Saving Starling

@ Dandy Darling;
Roy sighed softly as he stared up at the ceiling, hands behind his head. He was absolutely bored, and Charlotte hadn't given he and Oliver anything to go and do for the past three days. Which was weird, considering there was always something to go do as The Arrows. "Come on, Charlie, there has to be something for us to do, or for me to do on my own for that matter. Something small?" he asked her, biting down on his bottom lip. Occasionally Charlotte would give him something small to do whenever Oliver was busy. Ever since Thea left, he needed all the distraction he could get.

---

Charlotte rolled her eyes at Roy, shaking her head. "Remember the last time I gave you something small to do? You shot an arrow in someones chest. You said it was an accident," she said, putting air quotes around the word "accident". Charlotte wasn't going to get herself in trouble yet again by Oliver because of Roy. Charlotte hated it when Oliver was mad at her, it tore her to pieces. "Where is Oli anyway? He's not out with some dumb slut again, is he?" she asked, fiddling around on her computers and trying to find something for Roy to do, even though she knew she shouldn't. She'd just have to keep a really close eye on him where ever he went, but that was only if Oliver didn't show up before then. "He should be here. He called me earlier and said he had something to do, but he would be here," Roy said.

@ Eros.

It was the first day that Rebecca was able to relax after moving into Starling City, giving a huff as she stacked the last few unpacked boxes. Even though her parents had begged her to stay, she knew that it time was to move out of the basement and into her own place. After all, she had saved up enough money specifically to leave. Wiping the dust off of her hands and onto her jeans, she figured that she deserved a drink and wandered over to the refrigerator to grab a beer. Rebecca took a swig while deciding that tonight would be the prime time to explore the downtown area that was known for its clubs, especially Verdant. Apparently, that one was all the rage. She lounged back onto the tattered couch and flipped on the television.

--

"You have failed this city." Oliver stated with an arrow pointed at the man, working his signature phrase. This time, he had cornered a multi-millionaire that had laundered money from innocent civilians over the years. "You are you going to give back all of the money you have stolen." He demanded while the terrified man cowered before him. "Do it. Now." With that, the man scrambled to his computer to wire all of the funds back to his clients, giving little resistance. "Good." He concluded then turned to fire the arrow into his computer, leaving the scene of the crime without a trace. Returning back to his headquarters, Oliver moved into of the room to find Charlotte and Roy conversing. "Another name to cross off of the list. Where's Diggle?" He sighed while pulling off his hood and placing his bow and quiver back into its display case.

@ Dandy Darling;
Roy looked up when he heard Oliver, raising an eyebrow when he saw that he was in his Arrow uniform. "He went to go get some food at Big Belly Burger or something," he said, standing up. "You crossed another one off the list without me? That sucks," he said, checking to see what time it was. "Welp, better go stock up before the club opens," Roy said before jogging up the stairs and going to the stock room. He really didn't feel like working tonight. At least not at the club. If he could go out and save someone, then he'd gladly do it. He put some bottles up on the bar with the others, sighing when he heard the phone ring. "Verdant," he said, continuing to stock booze. He groaned when someone said they couldn't come in, knowing that it was such a short notice that he was going to have to work it.

---

Charlotte looked up when Oliver came in, biting down on her bottom lip when he said that another one was crossed off the list. "Well, that's good to hear," she murmured, sitting back in her chair and watching him. She nodded at what Roy said about Diggle, "He should be back any minute now." Charlotte bit down on her bottom lip, thinking to herself. "Don't you ever just take a break? Like, actually enjoy your own club for once instead of trying to run it, or sitting down here waiting for something to happen next," she murmured, raising an eyebrow at him.

@ Eros.

