Authors Notes: First of all I just want to say sorry it's taken me so long to finish this. I also want to thank every single reader. The people following and reviewing this story has been overwhelming and I appreciate it so much.

But as this journey comes to an end, I hope to be writing many more Arrow and Olicity stories. As some of you will find out , if you read any of my 'future' stories, I try to stay as close to cannon as possible. Unfortunately cannon through me a curveball (a big one) and I needed to squeeze this fic in between 3.07 and 3.09. Hence SPOILER for episode 3.09 at the very end.

Please let me know if you enjoyed Fifty Feet South, as it was my first work in the Arrow fandom. All love and critique, welcomed. *hugs* Z.

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Oliver grinned to himself when he looked through the peephole. He had just had a shower and Felicity was still sleeping. He only had a towel around his waist, but that was even better.

He opened the door and pretended to be surprised. "Oh, Ray, they for me?"

Ray raised an eyebrow and looked just as surprised. He glanced over Oliver's shoulder. "No, actually, they're for Felicity. Is she in?"

"Ah, yeah, of course. Come in. We had kind of a long night, she's still sleeping."

Ray looked at him and the question was clearly in his eyes. It wasn't until he saw the pillow and the crumbled blankets on the couch, that he smiled and Oliver knew the moment had passed.

"Ray?" Felicity said as she hobbled out of the bedroom doing up her robe.

"You should be using your crutches."

"Shouldn't you be using your crutches?"

Oliver and Ray both spoke simultaneously.

Felicity looked from one to the other and shook her head. "I just heard voices."

"Oh, yes, sorry," Ray chimed in. "I just wanted to stop by and bring you these. See... chocolates, not flowers, I do listen."

Felicity smiled as she took the box from Ray. "My favourite. How did you-,"

"I pay attention."

Oliver excused himself. He needed to get dressed, but more so, he needed to not see Felicity look at another man like that.

"I pay attention," Oliver mocked as he pulled his jeans on. "Damn it!" He sat down on the toilet seat to hitch the bottom of the pants over his cast. He was so sick of it.

He had bought Felicity back the day before and they'd spent the night making small talk. He didn't want to bring up the phone call and the bomb just yet, although he knew she was pondering on it.

He walked out of the bathroom shirtless and enjoyed the look on Felicity's face. It was only brief, but he caught it. He had every intention of using whatever it took to win Felicity over.

"So," Ray asked. "How long are you in that thing for?" He motioned to Oliver's cast.

"Another two or so weeks."

"Right." Ray nodded and turned back to Felicity. "Anyhow, I better get back. Just wanted to see you up and about." He smiled at her and she smiled back. There was a moment, a second really where they connected and Oliver felt his stomach turn.

Ray kissed her on the cheek and moved towards the door. "Let me know if you need anything, okay? Anything at all."

Felicity's smile widened. "Will do."

He turned to Oliver and again, there was something in his eyes. It wasn't a question this time, but he did seem concerned about Oliver's ankle. "Look after that ankle. Keep it elevated if you can. Good circulation will improve recovery time."

Oliver nodded politely. "I'll keep that in mind, thanks."

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Ray closed the door to Felicity's apartment and unconsciously nodded his head. He should have put two and two together straight away, but seeing Oliver in the knee high plaster, jolted his perception. It was no wonder that crime statistics had spiked since the blast. The person, who helped keep it down, was out of action with an ankle injury.

As he rode down in the elevator it occurred to him just how much the Arrow had done for the city. Something he hoped to mirror in the not so distant future. The guy had done more good than harm, even if he was a killer. Killer... That was the something that Ray, couldn't quite get past. There was no doubt, regardless of the police's amnesty and despite his hero status that the man had murdered. Ray took in a calming breath, because he had to be truthful and compare himself. He knew that if given a chance to kill the man who'd snapped Anna's neck, he'd take it. Was he any different?

By the time Ray walked to his car, he was thinking about his time in the service. Was what the Arrow did, any worse than bombing villages just because the enemy had built military bases there? On mass or one by one, they were casualties of war. At least with Oliver's war, he could be certain that only the 'bad' guys died. Ray hadn't had that luxury.

He came to the conclusion, somewhere along the freeway, that he admired the Arrow. He even quite liked Oliver. Ray grinned to himself the moment that thought occurred. He was seeing them as two different entities. In a way, he thought, they were. If it weren't for the high tech gadgets on his helicopter, he would never have been able to confirm the Arrow as Oliver. And if truth be known, he'd made the mistake of believing the Oliver Queen playboy persona. It was the reason he could never bring himself to believe that Oliver was the vigilante.

Ray smiled to himself, as he reversed the car into his parking bay. He'd made up his mind. The drive had been a thoughtful one and he made a mental note to take the helicopter less often. It had given him time to have a couple of epiphanies that he may very well not have had.

The first was that the Arrow was not his enemy. Oliver on the other hand, was. He would not see him as a hero. He was just a man. More importantly, he was a rival and someone Ray intended to conquer.

The second epiphany was that Felicity was definitely worth fighting for.

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Felicity sat at the kitchen table and watched Oliver do the brunch dishes. It was kind of cute, the way he splashed around in the soapy water.

They'd spent the night talking about different things. He'd disclosed some things about his time in China and she'd shared memories about growing up as a rebel genius. It was a pleasant enough night, but Oliver had avoided any work topic and she knew why.

