Disclaimer: I do not own arrow or anything else that you read here in this fic. The transcripts aren't mine either.

This fic was inspired by Changing Tides by Stand_with_Ward_and_Queen. If you haven't read their work before, I would definitely recommend it. I hope you enjoy this fic! Also, this story is not for Olicity shippers. There will probably be some minor Felicity bashing later on. Anyways… on with the story!

When Laurel woke up, she wasn't entirely sure where she was. Her head ached and the world around her spun. Blinking her eyes open, she finally was able to pull herself into a sitting position and look around the room. On the floor across from her Thea and Tommy, as well as two other people she didn't know lay sprawled across the floor. One of the strangers was the first one to come to. He shot up in an instant looking out at all the people. He wore a red hoodie and had dark brown hair. After that Thea began to wake, then Tommy, then everyone everyone was finally awake, Laurel thought it was time to figure out what the hell was going on.

"Ummm where are we?" She said to no one in particular.

"I have no idea. Are you ok Laurel?" Tommy asked.

"Yeah I'm fine," Laurel responded.

Suddenly, two doors at the end of the room opened and someone in a black suit came in. She had a black mask on and her hair was clearly a blonde wig. A bow staff was gripped tightly in her hands and several knives were hidden within her costume.

"Who the hell are you?" The boy in the red hoodie asked.

"Hello Roy," She said calmly. Her voice was mechanical. A voice modulator sat on her belt distorting her voice.

"How do you know my name?"

"I know all of your names." She responded simply, as if that would answer all of their questions. "I'm a member of the Justice League. You have all been brought here to change the future. To make things right. Your connection to the first hero is why you've been brought here. You all are special to him, either now or in the future."

"And how exactly would you know that?" Thea asked confused.

"Because i'm from the future."

"The future? That's ridiculous." Laurel scoffed. The woman in black smiled.

"Follow me," She said turning to walk out of the room.

"How do we know we can trust you?" Laurel asked disbelievingly. The woman in black stopped a couple feet from the door. The five captives heard her draw in a deep breath before pulling back the blond wig and taking off her mask. As she turned around everyone gasped. In front of them was an older version of Laurel. Her hair bounced on her shoulders. A couple gray streaks in the once chestnut color. She seemed older. More tired. Her eyes lacked the gleam that the present day version had.

"How?" Tommy asked confused. The older Laurel gave a sad smile.

"Just follow me ok?"

Everyone nodded and followed her out of the room. They went through a couple winding hallways before going into a small room. A projector hung over head and several couches and chairs were littered around the room.

"Wait, are we here to watch tv?" Thea asked confused.

"Sort of. Your going to watch the story of the very first hero. What you'll be watching is the memories of everyone who watched it happen."

"Ok. How does this work?" One of the strangers asked. The elder Laurel walked over to a small table and picked up a remote before handing it to him.

"It works like a regular tv or move, except everything in this actually happened. I suppose you'd all like to know who each other are." She said.

Everyone nodded.

"I'm John Diggle. But you guys can call me Dig if you like." One of the strangers said.

"I'm Tommy."

"Laurel"

"I'm Laurel."

"Thea Queen"

They boy in the red hoodie scoffed.

"What was that for?" Thea demanded in offense.

"Nothing. Your highness," He drawled.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"You don't care about anything. You're just a stuck up rich bitch."

"Hey!" Tommy yelled walking over to where the boy was.

"Enough. You guys will behave understood?" The older Laurel said sternly. Everyone nodded. "Great. That's Roy since he didn't actually introduce himself. And to avoid confusion, you guys can call me Dinah. Now that that's over you guys should start. If you need anything, just call out and someone will be with you as soon as possible." she said motioning to Diggle who started the recording before she walked out of the room.

A figure runs through a forest breathing heavily as he went. He was jumping over fallen trees and other obstacles. As he reaches the edge of the forest, the figure can clearly be made out as a man, wearing a green hood.

"Wow he looks like he's been there a while." Tommy commented noticing how gruff he appeared. Everyone nodded taking in the sight of the man.

He scrambles up a sheer rock cliff face and, as he comes to the top, the face finally comes into view.

"Ollie?" Laurel whispers as she takes in his appearance. She was somewhere between shocked, happy, and furious at the sight of her supposedly dead ex-lover.

"It… it can't be. That's not possible. Ollie's dead." Thea stammered staring at the screen. Her brother was alive? Tommy meanwhile sat there in shock unable to say a word.

Oliver peers over the top of the cliff to the bay, and spots a small fishing vessel. Quickly, he runs across the cliff and back into the woods, where supplies lay wrapped in a cloth. He takes out his bow, and an arrow with a tip covered in tar. Using a knife, he lights the arrow head on fire. He took a moment to aim. Then he let the arrow fly into a premade signal on the beach, which explodes into a ball of fire.

"Cool," Tommy says under his breath.
"That takes a lot of training," Diggle notes. "Was he able to do that before?"

"No." Was all Laurel could say.

On the fishing boat, the two man crew notice the fireball and head towards shore to investigate. As they come onto the shore, they walk past a ragged looking mask on a post. It was half black and half orange, and an arrow was stuck through the right eye hole. "The name of the island they found me on is Lian Yu." Oliver's voice said. "It's mandarin for purgatory. I've been stranded here for five years, I've dreamt of my rescue every cold black night since then. For five years, I have had only one thought, one goal: survive. Survive and one day return home." Oliver fell to his knees in front of the two fisherman and slowly let down his hood. His face was filthy, his hair and beard matted with dirt and grime.

"Oh my god, Ollie," Tommy said under his breath.

"How is it exactly that you guys know him?" Roy said boredly.

"He's my brother," Thea said quietly tears flowing down her cheeks. Tommy put an arm around her giving her a hug as the memory continued.

Now on the boat, Oliver sat on the deck. A blanket was draped over his shoulders. One of the fisherman brought him some tea to help warm him. "The island held many dangers. To live, I had to make myself more than what I was, to forge myself into a weapon. I am returning not the boy who was shipwrecked but the man who will bring justice to those who have poisoned my city. My name is Oliver Queen."

Thea shivered at the thought of what her brother may have gone through on the island. As Laurel wondered what Oliver could possibly mean by 'justice'. Roy rolled his eyes at the proclamation. Clearly this Oliver guy didn't know what he was talking about.

"Oliver Queen is alive." the newscaster announced. "The Starling City resident was found by fishermen in the North China sea five days ago, five years after he was missing and was presumed dead following the accident at sea which claimed 'The Queen's Gambit.'" The screen changed from a picture of the boat to a video of a drunk Oliver. "Queen was a regular tabloid presence and a fixture at the Starling City club scene. Shortly before his disappearance, he was acquitted of assault charges stemming from a highly publicized drunken altercation with paparazzi."

"And rightfully so!" Tommy yelled. Everyone looked at him in annoyance. "Sorry. Continue." He said his cheeks flushing red.

"Queen is the son of Starling City billionaire Robert Queen, who was also on board but now officially confirmed as deceased."

Thea let out a sob. Up until now she had been holding out hope that her dad was also coming home. That he would walk in any second and things would go back to how they used to be. Tommy let a single tear fall from his face. He had spent a lot of time at the Queens' and had thought of Robert as a father figure before he died.

"20 percent of his body is covered in scar tissue. Second degree burns on his back and arms. X-rays show at least 12 fractures that never properly healed." Dr. Lamb was saying.

Thea only began to sob harder as she listened to the doctor describe her brother's condition. Tommy closed his eyes in sympathy. He couldn't even imagine what Oliver had gone through. Laurel felt the anger begin to replace with concern as she heard the injuries Oliver had sustained. Diggle shook his head. The last time he had heard of someone with that much scar tissue was when he'd been in the military.

