Turn the Page (6/20)
Author: 
serafina19
Title: Turn the Page
Rating: R
Summary: Oliver Queen meets Chloe Sullivan right before his life takes a turn for the worse. Together, they work to find peace in their lives and justice for the people they have lost.
Warning: coarse language, adult content, AU
Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5
Chapter 6
If nothing else, this was something Chloe could get used to. She enjoyed her bed at her apartment, but this was a luxury that she’d never be able to afford, so she had every intention on enjoying this before her alarm went off. Not that she wanted to get out bed, but her shift today was her hint of reality that kept her focused after that crazy night. It was also part of the reason she stayed here, because if she woke up here, that would remind her that this actually happened.
On the plus side, she wouldn’t be wearing the same thing to work two straight days, as she changed before coming to Oliver’s. Her skirt and blouse combination was a little overdressed for Power Source, but Chloe didn’t have the time to go home now. Her shift started in under an hour and she had a feeling that she couldn’t just walk out of here.
Of course, that meant actually getting out of bed, so she pulled back the sheets just as her alarm off, smirking at her phone as she put it down on the table. Looking up at the mirror, she couldn’t help but roll her eyes at her reflection, as her current attire usually told a different story than the truth.
Being the person Oliver was, he put a shirt on all of the beds in the guest rooms, so she slept in one, but seeing it now, she knew what it looked like, and how it suited the story they were feeding to the tabloids. But what else was she supposed to do? It wasn’t like she was going to sleep naked. Although she had to admit the sheets did feel especially good in her bare legs.
With that admission, Chloe shook from that train of thought to pick up her clothes that had fallen to the floor. Her hair was a little messy, but not unliveable, so after a few seconds of working with it, she let it be.
Based on the silence around her as she left the bedroom, she thought that Oliver had left for work, but it didn’t take long for her to realize that he didn’t need to make much noise for what he was doing. Chloe hadn’t anticipated seeing him doing a handstand first thing in the morning, but she supposed that everyone had hobbies, and considering his sculpted muscles, physical ones made sense for Oliver Queen.
As did being Green Arrow.
"Good morning," he said, dismounting from the handstand to greet her properly. After a grin, he took a swig of water from a nearby glass and pointed towards the kitchen. "There's fresh coffee in the machine if you're interested."
Chloe chuckled as she placed her purse down on the couch. "Don't tell me that Evie told you my weakness already."
She had let that little detail slip to Oliver, but honestly, he could have pieced that together upon seeing the leftover coffee in the machine this morning. It helped that he didn’t drink the stuff.
"There's got to be some perks for you doing this," he said. Because this was going to be an adjustment for Chloe. As well as she had adjusted to the figment of limelight on her shoulders, they were intentionally hanging out now, which meant it was going to increase. "The tabloids are already spinning with this."
"Evie's right, you do underestimate yourself." Chloe smiled before heading towards the kitchen "If I couldn't stand you, I'd find another way, trust me."
Upon arrival, it didn't take long for her to find another mug to fill up with the fresh coffee. If this was a perk, she was all for it, because based on her sample from last night, his coffee was among the best money could buy. That's why she decided to sit down and savour it, but something else caught her eye first.
Putting her coffee down, she took a blueberry muffin from the plate on the counter and walked back to where Oliver was. "Okay, I have a tough time believing this is a coincidence."
Looking over his shoulder, Oliver grinned. "That's because it was a calculated guess." Approaching her, he added, "Bart often went on a blueberry muffin run for his favourite blonde. Not a guarantee, but..."
"You pay attention," Chloe replied, filling the blank when Oliver's voice trailed. That wasn't necessarily news to her, as it was clear in the few times they had spent together. But knowing what she did now gave her extra insight into the man.
"I try,” he said with a shrug. "It's what keeps the team together."
Nodding, Chloe took a bite of the muffin. Walking back to her coffee, she heard his footsteps behind her. When she reached her mug, she curled her fingers around it as she leaned against the counter. "You're good at that too."
He scoffed at that. "Evie tell you to say that?"
Chloe tilted her head, knowing that their friend had said something along those lines last night. But she still meant it. "I don't think you get that I understand why you were hesitant to let someone in like this. I mean, not everyone gets what you do, why you do this."
"And you do." Sitting down on one of the bar stools, Oliver finished the water in his glass, eyes peering up before he added, "Because of Clark."
She smirked, glad this subject came up sooner than later. "So you do know." Chloe knew she probably wasn’t supposed to give in that easy, but with how much his parents were involved, and how resourceful she had learned Oliver was, it wasn’t much of a stretch.
Oliver was grateful for that, because he didn’t feel like navigating around that truth either. "One of the bad habits of being an only child is that anything outside of the obvious taking your parent's attention also consumes yours." It took them dying for Oliver to see the truth, seeing Clark for himself to accept it. "But it wasn't my secret to tell, even though I have Evie going through my parents' files to ensure there's nothing there." Looking out towards the entryway, Oliver laughed once. "She knows, doesn't she?"
"Yeah," Chloe replied. "She had a suspicion you knew too."
He figured as much. "Looks like you won't be the only one learning things at your initiation."
That comment surprised Chloe, as based on what she had seen, the team seemed pretty close. "I don't know why, but I figured that your team shared everything."
"In a lot of ways, we do." Unfortunately, sharing everything wasn’t that simple. "The thing is…we've led different lives. Even Victor and Evie, the way they were taken, what's left behind, differs. You'll see that relationship in a whole new light."
"No kidding.” Chloe had asked a lot of questions to Evie last night, as a lot of what Chloe knew about Evie didn’t line up with her secret. As she learned the truth, Chloe began to appreciate just how well they had hid what happened to them. “I mean, I should have known with how much passion Evie holds towards H.O.M.E, not to mention Bart, but her being a meta didn't cross my mind."