Flipping through the channels, the time seemed to slowly crawl by until the light started to dissipate from her window. Rebecca figured that she had wasted enough time lying around to get dressed up, placing the empty beer bottle onto the table. She padded into the small bedroom of her apartment and shuffled into the closet to find a short black bodycon dress and paired it with strappy heels. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to become acquainted with others who lived in Starling. After grabbing a small clutch to hold her money and phone, she left to check out this Verdant club. Rebecca arrived at the front entrance to see that it was already swarmed with people, sighing at the long line. At this rate, there would be no way inside unless she waited for hours, which was impossible with a 4 1/2 inch heel. Unless... there was a back entrance that no one knew about. After the idea popped into her mind, there was turning back. She slipped down the alleyway that was beside the building, only the green neon to illuminate her way. A small grin spread across her lips as she eyed an entrance labeled 'Staff Only'.

--

"Alright, when he gets back, I need to speak to him." Oliver replied back, sitting down on the medical table to take care of some wounds. Of course, the other man had brought along some bodyguards after receiving a warning from the Arrow and brought along guns. He peeled off his vest and the rest of his gear, placing it off to the side with a small hiss of pain. "Ah, no, I don't think I can spare to rest in this town. As long as other people are enjoying the club, that's enough for me. Besides, it's just a cover-up, so we can have a place to be." He reached over to grab one of the medical instruments to remove the bullets. By now, Oliver was practically immune to pain, considering that most of his body was scar tissue. "You should enjoy yourself more, Charlotte. If I can't take the time to appreciate my club, you should." He offered a small smile while taking out the last bullet.

@ Dandy Darling;
After Roy finished stocking the booze, he took the box back to the stock room. He went back out to the bar, beginning to serve people drinks as they came up. It was already super busy and the place just opened. He was going to need to call for help eventually, there was no way he was going to keep this up by himself. Roy wasn't a bartender, he was just a waiter. He hardly even knew how to make drinks. He raised an eyebrow when he saw a girl coming in from the staff entrance, shaking his head. "What do you think you're doing?" he asked as he approached her, crossing his arms over his chest. He had to admit, she was pretty hot. But he couldn't ignore the fact that she just practically snuck into the club. Well, she tried to anyways.

---

Charlotte bit down on her bottom lip as she watched him. She was always so amazed with how high his tolerance for pain was. "I'm not much of a partier," she said. "Besides, Roy enjoys it enough for the both of us." Charlotte looked up when Diggle entered the room, turning and returning to whatever she had been working on on her computer. She never really ever engaged in conversations with Diggle and Oliver, she liked to stay out of it. Well, she tried to stay out of it. Sometimes she couldn't help but put her input on some things. "Where's my burger?" she asked, typing away on her computer. "Right here, Charlie," Diggle said, tossing the bag onto her desk. She grinned widely, taking her burger out and taking a huge bite of it. "What happened to you?" Diggle asked Oliver.

@ Eros.

As soon as she stepped closer to the door, a staff member came out to completely shut down her plans. It would be her luck. Rebecca looked around the alleyway since she had been caught red-handed, attempting to come up with an excuse. "Well, I, uh." She started while running a hand through her hair. Seeing him step closer, she was able to get a better look at his features despite the darkness around them. All that she could conclude was that he was hot but that only made her more nervous. Plus, he did not look stupid enough to believe her lies. "Okay, so, you're obviously not going to believe any bullshit excuse I try giving you, so the truth is is that the line out there is ridiculous, especially in these heels. I figured that there was a side entrance and that the club wouldn't notice one extra person anyway." She explained, glancing over her shoulder to see that the queue was only growing. "I wouldn't be able to get in all night, and I hear that Verdant is the only club worth visiting. You can't blame me for trying."

--

A small chuckle passed through his lips since that was true. Even Thea did her share of partying enough for the whole team. "That is a very good point, Charlie." He started while hopping off of the medical table to pull on a regular shirt. It was a fitted black shirt with a deep v-neck line, and it did wonders to his physique. As if on cue, Diggle announced his presence in the room while bearing gifts of food for her. Oliver stepped closer to Diggle while Charlotte started to chow down on her burger, reporting the information to him. "It's another name to cross of the list, Diggle. He returned all of the money to the people he stole from. Anyway, any news on the guy I had you research?" He questioned, hearing the sound of Charlotte's fingers against the keyboard in the background.