"Has he said anything about what happened?" Moira asked, looking into Oliver's room and watching him as he looked out at the city. Oliver looked better now that he had had a shower and a shave; his hair was also neatly trimmed. "No. He's barely said anything." Dr. Lamb Replied. "Moira, I'd like you to prepare yourself. The Oliver you lost might not be the one they found." Moira didn't respond. Instead, she entered the room, letting the door close quietly behind her. "Oliver." She said quietly. Oliver turned around slowly. "Mom." He finally said after a moment. Moira slowly walked towards him, and Oliver met her half way. "Oh My beautiful boy." She said tearfully as they hugged.

"He seems…" Tommy began.

"Hollow." Thea said sorrowfully watching her brother who had once been so full of life act so dully.

Laurel swallowed. She was holding onto her anger. Oliver had cheated on her with her sister and then she had died. But listening to what he'd been through and seeing him so void of life, she knew he didn't deserve that.

Back on the screen, the Queen's Bentley pulled up to the front of the Queen mansion. Someone opened the car's trunk to reveal a crate with Chinese writings and a padlock. The driver began to reach for it, but Oliver cut him off. "I've got it." He said quietly taking the case. Moira opened the doors and led her son inside. "Your room is exactly as you left it." She said, "I never had the heart to change a thing." Another man came on the screen. Oliver looked at him in confusion. "It's Walter," the man said, "Walter Steele." Moira tried to clarify. "You remember Walter, your father's friend from the company." She said, as if that would explain why he was at their house.

"Your mom doesn't tell him?" Tommy says looking over at Thea who was shaking her head at her mom's foolishness.

"Am I missing something here?" Roy asked.

"Walter is my step-dad. My mom remarried three years after the gambit sank. Clearly she didn't tell Oliver though." Thea said.

"Oh," Roy said. "Well that'll go well." Thea would have argued but couldn't really find a reason to. He was right.

Just then, a woman entered the foyer, and Oliver walked past Walter, completely ignoring him. Oliver walked up to the older woman in the maid's outfit and took her hands in his. "It's good to see you, Raisa." He said warmly. "Welcome home, Mr. Oliver." She replied in equal warmth. She looked over to Moira. "Mr. Merlyn phoned. He wants to join you for dinner." She stated in a russian accent. "Wonderful." Moira said but Oliver was distracted by the sound of a door slamming. He looked up towards the landing at the top of the stairs as his mother continued. "Oliver? Did you hear that?" he ignored her as he walked to the bottom of the stairs. "Hey, sis." Oliver said as Thea stood there staring at him before running down and jumping into her brothers arms. "I knew it." Thea was saying "I knew you were alive! I missed you so much." She said, hugging him. A smile was plastered on her face. "You were with me the whole time." He replied, a genuine smile on his face as well.

Everyone in the room smiled at the reunion.

Back on the screen, we are taken over the Glades into CNRI as Joanna was arguing with Laurel. "Come on, Laurel," she was saying, "We're lawyers, not miracle workers. We can't win this." "If we can't win a class action suit against a man who swindled hundreds of people out of their homes and life savings," Laurel replied, "then we're not fit to call ourselves a legal aid office." "And if we go bankrupt in the process, we won't be a legal aid office." Joanna shot back. "Hunt has an army of lawyers, and they're ready to bury us." "You and I against an army." Laurel said on screen. "I love those odds." "Why do you hate me?" Joanna groused as Laurel sat down at her desk.

"I've have been asking that question since we decided to have… ow!" Tommy said before Laurel elbowed him in the side. Her face was red with embarrassment. Unfortunately, everyone understood what Tommy had been about to say.

She stared up at her board that laid out Adam Hunt and his 'alleged' criminal activities, searching for something concrete that she could sink her teeth into. As she was looking, a news report on one of the office TV's caught her attention. "And in other news, details as to the castaway story you've all heard about the son of a very wealthy billionaire will soon become a legendary story. Jessica now has more details and the complete castaway story. Jessica?" Laurel got up and walked over to the TV that her colleagues were all gathered around.

"That is not going to end well," Thea said and Laurel nodded in agreement.

"The Queen's Gambit' was last heard from more than five years ago. Mr. Queen has reportedly confirmed he was the only survivor of the accident that took the lives of seven people, including local resident Sara Lance. Survived by her sister, Laurel… "

Laurel looked down as any hope she had of her sister being alive vanished. She had known Sara was most likely dead, but hearing it confirmed was something else.

"Sister?" Diggle asked curious.

"Oliver and I were going out at the time. But he took my sister on the gambit. He was screwing her and cheating on me when she died." Laurel said with venom in her voice.

Laurel shut the TV off, not wanting to hear anymore. The scene shifted back to the Queen mansion. It was night, and Oliver emerged from his bathroom in only a towel.

Thea gasped at the sight of her brother's torso. It was littered with scars. Laurel stared in horror at the injuries all over his body. Even Roy and Diggle seemed surprised. Those weren't scars you could get from tree branches or falls. Those were the result of torture and gunshot wounds.

"Oh my god what happened to him?" Thea said.

"After five years, everything that was once familiar is now unrecognizable." Oliver was saying. He was looking himself over, cataloging his various scars. "The face I see in the mirror is a stranger." For a moment looking in the mirror, he saw himself in his familiar green hood. But as he turned away, his mind was back to where his journey began. The Queen's Gambit made its way through stormy seas. Inside the boat, Robert Queen was looking at a weather map on the wall as one of the crewmen came in from the storm.

Thea let out a sob at the sight of her dead father. She hugged Tommy sobbing all over his shirt.

"The storm's a category 2." The crewman said. "The captain's recommending we head back."

Laurel narrowed her eyes in suspicion. The gambit had sailed fine in category two storms before. Why had it gone down this time?

Are we in trouble?" he asked. "One of us is." Robert replied with a small smile. Oliver let out a small laugh, but before he could say anymore Sara came out of the room in nothing more than her lingerie and a short silk robe. "

At the sight of her sister, a tear went down the side of Laurel's cheek. "Oh Sara," Laurel said sadly. A flash of anger went through her. After all, she was still screwing her boyfriend.

"Ollie?" she started, then noticed Robert. Grinning, she wrapped the robe around herself. "Where do you keep the bottle opener on this thing?" "I'll be there in a minute, Sara." Oliver said with a grin. Sara grinned and went back into the room, her hair swaying behind her. Robert came up to his son and put a hand on his shoulder. "You know, son, that is not going to finish well for either of them or for you." The flashback ended and Oliver was again standing in the foyer of the mansion, looking at a picture of his younger self and his dad. He was staring at it pensively, and then he heard the front door open. He put the picture down as a grin came to his face. "What did I tell you? Yachts suck." "Tommy Merlyn." Oliver replied hugging his best friend. Tommy hugged him back strongly, happy to have his brother back. "I missed you, buddy." Tommy said. The scene shifted, and the whole family (plus Tommy) was seated around the dining room table. Oliver sat at one end, with Thea and Tommy to his left and right respectively; Moira sat at the other end with Walter to her left. "Ok." Tommy started. "What else did you miss? Super bowl winners Giants, Steelers, Saints, Packers, Giants again. A black president, that's new. Oh, and 'Lost,' they were all dead I think." He finished with confusion in his voice.

Laurel rolled her eyes at what Tommy considered the most important part of current society.

"What was it like there?" Thea asked suddenly.

In the viewing room, Thea winced at the question. 'How could I be so insensitive?' she thought to herself.

There was silence as everyone turned to look at Oliver. He put on a fake smile. "Cold." He said after a moment of thought. Tomorrow, you and me, we're doing the city." Tommy suddenly announced, sensing that it was time to move on. "You've got a lot to catch up on." "That sounds like a great idea." Moira said. "Good." Oliver replied. "Then I was hoping to swing by the office." Walter and Moira exchanged glances. "Well, there's plenty of time for all that." Walter responded. "Queen Consolidated isn't going anywhere." At that moment, Raisa came back into the room with a bowl of pears. She tripped on the rug and stumbled into Oliver, who deftly caught her and the bowl "Oh, I am so sorry, Mr. Oliver." She said. Oliver smiled at the older Russian. "Ni dlya kogo ne volnuites." He replied

"Umm… since when can Ollie speak russian?" Tommy asked confused. "I thought he was alone on the island."

