Trust Me, I'm A Professional

[Oliver Queen]

What If: It wasn't Oliver who asked Felicity for help, but rather The Hood.
Admin permission was given for this AU plot.

Oliver, aka, The Hood was currently tracking one of the names on his father's list. Dressed under the guise of the name others had given him -- The Hood -- he was watching a less than legal deal unfold. He was using the darkness to his advantage, as he was hiding on a not so high rooftop, peering down at the men. Albert Davis. He was on the list. He was another who had prospered while others suffered, and today, The Hood was going to make him give a rather generous donation to all of the people he had -- for lack of a better term -- screwed over to make a business for himself. Drugs. Corruption. So much crime in this city. And this was all Oliver could do: bring down one powerful man at a time. He was just waiting for the opportune moment. At the beginning of a deal, everyone was on high alert. Making sure they were not spotted, paranoid even. And then, after a little while of no one showing up, they began to ease a bit. Still not too much. Just enough to make the exchange. Then immediately following it, tensions were slightly raised again -- since the police often waited for the actual deal to take place before making any arrests.   

Right now, they were nearing the end of the deal. Oliver would wait just a few more moments before making him move, and bringing all the criminals to a halt. He only wanted one man though: Mr. Davis. The rest -- his security and business client -- he would deal with accordingly. He would give the man one chance to do the right thing, and if they didn't, he would use more . . . convincing tactics. He readied his bow and arrow, aiming it right toward the package, just about to shoot at it when something made him pause as an unexpected development was made.

Location: Starts Outside, will move around
Time of Day: Night
Timeline: Early Season 1
Tag: Felicity Smoak

[Felicity Smoak]

Felicity Smoak, IT girl extraordinaire, was currently at a small department get together. All around the table was her coworkers laughing and joining in at jokes, and memorable moments of the past few months. They would toast the man getting married, and then all drink and laugh some more. It was loud and jovial--which was why she was at the bar for the moment.

She was confidant, but sometimes had trouble making the right jokes or saying the right things, which lead to everyone teasing her or growing annoyed with her. After paying for her round (everyone was buy a round tonight, and she kept skipping most the booze), she went back tot he table and sat on the side, watching more then interacting with everyone.

Finally it all came to an end, and everyone left. Once everyone walked out, she said goodbye and went the other way. She had parked down the street, since it was too busy to park out front. As she neared her car, Felicity happened to pass buy an event that would change everything. She slowed her step as she saw the men exchanging something for money. Was that a drug deal?!

One of them noticed her, and yelled 'Hey! You!' before coming toward her. Taking a few small steps to the side, she then started running toward her car. KEYS! She needed keys! pulling them out, she tried to get to the driver's side door, but felt hands grab her first. "NO!"

[Oliver Queen]

Oliver silently cursed, an expression of clear annoyance on his face when he saw that they pulled in a civilian to the scene. "Boss! We have a witness," one of the men said, grabbing the young woman by the hair and pulling her to face Albert. Albert looked at her, and even from this distance, Oliver could see the concern in the man. "Was she with anyone else?" He asked. "No Mr. Davis. She was alone." Oliver watched intently, though he already knew what they were going to do. "Deal with her. You know what to do." Oliver took aim. "You got it Boss," the man said. Another one of his goons came and stood right in front of the woman, pointing a gun directly in her face. They were not going to waste a moment, and neither could Oliver. Just as the trigger was about to pulled, Oliver fired an arrow at the man's gun, sending it the ground and causing the man to cringe at the sudden impact. He then made himself known as he swung down to join the crowd. "Kill him!" He heard Albert say as the man began surrounded, his security creating a shield around him. Guns began to go over and Oliver began dodging them, firing arrows in every which direction and each one that was shot, ceased the gunfire from that man.

