Oliver had never been very good at sleeping. Even as a child he rarely slept through the night, driving his mother crazy (who, despite their surplus of staff, still insisted on getting up with him every time). And since Felicity was very good at sleeping, claiming it as one of her top skills, it only made sense that he would get up with the baby at 3AM.

So, once again, Oliver sat in the pink nursery, his tiny daughter cooing in his arms. "I'm starting to suspect you're just crying because you want to hang out," Oliver accused, trying on his best 'dad voice.' "But it's okay. Whenever you don't wake up I usually end up in here to check on you anyway."

Oliver let the quiet of the room wash over him, only with the swish of the rocker's fabric and the occasional babble from his daughter breaking through the silence. As he once again examined his daughter's face, checking for even the slightest change since they were in this same position the previous night, he checked off his family in her tiny features. She had her mother's eyes, curious but determined. His mother's mouth, his father's nose. Donna swore she had her natural blonde hair (though there wasn't actually enough of it yet to tell). And when she laughed, though it was infrequent at this age, it sounded just like a tiny Thea.

Their decision to have a child hadn't been an easy one. Both Felicity and Oliver desperately wanted a child together, but the realities of their lives always seemed to put that plan on hold. However, it was Diggle, when announcing that he and Lyla were expecting their son, that changed their minds. John had admitted to them that he couldn't imagine looking back on his life and realizing he didn't do something because of a fear it would end badly. His family had given him more joy than anything else in his life and long after his time with team Arrow was over, they would be the ones still at his side. To give them up because of the dangers of the present would mean giving up his own happiness in the future. But, of course, that didn't make the idea any less terrifying.

"You know, I promised you something when you were first born, right after mommy fell asleep and we had our first little talk... But I'm afraid that day was so traumatic for you that you don't remember. It's okay, kid, I'll keep reminding you..."

As if in response, Elaina stretched her mouth into a yawn, blinking her eyes shut for only a moment before looking once again for her father to continue his story.

"I've promised a lot of people I would protect them, Lainie-bug. Some of them I've failed, more than I thought I could handle, and I'll carry that guilt with me forever. But you sweetheart, you I can never fail. And not just because I wouldn't recover from that. But because this world needs you. You're the most good I'm ever going to do."

"You're putting a lot of pressure on someone who hasn't even tipped ten pounds yet."

Oliver looked up to see Felicity leaning against the doorway, the hallway still dark behind her.

"I told you I have her tonight. You were going to try to get into work in the morning, remember?"

"I don't have to go to work," Felicity mumbled before biting her lip and making her way into the room. "I'd rather be here."

Oliver began to move over so his wife could squeeze into the rocker beside him, but instead she lowered herself onto the floor, putting her at eye level with their daughter in Oliver's lap.

"Are we making a mistake?" Felicity asked suddenly, her eyes flicking up to Oliver before retraining on Elaina.

The baby immediately began to fuss as the movement of the rocker slowed to a halt. Felicity had been doing so well since the baby was born. Even in her most sleep deprived states she had been full of smiles and constant competition with Oliver to come up with the best "bad dad" jokes. But Oliver immediately began to worry… For her to even ask, to question if their daughter was a mistake-

"I don't mean her," Felicity corrected, her eyes widening in realization, "No, she's perfect… somehow... I mean keeping up with our night jobs. Vigilante-ing. Seeking out trouble rather than staying out of it. Are we making a mistake?"

Oliver let out a relieved sigh and gently began pushing against the floor once again to reanimate the rocking chair and re-sooth his daughter. It wasn't like he hadn't asked himself that very question a million times since the plus sign turned up on the home pregnancy test. Not only did they risk someone coming after her (a thought Oliver could never spend much time contemplating without hearing blood rush to his ears) but they risked Elaina losing her father, her aunts and uncles, and potentially even her mother.

"No," Oliver finally answered, once he was sure he could say the word without a hint of doubt in his voice. "We're not."

"How can you know… how can you be so sure? I've already been attacked more times than any IT girl, or even CEO, should have been. You practically die about twice a year. Everyone we love has been put in some kind of danger… Remember what happened with William-"

Oliver shifted Elaina into one arm and reached his free hand out, cupping Felicity's cheek, which she instinctively leaned into his hand.

"Felicity, this is our daughter," Oliver stated with a sigh, "Yes, I know we shouldn't be making assumptions about who she will be or what she will become or how she will feel… but judging by her genetics, she's going to feel pretty strongly about justice. I can't even imagine sitting her down one day to tell her about what we used to do. What kind of burden would she carry around? That her birth ended the possibility for others to be saved? For others to be protected? For God knows what to happen to her city? Felicity, I promise I will do everything in my power to keep her safe… to keep all of us safe. But I need to believe that she will want us to continue to do the right thing."

As if soothed to sleep by her father's voice, Elaina's eyes began to flutter closed and both of her parents fell quiet while her breaths evened out and her head rolled to nuzzle into her father's chest. Felicity pulled away from Oliver's hand with an appreciative smile, her eyes flicking toward the crib.

In one gentle movement (which Oliver couldn't help comparing to moving an active landmine) he stood up from the rocker and shifted their daughter into her bed.

As he watched her fall further into sleep, her hand drawing to face, he found his own hands feeling overwhelmingly empty.

"The timer is set," Felicity whispered, suddenly appearing behind Oliver and wrapping her arms around his waist, "Three hours and she's up again looking for breakfast."

Oliver nodded, knowing that Felicity was signaling for them to head back to bed for a few more hours of sleep. But he couldn't help but notice that she wasn't moving either, equally frozen in awe of the tiny miracle they had created.

"Let's go to sleep," he finally prompted, twisting to wrap his arm around her shoulders. She didn't let go of him, rather she just shifted her body to his side, leaving both arms around his waist.

"Wait…" She mumbled, looking down at their daughter once more. Oliver's eyes followed hers, fearing he would see opened eyes, but Elaina was still sleeping, her mouth pursed as she encountered very serious problems in her dreams.

"You have to promise me something too…"

"Anything. If it's you asking, Felicity, you know it's anything."

"You sure?"

Felicity's hesitation made him nervous, but he knew no matter what she asked, his answer would be yes. "Of course."

Felicity sighed, looking their daughter to Oliver, "She comes first," she finally sighed, "I know- I know you're going to say we're both first, but… Oliver I made this choice. She hasn't… not yet. So… if it ever comes down to it, you make sure she comes first… okay?"

Felicity's brow furrowed as she must have felt Oliver's whole body tense. Considering how much time they both spent fearing these worst case scenarios, they hadn't vocalized this shift in their priorities yet. Oliver knew it didn't mean they loved each other any less or wouldn't give everything to keep one another safe, but at the end of the day, since they decided to become parents, they knew someone else would have to come first.

"Oliver," Felicity's grip around his waist tightened, "I really need you to promise this. I can't have anything happen to her… I can't…"

"I know… Felicity I know… We both protect her first," Oliver stressed, as much as the words pained him to say aloud. "We will always have each other's backs… but… if it ever comes down to it, she comes first. I promise."