#They get a break from work to be a teddy bear for Thea

[littlebear1537]

ART TRADE - Cas, Val, Thea, & Sam

ART TRADE FOR @decoloraa !!!!

BRIGGS GANG BRIGGS GANG BRIGGS GANG

Thea finds Sam in their bear form (not knowing it's them) but wants to adopt them - And obviously the gay dads of Briggs are there!!!

THIS WAS A LOT OF FUN TO DRAW!!!

[thvodora]

hello !! i’m luna, from the est, and i use she/her pronouns !! this is my baby theodora (aka dory but can also be called theo/thea/teddi/etc. skjdfjks) !! below i have a whole summary of her bio and personality, and also some ideas for connections if you’re into that !! if you’d like to plot, please message me on discord @luna#6219 or like this and i will come to you (most likely on discord, but tumblr im also works) !! if you have time to read things that are way too long, feel free to peek at her biography, statistics, personality traits, headcanons, pinterest, and playlist !! okay let’s dive in !

( lee ji-eun, cisfemale ) hey ! have you seen THEODORA KWON around ? SHE works as a ICE SKATING INSTRUCTOR at big bear resort, but they must be off their shift by now. well, if you do see them can you let me know ? they’re 20 years old & they’ve been working here for FOUR MONTHS. they tend to be +AMBITIOUS & +FASTIDIOUS, but can also be -DOGMATIC & -PREDICTABLE. the other employees have labeled them THE POLYMATH. thanks a lot ! ( delicate fingernails painted red grazing over a piano, wilted flowers resting in the sunlight, elaborate sand sculptures washed away by the tides, ripples in otherwise perfectly still water, & tea-stained book pages )

biography (tw: car accident)

theodora basically grows up w/ two controlling parents who are doctors, but she has a relatively ok childhood where she spends most of her time with her brother. she reads a lot, does well in school, takes some piano lessons, all that jazz

then her mother has an affair and so her parents divorce when dory’s 10 y/o and she’s pretty distraught, split between households. she’s especially spiteful of her mother and her mother’s boyfriend.

her brother leaves for harvard, which sets high expectations for her to excel similarly. but this absence + anger from the divorce + pressure to do well culminates into her accidentally falling into the Mean Girl™ clique at her high school. they basically rebel, party hard, and are super condescending to/basically bully others but all this peer pressure and social conformity is enough for her to ignore her Bad Behavior

she crushes on and later dates the whole ringleader of the clique’s/her bff’s crush. she’s so in love but then at a party she finds her bf + her bff kissing and its just rly bad. her bff has pretty much spread rumors about her, her boyfriend ridicules her, and dory’s effectively thrown out of the social circle.

now with an outsider’s perspective she realizes how terrible she’s been and succumbs to her guilt. she becomes super introverted and only sticks to studying hard and reading books and playing the piano. she tries to apologize to the ppl that she used to bully and tries to insert herself back into high school society but it doesn’t rly work 

so she carries on like this, fighting with her parents yet adhering to their expectations + virtually outcasted but sticking to her studies. then her brother comes home over break and gets into a really bad car accident. he ends up being hospitalized and paralyzed waist down. 

dory’s pretty angry so she ends up tracking the case and watches it happen in court, but the judge/jury/lawyers suck and nothing really happens to the drunk driver who caused the accident

this spurs her into an epiphany that she can right her wrongs and right these wrongs by becoming a lawyer herself, taking justice into her own hands. her parents hate the idea because they don’t think that dory has what it takes + try to persuade her not to, telling her it’s dangerous, unstable, time-consuming, etc. she doesn’t care anymore, though, and seeing how her brother has decided to take a gap year and travel, she frees herself from her parents and goes off to yale for pre-law.

then her dad is diagnosed with early on-set dementia and she decides to move closer to his home to take care of him. she transfers to a uni in colorado, and then gets a job at the resort to a) get that $$$ to help support her dad + her education and b) she’s gone to the resort b4 as like an annual family vacay and is a lil sentimental ! 

she visits her dad a bunch but it’s a lowkey secret, she feels slightly embarrassed and also is just generally quite private

so that’s it! she’s basically just a hell of a mess who still hasn’t forgiven herself for all her mistakes in high school and still feels like she needs to conform + control everything as much as possible + be “perfect” .... but more on that in the next part

personality

my gal dory is the . most . uptight perfectionist ever . she’s super detail oriented and will undoubtedly nit pick at everything she can, both about others + herself. she’s the type to always take control in a group project because a) it has to be done in a specific way for her and b) she doesn’t really trust other people with her grades.

