian Company, Stellmoor International, is swimming around it like a shark who smelled blood. We shall also be discussing King Financial with our business correspondent William Earle.”
Queen had tuck-tailed and ran, it didn’t surprise him that Oliver had left again when things got too tough. Quentin finally made his way to the front of the line, where he ordered the chicken taco he had been craving for the past few minutes.
“That will be seven dollars, Detective.”
“It’s Officer Lance now.” Lance shrugged and pulled out his wallet only to see ten dollars handed to the vendor. “What the…?” Lance spun around to see his daughter. “Laurel?”
“Hi, Dad.” She directed him towards the park, proper. “How are you?”
Lance shook his head. “Shouldn’t I be asking you that?” He coughed and ran his fingers through his hair. “I’m alright, I can take the looks from my colleagues. And you? I have noticed that you have been spending more time in the Glades.”
Laurel shrugged, and it was at that moment, he noticed she had a wrist brace on. “I have my gym down there. I also want to keep an eye on Thea.”
His daughter certainly had a gentle heart. Quentin was always in awe and was forever waiting for the moment when the cruel world they lived in to crush her, only to leave an icy exterior. He dreaded that day. And yet, he couldn’t help but shake his head. “You don’t owe the Queens anything, Laurel.”
“She is my friend.” Laurel retorted.
Lance clicked his tongue, there was no arguing with her. “At least consider finding another gym, perhaps one in a safer part of the city?”
“I like mine where it is.”
Perhaps he should have kept his mouth shut when Laurel was looking at working for Lord something or rather. She would have been safe working as a corporate lawyer away from the hellhole that was Star City, and perhaps with her in San Francisco, he wouldn’t be more likely to develop a stomach ulcer from the stress of potentially outliving his only living child.
“just be careful alright? I don’t know what I would do if I lost you, Sweetheart.” Having said his piece, he kissed her cheek and started making his rounds around the neighborhood.
::-::-::
Roy’s side ached as he shuffled into Verdant. It had become a common injury since The Hood had disappeared, and left it to people like him to protect others. Thea by the looks of it was up in her office and on the phone. She paced back and forth, just as she had done every time her mother’s lawyer would ring, or ask Thea to call back.
Roy exhaled audibly and grabbed a clean cloth and started wiping down the tables, as he was doing that, the front doors opened, letting in the cool air, and the sound of the light pitter-patter of rain echoed into the empty nightclub. “We are closed,” Roy said over his shoulder, not looking behind him.
“I think you can make an exception, boy.” A stranger's voice replied.
Roy quirked his brow, and ignored the blinding pain from his side to look at the man with a tattoo of a Brick? On the side of his neck. “I said we are closed. Come back in a few days for the reopening, new management and all.”
“I don’t think you are hearing me, son.” The older man said, opening his jacket slightly so that Roy could see the pistol tucked into the man’s pants.
“I hear you just fine,” Roy replied as he picked up the broom beside him. It wasn’t preferable, but a swing of a wooden pole could hurt.
“My Boss, The Brick, wants in on your business, Sonny." So you will tell your deposed princess, Miss Queen, that her Mommy can’t protect her from behind the bars, her brother has fled with his tail between his legs…” The man chuckled. “Like a dog. The Queen’s don’t get a pass anymore, The Brick expects his payment by the end of the week, we clear?”
“Crystal.” Roy gritted out between his teeth, his hand clenched tightly around the broom’s shaft that his hands were white. He looked up to the office to see Thea looking down with a troubled look, her phone still in her hands.
::-::-::
Laurel vaulted over an air duct, on her way around The Glades. Laurel had mainly been keeping her patrols south of Ground Zero. Where construction was very slowly rebuilding the neighborhood. And by slow, it meant only a couple of tenant buildings were partially built.
Laurel leaped over to another building, ignoring the drop below her. Once she landed, she could hear people shouting and crying. Laurel pulled on her balaclava to conceal her face. She looked down to the dimly lit streets below to see a little girl who couldn’t be older than ten, hauled into a grey panel-less van, and sped off.
“Please! Someone!” The girl’s father cried from the sidewalk, clutching his bloody arm. “They took my girl! They took my Farah!” He sobbed into the darkness, praying in a language she didn’t understand. No one answered his cries or prayers, but Laurel could.
“I’ll get her back” Laurel shouted, before she took off after the van, vaulting over rooftops and air ducts until she watched as the van slowed down and came to an abrupt stop in front of an old pawn shop.
Laurel watched as they half dragged-carried the little girl as she tried to fight back, eventually biting one of her captors before she was dropped to the floor as if she were nothing but a sack of potatoes before the thug delivered a hard slap across the girl's face.
Laurel inched closer from across the street so she could see into the shop more clearly. “We will be getting a pretty payment for you, honey.” He stroked her sable locks. “The boss doesn’t like us harming the merchandise but he will make an exception if you misbehave, got it?” He raised his hand once again as a threat, only to stop when Farah, fearfully, nodded quickly several times, though her sobs didn’t ebb.
He grabbed her arm and hauled her into the shop, nodding at the man sitting at the counter, and entering the back room.
Laurel waited a few minutes before she palmed her nightstick. She should really call Ted, but by the time the girl could be beaten again or worse, time was of the essence. She didn’t have time to doubt herself. With a steadying breath, Laurel jumped down onto a dumpster and raced across into the store, before the man could even react to the bell ringing as she opened the door, she threw her baton hitting the man in the head, and watched as his head slammed into the side of the desk.
Laurel retrieved her weapon and holstered it before she opened the door to see that it led not into another room, but to a stairwell that led underground. Laurel slowly advanced down the stairs, Laurel silently opened her jacket pocket to retrieve several of her sonic devices and kept her thumb over the activation button.
Laurel staked down to hear the men laughing and chatting about something to do with the dog races. She peaked around the corner to see five men in the room. Laurel inhaled and exhaled to steel herself before she pressed the button and activated her device.
The men frantically covered their ears as the piercing sound emanated throughout the room. She took their moment of distraction to hit the first man behind the head, knocking him out before following through with another, sending a kick to the man’s stomach sending him backwards and over his chair.
She then grabbed the broken wooden chair and tossed it at another man who caught it. “Nice try, sweetheart.”
The other two men bolted towards her, pinning her to the wall. Laurel groaned as she hit the wall. The man who had caught the chair walked towards her with a knife. “A cute little thing like you has better uses than fighting.”
Laurel sent a hard kick to the man’s groin, before headbutting one of her captors.
“Bitch!” The man cried as he fell to the floor, and the other clutched his bloody, broken nose. Laurel then used her now free hand to grab her baton and thrust it into the man’s chest, before slugging him across the head and knocking him out.
Laurel exhaled, before she kicked the man in the head, sending him to the ground, hard. She did the same to the other, before walking out of the room and down to the final room. She opened the door, only for a man to burst from inside, and tackled her to the ground.
Laurel rolled out from underneath him and sent a kick into his chest, the force sending him staggering backwards and into the wall. Laurel planted her boot on the man’s chest. “Who runs this?”
The man spat. “None of your business, Bitch!”
Laurel kicked him in the side. “I don’t like that word. You don’t want to tell me where your boss is fine, but where were you planning on sending the girl?”
The man gritted his teeth as Laurel applied pressure. “The Docks, where the shipping containers are stored.”
Laurel slugged the man across the head before she finally made it into the room to see the terrified little girl, huddling in the corner, shivering. “Hey.” Laurel cooed as she lifted her ski mask and hobbled towards her. “I’m not like them.” She then reached out to the girl. “I promised your Daddy that I would get you home, would you like that sweetie?” The girl nodded and allowed Laurel to pick her up and carry her outside after Laurel had covered her face once more.
“Are you some kind of angel?” The girl asked.
Laurel shook her head, trying her hardest not to laugh at the girl's question. “No. I’m making sure that people are safe.”
After walking a couple of blocks, Laurel found the father, who despite his injuries, ran towards them, mumbling something in another language, and took his daughter into his own hands. Laurel turned around to leave, only for the man to grab her wrist.
“I cannot leave you empty-handed, you have saved the most precious thing in the world. How can I repay you, Miss?” He then handed her a wad of cash. “It isn’t much, not for saving my daughter, but will one hundred dollars suffice? Or a piece of my business?”
“Helping people is its own reward, but thank you.” Laurel then winked at the girl before she lifted herself onto a dumpster and headed to the roof of the building. It was then, that the adrenalin had started to subside, that she felt a white-hot pain in her upper arm.
Laurel sighed as she tore a part of her shirt under her jacket to use as a bandage. She would have to start wearing dresses or blouses with long enough sleeves to conceal her wounds and scars.
Chapter 2: Lady Justice
Notes:
It's a small chapter, but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.
Chapter Text
Daniel Brickwell adjusted his suit jacket. His boys had demanded that he speak to them. He wasn’t about to be demanded, so he made the lowly bastards wait a couple of days. Brick cracked his knuckles before he slammed open the door to see his men. “This better be important, or I swear I will make you rue the day you demanded the man who protects you and pays you to attend... what is this? An intervention?” He chuckled. “Unionization?”
His rules were simple enough, surely. They do what he commands, and they get paid and don’t become paupers living in squalor like most of the others after Merlyn and Queen decided to play gods.
“No sir.” One of them muttered. “Our men…” Brick raised his brow. “Erm… Your men… Sir. They were taken down by a woman wearing black leather.”
It was a matter of time, wasn’t it? The Hood had disappeared and now there were people filling in the hole the Robin Hood left behind. Everyone wanted their slice of the cake. “A woman?” Brick shook his head. “Are you seriously telling me that you big strong lads from The Glades can’t incapacitate one woman?” He scoffed.
“Sir?”
What is your name?”
“Josip.” The boy, just shy of twenty, shivered.
“Josip” Brick tested his name. “Are you a man or mouse, Josip?”
“Man… Sir.”
A boy, not a man.
Brick shook his head again. “If she had a bow, or ran the speed of light.. hell if she was the Cat of the Glades I could forgive you, but a woman?” Brick scoffed once again. What was he going to do with them? Perhaps he should make them more afraid of him than her? “Josip.” He claimed ownership of the men who were handed their arses back to them by this woman. He would reap the whirlwind.
Josip walked towards Brick. Before the man could utter a word, Brick grabbed the man by the neck, threw him against the wall, and pulled out his pistol. “I have killed many people with this piece.” Brick then, without hesitation, shot the man in the knee.
“ARGH!!!!” The boy howled as he dropped to the floor clutching his bloody knee.
“Better check up on that knee. I suspect more injuries are to come if you let a dainty girl beat you up. The last thing we need is someone fillin’ the hole The Hood left behind!” The state of anarchy was bringing in the money. The last thing he needed was a good Samaritan to disturb his rule.
Brick walked away and swore. He needed to keep his coffers full in order to purchase arms from the ponce that labeled himself as The Mayor. Right now, the bastard was a lesser evil, but he would be taken care of and his enterprise absorbed by Brick’s organization.
::-::-::
Ted knew that his days were coming to an end as a vigilante. It was just something that you knew in your bones, it was the same force that told him he knew he had to put on a mask, and wear his brass knuckles. He was getting old, but he wasn’t weary. Weariness was a dangerous thing, if he grew weary The Glades wouldn’t have anyone. Well, they would, but he was still a prominent member of the community in his own right.
And now, Dinah had taken the reins of being the people’s protector.
He tapped the trunk on his table.
Dinah was now ensuring that the people down here, in the muck, in The Glades wouldn’t fall between the cracks. Ted walked out of his office and looked at a couple of the kids who were screwing around with speed bags. It was better than playing with the equipment than taking drugs or initiations into gangs. He nodded towards them, watching them take turns punching the bag.
Ted walked around the ring, he saw the TV was on. The cobwebs around the cage of the TV would have to be cleaned. On the screen was one of the few people who actually seemed to care about the people down here, if the news was correct. Sebastian Blood. The Alderman was currently doing some sort of press interview thing with the local Persian restaurant owner.
“I am here today with Reza Manish. An entrepreneur, and the owner of this restaurant behind me. Tell me, Mr. Manish, what happened the other night?”
Manish adjusted his daughter on his hip. “My daughter was kidnapped by thugs. I cried and prayed for someone to help me, to call the police. No one heard me… No one except an angel wearing black heard my call. She saved my daughter from the thugs, and asked for nothing in return.” Manish kissed his daughter’s crown.
It wasn’t hard for Ted to guess who this angel was. His birdie was ready to leave the nest. Ted swallowed hard. He felt proud that Dinah had excelled. That she was coming into her own but also saddened by the fact that such a kind soul was forced by her own city to wear a mask and fight crime, just as he did.
“Are you saying that a vigilante saved your daughter and not the cops?”
Ted had to give credit to Blood, he sure knew how to construct outrage, and play his own narrative. His tone and everything he did were designed to inspire a call for justice against the SCPD and the city’s elite. To the people who have had enough of the likes of the career politicians and the wealthy playing their games and letting everyone else suffer. ”
“Yes. She saved my Farah.” The man kissed his daughter again.
Blood winked playfully at the girl and handed her a stuffed bear that Ted hadn’t noticed he was holding. “That’s for being a brave girl. There are grown-ups who would not be as brave as you were.” Blood then looked at the camera. “The government, the people have failed the Glades. It is a shame and quite frankly disgusting that people have to rely on the intentions of a masked stranger to protect them. That is sad. We have to rely on people who cannot be held to the coals when they do something reckless because the police and those with power don’t care.”
Ted, having enough of political rhetoric and mudslinging, changed the channel to some music channel the kids nowadays seemed to enjoy. Once he turned around, he saw Dinah walking in, and towards him, he noticed that her gym bag was on her non-dominant arm. With a quick gesture, he directed her into the office.
“I told you that you weren’t ready.” Ted sighed. Dinah’s shoulder’s raised, then lowered as he explained himself. “What you did the other night only served to prove that I was wrong." Dinah widened her eyes in shock. Ted continued. “I’m an old man, and you are the closest thing I have had to a family in years. I just didn’t want to see you hurt. That was selfish of me to keep you from your calling.”
