Almost - A Flash and Arrow crossover

Chapter 14

Neither of them realized they had locked eyes. But both had felt something shift at the back of their minds. Like they were seeing someone important but couldn't quite place where they were from or who they were, they just knew they knew that person.

Oliver walked cautiously towards the boy on the bed. Barry fidgeted, unsure of who this person was that had his mind racing to remember.

Slowly, Oliver held up a hand. "Oliver Queen."

Barry's eyes widened.

"Barry Allen." He said, his voice still uncertain.

They shook hands then quickly lowered them to their sides.

"You know where you are?" Asked Oliver, as if it was a normal question - which, let's face it, around here it was. Barry laughed coldly.

"No. You?"

"No idea."

Silence.

Both of them had nothing to say.

"So ..." Barry drew out the word, trying to fill the awkwardness between them. "This is ... fun."

Oliver chuckled, shaking his head at the floor and slipping his palms down into his pockets. "Tell me about it."

"Have they told you anything?" Barry pointed to the huddle of people on the far side of the cortex, still eating and talking, having not noticed the two heroes being reunited with each other. Oliver followed Barry's gesture then turned and looked at him again.

"Not much. Just my name, where I'm from. A little of what I did ... do ... am ... whatever." He wasn't sure what to say. Felicity had informed him of his nighttime fighting crime routine he had going on but nothing else apart from that. Instead, he continued to look expectantly towards Barry.

Barry stared at him with curious eyes. His eyebrows were drawn together. "Me neither. I mean, I got told a little of who I am I guess, and the fighting people with powers stuff but-"

"What!"

Barry was pulled short. Oliver's yell had made his head throb and he flinched away. "Dude!" He said, rubbing his temple.

The man shuffled his feet uneasily on the floor. "Sorry." Oliver muttered, before glaring at Barry.

"What?" The Speedster asked, accusingly.

"Nothing, just the fact you've lost your mind."

Well, that was subtle.

"Excuse me?" Barry crossed his arms.

Oliver simply shrugged. "You said you fight people with powers, man. Now I hate to break it ... to .. you ..." Oliver gradually stopped talking. His eyes locked onto the vibrating hand Barry was showing him. Yellow flashes of light emitted here and there from around his buzzing fingers. The speedster, however, had raised a single smug eyebrow.

"I'm sorry ... what were you saying?" He asked sarcastically, stopping the vibrating hand and grabbing a few fries from the bag next to him.

Oliver glared at the boy. He had a funny feeling the man he was before he lost his memory didn't like to be proven wrong.

XXXX

"How about memory-man?"

"That one physically hurts."

"Forget-me-not?"

"Cisco, you're having an off-day."

"You try coming up with names for villains! Oh wait, you did. Rainbow Raider says hi!"

"Hey! I said it off the top of my head and it stuck."

"That one physically hurts!"

"Watch it!"

"Will you guys be quiet!"

Diggle longed to be back in the comfort of the 'Arrow Cave'. He missed the sincerity and sense of order that came with it. S.T.A.R Labs, on the other hand, didn't quite have the hang of things just yet.

"OK, OK, last one!" Cisco pushed. "How about Amnesia?"

Caitlin sighed. "It's the best so far." She admitted. "Why do you have to give them names anyway?"

Cisco's amused face turned into one of shock. "What?" He said, disbelievingly. "The names aren't just names, Caitlin!"

Once again, Caitlin huffed out a sigh.

"Found him!" Felicity screeched, jumping up from the chair she was sitting on behind the computer and doing a little jig.

They had been trying to use S.T.A.R Labs facial recognition to find the Meta. With footage from the security camera in the jewelers, they'd been scouring everywhere for the robber.

"Marco Andrews, 27, divorced and lives in the South of Central City. Been arrested for petty theft and drunk driving three times in the past two years. Looks like he decided to step it up a notch." Felicity read out the details to everyone in the room. Diggle patted her on the shoulder, congratulating her on finding the Meta at last. Caitlin and Cisco pulled his file onto the screens.

"Barry, Oliver, you recognise him?"

Barry and Oliver had been sitting at opposite ends of the cortex. Their conversation previously hadn't gone too well. Turns out Oliver really didn't like to be wrong and started trying to accuse Barry of messing with his head. He refused to believe in Meta Humans. Barry, however, found Oliver extremely annoying and pompous and soon voices were raised and Diggle had escorted Oliver away, giving the pair time to cool off.

Now, both of them paced over to the computers, glaring at each other with mild dislike.

"Take a look." Said Caitlin, waving a hand at the screen and sliding away on the wheels of her chair.

The two heroes leaned close into the computer. That man ... that man ...

"Yes." They said in unison, looking up and locking eyes.

"You recognise him?" Asked Cisco, raising an eyebrow at the two.

"I've seen him before." Oliver broke his glare with Barry to turn to look at Cisco.

Barry pushed himself away from the desk and stood stiffly next to Oliver ... a little to close for comfort.

"That's great!" Chimed Felicity, pushing herself between the two and began to type away, Caitlin rushing to join her.

Diggle moved forwards and grabbed Oliver's arm. "Hey man, how about we take a walk?" he didn't like the looks the two heroes were giving each other.

"No." The tone in Oliver's voice put the idea to rest. He snatched his arm out of Diggle's grip and began walking out of the room.

Barry smirked. "I'm gonna have a look round." He said, his voice not like the normal Barry's, instead, dark and antagonising. With that, he strolled out of the cortex, arms swinging confidentially by his sides.

Diggle sighed and stared uneasily in the direction the two had just headed in. He looked down by his side as he felt Felicity brush up against him.

"Something tells me that's not gonna end well."