she’s super pragmatic and is super frugal. she hates people who talk their way around things and would rather just have direct communication and be to the point. she’s so honest and brutally critical that it gets her into a bunch of confrontations but.. she doesn’t really mind it. she lowkey loves arguing and asserting her opinion (cause she thinks it’s correct), hence the whole lawyer thing

curious about everything and if you know her well she can ramble on about an insane amount of topics if you give her the time. but like if you know her well... don’t give her that time sdkjfnsk

stubborn and holds grudges, doesn’t forgive easily aka if you lose her trust it’s pretty hard to get it back. super hard to sway her in your favor/opinion. like try to get her to spontaneously go to a party night of? sorry she hasn’t factored it into her planner two weeks in advance and also she hates parties ksdnfgks

loves playing the piano!!! is currently trying to figure out how to dj!!! but she keeps it lowkey

learned to skate when she was pretty young!! by no means an olympic skater but she does like skating bc its v graceful and she loves 2 be on the ice

basically. self-critical, hates Fun, perfectionist who is the embodiment of an istj, enneagram type 1, slytherin, & capricorn sun so....... enjoy

this is a terrible summary please go read her headcanons + personality traits page its so much more well written skfnksndfvbs

wanted connections !!

here’s a link to a tag i have for some ideas and also here’s my connections page w/ some wanted connections but i’m down for anything we brainstorm!!

[herenya-writes]

Quarantine Questions

I was tagged by the fabulous @warriorwerewolfheart so now you get to know way more about my life than you wanted lol. This is really long, so I put in a cut. Tags are below.

1. Are you staying home from work/school? 

Yup. All of my courses have moved online and it has been interesting to say the least. I will never take another math online if I can help it. *shudders in horror*

2.  If you’re staying home, who’s there with you?

Me, my parents, and my two sisters. We all get along pretty well, but there are days when I wonder how we haven’t killed each other yet.

3.  Do you have pets to keep you company?

Yup. Two cats (Thea and Twix) and two dogs (Teddy Bear and Little Chief). Twix likes to sleep in the blinds, Thea is a dragon, and the dogs pee in the house constantly.

4.  Who do you miss the most?

I’m actually doing a decent job of keeping in touch with people, but I do miss a few of my close friends. I’m a tactile person, and I miss hugs...

5. When was the last time you left your home?

Ummm...I went for a walk in a nearby park a few days ago, but the last time I went more than a mile or two from my home is when I helped a church friend celebrate her birthday (people drove by her house and threw presents at her and honked a bunch) a little over a week ago.

6.  What was the last thing you bought? 

An audiobook subscription so that I could read the last assigned book for one of my courses while doing other things. I’m tricking my brain into thinking I’m not doing much work.

7.  Is quarantine driving you insane or are you finally relaxed?

Honestly, I’m in about the same mental state as usual, except now there isn’t much to distract me from it. The fact that I don’t know how this pandemic is going to affect the future is pretty terrifying, so that doesn’t help, but at the same time, I have a few professors who are being very understanding and helping keep the stress down.

8. Are you a homebody?

I’m fairly certain you can look in the dictionary and find my name listed as a synonym.

9. What movies have you watched recently? What shows are you watching?

I am currently watching the Hobbit trilogy with my sisters. Tonight is the Battle of Five Armies, which means lots of tears and yelling about completely unnecessary love triangles and fawning over all of the elves’ battle armor. I am rewatching Criminal Minds as well, and I love Dr. Spencer Reid. 

10. An event that you were looking forward to that got cancelled?

I have a lot of friends on the dance team, and their performance was cancelled, which I am still sad about. I love supporting my friends and watching them come alive on the stage.

11. What’s the worst thing that you’ve had to cancel?

I don’t plan things, so I haven’t really had to cancel anything, although I had planned to hang out with some friends and go to Build-A-Bear to make Baby Yodas. (Don’t judge, you know you want a Baby Yoda)

12. What’s the best thing you’ve had to cancel?

...

13. Do you have any new hobbies?

Nope. I mean, not really. I started cross-stitching kind of yesterday, but I am very bad at starting and keeping habits. Or breaking them. Or anything to do with will power really.

14. What are you out of?

At this moment, Midol. Which sucks.

15. What music are you listening to? 

Mainly acoustic covers of songs and a couple of different Ambient Space Sounds playlists on Spotify to keep me focused while I write or study or whatnot.

16. What are you reading?

Lots of fanfiction. A book called The Road by Cormac McCarthy. More fanfiction.

17. What are you doing for self-care?

Going for walks when I feel down. Stretching. Managing my workload into something that can be tackled a little bit at a time.

18. Are you exercising?

This shouldn’t be such a loaded question, and yet... No, I am not. I was, but I’m not. I should, but I’m not.

19. How’s your toilet paper supply?

All good! Just stocked up yesterday.

20. Have you made any changes to your hair during quarantine?

I wish. I keep seeing ads for razors and such on Tumblr and I am sooo tempted. But I’ve never had my hair that short and I’ve never done it myself. I feel like a Wookie, though, with my hair having grown out as much as it has.

Tags: @voulezvulcan, @nightlybirdie, @convenient-plot-device, anyone else who is really bored and wants to share.