He wasn't totally oblivious to the catalyst to his plan. One of the men was still holding tightly to the woman, dragging her away, and clearly using her as a human shield. Oliver turned to him, glaring, even if his eyes could not be properly scene. He wasn't a hero, but even he could not justify letting an innocent woman die for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. So he had a choice to make: go after Albert who was getting away, or save the girl. "Take one more step and I swear I'll shoot her in the head!" Oliver was not overly concerned with the threat. The woman was not as big as the man behind her, leaving parts of him exposed despite his attempt to use her as a shield. So in one quick motion, Oliver loaded his bow and fired, hitting the man in the side of his neck. That was when more gunfire came and while Oliver was the target, they had hit something else. Someone else. The woman fell to the ground. Oliver turned, loading another arrow into his bow, but the men -- Albert -- was getting into the car. Oliver could catch up to them, he knew that . . . if he left right now, he could get them.

Instead, he put his arrow back and knelt next to the woman, setting his bow down. The bullet had hit her arm, and while it was not necessarily a life threatening injury, it could be if she bled out and didn't get proper medical treatment. "Don't move," he said, having turned on his voice filter well before he had made his presence known so that his voice was masked. He began to lower the shoulder of her coat, quickly -- and as carefully as he could -- taking it off her arm so that he could inspect the wound. He could hear sirens in the distance. The gunfire had prompted someone to call the police, so he didn't have much time. Not having anything on him to wrap the wound -- considering he was clad in practically all leather -- he ripped the bottom of her coat and tightly wrapped it around the wound. The pressure would stop the bleeding for the time being. He looked up to see the cars pulling in and cops beginning to flood out. Glancing at the woman once last time, he ran up the wall and jumped back onto the rooftop. He did not completely flee the scene though. He first watched and waited to see the woman get the medical attention she needed. With the ambulance not far behind, it didn't take long for her to get help, and once she was loaded into the ambulance, Oliver disappeared, knowing that the cops were starting to search the area for him.

[Felicity Smoak]

One of the men was pulling her hair in order to turn her to face his boss, while the other man ordered her to be taken care of. "Please! I-I wont tell! I swear!" But it mattered not, for they pulled the gun and aimed it right at her face. She felt herself shaking, and closed her eyes, while begging again fr them to not do this. "Please!"

Then chaos ensued! No shot was fired from the gun, and she felt herself being pulled back, she finally opened them. Arrows. Arrows everywhere. HE was here. The crazy man from the news! Another arrow was fired and before she could react to that--pain exposed in her arm. Crying out, she noticed the grip on her hair was gone, as she feel to the ground. With her uninjured arm, she covered her head until the gunfire stopped.

When Felicity finally looked up, it took her a few moments to see past the tears she had not known was falling. It was then she saw the green hooded man. As he approached she held up her hand to ward him off, "Please!" but instead he ordered her not to move "Don't kill me!". To her surprise, he also tended her wound--and ruined her coat but in all fairness the gunshot had done that.

The police were closing in, and she looked up at him, knowing that he had helped her, but not knowing why. Wasn't he the crazy man from the TV? Here he seemed controlled. Deadly, and scary but controlled and . . . he's not left her. Had not left her to to just lie here hurt and scared and in more pain then she had ever been in before. He stood up and begin to leave, and she called a soft "Thank you,". Her voice had shook with the fear, pain, and unsteadiness of her whole body. And then he was gone.

She spent the night in the hospital. The next day talking to the police. The next week was spend at home healing. Finally she went back to work, where the first two days everyone wanted to talk about her meeting Starling City's resident serial killer, but she refused to talk about him. After that everything begin to calm down. Her only excitement was riding in the same elevator as Oliver Queen once for a whole two floors.

[Oliver Queen]

Oliver made a mental note to check up on who the young woman was, but right now, he had to go back to the drawing board to develop a new plan to track Albert. Diggle had asked him what happened, and Oliver explained the story in brief. The main part being, he failed in getting to Albert. But he did not regret it. The woman was ok, and that was what mattered. He managed to get to Albert a couple of days later, using his typical intimidation tactics to insight fear into him. Which didn't exactly work because the next day, Albert did not comply with The Hoods demands. No matter. Oliver still found a way to make him return the money . . . rather unwillingly, and well, unknowingly too. It felt good, to be able to cross off another name from the list. With that done, he had to return to the office to take a look at some work. While he was in the elevator, he noticed someone inside and had to do a double take to make sure he was seeing her correctly. Wasn't that . . . the woman that had gotten shot? She was here, in Q Consolidated? Oliver wondered if she had reocgnized him and . . . no. That wasn't it. He forced himself not to stare at her, and casually looked ahead. He had a feeling it was going to be a lot easier to find her.

