Arrow: Slade's Return

10

Sitting in a black office chair, Slade Wilson awaits the arrival of his package. In his cement-wall office with two windows, which don't even show him the light of day, sit boxes and crates stacked against the wall with FRAGILE stamped all over them. Slade leans back in his chair, though relaxed he is not. Eager to move things along, he walks out of his office. "What is taking this batch so long?" Slade asks angrily.

A scientist from QC runs quickly away from his station to Slade. "We're almost done. We just need some more time." He says.

"You don't get anymore time because you idiots don't know how to hide a body! The SCPD found those four lab rats so we have to speed up the process. I'm pushing the release to tonight!" Slade yells. The QC scientist runs back to what he and 50 other scientists were doing. The paused to watch him talk to Slade. Slade turns away and stomps back into his office. He opens one of the crates and digs through the protective mesh. Slade pulls out a syringe filled with blue liquid and smiles. "Beautiful. Exactly what I need to ruin Oliver Queen and his city."

*****

Oliver and Felicity sit on their sofa drinking coffee. They watch the morning news:

"Breaking news, two Queen Consolidated Applied Sciences scientists have gone missing. Reports say that they were last seen on their way home from work two days ago. The SCPD are on the case but have no comment so far. In other news, more than 25 scientists from Starling and Central City have gone missing in the past week. The SCPD and CCPD are working to catch who is behind this. We'll have more in the evening." The news reporter says.

"Good morning." Ashlee says as she walks in from the hallway. Oliver grabs the remote and shuts off the tv.

"Aww, good morning, Ashlee. Come here." Felicity says as she sets down her mug. She stretches her arms out for Ashlee and Ashlee runs into them. Felicity picks her up and sets her down in Oliver's lap.

"How is our little girl today?" Felicity asks her beautiful blonde daughter.

"Good." Ashlee says. Felicity kisses Ashlee on her forehead. Oliver sets down his mug and picks Ashlee up as he stands. He lifts her above his head and twirls her in a circle. She laughs and screams. They all laugh. Oliver brings her down and dips her head real quick before lifting it back up. He sets her down and she waves her head around because she's dizzy.

"Haha. Okay, lets go put some food in you, shall we?" Felicity asks Ashlee. She grabs Ashlee's hand and leads her into the kitchen. Oliver follows them. Felicity opens the cabinets while Oliver puts Ashlee in her booster seat. Not quiet tall enough yet to sit at the table and see over it. Felicity pours three bowls of Cheerios, two with milk, one dry. She pours three glasses of orange juice, one half the size of the others, and brings everything to the table. Except the spoons, which she forgets.

"Bon appetit." Felicity says. Oliver looks down at his bowl of cereal, then at Felicity's and Ashlee's. He looks at Felicity to see if she notices. She looks down then makes a face. She gets up and opens a drawer in the kitchen and pulls three spoons out. "Honestly I don't know what's wrong with me. I've made breakfast a thousand times. Why on Earth do I still always forget something?" She says as she sits back at the table. Oliver smiles.

"Yesterday you didn't forget anything." Oliver teases. Felicity thinks about it.

"I didn't make breakfast yesterday. You did." Felicity says. Oliver chuckles. "And I didn't really mean always. Just a lot. I tend to exaggerate sometimes."

"Just another thing I love about you." Oliver says. Felicity blushes.

"Eww mom and dad that's gross." Ashlee says. Oliver and Felicity laugh.

"Sorry Ashlee." Oliver says. Felicity walks to the sink and starts cleaning the dishes in it, along with her own from this morning.

"You can make it up to me by giving me ice cream for dinner. Please?" Ashlee gives them the puppy dog eyes.

"Aww. Can we give her ice cream for dinner, Felicity? Please?" Oliver asks in the same tone Ashlee speaks in.

"No ice cream for dinner, Ashlee. And none for you too, Oliver. Please, set a good example for our daughter." Felicity teases.

"Awwwwwww." Oliver and Ashlee say simultaneously. Felicity chuckles.

"How about an extra half hour of tv watching after school? But you have to go get ready right now." Oliver asks Ashlee.

"Yeah!" Ashlee says. She hugs Oliver and Felicity and runs up to her room. Oliver collects all of the dishes from the table and helps Felicity wash them. Felicity rolls her eyes at Oliver.

"What?" Oliver asks smiling.

"I think we spoil our daughter." Felicity says.

"Ah she'll be fine. Spoiling is good. Everyone needs to be spoiled every now and then." Oliver says. He looks at her. "Especially you. How about we eat out tonight. Drop Ashlee off at Dig and Lyla's. Just the two of us." She's finished with the washing so she turns to him. They look at each other intensely. Two pairs of blue eyes studying each other like they could learn something when they already know everything there is to learn.

"Where would we go?" Felicity flirts.

"How's Italian?" Oliver flirts back.

"I love Italian." Felicity giggles, remembering their first date. "But you already knew that."

"I did. But it seemed polite to ask anyway." Oliver says. He remembers that night too.

*****

~ 10 years ago ~

"Get me Felicity." Oliver says into his earpiece. He's chasing someone on his motorcycle.

"Got it." Diggle says.

"I can't talk right now. I'm at work." Felicity says. She's standing behind the counter in an electronics store. "Can I ask you guys just to wait one moment." She asks some costumers who want her help. "Someone is calling for tech support!" She tells them. Felicity runs to the back where she can use a computer. Speaking to Oliver and Diggle now, she says; "Oh you are going to get me so incredibly fired. Okay, I'm hacked into the city's database. I am running facial recognition, now."

"Do you like Italian?" Oliver asks her.

"What?"

"For tonight. You like Italian right? Everyone likes Italian."

"Oliver you're in the middle of a high speed chase."

"I'm multitasking."

"I got him. He's in the sewer. I'm picking up his cellphone from underneath. He's at the corner of Grand and Aims. And yes, I love Italian." She smiles. "Detective Lance- Captain Lance is also in pursuit. You are welcome. I have to go." She runs back into the store.

..... Later that day.....

Oliver and Felicity sit at a table in the center of an Italian restaurant.

"There are still a few things that you don't know about me." Oliver says.

"Please, name one." Felicity says.

"The five years that I was away, I wasn't always on Lian Yu." Oliver says.

"I thought so.... where were you?" Felicity asks.

"Hong Kong, for one. And I have been thinking a lot recently about.... my time there. The choices that I had to make."

"Those years sound like they're full with a whole lot of suck."

"I'm sorry. I'm just, a little out of my element..... The entire time that I was gone I could never, completely trust someone. And when that goes on for so long you stop seeing people for people, you see threats or targets. And when I decided to come home I, I just didn't know how to turn that part of me off. And then I walked into your office. You were the first person that I could see as a... a person. There was just something about you."

"Uh, yeah I was chewing on a pen."

"It was red." Felicity smiles.