[jbuffyangel]

It Ain't Nothing but a Family Thing: Arrow 7x17 Review (Inheritance)

“Inheritance” is equal parts necessary exposition and filler episode. Not quite sure how the writers accomplished that, but they did.

Let’s dig in…

Emiko and Oliver

Soooo… here’s the problem guys. I don’t really care about Emiko. The whole time I’m watching this plot line unfold I am thinking, “Couldn’t Thea have gone all evil?” 

Take a pause and give that a good think. How awesome would it have been for Thea to take a deep dive down the evil hole? It would have been amazing, which is why I loudly demanded it for the six years Willa Holland was on the show. 

Watching Oliver try to pull Thea away from the Ninth Circle would have been a good time.

Not so much with Replacement Thea. The problem is I just met Emiko this season. I understand that’s typically the case when it comes to Arrow villains, but I’m supposed to bond with her character as Oliver’s sister and then be horrified when she turns out to be a villain.

Arrow even tried to fast track my bonding by making Emiko into Oliver 2.0.  I’m not really seeing the individualism except for evil. Every week the writers were hanging a sign out that said, “SEE? SHE’S JUST LIKE OLIVER!” by mimicking previous OG Oliver Queen scenes. Just in case you missed any of the visual cues or copied verbatim scenes, the other characters are here to verbally proclaim Emiko is just like her brother. 

Eh… keep it. Unfortunately, none of this has accomplished Arrow’s intended goal which is for me to give a crap about Emiko.

It should be noted that when Arrow does the “SEE? SHE’S JUST LIKE OLIVER” with Mia or “SEE? HE’S JUST LIKE FELICITY!” with William (and vice versus) I love it. Yes, I am aware this is a double standard. Maybe it’s because the kids have more personality than cardboard. Sorry Emiko. Facts are facts. Maybe it’s because they are Olicity’s kids and therefore my investment is virtually guaranteed. I don’t know. I don’t care. It’s Season 7 and I’m gonna do me.

The only thing keeping me mildly entertained with Emiko is that she is evil. I’m not really interested in watching her be redeemed either. I know I know. The season theme is redemption, but come on! Someone has to burn in the fires of Hades for all eternity. It doesn’t mean anything if every character is redeemed.

Typically, I am down for Robert Queen flashbacks whenever possible, but in order to make this storyline work they had to turn Oliver’s father into a tremendous pile of stinking douchebag. Robert was always kind of a douchebag what with the whole killing a man by accident, lying about it and then getting embroiled in Merlyn’s plot to destroy half the city because of his guilt. 

But he had gravitas. The class of an elder statesman. Maybe it’s the silver hair and grumbly grandpa voice I pray Oliver Queen will have some day. Maybe it’s because he put a bullet in his head to save his son. Annnnd… also murdered someone else in the process. Alright. Robert was a douchebag, but he was a mildly noble douchebag and I love him okay? I DON’T KNOW WHY!

But the Robert Queen in “Inheritance” is a misogynistic, slimy, cheating, coward who kicks his mistress and love child out of the swanky apartment he was putting them up at and tells his daughter, “Life isn’t fair. We don’t always get what we want.” Wow. 

That’s a great way to create a villain, Robert. Watch Batman or Star Wars or ANY HERO STORY EVER and learn fool.

Emiko worked hard to get her father’s approval or acknowledgement of her existence to the world. She wanted to run Queen Consolidated, but nope that’s a man’s job sweetie. Oliver Queen and his penis, which was whoring its way through Starling City at the time, are destined for CEO.  Emiko takes Robert’s misogyny in stride and simply asks him to back a company of her own, but he balks at that too. This is the last straw in a very long line of straws.

Unfortunately, Emiko doesn’t tell her father where to stick it and cut off all contact. No, that would be reasonable. Instead, she decides to go super villain on him. She impresses Dante after stealing from him and he agrees to train her. Emiko vacillates between being a Queen and joining the Ninth Circle for years, but the final brush off from Robert is the tipping point. She decides Dante is right and the Ninth Circle is her real family.

Oliver follows Emiko after Bl*ck S*ren warns she may not be playing for the home team and he sees her with Dante. Oliver confronts Emiko and she sings some song and dance about not knowing who the real Dante was when she signed up with him. Now she’s trapped. It works. Oliver buys it hook line and sinker, because blindly ignoring blatant warning signs is what he does when it comes to the Queen family.

He smartens up once he figures out Emiko sabotaged Felicity’s Archer program to protect Dante’s location. DO NOT MESS WITH THE WIFEY’S TOYS. 

Oliver and Emiko face off in a fight that’s a lot about her ponytail. It had a life of its own.

Sadly, this is one of the worst fights I’ve seen in Arrow’s history. I really hope Sea Shimooka isn’t taking acting tips from KC, because it sure looks like it. 

WHO IS SHE LOOKING AT? I’m not putting all the blame at her feet. Stephen upped his cheese factor about ten notches too. The whole scene felt awkward, choppy and forced.