He put that aside for the time being because it did not take long for another case to pop up. One involving a man named Dead Shot, a sniper for hire and who had some interesting history. Oliver had managed to track him but before he could talk to him, he had fled the motel. He did manage to apprehend the laptop that was now full of bullet holes. That was when an idea popped in his mind. It had not take long to find out the woman's name: Felicity Smoak. She was in the IT department which, was perfectly convenient for him. It would be extremely easy to find her. So on a night that he was sure she was working -- and alone -- The Hood decided to pay a visit to her. First things first, he cut the lights and power, making sure it was dark enough so that he could not be seen. Then, he maded his entrance. On the other side of the room where she was seated, his back toward her, but he slowly turned so that he was facing her from the side. He had brought the laptopo with him, but was not carrying it in his hand. It was set somewhere else. He first wanted to make sure if he could trust her with this, and would not hand it over to the police. He put his voice filter on to mask his voice, even though as Oliver, he had never had a conversation with her before. He just had to make sure. "Felicity Smoak," he stated, wanting her to be very well aware that he knew exactly where she was and that he was here to specifically see her.

[Felicity Smoak]

The lights went out, and her monitors cut. "No, no, no!" She had been working on something mostly important, and while she could rebuild her work simply enough it was just annoying. It was then she heard the voice--that deep scary voice that could only come from a voice editor. Turning slowly she faced him, and then ducked down behind her desk! She's not failed anyone!

"Please! Don't hurt me!" Words that were becoming all too common in her vocabulary. "Take what you want. I-I wont tell." She owed him that at least. Letting him take a few supplies and keeping her lips zipped was the least she could do--and the most.

Felicity wasn't sure how he knew her name, or where to find her. Maybe he had connections to her the police department. That was why they could not catch him? Sitting there under her desk she waited for him to leave or say something. After a moment, she lifted out to peek around.

[Oliver Queen]

While Oliver's objective was to instill fear in others, that group did not include innocent young woman. So it did effect him -- in ways he could not show -- when she was begging for him not to hurt her. He knew it was better to be feared than not taken seriously. For that fear was how he made those on the list pay for their crimes. Fear, was how he could serve justice. "I'm not going to hurt you," he told her, lowering his voice a bit so he didn't sound so . . . menacing. Unlike when he confronted criminals and he wanted his voice to send a shiver down their spine. He didn't want anything she had, well other than her skill. He had heard that she was the best, and it was fortunate for him that they had already met once. Had they not, he may not have took advantage of this option. But he had checked up on her, researched her. She was devoted to her work, and that was what he needed. The only factor left was seeing if he could trust her with this information -- and the laptop.

"You were shot," he added. His way of introducing the subject of how she was doing. But he coudln't sound overly sensitive either. That would humanize him too much. He may not like being known as a murderer, but he was a vigilante and he did what needed to be done. "How is your arm?" He further inquired, bringing up a somewhat casual subject. Something to help put her at ease that his concern was with her. Not with stealing from her or hurting her.

[Felicity Smoak]

She stayed behind the desk while he spoke, and right up until he asked how she was since getting shot. Felicity slowly stood up, and relived herself to him--not that he could not have found her behind the desk. He came to check on her? This was not the actions of a crazed man. This was the actions of someone who cared about others.

"You came to check on me?" She asked surprised, while trying to let that soak in. The city's most wanted man came to make sure a stranger was alright--oh please let him be a stronger because finding out someone she knew was this guy would be too much. "It's sore, but it's good. It is healing but I have a low tolerance for pain, which why I never really got into sports--" Stop talking! "Were . . . . were you umm . . . . were you hit that night?" In trying to save her.

