Chapter Text
“Mom really I’ll be fine! I can call a tow truck and the-”
Felicity sighed as, once again, her worrisome mother interrupted her, telling her that she could come give her a jump start on her adorable, if not a bit dated, mini cooper. And if that didn’t work, a ride home.
But the problem was Felicity didn’t want her to come for the same reason Donna Smoak- Quentin didn’t want her only daughter to stay and wait for a tow truck. Her car broke down at the edge of the Glades and that was enough incentive for Donna to drive down herself to retrieve Felicity. Felicity didn’t believe the Glades was a bad place per-say but it had some bad people in it. Not everyone of course as Felicity knew it wasn’t all those people’s fault they were hit by hard times.
She wasn’t naive to think all the bad was in the darkest part of town and all the good was in the brightest. Some rich socialites in Starling City were just as artificial as the light bulbs in the billion dollar companies they run. And some of those living in the Glades were just struggling to survive.
So, to ease her mother’s conscience, Felicity waited, leaning against the side of her baby and subtly watching the shadows. She understood why some in the Glades led themselves down the criminal path but it didn’t mean she wanted to be in the middle of that path tonight either.
Soon enough her mother pulled up in her smaller car, all legs, and high heels as always. Felicity smiled, comforted by the fact that no matter what her mother would be there, mini dress and all.
“My goodness sweetheart sorry I wasn’t here sooner. I’ve been here now for months but I still get turned around in that big city,” Donna said smiling brightly and embracing her daughter. Then she walked around to her trunk and pulled out the jumper cables as Felicity popped the hood.
“Mom it’s really fine. I just knew you and Quentin planned to go out this evening and I didn’t want you to go out of your way.” Felicity wished her mother would enjoy herself for once, now that she was a newly married woman.
“Honey, I will always be where you need me don’t worry about it. I wasn’t going to leave you out here in the dark all alone. Besides, Quentin got called in for a late shift, something about some rich man getting attacked or something. So we planned it for another night. Also, Felicity dear, it’s been three months. You’re allowed to call him your step-dad. And Laurel and Sara are your step-sisters!”
Felicity sighed, attaching the heavy cables to her car. She hated when her mother brought up the subject of their new family. It’s wasn’t that she wasn’t happy for her, far from it actually. She was glad her mother had finally found something to be happy about. She had no idea this would happen when her mother stopped by for a surprise visit, running into the head detective while they went out for their morning coffee before Felicity went to work. She also didn’t expect two very different people to hit it off so quickly. But next thing Felicity knew they were married, she had two new stepsisters, and everyone around her was asking what it was like to be the stepdaughter of a prominent detective and the stepsister to the city’s best lawyer. The timing alone made Felicity’s head spin and sometimes it was easier to ignore her lack of acceptance of the new development than discussing it with her nosy mother.
“Mom, don’t get me wrong I’m very, very happy for you and Quentin.” Felicity paused as her mother beamed and Felicity gave her a timid smile back. “But, it’s just gone by so fast I guess I just haven’t gotten used to it not being just you and me anymore.”
Felicity turned away from her, willing her tears away. It was no time for a pity party.
“Oh sweetheart,” Donna cooed as she held her daughter. “No matter what you’ll always have me dear. I know things have changed and I’m glad you don’t hate me for bursting into your life again. But you have to understand I’ll always be on your side and by your side. And if Quentin isn’t ‘stepdad’ to you then that’s okay too.”
Felicity sniffed, embracing her mother harder. “Thanks, mom. I’m just not ready for that yet. I love you though and I’m glad you’re happy again.”
“I love y-”
Both of their heads shot up and the clanking of metal from an alley across the street. Donna, placing Felicity behind her, started to push her towards her own car. But then, out of the shadows came a small cat and it darted down the street.
Both women looked at one another and dissolved into a fit of giggles.
“Come on honey let’s give you a jump and get out of here.”
A throat cleared behind them on the opposite sidewalk. Both women, startled, turned to find two burly men standing there in crisp, dark suits.