Source: smoakmonster 

Diggle sits Oliver down for a much needed Yoda talk. John warns him not to be so invested in Emiko’s redemption that he ignores the threat she poses. Ah yes, the evil sibling plot line also happened in Season 4 with Diggle and Andy. 

Yeesh, alright it’s time for this show to end. John’s need to save his brother ultimately cost L*urel her life and he doesn’t want Oliver to make the same mistake. 

It’s time you left yourself off the hook on that one, Diggle. 

It was all win from where I sat, so stop being so hard on yourself.

UGH.  I tell the man to be Jesus and then he starts acting like Jesus!!! The nerve. Oliver, being a fully realized superhero doesn’t mean you save EVERYONE. Jesus didn’t save every – never mind. The point is, after seven seasons, now the pine tree listens to me? He could’ve popped the question in Season 3 and I’d be on my way to a second set of triplets, but nooooo.

Oliver wants to redeem Emiko because then it means he’s redeemed the family in some way. 

Source: olivergifs 

Why isn’t enough that you’ve redeemed yourself Oliver? You’re a Queen. You count. Yes, you were a massive douchebag once upon a time, but you stopped sleeping with Lance sisters (thank God), fell in love with sunshine, and embraced monogamy & commitment like the squishy teddy bear with abs we always knew you were. You also fight for the city, save lives, and cook your pregnant wife yummy veggies to munch on. You’re evolved dude. Cut yourself a break. And Thea isn’t exactly the Mistress of Satan. She’s off saving the world too. Two out of three ain’t bad.

This whole “Right my wrongs” needs clarification. First it was the list, but it morphed into saving the Glades. Then Tommy died and things kind of snowballed. So, how many wrongs are we talking Bobby? Let’s get specific. We’ve only got 15 episodes left. Did you sell Iran nuclear weapons? Use Moira’s toothbrush and not tell her? Steal candy from babies? Are there a dozen more Robert Queen kiddos intent on world destruction? 

Time is a wasting. I have a spin off coming and it needs to not be about your bullshit man.

Team Arrow ultimately foils Emiko’s plan. Well… kind of. They miss one drone, but no worries! It was just a demonstration. They’re worried about the next time, when it’s not a demonstration, but I was more focused on the few extra tidbits delivered in the final moments of the episode

Not only does Emiko choose the Ninth Circle, she is their leader.

She is also targeting the Archer program, which means nothing good for Oliver, Felicity and their children. Despite, my frustrations with Emiko’s character I am glad they are tying this all back to Robert and the Queens. Family is where this story began and it’s where it should end. 

Dante gave Emiko a gift when she was struggling between being a Queen or joining the Ninth Circle. It was the most hilariously unrealistic looking invoice from Merlyn Global, but it showed the location of the bombs on the Queen’s Gambit. Emiko knew about Merlyn’s plan and she could have saved her father’s life if she simply passed on the information at their meeting. But he rejected her once more, so Emiko sent Robert to his death and unknowingly condemned her brother to five years of hell. Damn.

What Emiko doesn’t realize is that by keeping quiet about the bombs on the Queen’s Gambit she helped set her brother on a path to become someone who can stop her. In the immortal words of Leo McGarry, “ "It ain't nothing but a family thing.”

Felicity Smoak

Source: felicitysmoakgifs

Felicity wins Walter White. 

This is something many fans have been saying for years, including yours truly, so I am quite happy the writers agree.  

Felicity continues to slay at all three, but a key part to “having it all” is knowing when you need help. Felicity asks her friend Alena to join the company as CTO.  Look how excited this human rainbow is. She melts my heart.  

Source:  felicittysqueen

Unfortunately, I don’t really trust Alena. Yes, I know she’s helped Felicity in the past, but I still feel uneasy about her. Perhaps that distrust is unnecessary and her interactions with Felicity will continue to be adorable and on the up and up. But Archer is corrupted somehow in the future and I’m keeping an eye on Alena in present day.

Concerns aside, I did have myself a petty little cackle. Technically speaking, Felicity had a built in CTO for Smoak Tech on Team Arrow – Curtis Holt. Instead, the writers ship him off to D.C. and bring in Alena who, shady or not, is far preferable to Curtis. I just didn’t think Beth would agree with me. She’s like friggin Santa Claus.

The biggest issue I had with the spinal technology was it didn’t really connect to the Team Arrow storyline. A character feels isolated on their own show whenever that happens. My concern was Felicity’s great individual storyline was going to cut her off from the action. 

The genius of this season, and the retooling of Felicity’s company, is the writers have found a way to weave it in with the vigilante storyline. Smoak Tech no longer feels like an island they are placing Felicity on, but rather it permeates almost every facet of the show – both past and present. This means Felicity permeates every facet of the show.

