Conclusion time! First off, want to thank sashapagetjcap on tumblr for taking a look at this chapter for me, I really appreciate it! Secondly, thank you all for the comments and follows of this story-it's overwhelming and I love it!

There is talk of cancer and treatment that is based off a friends experience. That being said, science is so not my thing so my additional research may be a bit off. Forgive me.

Oliver stared blankly at the petite blonde sitting in front of him. She was leaning back on her arms, slightly reclined but tense with frustration-all focused on him. One eyebrow was quirked upward, her head tilted to the side. It reminded him of the first time they met, in her office when he so obviously lied to her but she said nothing on the matter.

Felicity knew then and she'd likely know now. The silence was becoming heavy, something he didn't like, not now. Not between them. There were too many people he had to keep at arm's length, keep the facade up around. Fighting every instinct to lie, to find an easy way out, he decided on telling her the truth.

"I came to see Tommy," he finally admitted in a low voice, hands at his side as his fingers balled into fists before extending fully.

It was clear she hadn't expected an honest answer from him, the surprise evident on her face as he watched her work through what her response would be.

"Then, what are you doing here, listening to me have a private conversation?"

"The flowers." he stated simply, the process of questioning who had left them a simple one. Or so it was for him.

"The flowers?" She looked at him with mild skepticism. What did flowers have to do with him being a creeper on her downtime? Oliver closed his eyes, taking a slow deep breath. For a genius she missed quite a bit. However, compared to Oliver most did.

"Ooooh, the flowers!" The light that went off in her mind was visible and Oliver found himself once more amused by the woman in front of him.

"So you thought I was-" she tucked her chin in, puffed up her shoulders and took a mean stance, looking up at him with serious eyes. Oliver looked back, this time his eyebrow raised in question and more than a little confusion. Deflating, she bit her lower lip.

"It was what I thought he acted like-you know, big serious psychotic businessman out to ruin the city," she paused and looked somewhat sheepishly up at him.

"I was off?"

Despite the circumstances and the location, Oliver found himself laughing. Really laughing, finally nodding in agreement.

"A bit." he admitted. Felicity nodded her head to the side, inviting him to join her on the ground.

"So, bad impressions of bad guys aside, you're telling me you thought that Malcolm survived, left flowers on Tommy's grave and aimed to track him down?" A silent nod confirmed her theory as he took a seat next to her.

Felicity pursed her lips, thinking of what to say. While she felt slightly violated by the intrusion, she was was pleased he was here-to see Tommy. And he hadn't lied, neither of which were expected. But still, frustration ran through her veins unwilling to dissipate completely.

He watched her face as she thought, one thing he enjoyed about being around her was how expressive she was. Although the outcome often surprised him, she ran through emotions quickly on her face, it was an open response. Something he'd long forgotten how to do. After another brief silence she punched the arm closest to her, it was a punch one did when annoyed, nothing like Diggle had been training her to do. But it served its purpose.

"Oww." Oliver whined, more in surprise than actual pain, bringing his other hand up to rub what would become a small bruise.

"Really? You've been shot, stabbed, drugged, hit in the head and you're saying 'Ow' to my lacklustre punch? Some big, bad Hood you are." she remarked, rolling her eyes as Oliver tried his best at puppy dog eyes. Felicity found not looking at his eyes to be best.

Realizing he was in a losing battle, he shrugged in response.

"I wanted to make you feel like the training was paying off." he explained, refolding his legs in front of him.

"Gee, thanks." she murmured in response.

"That's all you've got then? I honestly expected more of a response-I'm a little disappointed, really." Oliver stated, pleasantly surprised by the lack of words his companion had now.

"Well, I was sort of surprised by the appearance of a strange man. Those sort of things throw me off my game...thus throwing the bag at you. If it helps, I'm working on something now." Felicity explained, stopping herself from sticking out her tongue at him.

"I'm sure you're pleased you don't have to withhold Big Belly from me." he grinned, taking too much (if Felicity's opinion) of a victory in the moment.

"You bastard! You heard that-and stayed there!?" She turned to him, voice raised and eyes wide as he grinned widely. She took the moment to grab her purse and swung it into his chest. Not expecting another attack, Oliver was knocked down slightly, adapting quickly and leaning on his elbows as he caught his breath.

