Chapter Text
Disclaimer: WB/DC own these characters. I’m only borrowing them for a while. I do own the original ideas found in this.
Oliver was more tired than he’d ever been in his entire life. But it stood to reason. In four days, he had lived out two realities not his own, fought countless villains, made a deal with a cosmic being, and met a new vigilante. As he walked to his bike, Oliver reflected on all that he’d discussed with Barry Allen. And what he hadn’t shared with the young man.
Oliver was relieved he had successfully fought the overwhelming desire to confide in his friend about the war ahead. Ironically he had found it easier not to share because he wanted to have a better handle on the entire thing before he’d share it with another person. Except Felicity, who always made it so easy to confide in her. He always found himself sharing things he never meant to share.
The penthouse was dark, no lights seen from the outside. Oliver unlocked the door, slowly opened it, and stepped inside. To his surprise and growing uneasiness, Felicity was indeed not home and there weren’t any notes or evidence indicating where she’d gone. To his relief there also weren’t signs of a struggle. He didn’t have to wait long, for he barely sat down on the couch when his phone rang. It was indeed Felicity, who expressed confusion as to why she was in Vegas, apparently working at a casino. Oliver told her he’d explain everything once she arrived home. He was about to book her a flight, but his independent wife had quickly accessed the website of an airline and booked her own flight within the time of that discussion. When she hung up abruptly, Oliver wondered if she remembered the reality where she had forgiven him. He dearly hoped so, even though he didn't have the chance to find out.
Before boarding her flight, Felicity texted her flight number and estimated time of arrival, indicating she expected him to pick her up from the airport. He took some comfort in the fact she’d automatically assumed he'd pick her up. On the other hand, it might only mean she was too angry and tired to fight about it or to use alternative transportation to get home from the airport.
As soon as he saw her round the corner of the gate, Oliver automatically broke into a smile. Meeting his gaze, Felicity’s smile in return wasn’t a natural one. However it seemed more hesitant than angry. Perhaps she indeed remembered their making up. Oliver certainly hoped so.
They barely talked during the car ride home. Oliver didn’t know what thoughts were going through his wife’s mind but he could only imagine. At one point Oliver attempted to start a conversation, but Felicity begged fatigue and asked if he’d wait until they got home for even light conversation.
However, once home, Felicity put him off again. “I need to take a nap first, Oliver. Okay?” Felicity asked as she made her way to their bedroom. Her shoulders slumped, her entire body saying how exhausted she was. “I promise we’ll talk later,” floated from their bedroom.
Oliver nodded even though she couldn’t see him. He sat down on the couch, slumping into the comfort of the overstuffed cushions and resting his head back. His thoughts returned to his discussion with the Monitor several hours ago, even though it felt longer.
“You said I'd pass the test if I knew my true self. My true self is filled with darkness. But Barry and Kara are different. They inspire hope. They inspire people because they are the best of us. And if this test of yours is gonna kill our best chance at stopping this crisis, well, as gods go, you're not a very smart one.”
“The universe is a complex piece of machinery, and balance must be maintained. One change requires another. How would you propose I keep the balance?”
“If by a balance you mean a life for a life, take mine. I hope you consider it an equal exchange for both of them.”
“It’s not up to me; it is simply how things are.” The Monitor turned and walked a few steps to his right. He abruptly faced Oliver, his robes swirling around his ankles. “You have done well. You have shown me that you have both the strength and the morality for the fight ahead. I will choose you and this world’s champions as my fighters in the war ahead.”
Oliver slowly nodded, contemplating his words. He had used the word “you”. Still he had to ask. “So…what is the thing I offer in exchange for their lives?”
“The pain of this upcoming battle will be sufficient to keep all in balance. This battle with my enemy will not be easy. It will require much sacrifice from you. Perhaps even your life. The future is not set. The Anti-Monitor is not easily conquered. His plans must be stopped or else all universes will be destroyed.”
Oliver was silent, contemplating what the Monitor had said. When the strange man in front of him didn't continue, Oliver wondered if he dared ask – hell, he would. He needed to know.