Last, but certainly not least, Felicity continues to be a bad ass wife as she manages more Queen family drama.  The man is an Adonis who cooks, but oy does he come with family baggage. At least, Oliver’s reaction to this type of drama is predictable and Felicity doesn’t miss a beat.

When he comes back from the field empty handed Felicity knows immediately how to make him smile.

Source: olicitygifs

She tells Oliver he’s hot. That’s it. That’s how Felicity cheers him up.

He compartmentalizes and hyper focuses on stopping Emiko, but Felicity tells Oliver to take a beat and process. 

Source: olicitygifs

Of course, Oliver ignores her and becomes frustrated with the team when they aren’t moving fast enough. So, Felicity tells him to cool it. 

He ignores her AGAIN, but at least we are blessed with this glorious response. 

Source: oliverxfelicity

Where has this gif been for the last seven years? If Oliver is going to be a stubborn ass then at the very least his wife is going to drag him for it with some patented Felicity Smoak snark.

I think Felicity and Diggle have a system for deciding who talks to Oliver. Maybe it depends on circumstance. Diggle seems like the obvious choice because he had an evil sibling too. Maybe they rock paper scissors. Whatever the system, it was Diggle talking down their boy this week. 

We did, however, get some quality husband and wife crime fighting team work. YOUR OTP WOULD NEVER.

Source: olivergifs

After a long day of supporting her husband, incubating their child and stopping criminals, Felicity returns to the loft to work on Archer with Alena. And this was a light Felicity Smoak episode. Damn. Queen of DCTV is right.

Sweet holy Moses, how are we going to do ten episodes without her? 

I love Oliver Queen. He is my favorite character, but I think we can all agree Felicity Smoak makes him infinitely more tolerable. Oliver can be stubborn, grumpy pine tree left to his own devices. Hopefully, he’s evolved enough that all of Felicity’s hard work doesn’t go down the tubes the moment they are separated. He is supposed to be Jesus now. I think Slabside is evidence it won’t, but ten episodes without Felicity Smoak feels like a daunting task. It feels like climbing a mountain...

only to get stabbed in the chest and chucked off the edge once we reach the top.

Bl*ck S*ren

BS decides to follow Emiko and gets spliced with an arrow because she sucks at covert ops. 

Source:  nyssaalghl

She goes to Olicity’s apartment to speak to Felicity about her Emiko suspicions, but unfortunately the wifey isn’t home. Bl*ck S*ren turns to leave when she realizes the only person available to discuss her suspicions with is Oliver. I believe there's 0% chance of L*urel falling in love with Oliver and 99.99% chance she's already in love with Felicity.

Not to be outdone, Oliver offers to bandage up her bleeding wound. He takes out antibiotic and gauze and SETS. IT. ON. THE. KITCHEN. COUNTER. 

It’s a very large kitchen counter too, so it creates the wide berth these two require to stand being in a room together.  

 Source:  nyssaalghl 

We’ve gone from main love interest to stay on your side of the room. I died. 

I don’t know how we got here family, but we’re here and it’s fabulous. 

The writers are more anti L*uriver than I am, which is an impressive level of hate - if I’m being honest.

I need to put on a sweater whenever Stephen and KC film a scene because brr it’s cold! 

The L*uriver fans expecting sexy bandage time must have been deeply disappointed. Or at least the two fans left were deeply disappointed.

Of course, Oliver doesn’t believe BS because duh. My dog could’ve called that one. He tells her to mind her own business and pretty much kicks her out the apartment. Obviously, L*urel is right about Emiko, but Oliver telling her to shove it never gets old under any circumstances.

Then Dinah accuses her of murdering a witness 

Source:  nyssaalghl 

and L&urel is righteously indignant.

Of course, L*urel is right. It’s not like she has ever murdered before. Why on earth would anyone ever think that? 

Dinah even has the nerve to bring up her dead boyfriend again. She really needs to let this Vince thing go because L*urel played lawyer for the last seven months and helped get Oliver out of a jail. See? All better.

BS is redeemed now, so Dinah really needs to stop bitching. Arrow is my life tutor, so following that same logic I’m going to murder a baby and then buy a puppy because it will even the cosmic balance. 

The best moment is when Emiko releases images of Savior of the World L*urel L*nce meeting with Ricardo Diaz. 

Source:  nyssaalghl 

It’s going to be pretty tough for BS to keep up the pretense she is law abiding, justice yielding District Attorney L&urel L*nce when she’s hanging out with one of Star City’s most notorious criminals.  I take it back. Emiko is awesome.

Of course, I’m not delusional enough to believe Arrow is going to give BS an arc that actually qualifies as redemptive. Helping Felicity was a good start, but it doesn’t wipe the slate clean for me. Not by a long shot. Neither does being a fake lawyer. I would like to see L*urel pay for her crimes the same way Oliver paid for his by going to PRISON, but I doubt the writers will give me that much Christmas. I am very curious to see how “Lost Canary” shakes out. That said, I have very little doubt BS will betray her one true love.