"What do you keep in there, bricks?" Instead of waiting for a response he balanced himself on one arm, grabbing her purse-holding hand before it could retreat entirely to her side.

Felicity shrieked in response and made to grab it with her other hand but he was too quick. Grabbing it, he then turned onto his side, tucking it beneath his chest using his arms to block her and his chest as a shield. Not one to give up she tried to dive for it, one hand caught slightly underneath his frame; the purse tucked neatly between his arms.

"No fair!" She tried to wiggle her fingers, her hand being caught between the grass and his arm but she couldn't budge his massive frame. It was this point she realized that she was pretty much draped over him. And she found that he smelled quite good, like wind, leather, sweat and Oliver. Not only that but he was warm and surprisingly comfortable.

Felicity's mind stopped short and backtracked quickly. 'He has my purse. Focus!'

"Hey, this is a weapon. It could hurt people, I'm protecting the city!" His voice snapped her back to reality. While he said it with a straight voice, Felicity could hear the smile on his lips.

"Give it here, and we'll call it even, Stalker." his hand froze over the zipper as she spoke low but clearly. Her face was a short distance from his ear, he could feel her breath against the back of his ear. It was a surprisingly enjoyable sensation. Not allowing his mind to continue down the road that lead to him focusing on how soft she felt, he relented. Releasing his hold on her hand and purse, allowing both of them to right themselves. Oliver crossing his legs in front of him, elbows at his knees and his hands in front of him.

After a brief tense silence, she muttered something about know-it-all bosses, a small smile breaking across his lips once more.

"You know, although I wish you hadn't heard me talking about everything, I'm glad you came." Felicity confessed, quietly. Oliver watched as her fingers danced over the frayed ends of her purse.

"Thea's barely spoken to me since the funeral. If I ever want to be on speaking terms with her, I had to try..."

Felicity nodded in agreement, moving aside her purse and plucking at the grass. When he failed to say anything more she looked up at him to find him staring at her. His eyes watching her with something she couldn't put her finger on.

"And how'd that go?"

Her voice broke whatever train of thoughts he was having and he looked down to the ground.

"Didn't get far," he confessed in a small voice, "even if the flowers weren't there...I don't know what to say. To be honest, you make it look easy." His voice was small. For a moment the words didn't completely register, she heard his voice of course. But his words seemed so unreal to her that she just stared blankly at him for a moment, Oliver thinking maybe he lost her before she burst out laughing.

"I don't find it all that amusing..." she shook her head as she calmed herself.

"No, no. Sorry, I'm not laughing at you...well I'm laughing at what you think. Which now that I say it out loud does not in fact, sound any better. But look, Oliver," she lifted herself up slightly, moving so her whole body was facing him.

"It's not easy. I've had practice," biting her lower lip in thought, she paused, "Time to sort things, you know. It's been a while, my wounds aren't as fresh as yours are." she continued.

"You can't keep expecting to wake up one day and suddenly accept this loss. The pain, the guilt, the anger-it's not suddenly going to disappear. It's going to be there so you'd better deal with it." her eyes went wide after she finished.

"That last part-I didn't mean to sound," she was flush and embarrassed and Oliver watched as a myriad of emotions flickered across her face.

"Look, I..." Felicity found herself trying to find the right words, but for once found herself not babbling on. "I still haven't deleted her texts." she finally confessed.

"Things happen, or I'll put my foot in my mouth in the most superb manner and I'll think 'Wait until I tell her what I did this time!'" she finally met his eyes, hoping her rather silly secret would help him understand.

"But then I remember I can't. I can't watch her expressions as I relay my stories of social ineptitude. She won't become all red from self-righteous anger because some dick cut me in line for coffee. It takes time." she explained softly, her eyes focused on the headstone in front of them. A nudge from his knee shook her out of her brief trance, his eyes following her in a silent question.

"Cassidy Elizabeth Smoak was my cousin. My mother's brother's daughter. She was two years younger than me, but she was-she was a force of nature. She never let the fact that she was younger stop her. Out of the two of us, she was the social butterfly, one of those people who just drew others around her naturally."

"When she set her mind to something she'd see it through come hell or high water. Whether it was getting a hold of her mother's car keys at the age of nine, or pushing me out of my comfort zone socially..." Oliver watched as she went on, a bright smile on her lips. It was fascinating to watch someone remember-to have it come so freely without any seeming pain.