After all, family history was only part of the equation. Evie insisted that none of her brothers had abilities and a lot of her clients didn't know other metas. It didn't help that there were more causes for the creation of metas than the Kansas meteor shower when Chloe was younger. It was an easy cause to trace, based on the various people who could be linked to the shower, but Evie had never been to Kansas before she was taken.
Oliver pursed his lips. "She covers the pain well, but we all still worry about her adjustment towards regular life. It's been three, maybe, four years now, and she still hasn't let her fears go. I actually thought Victor was going to be the one who would have that struggle." He had lost his whole family, while Evie had a familiar face right off the bat, not to mention segments of family in Michigan. "But I guess still having something to lose leads to someone always assuming the worst."
"I get that," Chloe said with a sigh, taking a sip from her coffee. Evie had called her on as much last night. No matter how much she wanted to know that her dad was okay, she could never dial the numbers to confirm it. She missed him so much, but things had changed, and she wasn't sure if she could look at him the same.
Clearing his throat, Oliver watched Chloe's head pop up before he changed the conversation. "Anyway, I should probably ask…How much of the team do you know? I'd like to be prepared when you visit headquarters."
Counting the people on her fingers, Chloe said, "Bart, Victor, Evie, and I think you work with my favourite Martian."
"Oh yeah, John's great," Oliver replied with a smile, an expression that turned to a smirk before adding, "But don't forget Emil."
She shook her head, as memories came forward from the night she dropped Green Arrow off at the hospital. "I should have known that." Victor had introduced them after all, which likely meant he was another Evie connection in their lives. "Am I missing anyone else?"
"Only one,” Oliver said. “But he's a part-timer, so it's understandable."
Chloe tilted her head to the side as she analyzed his subtle admission. "Any clues?"
"No, because I think he would prefer to see your reaction."
"So I've met him?"
"Something like that," Oliver said after a laugh, getting a kick out of how he had answered her question before he said a word.
~0~
After finishing her breakfast, Chloe picked up her things, ready to face the day. It felt strange getting into the elevator, smiling at him before the door went down. Just yesterday, everything was normal, but it was amazing what one night could accomplish. She couldn't say that she regretted her acceptance, as she had always been a driver of the truth. But more importantly, it was great to see the peace in her friends' lives, while understanding some of the decisions they had made.
As the elevator landed, Chloe left it silently, smirking as her eyes met the outside doors. She contemplated taking a back door, as she wasn't really sure how this would work, if photographers would be outside. Chloe eventually decided against it because she had to live her life, and if they wanted to take a picture of her walking outside Oliver's building, then so be it. Both her and Oliver knew the truth.
Of course, that wasn't the case for everyone, as Chloe had seen her cousin's name light up her phone on more than one occasion. Putting it back in her purse, she braved going outside, the doorman assisting Chloe to her car. There were a few photographers, but not as many as she anticipated. That was comforting, if nothing else, because the rest of the day wasn't going to be easy.
Such was the reality of descending from the penthouse to the real world. People would no doubt stare at her differently, ask her questions that were none of their business, but she would bear with it all. It wasn't like it was going to last forever. She knew how the news worked and all it took was one story and this whole thing would blow over.
Right now, she thought as she parked her car, it's about one day at a time.
Because sure enough Lois was waiting for her at her station. Chloe immediately put a finger to stop her from ranting in a public place. The action seemed to be enough until Chloe got there. After taking off her coat, she clocked in and sat down.
"It's not what it looks like," Chloe said, putting her focus to her work instead her cousin. It wouldn't please Lois, Chloe knew that, but she knew how Lois' imagination worked. But the downside to that imagination was that it often led to Chloe telling the truth. Stopping her work, she turned her head to whisper, "We're just selling a story to improve his professional reputation."
Lois' eyes narrowed as she leaned further on the desk. "I'm not buying it. No offence cuz, but you're not exactly the first choice to sell a story like this."
She had a point. Low-income, retail worker didn't scream Oliver's type, not compared to the high-society girls that he was usually photographed with. It wouldn't help that some tabloids had already called her a gold digger.
"That's why we're not putting a public label on our relationship," Chloe replied. "I mean, it is working and if their games mean that the board thinks that his partying days are behind him, then mission accomplished."
Hearing her nonchalant tone threw Lois off, as her cousin was acting too seriously about this. She was having a hard enough time figuring out when Chloe became friends with him before, knowing this now didn't help. "What do you get out of it? Please tell me he's not paying you."
Chloe wasted little time replying, "He's not paying me."
For that.
It wasn't her preference, but Oliver insisted that he pay her for the work she did in helping them patrol and for the case itself. He did it for all the members, therefore it wasn't personal, so she accepted.
Of course, she couldn't even attempt to tell Lois that. "I've gotten to know him, so to be honest, he's not that bad to hang out with." Seeing Lois about to interject, Chloe cut her off. "But he told me that he'd owe me one. That favour could come in handy sometime."
Lois tilted her head, expecting more of a tell from her cousin, but for now she'd believe her. "I suppose having that connection is helpful. Not just for you, of course."
Chloe laughed, as she remembered a particular conversation point from breakfast this morning. "We considered that possibility." Because she knew it was only a matter of time before Lois was going to ask for a favour and they found a way to beat her to it. "How do you feel about going to the Queen Industries charity gala?"
Lois’ eyes immediately widened. "You didn't."
"I did."
"Huh," Lois said, taking a step back from the counter. "I guess Oliver's not the only one who's going to owe you."
Music to Chloe's ears, as that was something she was intent on collecting now. "Consider us even if you keep your theories to yourself and trust me." It wasn't going to last, Chloe knew better, but all she could hope was that she'd at least leave him alone for now.
"Sounds fair. Can I bring Clark?"
"Absolutely, I already checked." Hearing her phone buzz on the counter, Chloe picked it up. "Lois, I have to take this."
Lois' eyebrows perked up, leading to her leaning over the counter in attempt to see the screen. "Is it him?"