"I don't know," Laurel said in confusion.

There was a beat in the room as everyone processed that. "Dude, you speak Russian?" Tommy finally exclaimed. "I didn't realize you took Russian at college, Oliver." Walter said, slightly confused. "I didn't realize you wanted to sleep with my mother, Walter." Oliver replied bluntly.

"Burn," Roy said leaning back into his chair. Everyone in the room (minus diggle) shot roy a glance.

Conversation again died, and Walter and Moira glanced at each other. Moira looked back to her son, whose face showed only polite interest, no anger or disappointment. Moira looked over to Thea. "I didn't say anything." She said. "She didn't have to." Oliver added. Moira's eyes narrowed slightly, then she nodded to herself, seemingly coming to a decision. "Oliver," she started, taking Walter's hand in her own, "Walter and I are married. And I don't want you to think that either one of us did anything to disrespect your father." "We both believed that Robert, like you, was, uh, well, gone." Walter added. "It's fine." Oliver said.

Laurel rolled her eyes. "I'm not believing that for a second." She scoffed.

He stared at his mother for a few moments, before he rose. "May I be excused?" he asked, rising from his chair. Moira nodded, and Oliver turned to leave. "Hey, don't forget about tomorrow, buddy." Tommy called out as Oliver left, casting one last look at Thea. Round the table,, looks of sadness passed over Moira and Thea's face, as they began to realize that while Oliver may have been home, he still wasn't back yet. Later that night, as a storm raged outside the mansion, in his room Oliver slept on the floor besides his open window, with rain pelting him as he slept fitfully. A voice could be heard counting "One, two, three, four…", and suddenly the screen flashed back to the stateroom on the Gambit. Oliver was busy opening a bottle of wine as Sara sat on the bed, counting the beats between the lightning flashes and thunder. "It's getting closer." Sara said, as the lights flashed on and off. "That's not very scientific." Oliver said teasingly. "What would you know about science, Mr. Ivy league dropout?" she asked as he brought two glasses of wine to the bed. "I happen to know a lot about science." Oliver said, handing her a glass. "I know about fermentation. I know biology…" he trailed off as he kissed her. The broke apart and Sara leaned back smiling. "Laurel's gonna kill me." She said, putting the glass down on the nightstand.

"Oh god please don't make me watch my sister have sex!" Laurel exclaimed. She would never be able to unsee that.

"Oh, she's so gonna kill me." "Your sister will never know." Oliver assured her, pressing her down into the mattress. "Come here." Sara laughed and they kissed some more, and suddenly there was a loud crack of thunder. Sara broke away, slightly panicked. "Ok, that one was really close." She said nervously. "Sara," Oliver said, grinning at the girl, "we're gonna be fine." Suddenly, without warning, the room seems to flip and suddenly the far wall became the floor. Oliver and Sara were thrown out of the bed, slamming into the wall. Oliver staggered to his knees, pulling himself up on the edge of the bed. "Sara?" he called out, looking around. There, across the room near the door lay Sara, a small cut on her head bleeding. She blinked in confusion, then look up and back at Oliver. She reached for him but was suddenly swept from the room "Sara!" Oliver screamed as the water claimed him, too.

Laurel was crying. Tears flowed freely from her eyes as she buried herself into Tommy's shoulder. She didn't want to see her sister die.

It seemed to take forever, but in reality it only took a few moments for Oliver to break the surface of the ocean. He gasped for breath and looked around frantically. "Sara!" he screamed. "Oliver!" Robert called from the life raft. Oliver frantically swum for the raft, and Robert and a crewman pulled him onboard. "Sara! Sara!" Oliver screamed. He lunged for the side, trying to get back in the water to find her. Robert grabbed him and held him in. "No! Dad, she's out there!" "She's not there, Oliver. She's gone." The flashback ended, and we see Moira leaning over Oliver, shaking him lightly. "Oliver, wake up." She said loudly, trying to be heard over the storm. She shook his shoulder again "Oliver…" Suddenly Oliver awoke and, running on five years of survival instincts, grabbed his mother's arm and flipped her over him onto the floor. His hand came down to her neck just as Walter yelled "Oliver!"

"Damn, that was impressive," Roy said in awe as he stared at the screen.

"Yeah he's definitely had to have gotten trained at some point. You don't just pick that up while alone on a deserted island." Diggle agreed.

"Why would he attack his mother like that though?" Laurel asked confused.

"I think he has PTSD. He's showing the same symptoms of some guys I served with in Afghanistan. He probably didn't even realize where he was."

Thea felt a pang of sadness for her brother as the recording resumed.

Oliver blinked and looked down, seeing his mother there for the first time. Scarred at his own actions, he rapidly crawled away from his mother back towards the window. "I'm sorry," he said ashamedly. "I'm so… I'm so sorry." Walter helped Moira up shakily. She knelt down in front of Oliver. "No, it's ok, Oliver." She said in a soothing voice. "It's all right, 're home. You're home." She emphasized. The scene shifted to the next day. Oliver pulled his old munitions crate out from under his bed, and deftly undid the lock. Opening the lid, he pulled out a small, worn book, and an arrow head shaped stone. The scene then shifted to Thea's room, where her friend Margo was crushing a pill into powder with the edge of her credit card.

"THEA DEARDEN QUEEN!" Tommy shouted at the top of his lungs. Thea sank down into her chair busted. "WHY THE HELL ARE YOU DOING DRUGS!?"

"Umm… no reason? You and Ollie did crazy stuff too when you were my age."

"Oliver and I did a lot of crazy things we shouldn't have when we were your age. We drank, got wasted, went clubbing, had sex… lots of sex,"

"You're not helping your case there," Roy said amused at the scene playing out in front of him.

"But we never, NEVER, did drugs of any kind." Tommy finished.

"Thea, I'm going to have a long conversation with your mother about this friend group of yours. You are not to do drugs do you understand? I'm a lawyer. I know the kind of trouble you could get into."

Thea sighed closing her eyes and wishing the world away as the memories resumed.

"Roxies. Thank you, daddy's ACL tear." Margo replied smugly. Suddenly there was a knock on her door, and Margo hurriedly hid the pill bottle in her jacket as Thea hurriedly threw a folder over the line just as Oliver entered the room. "Ollie." Thea said with a smile. Oliver laughed lightly. "No one's called me that in a while, Speedy." He replied. Thea closed her eyes, half in annoyance and half in embarrassment. "Worst nickname ever." "What, always chasing after me as a kid? I thought it fit pretty well." He replied. A beat. "Maybe it still does."

"Ollie is going to be pissed about this Thea," Tommy said shaking his head.

Margo took her cue and grabbed her bag. "See you at school, Speedy." She said. She threw a grin over her shoulder at Thea as she left. Thea laughed. "Sorry about her." She said. "I have something for you." Oliver held up the stone. Thea smiled in amazement. "You did not come back from a deserted island with a souvenir." "It's a Hozen." Oliver explained. "And in Buddhism, it symbolizes reconnecting. I kept it in hopes that one day; it would reconnect me with you." He finished, handing the Hozen to his sister. Thea took it and smiled warmly at her brother. "A rock! That is sweet." A voice said from the door. Oliver smiled as Tommy entered the room. "You know," he started, "I want one of those t-shirts that says 'my friend was a castaway, and all I got was this crappy shirt'."

Laurel rolled her eyes and smiled at Tommy warmly. "Always ruining the moment huh?"

Tommy laughed and looked into her eyes. Both of them stared for a second before Laurel cleared her throat and turned back to the recording leaving Tommy a little hurt.