"She was a light, and people gathered to her, like a moth does to a flame. It was hard not to..." there was the unspoken however looming in the air as she trailed off.

"Then the shoe vomiting situation...?" He asked, steering the conversation to what sounded like a happier memory.

Felicity's blush spread slightly down her neck and she nodded. "We were celebrating, I had just finished my AP exams. She got us some fake I.D.'s."

Oliver smirked. "A real rebel, eh? Glad to hear that I wasn't the first to lead you to break the law."

"Yes, well, I never said helping you was the first time I broke the law now, did I?" Her eyes narrowing briefly, meeting his in a side-long glance. Oliver smirked to himself, letting her continue.

"Well, let's just say I learned that just because I don't taste the tequila doesn't mean it's not there. It was one of the first times I felt so free. Not because of the booze, I just felt no pressure. The shoes made my feet ache, the dress wasn't mine and I hadn't had that much makeup on since I got into my mom's makeup when I was 5, but she made me feel like I didn't have to be so," she paused, her hands moving as if they were the cogs that kept her mind in motion.

"So composed and together all the time. Somehow I ended up next to Tommy. It was a social triumph." she smiled to herself, remembering the somewhat envious glares from some of the people with them.

"We got busted when we got home, grounded for a while. But honestly dealing with the hangover of that night was punishment enough." Oliver let out a small chuckle, imagining a younger Felicity, grumpy, achy and whining about the light being too much. It was an amusing thought.

"But Cas's headache never went away, no amount of pain killers or liquids seemed to help. Then she started getting sick, so her parents took her to the doctors." her voice became smaller. Focusing on the stone in front of her, the smile she wore slowly slipped away; one of her arms wrapping around the leg that was now bent, her chin perched upon it. Her other leg bent to the side, her hand plucking up more grass.

"Her white blood cell count was low-too low, more testing was done and by the end of it all, she was diagnosed with Chronic Lymphoid Leukemia."

Felicity's voice had evened out, her eyes glassy and distant; much like Oliver's did when his mind drifted elsewhere. He stared at her, wanting to say something but nothing seemed adequate. He knew better than anyone what little good "I'm sorry" did. So he moved closer, their arms just barely touching, but remained silent. Just a silent presence, comfort if she needed it.

The slight contact of his arm brushing hers brought her back to the present, her eyes blinking rapidly.

"There was chemo of course, she remained positive throughout it. Even when her hair was thinning, and she constantly felt sick she always smiled. Always laughed about it, she even fell asleep during a treatment trying to tell a nurse a joke once," Felicity shook her head, a small smile on her lips.

"It worked, but the chemo also killed the cells in her bone marrow. She needed a transplant. We all got tested, although the doctors said it was unlikely if there wasn't a sibling match. But shockingly I was a match. We thought it a sign, we were going to be connected on a molecular level," she let out a hoarse sounding laugh before continuing.

"We knew the risks but, it felt so outrageous that I'd be a match, the world, the gods, whoever's in charge-they couldn't be that cruel. But they were," she finally turned to face him, her eyes clear but sad.

"Her body recognized the difference and attacked the cells within six months. We got to celebrate her twentieth birthday, then she was gone."

"Having time to say goodbye doesn't make it easier. You hear people say that it would be easier if their loved ones weren't taken so quickly. But it's not, watching the ones you love slowly die, still trying to be strong for those around them-its not easier. It's just different, but you push through it. You're surrounded by family and you're all grieving and you want to shout, you want to blame someone, anyone. You want to be alone-to take a deep breath but you're constantly bombarded by people asking if you're okay." she chuckled and shook her head.

"'Of course I'm fine, I just lost my closest friend in the world, what could possibly be wrong?'-I was so close to saying it so many times. Just to see what someone would do. But instead I nodded and got through it. I helped plan her funeral, made sure she got the send off she wanted," she looked over at Oliver.

"That's what she called it, never her funeral or tribute but her send off, her grand voyage."

Felicity didn't know when it had started, but she became aware that his hand was on her knee, his thumb slowly moving back and forth to comfort her. She stared at it for a moment, a smile pulling her lips up.