[Oliver Queen]

Oliver remained silent when she questioned him checking up on her. He knew this was not the reputation he held, but it had to do with his morals. He had them. Probably more than he had before the island. So yes. Firstly, he had wanted to make sure she was alright. And then secondly, he had come for her assistance. Luckily, she did not wait for an answer because she continued to speak about how her arm was sore and then . . . rambled on more than Oliver needed to comment on. He was relieved to hear that she was well. That it would heal soon. She was after all back at work already -- something Oliver still found an extreme coincidence that she just so happened to work in his family's cooperation. Shhe then asked if he was hit that night.

"No," he answered simply and bluntly. It was not him that anyone need worry about. "What were you doing there that night?" He wanted to know if she truly was just in the wrong place at the wrong time . . . had she seen something that peaked her interest and further investigated . . . or had she been reporting for someone. While his gut told him it was the first possibility, he wanted to make sure. If he was going to have her check into things for him, he wanted to make sure she had no ulterior motives. And find out as much as he could before hand. The way she was acting right now, and from what he had found out about her . . . it didn't seem she had a great deal to hide.

[Felicity Smoak]

He wasn't hurt, and she wasn't sure how. So many bullets flying and not one managed to hit him? She was impressed, and a bit surprised too. How could not one hit him? It wasn't like he was fast. Well he was, but not faster then a speeding bullet fast. Just faster then humans fast. She assumed he was military, but the bow and arrow she didn't have a clue about.

"There was an party for a guy, in the IT department." She rolled her eyes at the next line, "It was his last meal before he went to his bachelor's party and did guy things." Pointing to herself, "I was invited tot he supper but not the guy party." Clearly, "Because I'm not a guy not because we're not friends." She explained. "We're ok friends but--" Stop!

"I . . . . I told the police you tried to help me." Meaning that he wasn't a complete killer.

[Oliver Queen]

Oliver knew he had asked the question but he didn't really care about all the details she was going on about. She could have just easily said that she was at a department party. Lucky for her, her babbling made it obvious that she was not lying so he supposed that this had worked in her favor, this time. She then brought up a subject of more interest to Oliver, and that was what she had told the police. So she had defended him to them. Interesting. He didn't care what the police thought of them. They believed him to a murderer, and he supposed to some extent he was. But it was the only way that justice could be served. He had to do what the police could not. He had to rid Starling of this disease that was spreading and causing more people to suffer. If he could pull them out of the wrath of these filthy rich men, then he would have fulfilled his father's dreams. He was a man on a mission. Task oriented. So the police could chase him with the hopes of arresting him, but that would not stop Oliver from doing what he needed to do.

"The police think I'm a murderer," he stated. He could not change their minds about that nor was he going to take the effort to do so. "What do you think?" Her answer -- this discussion -- would be the determining factor of whether he would give her the laptop or not. Had her views of him shifted at all? Did she believe him to be a murderer too, or was she starting to realize that there was more to him. That he wasn't a cold blooded killer, but that there was purpose to his so called crimes.

[Felicity Smoak]

He asked her what she thought, and Felicity wondered if she told him the truth if he would just kill her. She hoped not. Banking on the fact that he had come here to see if she was alright, and thus would not turn around and shot her, she told him the truth. "I think you kill people." Which was a different way of saying she did. "I'm sure you think you have your reasons."

"But you saved me, and you help people, not keep the money." Which made him a killer who didn't do it for money, or sport but for a whole list of other reasons. "I don't know what to think." She was conflicted, and had just admitted it to him in her own way. She hated the killing, and didn't exactly feel safe with him out there right now--but she felt safe with him because she believed he would not hurt her.