The truth was that sometimes he let himself forget that Dinah was more than the altruistic attorney that had helped some people get out of prison in exchange for community service or the like. The Hood, The Undertaking, probably her sister and Oliver Queen running away and being marooned pushed her down the path she was now on. Or perhaps her life had always been heading down that path, who was he to question the universe, fate, or god?
Ted then moved over to the desk, his fingers danced over a small wooden trunk. He then pulled it off of his desk and lugged it over to Dinah. “To show you just how much I believe in you… Well, see if you like it, Kiddo.”
Dinah tentatively grabbed the latch and opened the trunk. Her green eyes widened once more as she looked down at her gift. Ted watched in amusement as she grabbed the jacket and the rest of the ensemble. The jacket had a blackbird embossed on the upper back, just below the collar, and its talons met where her shoulder blades would end. “It’s perfect.”
Ted sighed, and let his shoulders sag. He really owed his old buddy, Ahn, a six-pack. He was truly a talented and discrete tailor. “Well put it on, and let's see what Starling’s first hero looks like.” He wasn’t a hero, if anything the history books may have left him a footnote. The Hood was a controversial figure, but Dinah was a symbol of hope, of justice.
Ted closed the blinds, and stepped out of the room for a few minutes, only to return back in when Dinah called for him. He stepped a foot in the door and smiled. Dinah was dressed head to toe in black reinforced leather, wearing a blonde wig and wearing a domino mask.
He honestly didn’t know if he wanted to cry, or not. Instead, he opened his arms and gave her a hug. “I’m proud of you. Show the city’s underworld that you are the justice they cannot run from.”
After a few seconds, his student played with the leather. “What’s on your mind, kiddo?’
Dinah swallowed. “Adam Donner, an ADA stuck his neck out for me, after I said that I didn’t want to take part in the anti-vigilante task force… And well apparently I ruffled feathers, this is my first year working there. Anyway, he managed to give me a lifeline, only I’m not entirely sure that I want to take it.”
Ted raised his brow but allowed her to continue after she exhaled. “They want me to be co-council with Adam while we prosecute Moira Queen. Ted, I have known the woman all my life, I dated her son, and I see Thea as a sister. She’s family.”
“Moira Queen is your sacrificial lamb?”
“I know you don’t like her…”
“It isn’t about me, Dinah. But…” Ted pinched his brow. “We are dealt the cards we are given, we just have to make the best of what we have.” He rested his hand on her sable leather-clad shoulder. “ You have the chance to potentially ensure that Moira Queen is given justice. I’m not necessarily talking about her sentence but making sure that the information used is not fabricated or warped by others' to make her a scapegoat.
Dinah nodded, however, she didn’t look at ease. “I’ll pack up everything, and I’ll go on patrol.”
::-::-::
Laurel stalked her way between the shipping containers, eventually, she could hear the sound of boots hitting the wet asphalt. Once she got within the eyesight of a couple of thugs that were guarding their drug operation, Laurel tapped on one of the steel containers and hid in the darkness.
“I’ll check it out.” The gruff voice of one of the guards said, as he slowly made his way towards her trap.
Laurel hid behind the corner, waiting for the beam of light from his torch to inch closer, as the man turned the corner, Laurel snatched his torch away, and clocked him across the back of the head, and hid his body in the shadows.
“What was it, Homer?” It was silent apart from the pitter-patter of the new downpour of rain. “Yannos? The other guard asked. “Yannos? This better not be a prank.”
Without waiting, Laurel silently climbed up onto the container and jumped off it to stalk the man from behind. Once the man rounded the corner, Laurel held him in a chokehold. “Homer isn’t here.” Laurel said to the man, her voice was just above a whisper, “ but I am.” The man eventually slumped to the ground as he passed out.
Laurel continued down the maze of shipping containers and stood behind an open door of an empty container. From where she stood, she could see between the door and the hinges. Laurel waited until the last guard opened the container he was in front of and saw the boxes that, judging by the logo, belonged to King Financials, the company that bought the remnants of Merlyn Global Group after Tommy died.
Laurel clenched her fists as she remembered how she saw The Hood flee after he left Tommy in the rubble. She shook her head out of her revelry as she walked up behind the man, swept his feet from beneath him, and knocked him out with her baton. Once he was flat on the ground, Laurel heard clapping from behind her.
“I have to admit. I really thought that my boys were pulling my leg.” Laurel turned around to see the large bald man. “This doesn’t have to be the last night, you breathe, Darlin’. Tell me your name, and perhaps I’ll let you eat your food through a straw for the next couple of months instead of killin’ you.”
Laurel’s heart thumped in her chest as the adrenaline coursed through her veins. “Tell me yours first.”
“Cute.” The bald Englishman quipped. “Brick.”
“I’m the justice you cannot run from!” Laurel started to rush towards him, only to feel a prick in her neck. Laurel staggered backwards, and shakily brought her hand to her neck, and pulled out the missile to see the dart he threw. After a second, everything went blurry.
“You see, I was in the middle of inspecting a reverse-engineered Vertigo drug.” Brick said as he walked towards her, his face started to morph into Tommy, then to Sara, then The Hood’s obscured face, then back to Brick. Laurel shook her head. “I do not appreciate people interfering in my business. Especially not some pretty little girl who wants to pretend to be Lady Justice.” Brick grabbed her by the throat, and shoved her against the container, forcing her to expel the air in her lungs. “I am the law around here!”
The next thing she felt was a punch to her side, then to her jaw. “This will teach you not to play vigilante girl.”
Laurel coughed and spluttered, she couldn’t breathe. His face kept morphing into different faces. Laurel sent her hand up, using the heel of her hand, Laurel hit Brick in the side of the jaw, before kneeing him in the stomach, forcing him to drop her.
Laurel coughed as she hobbled away from the docks and headed to Ted’s Gym. As she made her way there, she looked across the city to see something, a ghost? Of a blonde woman. The woman looked so familiar…. Laurel kept moving, one foot in front of another, and shoved past a man wearing a red hoodie in an alley.
“What the hell are you?” The familiar young man asked, spinning around.
Laurel instead of answering, mustered what was left of her strength, vaulted over the wall, and headed towards Wildcat’s gym.
::-::-::
Thea slumped into her office chair and swiveled. If someone had told her last year she would be where she is now, owning Ollie’s club, and dealing with the fallout of The Undertaking, a literal terrorist attack that devastated a portion of the city and killed five hundred and three people, including Tommy. All caused by people she knew, a man she once considered an uncle, Malcolm Merlyn, and her own mother.
Her brother had disappeared not long after the earthquakes, which left her all alone. It was typical of her brother to leave when things got too hard. Granted, his leaving without notice could have been a result of Ollie living alone on a deserted island. It was hard sometimes, wondering if it was him not caring, or being used to the island.
Thea sighed. It still would have been nice to have been asked. It seemed, though, Laurel was also left behind in Starling. Between Laurel and Roy, perhaps she wasn’t as alone as she thought. Even if she hadn’t seen her friend much since she had taken the job offered to her by the District Attorney’s Office.
Thea jumped as her phone rang, bringing her back to reality. A small part of her hoped that she would see Ollie’s face appear on her phone, signaling that her brother wanted to speak to her. Instead, it was her mother’s lawyer, Jean Loring. With a frustrated sigh, Thea’s thumb hovered over the reject caller icon for a second before she accepted the call.
After all, she would never forgive herself, if she declined the call and found out that her mother was hurt… or worse. She would never be able to look Ollie in the eyes if he ever came home. Thea moistened her lips with her tongue before she spoke into the receiver, “Hello?”
“Miss Queen?”
“Thea is fine.” Thea muttered they did this song and dance, each time Jean called her every other week.”
“Thea.” Jean acquiesced. “I wanted to speak to you regarding you or your brother if you can find out what ski resort he is currently residing at, about taking up your family’s seat as the CEO of Queen Consolidated. Mr. Edward Foster, your family's company’s Chief Operating Officer, has been trying to contact both you and Oliver.” They need a figurehead, Thea figured.
“I’m busy with Verdant. I’ll be sure to contact Ollie as soon as I can.”
“Also, I wanted to beseech you to visit your mother, it would benefit your mother’s case.” Thea crinkled her nose. Her mother was a terrorist. She didn't want her hurt or killed, but that didn't mean that Thea had to have anything to do with her mother.
“Thea?”
Thea sighed, she really needed to talk to someone about all of this. Perhaps this was the perfect opportunity to talk to Laurel and catch up? Laurel didn’t turn her nose at Thea when she had her drug problem, in fact, she had taken Thea under her wing and helped Thea mature.
“I think I need to speak to my lawyer before I make any decisions.”
Her mother’s lawyer let out a frustrated groan. “Thea, I am your lawyer, your family’s lawyer.”
Thea hung up on the woman. Thea then flicked through her contacts to see Laurel’s name, and photo. Thea smiled as she hit the call button and held the phone to her ears, and waited for the call to go through.
Only, it wasn’t Laurel that answered her phone, but a man with a gravelly voice. “Dinah Laurel Lance’s phone.”
“Umm...Why are you answering Laurel’s phone?” Thea couldn’t help but ask quickly.
“She--” The man’s voice hesitated. “Dinah stepped out for a bit, she was training down at my gym. She needed some air.” He cleared his throat. “Can I take a message for her?”
Thea scrounged up her face, Laurel was never called Dinah. That was her Mom. “Yeah, tell Laurel that Speedy wanted to talk to her. She can see me at Verdant.”
“I’ll tell you that she called.” The gruff voice said quickly before he hung up.
“Ok then, bye,” Thea mumbled as she locked her phone and stared at it for a while.
Chapter Text
Laurel slumped as she sat on her sofa, her head ached, and her whole body just felt tired. She placed her hand over her face and sighed, before looking down at the microwave meal, chicken Cacciatore. Laurel sighed again as she leaned down towards the coffee table to pick up the meal. It didn’t smell much like her father’s home-cooked meal, but it would suffice.
Between recovering from Vertigo, the drug that Brick had injected her with, and her work at the District Attorney's Office, it felt like she hadn’t slept for a week. Laurel looked down at her phone, and picked it up, leaving the meal on the arm of the sofa.
She could see a handful of texts from Thea. Ted had told her that Speedy had called. Laurel knew that she should call her back, and yet, the assignment she got at work, would change everything between them. She doubted that Thea would want to speak to her after she found out that Laurel was assigned Moira’s case, she was to be the second chair to Adam Donner.
How the hell was she supposed to look Thea in the eyes? Or even Ollie when he returned? Laurel got up and padded her way towards the draw she had left Oliver’s letter in. With a deep breath, she opened the drawer, pulled out the tear-stained letter, and unfolded it as she sat back on the sofa.
Dear Laurel, I wrote this letter because I don't have the courage to see the disappointment on your face.
I know you're gonna go on to do amazing things, to help people, and to raise this city up because that's who you are, that's who you've always been, and that's why I have to go away. I would only hold you back. You're the hero, Laurel. Maybe I'll come back eventually, but for now, I have to spend some time alone. I hope someday you'll understand my decision. Never doubt my love for you. You've always seen the best in me because you've always been the best of me.
All my love, Oliver.
Whether what Oliver wrote in the letter across from her was true or remained true, how would he feel about what she did that night? Would he be horrified, or proud of her? He certainly didn’t think of the possibility of her taking on criminals, and ensuring that people didn’t fall through the gaps.
What about Moira?
Laurel knew that Moira wouldn’t blame her, or at least Laurel hoped she wouldn't. Moira Queen was many things, but she would not fault someone for doing their job. And yet, Laurel couldn’t shake the guilt of condemning a woman she had known for most of her life.
Laurel looked back at the food and turned her nose at it. She had lost her appetite. Perhaps. She should speak to Thea and give her forewarning, and after the inevitable fallout, she would go on patrol and release some pent-up frustration on people who deserved it. Having made her decision, Laurel picked up her uneaten meal and put it in the fridge, gently grabbed the tear-stained letter, and placed it in its drawer.
When she talked to Thea, at least Laurel knew where she stood with her friend. Laurel bit her lip as she grabbed her keys as she headed to the door, she didn’t have high hopes for a happy ending.
::-::-::
John sighed as he looked at the custom-made bow he had ordered for Oliver if or when he returned. John knew intimately how hard you could fall after your mission turned out to be a bust in spite of the blood, sweat, and tears you shed. The mission against the Undertaking, as far as he understood, was six years in the making for Oliver, ever since his father had thrust the obligation on to his son.
What Oliver needed now was to have his brother pick him up and dust him off.
He had already spent almost six months away, running away from his failure. It was time to come home, people were rising up sullying his name, all the while there were rumors of a new vigilante prowling The Glades. The Woman In Black, the Black Bird, The Canary, the Dark Angel, or whatever name she went by. All that mattered right now was that The Hoods were sullying Oliver’s legacy, and this new vigilante in The Glades was an unknown, sure right now she was protecting people, but vigilantism was a slippery slope, at what point would she slip, and no one could hold her accountable. They didn't know this woman, chances are she wouldn't share the same restraint as Oliver.
Digg scratched his chin, as he looked at the charter map from the man that would fly them to Lian Yu, from there, his ex-wife Lyla would organize a boat to pick them up, and once they made port, they would return to Starling.
Digg clicked his tongue as he waited for Felicity to meet him so that they could head to the airstrip to find Oliver and bring him home. He honestly wasn’t sure if Felicity had what it took to not just arrive on Lian Yu by air, but also potentially hike off the beaten path and into the dense jungle, she was part of the team, however, and you didn’t leave team members behind.
::-::-::
Quentin sat in his cruiser, as the rain continued to pelt down. He wiped his face with a small towel before he switched on the radio.
“... Australian-owned company, Stellmoor International’s Sara Lance, the daughter of Police Officer Quentin Lance, and sister to Assistant District Attorney Dinah Laurel Lance, has returned home….”
Quentin froze, and all he could hear was his heart thumping against his chest wall. He felt like all the air had been squeezed out of his lungs. His baby girl was alive? Hadn’t Oliver said that she had died?
Lance exhaled audibly before he leaned over to the computer in the car. His fingers haphazardly finding the written letters of his daughter’s name, eventually, he pressed enter, and saw her record. His baby girl was alive, and she never called them?