Chloe shook her head, mostly out of her cousin's antics, before showing her the screen. "It's Victor, relax." Which meant there was no way that Lois could eavesdrop on this conversation. "Seriously, Lo, I do need to answer this. Don't you have a story to write?"
It wasn't her finest push-off, but Chloe knew she was due for a caffeine fix. Fortunately for her, it worked, as Lois stepped back. "Fine fine."
The timing ended up working perfectly, as Chloe was able to answer the phone just before it went to voicemail. “Vic, hey.”
“Doing anything tonight?” he asked, between the sounds of typing in the background.
“Not that I’m aware of.”
His typing stopped, and even though she couldn't see him, she swore that she could see him smiling as he said, "Are you ready for an actual initiation where you meet the rest of us? Ear piece included.”
Chloe grinned at the invite. Oliver had mentioned that this was coming, but it appeared that he was right about his team's eagerness to recruit her. “Bring it.”
“Come by my office at 9 then.”
~0~
It had been a long day, and while normally Chloe would want nothing more than to go home and relax, she was really excited for this. It wasn't every day she got invited to a superhero headquarters and learn the tricks of the trade.
However, it wasn't as straight forward as driving there. Victor insisted on giving her a lift, which gave him a chance to talk shop about the database. If nothing else, he was clearly glad to talk about it with someone who understood the language as well as he did.
Don't get him wrong, Evie was able to work it and of all people, Bart had come a long way in the last few months. But Chloe was different. They used to talk about computer stuff in high school and she was always his first call whenever he couldn't figure something out. He tried not to bore her with the details, but it appeared that she was as excited about this initiation as he was.
The feeling was clear to see in her face as they entered the elevator. Victor watched her eyes when it started ascending, the way they found the doors just as they opened.
Taking off in front of her, Victor held open the main door so that Chloe could focus on the room ahead. "Welcome to our headquarters."
"Wow," she said. "This is... impressive."
Victor was glad she thought so. A lot of his first days since getting out of 33.1 were spent here. Initially, it was the place where he'd figure out where the remnants of his life were. Where he was supposed to find his ex-girlfriend, but the day he found her, he knew she was part of the life that he couldn't reclaim.
As much as he disliked what he was now, he appreciated the benefits of what he could do much more, the good he could bring to the world. This place helped with that, helped him to move on. “It took some time to get here, but I think you're going to love it here. That's probably why I pushed Oliver as hard as I did to recruit you.”
Taking a look at the screens around the room, something suddenly hit Chloe. “The encryption was yours, wasn’t it? On the laptop the day I met him." When he grinned, she bit the inside of her lip. "Sorry Vic.”
“Hey, I didn’t give you my toughest stuff.” That he saved for the data here, something that he would teach her to break through in case anything happened to him. “But it was half-way there, so I’m glad that you didn’t lose your touch.”
Walking up to one of the consoles, he opened up a drawer and held something out to Chloe. “Your own personal ear piece, as promised.”
“Thanks,” she said, taking it from him. She was tempted to put it in right away, but she knew it wasn't time for that yet. “So… do I get to pick my own name?”
After a nod, Victor asked, “Do you have one in mind?”
“I did when I arrived.... Watchtower.” It felt fitting for what the building was, where it was in the city, what she would do here.
Victor agreed. “Sounds perfect.”
Chloe smiled as that particular piece fell in place. “So while Evie gave me the basic run-down, I have to ask… whose place am I taking here?”
“If anything, you're giving us an extra body, because Evie's hoping to put her focus on H.O.M.E,” Victor replied honestly. “We're the only two that do field work and the comms, but technically, I guess, it gives me the chance to take the streets more often.”
“That sounds good,” Chloe said. “Based on what Oliver told me about the team, I'm assuming that I'm Bart’s and Oliver’s eyes and ears tonight so you can have your girlfriend to yourself.”
“You betcha gorgeous,” a voice called out right behind her, a swift wind moving across both Chloe and Victor. It was a voice Chloe knew anywhere, so she turned and smiled at Bart. He appreciated the gesture, taking her hand to kiss it. “It’s been too long ‘Licious.”
“Down boy," Victor said, trying not to roll his eyes. "Evie’s covering the comms for the first part, while you cover the streets.” He knew Bart would be disappointed, but this made the most sense. “She got the initial initiation, so it’s the rest of the team’s turn. Plus, she has the ability to multitask.”
Chloe laughed as she realized what Victor meant by multitasking. “Super hearing, right. I’m going to have to get used to that.” Although she had a feeling that was probably one of the easier things to get used to.
"You have no idea how glad we are that we don't have to lie to you anymore," Vic said, booting up the system for Chloe just in time to see Oliver and Evie leaving the elevator on the main screen.
"No kidding.” Turning her head towards the main door, Chloe leaned back against the console. “I never would have guessed that you met her the way you did."
Victor smirked, as he couldn’t blame Chloe. It wasn’t like his and Evie’s relationship was any sort of normal. "When I told you that she saved me, I wasn't kidding."
"It's the business we're in," Evie said as she let go of the door to close behind her. "I'm pretty sure we've all saved each other at some point." When Victor grinned at her in response, Evie moved her focus back to Chloe. "It's pretty awesome isn't it?" she said, looking around at the room. "Our sugar daddy spared no expense."
Oliver's eyes narrowed at that comment. "I think I prefer boss."
"Thought so."
"Hey," Chloe said, recognizing the other person who had entered the room, now standing next to Oliver. "You're involved too?"
"Hal Jordan," he replied with a smile. "Only part-time. While Queen here can move wherever he want, Coast City's home for me."
Chloe snapped her fingers, as him mentioning Coast City made her realize something. "Lantern, right." She glanced momentarily at Oliver, understanding what he meant earlier. "Just adding to the many questions."
"And you'll have a chance to hear us answer them," Oliver said with a smile, gesturing for everyone to sit down on the couches across the room. "The perk of it being Bart's night to patrol is that we can keep an eye on things while addressing what you need."
"Aw man," Bart said, the pout clearly on his face. "Why did we decide to do this on my night?"