"Oliver?"

"Hmm?" He didn't turn from the sink.

"I want you to do for me what you did for Roy."

Oliver placed the last dish into the rack and wiped his hands on the tea-towel. "What do you mean?"

"I need to remember why I called you and I need to know why I was in the Krystal Building."

Oliver nodded, but she could tell he wasn't happy. "Maybe when you're fully recovered we could try it."

"Fully recovered my butt. Why not now?"

"And what a nice butt it is, too." Oliver grinned cheekily.

"Oliver, I'm serious."

Oliver's grin widened. "So am I."

Felicity bit her lip so she wouldn't laugh. "This is important, I need to remember. It might have something to do with the bombing."

"I doubt it," Oliver said. "Diggle called; apparently they have a 'person of interest', one Mario Gruller. Name ring any bells? Originally from Mexico."

Felicity made a face as she thought about it. She knew she was making it by the way Oliver was staring. "Nope, can't say that it does. But that's exactly why I need to remember. What if I do know him and-,"

"Felicity..." Oliver moved to the table and sat down opposite her. "This guy is mixed up in some sort of conspiracy. It has something to do mining rights."

Felicity frowned. "Mining rights?"

"Apparently. Mean anything to you?"

Felicity pouted and shook her head. "No," she sighed.

Oliver knew she was manipulating him, but she also knew it would work.

"Okay... If you really want to try this, I'll need to go back to the Lair and get a few things."

Felicity face lit up. "Don't you mean the 'Arrow Cave'?"

Oliver laughed and postured as if he hated it, but she knew he didn't. He stood up and offered her a hand.

She took his hand, but still over balanced, leaving Oliver to take most of her weight for a moment. She really did need the crutches he offered her. As she placed each one under her arms, she had a thought. "Oliver? How did you keep your plaster dry in the shower?"

Oliver raised an eyebrow and looked down at her full brace. "Umm... a garbage bag, but I think it's going to be a little more complicated for you."

Felicity furrowed her brow. "I don't think I can be trusted not to fall in a shower. I'll have to settle for a bath."

Oliver smiled. "Even that's going to be difficult."

"Nah, it'll be fine. You go to the Arrow Cave and get what you need. I'll be ready when you get back."

Oliver looked at her sceptically. "Okay, I won't be too long."

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Oliver knocked on the door to Felicity's apartment for the second time. In hindsight it would have been smarter just to take a key. The knapsack over his shoulder seemed to gain weight as he stood there. He knocked again and then froze.

"Oliver!"

It was faint, hard to hear through the door, but Oliver did. He dropped the knapsack and banged on the door. "Felicity?"

"Oliver, help!"

That was all it took. From Oliver to the Arrow in a split second as he kicked the door open and ran in. "Felicity?" he yelled.

"Help!"

Oliver ran to the bathroom and threw open the door. "Oh, god," Oliver said in a low tone. He rushed forward, initially pulling the plug from the bathtub and then supporting Felicity to sit up. "What on earth happened?"

Felicity was breathless, probably from the stress of keeping her head above the bath water. "I thought if I just rested my leg on the outside I could have a shallow bath and still be able to wash my hair, but..." She took in a couple of deep breaths. "I guess I didn't anticipate the weight and when I laid back I slipped further down and..."

"And you got stuck." Oliver looked sympathetically at her. He grabbed two towels from the rack and put them over her.

"I couldn't reach the plug to let the water out, so I all I could do was wait." A tear welled in her eye.

"Well I'm glad you settled on a shallow bath. Must have been scary." Oliver moved to place one leg in the tub.

"What are you doing?" Felicity asked as she tucked and fussed with the towels around her. They were wet and heavy.

"I don't want to drop you. Centre of gravity," he explained as he bobbed down and placed one hand under her knees and the around her shoulders. "Ready?" He smiled. "Hold on tight." He lifted and pulled her completely into his arms. He carried her from the bath to the bedroom and lowered her to the bed. "I'll let you get dressed and see what I can do about your door."

"What's wrong with my door?"

"I heard you scream for help. I didn't exactly have time to just pick the lock."

"Oh..." Felicity nodded. "Maybe I should have given you a key."

Oliver smiled. "Yeah... or maybe next time you need a bath, I don't go anywhere."

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There was a lovely smell in the air when Felicity came out of her bedroom. She was using her crutches, because she knew she'd hear about if she didn't. She smiled as she entered her living room. The shades were shut and the room was lit by four white candles. They were in the corners of the room and Oliver was lighting the last one as she came in. He'd moved the couches and the coffee table, to make space. In the centre of the room there was a bowl with incense burning. There was also a small silver goblet.

"Can you sit on the floor?"

Felicity furrowed her brow. "I know I can get down there, but I'm not so sure about getting back up."

Oliver smiled. "I think I've got that covered."

Felicity moved to the middle and used the crutches to help her descent. She still landed on her butt with a bit of a jolt and she made a face as the pain rippled up to her hip.

"You okay?" He took the crutches and placed them against the wall.

She held up a hand and took in a calming breath. "I'm fine. Just a pride thing."

Oliver sat down cross-legged opposite her. He handed her the goblet. "Drink."

She took it and brought it to her nose and sniffed. "What is it? "Smells terrible."