Thea smiled at his antics, then looked to her brother. "Don't let him get you into too much trouble." She advised. "You just got back. Take it slow." She embraced Oliver, who gave her a kiss on the cheek. Thea went back to her desk. "Ahem. The city awaits." Tommy announced, and after shooting Thea a smile, the two left the room. As they walked down the hallway, Tommy looked to Oliver. "Have you noticed how hot your sister's gotten?" he asked, At Oliver's glare, "Because I have not."

Laurel glared over at Tommy. As he laughed awkwardly he was shoved off the couch by Laurel.

"Roy, switch seats with Tommy." She said.

Roy rolled his eyes but complied sliding in to sit next to Thea on the edge of the couch.

Tommy and Oliver were driving through the Glades with the radio blaring. "Your funeral blew." Tommy said breaking the silence. Oliver looked over at him with a grin. "Did you get lucky?" he asked, as they both laughed. "Fish in a barrel." Tommy said. "They were so sad." "No." Oliver said jokingly.

"You used Oliver's funeral to find a girl to bang?" Roy asked disgusted.

Tommy had the decency to look ashamed as he nodded his head.

"And huggy." Tommy continued. "And I am counting on another target rich environment for your welcome home bash." Oliver looked over at Tommy confused. "At my what?" "You came back from the dead." Tommy said. "This calls for a party. You tell me where and when. I'll take care of everything." They came to a stop at a corner. Across from them a group of homeless people stood in front of a run down building.. To the right stood the abandoned steel mill belonging to Queen Consolidated. "And this city's gone to crap." Tommy continued. "Your dad sold his factory just in time. Why'd you want to drive through this neighborhood anyway?" he asked as Oliver looked at the factory with ideas forming in his head. "No reason" he finally said.

"What the hell is he up to?" Laurel thought aloud.

"So what'd you miss the most?" Tommy asked him, turning to him and grinning. "Steaks at the Palm, drinks at the station, meaningless sex?" "Laurel."

Laurel looked up in surprise. "What?" She said in disbelief.

"Despite him being an idiot, I think my brother really did love you." Thea said softly.

"He has a funny way of showing it." Laurel said coldly.

The smiled dropped off of Tommy's face immediately. "Everyone is happy you're alive." He said confused. "You want to see the one person who isn't?" Oliver just shrugged looking somewhere in the distance. The scene shifted again to CNRI, where Joana was talking with Laurel. "Laurel, I just got this from Hunt's lawyers." She said handing Laurel a folder full of documents. "They filed a change of venue. We are now in front of Judge Grell." "Hunt funded Grell's reelection campaign." Laurel said in realization. "Mmhmm." She said. "He's got Grell in his back pocket." Laurel stated. "You know, it's fun being your friend." Joanna replied. "I get to say 'I told you so' a lot." "No." Laurel shook her head. "Adam Hunt is not smarter than we are." "No, he's just richer and willing to commit multiple felonies." "We don't need to go outside the law," Laurel started. "To find justice." Joanna finished. " Your dad's favorite jingle."

"That is literally the dumbest thing I have ever heard." Roy said annoyed.

"What?" Laurel asked.

"If that was true, then the Glades wouldn't have so much crime in them." Roy pointed out. "That statement is just ridiculously naïve and uninformed."

Joanna smiled and walked away, and Laurel turned around to see Oliver standing by her desk, looking at a board full of information on Adam Hunt. Oliver looked over to Laurel and gave a slight smile "Hello, Laurel."

"This isn't going to go well," Tommy said.

The scene shifted, and the two were walking through an outdoor plaza. "You went to law school." Oliver was saying, "You said you would." Yeah." Laurel agreed sullenly. "Everyone's proud." "Adam Hunt's a heavy hitter." Olive tried. "You sure you want to get in the ring with him?" "Five years and you want to talk about Adam Hunt?" she asked. Oliver shook his head. "No. Not really." Laurel sighed and they stopped walking, Oliver turning to face her. "Why are you here, Ollie?" she asked tiredly. "To apologize." Oliver replied. "It was my fault. I wanted to ask you not to blame her." "For what?" she asked. "Falling under your spell? How could I possibly blame her for doing the same things that I did?" "I never meant to..." "She was my sister." Laurel cut him off. "I couldn't be angry because she was dead. I couldn't grieve because I was so angry. That's what happens when your sister dies while screwing your boyfriend." She paused to compose herself. "We buried an empty coffin," she finally said, "because her body was at the bottom of the ocean where you left her. It should have been you." Oliver looked pained, the truth of her words stinging. "I know that it's too late to say this, but I'm sorry." He said at last. "Yeah, I'm sorry, too." Laurel replied acidly. "I'd hoped that you'd rot in hell a whole lot longer than five years."

Laurel cringed at the ferocity of her words, but she couldn't exactly say she felt otherwise. Thea however glared at her the pain evident in her eyes.

"You make it sound like my brother murdered her," Thea said in anger. "Its Sara's fault just as much as it is Ollie's. She chose to go on that damn boat." Laurel closed her eyes absorbing the words. As much as it stung, she knew it was true. It wasn't all Ollie's fault. Although he still held a lot of blame.

She stalked past him back to CNRI. As she passed by Tommy, she asked' "How did you think that was gonna go, Tommy?" "About like that." He replied. Soon, Tommy and Oliver were walking back towards the alley where Tommy had parked his car. "Ok, so we took care of that." Tommy was saying. "Good call. Now we can make up for lost time. If you're not too sick of fish, I suggest we find some leggy models and eat Sushi all day. What do you say?" he stopped suddenly as a van came from out of nowhere and pulled up right behind his car, slamming on the breaks before it hit the two friends. Two men in demon masks and blue hoodies came out of nowhere. "What're they doing?" Tommy asked, startled. Before either man could react, the masked men shot the pair with tranquilizer darts. Tommy went down immediately, but Oliver took a few more moments, as he started fading, he saw a cook come out of the back of a restaurant, taking out the trash. He only had time to say "What the hell?" before a third demon masked man with a submachine gun shot him. The last thing Oliver saw before he passed out was one of the demon masks peering down at him.

Thea gasped in fear. Her brother had just been kidnapped. Laurel looked over towards Tommy nervously hoping he and Ollie got out ok. Diggle sat observing the skill of the masked men as Roy sat forward in his seat with a piqued interest.

The scene flashed back to the life raft, where the three survivors sat, floating on the rough sea at night. Robert handed Oliver a bottle of water. "Here, son." He said, "Drink." "What the hell are you doing?!" the crewman shouted. "That's all we've got!" Robert glared at the man. "If anybody's making it out of here, it's gonna be him." He said as Oliver took a drink of water. Robert put an arm around his shoulders and pulled him closer to his chest. "I'm so sorry." He said. "I thought I'd have more time. I'm not the man you think I am. I didn't build our city, I failed it. And I wasn't the only one."

"What is dad talking about?" Thea asked confused.

"Mr. Queen? Mr. Queen!" the blackness was lifted, reveling one of the demon masked men as he pulled the bag up from over Oliver's head. The man held a Taser and hit the activation stud, causing a current of electricity to flow between the two prongs at the end. "Did your father survive that accident?" Oliver remained silent, looking around the room. He saw three men, one with a submachine gun, another, also with a gun, standing near Tommy, who was still passed out on a wooden pallet. "I ask the questions." The man said, "You give me the answers." Oliver was still silent, so the man stuck the Taser on his chest, shocking him. Oliver groaned loudly behind clenched teeth.

Thea let out a cry as she watched her brother being tortured. She instinctively leaned into Roy who didn't even notice as he wrapped an arm around her.

"Did he make it to the island? Did he tell you anything?" the mask asked again, and again Oliver was silent, so he tased him. Oliver let out another groan. Finally, he looked up at the mask. "Yes, he did." He said. "What did he tell you, Mr. Queen?" Oliver looked right into the darkened eye holes of the mask. "He told me I'm gonna kill you."

Laurel, Tommy, and Thea were shocked at the tone of his voice. He sounded dead serious and terrifying.