His finger traced over the words on the screen. His baby was found on an islet, a small island, by HMAS Wodonga, an Australian Naval Tubruk-Class frigate that was protecting Australia’s trade routes. Somehow, she had been legally resurrected quietly in Australia and had risen up in the ranks of Stellmoor International.
His baby girl had been forced to grow up so fast following her ordeal, and now she was a businesswoman in her own right. Quentin wiped away his tears and dug his phone out of his pocket, his eyes never leaving his youngest daughter’s photograph. Once he finally tore his eyes from Sara’s face, he looked at the time. It was getting late at night. Laurel deserved to know, as did Dinah…. Laurel was the closest, he scrolled through his contacts before calling Laurel. The phone rang before it eventually met Laurel’s voicemail.
“Honey, it’s… uh, Dad. I don’t know how to tell you this, but Sara is alive, she has been alive all this time apparently the Royal Australian Navy found her, and she has been down there for god knows how long, the point is, Sara’s back, and she’s here in Starling. The radio mentioned that she was residing in the Hochman Hotel. I'll call your mother after I speak to your sister. I love you.”
Lance drove to the Hochman Hotel, a real fancy upscale place. Quentin vaguely recalled that Oliver had once mentioned at a dinner back when he was dating Laurel, that his parents were looking to invest in a hotel. Quentin was almost positive it was Hochman, but couldn’t be certain, at any rate, it didn’t matter, what mattered was that he was about to see his baby girl.
His daughter must have felt so alone, being washed up on an island, found by the military, and living in a foreign country, with no one to guide her or protect her. She had no family on the other side of the pacific. And yet, she bloomed into a responsible young woman, just as her eldest sister did.
Lance exited his car as he arrived at the hotel. He huddled under his windbreaker as he ran across the road, entered the building, and readjusted his jacket. Quentin looked around at the grand chandelier above him in the lobby. He walked up to the concierge, “Excuse me, I’m here to speak to Sara Lance.”
The concierge smiled at him for a second before she started to type something on the system. “I’m sorry, sir. Ms. Lance is not receiving any visitors.”
“I’m her father, I haven’t spoken to her for just over six years. Please, I’m begging you.”
Quentin gritted his teeth as the woman shook her head. “It’s against policy to go against the wishes of a guest.”
“Yeah,” Quentin muttered. “Yeah.” He exhaled, “Please tell her that her father came to visit?”
“Of course.”
Lance grumbled as he marched away until he saw her. Sara. She was so beautiful, with her blonde hair, and blue eyes. She looked so grown up in her pantsuit. She looked so much like her mother. Lance walked briskly to meet her at the bottom of the stairs. “Sara!” He called out, forcing his daughter to come to a halt a couple of steps above him. “Baby?”
“What are you doing here, Dad?”
The Lance patriarch raised his brow, his daughter had come back from the grave, and he wasn’t supposed to visit her? Even if she wasn’t legally dead, and had returned from being abroad, he would be right here waiting for her, though preferably it would be at the airport. “You're my daughter, of course, I would be here.”
“It’s a bit late to be vying to be the loving father, Officer Quentin. Perhaps try it with your daughter, Laurel.”
“Laurel?” Quentin repeated his eldest daughter’s name. “Laurel would be here if she was available, as would your mother. And if you are feeling betrayed by the fact that we didn’t find you, believe me, your mother looked, we looked, and we thought we found you at one point….”
“I’m late for a meeting. As the President of Acquisitions for Stellmoor International, I can’t be late.” Sara cut in before she skirted around him with swift grace before she headed out the door and into the town car that was waiting for her. Lance slumped down and found himself sitting on the stairs, watching his daughter’s car disappear into the wet downpour.
It was at that moment, he heard his radio, it directed him to a small office building in The Glades, near the docks. There was an assault at the location.
Why couldn’t he have some time to deal with his family? To think about them now that his family was whole? With a heavy heart, Lance pulled himself together and followed his orders.
::-::-::
Laurel climbed out of her car, only to hear a group of men arguing with someone outside of The Verdant. Laurel inched closer, using the shadows and the parked cars as cover. Eventually, she found her way over to see Thea standing outside of her club, her arms folded.
“I’m not going to be paying you for protection! It’s extortion!”
A large man with a tattoo of a brick on his neck tilted his head. “It’s the way the world works now, Princess. Your family is no longer off-limits, now, you go and be a sweet little girl, and pay us the money, and your fancy club won’t be fire-bombed. If we don’t get our payment, we can’t guarantee your safety.”
Thea shivered, Laurel walked up to her. “You alright, Thea?” The men turned to look at her, while Thea’s shoulders seemed to relax somewhat.
“And who are you?”
Laurel gave them a faux smile. “Dinah Laurel Lance, Assistant District Attorney.”
A couple of the men paled at her words, while the larger man was undeterred. “Think we care? The law and the elites don’t run this town anymore, this is Brick’s city.”
“We will see if the SCPD will agree with you, shall we?” Laurel asked, noticing Thea’s lips inch upwards slightly. She pulled out her phone, only for the large man to grab her arm. Laurel, without hesitation, sent her free hand towards his jaw with a palm strike, before kneeing the man in the stomach and jumping back.
The man slumped to his knee. “You will regret that lady!” He then moved with his group and walked away into the night. Laurel mumbled some sort of excuse to Thea, before she moved to to her car, and just managed to change into her suit in the back of her car, before following after the men. She wouldn’t let Thea be tormented by these gangsters. She wouldn’t let her life be in danger, not while she breathed.
::-::-::
Daniel Brickwell sat in his white leather seat, sipping his gin and tonic as he evaluated the map of The Glades. Once he had absolute control, he could then start allowing the Triads and The Bratva to use his docks for a substantial fee. First thing was first, however, he needed to deal with a stubborn woman who took on a dangerous game, and decided that she wanted to play the hero.
This Woman in Black, The Canary, this dainty bird would soon learn that you don’t wave a red flag in front of a pissed-off bull. After she was dealt with, he would then make an effort to remove Sebastian Blood, and then The Mayor, the damn thief was charging way too much for weaponry to be a reliable vendor.
He sipped on his drink once again, before there was a small knock, and he saw his main man, Thaddeus Cable, only he seemed to have a nice bruise on his chin. “Do you have the money?”
Cable shook his head, still cradling his jaw. “No sir. We went to Verdant with a handful of men, as you ordered, but instead of that punk, it was just the girl, we were intimidating her until some bitch ADA turned up and threatened to call the cops, I intervened, but she gave me this…” He gestured to his jaw.
Women like the ADA only understood one thing: consequences. She wanted to protect Thea Queen of all people, a trust fund brat, the daughter of the woman who killed people they loved, their neighbors, their family. A girl who had more money than she could ever spend in a lifetime. Daniel Brickwell was just going to show her that people do not interfere in his business.
Brick leaned forward in his seat, “Light up Verdant. Make sure that Starling’s Crowned Princess is trapped in the building when it burns to cinders.” Before Thaddeus could acknowledge him, they heard glass shattering and loud thumping noises outside.
Before he knew what happened, something was thrown through the glass of the door, and a high-pitched sound erupted in the room, forcing everyone to hold their ears.
::-::-::
Laurel rushed in, taking down the first man with a kick to his head, before moving onto another and slamming her baton down on the man’s head. When she moved onto the last man, besides Daniel Brickwell, she was tackled to the ground.
Laurel gasped as the air was expelled from her lungs, she felt slightly dizzy from her head hitting the hard ground. The man sent several punches towards her face, only for Laurel to barely block each hit with her forearms.
Laurel swung her elbow into the side of the large thug’s head. She repeated this several times, before managing to kick the man in the chest and roll away, but not before she tossed her baton into his head, knocking him out.
Brick stood up from his chair, “Well if it isn’t my favorite trick or treater!” Brick moved around the large desk swiftly, as he did, he threw a glass at her. She barely managed to dodge the glass thrown at her face, only for him to throw her over the table, Laurel rolled over the table, stood up, and she danced around the table, dodging Brick’s punches, as he reeled his arm back, Laurel punched him in the jaw, before sending a hook into his side. Brick stumbled back.
The large man grabbed hold of Laurel and threw her into the thin drywall and into another room. Laurel staggered before she used her sonic device to break all of the lights in the room and hid, waiting for him to move past her. Once he stalked past her, Laurel slammed her elbow into the back of his head and watched as he face-planted on a foldout table that had stacks of money on it.
Laurel heard men marching up to the office space, and as she saw the beams of light, she saw her father aiming a gun in her direction. Laurel quickly threw another sonic device down, before she jumped out of a window and down into the cold water of the docks.
Laurel managed to enter her apartment through the fire escape. She stripped down to her underwear and headed into her bathroom for her first aid kit. She flicked on the light to study her bruised eye and split lip. She would have a fun time concealing her injuries for the Gala she had to attend in a few days' time.
Laurel hissed as she touched her lip before she cast her eyes to the first aid kit and picked it up. After she had patched herself up, she would have to call Ted to see if he would either pick her up to retrieve her car or see if he would bring it home to her.
Laurel limped out of the bathroom and into the sitting room, only for the lamp to be switched on. and Thea stood from the sofa, her hand clutching onto her black jacket, while the other hand, she held her wig.
“Something you want to tell me, Laurel?”
Notes:
The naval vessel class and name are completely made up. Though the name Tobruk refers to The Siege of Tobruk in World War Two, where the Australian garrison was mockingly referred to as 'rats', the Aussie troops took the name as their own. The name of the vessel, Wodonga, is a city that sits on the Victorian side of the Murray River, and its twin city, Aubury, is on the NSW border.
I also want to thank Ray_Writes for coming up with the basis for Sara's storyline for this fic on the Lauriver Discord.
Chapter 4: Friends?
Chapter Text
“Thea…” Laurel mumbled. “How did you get in here?”
Thea tossed the jacket and placed the wig on the table, “Roy taught me how to lockpick.” She shrugged. “It’s been a long summer.”
Laurel looked at her feet. She hadn’t been a good friend to Thea. The poor young woman has likely had to endure being looked down upon. All because of what his mother and Merlyn did.
Thea bit her lip. “I was worried about you, you left so quickly after those thugs… I thought that they had found you and…. So I came here, only you weren’t here...”
Laurel dropped the first aid kit on the ground next to the coffee table, and slowly sat on the one-person sofa across from her friend. Thea looked so much like her mother, right now. It was eerie. “Speedy…”
“How long have you been this vigilante, Laurel?” Thea cut in. “Does Ollie know? Is that why he left?”
Laurel blinked. Thea’s tone didn’t indicate an accusation, rather it was curiosity, and perhaps a small amount of pity. Laurel shook her head, "Ollie doesn’t know. I have only been doing it for a few weeks since Ollie left after The Undertaking... after Tommy died.”
“You have been saving people in The Glades?” Thea asked, her voice small. She leaned towards Laurel and extended her arm. “ You saved Verdant, and protected me from those thugs?” Laurel gently outstretched her own hand and met Thea’s. “Thank you.”
Laurel blinked a few times. She never expected to be thanked for going out and ensuring that people received justice. “You know that technically you trespassed, right?”
Thea’s eyes sparkled with mirth. “I’m sure that the Assistant District Attorney can forgive me if I promise to keep her secret, and she receives a free drink down at Verdant?”
Laurel smiled and clicked her tongue. “Perhaps we should add bribery and extortion to the list, hmm?” Thea snorted, as she reached for Laurel's jacket and folded it. “Thea, thank you.”
“That’s what sisters are for, Laurel.”
“Sisters.” Laurel agreed.
“Good, then get changed, and we can go to Verdant for a drink.”
::-::-::
He paced back and forth in front of his eldest daughter’s apartment door. With a heavy sigh, Quentin brushed his hand through his hair. For the last couple of days, his baby hadn’t been answering his calls. It was probably her adjusting to her new job, her new work schedule, and load. Luckily, he had made a few calls to find out when her rostered day off would be.
Finally gathering his courage, he knocked on the door and waited for his daughter to answer. It took a few seconds before the door opened, revealing his daughter. The first thing he noticed was her wrist guard, then her more defined arms. It seemed like her gym was doing her good, god knows that exercise was better than some of his vices. He often prayed that Sara and Laurel would escape his addiction. Hopefully, it wasn't hereditary.
“Dad?” Laurel asked, her eyes slightly widened. “I didn’t… I was about to head out….”
“This is important.” Lance started, feeling his throat start to constrict. “It’s about Sara.”
“Sara?” Laurel breathed.
“Yeah, I’m surprised that you didn’t hear about it on the news, I called when I found out… Your baby sister is alive!” He teared up despite feeling elated. Hearing his own voice saying it, somehow made it real.
His baby had come back home to him.
Laurel sat on the edge of her couch. “Dad, Oliver said…”
“I know what he said.” He bit back. “This isn’t like when your mother got me caught up in her hope. Sara is alive! I saw her, she was saved by the Australian military, they were patrolling nearby. “I don’t know how, but she has made a name for herself, just like you, sweetheart. She is a head-honcho of an Australian Company, she is right here in Starling.”
His daughter’s eyes widened, and he felt his heart beat faster. Laurel was silent for a moment as if a thousand things fought for dominance in her mind. “How is she?” She seemed to settle for asking.
Quentin hesitated. “She’s… Acclimatizing.” She had spent so long away from her family, she just needed time to adjust. “You saw how long it took Oliver to adjust to life back home.” Laurel only nodded. “Look, uh… I called around and got her telephone number, and where she is staying at the Hochman Hotel. I would appreciate it if you spoke to your sister. Your mother will also be arriving soon.”
Lance gave her another quick look over, noticing a slight bruise on her jaw. “I know you love your gym, but can you hold off contact sparing between now and when your mother leaves? I don’t want to make a bad impression on Sara, or your mother. ”
Laurel gave him a tight smile before she leaned over to kiss his cheek. “No promises.” She then stood, grabbing her bag. “Now, I have to head out.”