"It's a Chinese herb. It will help to relax you and free the conscious mind."

"Oh." Felicity lowered the goblet. Her eyes were a dead giveaway and she knew it. This might not be a good thing. "When you say, free the conscious mind, ahh, does that mean, like... will I have any control over what comes out of my mouth?" There were things she preferred to hide, even from Oliver. Truth be known, especially from Oliver.

"Do you trust me, Felicity?" Oliver's tone was quiet, but serious. He was looking at her and he really expected an answer.

"With my life," she answered simply.

"Then don't worry." He gestured for her to drink.

"Down the hatch," she said and then swallowed the bitter liquid like it was a shot. She resisted the urge to slam the goblet down and settled for putting it to the side. She looked at Oliver and shrugged. "I don't feel anything."

"Close your eyes," Oliver instructed. "I want you to listen to my voice. Let's start by breathing in and out slowly. In... Out" She could hear Oliver breathing with her. "In slowly... listening to my voice."

Felicity didn't really need encouragement to listen to Oliver. As he spoke and her muscles relaxed with every exhaled breath, Felicity honed in on his words.

"It's a Friday. You're working in your office," he started. "Something has sparked your interest or you've been asked to go to the Krystal Building for some reason. It's within walking distance and it's a nice day, so you walk the two blocks."

Felicity concentrated the best that she could. The drug, or the herb, or whatever it was, made her a little drowsy. She could picture the scenario that Oliver was coaxing out of her, but some of it felt more real.

"Andrew came in."

"Who's Andrew?"

Andrew White. He works in the mail room. I'd been waiting on some paperwork and he bought them up for me. "

"You're doing great, Felicity." Oliver praised in a low monotone voice. "Then what?"

Felicity blinked and opened her eyes.

Oliver looked intense as he sat across from her. "Go back to your breathing. Close your eyes. Listen to the sound of my voice."

Felicity did as she was told and tried to establish a breathing pattern. It helped, as other images started to flood her mind.

"What were you doing when Andrew came in?"

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"Bingo," Felicity said as she hit enter on her computer. She picked up a pen and jotted down the unscrambled data. "I love breaking codes," she muttered to herself.

There was a knock on her door and she smiled when she saw Andrew. He had a package in his hand and if she wasn't mistaken, it would be the data she'd been asking them to look for, all week. She sighed. Why people still insisted on using paper was beyond her.

Andrew's face was solemn as he approached her. He handed the package to her and she smiled up at him.

"Thank you, Andrew. I've been waiting on these. I hope."

Andrew nodded and started to walk away. He stopped, hesitated and then turned around to face her. "Are those about the Gardner Labs? Are we really going to start all of that again?"

Felicity frowned. "All of what, again?"

"The mining and the production of that alloy."

"How do you know about that?" Felicity asked. She was genuinely surprised.

Andrew looked down at his shoes. "It's no secret," he mombled.

"You think the alloy is dangerous?"

Andrew shrugged. "Doesn't matter what I think. Never has."

Felicity furrowed her brow and wondered what that was all about as she reached for the package. "As a matter of fact," she mumbled to herself, more than Andrew. "That's exactly what I am researching." She opened the papers inside of the package and sighed. It wasn't the documents she was hoping for. "Damn." There was no getting around it. She would need to go and find the report herself.

Felicity stood up from behind her desk and removed her glasses. She pinched the bridge of her nose. She had to find this report. When Ray had shown her the suit and told her what it was made of, she just had to snoop, she couldn't help it. It was in her nature. Now, she kind of wished she hadn't. Finding anything on the Dwarf-Star Alloy, was proving to be hard, almost impossible. What she did find out was that mining for the substance had ceased several years earlier, due to 'concerns'. The only reference to any study that named those concerns was in the lab archives.

"I am going over to the Krystal building now and when I get back I want to talk to you. I want to know everything you know about the alloy."

Andrew's complexion changed and he looked at his watch. "Why are you going there?"

"There is a report from a Dr. James, that might just confirm what you are saying."

"And if it does?" Andrew asked. "Will you stop it? Make sure they don't mine or use the alloy?"

"How do you know about any of this, Andrew?" Felicity asked, suspicion now tempering her tone.

"My Grandpa used to work for Gardner Labs in the 70s." Andrew disclosed, but didn't elaborate. "So will you?"

"I don't know about stopping it. It depends on what the problem actually is, but I can certainly make sure safety measures are put in place."

Andrew nodded. "Yeah, that's what I thought."

"What is it, Andrew? Why are you so-," Felicity's phone rang, interrupting her question. She pointed, indicating for Andrew to hang on a second, but by the time she'd finished her conversation and looked up, he had gone.

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Felicity's eyes sprung open. "Wow, this stuff really works. I could see all of that, like it was really happening."

Oliver smiled softly. "Concentrate. Don't lose focus. Then what? You went to find the report?"

She shook her head, aware of a dull throbbing behind her eyes. "Obviously I did, but, I don't know. I can't remember."

"Yes you can, it's all in there." Oliver reached out and touched her hand. "Just relax. Close your eyes again."

Felicity imagined the sun on her face and started to remember fragments. "I did walk to the Krystal Building and... and I was told to speak to this old Lab Technician. Apparently he kept their archive, too. I... I think his name was Charlie."

