Your Forgiveness

CONTENT:
Rating: Teen
Flavor: Drama
Language: no
Violence: no
Nudity: none
Sex: none
Other: none

Author's Note:

And so we come to the last chapter of Green & Black: Recurve, and the last installment of the Green & Black story conceived in 2013. It's been a part of my life for so long now, it feels surreal saying goodbye.

There will be more Arrow (well, Dark Archer, let's admit) fics from me. In fact, I have another one queued up to post right after this. "Shattered Stones" is also going along well, now that my writing schedule isn't dominated by G&B. Except the piece I lost... :X

I hope you enjoyed the story! (If not, why did you suffer through it all the way til now...!?) Thank you for coming along for the ride. Enjoy!

It's time for forgiveness.
It's time to repent.
Time for a sentence;
To live without revenge.
We'll never be together.
It's time to face the truth.

You tell me
we could make it last forever.
Destiny
couldn't seal our fates together.
There's a time for anger;
'cause I still bleed from your last kiss
The war is over;
and all I need from you is this:

- Your forgiveness!

(The Rasmus)

Surrender

==#==

Early morning sunlight painted the world in white gold. Malcolm's breath plumed in the chill air. Scattered leaves of ochre and rust crunched under his feet. He bent to brush a few from the base of the gravestone before laying down his offering, three rain lilies and a scarlet lily. Then he knelt, heedless of the cold ground.

"Rebecca." Malcolm breathed her name as his fingertips brushed the polished stone. "I..." How to explain everything? "I've been so lost without you here. I've made so many mistakes." Starting with Tommy, ending with Moira. Escalating over the years, culminating in the murder of his friends. Robert, and Frank.

"I don't... know if you can forgive me," he grated out, his sorrow choking him. "I can't forgive myself..." He took a breath, blinked to clear his blurry vision. "But I promise you, I will make up for everything, no matter what it takes."

He reached into his vest pocket and pulled out the MP3 player with Rebecca's message on it. He turned it in his hands, gripping it hard so the edges pressed into his skin. "Tommy says I need to move on. I don't know if I can. Your pain... I've kept it close to me, all these years. Can I let it go? Do I deserve to? Rebecca, I'm so sorry. I want to be the man you saw in me, the man worthy of your love, but I don't know how to be those things any more.

He squeezed the player in his left hand with all his strength, potentially enough to break it. But no. It was solid and sturdy. The edges were rounded; they wouldn't even cut his skin.

He recalled the panic he had felt when Tommy had threatened to smash it. He'd feared losing his last tangible link to Rebecca. But... Tommy was right. When he focused on her death, he forgot about her life. He forgot about her.

Every time he listened to this, he killed her again.

He leaned forward and clawed at the thick grass at the base of the stone. He pulled up clumps of dirt, then put the player in the shallow little hole without looking at it. Rest in peace, my Love.

It hurt. He pressed the back of one wrist to his cheek, rubbing away the tears, clumsily, because his hands were dirty and cold.

"Moira says," he started again, his voice thick, "you were a healer. I should pay for my mistakes by honoring your pledge to do no harm, to give life, instead of taking it." He hung his head, shoulders slumped. "But I can't. Some people give - like you; you gave so much to the world, so much to Tommy and me." He gulped.

After a moment, he went on. "Some people are warriors. I'm a killer, my Love, not a healer. But sometimes healers need a guardian. This I swear, I will use my strength and skills to protect the good people of this city, of the world. To defend those who cannot defend themselves."

He placed his hand flat to the gravestone, feeling it grow warm under his palm. He bowed his head. "I will fight to make this world a better place, the way you wanted it to be.

"I love you. I always will."

He sat back on his heels, blinking away the last of his tears. His gaze fell on the scarlet lily. They were so delicate, easily bruised. Next to the rain lilies, it looked wilted.

He picked it up, cupped the flower in his palms. He exhaled upon it gently, trying to impart warmth. Its colour seemed to brighten, at least momentarily.

The Undertaking, he realized, needed new life breathed into it. Wholesale destruction of the Glades was wrong, he saw that now, but the end result, his dream of a better city, was truly a goal worth pursuing.

He rose and tucked the lily into his breast pocket. It would be a long hard road, but Malcolm Merlyn feared neither hardship nor time.

"I will make this city a better place. And I will be a better man."

===xXx===

End Notes:

Yes, the rain lilies and scarlet lily have a special meaning in the dictionary of flowers. No, I'm not going to tell you what. That's for the motivated to discover and enjoy on their own.

Oh, and there are rumors about G&B Season 3. Well. Um. There can't be, because what would it be called? Nope, can't be a story without a title! Besides, G&B enjoyed its popularity mainly when Malcolm had left the show. Now that he's back, everyone can just enjoy the series for their Malcolm Oliver Enemy Mine trope!