[Oliver Queen]

She bluntly stated that she thinks he kills people. Which, he did. But it was not without purpose. He knew that with her words like that, he wouldn't be able to trust her with the laptop. Not until he got a better understanding of her views. He didn't expect her to immediately condone his actions. Hardly anyone did. But he needed her to be somewhat understanding. Enough to ensure he would not turn over any evidence he gave her. She continued on by saying that he saved her, helped people and . . . that she didn't know what to think. That ounce of doubt, was enough for him to work with. "I do what the police and others can't," he stated. He used intimidating tactics, threats, violence, to make the criminals do what needed to be done. There was no other way.

The court system didn't work. There was too much corruption; they could easily bribe the jury and judges. There were still those who fought for justice but it was dangerous and seldom did they actually win. "How else do you suggest these criminals be brought to justice?" He inquired, his question not entirely a rhetorical one. "Any witnesses, whistleblowers, or those who speak against them, end up dead." Thus, limiting the evidence against them, and of course, going back to the whole corruption of the legal system. The only way to ensure they got what they deserved, was to make them do it . . . regardless of what that entailed. These men weren't minor; they were rich and powerful and unless someone did something drastic against them, they would continue to flourish. Which, was where Oliver or at least his vigilante self, came into play.

[Felicity Smoak]

That was his mindset? Kill because the police could not arrest? He went on to say that the bad guys killed the good guys, and that she did believe. The system was flawed, even she could see that and she had nothing to do with the legal system--even went as far to try to be a good girl and avoid it if she could. There were a few times she'd broken a few laws but she'd never gotten caught, and never did it it to hurt anyone.

Hacking the gym's computer to see what information they collected on her--really hoping they didn't have her lack of effort or weight on there somewhere. Hacked her bosses computer once or thrice to change his background from boobs to something more appropriate. Little things--wait. Was that why he was here? No! She wasn't hurting anyone. He came to check on her!

"Maybe something needs to be done," She didn't want to fight with him, because she was still afraid of him. He could hurt her if he wanted, and wasn't he supposed to be crazy? Even if he acted sane and controlled. "I'm not a professional, I can't tell you how to fix it." She looked pasted him toward the door, she could hear someone in the hall.

[Oliver Queen]

Yes. Something most certainly needed to be done. The fact that she couldn't tell him how to fix it was the exact problem. No one knew how to fix it. It was easy to criticize his methods, but no one had an effective alternative. He was about to say something else, when he could hear approaching footsteps in the hallway. He quickly moved to hide behind against the wall, somewhere out of sight when the person came in. Only seconds after, the door opened and he could hear a man speaking. "Noticed that the power got cut. We're trying to fix it," he pointed out. The man then looked around the room before turning back to Felicity. "Is someone here? I heard voices."

Now was the time to see Felicity's reaction to his presence. Would she report him out of fear? Or would she give him a chance to further explain? Oliver wasn't worried about getting out of here if she did reveal that he was in the room. He could slip out as easily as he came in. It was more about seeing if he could rely on her discretion . . . because he still had that laptop that he needed fixed. And if she was unwilling to give him a chance, then he would have to find another way to get it fixed. Or find another way entirely to track Dead Shot.

[Felicity Smoak]

Before they could continue with anything else, someone came in. Rick was another member of the team, and her current so-called supervisor. She didn't like his for personal reasons, but was adult enough to work with him while being friendly. So her actions right now had to come as a little off. He had come in and told her about the power, while she stood there frozen in silence. Tell him? Yes! She should tell him!

No! The crazy man with the hood saved her. She could not turn him in. She should instead ask Rick to walk her out. That would be the safe thing to so. That would get her out of here, and she could feel better about not turning in the man who kept her from dying. 'Felicity?' She was taking too long. She had to answer. "Fine." She surprised herself with saying quietly, after a long moment of silence. "I was just . . . the dark." Speak clearly. "After the other night, I was just being jumpy. Talking to my self."

And as predicted, instead of offing to stay with her, or walk her out Rick nodded and said something about getting the lights on while he walked away.

[Oliver Queen]

Oliver waited to hear what she would say. Her silence made it clear that she was contemplating her reaction . . . and then it came out. She did not disclose his presence. In fact, she had said nothing of the sort. Nor made any attempt to leave the room. He could sense that she was afraid of him, but her words revealed that she was not afraid enough to not hear him out. That gave him hope. Hope that she could prove to be an asset. And help with these technical problems that were beyond his own capability.