The mask and his friends all shared a laugh. "You're delusional." He said finally. "You're zip cuffed to that chair." Oliver lifted his nowfreed hands. "Not anymore." He said. Then, before they could react, he went into motion. He ducked a punch from his interrogator, and then flipped the chair up to block a second. He reversed the chair, sending the hard edge of the seat into the chest of the second man, then ripped out of back seat posts and spun around, staking the interrogator in the heart. For good measure, he brought the Taser up and shocked him under his jaw, sending him to the floor. He grabbed the second man and swung him around in front of his as a shield, just as the third man fired. The bullets hit the second guy in the chest killing him. Seeing that, the third bolted from the room. Oliver let the man drop and ran over to Tommy. Bending down he checked his pulse, making sure his friend was alive. Noting that he was, Oliver took off after the third man, just as Tommy started to come around. As Oliver started gaining ground, the man fired wildly behind him. Oliver was able to duck and dodge out of the way of the fire. They made it into another warehouse and the man fired wildly once more spraying bullets everywhere, once more Oliver was able to stay ahead of the fire, jumping off a platform and grabbing on to some chains, as the man frantically tried to reload. Oliver didn't give him a chance, swinging around and launching himself at the man. A punch to the face bent the man backwards, and Oliver spun around, wrapping his arm around the man's neck from behind in a reverse choke. "You killed that man." Oliver said, holding the man in place. "You don't have to do this." He gasped out. "Yes, I do." Oliver replied, then with a jerk, broke the man's neck. "Nobody can know my secret."

"Oh my god…" Thea said shocked. "He just killed that guy." Laurel shook her head. There was no way Ollie could just kill someone in cold blood. He wasn't a murderer. Was he?

The scene shifted to the sitting room at Queen Manor, where Oliver was being interviewed by Detective Lance and his partner, Detective Hilton. Moira and Walter were there as well, and on the coffee table before them lay the sketch of Oliver and Tommy's 'savior', a man in a hood. "So that's your story." Lance was saying. "A guy in a green hood flew in and single handedly took out 3 armed kidnappers." He shrugged. "I mean, who is he? Why would he do that?" Oliver shrugged in return. "I don't know. Find him and you can ask." "Yeah." Lance said doubtfully. He looked over at Tommy. "What about you? You see the hood guy?" "I saw…" Tommy hesitated for a moment, his eyes flickering over to Oliver, who was looking back at him with an unreadable expression. "Just movement." He said finally. "Everything blurry. I was kind of out of it." "Yeah." Lance replied, disbelieving. He looked back to Oliver. "It's funny, isn't it? One day back, and already somebody's gunning for you. Aren't you popular?"

Laurel hung her head in shame. "Oh dad…" She whispered sadly.

Moira's eyes narrowed at Lance. "Were you able to identify the men?" she asked. "Scrubbed identities, untraceable weapons." Hilton said. "These were pros." "Yeah." Lance added. "Well, they probably figured you'd pay a king's ransom to get your boy back or a Queen's ransom, as it were." His gaze turned to Oliver. "After all, a parent would do anything to keep their child safe." "I don't find your tone appropriate, Detective." Moira interjected. Walter slowly stood. "If Oliver can think of anything else, he'll be in touch." He said. "Thank you, gentlemen, for coming." Lance gave a cold smile and rose, tucking the drawing back into his travel case. He stared at Oliver. "Your luck never seems to run out, does it?" he said, before he and his partner leave.

"That was extremely unprofessional." Diggle said.

"Yeah how does he even have a job still?" Roy asked confused.

"I honestly don't know sometimes. I still have to drag him out of bars every night." Laurel said sadly.

Lance gave a cold smile and rose, tucking the drawing back into his travel case. He stared at Oliver. "Your luck never seems to run out, does it?" he said, before he and his partner leave. Oliver walks over the window and takes a calming breath, before turning back and looking at Tommy, who stares back with an unreadable expression of his own. Next, we find ourselves in Oliver's room. He's studying news clipping son his computer about Adam Hunt. He looks at his father's book, and sure enough Adam Hunt is a name on The List. You are different." Oliver looks up and smiles at Raisa as she enters his room with a tray of food. As she approaches, he turns the book over and clears his monitor. "Not like you to read a book." "I missed you, Raisa." He said warmly. "No kitchen on the island?" she joked. "No." Oliver says. "No friends either." He stood and walked towards her, taking the tray. "Hey. Thank you." He took the tray and sat it down on his bed, then looked back at the maid. "Do I really seem different?" "No." she said. "You're still a good boy." "Oh, I think we both know I wasn't." "But a good heart." She added warmly. Oliver smiled. "I hope so." He said. "I want to be the person you always told me I could be." The scene shifted, and now we see Oliver leaving the mansion. "Oliver," Moira's voice called out, stopping him in his tracks, he turned to see his Mother, Walter, and a tall, wellbuilt man.

"Well I guess this is where I come in." Diggle said.

"I want to introduce you to someone," she was saying. "John Diggle. He'll be accompanying you from now on." Oliver smiled. "I don't need a babysitter." He argued. "Darling, Oliver's a grown man." Walter added. "And if he doesn't feel he needs armed protection…" "Yes, I understand," Moira interjected, "but this is something I need." Oliver smiled at his mother, then looked once more at the bodyguard. Soon, Diggle was driving the Bentley downtown, with Oliver in the back. "So…what do I call you?" he asked. Diggle glanced in the rearview mirror at his principal as he drove. "Diggle's good." He said. "Dig if you want." "You're exmilitary?" "Yes, sir." He replied. "105th Airborne out of Kandahar, retired. Been in the private sector a little more than four years now." He glanced in the mirror again. "I don't want there to be any confusion, Mr. Queen. My ability to keep you from harm will outweigh your comfort. Do we have an agreement? Sir?" He heard the sound of the back door opening then closing in rapid succession. He glanced over his shoulder to see that Oliver was gone. "Sir!" he called out, slamming on the brakes. He got out of the car and hurried around to the back, throwing open the back door to see the car deserted. He looked around in vain but Oliver was gone.

Everyone in the room burst out laughing with the exception of Dig who just seemed embarrassed.

The scene shifted, and we see Oliver walking down in the heart of the Glades. He had picked up new clothes and gear, and now he made his way back to the abandoned Queen steel mill. He tossed his bags over the high fence, and then jumped the fence himself. Picking up the bags, he calmly walked into the mill. Long abandoned, the mill was an empty husk. Trash littered the floor, and Oliver stopped when something caught his eye. Bending down, he found an old Queen Consolidated annual report, his father's face on the cover. He picked it up and stared at it. "The abduction was unexpected.' His voice sounded. 'It forced me to move up my plans, but what I told the police was true. The man in the green hood was there in that warehouse, and he's just beginning.'

"I wonder what he's planning?" Laurel said.

What followed were a series of images as Oliver began building his lair knocking down walls, breaking through the floor to the basement below, maneuvering a generator and other equipment he had had delivered via unconventional sources. Soon, he had several tables set up, lights over each of the tables flickered on when he powered up the generator. He set up his computer system at the forefront and started uploading and sorting files. While the computes worked, he worked two first on creating new arrows with the machine tools, then on working out his body doing several reps on the salmon ladder, inverted crunches, and other exercises.

Tommy watched feeling jealousy pump through his veins. He felt kid of inferior at the moment watching his best friend do exercise while seriously ripped. Laurel on the other hand felt her heartbeat flutter at the sight of Oliver working out shirtless. Thea noticed and sent a knowing smirk her way.