::-::-::
Thea sighed, it had been a few days since she had drinks with Laurel, and now it seemed her stupid boyfriend wanted to follow in Laurel’s footsteps. It was bad enough that Laurel was going out every night risking her life for others. Thea had installed an app on her phone so that she could know if Laurel was alright, it would bring up any current news about the Black Canary, as the police and the people of the Glades had started to call her.
Thea brushed her hair back over her shoulder and exhaled. If Roy wouldn’t listen to her, perhaps he may listen to Laurel?
Thea slowly walked up the stairs back to her office, she heard Sebastian Blood drawing on about the lack of financial aid from the large companies of Starling, which was a not so subtle jab at her family’s company since it is the only local big business, the rest were either from interstate or from overseas. Didn’t Blood care that Queen Consolidated couldn't help, not because they didn’t want to, but because they were going through a leadership crisis, and we're potentially going to be eaten up by some international company.
God, she wanted to ask her mother how they should deal with all of this, but she was in prison for being a terrorist. Hopefully, Laurel wouldn’t mind her visiting?
Thea told her manager, Oscar, that she would be back later, she was visiting family. She drove to Laurel’s to see her friend’s lights on from the street. Thea raced up the stairs and down the hall to knock on the door.
After a few seconds, Laurel opened the door. “Speedy?”
“Can I come in, I want some advice?”
Laurel, without looking at her watch, or providing any indication that Thea was intruding, gave a small nod, and walked back into her apartment, letting Thea close the door behind her and follow Laurel and take her seat.
“Speedy?” Laurel prompted her.
“I know you told me that I can’t tell anyone about how you save people-- And I won’t. “ Thea emphasized the last word. Laurel had entrusted her with the secret… Well, to be fair, Laurel had no choice after Thea had the jacket in her hands. Thea wouldn’t hurt her or put her in danger.
“But?” Laurel asked with a quirked brow.
Thea played with the hem of her crimson jacket. “Roy… He uh… He’s kind of obsessed with vigilantes. He is going to get himself killed. Laurel, you should have seen his bruises.”
Laurel exhaled. Thea knew she was asking a lot of the woman she considered something akin to a sister, and if Ollie was still head over heels in love with her, as he was when he returned home the first time, when he practically twisted their Mom’s arm into asking Laurel to represent him, perhaps they would be family.
“Look, I wouldn’t ask, except he isn’t listening to me.”
“I know the type,” Laurel replied wryly. No doubt Laurel was thinking of her brother and Tommy.
“You want me to talk to him as me, or as the other woman?”
“Black Canary. Definitely.”
Thea hesitated a moment during the silence. “Yes?” Laurel smirked.
“I need some career advice. My family’s lawyer….”
“Thea, you shouldn’t…”
“I trust you.” Thea gave her a tight smile which Laurel eventually returned. “Jean, and well, Ned Foster, some chief of something or rather, in QC, wants me to be the Queen on the throne. They think me being the CEO will ensure that it will look like everything is good at the company.” Thea bit her lip. “I just had to take Ollie’s club and show the world that I have a knack for business.”
Laurel gave her a small snort. “You get that from your parents Thea, I’m sure they would be proud because I'm proud of you.” Laurel moved next to Thea and nudged her shoulder against Thea’s. “What is the problem?” Thea felt normal, for the first time in a while. Just sitting and talking to her friend. It was different than talking to her employees or customers, or even Roy.
“I don’t know if I want to take it." Thea bit her lip pensively. I know it would be good for the company, and I could restore my family's good name. I could do that, but I don’t know if I want to be criticized in every piece of media for the next couple of years.”
“Thea,” Laurel said with a smile on her face. “I am going to tell you something that I told Ollie when he was in a similar position. You can always say no.”
“Does that go for speaking to my Mom as well, Councillor?” Laurel froze for a second and swallowed. “Laurel?”
“Thea, I think you should speak to your mother. Be there with her. Take this as someone who has experienced something unpredictable that has happened to the people I love.” Ollie and Sara. “Talk to her, if not for her benefit, then for yours, she’s your Mom.”
She desperately wanted to ask where the sincerity and conviction came from but chose not to. Instead, Laurel looked over at Sara’s photograph. “Sara is alive, Thea. She was alive all this time in Australia.” She shook her head. “I suppose I should take my own advice, and speak to her.” She then nudged Thea again “ I will speak to her if you speak to your Mom?”
She crinkled her nose. “Fine.” Thea leaned over to hug Laurel, before standing and heading to the door. “Oh, by the way, I thought you should know, a local street artist painted a blackbird on a golden background on the exterior of Verdant, as you come in from Percy Avenue.”
::-::-::
Oliver watched as the town car drove through The Glades. It felt like a painfully slow drive through the disenfranchised part of Starling. Every time they drove past tents lining the streets, or abandoned and firebombed homes and buildings.
Oliver had left the people to rot after The Undertaking, he had left Thea to fend for herself, and worse, he had broken Laurel’s heart to flee from the city because it was too hard to be here, in Starling knowing that he had failed.
As they drove, he noticed two types of distinct graffiti that stood out amongst the tags, and vandalism, one being a blackbird on a golden-yellow background, and Blood for Mayor.
“Who is Blood?”
Diggle looked at him through the rearview mirror for a second. “An alderman from The Glades. He has been a voice for the people down here, people that have been forgotten by everyone.” Oliver felt his stomach clenched.
They had been forgotten by him as well.
Before he could ask John to elaborate or ask about the blackbird that had been appearing around The Glades, Felicity handed him a manila folder. “You know how I told you about Stellmoor International preparing to take over Queen Consolidated? Well…”
“You may want to prepare yourself, man,” John added sympathetically.
Oliver opened the folder to see Sara’s face.
Sara was alive?
Oliver stared at her photo for what felt like hours: How the hell did she survive? He watched as the waves took her. Despite their differences, Oliver had tried to save her, if not for her own sake, then for Quentin and Dinah. For Laurel.
Oliver bit his lip, “Does Laurel and her parents know?” Oliver looked up from the folder to look at Felicity, then the back of John’s head.
“We don’t know man,” John answered for both of them. “Between everything that has happened here, and everything else, including trying to find you, we haven’t been keeping tabs on Laurel.”
All Oliver could do was nod. If he couldn’t look after his family, how could he expect John and Felicity to do the same? His eyes moved back to Stellmoor ’s portfolio that Felicity had given him. He flicked past Sara’s photo, to look at the rest of the document. The CEO, Kane Wolfman, and his business, Stellmoor International, are known for their hostile takeovers throughout Australasia.
Oliver sighed and wiped his face with his hand. This company was now looking to acquire his family's company. Nothing ever went smoothly for him, did it?
“So where do you want to go?”
“Laurel,” Oliver answered without thinking. She was his home, and he had once told Laurel that she was more important to him than anyone. It was time for him to start showing her instead of just spouting words.
“Oliver… I don’t think that Laurel is where you should be….” Felicity stammered.
“Laurel needs to know about Sara.” He didn’t mention the other reason why he wanted to see her face, to tell his friends that for him, Laurel was his home, she was Starling. “We can drop you off, Felicity, then I will purchase something before we head over there.”
::-::-::
Laurel had seriously considered going out on patrol, but it felt like her home was a revolving door the entire day, her father then Thea. Laurel had called Ted to take the night off, that she wasn’t going to be going out tonight. He had simply replied: “Take it easy, Tweety bird.”
Laurel shook her head as she fiddled with the piece of paper that had Sara’s phone number and her current address.
Why hadn’t Sara called them once she was safe? Surely Australia, being an allied nation, would have facilitated Sara returning home to her family?
Their father also mentioned that Sara was working for an Australian Company. Which begged the question again, why didn’t Sara return home after she had earned enough money if her financial situation had somehow focused her to stay abroad.
Laurel took another glance at the card before she heard a soft knock at her door. It shouldn’t have surprised her that someone wanted to speak to her, apparently, everyone else she knew was making a stop at her house.
Laurel opened the door and froze for a second. Oliver. Ollie had returned from wherever he had left. Laurel folded her arms. “I didn’t know you were back home.”
Oliver twisted the brown paper bag in his hand. “I wanted to tell you as soon as I landed… I’ve had to play a bit to catch up with the current events.” He then opened the bag to reveal her favorite ice cream. Rocky Road. “I brought a peace offering for leaving, and for not telling you in person.”
Laurel’s softened before she gestured to Oliver that he could come in, before she retrieved a couple of bowls and spoons from her kitchenette, once she sat back down, Oliver started scooping the dessert into their bowls. “It hurt when you left, Oliver,” Laurel said frankly as she was handed her bowl. Oliver squeezed his eyes closed. “I wasn’t the only one. Thea was left alone, Ollie. I can take it, but Thea, your sister didn’t deserve that.”
“I know.” He admitted solemnly. “You didn’t deserve it either.” He played with his fingers, before looking at her. “And I know that I have given you false promises, but I intend to make things right. With my family, that includes you.” Laurel bit her tongue and ignored the warmth in her chest. “And to show you that I’m not just telling you things that you want to hear, Sara is alive.”
Sara. A thousand different thoughts and questions raced in her mind, but only one of them she voiced. “How? You told me and my Dad that she drowned.”
Oliver’s hand clenched, and his jaw tightened for a second. “I promise you, Laurel, I thought I watched Sara being pulled beneath the waves. I swear to god, I thought she drowned.”
“Apparently she was found on a small island nearby.” Oliver only nodded. “Perhaps she drifted there?”
“Probably.” Oliver swallowed.
For the next while, they sat in her apartment constantly eating in silence, only the clinking of their spoons against the bowls could be heard. After a long while, Oliver finally spoke, looking pensively at her. For a brief moment, she saw the boy that she fell in love with.
“Laurel, I know I screwed up. I left you when you needed me the most, I have dangled our relationship in front of you so many times. I have hurt you so many times.” He exhaled. “I know you must think I’m stupid, but… I haven’t stopped thinking about you. I haven’t given up the thought of us.”
“Ollie….” Laurel started.
“I don’t deserve you, I know this. I just need to know where we stand.”
It was Laurel’s turn to swallow. “I think…. I think that you and I have an issue with closing our eyes and jumping, even if it is to our own detriment.” She gave him a sad look. “I love you Ollie, but I think last year showed us that we have to figure out who we are, and what we want before we consider whatever it between us?” She gestured between them.
“Friends?” Oliver asked, sounding worried.
“Friends.” Laurel agreed.
Chapter 5: Legacy
Notes:
I'm pretty much burned out on this story for now, so I am planning on releasing the last few of the written chapters over the next few days. Season 2 has so many glaring issues as I look back on it, and it has killed much of my interest in this fic. So I'll be putting this fic on ice for a bit. I'm sorry to those who have been enjoying this fic.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
His knuckles were split, but he felt the adrenaline coursing through his veins. Roy poked out his lip to feel the familiar sting of a split lip. He snorted as he looked down at the would-be-mugger laying out on the asphalt.
Roy flexed his hand before he turned around to see her. The Black Canary.
The black-clad vigilante stood several feet away from him, the streetlight illuminated behind her, giving her a more imposing look.
“I know what you think you are doing is helping, but it’s not.”
Roy scoffed. Who did she think she was? Did this woman really think that she could turn up out of the blue and gate-keep who could and couldn’t keep the streets safe? “The mugger down there, and the people I prevented from being hurt by him would say differently.”
“If you want to help, pick a local charity. The world needs people to be the cure, not just the band-aid.”
Roy shook his head, she didn’t get to command him to work for a charity when she was doing the opposite. “I thought you were like him, The Hood. But he doesn't pretend to be better than anyone.” Roy marched past her, with the intention of shoving up against the vigilante, only for her to gracefully move to the side, and pull his wrist into an awkward painful angle.
“I never claimed to be better than anyone. I am nothing like The Hood!” She then shoved him towards the chain-link fence, and as he jumped around to swing at her, she had disappeared into the night.
::-::-::
Laurel took a sip of her champagne. She smiled at a couple of familiar faces, people that she knew from a lifetime ago. People who once were Moira and Robert’s friends, and acquaintances that she had met when she was dating Oliver.
Laurel continued to walk past until she heard her name called out. “Laurel.” Laurel turned to the voice to see Adam Donner. Her colleague and fellow Assistant District Attorney.
Laurel graced him with a small smile as she approached. “Hello, Adam.”
His eyes searched around her person for a second, before he smiled. “I see that you didn’t bring a plus one?” Laurel hesitated for a moment, only for him to raise his hand, in a friendly gesture. “I am so relieved I wasn’t the only person.” He snorted. “At the very least, I have a friendly face here who is in the same boat.” He then gestured towards an older gentleman. “I need a friend while we schmooze up to these people.”
Laurel didn’t really have a chance to say no before he guided her towards two potential benefactors for the city. One, a middle-aged man with salt and pepper hair, and a neatly trimmed mustache, the other a man not much older than herself, had dark hair and was cleanly shaved. “Mr. Kord, Mr. Lord, meet my beautiful colleague, Dinah Laurel Lance.”
The older man shook his head, “Please, call me Javis Kord.” Then shook Adam’s hand than hers. “Kord Enterprises thanks you, and this fine city, for asking us to help rejuvenate your city after the terrorist attacks. “
The younger man then shook their hands and gave both him and Laurel a congenial smile. “Maxwell Lord, on behalf of Stagg Industries. Mr. Stagg sincerely apologizes for being unable to attend, he had a meeting with Central City University about incorporating our new tech to assist in organ transfers, which will accelerate healing, and prevent rejection.”
“He’s a busy man.” Adam agreed.
“I’m sure that Starling will appreciate your contributions to ensuring that everyone is safe and healthy after The Undertaking,” Laurel added, as she remembered seeing people living in small tent cities or squatting in abandoned buildings. Her mind then drifted to seeing Tommy. How he had been impaled, how he could have been saved by The Hood before the building collapsed. If he had been there instead of fighting Malcolm Merlyn and protecting the people of the city, Tommy may not have died. Things may have been different if The Hood had cared enough about the people, not just the masterminds and the criminal elite.
Perhaps she and Ollie could have started moving forward? He had assured her that whatever issues he had were gone, or were about to, then The Undertaking crushed him so much that he had left before his best friend's funeral. Laurel shook her head, and there was no point crying over what could have been. She managed to remain strong when she told Oliver that they had to find out who they were as individuals before they even contemplated being together.