He waited for the man to leave, and when his footsteps faded, Oliver stepped out of his hiding spot and this time, directly faced her. He was still far enough and it was still dark so she could not see his face which would, defeat the purpose of the hood. "Why did you lie?" He questioned, meaning, why didn't she turn him in. He needed to hear her answer rather than assume anything. Oliver didn't trust anyone, he just trusted some more than others. He hoped he could trust his instinct when it came to Felicity too.

[Felicity Smoak]

After Rick left, she stood there while the hood guy came a few steps out of the darkness and asked her why she lied. She wanted to be honest, or ask Rick to walk her to her car or even just run and leave Rick there alone to deal with it. She didn't want this in her life. She didn't want the fear, or the excitement. She wasn't one for secrets and she hated not knowing something.

"Because if I thanked you for saving my life, by turning you in then I wouldn't be able to look in the mirror. I might not like how you do things, but you didn't let me die. . . . and your nor crazy. I can tell that." He was too still, too aware of what he was doing, and how he did it. That wasn't something crazy people did.

[Oliver Queen]

Her answer wasn't disappointing. It sounded like she had some sort of moral compass. Something that compelled her to do what she felt was right, rather than what logic dictated. For logic would have said to turn him in, yet she had said she could not because he had saved her life. He was not a hero. But nor could he watch her die. He had seen far too many people die, and was respnosible for far too many deaths. The blood on his hands would never wash off. He just didn't want to add more to it. Which, was ironic considering what he was doing at night. But there was a difference. These men were criminals.

"Do you believe you owe me a debt?" He asked her. It was an important question because favors could get messy. She could feel like she owed him one -- perhaps even believe that what she did right now made them even. He didn't want her to do something for him because she felt she owed him for saving her life. He could not rely on her discretion if that was her motivation. It was when people believed in what they were doing that they could be trusted. Well, more trusted than others. "Because you don't," he added bluntly. He was not here to collect. He was here to use her skills to further his cause. But he needed to hear her reasoning. The fact that she didn't think him crazy was definitely a good start.

[Felicity Smoak]

Didn't owe him a debt? "I was looking down the barrel of a gun one second, and you were there the next." She reminded him of that moment she doubted she would ever forget. "Yes, I owe you. So I don't turn you in." Because she didn't want to stop him, even if she didn't approve of what he did.

"Besides. I can't stop thinking of that gun. Of that moment. The fear doesn't completely go away--at least not yet." She was afraid. Walking to her car, from her car. Lock her doors, double check. "If I don't turn you in, then even though you do bad things . . . maybe you can keep another girl from feeling that. Maybe you can save someone's daughter or son, or mother, or father." She hated his killing, but she could live with herself by thinking she'd not be the last he helped. "That is why I didn't tell the police which way you left, or my boss that you were here."

[Oliver Queen]

He could trust her. It was evident in the way she spoke of what he did. Her gratitude wasn't a fleeting feeling, but rather, she had thought about it. To her, he was no longer just a killer. For her to recognize that part of him, was all he needed to know that he could give her the laptop. Because her actions, would also be helping other people. It would be saving the lives of civilians. If she saw it from that perspective, then he had a strong feeling she would want to help in what way she could. "Those men will never hurt you again," he assured her. Partly because they were either dead or constrained. No one would. Because, he had a way of making sure she was protected; a way of allowing her to contact him. He knew it was a huge leap of faith to take, but he also knew that if she set him up . . . well, he would have an escape plan in mind. He wasn't that easy to catch.

"If you want to help me, help people, then I can give you a way to do that." He wasn't going to phrase it like he was asking her for a favor, as he had previously contemplated the reasons why. He wanted her to do this, because she wanted to do this. It was also why he wasn't threatening her into doing it. Why had hadn't come in with a bow and arrow and forced her to fix the laptop, threatening to hurt her if she didn't. He could. But he couldn't. That was not part of who he wanted this role as the vigilante to be. He stepped to the side, pulling out the laptop from a bag. He then approached her and set it on the table in front of her before taking a few steps back. "Can you fix this?" He firstly asked, wondering if it could be done before he went on to explain why.