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"Hello, Charlie? I'm Felicity Smoak," she said as she walked towards him. "I'm Ray Palmer's Exec-,"

"I know who you are, Miss Smoak. You're the new boss's assistant."

Felicity felt her face flush. "Assistant... ahh... not exactly." She started to point out.

"Seen you on TV with that Arrow man, too. I keep up with things." He grinned at her. "What can I do for you?"

"The lady at the reception down stairs said you'd be able to help me locate something in your archive."

Charlie grinned. "Did she just? And what would that be, Miss Smoak?"

"A study by a Dr. James on the concerns around using Dwarf-Star Alloy."

Charlie froze. He looked at her and narrowed his eyes. "Why?"

"Because the mine has been reopened and I want to triple check that it's going to be safe."

Charlie grinned, except it wasn't friendly. "Why they send you, when they already sent that other girl?" he asked suspiciously.

"What other girl? Has someone else been looking for this study, recently, too?"

"Yep, pretty thing. Said she had done her research and it would be different this time" He looked at her as if she was to blame. "Both know that ain't gonna happen. Was never the mine that was the problem."

This guy obviously knew more than he was letting on, but he saw Felicity as just another corporate face of hypocrisy. She knew she needed to win him over. "Aww... How old is he?" Felicity picked up the photo frame on Charlie's desk. "This your grandson?"

Charlie smiled. Pride in his eyes. "Great grandson," he said. "He's gonna be two in January. January 28th to be precise. I haven't met him yet, but I've seen lots of photos. I'm going down there to see them in two weeks and three day. Finally bought my plane ticket. They live in Australia."

"Wow." Felicity felt a sudden twang of guilt. "That's fantastic, it really is."

Charlie nodded and his smile slipped. "Come on then," he said as he grabbed a large set of keys from behind him. "Maybe you'll be the one to really do something, who knows. Follow me."

"Why are you so sceptical about this?" she asked as she walked beside Charlie.

"We were hoping that things might change when Mr. Palmer took the business over. He bought all the labs and got Mr. Gardner to sell him the mine. Really thought he might do the right thing this time. But he didn't. To tell you the truth, I'm really surprised. He seemed like a decent enough chap"

Felicity was starting to feel really uncomfortable. "So... are you saying that the Dwarf-Star alloy is dangerous, too?"

Charlie stopped and turned to look at her. He shook his head. "Hundreds have died from it over the years."

Felicity sucked in a sharp breath. "I've read reports the mine wasn't the best, but I know for a fact that Ray sent a crew down there to assess it."

"Yep... Apparently it's in tip-top shape now, but that was never the point. They stopped mining the stuff for a reason. It's unstable."

"Unstable?" Felicity felt sick. This was not adding up. "How do you know all this?"

Charlie grinned. "Well, Miss Smoak, I-,"

"Felicity."

"Well, Miss Felicity... I'm 71 years old and I've been a Lab Assistant here for almost 30 years. It's quiet and there's not much to do for an old geezer like me, but they keep paying me, so I keep coming in. I was, however, around when that Dwarf-Star metal was first being mined."

Felicity's eyebrows rose. "Did you happen to know or know of, a Dr. Michael James?"

Charlie nodded. "Sure, everyone knew Mickey. He was one of the nicest guys. He was one of the lead scientists, but he treated everyone real good and with a lot of respect. Not like some of the others. Anyhow... All that stuff about Dwarf-Star caught my interest, so I kept track. Really did think it'd be different this time. Especially after that girl came around."

"How long ago was that?"

He scratched the back of his neck. "Don't know off the top of my head, 'bout a month ago, maybe. I had to check the box out, so I can give you the exact time and date."

Felicity was deep in thought when they arrived at the door to the Archive room. Ray had a report about people dying from this alloy? What the...? Felicity's heart started to thunder. She had helped Ray buy that mine. She sighed, counted internally to 10 and gave herself a mental slap. Ray wasn't like that. She shouldn't jump to conclusions. "Maybe he never saw that report?" she said out loud, absentmindedly.

"Here we are," Charlie said as started to unlock the door. He looked at her the way he did a few minutes ago. "Mr. Palmer was the one that commissioned the report."

"How do you know that?"

Charlie shrugged and pushed the door open. "That's what that girl said." His eyes widened. "Donna. That was her name. Donna Graham."

Felicity's mind searched for the name, having a photographic memory really was an asset. "She's one of Ray's research Assistants." Felicity shook her head and her heart skipped a beat. If Ray commissioned the report, then there was no way he wouldn't have seen it. This was all too coincidental and it didn't sit well with her. As if on auto, she did what she always did when in doubt. She called Oliver.

"Hey, it's me."

"Yes, me?" Oliver answered playfully.

"I need you to get down to the Krystal Building. There's a coffee shop on the 1st floor. I'll meet you there."

"Are you okay?" Oliver asked his tone switching instantly.

"I'm fine. Just... Could you come straight away?"

"Of course, sit tight. I'll be there in a few minutes."

Felicity ended the call and looked across at Charlie as he stepped up on the stool. She felt like she should be the one retrieving the box, but he grabbed it and handed it down to her, before descending.

The report was easy enough to find and Felicity couldn't wait to read it fully. From what her speed reading expertise could take in at a glance, she also couldn't wait to confront Ray with it. How could he expect people to work with such dangerous substances?