"Being here, talking to her allows me to still feel connected to her. While I've said goodbye, I can't give up. It's silly, I know, but it helps to have someone you can confide in about anything-particularly when you take up with a crime fighting vigilante." she explained, nudging his shoulder in jest as her words hit her own ears.

"Not that we've 'taken up' together, nor do I think about it like that. I don't think about taking up together-just working," she explained, her hands in front of her.

"Working, side by side-by side with Dig of course. There is no 'taking up' involved." she saw the telltale sign of his amusement, the sparkle of amusement in his eyes and his lips quirking up into a smile.

"I know." he said simply and she nodded. The flush in her cheeks slowly receding. They sat in companionable silence before Oliver finally spoke.

"You didn't have to step in like that you know. Someone would have gotten it done, you shouldn't have added that onto your plate," Felicity just shook her head at him, a sad smile on her face. He didn't know it'd started but, he started to recognize her smiles. The fake ones, the amused ones, the ones where she tried to keep in her laughter. But particularly the ones that spoke volumes of the apathy she felt, primarily while dealing with him.

"No, but it's what friends do. I didn't have anyone to help me like that when I lost Cas. She was my help, my go-to-gal if you will. We were all grieving, but her parents lost their child-a feeling I hope to never have to understand. I knew her best, I felt it my duty to do it and no one stopped me. Besides, for once it's something that I could do to help you. I mean, I get intel, and I grade your computers which is useful, I know." she put up one hand, as if to stop him from the automatic words of reassurance on his tongue about her importance to the team.

"But this is something I have experience with, for everything I've got going on-you've got tenfold more and this is something where I knew what to do. " She explained.

"Thank you." his voice was quiet, as he stared at the tombstone before them. If they hadn't been sitting so close together she would have missed it.

"There's no need to-"

"Not just for me, for Laurel, for Walter-particularly for Thea. She's quite impressed with you, you know," Oliver explained, Felicity's face surprised and a little confused, however she remained silent.

"I watched it," he confessed, already aware she knew.

"All of it, I couldn't be there for Thea. I failed her, again." his voice thick with self-loathing and anger.

"She lost our father, Tommy, now our mother-Walter is leaving, and I couldn't be there for her." He could hear Felicity shaking her head, the sound of her hair moving and the metal of her earrings coming in quick repetition.

"She mourned our father, she mourned me."

"But you came back-that's not your fault, Oliver!"

"Did I? I haven't been the brother I should have been since I've been back. I want to, but she deserves answers-answers I can't give her. I hate lying to her. I think she knows that I am too, that's why she's stopped coming to me. But you-you've given her comfort, comfort I can't give her..."

"Oliver, look," she sighed shaking her head at him.

"No, actually look at me, this isn't going to sink in otherwise." she explained further, a stern edge in her voice as she moved her hand to his chin to move his face to meet hers.

"You need to stop this...pity party. I get it, I mean, if anyone deserves to throw themselves one it's you, complete with sad dust ridden streamers and melting forgotten ice cream, but it's not going to make it better." despite the contact, his eyes refused to meet hers completely. Staring instead at points just beyond her.

"For you, for Thea...and it's not going to being Tommy back." Felicity's voice softened slightly, the mention of Tommy's name snapping his eyes to hers. His jaw tightened in response but he said nothing.

"It's not easy, I'm not saying it will be. But shutting down and hating yourself for it isn't going to make anything better for you. You're good at being silent, so use it. Listen to Thea, be there for her. Giving comfort isn't always about saying the right thing. If it was I'd be done for," at this his eyes lightened, his jaw unclenching slightly.

"It gets easier over time, never easy, but easier. You'll be able to think about him and not want to cry-or in your case hit things with sticks or put arrows through people. You did everything you could, it was Tommy's choice to save Laurel," she paused, hopeful that the words were sinking in.

"You need to accept that it wasn't your fault. You saved so many people that day Oliver, you can't let yourself lose sight of that. You made the tough call, you had to deal with Malcolm, if you hadn't-who knows where we'd be. I imagine that for Tommy, this was his redemption..." Oliver looked at her sharply, unsure of where this was going.

"You have been charged with saving the city from the wrongs of your father; saving Laurel-that was his. Perhaps redemption isn't the right word but, as you right the wrongs of your father, risking your life everyday to save the city, Tommy did that for Laurel. Because he loved her, and you risk your life for those you love, just as you do for the people of Starling City. It's just a different scale."