After a few more minutes of small talk, Adam excused them and made their way towards Mayor Patrick Altman. The Mayor kissed her on the cheek and shook Adam’s hand. “How are you?” He asked both of them.
“I’m very well, sir,” Donner replied.
“Me too,” Laurel added.
Altman sighed, and looked at her, “I was sorry to hear that CNRI closed its doors. God knows that the city, and the people within, need safe and free legal advice. Such a shame.”
“Unfortunately, there were no doors to close, Mr. Mayor.”
“That is the sad truth isn’t it?” He then pointed at her, his voice remaining sincere. “I promise you, Miss Lance, CNRI, or something similar is definitely on the cards. I truly believe that you were doing the Lord’s work.”
“Thank you.”
“Starling is made of resilient people. We bounce back despite the hardships we face, you and your sister, Miss Lance, are paragons of this concept. You both have managed to scrape through everything and emerge stronger.”
“You know my sister?”
“We met briefly about fifteen minutes ago. I’m sure she is around here somewhere.” He looked around briefly, before looking back at Laurel. “She is a remarkable woman, your sister. She implied that Stellmoor International after she has completed her business in Starling will speak to Stellmoor International’s CEO, Kane Wolfman about investing more than just the warehouses that belonged to Claudius Shipping, a subsidiary of Merlyn Global Group.”
Donner nodded. “Heard that a company donated Merlyn’s largest warehouse to Sebastian Blood to use as his office.”
“He certainly loves to play up the Every-man persona.” The Mayor chuckled. “Smart man, it certainly endears him to his constituents.” He then seemed to brush some lint off his shoulders. “I should probably follow suit, and venerate The Hood, or perhaps the new vigilante?” He clicked his fingers. “The Black Canary.”
“I don’t think it's a good idea to support people taking the law into their own hands…” Donner started, only to be cut off by Altman.
“Nonsense. It’s all about how you play this, I’m not saying that we will make a bronze statue of the man or woman. But we could easily spin it as well-meaning people who, like the founding fathers, stood up for what is right, regardless of the law.”
“It establishes a dangerous precedent.” Adam rebuked. “How long before every law is ignored? Or are the police no longer seen as people who protect people, and are seen as tyrants?” He then looked at Laurel, “What do you think?”
Laurel, without blinking, answered what her boss wanted to hear. “I would be foolish to disagree with my boss.” Adam gave her a smile.
“I knew there was a reason I hired you, Laurel.”
Before Altman could speak, a man was introducing The Mayor up to the podium to speak to the crowd of philanthropists, businessmen, and women, along with much of the city's elite. “Please excuse me.” Altman nodded at both of them before he half-jogged up to the dais and cleared his throat.
While the Mayor started talking, Laurel looked around the sea of people, and noticed Walter Steele, the man gave her a small salute with his glass of whiskey, before they heard a loud echoing voice across the function room. “YOU HAVE FAILED THIS CITY MISTER MAYOR!”
All of a sudden, a hail of bullets was shot. The Mayor was killed before he could even think about ducking for cover. Laurel turned on her heels as she heard men marching behind her, men wearing dark-colored clothes, with masks and hoods racing down with their assault rifles.
One of The Hoods approached Laurel, only for her to quickly snatch the rifle from the man and slam the butt of the gun against the man’s jaw, and she watched him slump to the ground. As she tossed the rifle to the wayside, she felt a pistol to her temple.
“Not very smart for an ADA.” Laurel glanced around the room, it wouldn’t be hard to disarm the bastard, but there were so many witnesses and potential victims that could be caught in the crossfire or used as hostages.
Laurel raised her hands in surrender. The man pulled the trigger, only for the gun to click, signaling that the magazine and the chamber were empty. “Looks like it’s your lucky day, dumb bitch!.”
He then pulled back with his men and shot an incoming guard. “WE ARE THE HOODS! AND WE WILL RECLAIM WHAT IS OURS!” They then fled.
Donner looked up at Laurel from his place on the ground. “What the hell was that?”
Laurel blinked. “Fight or flight, I guess?” She shrugged but managed to interject some fear and disbelief in her voice. “A trade-off of being a cop's daughter?”
After the shock had died down, Laurel saw her sister waiting off by the side, her eyes darting around the room, as if she were half-expecting to see more of the maniacs coming in with their guns blazing. Laurel slowly walked towards her, noticing that she looked the same as the day Laurel had last seen her, and yet different.
Sara was never one to have her hair up in a french braid, nor was she one to dress up for a gala such as this. Laurel plastered her most assuring smile. “Sara, you alright?”
Sara blinked and looked at Laurel. Her eye’s studying her for a few seconds. “Fine.” Sara gave her a tight smile. “It’s not the first time I have been shot at.”
Laurel’s stomach churned. Ollie had mentioned that he wasn’t the only one on the island, that some sadists lived there and tortured him, and perhaps Sara? Or had her sister been lucky enough to escape the torture? A small part of her felt guilty at not checking in on her sister as soon as her father told her about Sara.
“I know it may have been awkward, telling us that you were back, or at least safe. I want you to know that I don’t hate you. Sara, you're my sister, and I love you. I’m just glad you are home.” Laurel reached over to give her sister a hug, only for Sara to step back. Laurel noticed her sister's back stiffen.
“Don’t touch me!” Sara said abruptly, her eyes icy. She took a deep breath and looked past Laurel. Laurel followed her eyes, to see that their dad was working his way through the crowd towards them.
“Girls, you alright?”
“I’m fine, but Laurel thought she should play hero and took out one of the gunmen.” Sara shook slightly.
“What!?” Her father growled. “Laurel, “Laurel, I just got your sister back, we don’t need you to be taken from us.”
Before Laurel could defend herself, Sara pointed off to the crowd. “My ride's here.” She waved and headed into the sea of people before disappearing.
::-::-::
Oliver ran into the function room, and as soon as he saw Laurel, he made a B-line for her. He didn’t care about the side glances from a couple of the older cops, nor from quite a few of his parent’s old acquaintances.
Oliver ignored quite a few slurs made about his mother under their breath as he approached Laurel and gently laid his hand on her shoulder. “Laurel.”
Laurel turned around, and to his surprise, she hugged him. It seemed almost instinctual.
Oliver wrapped his hands around her, relishing her warmth, a reminder that the love of his life was still alive. That she was breathing. Oliver pressed his lips against the crown of her head before she looked up at him.
“What are you doing here?” She quickly pulled herself from him. He could only feel cold at the distance between them. Something he was the root cause of.
Oliver didn't know if he wanted to laugh or cry at the question, surely she knew that he would be there for her?
“I’ll always be here for you, Laurel.” He gave her a tight smile. “What happened?”
“It's just a few hooded gunmen.” Laurel smiled as she told him. His heart wrenched that this had become the new normal for her. That this was the new normal for the city.
“I heard you punched one of them out?” Oliver raised his brow. He heard one of the cops guarding the exterior of the hotel talking about how ADA Lance had slugged the guy across the jaw and knocked him out.
“Something like that. Instinct apparently inherited it from my Dad.”
Oliver stared into her beautiful green eyes, for longer than he intended, though Laurel didn’t seem to call him out on it. It wasn’t until she looked behind him, that she kissed his cheek. “I have to go.” Oliver turned to watch Laurel walk away from him, and towards an older man, who gave her a warm smile.
Oliver bit the inside of his cheek before he walked out of the hotel and saw Digg waiting by the car. “Laurel is alright.”
“I’m glad that Laurel is alright, but it seems as if attacking The Gala was just as much about making a statement to the elite as it was to provide a distraction for any potential police.” John hesitated for a moment. “Thea was taken at gunpoint by these men who are using your name.”
Oliver growled as he jumped into the car. They were sullying his name, using him as a figurehead to commit a crime, and hurt his own sister, and endanger Laurel. Though the latter may have been coincidental, it still hit home all the same - that perhaps the city still needed The Vigilante.
“Are we going to just wait and see what the SCPD does? Or are we going to see if The Black Canary makes her move?”
Oliver shook his head. “I don’t want any more vigilantes or copycats here. We deal with The Hoods, save my sister, and then we deal with this Black Canary.”
::-::-::
It felt like hours until she was strapped down to a hard wooden seat, and her blindfold was ripped off her face. The entire room was dark, but Thea could just make out the hues of light from the stained glass windows illuminated by the streetlights outside, yellow, and green next to the shadows.
Thea tried desperately to keep herself calm. They were arguing about her, about what they should do with her. “We should knock the girl out somewhere, enough to scare her, and her family. Send them a message that they aren’t untouchable.”
“I should've known you would be too soft to do what is necessary.” The leader snorted, and he then pointed the gun at Thea.
God, she wanted to be brave, she did, but as soon as the barrel of the gun landed on her, she closed her eyes and prepared for the worst. She could feel her hot tears running down her cheeks. Laurel had mentioned that anything could happen, and now, her mother would think she had died hating her.
“Her mother, her family, killed everyone we knew and loved! The girl has to die to send a message, and the question then is, are you going to follow her in the grave, Will?”
Thea felt a spark of hope in her chest, she briefly opened her eyes to see the man, called Will, gulp and shake his head. She was dead.
Only the bullet never came. The floodlights below were shut off. “What the hell?”
“Go and check, Will.”
“What!? No!”
The gun was now pointed at Will, “You will do as I command, or you will join her.”
Will nodded and cocked his gun as he descended down the stairs. A few seconds later, the sound of crashing was heard.
Thea’s heart raced, Laurel had somehow found her.
The next second, there was gunfire, then another man dropped a couple of feet from her. Only, the man had an arrow protruding from his shoulder.
Thea squeezed her eyes shut as she heard more fighting. Eventually, she felt a warm hand on her shoulder and heard Laurel in a hushed whisper. “Speedy, you okay?”
Thea nodded, only to feel a knife pushed into her hands. Before Laurel could add anything else, The Hood fired an arrow at her friend. Laurel managed to evade the arrow. “Get away from her!”
Laurel gestured her head for Thea to leave. She did, as she ran down the steps and past the pews, Thea looked over her shoulder to see Laurel fighting The Hood. Thea hated leaving Laurel alone with him, but she had no choice, the police were outside. Thea walked towards them, hiding her knife, and walked out of the abandoned church.
Laurel’s dad grabbed her by the arm and practically dragged her towards his cruiser. “You alright?”
Thea nodded. “Good. That’s good. “How did you get out?”
“The Black Canary, and The Hood…”
“Alright.” He said uncharacteristically softly and took off his windbreaker and gently draped his jacket over her shoulders. Thea clutched it around her, feeling her hands tremble. “I’ll take you to the station, and we can sort stuff out with the detectives, then we can take you home.” All Thea could do was nod.
::-::-::
John watched as Oliver raced down the stairs, pressing his left ear. Oliver looked irate, they hadn’t expected The Black Canary to come to Thea’s rescue.
Oliver moved towards the salmon ladder and started exercising. The rapid, hard metal clunking echoed throughout the tiny basement. Diggle folded his arms as he waited for Oliver to cool off for a second.
“I don’t like the idea of another vigilante in town.” Oliver finally said, hanging off the highest rung. “She is alone, and doesn’t have people to hold her responsible for her own actions.” John could tell he was imagining this Black Canary to be the new Huntress.
“Is that it, or is it the fact that she called you a murderer?” Felicity asked, causing John to subtly shake his head in her direction.
Oliver grimaced. “No.” Oliver then dropped to the ground. “She doesn’t know me, or that I made a promise to Tommy that I intend to keep. I won’t kill again.” Judging by the contemplative look, what he and The Black Canary argued during their small fight, had really caused his friend to self-assess.
“So what do you want to do about her?” It seemed the woman was too entrenched in The Glade’s consciousness to be removed.
“Find out what we know about her.” Oliver finally spoke as he fiddled with his fingers. Oliver sighed. “I should be heading home. I have to be up early to get ready for my meeting at QC.”
::-::-::
Ted sat on the steel bench, watching Dinah throw punches at the old bag. Now that he thought of it, that bag may be older than her. He just waited, the couple of lamb gyros off to the side. The smell made his stomach growl softly. After a few more punches, she sat down next to him.
“I saw him… The Hood. I had to ignore the thoughts of avenging Tommy when I heard the cop cars.”
Ted grabbed the gyros and tossed her on. “That shows that you have self-control, Dinah. Besides, there is more than one way to skin a cat. “You are an ADA, you have more power at your disposal than someone like The Hood, or even a retired vigilante, who owns a gym.”
Dinah wrapped her arm around his neck. “You aren’t useless, Ted. You told me about Thea. You have your ear to the ground better than anyone else I know.”
He then watched his student and friend tear into the food. “We should probably try to keep your young friend out of trouble, to keep eyes off your relationship with her, as hard as it is with her gallivanting with that boy, and running a business in anti-Queen HQ. Starling City might as well be considered the Red Zone for her family. I have to give Thea credit, she has balls.”
Notes:
I'm not really sure how I feel about Sara's characterisation, but I hope that you enjoyed it regardless.
Chapter 6: Family Business
Notes:
Just like the previous chapter, I'm nervous about Sara's characterisation, hopefully, you enjoy the chapter.
The next chapter that is written should be posted tomorrow.
Chapter Text
Moira felt elated, and for the first time in months, a member of her family had come to visit her. According to Jean, Oliver had left the country, while her baby was distancing herself from her. Despite being behind bars, and the walls, she knew that Thea was being resilient. She was always the strong one out of their family.
Oliver, however, had failed and had yet to pick himself up. God how she wished she could both tell him to stop being reckless and risking his life every night and tell him just how proud she was of him. Oliver has already done so much to try to put the city back to rights. An endeavor that was noble and an endless struggle.
Moira sat on the cold steel stool and waited for her daughter. After a few minutes, her beautiful baby girl walked into the visitation area. She looked so beautiful, she had cut her hair just to her shoulders. “That outfit doesn’t go with your coloring.”
She couldn’t help but smile at the joke. “Well, I have done my utmost to avoid mirrors.” She gave her daughter a small smile. “How are you?”