"Thank you, Charlie." She extended her hand to shake his. "You've been a great help and I promise. This won't be the end of it."

Charlie looked down at her hand and hesitated for a moment before taking it. "I hope so, Miss Felicity. I hope so."

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Felicity's eyes shot open and she covered her ears. "It's so loud! People are screaming!"

There was fear on her face and Oliver went straight into protective mode. "Felicity, it's okay, you're safe."

"I can't hold on!" Felicity shuffled back on her bottom and Oliver moved forward. "Felicity!" He placed his hands on her shoulders and made her look at him. "Hey!"

Slowly her eyes seemed to focus and tears started to well. "There was a bang and then there were people everywhere, but I shouldn't have let go," she sobbed softly, almost to herself.

"Shouldn't have let go of what?"

"Charlie! We shook hands and... and then... there was no floor. I don't know how, but I managed to grab hold of something and I had him. I had him, but the building was shaking and breaking apart. I couldn't hold on." She looked up into Oliver's eyes. "Oh my God... I let him go."

Oliver slid closer and wrapped her in his arms. He squeezed and kissed the top of her head. "That's not your fault. There was nothing you could have done."

"I could have held on," She choked out.

He must have said there was nothing she could have done, or something similar as least 10 times while they sat there. Felicity sobbed her heart out and he just held her while she talked and cried and told him about Charlie's great grandson in Australia. She described the falling feeling before she lost consciousness and how Oliver had been her last thought. He was rocking her slowly now and he could tell from her breathing she was almost asleep.

He couldn't reach his own phone, but as always, Felicity's was handy. He grabbed it and hit Diggle's number.

"Felicity? Everything okay?" Diggle asked.

"Hey, no, it's me. I need you to do me a favour. I want you to find as much out about an Alloy called Dwarf-Star and its possible uses. It seems that our Mr. Palmer is not such a Good Samaritan after all."

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"Update?" Oliver said as he came down the stairs to the Arrow Cave.

Diggle stood up from Felicity's station and smiled. "Good morning. I'm fine, thanks. How are you?"

Oliver wasn't in the mood. "Not great. Spent most of the night keeping Felicity calm and waking her from nightmares."

Diggle's face changed immediately. "Calm? What's happened?"

"She couldn't remember why she went to the Krystal building. I helped her."

"Let me guess. She was digging up dirt on Dwarf-Star?"

Oliver nodded. "Have you found anything?" He started to pace. "Why the hell would Palmer want it so bad that he would risk lives?"

"I can tell you that," Felicity said from the top of the stairs.

Oliver frowned. "You were asleep when I left."

Felicity lifted a finger. "That was over an hour ago and... Correction...You thought I was asleep when you left." She stared down the stairs and sighed. "I'm not sure..."

Oliver didn't need her to finish the sentence. He climbed the stairs to stand beside her. "Hold on tight." He picked her up gently and carried her down.

Diggle grinned. "You're still pretty agile with that thing on your leg."

"Comes off in one week," he said as he put Felicity down.

"I wish I could say the same." Felicity rolled her eyes and moved to sit at her computer.

"Okay," Oliver directed his attention at her. "You know why Palmer wants the alloy?"

"He's building a suit. A.T.O.M. It stands for Advanced Technology Operating Mechanism. He said he wanted to help protect the city."

Oliver glanced at her and turned away. He was angry, but unsure why. Was it that Palmer wanted to be a hero, or that Felicity hadn't said anything about this?

"In essence it's an alloy that, once manipulated, can... shrink things."

Both Oliver and Diggle frowned. "That's impossible," Oliver quipped.

Felicity looked up at him. "Really? We've seen a lot of impossible, Oliver. Barry, for instance. Ray definitely believes he can do this and I believe him. Some of his research is incredible. "

A spike of jealousy hit and Oliver curled his fist. "Maybe so, but at what cost?"

Felicity sighed and Oliver realized he sounded like he was blaming her. He was about to apologise when Felicity spoke.

"You're right. I don't want to believe it, but the evidence is stacked. I'm not sure if it's possible..." Felicity looked down at Oliver's ankle. "... but I think Ray needs to answer a few questions and I think the Arrow needs to be the one asking them."

Frustration boiled up in Oliver. "I wish I could. You don't know how much, but this would kind of be noticeable, don't you think?" He lifted his foot.

"I've got that covered," Diggle piped up. "Or should I say, Cisco has." Diggle moved to a box on the table. "This arrived this morning. Apparently he heard about your ankle." He pulled out the single content from the box.

Oliver grinned. "A long white sock?"

"Yeah, looks like it, doesn't it," Diggle commented.

"Oh, my gosh," Felicity squealed as she reached out and felt the fabric. "That's Polyphyso material. I can't believe he really did it. The guy's a genius."

"Did what?" Oliver asked.

"It's applications are numerable, but basically, if you pull the sock on it will form perfectly to your shape. It will kind of glue to your skin once you submerge in water. Once you dry it off it hardens, but not like plaster. It's thin, light and more importantly, flexible. It should give you almost normal movement, but appropriate support."

Oliver grinned. "I love Cisco."

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Ray was in bed when he heard the shattering of glass. He had hardly enough time to sit up, before he had an arrow pointed at his head.