Finally, he pulled his munitions box out and set it on a table, opening it up. He pulled out his custom recurve bow, strapped his quiver to his back, and loaded up a bucket with tennis balls. Steadying himself, he knocked over the bucket and let the balls bounce out onto the floor. At once, he started drawing, nocking, and firing arrows, one after the other, until all of the tennis balls were pinned to the wall, each with an arrow dead center. Later, Oliver is sitting at his new computer station watching a news report about Hunt. "The suit alleges that Hunt committed multiple acts of fraud and theft against the city's underprivileged. Laurel Lance, an attorney for the city necessary…" the news report tuned out as Oliver began speaking his thoughts once more. "Adam Hunt his crimes go deeper than fraud and theft, but he's been able to bully, bribe, or kill anyone who's gotten into his way." Oliver moved from his weapons table to the crate and pulled out a familiar green hood. 'He hasn't met me yet.' The scene shifted to a parking garage where Adam Hunt, Laurel's boss Eric Gitter, and two of Hunt's bodyguards were swiftly walking.

"You've got to be kidding me. My boss is with Hunt? I can't believe this!" Laurel said enraged.

"You remind Grell I put him on the bench, I can take him off." Hunt said viciously. "I will turn him into a cautionary tale." "Yes, Mr. Hunt." Gitter replied. "And this attorney, Laurel Lance? You said she wasn't gonna be a problem anymore." Hunt continued. "I told you to fix that situation." He stopped and looked at Gitter. "Why are you still here?" Gitter nodded subserviently and left. The other three men continued the walk to his car, when suddenly a light exploded behind them. The first guard turned to look, his hand going for his gun in his waistband until an arrow pierced his hand and gut, pinning it there. The guard fell with a cry, while the second guard pushed Hunt into the back of the limo. "Get in the car!" he commanded, and then turned around, drawing his weapon and firing several times into the darkened garage. He paused, searching for a target. "Hey." A voice called out, "You missed." Hunt listened inside the car as his second man was taken down, and suddenly a window shattered. He looked up to see an arrow lodged in the seatback. He reached for it in puzzlement and then suddenly he was yanked through the shattered window and tossed to the ground. He scrambled onto his back, to see Oliver, in his green uniform, hood, and grease paint over his eyes. The brim of the hood was pulled low to distort his face. And he had an arrow nocked and aimed right at Hunt's chest.

"That was brutal," Roy commented. Everyone turned back to look at him and that was when he and Thea noticed how they were sitting. They quickly jumped away from each other. Tommy shot Roy a suspicious glance before turning his attention back to the screen.

Aah!" the man screamed. "What? What? Just… just tell me what you want!" The Hood jumped off the room of the car and hauled Hunt to his feet. "You're gonna transfer $40 million into Starling city bank account 1141 by 10 P.M. tomorrow night." He demanded. "Or what?" Hunt shot back, a scowl on his face. "Or I'm gonna take it, and you won't like how." The Hood replied, then turned and walked away. Gaining courage at the Arrows retreating back, Hunt shouted, "If I see you again, you're dead!" In response, The Hood in one fluid motion turned and fired an arrow into the back window of the limo. Hunt looked at the hole in shock, then turned back to the Hood but he was already gone. The scene shifted to the next day, at Adam Hunt's penthouse apartment, where Hunt was giving his stated to Lance and Hilton. "He was wearing a hood, a green hood," he was saying, "And he had a bow and arrow." The two cops glance at one another, and Hunt misinterpreted their looks. "What, you don't believe me?" he picked up and arrow that was lying on his desk and handed it to Lance. "That maniac put two of my men in the hospital." Lance took the arrow and looked it over. "Well, thanks for your statement. We'll put out an APB on," he looked back up at Hunt and said, slightly mockingly, "Robin Hood." Hunt scowled and to into Lances face. "Hey, pal. I'm not some grocer who got taken for his register. I go to the front of the line." He stepped back and looked at both cops. "Now he said he would be back here by 10 P.M. Make sure you're here first. You can coordinate with Mr. Drakon, my new head of security." He gestured to a tall, thin man in black. All right." Lance said finally. "Well, uh, thanks for your time." The two partners turned and left. As they walked to the elevator, Hilton said, "It looks like Queen was telling the truth." "Yeah." Lance said grudgingly, "Well, there's a first time for everything. This hooded guy comes looking for trouble," he finishes as the doors to the elevator start to close, "he'll find it."

"Bad idea," Diggle said. "Oliver is clearly more well trained. If he wanted to, he could end your dad in an instant and your dad would never know what happened."

The scene shifts back to Queen Manor, where Oliver is exiting. He opens the back door of the Bentley to see John Diggle sitting in the back already. "Put on your seat belt, sir." Dig says with a smile. "Wouldn't want you to miss your party." Oliver smiles in amusement in return as he gets in. We cut to the Iron Works Building, where Oliver's 'Welcome Home' party was already in full swing with music blaring and plenty of hot girls on the dance floor. Oliver walked down the main staircase, pausing only for a moment to check his phone to see if Hunt had deposited the money yet. He hadn't. Frowning momentarily, Oliver put the phone back into his jacket and once again slipped on his 'Oliver Queen party boy' face just as Tommy saw him. "Everybody, hey!" he called out, signaling for the DJ to cut the music. "Man of the hour! Whoo! And, ladies, please give this man a proper homecoming!" We are the champions' started playing as Oliver made his way up to the main stage in the middle of the floor. "Thank you very much, everybody!" he called out as Tommy handed him a shot. He downed it fast and yelled, "I missed Tequila!" The crowd cheered as the music started up again.

"I can't comprehend how he switches personas like that so quickly!" Thea exclaimed.

"It's kind of off putting," Tommy agrees.

Across the street in Adam Hunt's penthouse, his security contingent was busy prepping clips and checking their automatic weapons, preparing for the coming fight. Hunt, drink in hand, frowned as he looked out his window. "What the hell's going on out there?" he demanded. "It's across the street." Constantine Drakon replied. "Party for the guy that got rescued off that island Oliver Queen." Hunt nodded sourly and moved back to his desk.

"That is a smart move," Diggle noted and everyone nodded in agreement.

Back at the party, Oliver smiled across the room at Diggle who stood in a corner, though his eyes never left his principal. "Hey." Tommy said, coming up next to his friend, "Does he wipe for you, too?" Oliver chuckled as Tommy threw an arm around his shoulders. "Now by my rough estimate, you have not had sex in 1,839 days. As your wingman, I highly recommend Carmen Golden." He indicated three girls dancing on the stage. "Which one is she?" Oliver asked. "The one who looks like the chick from 'Twilight'." "What's 'Twilight'?" "You're so better off not knowing." Tommy responded, taking a sip of his drink. Oliver looked out at the crowd and spotted something he didn't like Thea, with some of her friends, talking with a guy on the floor. He saw her pass him some cash and palm a packet of pills in return. Oliver frowned. "Back in a minute." He told Tommy as he headed over to his sister. Diggle noticed his movement and moved to follow. Thea smiled as he approached. "Ollie, hey!" she said as she grasped her arm, lightly pulling her away from her friends. "This party is sick!" "Who let you in here?" Oliver demanded quietly. "I believe it was somebody who said, 'Right this way, Miss Queen'." She replied sarcastically. "Well, you shouldn't be here." Thea narrowed her eyes at him as she pulled her arm free. "I'm not 12 anymore." She said. "No." Oliver agreed. "You're 17." Thea scoffed. "Ollie, I love you, but you can't come back here and judge me, especially for being just like you." She noted pointedly. Oliver sighed. "I know that it couldn't have been easy for you when I was… away," he started, but Thea cut him off with a small, incredulous laugh. "Away?" she started, "No. You died. My brother and my father died. I went to your funerals." "I know," Oliver started, but Thea cut him off. "No, you don't." For the first time Oliver caught a glimpse of the pain Thea had been hiding ever since his return. "Mom had Walter, and I had no one. You guys all act like its cool; let's forget about the last 5 years. Well, I can't. For me, it's kind of permanently in there! So I'm sorry if I turned out some major disappointment, but this… me is the best I could do with what I had to work with." She finished, Oliver closed his eyes, unable to meet her gaze. Thea turned back to her friends. "Let's bounce." She said, and the quartet of girls walked away.