Her daughter hesitated. “Well, I’m running Verdant.” Thea placed her hand on the table, and unbeknownst to her, she had revealed almost healed bruised knuckles.
“Been fighting?” Moira asked with a raised brow, causing her daughter to swiftly hide her hands beneath the table. Her daughter, at times, despite how adept she may seem at business, still possessed an endearing form of innocence.
“I know you have said that I shouldn't fight because it wasn’t lady-like.” Her daughter looked down at her hands that were safely sitting out of Moira’s eyesight. A mannerism that she picked up from Robert. “I almost died a week ago.” Her daughter revealed. Moira exhaled. She knew what had happened thanks to Jean, but to actually hear it from her daughter was something entirely different. “The Black Canary and The Hood saved me. When I told Laurel, she offered to teach me self-defense.”
Moira felt proud. Oliver had saved his sister from vengeance-fueled mad-men, and Laurel had assured that Thea, in the future, could defend herself. Her eldest and Laurel were certainly a pair not to be trifled with whether the pair knew it or not.
::-::-::
Oliver stood next to John as he adjusted his tie. He hadn’t told Laurel or Lance that he had left Sara to drown on The Amazo. It wasn’t something he was proud of, but she had conspired against him with Slade who had gone berserk. She wanted to save Mirakuru just as much as Slade. She never wanted to feel vulnerable. He could sympathize with that, but the drug was too unpredictable.
Oliver swallowed down the guilt that bubbled within his chest. The doors opened, and he walked with his head held high, he was Oliver Queen the scion to The Queen legacy. A man on a mission to redeem his name and repair the damage that his family caused.
Oliver walked in and entered the boardroom, and felt the air sucked out of his chest as he saw Sara, looking the same as she had when she drowned. Oliver quickly collected himself and extended his hand to Sara. “I’m sorry I’m late, Sara.”
“It may surprise you to know this, Oliver, but punctuality is actually respected in the business sector.” She then raised her brow. “I heard that you publicly made a show of how you didn’t want to touch Queen Consolidated. It’s not surprising that you didn’t learn etiquette. You were never one for that.”
Oliver clenched his jaw. “Is this what you came down here for? To berate me? Doesn’t seem like etiquette to me.”
Sara smiled at him. “Fair enough. Let’s be curt? Shall we? Since we know each other, false politeness would be unnecessary. I also know personally that you dropped out of college, I’ll explain this to you so you can grasp the situation you are in. You and I both control forty-five percent of the stocks, there is another ten, yet to be claimed, as soon as it is released, Stellmoor will buy it.”
“You haven’t won, yet, Sara. “ Oliver added, stunned at how adept she was at business.
“Perhaps, but how are you going to get the last ten percent? I doubt you have enough money to get it yourself, unless you have a miracle worker on your side, you have already lost. Empires, like businesses, rise, and fall. Queen Consolidated has fallen.”
After the meeting, Oliver excused himself, and walked out to the elevator, with John right behind him. “That didn’t go as you expected.”
Oliver bit his lip. There was a proverb that he could recall from one of his college courses, philosophy? It didn’t matter. Was it about a whirlwind? About the consequences of someone’s action… or inaction. Sara was doing this out of revenge, he knew that. He couldn’t blame her either, he deserved this, but the people of Starling didn’t. The people working for QC didn’t deserve to be fired.
“It went better than I could have hoped for, in retrospect.”
When the elevator doors closed, Oliver noted that John looked around the small area to ensure that there weren't any cameras. “What did you do to piss her off?”
“I came to my senses, and chose Laurel over her,” Oliver mumbled, only to hear John mutter something under his breath. Oliver didn’t feel like arguing, he needed advice. He needed advice from his mother. If she had lived her entire life in business, she would know what to do. “How do you feel about a road trip, John?”
John sniffed as the doors opened up to the lobby. “Where to, Mister Queen?”
“Iron Heights. I think it’s time that I spoke to my mother.”
After an hour's drive, Oliver waited for his mother to enter the visitation room. He sat there looking around the room wondering how the hell he was going to make everything right. He had been damaged so much before he fled. Thea was targeted by The Hoods, and he and Laurel were friends but hadn’t really spoken since he had talked to her briefly at the gala.
Now, Sara had returned and seemed hell-bent on screwing him over by taking his company. He just didn’t know what to do, how to tell Laurel that he had let her sister die, that he had practically tried to murder her through the lack of action.
Oliver looked to his left to see a grandmother holding a baby who couldn’t be older than a few months old. Could that have been him, introducing his mother to her first grandchild if things between him and Laurel were different?
He shook his head. That ship had sailed, he would honor Laurel’s wishes and keep his feelings to himself.
That’s the old adage, wasn’t it? If you love someone, you let them go? If that was the case, it was going to be the hardest thing he was ever going to do.
His heart wrenched as he tore his eyes away from the family and looked back to see his mother walk through the gate. Oliver stood and kissed her cheek. “Hey, Mom.”
His mother graced him with a smile. “How are you?”
Oliver gave her a tight, small smile. “Better than you.” He swallowed hard. “I’m sorry that I didn't come sooner, I…”
“No apologies necessary, Oliver.” His mother cut in. “I have so much to apologize for and to make amends. Much of it will fall upon deaf ears.”
Oliver felt his stomach churn. “You saved hundreds of lives, Mom. So many people survived and made it out of The Glades because of you.”
“And how many died because I refused to act?” His mother shook her head. “Tommy died because of me.” A tear slid down her cheeks. “He was like a son to me, and I killed him through my inaction.”
“No,” Oliver said resolutely. “No. Malcolm Merlyn did that.”
His mother didn’t seem to want to fight over who she had or hadn’t killed. Instead, she grabbed his hands, with hers. “Tell me about Queen Consolidated?”
Oliver blinked. He shouldn’t have been surprised that she had access to the news, or what was happening in Starling. “I do have the news here, you know, Oliver.” He could hear the dryness in her tone and saw the way she quirked her brow.
“Right.” He cleared his throat. “Sara is back.” He said slowly. “She works for Stellmoor International.” He shook his head. “Sara isn’t pulling her punches.” Oliver shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know what to do, Mom, everywhere I look, I only have bad options.”
His mother squeezed his hand. “I never said anything, because she was Laurel’s sister. I didn’t like the girl, she coveted what others had.” She shook her head and stared at him for a few seconds as if to think of what to say next. “I’m not going to ask you about what happened within your five years away... Oliver, I’m not sure how qualified I am to give this advice, especially considering my past. You should be honest with Laurel if no one else. She deserves to know about her sister. My lies and omissions caused me to lose Walter.” She then straightened her back and looked almost regal. “As for Queen Consolidated, it is a family business.”
“I doubt Thea…”
“Not Thea. Walter. He loves you, and Thea as if you were his own. He has known you all your life and has been a wonderful father to Thea. Walter is the miracle you are searching for.
::-::-::
Laurel was sitting in her office and chewed the end of her pen as she finished off some depositions. While Laurel was working, there was a soft knock at her door. Laurel looked up to see her sister looking at her looking contrite. “Hey?”
Laurel waved her in and offered her a seat across from her. “Hey, I’m glad that we can actually talk.”
Laurel leaned forward, pulled the pen from her mouth, and started fiddling with it. “I was a bitch.” Sara said softly. “When you tried to comfort me. For the longest time, it was just me, and… I suppose that I haven’t had much intimate contact with another person.”
Laurel found herself chewing her pen again, for seconds before she dropped it on her desk. Sara's explanation was a fair one, but it didn't explain the dark look she received, or how her sister's eyes still looked icy.
Laurel smiled back amicably, “You're adjusting to life back home. I understand.” Laurel would give her the benefit of the doubt.
Sara’s shoulders seemed to relax, but her back remained rigid. “Look, I want to make amends for everything that has happened. A friend of mine, he said that I should get closer to the people I was close with before the island…. To do that I need to apologize. For Ollie… to being a bitch at the Gala, not coming to you or Dad when I came back or calling when I was found at sea…”
God, Laurel wanted to believe her. There was just something off. The hairs on the back of her neck felt raised. Once Laurel found her voice, she decided she would ignore those feelings. It must be residual anger and hurt. Her sister was there apologizing.“There’s nothing to forgive Sara. You're not the same person that left on The Gambit.”
“No, I’m not. And I want to show you the kind of woman I am. I talked to Mister Wolfman, my boss. He agreed to it. Stellmoor wants to help Starling with its vigilante issue. We are willing to subsidize the anti-vigilante task force. I heard that Tommy was caught in the war between The Hood, or The Arrow, as he now calls himself, and Malcolm Merlyn.”
“He was.”
“He was my friend too, let me help you and the SCPD capture this mad-man, and any other vigilantes that are coming out from the shadows.”
::-::-::
Walter took a sip of water as he eyed his stepson who sat in front of him. Oliver had returned home, and from what little he had heard, Oliver was attempting to reclaim Queen Consolidated. It's a far cry from almost twelve months ago at the unveiling of Robert's Applied Science Division. “So, Oliver, what can I do for you?”
Oliver sat there for a second. “I… Ugh… I want to ask you for a favor. You see, Queen Consolidated is about to release the last ten percent of its stocks. I don’t have the money, and it has been pointed out to me that my family’s name doesn’t mean what it used to.”
Walter rested his chin on his hand as he listened to Oliver stumble around with his words. It was slightly amusing watching the younger man ask for help, a trait that both of his parents struggled with.
“What are you asking, son? Walter guided him, finally taking pity on Oliver.
“I need your help.” Oliver then went on to explain Stellmoor International’s hostile takeover attempt.
“Say no more.” Walter then raised his forefinger at his stepson, picked up his phone, and dialed a number. “Charles.” Walter greeted his friend. “In a couple of hours, Queen Consolidated will release its stocks to the public. I intend to purchase it, all of it. It’s a family business, and the majority belongs to the family.” He then looked at a gobsmacked Oliver. Walter couldn’t help but wink at the young man.
Walter hung up, looked at the time, and grabbed his coat from his chair as he stood. “Now then, lunch?”
Oliver’s face was almost priceless. “Sure?”
“Come along, your father didn’t get a chance to give you a lay of the land when he was around, hopefully, you will not be offended that I will be his substitute?”
Oliver gave him a smile, one that Walter hadn’t witnessed, a sincere smile of gratitude from the man. “No. We are a family, Walter. I would be honored to learn from you.”
::-::-::
Oliver sat in the boardroom, waiting for Sara to arrive, and eventually, the members, including Sara, filed into the room. Sara haughtily took her seat and grinned in his direction. “In a couple of hours, we will see in the news that Stellmoor has purchased the final ten percent, and the Queen Family name will be a footnote in Starling's history going forward.”
Oliver returned a smile as he noticed John give him a subtle nod of his head to indicate that Walter had arrived. “What was it you said yesterday, Sara? That I needed a miracle worker? I have something better, I have a family.”
“In case you don’t realize, your mother is in jail, your father is dead. Thea rejected every offer your COO offered her. You have no one.” Oliver felt the verbal barb. "You take what you want from people, and then leave them. You did it with the people you supposedly love, why not to your family's company? No one will help you, Oliver."
“Quite the contrary, Miss Lance.” Walter strode into the room. “I may not be a Queen, per se, but I am definitely family.”
Sara sat up. Her smug smile disappeared. “Mr. Steele, I thought you were working for Starling National Bank.”
“I am,” Walter smiled. “I also bought up QC’s stocks. So by my estimate, that means that Oliver owns a majority share, or have I got my facts wrong?”
Oliver then added. “So that makes us partners going forward.” With a false smile, Sara left the room with her people. “
Oliver turned back to Walter and shook his hand. “I really appreciate this, Walter. “
“Any time, son. I’m just happy to know that you know that I will be there for you, in spite of all that happened between your mother and me. I still consider you and your sister my family.
Chapter 7: No Good Options
Notes:
Alright, just one more chapter to go after this before this fic goes on hiatus.
I really appreciate everyone's understanding.
I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter, but I hope you like it.
Chapter Text
Ted had just finished cleaning the gym before he put on his gloves and started hitting the bags. He wasn’t as spry as he used to be, but he could still hold his own. The rhythmic sounds of the chains rattling, and the sound of each hit landing on the material made it feel like he was a young man again. Back when he had returned from the hell of war, to see that his home was bleeding. After realizing that the city was bleeding, and feeling like he had a moral obligation to help those people, he became a vigilante, he soon became the“The Wildcat of The Glades”, Ted had named his gym after the supposed urban legend.
Now, Ted was moving on from vigilantism and helping the woman who he now saw as something akin to a daughter. Dinah had taken his mantle as the guardian of The Glades. And had made a name for herself in her own right. The Black Canary.
Ted threw another punch, before ducking and weaving at an imaginary punch before his phone rang. The damn thing had been ringing off and on for the past hour. He picked up the phone and answered it, noticing someone walking into the gym, considering how early it was, it could only be Dinah. He raised a finger for her to wait before he focussed on the call.
All he could hear was breathing. “Listen, here you little bastard. I’m getting sick and tired of your prank calls!” Without warning, Ted pitched the phone across the wide room of the gym and watched as it collided with the brick wall.
He swore under his breath as he noticed the small shards of glass and plastic. More stuff for him to clean up. “Could this day get any worse?” He muttered under his breath.
Ted turned to see Sebastian Blood and not Dinah.
Apparently, it could get worse.
Ted sighed as he approached the younger man. “You looked tired.” Blood said in lieu of a greeting. “I was wondering if you would be interested in assisting The downtrodden, your brothers and sisters in The Glades? Your neighbors.”
“I don’t think so, I don’t like politics.”
“That’s fair.” Blood diplomatically said. “I get sick of political double talk, but this, this is important. We need someone like you, a pillar of the community, and a former local celebrity. It’s time to tell the SCPD, and the elites that we have had enough.”
God, he hated it when people brought up his short career as a boxer. It was fun while it lasted, but he wanted people to remember him for his community outreach. It may seem like false modesty to those who didn’t know him, but frankly, he didn’t care what some stranger thought of him.
Ted shook his head. “I appreciate that you are doing this, really. I do my part. I help out. I don’t want to be used as a political pawn.”