“Excuse me? Can we help you with anything?” Felicity asked out of sheer politeness but she knew these men meant trouble, no matter how nice they dressed.
Donna, however, hadn’t said a word, but pushed Felicity behind her again, almost urging her towards the street, away from the men.
“Gentlemen we’re not here for trouble,” she stated.
“We just wanted to ask you a few questions Ms. Smoak. Or is it Lance now?” The taller of the two had spoken first, his voice deep but it had a sarcastic tone as if laughing at the formalities.
Donna swallowed and pushed Felicity further back.
Felicity, looking between the two men and her mother, whispered, “Mom do you know who these people are? What do they want? How do you know them?” Felicity paused to take a much-needed breath.
Both men’s eyes were drawn to her behind her mother, and the shorter one smirked. “You raised a clever one Donna. Relax, we just need to know what you know. Tell us what you know about the Alpha Operation.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. If you’re referring to my late husband’s work I was never involved in that.” Donna’s voice trembled as she slowly tried to walk Felicity and her away from the men, who only moved closer with each step.
Felicity stared wide eyed at the back of her mother’s head at the mention of her deadbeat dad. The last she saw him he was walking out the door and that was the last she cared to know about him. She had asked that next morning but her mother told her that she didn’t need to know and could never ask again. And contrary to her curious personality, she didn’t. Because her dad left and her mom stayed and that had been all that mattered.
“Come now Ms. Smoak we only want to talk. We just need to know if you’ve discussed your husband’s previous dealings with A.R.G.U.S. to anyone else that’s all. There’s been a leak, if you will. Someone’s been trying to get information on the program, that was supposed to be shut down. Of course, that’s only one of many leaks we’re noticing lately.” The man paused in his speech to look them over once again before looking at his partner as they closed in on the women. “We just came to ask you a few questions.”
The man leaned forward, hands out, as if to present himself in an open and non-threatening manner. Which was contradicted by the gun Felicity spotted strapped to his belt. She swallowed before returning her focus to her paler-by-the-second mother.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about. My late husband rarely discussed his work with me. Besides,” Donna paused looking between the men before pointedly looking at their holsters. “I realized what happens to your so called ‘leaks’ a long time ago and I’m not foolish enough to risk the rest of my family.”
The taller man, who appeared to be the leader of the two, stepped forward again and smirked. He was only feet from them now and both women stood in the middle of the empty street. In the part of the city full of criminal nightlife, no one seemed to be out tonight.
“Fine, fine, that’s fine Ms. Smoak. Wonderful even. It does, however, make me feel a bit guilty doing this knowing you’re innocent. But you’ll just have to forgive me. We can’t risk any more leaks. You understand.”
Before Felicity could even utter a word both men pulled their weapons, firing on Donna. Donna had pushed her away, uttering one last ‘run’ before she fell to the ground within a growing puddle of her blood.
Felicity, given no time to grieve over her mother much less think, let instinct take over, and darted down the street. Running on adrenaline she swerved her run as bullets ricocheted off cars and brick beside her. She told herself not to cry, as tears would blur her vision, and she tried to stick to the shadows as much as possible, hoping to find an area with more people so she could get help. She hoped her mother was still alive, prayed that she could still be holding on, but knew it was hopeless. She saw her mother get filled with bullets, bullets that she would be filled with as well if she didn’t run faster.
Seeing one of the men gaining on her she darted down an alley hoping she choose correctly and that it would lead to another street on the other side. And for a moment she thought she would be okay because she saw a corner leading around the building, her heart threatening to burst from her chest in both fear and hope. But those hopes were dashed as she turned the corner and only found a wooden fence standing in her way and there was nothing around her to help her jump over to salvation on the other side.
The men , realizing she was cornered widened their positions, ensuring her only other escape route was closed off. Heart beating quickly Felicity looked around for some sort of weapon or some splinter in the wooded fence. Finding nothing but trash and dirt around her and a solid, inconvenience of a wooden fence she turned back to the men who had slowly been drawing closer to her. If she couldn’t run she would fight.