Everyone in the room looked at Thea with disappointment.

"Hey I'd like to remind everyone I haven't done this yet." Thea defended.

"Yes but you've done stuff like it before," Tommy said sternly remembering his birthday from a few years back.

"You have the fun dip?" Margo asked. Thea, a little shaken, fumbles for her purse. "Yeah. It's right…" she felt around her purse, but couldn't find the packet of pills. "No." she said in confused embarrassment, "I…I must have dropped it." Oliver stalked away. He paused at a trashcan to throw away the packet he had palmed from her purse; looking up he caught Diggle's' satisfied smirk.

"Way to go Ollie," Laurel said smiling.

Oliver turned and started to walk away only to run into Laurel. "Oh!" he exclaimed. "Oh. You're here." "Tommy." Laurel finally said. "He made the point that we have too many years between us to leave things the way we left them." She looked at Oliver, and then glanced around. "Is there someplace quieter that we could go?" "Yeah." They headed outside the main room onto the balcony that overlooked the entry hall. They walked together quietly for a few moments before Laurel spoke. "I'm sorry about saying that you should have been the one who died." She said as they walked. "That was wrong." "If I could trade places with her, I would." Oliver replied sincerely. About Sara." Laurel finally said, stopping and turning to face Oliver. "There's something that I've been afraid to ask, but I need to know." "Ok" Oliver said nervously. "When she died… did she suffer?" Oliver thought back to that moment on the Gambit when Sara was sucked out the door and into the dark ocean beyond. "No." he lied.

"He was trying to spare me the pain," Laurel realized sadly.

"I think about her every day." Laurel said after a breath. "Me, too." Oliver agreed. "I guess we still have one thing in common then." Laurel commented. "I can't believe I'm gonna say this," she started, "but if you need someone to talk to about what happened to you, I'm here." For a moment, the mask he wore slipped off, and the real Oliver Queen gazed back at Laurel, wanting to take her up on that offer, but knowing he couldn't. The moment was ruined by a buzzing from Oliver's pocket. He took out his phone and glanced at the face 10 P.M. He checked the account app nothing. Oliver shook his head. "Something wrong?" Laurel asked. Oliver looked back up at his former love. "I asked somebody to do something. They didn't do it." The mask slid back into place. "Laurel," he started, "You always saw the best in me. Right now, that's what you're doing, looking at me, and you're wondering if that island changed me somehow, if it made me a better person. It didn't." he smiled slightly. "Stay away from me. Otherwise I'm just gonna hurt you again, but this time, it will be worse." The playboy façade firmly in place, Oliver baked away from Laurel. "Got to roll." He said loudly. "I've got 5 years of debauchery to catch up on!" Laurel looked at him in pity and disgust. "You know what, Oliver? You're wrong." She stalked up to him. "That island did change you. At least now you're honest." With that parting shot, Laurel walked away.

"Why can't I see through his act" Laurel asked herself.

"You're only seeing what you want to, and Oliver is very convincing." Diggle responded.

Moments later, Oliver was walking through the service corridor when he was stopped by a now familiar voice. "Something I can help you with, sir?" John Diggle called out. "I just wanted a second to myself." Oliver tried. Dig smiled lightly. "I would believe you, Mr. Queen, if you weren't so full of crap." He gestured to the doors. "Party's this way." Oliver sighed in annoyance. He moved to the door and tried the handle. "It's locked." He lied. Dig looked at him for a few moments, and then moved to open the door. As he moved past Oliver, the younger man's arm shot out and caught Diggle in a chokehold, rendering him unconscious in moments."

"Damnit!" Diggle said in annoyance.

Across the street, Drakon positioned his men, then locked the doors to the penthouses' office. On the street, Lance and Hilton supervised the police and S.W.A.T., barricading the building. "It's past 10:00." He told Hunt. "He's never getting in here." Hunt nodded in agreement; outside the window, unnoticed by him, and arrow with a cable struck the wall and anchored itself. Hunt and Drakon stood calmly in the office with several other men, when suddenly the lights went out. Then, in the hallway, the elevator dinged. As soon as the doors opened and arrow shot out, killing one guard. Another arrow dropped another guard, and then The Hood was out, using his bow like an escrima stick, beating down the two guards closest to the elevator. He tossed the bow at a third, knocking him down even as he moved towards a fourth, jumping out of the way towards a pillar as the guard fired, then propelling himself off the same pillar and coming down hard on the guard, breaking his neck. He rolled, retrieved his bow and moved behind another pillar as the last guard opened fire.

"Wow, that is so badass," Roy said in amazement.

Inside the office, Hunt paced nervously as he heard the sounds of gunfire and then suddenly all was silent. For a moment nothing happened, and then suddenly a figure burst through the glass doors. A guard in the room opened fire, spraying the figure with bullets, only stopping, too late, when he realized it was one of the guards from outside he had just killed. The Hood then killed him with an arrow to the heart, and then unleashed his furry on the last guard, breaking his nose and crushing his throat with the bow. He pulled an arrow and shot at Hunt; the arrow impacted the wall behind the desk. "You missed." Hunt sneered at the Emerald Archer, even as he notches another arrow and held it on the man. "Really?" the Hood said. Suddenly Drakon was on him, flinging his bow away and attacking him with furious punches and kicks. Oliver held his own as Hunt scurried out the room, rapidly he pulled out his phone and called own to Lance. "He's here!" he screamed into the phone. On the ground, Lance got on his walkie talkie. "All units, converge! All units, converge!" He cried out to the men on the ground as they stormed the building. As they all ran up the stairs, The Hood and Drakon continued to fight. Oliver was more than a match for the senior guard, but Drakon was crafty. He pulled out his knife and lunged; Oliver parried and quickly disarmed him. They crashed to the ground, with Drakon falling just in range of one of his men's Uzi's. He grabbed the gun and Arrow ran for Hunt's desk. Drakon opened fire just as The Hood, in one fluid motion, leapt over the desk, pulled a flechette from his arm and threw it back at Drakon, striking and killing the man. The Hood landed hard, stunned into momentary unconsciousness.

Everyone leaned forward nervously on seeing Oliver's unconscious form.

A moment later, the sounds of Police out in the hall startled the young man back to wakefulness. He gasped, and then staggered to his feet, pulling a round out of his bulletproof vest that had been concealed under his green jacket. "Lay down your weapons, or we will open fire!" the cops screamed, coming to the door. "I repeat, lay down your weapons…" Without hesitation, The Hood leapt to his feet and shot an arrow that disarmed both cops simultaneously. But Lance was right behind them and opened fire, tracing a line of bullets just behind The Hood as he leapt through a window. Lance and Hilton ran to the window, only to see the hooded man using his bow to cross the zipline he had set up earlier, back to the Iron Works. Hilton and Lance exchanged disbelieving glances.

"Damn," Roy said under his breath."

"Tell me you saw that." Hilton said. Lance took a breath. "Ok." He said, then to the rest of the cops, "Let's go. Move." Minutes later, the cops stormed the party. A man in S.W.A.T. gear rushed up to the DJ booth and shut it down, just as Lance entered, giving orders to his men. "Search the building roof to basement. Find him!" He raised his voice to the crowd. "Starling City police! The party's over, kids." He looked around and saw a familiar face. "Oh, Mr. Merlyn." He said acidly, even as Tommy grinned at the cop in amusement. "Imagine my shock at finding you here. Did you roofie anyone special tonight, huh?"

"What!?" Tommy screamed in anger. "Look I will admit I'm a lot of bad things, but I would never, NEVER, do anything like that!"

Laurel looked down at the floor. "I'm sorry Tommy," She said. She couldn't really defend her dad right now. He was acting like a complete ass.