“Who exactly is this Anti-Monitor we’ll be facing? And when will all this take place?”
And so the strange being began to tell Oliver things. Details which chilled him to the very marrow of his bones. The god-like being spoke of entire worlds disappearing because of the Anti-Monitor's ultimate goal of creating a Multiverse where only antimatter prevailed. He was accomplishing such a goal by absorbing worlds and becoming stronger and stronger.
Everything within the Archer wanted to refuse to fight this unknown being, to flee and hide with his loved ones. This wasn’t possible, however. If the Anti-Monitor wasn’t stopped, there'd be no world in which to hide. Nowhere he could bring his loved ones to safety.
(end of flashback)
The Monitor refused to give him any more details, other than the real signs of the approaching war would begin to occur in the fall. The rest of the time would be spent in getting ready, for Oliver to settle his affairs. However, Oliver was not to tell anyone what would be taking place. Nobody but Felicity.
The Monitor had grumbled at first when Oliver added that contingency but finally agreed Oliver could tell his wife. Felicity was certainly capable of keeping secrets, Oliver argued, and Oliver was done with hiding anything from her. The Monitor agreed that he'd indeed observed Felicity's ability to keep secrets.
Several hours later, when Felicity entered the living room to find him sitting in the same position, he said, “Felicity, we have to talk.”
“I was wondering when we were going to.” Oliver wasn't surprised to hear the flat reply.
She sat down and curled into the other corner of the couch, pulling her legs towards her and hugged them as she looked at him. She met his gaze without flinching. “Where should we start?”
“I thought perhaps we’ll begin with you telling me what you remember about the past week.”
“Obviously I don’t remember how I ended up in Vegas working in a casino.” She looked into space, biting her lower lip, as she thought. “It’s almost as I was living the life I would've had if I hadn’t gone to M.I.T. Before that…it’s almost like a dream, all hazy, but I faintly recall being called to ARGUS and working with the geek squad to…to steady a breach.” She sat straight up. “And…we made up, didn’t we?”
Giving her the smile meant only for her, Oliver said, “I certainly hope so. I meant every word I told you then. Love doesn’t contain everything I feel for you. You are truly the love of my life, Felicity. And I’ll gladly spend the rest of my life proving that to you.”
“I was so afraid you weren’t in love with me anymore.”
“Why wouldn't I be?”
Looking down at her hands, nervously picking at a piece of dry skin on her hand, Felicity mumbled, “Because I shot the intruder.”
Oliver leaned over and gently grasped her hands. “Look at me, Felicity.” When she met his gaze, Oliver continued. “As I told you, no matter how much you change, how much I change, what happens to us, I’ll always love you.” He leaned down and captured her lips in a searing kiss meant to communicate all that and more. She returned the kiss with a passion matching his own. As she fumbled to unbutton his shirt, Oliver gently pulled her hands away and leaned away from her.
“As much as I really, really want us to continue with that, I have something else to talk about first.”
Felicity leaned back and considered his face seriously. “Oh-oh, you got your ‘the world is about to end and we’re the only ones who can stop it’ look.”
“I have a look like that?”
“Oliver, after all this time, after everything we've been through, you doubt having a look I'd call that?”
Oliver shrugged, looking at her with a somewhat shy look. “I guess so.”
They sat silently looking at one another until Felicity couldn’t stand it any longer. “Well? If you’re not going to tell me, I’d rather go back to what we were doing.”
Oliver cleared his throat. “I think this takes the cake for the most outlandish adventure we’ve ever been on.”
“More than power-hungry overlords and magic sorcerers?”
“Yep. Even worse than Merlyn, Savage and Darhk combined.” He cleared his throat again. “It seems that the two ‘realities’ that we lived over the past week were part of a plan to test us by what I’ll call a cosmic being, who goes by the name of The Monitor.”
“What?” Felicity asked, her eyes wide with shock. “Even with my love of science fiction and Doctor Who, this…this is unbelievable! I don’t know what to say.”