“Look, you look like a sweet girl but you understand. It’s my job.” The taller man shrugged like murdering people and getting paid for it was such a burden for him tonight.
“Well, I don’t really understand. Last I checked being a criminal has some pretty crappy benefits.”
The taller man laughed but while Felicity was distracted the smaller man had darted towards her and grabbed her, holding her still in a bear hug. She struggled but it seemed to no avail against him.
“Look,” the taller man, criminal, said, continuing their banter. “It’s not so bad. I get a roof over my head, good money, maybe even dental. All I gotta do is shoot you.”
Felicity doubled her struggles as he raised his gun to the side of her head. He was ready to pull the trigger until a noise from above froze both men. Felicity listened harder trying to distinguish what it was.
An air conditioner in the building?
A car?
No.
A growl.
Felicity’s eyes widened as she realized that this animal had to huge with the strength of this growl. She figured it might be a big dog and looked around the alleyway trying to spot it. But both men paid her no mind as they were frozen around her before they looked…up.
“Impossible,” the taller man whispered to himself. “They said there were leaks but they didn’t tell us anything about you. Did they send you after the leak too. A mauling seems a little excessive right buddy?”
Both men talked to the creature as if they were familiar with it. But they also sounded very fearful. And if these men were afraid then Felicity had no trouble being afraid either.
Felicity suddenly released an embarrassing ‘squeak’ as the creature, no, man, dropped from the four stories of the building above them, pausing in a crouch in the shadows.
“Hey look, if you want to take care of her you can. I won’t get in the way.”
The man, still covered in shadows, rose from the ground, the shadows falling away to reveal some of his features. Or at least the ones not covered by a dark hood. The most prominent feature still noticeable was a scar running down his face, from the bottom of his cheek up into the shadow of his hood towards his eye.
What happened to him?
Felicity continued to wonder who had done that to him, how these men knew him, how he could drop four stories and still stand. But then the man was speaking, replying to the men’s questions in a low growl in his voice.
“I will. And you won’t.”
Before Felicity could blink, the gun beside her head fell away and the man behind her let her go. She fell to the ground in the shock of him releasing her and she looked up to see the man in the hood ripping the gun away from the leader, his face contorted into a snarl sharp teeth and all. She thought maybe he batted it away but no, she watched again as he raised his arm for another strike. She watched his fingers. His claws.
Her hooded savior brought his hand down, slicing through the man’s chest and letting him fall to the ground before he receded back into the shadows.
Felicity watched in horror as blood spilled onto the cracked pavement, spreading out from the body. She wanted to know who this man was, what he was. She had just watched him fall from an injury-inducing height without a scratch, engage a gunned man in a fight and not only win but rip his chest open.
With claws…
Whoever this man, creature, whoever was he was dangerous. But it looked like he was on her side and she would not question that.
Her other captor was still standing, peering into the shadows in fear, trying to find him.
“Look,” his voice shaking. “I’ll be honest I know they didn’t treat you right over there. Like, nobody should have to go through that. But like, you’re their soldier. I’m on your side!”
The man sounded desperate, trying to plead his case. But after no response, he darted down the alleyway opening.
But he never made it.
Stepping out in front of her last captor, Felicity got a view of the hooded man in all his glory. He was tall and decked out in all black. No. Green? The color was still dark enough for him to blend into the night and was fitted to allow movement. He also held a bow and arrows on his back, which was an uncommon weapon and one he obviously didn’t plan on using tonight if the body lying next to Felicity had anything to say about it.
No, Felicity, he doesn’t have anything to say about it he’s dead.
Who was this man? Wouldn’t it be reported if a man in tights was running around the city?
Felicity came out of her thoughts just in time to see the last man go down, claws being slashed across his throat.
Both Felicity and her savior stood there in a stalemate for a few moments, taking in the carnage.
Then he looked up towards her, his eyes, under his hood at least, piercing her as she stared back.
“Who are you?”
She had to know. She had to know everything.
He stared at her a moment longer as if contemplating. Then, turning, her savior disappeared off into the night as sirens filled the air.