"Dwarf Star alloy!" The Arrow bellowed. "It's killed people in the past and you know it. Why are you ignoring that now?"

Ray blinked and wiped the sleep from one of his eyes. "I... I'm not."

"The alloy is unstable."

"Correction..." Ray sat up a little straighter. "It was unstable. Not anymore. I've spent years and millions of dollars to get to this point. To make it safe." He swung his legs over the side of the bed and the Arrow took a step back. Ray looked down at the Arrow's leg. No cast.

"What do you plan to do with the alloy?" The Arrow asked. His gruff voice tinged with threat.

Ray sucked in a nervous breath. He had been so sure that Oliver Queen and the Arrow were one in the same person. Could he have been wrong? "It's an ingredient that enables things to clump together and..." Ray met the Arrow's eyes. "... and in effect... shrink."

"Why?"

Ray smiled, involuntarily puffing out his chest. "Think about it. I mean the applications are endless. Science, Technology, engineering and the medical applications are mind boggling. Maybe Fantastic Voyage wasn't fantasy after all?" He stood slowly and used his hands for emphases. " Imagine a brain surgeon being able to enter through the ear cannel and operate without having to cut through a person's skull? What if you could literally go in and search for pathogen cells. You could physically combat cancer or... HIV by killing the cells individually? Don't you see? This could change everything."

The Arrow stood silent for a moment and Ray knew he was weighing up his words and his honesty. "How could you have spent years making it safe? You only just received Dr. James' report."

Ray squinted. How did he know about that? "I only just learned about that report," Ray was honest. "Everything that Dr. James reported was true, but I had already discovered these problems and rectified them. He took a small step forward. "I swear, I've looked at and tested every safeguard I've put in place, many many times. There were things that Dr. James didn't realize or didn't have the technology to combat. There are other variables, but the main danger is when it's in its raw state. Constant exposure to the skin and/or inhaling it are the main health risks. Kind of like asbestos, but no one will ever touch or inhale it again. I promise."

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Oliver stared at Ray for another moment. There was no doubt in his mind that Ray believed he was telling the truth. The brightness in his eyes and the enthusiasm in his voice, made Oliver a little envious. This guy really could make a difference. Not only to Starling, but to the world. "Do I have your guarantee that no one in the mines or the labs will ever be put at risk?"

"You do," Ray said seriously and then smiled. "So does that mean we can be friends again?"

Oliver took off, jumping out of the broken window and tethering his way across to the opposite building. He looked back to see Ray watching. He couldn't help but grin when Ray waved. Damn he wanted to hate this guy, but he just couldn't.

As he made his way back to the Arrow Cave, Oliver thought about Felicity and the kiss he'd witnessed. Maybe she would be better off with someone like Ray? The chemistry was definitely there and he could give her the life and the lifestyle that she craved. Children and...

Oliver stopped at the top of the stairs. He looked down and Felicity looked up. That was all it took for his mind to switch gears and he remembered. He loved her too much to let her go.

"Well?" Felicity said in her usual tactless tone. "What did he say?"

Oliver put his bow and arrows away and moved to stand beside her at her computer. John moved closer and so did Roy. Oliver sighed. "I think he's on the up and up. Says he only just learnt about the James report, but he had it covered anyhow."

Felicity smiled and it went all the way to her eyes. "I knew it. I knew he was genuine."

"What now?" Diggle asked.

Oliver shrugged. "I guess we go back to looking for Sara's killer and for the bomber."

"Ahh," Diggle said, raising a finger. "I checked out this Andrew White, like you asked.

"You checked out one of my employees?" Felicity interjected.

"What did you find?" Oliver asked and turned to Felicity, waiting for the penny to drop.

"His grandfather worked for Gardner." Felicity finally put it together.

"Not only worked," Diggle informed. "He was the senior mining engineer. He constructed the conveyer belts and oversaw operations. He died fourteen years ago of lung cancer. Thing is though, he never smoked a day in his life."

"Then this is about revenge?" Felicity felt sick. "I thought the police were looking for that guy Mario?"

"Looks like. Mario was in New York at the time. Air tight alibi," Diggle responded.

A look transpired between the four of them and then Roy was suiting up and Diggle was loading his gun. Evidence pointed to Andrew being the bomber.

"I can't believe it," Felicity mumbled to herself. "He's such a... shy kind of guy."

"They say, watch out for the shy ones," Roy offered as he put his boots on.

"Ain't that the truth," Felicity agreed and started to tap at her keyboard. "No wonder Andrew was so curious about the mine reopening."

"Ready?" Oliver asked as he grabbed his bow.

Roy stood up and Diggle nodded.

He looked over at Felicity who was still looking at the screen.

"I've pinged his phone," Felicity explained. "He's on the corner of West and Ground Streets." She clicked a few more keys and continued. "He lives with his mother." She looked up at him and Oliver could already see the compassion in her eyes.

He reached out and touched her shoulder. "Don't worry. We'll make sure he's not with her when we bring him down."

Felicity smiled sadly and there was resignation in her tone. "See you when you get back."

He let his hand slide across her back as he left and caught up with Diggle.

"You haven't told her yet, have you?" Diggle asked, a lopsided grin on his face.

"No," Oliver replied and quickened his pace. "But I'm going to. I just... need to find the right time."