@ Dandy Darling;
Roy sighed heavily, not having time to do anything about her. "Alright, whatever, enjoy the club. But don't make a habit out of sneaking in like that," he said, giving her a pointed look before heading back to the bar, apologizing to all of the waiting customers. He hastily started making drinks left and right, trying to get the recipe right for them. He really needed to take a bartending class or something. At least for when it came to times like this. Though, he hoped there wouldn't be anymore times like this. Bartending just wasn't his forte. He glanced up every now and then, scanning the room and looking for the girl that had snuck in, wanting to make sure she wasn't here to start any trouble. That was the last thing that he needed.

---

Charlotte listening to the two talk, typing away on her computer and bringing up the information of the guy they had looked up right before Diggle could even answer. "He's pretty dangerous. He associates with the mob and gives them illegal military grade weapons. He earns a pretty good amount of money doing that," she said, reading off the information as it came up. "Dealing with him would more then likely piss off the mob, which would end up having a chain reaction of more problems for you and Roy to deal with. You're not going to go do this alone, it's too dangerous, so I'm making you take Roy whether you want to or not," she said, turning in her seat and narrowing her eyes at him. Sometimes Oliver had a bit of a hard time realizing that he had a partner now, so he needed to use him. He didn't need to go out and deal with everything on his own. He could relax a little with having Roy around.

@ Eros.

"Yeah, definitely. Whatever you say." She grinned back then hastily moved inside of the back entrance. Luckily, the guy was going to give her a break, especially since he seemed to be in a rush. As soon as she stepped inside, the music pounding against her ears and the neon green lights practically blinded her. She took a moment to readjust when walking toward the dance floor, seeing the mixture of bodies. Not wasting a second, she moved into the mass and sandwiched herself between two random people. The time seemed to fly by for Rebecca, and, soon, she was parched from all of the dancing. She tied her hair up into a ponytail, pushing it away from the sweat on her forehead. "Can I get vodka with lemonade? Thanks." She yelled over the music while rummaging to find the money in her bag. Rebecca slid it across the bar counter and raised her eyes to see the guy from before. "Oh, fancy seeing you again."

--

Oliver turned his head in the direction of Charlotte, listening to the information. A small sigh passed between his lips while he gave a small nod since taking him down would be a challenge. "Looks like I know where I'm headed next then." He stated, going to pick up his quiver once more. There was never enough time for Oliver Queen to save the world. He paused when Charlotte mentioned that he should bring along Roy though. "I can do this by myself, Char. It's not a big deal." He attempted to reassure her, knowing that Verdant was busy tonight. They needed to keep up the facade somehow. "Look, if it makes you feel any better, I could bring Diggle along with me."

@ Dandy Darling;
Roy made drinks left and right, trying desperately to keep up with the crowd. He heard someone say they wanted a lemonade with vodka, finding that sort of weird but he made it anyways. He sat the drink on the bar, smirking at the girl that he had caught sneaking in earlier. "Yeah, fancy seeing you here as well," he said with a chuckle, biting down slightly on his lip. She looked pretty hot right now, all sweaty and whatnot from dancing. He was glad that he had let her in. Roy groaned inwardly when more orders started being shouted at him, giving the girl an apologetic smile before getting her change and filling the rest of the orders. He'd be glad when this shift was over, he was firing the bartender that called in sick without notice and he was getting someone that he could actually rely on.