"So you can look like a macho hero in front of Chloe here," Evie piped up from the comms. “And while we know that she could handle your speed, I’m not about to piss off the boss during her initial night on the comms.”
Oliver rolled his eyes. Usually Evie was a lot more subtle. “For the record, Chloe can do whatever she wants.” While he wasn't opposed to having her voice in his ear later tonight, he wasn't about to speak for her.
For Chloe, it honestly didn't matter, but there was one detail that swayed her decision. “You’re the one with the distorter, Oliver. I think I should get used to that."
"Well then, we’ll get started as soon as John and Emil get here.”
“Speaking of Emil," Chloe said, turning her head towards Evie, "I assume I owe you a thank you there for the introduction.”
“Emil went to school with my brother,” Evie said. A fortunate accident, as he agreed to be her liaison into her former life. He let her know what happened to her brothers and kept her in the loop without telling anyone that she was still alive. "But no thanks necessary."
Seeing Chloe nod, Oliver asked, “I’ve been meaning to ask how you knew him.”
“That would be my doing,” Victor said. “Before the team was fully established, I had a close call. Luckily for me, Chloe was walking from her favourite coffee shop, so she drove me. Knowing the connection with Evie, I called in a favour.”
"Since then, he's been a valuable resource, and not just to me." Chloe wanted to say more, but tonight wasn't about Clark for once.
It wasn't long before Emil walked in the door, mentioning that he couldn't stay long, but he was glad to see Chloe on-board. The sentiment was shared by John, who brought cookies to celebrate.
From there, Bart ran out to cover a mugging, while Evie stood at the comms, listening to the conversation taking place on the couches.
“Before we start,” Oliver said, folding his fingers together, “I have a question for you."
"Name it," Chloe replied, not really sure what she could contribute, but she was hoping to be proven wrong.
"What did you find at my parents' warehouse?" Oliver had been there a few times and didn't find much of substance, but he did notice that she was protective of her purse that night.
"Not much." Or at least, it didn't feel like much without having anything to connect it to. "Those guys got there not much longer after I did, but I did get this." It seemed silly to keep it in her purse, but considering its size, it didn't take much room and it reminded Chloe to keep the faith when she met dead ends. Taking it out, she handed it to Oliver. "Does this mean anything to you?"
Oliver grinned before passing the piece of paper around. "It matches the chess piece logos that we've seen on a few occasions." It appeared that they took the game more seriously than they thought, as the White Queen was clearly someone high-up in this organization. "Other than that, it's another question."
"How did you get on this trail?" Because it made sense now, with the death Oliver's parents, but he had implied before that wasn't the catalyst of this investigation.
It was Victor who spoke up. "Evie's clients started going missing, not to mention Talia Vermette's murder. From there, it -" Closing his eyes, Victor shook his head, knowing he had gone too far. "Sorry."
Chloe caught the slip, but she felt confused over what they were covering up. They had to know that she knew that Chris had a part in this. "Have you ever talked to Chris about this?"
"You've seen the articles, so we decided against it," Victor said, clearly wanting to save face for earlier. "We wanted something more concrete before asking her what she knew, why she could hold so much conviction about her sister's death. How about you?"
"That's not exactly an easy conversation to start." They had met innocently a few weeks before Chloe knew about these murders, and she had never talked about Talia with Chris. She knew it was a sore spot, which is why Chris returned the favour by barely bringing up Jimmy. "Using her knowledge was a last resort... that I was nearing."
That was partially because Chloe was starting to think that Chris was becoming a little apprehensive of all the people in her life that were connected to this case. "The reason I ask... I think she knows that part of what we're investigating is her sister's murder."
"She does," Evie called out, turning her head from the screen to meet the eyes that had moved to her.
"How do you-"
"One my many skills," Evie reminded Chloe. "That I never use unless necessary."
"For the record, I'm incredibly skeptical of that." Chloe could think of a few instances where her friend clearly used that to her gain. It wasn't like anyone got hurt or anything bad happened, but even recently, she had a feeling that Evie wasn't afraid of using telepathy in a certain facet of Chloe's life.
But she wasn't going to get her answer now, as Evie merely grinned before turning back to the console. "Bart, there's a robbery on Main."
"Sure there is."
"Timing is wonderful sometimes," Evie replied, typing away as her grin grew.
The whole night, it felt like Chloe fit right into the group. There were still a lot of stories that she needed to hear, but they filled her in on the leads they had found, some of the avenues they were exploring. Each of them had a strong conviction for fighting this, so Chloe had a feeling that it was good that she let them in.
However, this case wasn't the only discussion topic of the night. Chloe knew about their nightly patrolling, but they also spent a good amount of time sorting out schedules and how to work Chloe onto the team. Soon enough, John had police business to attend to, Emil a work emergency. Hal thought about staying, but then he was promptly reminded of a club opening on Metropolis' outskirts. It was then that Chloe realized that he could literally fly there. She'd have to tease Clark about that later, as he was still struggling with flying.
That let her with the core she knew, with all eyes on her, as she knew what was next.
“You ready?” Victor asked anyway. The last couple of days, they had filled her with a lot of information, and there was no need to push it.
Except there was no way that Chloe was refusing this chance tonight. It seemed strange, because she told herself that this part of her life was over so many times, but no time passed before she said, “Oh yeah.”
With that, Oliver and Evie left to get ready, so Chloe put in her earpiece as Victor walked with her back to their consoles. He guided her through the system, knowing that she'd pick up the basics and he'd be there for the rest. The best part was seeing him teach her in-between telling Bart about a few muggings.
"Okay, looks like they're just about ready," Victor said as he looked upstairs and saw Oliver grab his bow. "You know what to do."
With a nod, Chloe activated her earpiece. "Watchtower online."
Chapter 7
Sera's Scribbles: A few things. Hoping to move towards twice-a-month posting now. Also, the chapter total is an educated guess, but I'm hoping to stick to it.