"Detective!" a voice called out. Lance turned to see Oliver walking towards him. "It's a private party." "Yeah?" Lance shot back. "Well, there was an incident at Adam Hunt's building tonight. You know anything about that?" he asked. "Who's Adam Hunt?" Olive asked, bored. "He's a millionaire bottom feeder, and I'm kind of surprised you aren't friends." "I've been out of town for a… while." Oliver said mildly. Tommy let out a soft laugh. "Yeah." Lance agreed. "Well, he just got attacked by the guy with the hood, the guy that saved your ass the other day." "The hood guy." Oliver said. "Yeah." Lance replied. "You didn't find him?" Oliver asked, then smiled. "I'm gonna offer a reward. Hey, everybody!" Oliver turned around and shouted to his fellow partiers. He held up two fingers. "$2 million to anybody that can find a nut bar in a green hood." The crowd cheered in response, and Oliver turned back to Lance. The older cop walked right up to Oliver. "Did you even try to save her?" he demanded; any feelings of satisfaction Oliver had felt a moment ago vanished in an instant. Hilton saw what was happening and interceded, putting a calming hand on Lance and pushing him away lightly. "Ok, he said quietly, "Let's go, partner." Lance, though, wouldn't be deterred. "Did you even try to save my daughter?" he demanded.

A single tear fell down Laurel's cheek as she listened to her father's outburst.

"Sara wouldn't want this." Hilton said, leading Lance away. "Partner, let's go." Oliver's face was set in stone, as the cops left, but after a moment he made his way onto the stage. "It's way too quiet in here!" he yelled with a smile, throwing out his arms. "This is a party!" The crowd cheered as Oliver made his way off the stage. Tommy came up to him, giving him a strange look. "Some coincidence," he said, "I mean, you asking to have your party here, and Hunt getting robbed right next door… and by the same guy who rescued us at the warehouse." His tone inferred he was suspicious. Oliver gave him a tight smile. "If I were you, Tommy, I'd just be glad you're alive." He advised calmly.

Tommy shivered as he heard Oliver say that.

Tommy stared back at his friend; for the first time since they had met, he truly felt like he didn't know the person standing in front of him. "What happened to you on that island?" he asked haltingly. "A lot." Oliver replied before walking away. The next day, Adam Hunt was pacing his office, screaming into his phone at his accountant. "What the hell are you talking about? $40 million doesn't just up and vanish!" the accountant said something, and he scoffed. "Untraceable?! It is $40 million! Find it!" he ended the call and slammed the phone down onto the desk. He sank into his chair and put his head in his hands, defeated. "How did he do it?" he asked himself while ignoring the arrow embedded in his wall. He paid no attention to it, or to the electronic device that was attached to it; its indicator light blinking green. Meanwhile back at the foundry. Oliver watched as the $40 million transferred from Hunt International's account into a trust account he had set up. He then glanced over at a second screen, where another program was transferring that money back to the people which Hunt had stolen it from. He picked up the notebook, and calmly crossed Adam Hunt's name off The List. Oliver looked at the picture of his father on the shareholders report.

Laurel smiled as she saw this. Maybe this was justice.

The scene shifted back to the raft. It looks to have been several days. The crewman dozed across from Robert and Oliver, perched on the side of the raft with a knife held loosely in his hand. Robert glanced at the man, and then pulled Oliver in close. "There's not enough for all of us." He whispered to his son. "Save your strength." Oliver said, weakly. "You can survive this," Robert insisted. "Make it home, make it better. Right my wrongs. But you gotta live through this first." Oliver appeared to doze off, so Robert shook him lightly. "You hear me, Ollie?" he demanded. "You hear me, son?" "Just rest, dad." Oliver said tiredly, dozing off once more. Robert seemed to come to a decision. "No." he said quietly, kissing his son on the forehead. He gently moved Oliver away from him, propping him up against the edge of the raft. Then, eyeing the crewman, he reached into his jacket and pulled out a gun. The crewman only had a moment to look surprised before Robert pulled the trigger, shooting the man in the head and knocking him off the raft. That woke Oliver up suddenly, and he scrambled back from his dad in shock. Dad?!"he exclaimed in stunned horror. Robert looked sadly back at his son. "Survive." He said, and then he put the gun to his temple and pulled the trigger. "No!" Oliver screamed in horror.

Thea started sobbing uncontrollably as she watched her father commit suicide. She leaned into Roy who was uncomfortable but didn't pull back from the emotional girl. Everyone was in shock. Oliver had just watched his father commit suicide so that he could live. That was a heavy burden to bear.

Then suddenly we were back in the Foundry as Oliver watched the money transfers end. The next day at CNRI, Laurel spent most of the afternoon and evening fielding calls from happy, if puzzled clients. "If, hypothetically, $50,000 magically appeared in your bank account, it might be best for you not to speak about it." She was saying into her phone as Joanna approached her desk. "To anyone. Ever." She smiled. "God bless you, too." She said as she hung up the phone. "I just got a very grateful phone call from one of our clients against Adam Hunt." Joanna said. "Me, too." Laurel replied, and the two laughed. "It looks like Starling City has a guardian angel." She remarked. Joanna glanced back then said. "By the way, your cute friend's here." Laurel's face fell as she figured she was talking about Oliver, but when Laurel turned around she saw Tommy standing there, smiling. "You left the party pretty quick last night," he was saying later as they walked down an ally towards his car. "Even after I made sure the bar was stocked with Pinot Noir." "It wasn't really my scene." Laurel replied lightly. "I thought maybe you and Oliver went manoamano again." He threw out, "I saw you two head out." "There's nothing between Oliver and I," Laurel said with finality. "Not anymore." "Here I thought the only thing between you and Oliver was us." "I wouldn't exactly characterize us as an 'us', Tommy." Laurel said teasingly. Tommy stopped and turned to face her. "Then what would you call it?" he asked. "A lapse." She decided.

"Ugh!" Thea said in disgust. "I don't want to hear about this."

"That's quite a few lapses" Tommy said with a grin. "Your place, my place, my place again…" they both laughed. "Oh, come on, Merlyn." Laurel said with a smile. "We both know that you're not a one girl type of guy." "Depends on the girl." He announced. Laurel smiled. "I have to go back to work." She said finally, turning to walk away. "Dinah Laurel Lance," Tommy called out, "Always trying to save the world." Laurel turned around and smiled. "Hey." She said, "If I don't try and save it, who will?" she gave him a small wave, then turned and walked away. Tommy smiled and got in his car, and unnoticed by either of them, The Arrow sat perched on a fire escape high above, watching it all. 'She says the island changed me.' Oliver's voice said. She has no idea how much.' Once more we are back on the raft. Oliver pulls himself up, looking over the edge of the raft into the distance where Lian Yu lay waiting. 'There are many more names on the list, those who rule my city through intimidation and fear. Every last one of them will wish I had died on that island.'

"He might actually be able to make a real difference," Roy noted.

Back at Queen Manor, a darkly dressed man was walking down the rear steps towards the garden where another figure was waiting for him. "The police failed to identify the men I hired to kidnap Oliver," he said, "and they never will. Should we arrange another abduction?" "No." Moira Queen said. "There are other ways of finding out what my son knows."

"WHAT THE HELL!" Thea yelled as Dinah walked back into the room.

"Calm down Speedy, you'll get answers soon enough. Until then, I came to ask if you guys wanted any snacks. You guys probably need to get through a few more memories before lunch."

"Umm ok," Thea said still trying to understand what was going on.

"You guys start the next memory set and I'll be back in a bit." Dinah said leaving again. She walked down the hall to the control room of the watchtower.

"You ok Laurel?" A voice called to her as she entered.

"Yeah I'm good Roy. Although you should probably call me Dinah for now. Just while my younger self is here." She responded to the red clothed hero.

"Ok then. I guess for now call me Arsenal." Dinah smiled as she sat down next to him.

"Do you really think we can save them?" Dinah said her voice quavering.

"I hope so." Arsenal responded. "I can't lose everyone again."

Authors Note: So what'd you think? I would love any feedback or ideas. I will try to update soon! Until then, see you later.