---

Charlotte nodded, sighing heavily. "But don't you think you've had enough for one night? I mean, you're hurt. You've got to be exhausted," she said, worried that he would get tired out in the middle of fighting. It's not like they wouldn't still be there tomorrow after he'd rested. "But I know I can't stop you. So go on, save the world," she said with a small smile. She was just worried for Oliver. She'd always be worried for Oliver, that's just how she was. Plus, it didn't help the fact that she's had a crush on him since she laid eyes on him. Her crush just kept getting worse and worse too, which she hated. He'd never feel the same way for her as she felt for him.

@ Eros.

Vodka lemonade was her favorite martini, and sometimes she would get strange looks from bartenders at clubs for not ordering the traditional shot, but Rebecca could care less. It gave a nice spike of energy while getting her buzzed at the same time. "Keep the change!" She yelled above the blaring music when he held out her change, knowing that she would not be here without him. Wanting to enjoy her drink, she decided to lounge by the bar for a few moments and leaned against the side of the counter. Maybe she would be able to talk to the bartender if things started to calm down. Rebecca sipped her drink while various people came up to talk to her, giving some small conversation. One particular guy kept giving her trouble though and refused to leave her alone, even though she clearly showed disinterest. "Hey, don't touch me!" She ripped her wrist out of the guy's hand when he attempted to keep a firm grip on it.

--

Oliver grinned in response to her question since she knew exactly what was going to be said. Reaching out for his trademark vest, he pulled it over his shoulders and jerked his head toward the door for Diggle. "I'll be fine. Besides, I have Diggle with me." He gave his left-hand man a strong pat on the back, which rewarded him with a dark chuckle. "Char, we can take care of ourselves. For now, I need you to guide us to this guy's safehouse." He reassured her then turned to pick up his final piece of gear - his bow. With that, Oliver was once again the Arrow, and pulled up his hood to leave. Even though it did not show, he did appreciate Charlotte's worry for him. Another part of him disliked her worry since Oliver was reckless during his missions and could never guarantee that he would return safely. It was devastate him to know that he caused her pain.

@ Eros.

@ Dandy Darling;
Things eventually started to calm down at the bar, Roy finally getting himself a small break. He grabbed a bottle of water from the mini fridge under the bar, opening it and taking a few satisfying drinks of it. He looked over at the girl that tried sneaking in, furrowing his eyebrows together when he notice some guy trying to make a move on her, which the girl wasn't very pleased with. Roy walked around the bar, getting a firm grip on the guys upper arm. "The lady said leave her alone," Roy said, pulling the guy to the entrance of the club. "Make sure he never gets in again," he said to the bouncers with a smile before going back to the bar, back to the girl. "Are you alright?" he asked her, biting down on his bottom lip. Roy felt so horrible that some guy made unwanted moves on her. He wished he had like a perv detector or something so guys like him wouldn't be able to get in the club.

---

Charlotte sighed softly, watching Oliver and Diggle go. She turned in her seat, putting her eat piece on her ear and pulling everything up on the computer that she needed. "Alright, can you guys hear me?" she said, beginning to track where those guys were at. "He's currently at his office in the city, right across the from the court house. I don't think he's alone though," she said, her fingers flying across her keyboard as she started to work her way through the system at the guy's office. Charlotte really hoped that those other guys from the mafia weren't in there too. Oliver would really have a mess on his hands then, but she knew that he'd be able to get through it. He might have a few wounds, but he'd be fine. So would Diggle. At least Charlotte hoped so, she always needed to stay positive in this situation.

@ Eros.

"Hey, man, hands off me. I get the message," The guy grumbled with furrowed his eyebrows, feeling a bit of fear from the bartender's words. It was too late for him to turn back though. As he was escorted out by the bounders, the man continued to make excuses that trailed all the way out to the entrance. On the other hand, Rebecca could not feel more relieved that the bartender had been able to shake away the creep. She gave a small sigh and ran a hand through her hair, wanting to push away the experience. "Yeah, I'll be good," She reassured with a small smile since nothing truly horrifying had happened. "Looks like I owe you twice," Rebecca attempted to lightly joke then took a large gulp of her drink. Something was telling her that she would need a stronger liquor soon. "I never caught your name, by the way," She commented, hoping that he would be willing to share. Of course, Rebecca would want to know the name of her knight in shinning armor.