Blood gave him a smile, though his eyes showed his irritation. “Thanks for your time, Mister Grant.” He then placed a flyer on the steel bench. “If you change your mind,
::-::-::
Laurel pulled out her trunk and pulled out her jacket. She needed to patrol and keep The Glades a little bit safer. According to Ted, there is a gang-banger who calls himself The Mayor who has been selling firearms to other gangs, and that included Daniel Brickwell if his testimony was true.
She grabbed her nightstick, and as she did, her phone rang. Laurel waited a second before she saw the contact. Thea. Laurel answered the phone. “Speedy?”
“You're not out on patrol are you?”
She should really be distancing herself from Oliver and Thea since she was to be helping to prosecute Moira. And yet, she couldn’t abandon her friends. Ollie and Thea have been a part of her life forever.
Laurel looked back down at her suit and placed the baton back in its place. “No. What’s up?”
“Roy.” Thea sighed. “He didn’t listen to her when they talked. Maybe you can scare him with jail, or something?” Thea exhaled again. “I don’t know Laurel, I don’t want to lose him, he’s so reckless. I can see him spiraling… I can’t go through that again.”
Laurel bit her cheek. She knew firsthand how addiction could change a person, and affect those around them. She didn’t have the heart to tell Thea that in the end, it would be Roy’s choice to change. “I’ll do what I can, but no promises it will work, Thea.”
“Thank you.”
It took a little while until Laurel arrived at the police station, she smiled at Detective Hilton, who approached her. “Thanks for coming, Laurel. I know it’s late.”
“It’s no problem.” Laurel was then handed a small red arrow. Laurel studied it as she listened to Hilton describe what Roy had gotten himself into. He was playing vigilante without training. Roy was angry, she knew that, but the fire in him was useless if he didn’t temper it.
If he wasn’t Thea’s boyfriend, she might have contemplated sending him to Ted.
“We found this on his person. An arrow.” Hilton pointed to the door that Roy was behind. “We believe he is potentially in league with The Hood.” Laurel only nodded and studied the small red arrow. it was too small to be an arrow, but it wouldn’t be the first time that The Hood had utilized darts in his arsenal.
The dart looked worn. Roy had possessed this weapon for months, perhaps since he was captured by Joseph Falk. Laurel entered the room to see Roy sitting looking nonchalantly despite having a couple of bruised ribs and a bloody nose. He was lucky he didn’t get more by being an idiot while driving, and playing vigilante.
“Mr. Harper, “ Laurel started while she walked around him, slowing down in his blind-spot. “I can give you quite a few charges, including Reckless Driving. Roy snorted. “The D.A is willing to forget those charges for a name.” She let that sink in for a few seconds. “Who is The Hood?”
“I don’t know.” Roy gritted out.
“So he has a habit of giving out these arrows?” Laurel asked, dropping the dart. “Some sort of identifier? If you know who he is, and don't tell us, I can charge you with obstruction of justice!” Roy didn’t seem perturbed by her threats, instead, she sat down and lowered her voice.
“I used to be like you,” Laurel said. “The city is falling apart, and it felt that you were the only person who noticed. Saw the criminals and corrupt, saw what they were doing. And for a long time, The Hood was dealing with these issues. He looked like a hero. That’s how he draws you in. “ Laurel tapped the table. “You are young and have a beautiful girlfriend who loves you. Don’t throw it all away by adding to the chaos that The Hood already stirs up. It only makes the situation worse.”
“Malcolm Merlyn caused a part of The Glades to fall into a hole, and the gangs acting as if they own what is left? It is already worse.” Roy glanced at the dart for a few seconds contemplatively. “You know…” He said softly, before looking at her. “There are others.” Laurel studied him while he spoke, but he gave no indication he knew she was one. “I’ve seen The Black Canary.”
Laurel pursed her lips and gave a quick jerk of her head. “We aren’t interested in her, just him.”
Roy looked back down at the table and nodded. “I don’t know what to tell you then.”
Laurel stood up and dropped the keys to Roy's cuffs next to him. “Not everyone who looks like they are helping, actually are. Keep that in mind when you think about The Hood. He is doing more harm than good.” Roy didn’t answer, instead, he uncuffed himself and followed Laurel outside, to the hall, only to see Thea… and Oliver?
Laurel blinked for a second. She hadn’t expected to see Ollie. He walked up next to her, as they watched Thea reprimand her boyfriend. “We won’t be charging him, as long as he stays out of trouble.”
Oliver looked back at her with curiosity. “What happened?”
“Roy fancies himself a disciple of The Hood, “ She waved her hand. “Or the Arrow. He knows more than he lets on.”
Oliver looked at her with a look she couldn’t decipher. “It doesn’t sound like The Arrow to have partners, does it?”
“That’s just it, Ollie. We don’t know who he is, what his goals are. How can we hold him responsible? All the death and destruction he brings has to stop.” Laurel then quickly left the Queen family, despite wanting to be close.
::-::-::
Laurel had just taken down a group of muggers when she received a call from Ted. “What’s up?”
"Your phone has been ringing for the last ten minutes. The D.A’s Office. They ended up leaving a message. They need you at Schmidt Court, it’s not far from where The Triangle meets The Glades. I’ll meet you at the corner of Bendis, and Zdarsky with a change of clothes.”
Laurel swore under her breath, and jumped on her motorbike that Ted had given her, and headed to the location, she quickly changed in the back of Ted’s old hatchback, grabbed her ID, and put on her wrist guard, they swapped their vehicles, she got into the driver’s seat, while he took her bike.
Once Laurel arrived, the head of the SCPD task force snarled at her. “Next time there is an incident Lance, we need you here pronto!”
Laurel slid her tongue over her teeth, walked past the man, and walked behind the task force as they moved towards where The Hood was. He was fighting one of the Triad’s enforcers. At one point, The Hood seemed to let his gaze linger on her. Laurel couldn't make it out clearly, but it was as if his eyes softened. It was the same look that he had whenever he had saved her.
She shook her head. It must have been a trick of the light. Laurel must have just been a tool in his arsenal, a lawyer in his pocket. All of a sudden, steam was everywhere, and both men had escaped. They must have hit the pipes that connected to the boilers.
Laurel walked away, and if what she saw was real, perhaps she could use the connection The Hood believed was there between the two of them? Perhaps she could set a trap, and end this game of cat and mouse.
Laurel had told the man that she was the justice he couldn’t run from, he was about to find out just how true that promise was. Ted was right, she was more than a vigilante, she had connections. Perhaps it was time to utilize them?
::-::-::
Oliver hobbled on top of the roof of Laurel’s gym. She had to choose a gym in the roughest area of Starling. Feeling his ankle throb from the bullet wound, he tried his best to ignore it as he dropped down through a skylight.
Oliver quickly pressed his EMP device and watched as Laurel turned around in the dark. He could see as she turned around, her hands were up in a guard as if she was ready to protect herself. Laurel’s hands didn’t lower as she realized who was waiting for her.
Had he really burned his bridges as The Arrow with her?
“Hello, Laurel.” He greeted her, wincing at the harsh sound of his voice being modulated.
For a brief second, Laurel looked past him and her head, almost imperceptibly shaking once. There was someone else in the room that he hadn’t noticed. Oliver mentally kicked himself. “I thought we should talk. In private?”
Laurel gave a quick nod, her bottom lip covering her top. “Sure, lower the hood first. You know my face, show me yours.”
Oliver swallowed. “I thought we understood each other, that I’m not your enemy. We worked together to keep people safe…”
“What I understand is that you don’t care. The night of the Undertaking, I saw you.” Oliver froze. “I saw you, you didn’t try to save Tommy. How many people died because you were too busy having a meaningless duel with Malcolm Merlyn?”
Oliver didn’t know how to tell Laurel everything without endangering her further. Just by looking at her, she had a couple of scars that poked out from under her tank top. Oliver stepped toward Laurel, only to hear the floor creak behind him. A reminder that he wasn’t alone.
Oliver bit the inside of his cheek, as Laurel continued. “You told me that you would protect the people who couldn’t protect themselves. And now someone has taken up that mantle.” Oliver blinked again to stop his eyes from stinging at her words. “I don’t think you wear that hood to conceal your identity because you are a Good Samaritan, I think you wear it to dodge the consequences of your actions!”
“Laurel… I…”
Laurel took a step towards him, as she did, the floor creaked again from behind him.
“I will make sure that you are held accountable. You can’t run away from justice forever, Hood.” She then clenched her fist, “Leave. Now! If I see you again, it will end up with you in cuffs.”
Oliver loosed his grapple arrow and left the way he came in. As moved a couple of blocks away to his motorcycle, he felt like he was being watched. Oliver scanned the area, the intersections, the mouths of the alleys, and the skyline. No one was around or if they were, they were adept at hiding.
Once he sped off into the night, Oliver swore. Nothing seemed to be going right. He could only keep Queen Consolidated but had to share a partnership with Sara. Someone who hated him. Laurel now hates The Arrow so much that she threatened to arrest him and throw him in the darkest hole she could find and throw away the key. His mother was in jail. Thea was targeted by gangsters, and his name was being ridiculed by Sebastian Blood. A politician who practically aimed a lynch mob at him.
Perhaps that is where he could start? If he could help Blood make The Glades a safer place, people deserved to live in safety and not hand to mouth. It could also possibly curb Laurel’s hatred towards him... The way she spoke, it felt like a knife being stabbed in his chest. He had to show her that he was the man she deserved, and helping Blood save The Glades was the way to do it.
Oliver hobbled down the steps of the foundry, as he did, Felicity swirled on her chair to look at him. “I have to say, it's so bizarre and weird that we live in a world where the authorities are after you rather than gangsters and thugs.”
“It’s not that simple.”
Diggle looked at him, the gun he was cleaning sitting on a dirty rag. “Why because Laurel is their leader?”
“No, she explained to me quite clearly, how she and many others view me. This is more than Laurel!” His voice had an edge to it. He was sick and tired of Laurel being used as a weapon against him.
“Hey!” Felicity stood, raising her voice. “Just because you are pissed that he criticized the almighty Laurel, doesn’t mean you have to take it out on us. She is the person who defected. Not me, and not John.”
His mother’s words echoed in his head. “...be honest with Laurel…” How could Laurel defect when she didn’t have all the pieces? She didn’t know who he was, or what his plans were regarding his role as a vigilante.
Oliver bit his tongue and left for the bathroom to change into his clothes, and silently headed back out. Once he reached his bike, he pulled out his phone and called Sebastian Blood, only to reach his voicemail. “Sebastian, this is Oliver Queen. I think we got off on the wrong foot. How about you and I talk at Queen Consolidated at around ten o’clock, tomorrow?”
He felt like Atlas, holding the world upon his shoulders as a punishment for his crimes. He had so much on his plate, he didn't know when he could be open with Laurel. What scared him more was how she would view him if she knew the truth.
::-::-::
Laurel sat at her desk, everything was moving fast, and she just hoped she could keep up. Oliver had returned, and they had barely spoken if at all since the gala, Thea had been put in the crosshairs a couple of times. The crime wave that didn’t seem to want to end… It felt like a set of herculean tasks lately.
She leaned back against her chair and sighed. The dressing down she got earlier was enough to take the wind out of her sails for the time being. Laurel really had to figure out time management. And yet, it often felt like the city wasn’t giving her that chance.
The Hood was currently the man that was occupying her thoughts, especially after the other night. He seemed so determined to tell her that he had changed and seemed hurt by the concept that she didn’t believe in him anymore. Why did a man hiding beneath a hood desire her approval? It couldn’t be that she was a part of the justice system, he was already outside of that.
Laurel exhaled again, it became obvious that she was missing an integral piece of the puzzle that was The Hood, or The Arrow as he calls himself.
After she had finished work, it was already sundown. Laurel left and headed to Ted’s Gym to get her suit and headed out. After almost an hour of patrolling through The Glades, she saw something that caught her eye. Laurel crouched on top of the roof of the bodega and watched as a man opened the boot of his car, and there she saw firearms. It certainly wasn’t the usual guns that people stole and sold off. It also wasn’t police-issued weapons.
Laurel jumped from the building and snuck behind the two men who were looking at each firearm. Without missing a beat, Laurel slammed one thug against the car, and the other, she hit upside the head with her nightstick.
Laurel then looked at the small arsenal. Assault rifles and grenade launchers. “Must be military-grade weapons,” Laurel muttered to herself, before pulling out her burner phone. “Wildcat.”
“Canary.”
“I need you to call the police and tell them that people were selling military-grade weapons behind the bodega on Timm. It looks like the same guns that Brick used.”
“On Timm…” Ted repeated. “What the hell? The office computer is on the fritz. It's kind of some kind of radar symbol that keeps popping up on the background-Screensaver thing.” He coughed. “I’ll ignore that thing.” It took a second before he spoke again. “I pulled the plug. I’ll make the call with the landline, but my cell phone is broken.”
Laurel didn’t even bother asking why, he had been having issues with his phone lately. Knowing Ted, he had pitched it across the room out of frustration with the phone not cooperating with him.
Laurel was about to climb up a fire escape when she heard a young woman scream. Laurel instead ran down an alley to see a woman hugging herself against a fence staring at a dead man. He had blood that had congealed coming out of his eyes and nose.
Laurel swallowed hard to prevent herself from vomiting. “Call the police. They should already be coming for something else.” She then moved over to pat the young woman on the shoulder and gave her a tight smile. “Wait by the bodega, and then tell them what you saw.”
“I can’t…. I’m not going to jail… I’m not going to be blamed for this...” The woman then took off down the alley and disappeared. It wasn’t long before the police cruiser arrived. Laurel swallowed hard and kept her head down to avoid eye contact.
Quentin sighed. “Thought we would meet sooner or later. Brickwell, Saving Thea Queen, twice. Now you're stopping black market deals. You with The Arrow?”
“No,” Laurel growled, in an attempt to distort her voice. She really needed one of those voice modulators that The Hood had.
Her father nodded but didn’t seem interested in arresting her. “I just thought… the outfit… Doesn’t matter, is this it?”