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serafina19
Title: Turn the Page
Rating: R
Summary: Oliver Queen meets Chloe Sullivan right before his life takes a turn for the worse. Together, they work to find peace in their lives and justice for the people they have lost.
Warning: coarse language, adult content, AU
Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5
Chapter 6
If nothing else, this was something Chloe could get used to. She enjoyed her bed at her apartment, but this was a luxury that she’d never be able to afford, so she had every intention on enjoying this before her alarm went off. Not that she wanted to get out bed, but her shift today was her hint of reality that kept her focused after that crazy night. It was also part of the reason she stayed here, because if she woke up here, that would remind her that this actually happened.
On the plus side, she wouldn’t be wearing the same thing to work two straight days, as she changed before coming to Oliver’s. Her skirt and blouse combination was a little overdressed for Power Source, but Chloe didn’t have the time to go home now. Her shift started in under an hour and she had a feeling that she couldn’t just walk out of here.
Of course, that meant actually getting out of bed, so she pulled back the sheets just as her alarm off, smirking at her phone as she put it down on the table. Looking up at the mirror, she couldn’t help but roll her eyes at her reflection, as her current attire usually told a different story than the truth.
Being the person Oliver was, he put a shirt on all of the beds in the guest rooms, so she slept in one, but seeing it now, she knew what it looked like, and how it suited the story they were feeding to the tabloids. But what else was she supposed to do? It wasn’t like she was going to sleep naked. Although she had to admit the sheets did feel especially good in her bare legs.
With that admission, Chloe shook from that train of thought to pick up her clothes that had fallen to the floor. Her hair was a little messy, but not unliveable, so after a few seconds of working with it, she let it be.
Based on the silence around her as she left the bedroom, she thought that Oliver had left for work, but it didn’t take long for her to realize that he didn’t need to make much noise for what he was doing. Chloe hadn’t anticipated seeing him doing a handstand first thing in the morning, but she supposed that everyone had hobbies, and considering his sculpted muscles, physical ones made sense for Oliver Queen.
As did being Green Arrow.
"Good morning," he said, dismounting from the handstand to greet her properly. After a grin, he took a swig of water from a nearby glass and pointed towards the kitchen. "There's fresh coffee in the machine if you're interested."
Chloe chuckled as she placed her purse down on the couch. "Don't tell me that Evie told you my weakness already."
She had let that little detail slip to Oliver, but honestly, he could have pieced that together upon seeing the leftover coffee in the machine this morning. It helped that he didn’t drink the stuff.
"There's got to be some perks for you doing this," he said. Because this was going to be an adjustment for Chloe. As well as she had adjusted to the figment of limelight on her shoulders, they were intentionally hanging out now, which meant it was going to increase. "The tabloids are already spinning with this."
"Evie's right, you do underestimate yourself." Chloe smiled before heading towards the kitchen "If I couldn't stand you, I'd find another way, trust me."
Upon arrival, it didn't take long for her to find another mug to fill up with the fresh coffee. If this was a perk, she was all for it, because based on her sample from last night, his coffee was among the best money could buy. That's why she decided to sit down and savour it, but something else caught her eye first.
Putting her coffee down, she took a blueberry muffin from the plate on the counter and walked back to where Oliver was. "Okay, I have a tough time believing this is a coincidence."
Looking over his shoulder, Oliver grinned. "That's because it was a calculated guess." Approaching her, he added, "Bart often went on a blueberry muffin run for his favourite blonde. Not a guarantee, but..."
"You pay attention," Chloe replied, filling the blank when Oliver's voice trailed. That wasn't necessarily news to her, as it was clear in the few times they had spent together. But knowing what she did now gave her extra insight into the man.
"I try,” he said with a shrug. "It's what keeps the team together."
Nodding, Chloe took a bite of the muffin. Walking back to her coffee, she heard his footsteps behind her. When she reached her mug, she curled her fingers around it as she leaned against the counter. "You're good at that too."
He scoffed at that. "Evie tell you to say that?"
Chloe tilted her head, knowing that their friend had said something along those lines last night. But she still meant it. "I don't think you get that I understand why you were hesitant to let someone in like this. I mean, not everyone gets what you do, why you do this."
"And you do." Sitting down on one of the bar stools, Oliver finished the water in his glass, eyes peering up before he added, "Because of Clark."
She smirked, glad this subject came up sooner than later. "So you do know." Chloe knew she probably wasn’t supposed to give in that easy, but with how much his parents were involved, and how resourceful she had learned Oliver was, it wasn’t much of a stretch.
Oliver was grateful for that, because he didn’t feel like navigating around that truth either. "One of the bad habits of being an only child is that anything outside of the obvious taking your parent's attention also consumes yours." It took them dying for Oliver to see the truth, seeing Clark for himself to accept it. "But it wasn't my secret to tell, even though I have Evie going through my parents' files to ensure there's nothing there." Looking out towards the entryway, Oliver laughed once. "She knows, doesn't she?"
"Yeah," Chloe replied. "She had a suspicion you knew too."
He figured as much. "Looks like you won't be the only one learning things at your initiation."
That comment surprised Chloe, as based on what she had seen, the team seemed pretty close. "I don't know why, but I figured that your team shared everything."
"In a lot of ways, we do." Unfortunately, sharing everything wasn’t that simple. "The thing is…we've led different lives. Even Victor and Evie, the way they were taken, what's left behind, differs. You'll see that relationship in a whole new light."
"No kidding.” Chloe had asked a lot of questions to Evie last night, as a lot of what Chloe knew about Evie didn’t line up with her secret. As she learned the truth, Chloe began to appreciate just how well they had hid what happened to them. “I mean, I should have known with how much passion Evie holds towards H.O.M.E, not to mention Bart, but her being a meta didn't cross my mind."