Realizing her hand was still on his chin, Felicity's eyes widened before she jerked her arm away. Another silence rising as neither spoke, Oliver still staring at her, his expression once more unreadable as she tried to look at anything except him as she wondered if she had gone too far. While she didn't regret it, his responses were not exactly predictable which was more worrisome. Felicity liked predictable outcomes, at least when emotions were involved. But logic and emotions rarely ever saw eye-to-eye so it became a waiting game.

Felicity was biting the inside of her cheek to keep from saying something, it seemed like an eternity before he finally spoke.

"So what's the box for?"

Brows furrowed, she turned her head slowly to face him, reminding herself facing him was inevitable.

"Box?"

Oliver nodded in the direction of where she'd put the small tupperware box that had fallen out of the bag she'd thrown at him.

"Oh, that box." she said, grabbing it from beside her purse and handing it to him. Before he could ask, she was digging through her purse for something. She didn't bother to look up when she spoke.

"Open it." she said firmly, but with a great amount of patience. He imagined it was the same voice she used while dealing with technologically inept co-workers. He then reminded himself that technically, he was included in that group but shook it off.

Gingerly opening the box he found a slightly battered cupcake.

"Ah ha!" Her voice cheerfully triumphant, he looked over to see her smiling proudly, holding a few small things in her hand. Putting aside her purse, she took the cupcake from the box.

"Make yourself useful." she commanded, holding the cupcake out to him. Doing as she asked he held it as she took the box from his lap, placed the lid securely on top and motioned for him to place the baked good on top.

Opening her left palm he could see clearly what she had been searching for. Looking to her determined face, placing a short green candle on the cupcake he smiled.

"It's her birthday," she explain simply, her focused gaze never leaving the cupcake as the candle continued to tilt to one side, refusing to stand straight.

"She'd be 25 today." Felicity's voice becoming tighter with frustration as she progressed from placing the candle into the cupcake to stabbing it with the candle. Grabbing her wrist, he stopped what would become a violent death for the baked good. Taking the candle and evening out the disturbed frosting, and placing the candle in the center.

"Thanks," she smiled at him and he nodded.

"Least I could do, considering its current state is partially my fault." he explained lightly, hoping to get a proper smile from her. She laughed at him, nodding her agreement. It was small but genuine, and Oliver felt himself smile wider, proud that he elicited the response.

"Happy Birthday, Cas," she said softly as she light the candle. "I, um,..." Felicity looked from the small candle burning to the headstone.

"I miss you," her voice was soft, nearly a whisper and for a moment Oliver felt that once more he was intruding on a private moment. Without thinking he placed a hand on her back, offering her what comfort he could. The touch surprised her, her back straightening and tensing for a second not sure how to respond. He felt his gut tighten in when he saw the reaction. Oliver didn't like it that she felt so unsure of her response to him. He made a note to try to change that, but clamped down other emotions that had become jarred from the response.

Turning to face him, Felicity met his eyes with a warm smile and eyes bright-the way he thought they are meant to be.

"How rude of me, Cassidy Elizabeth Smoak," she gestured to her buried cousin then to him.

"Oliver Queen. Oliver Queen may I introduce you to Cassidy Elizabeth Smoak,"

"Jonas," Oliver said, Felicity looking at him with vague confusion written on her face.

"Oliver Jonas Queen. If she gets the full name treatment, I felt it only fair I do too." he explained casually.

Felicity stared at him in disbelief for a moment before laughing, nodding to herself. "Jonas." she repeated. He could feel Felicity's eyes on him as he continued.

"A pleasure to meet you Cassidy. Happy Birthday," he bowed his head slightly, his right arm coming out with a flourish.

When he turned to meet her gaze, her face wore an expression that he couldn't quite place. Her eyes were bright, like they were when he came back with some encrypted data for her to decode, they were shining, but not with tears. Her smile wide, her bright pink lipstick still as perfect as it had been in the morning.

Shaking her head at him, Felicity blew out the candle now about half its original size. Taking the candle from the cupcake, Oliver watched her put the green candle between her lips before ripping the cupcake in two and holding a half out to him. Forcibly removing his eyes from her lips he accepted the offering, hoping she didn't notice how his eyes lingered he raised his eyebrows, lips quirked to one side in amusement.