Stray Thoughts

“Which doesn’t mean she’s bad.” I told you Olicity wouldn’t care Emiko killed Diaz. They brought the marshmallows to his bonfire party.

“On your own.” Stephen read that line super diva and it cracked me up.

“Being a father is more than just blood.” I hate to agree with a villain but damn he’s right.

Every time Felicity touches her stomach I happy clap. Source: olicitygifs

L*urel’s shoulder pads have to be stopped. Just say no wardrobe department.

Forcing me to go without this adorableness for an additional ten episodes is not oka. I’ll go through Felicity Smoak withdrawal which is hazardous.  Source: ebett

Does Emiko visiting her father’s grave make a damn bit of sense now that we know she played a role in his death? Nope. Didn’t think so.

Disclaimer: Any gifs on the blog are not mine. If you would like a gif removed from my reviews, please message me. 7x17 gifs credited.

If you’d like to support the blog, please buy me a cup of tea!

[smoakingskye]

So Runs The World Away Ch. 3: Just Set the Course North

Read on AO3 // from beginning

Rating: Teen

Chapter Summary: Felicity fights to get home. Oliver fights to find her. 

Chapter title from Josh Ritter’s Another New World

The guards have turned away as she finishes the algorithm. They chat about something in the corner of the room, neglecting their duty to watch her, to watch the screen, and to take her away when her work is done. It’s been a long day, and she doesn’t blame them. She almost feels sorry for them, before remembering where she is and what these people have done to her.

Her eyes flick across the room. Another man, another prisoner looks at her and nods just enough for her to see. She takes a deep breath and counts to three. The man collapses, the guards rush toward him, and she turns back to the computer.

She knows she has to act quickly, but she’s ready. She’s been waiting for this moment for too long, over 3 years too long. With a flick of her wrist, she types something in, breaking through a barrier designed to contain her work within this system in mere seconds.

A few more seconds, and she’s left her mark. Small, barely noticeable, but hopefully traceable. That’s all she needs: for it to be traceable. ARGUS will trace it. She knows they can. They will find her and she will go home.

Swiftly, she covers up what she’s done, replacing the barrier, hiding her mark. Hiding what she’s done as best as she can and still allow it to be traceable. She hopes it is enough.

It’s not.

They come for her that night. It’s not the first time they’ve beaten her, but she hopes it is the last. If they found out about what she did, maybe ARGUS did too. Maybe they found it in time. Her captors torture her for information, but she doesn’t say a word.

She’s determined to go home.

March 29th, 2024

“Oliver?” Diggle’s voice breaks through muddledness in his brain that comes from hours of staring at a computer screen. “Isn’t it about time you went home?”

He looks up blankly. “What?”

“It’s late, Oliver. You need to go home.

Pulling himself from his thoughts, Oliver struggles to remember what their plans were for the evening. “Donna’s there tonight, with Meg.”

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean you can overwork yourself here. What are you doing anyway?”

He rubs the back of his neck. “Working on things.”

Diggle sighs. “What ‘things’, Oliver?”

Oliver doesn’t look at him. “Take a guess.”

“So, not QI work at all.”

Oliver does not respond, turning back to the computer.

“You’re searching for her. You’re trying to find things that might lead you to her. Watching that damn security footage over and over again, looking for clues that aren’t there.”

Oliver slams his hand on the desk, allowing a brief moment of anger to show through. “What do you want me to say, John? That I’m not? That I’ve given up?”

“Oliver…”

“This is Felicity we are talking about. My Felicity. My wife. I will never give up. Not until I know.”

Diggle softens slightly. “Why tonight, Oliver?”

He leans back in his chair, looking up at the man he considers a brother. “You know I look every chance I get.” Cisco had set up the best scans he could on their systems. Curtis was working with him on setting up an even better system. Not as good as Felicity could have done, but it’s something.

Diggle scratches the back of his neck and sits on the back of the couch. “It’s different tonight,” he observes, clearly expecting a response.

Oliver sighs. “Today is show and tell at Meg’s school. Specifically, Dress-Like-Your-Hero day.”

“I know. You sent me the picture.”

“Yeah, and what did you notice, Digg?”

Digg gives him a look. “She dressed up like Felicity, Oliver,” he says patiently.

“She dressed like Felicity. Now keep in mind that Meghan has no good memories of her mother. She only knows what I’ve told her, only seen her in pictures. But Felicity is still her hero. And if there is a chance that I can bring her home, I am going to.”

“Ok, Oliver. But tonight, your daughter probably wanted to tell you about her day. You need to be there for her. You know she doesn’t sleep well unless you tuck her in.”

Oliver deflates slightly. He glances at the clock, telling him it’s after 9pm. He’d nearly forgotten about Meghan, and Green Arrow-ing hadn’t even crossed his mind. “Roy’s and Thea going out on patrol tonight?”

“Their day of the week. Looks like it’ll be quiet though. Go home, please.”