After all, family history was only part of the equation. Evie insisted that none of her brothers had abilities and a lot of her clients didn't know other metas. It didn't help that there were more causes for the creation of metas than the Kansas meteor shower when Chloe was younger. It was an easy cause to trace, based on the various people who could be linked to the shower, but Evie had never been to Kansas before she was taken.
Oliver pursed his lips. "She covers the pain well, but we all still worry about her adjustment towards regular life. It's been three, maybe, four years now, and she still hasn't let her fears go. I actually thought Victor was going to be the one who would have that struggle." He had lost his whole family, while Evie had a familiar face right off the bat, not to mention segments of family in Michigan. "But I guess still having something to lose leads to someone always assuming the worst."
"I get that," Chloe said with a sigh, taking a sip from her coffee. Evie had called her on as much last night. No matter how much she wanted to know that her dad was okay, she could never dial the numbers to confirm it. She missed him so much, but things had changed, and she wasn't sure if she could look at him the same.
Clearing his throat, Oliver watched Chloe's head pop up before he changed the conversation. "Anyway, I should probably ask…How much of the team do you know? I'd like to be prepared when you visit headquarters."
Counting the people on her fingers, Chloe said, "Bart, Victor, Evie, and I think you work with my favourite Martian."
"Oh yeah, John's great," Oliver replied with a smile, an expression that turned to a smirk before adding, "But don't forget Emil."
She shook her head, as memories came forward from the night she dropped Green Arrow off at the hospital. "I should have known that." Victor had introduced them after all, which likely meant he was another Evie connection in their lives. "Am I missing anyone else?"
"Only one,” Oliver said. “But he's a part-timer, so it's understandable."
Chloe tilted her head to the side as she analyzed his subtle admission. "Any clues?"
"No, because I think he would prefer to see your reaction."
"So I've met him?"
"Something like that," Oliver said after a laugh, getting a kick out of how he had answered her question before he said a word.
~0~
After finishing her breakfast, Chloe picked up her things, ready to face the day. It felt strange getting into the elevator, smiling at him before the door went down. Just yesterday, everything was normal, but it was amazing what one night could accomplish. She couldn't say that she regretted her acceptance, as she had always been a driver of the truth. But more importantly, it was great to see the peace in her friends' lives, while understanding some of the decisions they had made.
As the elevator landed, Chloe left it silently, smirking as her eyes met the outside doors. She contemplated taking a back door, as she wasn't really sure how this would work, if photographers would be outside. Chloe eventually decided against it because she had to live her life, and if they wanted to take a picture of her walking outside Oliver's building, then so be it. Both her and Oliver knew the truth.
Of course, that wasn't the case for everyone, as Chloe had seen her cousin's name light up her phone on more than one occasion. Putting it back in her purse, she braved going outside, the doorman assisting Chloe to her car. There were a few photographers, but not as many as she anticipated. That was comforting, if nothing else, because the rest of the day wasn't going to be easy.
Such was the reality of descending from the penthouse to the real world. People would no doubt stare at her differently, ask her questions that were none of their business, but she would bear with it all. It wasn't like it was going to last forever. She knew how the news worked and all it took was one story and this whole thing would blow over.
Right now, she thought as she parked her car, it's about one day at a time.
Because sure enough Lois was waiting for her at her station. Chloe immediately put a finger to stop her from ranting in a public place. The action seemed to be enough until Chloe got there. After taking off her coat, she clocked in and sat down.
"It's not what it looks like," Chloe said, putting her focus to her work instead her cousin. It wouldn't please Lois, Chloe knew that, but she knew how Lois' imagination worked. But the downside to that imagination was that it often led to Chloe telling the truth. Stopping her work, she turned her head to whisper, "We're just selling a story to improve his professional reputation."
Lois' eyes narrowed as she leaned further on the desk. "I'm not buying it. No offence cuz, but you're not exactly the first choice to sell a story like this."
She had a point. Low-income, retail worker didn't scream Oliver's type, not compared to the high-society girls that he was usually photographed with. It wouldn't help that some tabloids had already called her a gold digger.
"That's why we're not putting a public label on our relationship," Chloe replied. "I mean, it is working and if their games mean that the board thinks that his partying days are behind him, then mission accomplished."
Hearing her nonchalant tone threw Lois off, as her cousin was acting too seriously about this. She was having a hard enough time figuring out when Chloe became friends with him before, knowing this now didn't help. "What do you get out of it? Please tell me he's not paying you."
Chloe wasted little time replying, "He's not paying me."
For that.
It wasn't her preference, but Oliver insisted that he pay her for the work she did in helping them patrol and for the case itself. He did it for all the members, therefore it wasn't personal, so she accepted.
Of course, she couldn't even attempt to tell Lois that. "I've gotten to know him, so to be honest, he's not that bad to hang out with." Seeing Lois about to interject, Chloe cut her off. "But he told me that he'd owe me one. That favour could come in handy sometime."
Lois tilted her head, expecting more of a tell from her cousin, but for now she'd believe her. "I suppose having that connection is helpful. Not just for you, of course."
Chloe laughed, as she remembered a particular conversation point from breakfast this morning. "We considered that possibility." Because she knew it was only a matter of time before Lois was going to ask for a favour and they found a way to beat her to it. "How do you feel about going to the Queen Industries charity gala?"
Lois’ eyes immediately widened. "You didn't."
"I did."
"Huh," Lois said, taking a step back from the counter. "I guess Oliver's not the only one who's going to owe you."
Music to Chloe's ears, as that was something she was intent on collecting now. "Consider us even if you keep your theories to yourself and trust me." It wasn't going to last, Chloe knew better, but all she could hope was that she'd at least leave him alone for now.
"Sounds fair. Can I bring Clark?"
"Absolutely, I already checked." Hearing her phone buzz on the counter, Chloe picked it up. "Lois, I have to take this."
Lois' eyebrows perked up, leading to her leaning over the counter in attempt to see the screen. "Is it him?"