“I believe this is connected to Daniel Brickwell, whose men used the same weapons. You should also see this, it’s not related to the case though.” She walked ahead of him and pointed at the person. Her father ran down to check his pulse. He then pulled out his radio. “DC-52, need the coroner down here, we have a suspected OD, unknown substance.”
“How do I contact you?” Her father asked as he turned back to her.
“I’ll be in touch.” Once Laurel climbed up the fire escape, she could hear her father ask under his breath if she was sure that she and The Arrow weren’t buds.”
::-::-::
Oliver held out his hand for Sebastian Blood, only for the other man to walk past him and look out the window. He stood there for a few seconds, as he just stared. “You know, I never knew what it meant to look down from an ivory tower until now. Everyone looks small from up here, don’t they?”
Oliver bit his tongue, this was the time for diplomacy, not for exchanging barbs. Oliver looked over to Felicity, “Felicity, can my guest and I have a cup of coffee?” He asked politely.
“Unfortunately, the coffee machine broke.” She quipped before she left the room.
Oliver frowned. He would have to talk to Felicity about showing solidarity amongst those they don’t know. He couldn’t afford to have someone who doesn’t follow what he says, especially in front of someone like Blood, or even Sara. He would let it go for now.
Instead, Oliver turned to Blood as he spoke. “I’m surprised that you wanted to meet me. I would have thought that The Man wouldn’t want to meet with me, I’m not too popular among your elitist friends and colleagues. I’d imagine.” Blood finished with a snort.
“Probably not.” Oliver smiled back. “But I want to show you that I’m not like the others. I’m not my mother. My mother was involved in a heinous act. But I, like many others in The Glades, and even a part of The Triangle know what it’s like to live hand to mouth, not knowing when your next meal will be, or if you are safe.”
Blood laughed. “You should be a politician with words like that.”
“A bit too cut-throat for my tastes.”
“Saying one thing is all well and good, but actions speak louder than words, especially with the downtrodden. How can you possibly fight the elite when you are the elite?” Blood asked, sitting straighter, the humor was gone from his body. “You and the elite live and dine with fine china, and silver spoons, all the while people not even in one-hundred miles are starving and living in third-world conditions."
Oliver bit his lip. CNRI had organized a gala to support themselves and help the less fortunate, perhaps they could do something similar for The Glades? “Perhaps, with a man like you leading the charge, and with me following, we will change things. I’ll organize a gala for the elite to fundraise and start the ball rolling. This Friday night?”
“The scion of the Queen dynasty atoning for his family’s sins is certainly a powerful image.” Blood nodded. “Alright. Hopefully, you can perform some magic and have the gala ready in four days.” He then shook Oliver’s hand.
::-::-::
Oliver stood in the shadow of the alleyway behind Verdant, waiting for Roy. Oliver had managed to ruin everything. He had bungled the truce that he had arranged with Blood so that together they could move forward to make Starling a better place, and he could start to atone for what his family had done. Instead, he was being crucified by Blood for not turning up to the gala last night.
What perhaps hurt equally was that he had invited Laurel to attend the gala, not because she was wealthy, but because he wanted to show her that he was the man she always saw. And not for the first time vigilantism and crime had gotten in the way. It had gotten between them. He was being tugged in two directions. And judging by the number of unmarked police vehicles outside of city hall, Laurel wasn’t interested in a repeat visit from The Arrow.
What he needed from Roy would at least hopefully mitigate what was happening between Roy and Thea. It would keep Roy out of harm’s way while keeping him close enough to feel like he is helping. Perhaps he could also see if Roy could find out more about this Black Canary. Apparently, she had stopped an arms deal. Oliver needed to know what her agenda was.
Oliver stalked out of the shadows and caught the flechette that Roy threw at him. Roy blinked before his eyes widened. “You're him?”
“You want to help? Fine. Stop risking your life, fighting gangsters, and the cops.”
“Why? I can fight!”
Oliver snarled. “You can take a beating. No. I don’t need you in the field, but I need you to do something just as valuable. To do what I need to do, I need intel.” Oliver tossed back the dart. “Put this in the alley wall if you have the information I need. You are my eyes and ears in The Glades.”
“isn’t this Black Canary's territory?”
“I don’t intend to share. Find out what you know about her.” Having said his piece, Oliver shot a grapple arrow and hid on a rooftop, and waited for Roy to leave before he headed back down to the foundry to change.
Chapter 8: Iron Heights
Notes:
This is the final chapter before this fic goes on hiatus. I want to thank everyone who has read, commented, or left a kudos on it.
This chapter was only half-written, so it leaves things on a bit of a cliffhanger.
I hope you enjoy it.
Chapter Text
Simon Lacroix took another heavy swig from his bottle, it felt almost euphoric getting hammered after a kill. After another pull, he wiped the excess liquid with the sleeve of his hand over his mustache and lips. It was only then that he noticed a well-dressed man, well… well dressed for this part of Bludhaven.
A tray of curly fries and buffalo wings were pushed in front of him, along with another couple of bottles of beer. Lacroix chuckled as he looked at the man with short brown hair. He looked vaguely familiar with the news. An alderman? A councilman? He wasn’t sure. “I’m not one for making pals over drinks.”
“Good. I don’t want to be friends, what I do want is for you to make a scene.”
“Who is involved in this charade?”
“The District Attorney, in a very prominent court case.”
Lacroix smacked his lips together, “That’s a very public scene you want. Hmm. It will be triple what I normally ask.”
“My… friend will foot all of the costs, he only asks that we don’t exist on your end. No trails. If you are caught, nothing is traced back to us, are we clear?”
“It will be done. My word is as good as gold.”
::-::-::
Thea walked into Wildcat's gym for the third time in a few weeks. Her nose still had to adjust to the smell of stale sweat. Thea peered around the corner to see that there were no other people hitting the hard bags, sparring, or using the row machines. Thea walked around towards the office that held Laurel’s equipment, only to hear Laurel’s friend swear, and hit his office desk.
“Uh, Ted?” Thea asked as she stood in the doorway.
“Thea, good. You're a kid, you should know about computers and this new fancy computer crap?”.
She blinked for a moment. “I know a little bit, I think Ollie has a friend that…”
“I don’t know your brother or his friends.” He waved his hand dismissively. “I know you. Dinah trusts you and she introduced us. That means, I trust you.”
Thea wasn’t going to get used to her friend being called her mother's name. The name Dinah was so old-fashioned and outdated. “I’ll try Ted.” Thea turned on the computer and managed to open the internet explorer. Thea shrugged, the computer seems fine to me.”
“Yeah, and wait for that radar icon to pop back up and make everything else black.”
Thea raised her brow. “I have no idea what that is. Maybe you should get a new computer?”
Ted shook his head. “Please don’t take this as a charity case, but the money I make goes to paying my utilities and this place. I don’t have the money to just throw away this stupid glorified TV, and replace it.”
Thea only nodded. Perhaps she could help. Ted and Laurel had done so much for her in the past few weeks, perhaps Verdant’s computer needed an update, and perhaps Ted will take her old one that was only a year old?
Before Thea could ask Ted about Laurel, Roy walked in, his eyes seemed to glance at the nightstick next to Ted for a second. It looked like the same sort of baton that the woman in black held.
Roy cleared his throat and looked at his girlfriend. “You ready?” Right. This was supposed to be a quick meet-up with Laurel before she was going to visit her mother. Thea bit her lip before she noticed Roy looking up at some old trophies that the old man must have earned when he was younger.
Thea nodded. “If you see Laurel, tell her, that I was looking for her?” Ted just nodded with a small grunt as she watched him duck his head beneath the desk and pull the plug out of the socket. Laurel had been avoiding both her and Ollie, and it was starting to really piss her off.
She and Roy walked out of the gym, Roy jumped into the car, and she followed. “Who’s he?”
“A friend.”
“He had a black nightstick.”
“Yeah, and he lives and works in The Glades, I’m sure that you would see tonnes of people have baseball bats, or guns ready to protect their stuff.” Roy’s jaw tightened, but he didn’t say anything else. Instead, he just drove her to Iron Heights to visit her mother. Ollie was supposed to meet her there.
::-::-::
Oliver sighed as he saw his mother, gone were the expensive dresses and clothes, as was the makeup. She was just his mother in a plain-colored uniform that all inmates had to wear. Seeing her in such spartan clothes.... despite already seeing his mother already, it still felt wrong. He could just hear Thea's breath hitch as she saw their mother. His sister felt the same.
Oliver lightly squeezed Thea’s hand, as their mother held up her wrists for the guard to unshackle her. His mother kept her head held up high, putting on a face of strength for them.
Eventually, they sat down in a small room and waited a few minutes for Jean to enter. The lawyer gave Thea a look before she composed herself and sat next to them, they were all on one side of the table.
“I'm glad that you are here. But I really wish that you didn't have to see me like this.” Their mother said gently, before looking over at Jean. “When are the lawyers from the District Attorney’s office arriving?”
“A few minutes… Moira, you should tell them…”
“I suppose so, apparently she didn’t tell them. I can’t blame her.”
Oliver raised his brow, “Who didn’t tell us what, Mom?”
His mother took another glance at the door, before looking at both of them, she held out both of her hands for them. “What I’m about to tell you, you cannot blame her.” She sighed. “Laurel is prosecuting me.”
“What!?” Thea exclaimed, slightly getting out of her chair. “No! No, Laurel loves you, loves us she wouldn’t back-stab us!”
“Thea…”
Oliver blinked. He had been so preoccupied with everything, that he hadn’t allowed time to be with Laurel. Give both of them a chance to speak to each other, honestly and openly. Oliver looked over the table and to look at Laurel, who had just entered and was sitting down, her back stiff. Her beautiful green eyes didn't make contact with anyone on the opposite side.
“Let’s get down to business…” Donner started.
“Yes, let's. “ Jean interrupted. “It’s a conflict of interest for Ms. Lance to be involved with this case. She grew up in the Queen household. It was practically a second home for her. “
Donner shook his head and had a small smile. “We have been through this before, Judge Faden has ruled that it wasn’t a conflict of interest, or if it was it was negligible at best. “Oliver raised his brow but allowed Donner to continue. “As far as I am concerned, this is a courtesy call.” He then looked at Laurel. “We are here to serve notice to the defense that we are pursuant to Rule of Criminal Procedure fifteen.”
“This is late notice,” Jean said quickly.
“I didn’t owe you that.” He then adjusted his suit. “That being said, we are willing to accept a plea offer…” He handed Jean some paperwork.
“Life, with the possibility of parole,” Laurel added quietly, avoiding Oliver’s eye contact. After speaking, Laurel looked back down at her hands. Did she really think that he would blame her? It hurt, seeing and watching the love of his life prosecute his mother.
Jean pushed the paperwork back to the opposing attorneys. “Mrs. Queen is innocent.”
“She aided and abetted five hundred and three homicides.”
“While she was under duress by Malcolm Merlyn and Tempest.”
Donner smiled and leaned back. “Ah, yes. Tempest. A clandestine group of the elite of which there is no evidence of."
“She also showed remorse, and removed herself from the conspiracy before its execution, alerting not just the public, but the authorities.”
Oliver looked over at Laurel, who chanced a glance towards him, he tried to silently ask her what she was doing, only for her to dart her eyes away from him again. Jean and Donner argued for a few more minutes before Laurel looked at him, and he watched as she swallowed. “If she doesn’t take the deal, she will be facing the death penalty.”
“That’s blackmail!” Speedy cried out.
Oliver could only look at Laurel. Why hadn’t she tried harder to recuse herself? Why hadn’t she tried to get his mother a better deal?
“That’s not all. I have subpoenaed all of your emails, phone calls, and everything else. I’m willing to wager, Mrs. Queen, that I will find some skeletons in your closet that will make your defense case null and void.” He then stood up and adjusted his tie.
Laurel opened her mouth for a second, only for her to think better of it and leave. Oliver excused himself and followed Laurel out, and as he made it out of the lobby, he could hear Laurel’s colleague giving her a dressing down. He was berating her for being late. Laurel was never late, she hated being late for almost everything.
Oliver exited the building, only for Adam to walk to his car. Laurel hovered a few feet from him. “Before you explode, Oliver, I want you to know that I didn’t ask for this case…”
“Why didn’t you say, no?”
Laurel exhaled and brushed her hair back with her fingers as she did, her sleeve rode up and revealed a bandaged arm. Had someone physically hit her? Oliver clenched his jaw. “I did! I don’t exactly have much pull, and what pull I did have, I gave Moira the chance at life. It's the best I could do!"
Oliver pointed back at the prison. “That was your show?” He gritted his teeth.
“Ollie, look, we both have lost more than our fair share, I’m just trying to make sure that you don’t lose more. If you care about your family, convince your mother that this is the right course. It’s the lesser evil, Ollie.” Oliver noticed her eyes start to water before she started to walk away, only for Oliver to catch up and pull her arm gently towards him. "I'm sorry for my part in this Ollie. Tell Thea I'm sorry."
Oliver exhaled. She was always putting everyone else before her. “Are you alright?” He asked with a gentle soft tone.
Laurel gave him a tight smile, that didn’t reach her eyes. “I’m fine.” She untangled her arm and took another step.
“Can we meet up for dinner?”
Laurel hesitated, before shaking her head. “It’s not good for us to be seen together… I’m already on thin ice. ” Oliver could only watch as Laurel unlocked her car and drove away.
::-::-::
Later that night, Roy returned to the old gym that Thea’s friend usually frequents, and he watched as people came and left. After a few minutes, he saw the old man move to a closet, where he saw a couple of blonde wigs and nightsticks. Roy could now prove himself to The Arrow.
The old man turned on his heel and threw a knife in his direction. Roy could only blink as the knife just missed his head. When Roy stared at the knife, he was tackled by the older man, who held his fist up, ready to hit him.
“What did you see?” The man gritted out, his knee resting hard on Roy's chest.
Roy coughed and tried to punch, only for Ted to grab his wrist and twist it at an awkward angle, causing Roy to cry out. “I know you work for her.” He then pointed at the woman behind Ted, she stood over them before tapping Ted’s shoulder.
“Let him go.” The woman said, a second later, the old man let him go.
“Better not have loose lips!” He heard Ted yell out as Roy left the gym.
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