Oliver sighs, shutting down the computer. He’d said it before, and he’d say it again: Felicity was the only one with enough expertise to find someone who’d gone missing like this. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to stop trying.

Meghan hasn’t gone to bed yet when he arrives home, and Donna sits with her, reading storybooks. When Donna leaves, Oliver asks if she wants one more story before bed.

“No. I want you to tell me about Mama.”

Oliver expects this question now, but it still hurts sometimes. He’s told Meg something about Felicity almost every day for the past three years. He’s showed her all the videos and pictures they have, wishing there were more, and the little girl soaks it up for all it’s worth.

“What do you want to know, baby?”

She considers this, leaning back against her pillows and hugging her teddy bear to her chest.

“Did Mama ever get scared?”

Images flicker through his mind. Felicity in the underground casino on her first undercover mission, a gun to her temple. Felicity standing on a landmine on Lian Yu. Felicity behind the Count’s needle, Slade’s sword, Cooper’s gun, the prison doors in Nanda Parbat. None of them are memories he can share with his daughter.

“Yeah, baby, everybody gets scared sometimes. But your mom never let that stop her from doing the right thing, the brave thing.” He sighs, pretending to think hard. “I think the time I saw her the most scared, though, was when you were almost three months old.”

“Me?”

“Yes, you.” he snuggles down next to her on the little bed. Not all of the stories he tells have Meghan herself in them, but the ones that do seem to be her favorite. And he’s not lying either: as terrified as Felicity was when facing their biggest foes, this was the moment she was most scared of all.

“You got really sick one night. At first you were just crying a lot, really fussy, and your Mama was a little irritated because she was tired and didn’t know why you wouldn’t go to sleep. You didn’t want to eat anything and your diaper was dry. There was no reason at all why you should be crying.”

“What was wrong with me?”

“You had a bad ear infection. We didn’t know that for a while. Mama tried to put you to bed, and you just wouldn’t stop crying. Eventually, she went to get you and came back worried. You were rubbing your ear and you were breathing very quickly but not very deeply.”

“She was really scared then?” Meghan’s blue eyes are wide, much like Felicity’s had been on that night over five years ago.

“Not quite yet. She was a little worried, but not badly scared yet. She tried feeding you again because you hadn’t eaten much but you wouldn’t take your bottle. So she decided to take your temperature since your skin was really warm, and a few minutes later came running back into the bedroom because your temperature was very high. We decided to go to the hospital even though it was almost three o’clock in the morning. It’s a good thing we did, because the infection was pretty bad. They had to give you oxygen in a tube and an IV for fluids and antibiotics to fight the bacteria.”

“And that’s when she was really scared.”

“That’s when she was so scared she could barely breathe.” Oliver smoothes his hand over Meghan’s messy hair, smiling down at her. “The doctors were even a little worried about you, and your mom was crying and shaking and wouldn’t calm down. She was so afraid that she had done something wrong and we were going to lose you. This wasn’t something she could fix by typing on a computer. She had to sit there and watch you fight to breathe, this tiny little baby surrounded by great big machines and hooked up to lots of tubes and things.”

“But I was ok.” Meghan brightens, knowing that she (obviously) made it through that night.

“Yeah.” Oliver taps the tip of her nose, making her giggle. “Your mom didn’t sleep for nearly two days straight, until we knew you were going to be alright. She was exhausted, but she wouldn’t leave your side, because she was afraid something would happen while she was gone. When the doctors finally told us the antibiotics were working and you had made a turn for the better, she collapsed right there in the hospital room, sobbing uncontrollably. I promised to stay with you and Uncle Digg took her home for a few hours to get some rest. He told me she fell asleep in the car and slept for almost 12 hours before coming back to the hospital.”

“But she wasn’t scared anymore? Because I was better.”

“Oh, she still worried. For a long time after that, she was very protective of you if you were extra fussy for any reason. Whenever you got a cold in the next six months, she would fuss over you and fret unnecessarily. You were always fine, but she worried.”

“Because she loved me?” Meghan cuddles her teddy, knowing the answer but needing Oliver’s confirmation.

His throat tightens with tears, but they aren’t all sad. “Yes, Meghan. Because she loves you. She would do anything at all to protect you.”

“I’m glad she’s my mom. Even if she’s not here right now.”

Pulling Meghan close, Oliver lets a few tears fall, kissing his daughter’s head. “I’m glad too, baby. I’m so glad too.”

December 17, 2021

Oliver turns the rings over in his hands as he sits on the edge of his bed. The tears flow freely tonight, dripping down his face onto his shirt, but he doesn’t care.

Eleven Months. Eleven months since his Felicity, his light, his love, his light, was abducted. Almost a year, and all he has of her are her wedding rings.

“Oliver?”

Donna Smoak knocks lightly on the door. He looks up and nods for her to enter. Moving toward him, she offers a small smile that he doesn’t return.

“How are you tonight?” she asks, placing a comforting hand on his back as she sits beside him.

