You are not the Vigilante

A/N – This story follows both You are the Vigilante and Go Team Arrow (including separate Epilogue) but if you missed them, here's a quick summary. In Vigilante, Thea and Roy discover Oliver's secret identity by the way he acted w/ Felicity then wanted to join in on the action and did help out on a mission (took me 9 chapters for this one sentence)! Team Arrow delves deeper into the characters, their relationships and how they became a team (6 chapters for that one)! There's a whole lot of Olicity in both as well as an OC (security guard named Charlie) who will soon have his own series! Now you are current so happy reading!

DISCLAIMER – I own nothing but I do enjoy playing w/o profit!

Once alone and at his own place, Lance thought back over the conversation with his daughter. He really didn't think Laurel would pursue Felicity, at least not with Queen's interference. If things did go further the Arrow would certainly find a way to protect Felicity. Laurel would certainly be upset if she knew just how badly she had underestimated Ms. Smoak – she's got two of the most powerful men in the city protecting her. Lance chuckled before he actually processed that thought. Two of the most powerful protecting one single blond IT girl…Felicity came from the back of the club? Rumors she was sleeping with Queen but the Arrow laid claim to her as well. Lance's police instincts were on alert now as rarely were there coincidences. And both Queen and the Arrow know both of my daughters – Queen killed both my girls, Lance couldn't help the anger and grief of that thought even as he acknowledged it was strictly true and if he continued it to its logical end…the Arrow has saved both of them.

It couldn't be, could it? Could Queen be the Arrow?

However, there was nothing logical in Lance's view of Queen and his response remained emotional. There was little black and white in Starling City anymore with the advent of the Arrow and even Lance's own choice to help him left more gray areas than he liked. However, hating Ollie Queen was something Lance had always been sure about, had always been sure he'd been in the right.

Lance was unwilling to let go of one of the few remaining pillars of his belief system without actual concrete evidence. He just wasn't quite ready to lose the comfort of blaming Ollie Queen nor did he want to reassign that blame to anyone else. Unfortunately, Lance couldn't ignore his belief in pursuing the truth so he did acknowledge that there was just the slim possibility that Queen wasn't quite the villain he liked to believe he was. Am I being as blind about Queen as Laurel is being about Felicity?

To complicate matters further there was then the question of what he should do with any knowledge he acquired. Helping Oliver Queen was not the same as helping the Arrow Lance concluded with a growl not unlike the Arrow's.

Lance scrubbed at his eyes even as he pressed his fingertips into his temple to relieve the growing pressure there. Sleep was surely not coming tonight.

It couldn't be, could it? Could Queen be the Arrow? The thought continued to buzz in his head like a mad mosquito and it was going to drive him crazy.

Lance started to compile and evaluate the pieces of evidence just as if he was solving a crime and there was some damning evidence to support that fact that the obnoxious playboy trust fund brat had returned from the dead to become the hero of Starling City.

Clearly the most obvious was the fact that both arrived in Starling City at the same time. However, no one made that connection because Queen immediately resumed his lifestyle as if five years hadn't gone by…even I dismissed Queen as the same boy he'd been when he'd left. Lance's brow furrowed as he realized he may have made a serious strategic error in judgment.

It's hard to let go of everything…if I see him differently then…Lance cut off his own thoughts, unable and unwilling to even give voice to it in his own head. He wasn't ready to delve too deeply into what it would mean if Queen was the Arrow. The connection to his daughters was too close and the hurt and grief that still bubbles so easily to the surface was easier to focus on than the new feelings of doubt and fear.

After years of alcohol addiction, Lance could recognize a trigger when he saw one. Might not hurt to drop by a meeting soon…

However, throughout the day, like a mantra the buzzing continued. It couldn't be, could it? Could Queen be the Arrow?

It didn't help to see Ms. Smoak's name on his phone so he did the only thing he could do and ignored the call. He felt a moment's doubt but squelched it as he now bore some anger at her for keeping the secret too even as he realized that was unfair.

Lance did continue to gather intel from the police files – it was now a compulsion to prove Queen was not the vigilante and he was pursuing that goal ruthlessly even as he ignored the voice in his head that it was a futile effort. There were some instances where Queen was in public when the Arrow was supposed to be elsewhere but that was all Lance had discovered to even partially refute the possibility. I doubt Ms. Smoak is his only contact.

Of course, there was also the fact that Ollie Queen did not possess the skill set of the Arrow. Five years on a deserted island, no doubt changed a man but that much? Even as Lance pondered that thought the image of his own daughter snapping a man's neck came to mind and he had to acknowledge that Queen could not only be capable but skilled as well.

What truly concerned Lance were the changes in both Queen and the Arrow since their arrival on the scene. Lance had created a timeline of both Arrow cases and Queen events and it was hard to deny the similarities in those journeys.

Reviewing the first documented Vigilante cases, Lance was pretty sure he could link the majority of those deaths to that Undertaking conspiracy involving Moira Queen and Malcolm Merlyn. The Arrow had a single minded goal at the beginning and appeared to only stray when Laurel had invoked his help. Lance had to growl under his breath as he remembered how close the Arrow had been to his daughter at that time.

At first body bags littered the scene of any Vigilante crime but gradually though the Arrow had taken a less violent approach. I even accepted the possibility of him being right and helped him. In helping him, Lance had seen the humanity behind the mask – had seen remorse and responsibility the Arrow felt. Wasn't I the one to tell him not every death in this city was his fault?

Then there's Queen – it was easy to see his changes too as he now worked at Queen Consolidated and by all accounts worked hard even if he did promote an IT specialist to be his assistant. Queen had tried to continue in the life he'd left behind but even Lance had to admit it was just a shallow effort now. He had also stood by his mother even as he tried to make amends publicly.

Was he also trying privately? Lance couldn't help that thought sneaking in even as he glared at the files in front of him.

Going back to his list, Lance added a few more notes before focusing on a new list of commonalities between Queen and the Arrow. Preferring not to dwell on his own daughters even if neither were currently close to either Queen or the Arrow, Lance immediately jotted down the name Felicity Smoak.

Lance actually genuinely liked the girl even if he had brought her in for questioning himself. It was hard to see her as a hardened criminal or even remotely violent but her connection to the Arrow was irrefutable. He himself had trusted in that connection and counted on it more than once.

Was she part of the reason both Queen and the Arrow had changed? Maybe I do need to stop by the club myself and speak to Ms. Smoak in person instead of just returning her call.

Even as he thought that the call came in – "Explosion at Queen Consolidated – reports of hostages taken. Units in route."

Grabbing his phone he returned Felicity's call only to hear her voicemail immediately answer.

AN2 – While I didn't like Lance at the beginning I like the character development the show has done. I can't let go of the idea of him struggling with the whole Arrow/ Oliver Queen thing and it fascinates me (which is why I was so excited to post this - pls excuse any mistakes). I've taken some liberty w/ his character but hopefully it isn't too OOC. Clearly this is a work in progress but I hope to update quickly!