ARROW FIC. SET DIRECTLY AFTER OLIVER BEING TOLD TRUTH ABOUT THEA AND WALKING OUT ON HIS MOTHER.

I OWN NOTHING. THIS FIC WORM WAS BUGGING ME AFTER THAT EPISODE AND IS STILL IN MY HEAD. MUST. COMPELTE. STORY. ENJOY.

I DON'T OWN ARROW. OBVIOUSLY. OR IS IT OBVIOUS? WHO KNOWS WHO I COULD BE…JUST KDDING I DON'T OWN IT.

CHAPTER 1 "REVELATIONS"

Felicity was still in the white dress she had been wearing all day. It was just an hour or two after the press conference announcing Moira's candidacy for mayor. Only hours after she had dropped one of the biggest bombs of his life on Oliver. She had never felt so terrible seeing the look on someone's face as she had that day. On top of that, Felicity had felt completely vulnerable in that moment, revealing her most painful weakness to the strongest man she knew. She was humiliated by what she had revealed, but she also knew there was no other way she'd have spoken up.

Having no will power to do anything but go straight to the kitchen after she got home, she had been sitting on her counter in her condo for 20 minutes eating ice cream out of the carton. Shoeless. It was completely silent in her little fortress of solitude. Felicity was free to cry, and wallow, and selfishly obsess over her past in peace. However, she felt guilty about it of course. What Oliver was going through right now was more pressing than her childhood trauma. She wondered if he would tell Thea. If so, what would be her reaction? What would be Moira's reaction? Did she just implode an entire family through her obsessive meddling? Why couldn't she have just stopped her stupid fingers from typing and turn her genius brain OFF!? Her stupid quirk about solving mysteries led to her friend getting hurt. She'll probably have to go back to her years long self-imposed isolation, protecting herself and others against her huge, inappropriately tenacious, MIT brain.

The loud swift knock at her front door broke her out of her thoughts with a start. She banged her head on the cabinet behind her and dropped her ice cream and spoon on the floor. Which was devastating enough since it was her last pint. Her fridge being ridiculously bare from her minimal time spent at home.

Another round of knocking jolted her again, reminding her that she does in fact need to get the door. She hopped off the counter, avoiding the ice cream, and padded on the balls of her feet hurriedly to the door. Reaching back to where she hit her head earlier, she quickly and anxiously reached for the door and yanked it open while at the same time looking towards the clock. It was 10 pm, who could be here this late. She turned back toward the open door and…

SMACK

Felicity was sent stumbling sideways, and almost fell to a lean against her couch. Luckily, it was there or else she would have lost her balance completely and fallen. She looked up to see Moira in her doorway rubbing her hand.

"Bitch!" Moira said, trying to hold back tears. "He walked out on me!"

Felicity was still leaning, her back against the couch and hand on her face. Her expression not so much shock as guilt and understanding. She knew what it was like to have someone you love walk out on you, powerless to stop them.

"I was trying to protect them." Moira said in a calmer tone than before.

She walked right in and up to Felicity so they were face to face. Felicity was paralyzed, she didn't know why, but she couldn't move from her spot. She could now see the sadness, and a hint of fear, in Moira's puffy, red eyes. Tears welled up in her own. She flinched as an impulse as Moira put her hand up to softly take Felicity's hand from her cheek. As Moira removed Felicity's hand, she gently placed her thumb on her cheek at the corner of Felicity's mouth. Flinching again, but this time in pain at the touch, all Felicity could do was stare, knowing she deserved it for intruding in their family affairs. But Moira's face had softened.

"I was trying to protect you, too. I don't want to see anyone else get hurt, but I guess that's inevitable now." Moira spoke softer until the end of the sentence was almost a whisper.

"Come on, I'll help you clean that up." Moira said with her hand still on Felicity's split lip. Not until she looked down at her hand, did Felicity even realize she was bleeding.

"Oh." was all Felicity could manage, as Moira took her hand and led her into the kitchen like she owned the place.

"No it's fine really, I deserved it…" Felicity started.

Moira cut her off quickly, "No you didn't. I did." She mumbled. "Now sit down."