“I could ask you the same question.”

She scoffs lightly, causing him to glance at her. “It’s not my wedding anniversary, Oliver.”

Scrubbing a hand over his face, he draws a shaky breath. “I dreamed of this night. For the last eleven months, it’s been a personal delusion of mine that somehow she would find her way home today. That she would come back, whole and safe and unharmed and we would celebrate.”

“Oliver.”

“I know. It’s stupid. She’s not coming back. Ever. Especially not tonight.”

“Oliver, it’s not stupid. I have dreams like that too.”

He turns toward her, his wonderful mother in law. She smiles softly. The last year has subdued her vibrant personality slightly, but now more than ever he can see where Felicity got her strength.

“I don’t know if I can do this,” he admits, brokenly.

She rubs his back gently. “Oliver, you aren’t alone.”

“I know. But Felicity was… she brought out the best in me. I don’t want to fail as a father, as CEO, as the Green Arrow. I need her.”

“You know what she would say, if she were here?”

He shakes his head. The ache in his chest is making it hard to breathe.

“She would tell you that she believes in you. You are good, you are strong. Yes, she compliments you well, but you are a good man with or without her. If I’ve learned anything over these last few months, Oliver, it’s that you love wholly and selflessly. You’ve done that for Felicity, and you can do that for Meghan, if nothing else.”

“I don’t want to fail her.”

“You won’t Oliver.”

“How do you know that?”

She places her hand on his cheek. “Because I know you, Oliver. And I know my daughter. She trusts you, and so do I.”

April 10th, 2024

“Green Arrow, turn left on 9th Street.”

Oliver spun the bike left, tapping the com. “I have no visual. There’s too much traffic.”

“Six cars ahead of you. Black vehicle,” came the reply. Oliver could hear typing as Digg tried to get better visuals himself. “There’s a stoplight coming up. Swing right and take the alleyway to 10th.”

Oliver complied, hoping that Digg knew what he was doing.

“Speedy, you there? Take your next right and you might be able to cut her off.”

“Copy that.”

Oliver could hear the roar of Thea’s bike through the com as she sped toward them from the other direction. He skidded to a stop in the alley, cut off by a mess of dumpsters and no way over them. “Spartan, I’m held up. Speedy, do you think you can take this one on your own?”

“I guess we’ll find out.”

Oliver jumped off his bike, shoving one of the dumpsters closer to the wall, where it was supposed to be. It took him a few seconds only, but by the time he’d gotten back on his bike and through the alley, the car was gone.

“Losing the signal. Speedy?”

“I don’t have a visual yet. Do you know which car it is?”

“I didn’t get a clear reading on the license plate. Trying to enhance…”

“Spartan, I think we lost them.” Oliver pulls to a stop on the side of the road. “Give it up, Speedy.”

“You sure?”

Oliver sighs. “Yeah. She was just a low-life criminal anyway. If she pops up again, we’ll get her, but for tonight I think it’s lost.”

“Sorry,” Digg sighs. “I just don’t know how to do all this tech stuff right. I’ll call Cisco again and see if Curtis is free tomorrow to run me through it one more time.”

“Sounds good. We’re headed back.”

No more criminals pop up that night, and they turn in early. Oliver hopes the police caught their thief, but nothing comes in. It’s a small loss, but Oliver can’t shake the feeling that he’s had the last few years: without Felicity, team Arrow is just barely keeping its head above water.

April 12th, 2024

“Mr. Queen? You have a call on line one.”

Oliver barely suppresses his groan. His last meeting of the day had gone over by almost 45 minutes and his head is throbbing. There is a mountain of paperwork left, and all he wants to do is go home and spend some time with his daughter. With Thea and Roy on patrol again tonight, a relaxing evening in had looked promising.

Nodding at his secretary, he answers the phone, his tone clipped and annoyed, unprepared for the breathless voice on the other end.

“Oliver, we have a lead.”

His heart catches in his throat, even as his mind races to catch up to what the man on the other end of the line is saying.

“What? Who… Captain Lance?”

“We found something. Something came up and we found something. Well, ARGUS found something. I don’t want to get your hopes up quite yet but it might be her.”

Lance sounds like he’s running, making his words hard to hear, not to mention he’s speaking very fast. Oliver frowns.

“Her? Quentin, slow down. What are you saying?” He holds his breath, waiting for the answer. Lance has never given up on the search for Felicity. He’d liked her, a lot, thought of her as another daughter of sorts, and even after the SCPD dismissed the case, he’d continued pushing and searching as hard as Oliver had.

“Don’t get too excited, but ARGUS might have a lead on Felicity’s case.”

“A lead. What does that mean?” He can’t breathe. The throbbing in his head is drowning out all rational thought. Looking down, he realizes his free hand is shaking.

Lance pauses. When he speaks again, it is soft and clear.

“Lyla thinks she might have found the men that took Felicity.”