Diggle nodded. "Ah ha... So we're back to that again, are we?"

Oliver made a face and shook his head. "Shut up."

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It only took a couple of minutes to go by, before Felicity was doing her usual internal panic. Oliver was yet to make radio contact and she hated being out of the loop. Andrew's house was across town and even on the bikes it would take them at least seven minutes. She kicked herself for being the one to recommend radio silence when they were riding at high speeds.

"Where's Barry when you need him?" Felicity mumbled out loud. She sighed and hit a search engine key on her computer. She needed to distract herself for a few minutes. "Okay, Andrew White. How did you get the materials to make a bomb?" She typed and broke the firewalls within seconds.

As her eyes started to scan Andrew's banking details, her communication light lit up and she clicked her ear piece. "Oliver?"

"Yeah, we're here. Roy's gone around back and John's going to see if he can lure Andrew out of the house. Roy will handle Mrs. White if he can't. Is there a Mr. White?"

"Roger that," Felicity said in a professional tone. She pulled up a photo and some basic information. "Umm, no. He died in a car crash in 2004. Hmmm... He was a Marine, Special Opps."

"That could explain why Andrew knew how to build a bomb," Roy chimed in.

"Mrs. White is 61 and teaches Veterinary Science at a local college. First name Julie. I think she's-,"

"I'm in position," Diggle interrupted. "Ready to knock."

"I'm at the back door," Roy added.

"Okay, John," Oliver instructed. "You're on."

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"Ahh, hello, Mrs. White, is it?" Diggle asked, when the main door opened.

"Yes?" She squinted suspiciously through the screen door.

"I was looking for Andrew, I understand he lives here?"

"Who are you?"

"My name's John Diggle. I work with Andrew's boss Felicity. I was wondering if I could just have a word with him?"

"What's going on, Ma?" Andrew called from behind the door and then walked to stand beside her. Andrew looked a little confused. "Oh, Mr. Diggle," Andrew said as he opened the screen door. "Come in. What are you doing here?"

"You know this man?" Mrs. White asked, looking between the two of them.

"Yeah, Ma, this is Oliver Queen's Chauffeur."

Diggle raised an eyebrow and tried not to grin. It really was a good cover. "I just need to speak to you for a couple of minutes, if that's okay?"

Andrew swiped back his hair. "Ahh, sure. What is it? He gestured to a chair for Diggle to sit down.

"Well, actually. I need you to look at a couple of security photos. There on my laptop, but the darn thing has gone dead. It's charging in the car." He gestured. "Would you mind? Only take a moment."

"Security photos?" Mrs. White questioned.

"Yes." Diggle had to think quickly. "A package has gone missing and we've captured an image. We'd like to know if Andrew remembers seeing him."

Andrew nodded. "Okay, well, let me just get some shoes on."

"Sure," Diggle said with a smile.

Mrs White watched Andrew walk into the bedroom and then crossed her arms. "Must be some important package?"

Diggle could tell that Mrs. White was not buying any of this. "Apparently," he said and continued to smile.

"Okay, I'm ready." Andrew walked back out, but Mrs. White grabbed him by the forearm.

"Hang on a second," Mrs. White said and squinted her eyes at him. "You spent any time in the military, son?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Thought so. Can tell by the way you hold yourself." She held up a finger. "Could you just wait here for one second? I have something I want to show you."

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"What the-?" Felicity hit a few more keys. She switched the frequency and brought Oliver over, too. "Oliver? Are you there? There's something strange about this."

"About what?"

"Well first off, there is absolutely nothing unusual about Andrew White's bank accounts. Usually you find something. Some trace of where he's spent money. But unless he's buying bomb parts from Subway and Savers, he had to have some other way of funding this. No large withdraws. I mean, this stuff isn't cheap, so he needed to have had a backer or he's really and I mean, really good, at hiding money."

"Hang on. I'm getting in closer. Mrs. White just closed the front door. Patch me back to Diggle's feed."

She hit the frequency button, but didn't notice the warning light as she switched screens to bring up more detail on Andrew's life. She knew something was up. She didn't know how, but she did. "Oh, and what is this?" Andrew's mother had a sealed file and it was sealed good. Felicity was having real trouble breaking through the barriers to get it to open. Someone sure did want this to be kept secret. "This has military written all over it," Felicity said out loud.

"Oliver? I think I've found something."

"Felicity? You're—break- up."

Felicity tapped her ear piece and realized the warning light on the control panel was flashing. It meant that the power was out. Everything was being run on their backup generators. She switched to the local news and there had in fact been a localized power failure. It appeared that a truck had bought down overhead powerlines and it had caused a short, taking out a five block radius. "Oh, boy." Thea was going to be so pissed. The club was not opening tonight.

"Oliver, there's been an accident near base. All the power's out. We're running on the generator. It has a tendency to mess with communications."

"I think Diggle's in - ble."

"Oliver? Say again, I didn't catch that."

There was static on the line and she could only hear Oliver. Where the hell was John or Roy for that matter?

"I'm going in," Oliver said.

"Oliver, wait!" Felicity yelled, but a second later the static grew so loud that she needed to remove her ear piece.

She sighed as she looked back to the screen. The document had finally opened. "Oh shit."