“I warned you it sounds crazy. While Barry and I were switched, Cisco had vibed this…this being and brought Barry and I into the vibe. I drew a picture of what we had seen, with this guy who had ridges on his head and mutton chops.”
“This part is ringing a bell. And…and…you and Barry swapped bodies?”
“Yeah. During this time Oliver Queen looked like the Barry we know and Barry Allen looked like…well, me.”
“And we had our big discussion with me fighting the belief you were actually Barry. My ex. Kind of.”
“Yep.”
Felicity rose from the sofa and began pacing back and forth in front of Oliver. “You mean to tell me that all of this was actually a test for you, Barry, Kara and the rest of our team by a cosmic being to see if you were worthy to lead a battle against an even more powerful rival of his?”
“Yes.”
“I guess I remember…a man who looked like Barry’s dad telling us that.”
Felicity stopped her pacing and turned to face him. She stamped her foot. “Why do these things keep happening to us, Oliver? To you?” She resumed pacing. “If someone else had told me about this I’d think they were crazy.”
“At the time you thought we were crazy when Barry and I told you about the body swaps.”
Felicity abruptly got into his face. She held up her pointer finger in front of his eyes. “Don’t you dare hold that against me! I was at the precipice of my very worn-out patience, trying not to explode. Here I was, upset at you, worried you had stopped loving me, and then you try to hide yet another thing from me?”
“That’s why I’m telling you all of this. He wanted me to not tell you – ”
“Wait a minute. Wait one fracking minute. Who didn’t want you to tell me? I’ll bash his head in.”
“The Monitor.”
“The Monitor? Who is this guy anyway? Does anyone know? Have you checked with ARGUS to see if they know anything about him?”
“Can I get bonus points with arguing the point I was going to tell you anyway? In spite of what this guy said?”
Felicity stopped immediately in her tracks so quickly Oliver was afraid she was going to fall over. She glared at him. “You really want me to answer that?”
Oliver decided against that. “No, but….”
“The situation begs the question what kind of luck you have to be immediately thrust back into a situation where you were tempted to lie to me yet again? To withhold something from me?”
“Well…not really tempted….”
Before Felicity could start another tirade, Oliver hurriedly said, “Now wait a moment, Felicity. Everything I’ve withheld from you, in our relationship, has been because I didn’t want to hurt you. Or I wanted to protect you. Or, with William, I felt I had no other choice, because of Samantha's threat.”
She cocked her head at him.
“Not ‘everything’. There hasn’t been that much. Just the ones we’ve quarreled about.”
She looked over her glasses at him.
“Okay, let’s not talk about the other times. This time I thought about it because I didn’t want to hurt you, to burden you.”
“You still don’t get it Oliver!" The hurt on his wife's face sucked out all the oxygen in his body. "When you hurt, I hurt. When you’re burdened, I’m burdened. That’s how it is with a husband and wife. Especially us. Remember, I’ve been able to figure you out in a heartbeat ever since we met.”
“I wouldn’t really say that – ” After Felicity once again cocked her head, he backpedaled. “Okay, I guess you’re right.”
“You bet I’m right, buster. And you better stop forgetting it.” Felicity placed her hand on his cheek. “If only you’d realize how much I truly, truly love you.”
Oliver turned his head slightly and kissed her palm. “I’m beginning to.”
“Good.”
They shared one of their long looks that used to drive their teammates crazy. Finally Oliver closed his eyes and pulled away from her.
“I better tell you the rest before I lose my nerve.”
“There’s more?” A myriad of emotions crossed her face. First confusion, then fear, then concern.
Oliver nodded.
Felicity dropped her head into her hands and shook it from side to side. She began to mumble. “Why, why, does this keep happening to us? Why did I even agree to help with a bullet-ridden computer? I should’ve driven him to the hospital, I wouldn’t be in this cockamamie mess right now.”
Oliver’s watched her pace holding her head and mumbling about wishing she’d never had met him. He reminded himself that it was only from shock, and not to take it personally.
Felicity stopped pacing, raising her head to look at Oliver. Seeing the look on his face, she gasped. “Oh no! I said all that out loud, didn’t I?” Before Oliver could answer, Felicity said, “I’m so, so very sorry, Oliver! I didn’t mean it.”