Chloe shook her head, mostly out of her cousin's antics, before showing her the screen. "It's Victor, relax." Which meant there was no way that Lois could eavesdrop on this conversation. "Seriously, Lo, I do need to answer this. Don't you have a story to write?"
It wasn't her finest push-off, but Chloe knew she was due for a caffeine fix. Fortunately for her, it worked, as Lois stepped back. "Fine fine."
The timing ended up working perfectly, as Chloe was able to answer the phone just before it went to voicemail. “Vic, hey.”
“Doing anything tonight?” he asked, between the sounds of typing in the background.
“Not that I’m aware of.”
His typing stopped, and even though she couldn't see him, she swore that she could see him smiling as he said, "Are you ready for an actual initiation where you meet the rest of us? Ear piece included.”
Chloe grinned at the invite. Oliver had mentioned that this was coming, but it appeared that he was right about his team's eagerness to recruit her. “Bring it.”
“Come by my office at 9 then.”
~0~
It had been a long day, and while normally Chloe would want nothing more than to go home and relax, she was really excited for this. It wasn't every day she got invited to a superhero headquarters and learn the tricks of the trade.
However, it wasn't as straight forward as driving there. Victor insisted on giving her a lift, which gave him a chance to talk shop about the database. If nothing else, he was clearly glad to talk about it with someone who understood the language as well as he did.
Don't get him wrong, Evie was able to work it and of all people, Bart had come a long way in the last few months. But Chloe was different. They used to talk about computer stuff in high school and she was always his first call whenever he couldn't figure something out. He tried not to bore her with the details, but it appeared that she was as excited about this initiation as he was.
The feeling was clear to see in her face as they entered the elevator. Victor watched her eyes when it started ascending, the way they found the doors just as they opened.
Taking off in front of her, Victor held open the main door so that Chloe could focus on the room ahead. "Welcome to our headquarters."
"Wow," she said. "This is... impressive."
Victor was glad she thought so. A lot of his first days since getting out of 33.1 were spent here. Initially, it was the place where he'd figure out where the remnants of his life were. Where he was supposed to find his ex-girlfriend, but the day he found her, he knew she was part of the life that he couldn't reclaim.
As much as he disliked what he was now, he appreciated the benefits of what he could do much more, the good he could bring to the world. This place helped with that, helped him to move on. “It took some time to get here, but I think you're going to love it here. That's probably why I pushed Oliver as hard as I did to recruit you.”
Taking a look at the screens around the room, something suddenly hit Chloe. “The encryption was yours, wasn’t it? On the laptop the day I met him." When he grinned, she bit the inside of her lip. "Sorry Vic.”
“Hey, I didn’t give you my toughest stuff.” That he saved for the data here, something that he would teach her to break through in case anything happened to him. “But it was half-way there, so I’m glad that you didn’t lose your touch.”
Walking up to one of the consoles, he opened up a drawer and held something out to Chloe. “Your own personal ear piece, as promised.”
“Thanks,” she said, taking it from him. She was tempted to put it in right away, but she knew it wasn't time for that yet. “So… do I get to pick my own name?”
After a nod, Victor asked, “Do you have one in mind?”
“I did when I arrived.... Watchtower.” It felt fitting for what the building was, where it was in the city, what she would do here.
Victor agreed. “Sounds perfect.”
Chloe smiled as that particular piece fell in place. “So while Evie gave me the basic run-down, I have to ask… whose place am I taking here?”
“If anything, you're giving us an extra body, because Evie's hoping to put her focus on H.O.M.E,” Victor replied honestly. “We're the only two that do field work and the comms, but technically, I guess, it gives me the chance to take the streets more often.”
“That sounds good,” Chloe said. “Based on what Oliver told me about the team, I'm assuming that I'm Bart’s and Oliver’s eyes and ears tonight so you can have your girlfriend to yourself.”
“You betcha gorgeous,” a voice called out right behind her, a swift wind moving across both Chloe and Victor. It was a voice Chloe knew anywhere, so she turned and smiled at Bart. He appreciated the gesture, taking her hand to kiss it. “It’s been too long ‘Licious.”
“Down boy," Victor said, trying not to roll his eyes. "Evie’s covering the comms for the first part, while you cover the streets.” He knew Bart would be disappointed, but this made the most sense. “She got the initial initiation, so it’s the rest of the team’s turn. Plus, she has the ability to multitask.”
Chloe laughed as she realized what Victor meant by multitasking. “Super hearing, right. I’m going to have to get used to that.” Although she had a feeling that was probably one of the easier things to get used to.
"You have no idea how glad we are that we don't have to lie to you anymore," Vic said, booting up the system for Chloe just in time to see Oliver and Evie leaving the elevator on the main screen.
"No kidding.” Turning her head towards the main door, Chloe leaned back against the console. “I never would have guessed that you met her the way you did."
Victor smirked, as he couldn’t blame Chloe. It wasn’t like his and Evie’s relationship was any sort of normal. "When I told you that she saved me, I wasn't kidding."
"It's the business we're in," Evie said as she let go of the door to close behind her. "I'm pretty sure we've all saved each other at some point." When Victor grinned at her in response, Evie moved her focus back to Chloe. "It's pretty awesome isn't it?" she said, looking around at the room. "Our sugar daddy spared no expense."
Oliver's eyes narrowed at that comment. "I think I prefer boss."
"Thought so."
"Hey," Chloe said, recognizing the other person who had entered the room, now standing next to Oliver. "You're involved too?"
"Hal Jordan," he replied with a smile. "Only part-time. While Queen here can move wherever he want, Coast City's home for me."
Chloe snapped her fingers, as him mentioning Coast City made her realize something. "Lantern, right." She glanced momentarily at Oliver, understanding what he meant earlier. "Just adding to the many questions."
"And you'll have a chance to hear us answer them," Oliver said with a smile, gesturing for everyone to sit down on the couches across the room. "The perk of it being Bart's night to patrol is that we can keep an eye on things while addressing what you need."
"Aw man," Bart said, the pout clearly on his face. "Why did we decide to do this on my night?"