[Felicity Smoak]

The men would never hurt her again. That was good, she hoped. They didn't know who she was so even if he had left them alive then she had faith they would not come looking for her. They would look for him, first. Still, knowing they there was no longer that opinion of them coming to look for her, she felt better--and wondered if he had killed them.

Wait? What? "I can help? Help you?!" She asked surprised by his words and watched him get a laptop, and give it too her. Fix it?! "This has bullet holes . . . " So it wasn't given to him freely. Noted. "What are you going to do with the information?" Because she didn't like the idea of helping kill anyone over stolen money. "If I said I couldn't fix it, but pull some of the information from it, where's not damaged . . . what do you plan to do?"

[Oliver Queen]

She seemed surprised, and well, he could understand that. She pointed out that it had bullet holes, and then questioned what he was going to do with the information. "The laptop belongs to a deadly assassin who goes by the name of Dead Shot." He was continuing with that leap of faith, trusting his judgmenet to entrust her with this information. But if she was going to fix it, she would come across some questionable information. So he was trying to give her some context. "I need you to recover the information for it so I can track him before he kills again." He didn't exactly say he was going to kill Dead Shot. But he wanted her to know that the man was snot an innocent one. He was an assassin; someone who killed for money. And he needed to be stopped.

"All I need is the information," he added, addressing her words about not being able to fix it but get the data from it. "You can not turn this over to the police." Because they wouldn't be able to stop him. It would just put themselves at risk and ruin any chance Oliver had of getting to the sniper first. "So tell me right now if you are willing to do this." Because if she wasn't, he would take the computer back. He didn't want her to have doubt and keep it in her possession. If she needed time, he would give her that . . . but he wouldn't leave such valuable evidence with her if she was unsure. It was too risky.

[Felicity Smoak]

He was tracking an assassin. Not looking at a family man who might have just been getting extra cash--which was still VERY wrong and she still VERY disapproved that that but she wasn't sure she could just let someone kill someone over money. But an assassin killed people. Dead Shot--he even had a name. She could imagine how he earned it.

Looking at the laptop, she picked it up and turned it over, knowing that it would take a lot of work to get it moving again, but she knew it would be easy for her. A couple hours at most. "I can help you find the assassin." She said quietly, and then looked up at the area he was in, since it was too dark to see his face. "I will need a couple hours to dismantle it, and pull what I can from it."

Which brought up another manner. "How do I get the information to you?" Would be be coming back, or going to her house (scary!) or did she email the_hood-guy123@gmail? She could stay here and do it. There were guards, so she would be safe. She didn't mind getting home a little late if it meant she could help someone not die. But would he trust her to just come back at an assigned time?

[Oliver Queen]

Good. She was willing to do this. He knew it wasn't for him, but for the cause. And that was what he wanted; that was the motivation he wanted her to use. Because if all went well, then this would not be the last time would use her skills to help track someone or find out more information about them. He had his own methods and resources, but hers would be better. If she could do this in a matter of hours -- rather than days -- then that was even better. She then brought up a question that Oliver had been anticipating. He was not going to leave her without a means of communication. Not only so she could let him know when it was done, but also for her own protection. He reached into his pocket and pullled out a phone, setting it on the table,

"It is untraceable," he told her. His way of saying that there was no point giving it to the police. "When you need to get in touch with me, call it." He would have to wait and see how she used it. But for the time being, she agreed to work on the laptop. He would see whether he was going to be greeted with a bunch of cops the next time they came. "Keep in mind that what you have and the information you gain will put you in a dangerous position especially if anyone else knows." Meaning, if she told anyone else. So the discretion was not only for his benefit, for her protection. "Use the phone to call me if you find yourself in that position." And he would protect her. Because he was the one putting her in danger, so he needed to provide her with a way of remaining safe.