Felicity did as she was told, and sat at her modest kitchen table made for only two at the most. She watched as Moira picked up the long forgotten ice cream off the floor and put it in the sink. She stared in confusion and wonder as Moira proceeded to move around her kitchen like it was her own and grab a couple of clean towels, some ice from the freezer and a glass of water. She put them down on the table next to Felicity. Moira pulled up the other chair and sat across from her, proceeding to wipe the small amount of blood off of her mouth and chin, replacing the wet towel with a towel filled with ice.

"Hold that right there. Where's your first aid kit?" Moira asked.

"Uhh, uh bathroom cabinet, down the hall to the left." Felicity squeaked out. This was all so surreal. Moira Queen had showed up to her home, hit her, and is now acting like (what she would assume to be) how a mother acts when a child is hurt. Not the she would know what that was like.

She was jarred from her thoughts when Moira came back in with Hydrogen Peroxide, antibiotic ointment, and a butterfly bandage.

"It can't be that bad…" Felicity stated, wincing as she spoke. "Oh, I guess it does sting a little."

"It's bad enough." Moira said quietly, with a look of sympathy and guilt.

"I didn't come here to do that. I guess my emotions got the best of me. I'm not known for having a short temper."

Felicity scoffed "It's ok, I'm used to Oliver, this was a walk in the park. I mean…not that he's ever violent…or…I'm sure he could be he's huge. I mean…"

"Ms. Smoak." Moira stopped her and put a finger up to her lips "Shh. I have to clean your lip."

"Sorry...I…shutting up." Felicity winced again with the words and then made a soft whimper as Moira put the Hydrogen peroxide and ointments on the still somewhat bleeding cut. Moira was gentle putting on the small butterfly bandage and then held the ice back up to Felicity's mouth and cheek. Felicity placed her hand over the towel and held it in place.

"Ms. Smoak. I…" She sighed, Felicity wondered why she was still here, what could she want to talk to her about that was so difficult. And why her?

"OK, let's start at the beginning. When you came by last night, I panicked. The second you left I looked into you, I looked into your past to the best of my ability, which isn't anywhere near yours. I was hoping I'd find something to indicate that my stunt, my manipulation, was going to work. That you'd keep your mouth shut."

Felicity just looked back at her horrified. THE Moira Queen had looked into her, and found out about her ugly past. It was bad enough that she'd given Oliver PART of the story, let alone this. Felicity stood up almost knocking the chair over. Her normal rambling wouldn't do with her mouth hurting. All she could manage was a straggled "WHAT?!"

"Felicity, Ms. Smoak, sit back down. Please let me finish." She motioned for the chair with a pleading look in her eyes.

Felicity was fuming, and paced a couple of times before finally settling back down looking at the floor.

"Ms. Smoak, everything I read about you… I wasn't able to find much, it seems like someone did a number on your personal records." She cleared her throat and gave Felicity a knowing look. Felicity just turned away again, staring at nothing in particular.

"What I did find…it sounds like you had a terrible time, and I'm sorry. But it also gave me a little bit of hope…given your history…that you'd back off and let this go out of fear. I know how you feel about Oliver, I can see it in your eyes…" Felicity looked up at her startled…"There it is, right there. You need him. And for you to tell him, to take that leap up faith, that measn that you are stronger and braver than I would have ever expected." Moira said sincerely, staring at Felicity in the eyes.

"So..?" Felicity asked, "What are you going to do to me?"

Moira glanced down at the floor and then glanced to the side. When she looked back at Felicity her entire demeanor had changed to one of dread.

"Ms. Smoak, I needed you to keep quiet. I did my best to use your feelings for Oliver against you because if you told him, and if he…" She paused and took a deep breath. She definitely had Felicity's curiousity.

"If Oliver found out, and if anyone else found out. You, him, Thea, and everyone we all know is in terrible danger." Moira's face went white as she realized she had just told Felicity part of the truth, there was no turning back now.

"Danger from what?" Felicity asked slowly and carefully.

Moira took one more deep breath before admitting her dark secret.

"Malcolm Merlyn is alive."

Suddenly there was a loud crash of glass and the familiar sound of an arrow sticking into Felicity's kitchen table.

Both women screamed in surprise. Felicity got a good look at the arrow before ducking behind the counters with Moira. It was black.

Moira's voice trembled with fear. "He knows…"