"So you can look like a macho hero in front of Chloe here," Evie piped up from the comms. “And while we know that she could handle your speed, I’m not about to piss off the boss during her initial night on the comms.”
Oliver rolled his eyes. Usually Evie was a lot more subtle. “For the record, Chloe can do whatever she wants.” While he wasn't opposed to having her voice in his ear later tonight, he wasn't about to speak for her.
For Chloe, it honestly didn't matter, but there was one detail that swayed her decision. “You’re the one with the distorter, Oliver. I think I should get used to that."
"Well then, we’ll get started as soon as John and Emil get here.”
“Speaking of Emil," Chloe said, turning her head towards Evie, "I assume I owe you a thank you there for the introduction.”
“Emil went to school with my brother,” Evie said. A fortunate accident, as he agreed to be her liaison into her former life. He let her know what happened to her brothers and kept her in the loop without telling anyone that she was still alive. "But no thanks necessary."
Seeing Chloe nod, Oliver asked, “I’ve been meaning to ask how you knew him.”
“That would be my doing,” Victor said. “Before the team was fully established, I had a close call. Luckily for me, Chloe was walking from her favourite coffee shop, so she drove me. Knowing the connection with Evie, I called in a favour.”
"Since then, he's been a valuable resource, and not just to me." Chloe wanted to say more, but tonight wasn't about Clark for once.
It wasn't long before Emil walked in the door, mentioning that he couldn't stay long, but he was glad to see Chloe on-board. The sentiment was shared by John, who brought cookies to celebrate.
From there, Bart ran out to cover a mugging, while Evie stood at the comms, listening to the conversation taking place on the couches.
“Before we start,” Oliver said, folding his fingers together, “I have a question for you."
"Name it," Chloe replied, not really sure what she could contribute, but she was hoping to be proven wrong.
"What did you find at my parents' warehouse?" Oliver had been there a few times and didn't find much of substance, but he did notice that she was protective of her purse that night.
"Not much." Or at least, it didn't feel like much without having anything to connect it to. "Those guys got there not much longer after I did, but I did get this." It seemed silly to keep it in her purse, but considering its size, it didn't take much room and it reminded Chloe to keep the faith when she met dead ends. Taking it out, she handed it to Oliver. "Does this mean anything to you?"
Oliver grinned before passing the piece of paper around. "It matches the chess piece logos that we've seen on a few occasions." It appeared that they took the game more seriously than they thought, as the White Queen was clearly someone high-up in this organization. "Other than that, it's another question."
"How did you get on this trail?" Because it made sense now, with the death Oliver's parents, but he had implied before that wasn't the catalyst of this investigation.
It was Victor who spoke up. "Evie's clients started going missing, not to mention Talia Vermette's murder. From there, it -" Closing his eyes, Victor shook his head, knowing he had gone too far. "Sorry."
Chloe caught the slip, but she felt confused over what they were covering up. They had to know that she knew that Chris had a part in this. "Have you ever talked to Chris about this?"
"You've seen the articles, so we decided against it," Victor said, clearly wanting to save face for earlier. "We wanted something more concrete before asking her what she knew, why she could hold so much conviction about her sister's death. How about you?"
"That's not exactly an easy conversation to start." They had met innocently a few weeks before Chloe knew about these murders, and she had never talked about Talia with Chris. She knew it was a sore spot, which is why Chris returned the favour by barely bringing up Jimmy. "Using her knowledge was a last resort... that I was nearing."
That was partially because Chloe was starting to think that Chris was becoming a little apprehensive of all the people in her life that were connected to this case. "The reason I ask... I think she knows that part of what we're investigating is her sister's murder."
"She does," Evie called out, turning her head from the screen to meet the eyes that had moved to her.
"How do you-"
"One my many skills," Evie reminded Chloe. "That I never use unless necessary."
"For the record, I'm incredibly skeptical of that." Chloe could think of a few instances where her friend clearly used that to her gain. It wasn't like anyone got hurt or anything bad happened, but even recently, she had a feeling that Evie wasn't afraid of using telepathy in a certain facet of Chloe's life.
But she wasn't going to get her answer now, as Evie merely grinned before turning back to the console. "Bart, there's a robbery on Main."
"Sure there is."
"Timing is wonderful sometimes," Evie replied, typing away as her grin grew.
The whole night, it felt like Chloe fit right into the group. There were still a lot of stories that she needed to hear, but they filled her in on the leads they had found, some of the avenues they were exploring. Each of them had a strong conviction for fighting this, so Chloe had a feeling that it was good that she let them in.
However, this case wasn't the only discussion topic of the night. Chloe knew about their nightly patrolling, but they also spent a good amount of time sorting out schedules and how to work Chloe onto the team. Soon enough, John had police business to attend to, Emil a work emergency. Hal thought about staying, but then he was promptly reminded of a club opening on Metropolis' outskirts. It was then that Chloe realized that he could literally fly there. She'd have to tease Clark about that later, as he was still struggling with flying.
That let her with the core she knew, with all eyes on her, as she knew what was next.
“You ready?” Victor asked anyway. The last couple of days, they had filled her with a lot of information, and there was no need to push it.
Except there was no way that Chloe was refusing this chance tonight. It seemed strange, because she told herself that this part of her life was over so many times, but no time passed before she said, “Oh yeah.”
With that, Oliver and Evie left to get ready, so Chloe put in her earpiece as Victor walked with her back to their consoles. He guided her through the system, knowing that she'd pick up the basics and he'd be there for the rest. The best part was seeing him teach her in-between telling Bart about a few muggings.
"Okay, looks like they're just about ready," Victor said as he looked upstairs and saw Oliver grab his bow. "You know what to do."
With a nod, Chloe activated her earpiece. "Watchtower online."
Chapter 7
Sera's Scribbles: A few things. Hoping to move towards twice-a-month posting now. Also, the chapter total is an educated guess, but I'm hoping to stick to it.
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