“I know.”
“So what else is there?”
Oliver gently led her to sit down next to him on the couch once again. He then sat up, leaning his arms on his upper legs and rested his head briefly on his grasped hands. Exhaling deeply, he turned to her.
“This Monitor, like I said, is a…a cosmic being. Supposedly, he and this enemy he wants us to fight are powerful, powerful beings. Who can make entire worlds disappear.”
“Now you’re really sounding like a Dr. Who story.”
“I would think so as well, if I didn’t know better.” Oliver turned towards her, sitting on his one leg. “As such, he…well, when Kara’s cousin looked into the Book of Destiny – ”
“I remember now what that is!”
“Good.” Oliver nodded. “When Clark read the future, it seems like the only way to save the world was one that would kill both Barry and Kara.”
“What was it?”
“They both would travel around the world, in opposite directions, as fast as they could, to slow the Earth’s rotation. Which would’ve caused them to…well, to disintegrate.” At Felicity’s confused look, Oliver explained, “Deegan was rewriting reality again, and in order to stop him we had to slow him down. In order to do that, we needed to slow down time.”
“By traveling around the world in opposite directions, creating enough centrifugal force to slow the Earth's rotation.”
This time, Oliver had a confused look cross his face. “I’m pretty sure Barry said something like that. I didn’t really understand it.”
Felicity smiled slightly and patted Oliver’s hand. “Yes, that must have been it.” She quickly became serious. “Wait a fracking minute. You said…you said it would kill them?” Her face showed absolute terror and her breath hitched. “Well, what happened then? Did they – are they -- ”
“No.” Oliver shook his head. “I went to confront this guy, The Monitor. Barry and I had met him at this apartment, but when I returned to it, I…I…instead ended up on this platform in the middle of, well, it seemed as though we were in the middle of space itself.”
Suddenly a look passed over Felicity’s face which Oliver knew quite well. The look she got when she’s figured him out. He was afraid she knew what he was going to say. Before he could continue, Felicity said, with her voice breaking, looking down at her lap, “You made some sort of deal with him, didn’t you?”
When he remained silent, Felicity’s eyes flew up and met his unhappy gaze. “You did, didn’t you.”
“What could I do, Felicity? It was Kara and Barry.”
Dropping his hands, she stood up slowly and walked towards the window. “What’s the deal?” Turning around she asked again in a low, deceptively calm voice, “What’s the deal, Oliver?”
“Just to fight this Anti-Monitor, in spite of anything or everything.”
Looking at him with her head cocked to the side, she said, “That’s not all, is there?” She closed her eyes momentarily and opened them again. He saw a fire blazing in them. Her usual fire. “What else is there, Oliver?” She used the voice which was only a step lower than her ‘angry voice’.
“He said it could mean my death.” At her angry gasp, Oliver leaped to his feet, holding out his hand to her, pleading with her. “No, Felicity, he didn’t say there was any more chance of that than with any other fight.”
“If that was truly all there was, you’d not be so scared to tell me.”
Oliver swallowed and took several steps closer to her. “Okay. This is the truth. He said it would require much sacrifice from me, but he didn’t say what. He said it might, might include my life. However, the future's not set, but all my sacrifices would balance out the imbalance which resulted when Barry and Kara survived.”
Felicity let out a loud cry and rushed into his arms. After sobbing for a minute she pulled away and looked up at him with tear-laden eyes. “Why must you be so very self-sacrificing all the damn time, Oliver? Why can’t you let someone else sacrifice their lives for once?” She began to pound half-heartedly on his chest. “Why, why, why? Why must it be you all the time?”
He took her in his arms once again and led her to the couch. They sat there until her sobs stopped once again and her breathing turned regular. When she fell asleep, Oliver gently laid her down on the sofa. Grabbing the knitted afghan hanging over the back of the sofa, Oliver covered his wife. He then lowered himself into one of their recliners next to the sofa and watched her sleep until he himself fell into a restless slumber.