Taking the candle from between her lips, she threw it in the general direction of her purse before returning his gaze.

"What? I'm not one to waste perfectly good frosting," she explained her sound logic.

Chuckling he bit into the cupcake, smiling at her. The fact that she kept the one with more frosting was not lost on him.

"What flavor is this?" He asked, swallowing and looking at the small piece left before looking over to her. He found her eyes closed in enjoyment, clearly ignoring his question. A nudge of his shoulders jolted her, eyes popping open.

"What?" She asked looking guiltily at him before she tried to stifle a laugh, unsuccessfully.

"Flavor?" He asked, watching her as she tried to school her amusement but failed.

"Salted Vanilla Carameeel," she giggled, popping the rest in her mouth and pointing to his mouth.

"Which um, you seem to have got," she motioned to the area around her lips, laughter bubbling up in a steady stream.

Wiping his mouth on a sleeve, he looked down to see his exposed shirt sleeve covered in white and tan.

"Did I mention it was filled with frosting too?" She asked, having collected herself and looking at him with an expression of pure innocence.

Shaking his head, he took his finger and swiped the frosting before smearing it under her nose, creating a sad-looking moustache.

"You didn't." he said, before eating the rest of his piece in perfect contentment.

"If that was supposed to shock or anger me you'll have to try harder, Mr. Queen," she said in utter seriousness.

"Oh?"

"You just gave me more frosting, really, it's a win for me," she explained happily, her finger taking the edible facial hair he smeared from her skin before popping it in her mouth. Oliver watched with rapt attention as the finger disappeared into her mouth, before shaking himself from the onslaught of distracting images his mind created.

"Really, I think I'm disappointed in you." she grinned at him, completely unaware of where his thoughts had been going.

Shaking his head at her, he stood up and offered his hand to her. Tucking the box away and grabbing her things, she accepted his proffered hand.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome, although I just think it's good manners. It's awkward not to at least offer something to someone if you're having something, you know?" Felicity spoke, looking down as she cleaned off her skirt.

"Just rude to enjoy a cupcake and let you watch. And somewhat voyeuristic too. I mean, you do seem into that sort of thing." she went on, lifting her head to meet his. The regret of her words written across her features even as she spoke.

"Not that I think you're into voyeurism, you know sexually. It has never even occurred to me what you might be into-not that I don't think you have them, I mean everyone does. Or that you're not worthy of being thought of as a sexual kink person, you're sort of built like Thor; so really it'd surprise me if anyone claiming to have a pulse wouldn't be aware of that. Anytime you want to stop me would be great...because this could go on for a long ti-"

"Felicity." her name finally being spoken, clearly amused by her mortifying rambling breaking through. She could feel the flush spread to her neck but she risked a glance at him, knowing it could make it worse. While he was clearly thoroughly amused, his lips in a full smile. If she weren't so embarrassed she'd be proud she did that-hell, she still was. But his eyes remained unmoved.

"Not what I meant." Oliver clarified. She nodded once as they slowly made their way side-by-side down the row.

"Oh." As they turned to make their way towards the main entrance, he continued.

"This is an all encompassing thank you," he explained, glancing over at her and watching her as she absorbed the information.

"Then, you are all encompassing welcome," she responded cheerfully, turning to meet his eyes. Despite her teasing tone he could see she meant it, she understood the words he couldn't formulate.

"This is me," she said, point to her car in the lot.

"Which sounds really lame out loud, the movies lied," whether or not she had meant it to break the emotional tension or not, he laughed.

"I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Yeah," she nodded. Oliver nodded, hands in his pockets as he waited until she got into her car before walking to his bike. As she opened the door to get in she stopped.

"Oliver?"

"Yes, Felicity?"

"You'll still go talk to Tommy, right?" He could hear the hopeful note in her voice, the worry for him evident in her face.

"I'll give it a shot." Felicity beamed back at him, nodding to herself as she got in her car. Starting the engine, she left, Oliver remaining behind to watch her go. Turning around, he took a deep breath and started off towards the direction he came in. It was about time he and Tommy talked.

/END

That's all she wrote folks! Again, thank you for all your lovely comments and for taking an interest in this story. I do hope you enjoyed it. There is a possibility that it'll continue in some form, if people want it. Lord knows I have the plot bunnies. So let me know! :D