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Oliver scouted the White's living room and what he saw made him pause. If things weren't so serious, he would have laughed. Both Diggle and Roy were tied up on the couch and their mics were on the floor, smashed. It wasn't just the power lines that had caused radio problems.

"Felicity, can you hear me?"

No answer, only static. How could this have happened? Andrew had gotten the best of both of them and was pacing the room with a gun in his hand. He looked like he was ranting. Mrs. White was sitting opposite the window, very still and looking a little pale.

There was no two ways about it. He would need to go in hard and bring Andrew down, before he could fire a shot.

As he came through the window a shot rang out. He had expected for Andrew to be able fire off at least one shot, but Oliver had calculated its trajectory. It should have missed. He grabbed at the sharp pain that going through his thigh as he fell straight to the floor. His hand slipped from the blood on his glove as he flipped over to pull an arrow from his quiver. It made that spit-second difference and then he was kicked in the face.

Lights out.

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"Oh my God, Ma. Why is this happening? I shouldn't have got you involved." Andrew swiped back his hair and stared at Oliver, unconscious on the floor. "There is no way out of this, now. That's the Arrow."

"I know who it is," Mrs. White snapped back.

Diggle couldn't believe what he was hearing. How could they have gotten it so wrong?

"I shouldn't have told you, Ma. I should have kept my bloody mouth shut." Tears welled in Andrew's eyes. "If I had, none of this would have happened." He flopped down beside his mom. "I don't know what to do."

"Put a tourniquet on his leg, for one thing." Diggle jutted his chin towards Oliver. "That bullet hit his thigh, which means it could have hit an artery. Don't let him die, Andrew. That's first degree murder."

Andrew frowned and looked over at Oliver, like he was weighing it up.

"Please, Andrew. Don't make this worse," Diggle pleaded. "Just put it on, so at least there is a choice. If he dies, because-,"

"Shut up!" Andrew screamed and stood up. He looked back at his mom as if for approval and grabbed a towel and some more rope. He took hold of Oliver by the leg and placed the towel on wound, tying it on with the rope.

He stood up and looked over at his mom. "There's only one choice here."

Mrs. White narrowed her eyes. "And what would that be?"

"Tell them that I did it. I built the bomb because they wouldn't listen. There was no way I'd let them kill others like they did Granddad."

Mrs. White stood up and smiled. There were tears in her eyes, too. "I love you and I'm the one that should be sorry, but you're not going to jail. No one is. We're sticking to the original plan. You were home with me, when the bomb went off."

"Maaa..." Andrew said in whiney voice. He looked at him and Roy and then down at Oliver. "What happens to them?"

"Casualties of war," Mrs. White said as she raised the semi-automatic pistol in her hand. She pointed it at Roy and Diggle spoke quickly.

"Wait, Mrs. White... Julie... Please don't do this. There's another way, we-,"

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Oliver's head throbbed for the few seconds as he listened, trying to get his bearings on what was going on. Playing dead was a tactical advantage, but then...

"Hey!"

Oliver's eyes shot open. Felicity? He could barely believe what he was seeing as she swung her crutch to Mrs. White's head and it connected with a loud crack.

Mrs. White staggered, but recovered quickly. Too quickly. Felicity lunged forward and then they were fighting for a gun. They both had hands on it when Mrs. White, snatched, spun and broke free. The gun fell from her hands and then she kicked out at Felicity's leg. It connected, but her foot met with solid plaster instead instead of bone.

Ouch, Oliver thought as he drew his bow and pointed it at Andrew. "Enough!" he yelled.

Felicity took the moment of distraction to do a roundhouse kick, of sorts, to Mrs. White's knee. That plaster really could do some damage with very little force and Mrs. White went down straight away.

Felicity grabbed the gun from the floor and pointed it at her. "Mrs. Julie White. Veterinary Nurse. College Educator, Animal Behaviourist and Bomb Expert." Felicity was breathing heavily, her hand trembling from the adrenaline. "She trained some of the first dogs used as bomb detectors in Nam. That's how she met her husband. I'm not sure if Andrew had anything at all to do with this, but she's our bomber."

"He didn't." Mrs. White went into mother mode. "Please... All he did was tell me the alloy was being mined again. I did the rest. He knew nothing until the bomb went off." She started to weep. "You have no idea what that stuff can do and how many people it's affected. But nobody listened. Nobody paid any attention. This was the biggest cover up since Agent Orange."

While Oliver managed to get himself close enough to undo Diggle's hands, Felicity grabbed Mrs. White by the forearm and encouraged her to her feet.

"That maybe so, Mrs. White, but over 400 people lost their lives on one day. For what? So you could make some sort of point?"

Mrs. White looked at Felicity, tears streaming down her face. "You have no idea the agony my father went through."

Felicity nodded and started to march her out of the front door. "You have no idea how many memories a little boy in Australia will never have."

Oliver glanced across at Diggle as he helped release Roy. He smiled, a sense of pride filling his heart as he watched Felicity escort the woman away, broken leg and all. "I love that girl."

Diggle looked at Roy and answered for both of them. "We know. Just wish you'd let her in on it."

Oliver nodded, his smile not slipping. "Yeah, when the time is right."

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No one, including Oliver, could ever have guessed when that would be.

Especially not, as he walked away to fight a deadly duel with Ra's al Ghul.

As it turned out. Diggle was right. There never really was, 'a right time.'

THE END.