--

As soon as Diggle and Oliver left the compound, they turned on their individual earpieces to start following Charlotte's instructions. "Loud and clear," Oliver stated, glancing over his shoulder to see Diggle trailing behind. Wanting a better vantage point, he took one of the fire escapes to the rooftop of one of the miscellaneous apartments. The danger of being exposed was significantly less if they traveled through the roofs as well, making them more attractive for navigation. "Can you tell me about how many people he has? Where are they stationed?" He asked since they would need a strategy for this. If Oliver could figure out the layout of the attack, they would have the upper hand. As per usual, Oliver zoned out everything else in his life to focus on the mission at hand. Sometimes he became too engrossed in being the Arrow.

@ Eros.

@ Eros.

@ Dandy Darling;
[Sorry! I've been on my phone for a few days now. ]

Roy smiled at her, making his way back behind the bar, over to where she was and leaning against it. "I'm Roy," he said with a small chuckle. "Roy Harper. Yours?" Roy assumed that this beauty had a gorgeous name. "The next drink is on the house, by the way," he told her. Honestly, he wanted to make all of her drinks on the house. She was pretty cute, and he really wanted to get to know her better. He wished so badly that he wasn't working right now, because he'd totally spend some time with her. Maybe he could walk her home later if Oliver didn't have anything else for him to do tonight. He doubted it, so Roy might just walk this beauty home.

---

Charlotte told Oliver how many people there were and where they were stationed, her fingers flying away on the keyboard as she tried to find out as much information as possible. That is, until the power went out. Charlotte's eyes widened as she looked around, scrambling for her phone or a flashlight, something. "Shit, shit, shit," she cursed, wishing she'd been more prepared for something like this. Charlotte wondered if the club still had power, or if someone was behind this. She finally found her phone, dialing Oliver's number and hoping he'd answer. She was at a loss here. There wasn't anything she could do for him right now, not until she could figure out the source of the outage.

@ Eros.

(It's alright!)

Because of the blaring music in the background, Rebecca barely caught his name from the second time he had announced it. Roy. "Thank you again, Roy," She stated, smiling over at him. At this point, she no longer had any desire to mingle with anyone else or return back to the dance floor. She wanted to get to know this handsome, young knight more. "My name's Rebecca. Rebecca Kent," She responded back, cupping her hands around her mouth to amplify the sound. Just as she finished her first drink, Roy conveniently slid over a completely filled glass of her signature drink. "Awesome. You know, sometime you should let me buy you a drink. It's the least I can do," She extended the invitation with hopes that he would accept. As soon as she believed that this night was headed in the right direction, the lights went out and left behind a pitch-black room. There were screams heard throughout the club of those mortified by the sudden darkness. Unfortunately for Rebecca, she had a horrid case of nyctophobia and reached out to grab Roy's arm for safety. She started to find it harder and harder to breath and knew she was having a panic attack. Even though she attempted to take deep breaths, it was impossible to actually do so.

--

Listening to the instructions and locations of the men, Oliver and Diggle zeroed on the specific areas where they were covered by darkness. It was easier to use stealth to take down the men rather than brute force. Taking out each one by one, they were down to at least half of the men when Charlotte's communication cut off. "Char? Char, are you there?" He whispered worriedly into the ear piece. Glancing over at Diggle, he received a short shake of the head. They had lost communication with her. "Shit," He mumbled underneath his breath, knowing that they had lost their advantage. There must have been a shortage at the club he reasoned. Oliver sighed while glancing around the room and eyeing two unsuspecting men. Jerked his head off in the direction, they moved off to take them out. Unfortunately for Charlotte, Oliver's phone buzzed not far from her work space in the pocket of his civilian clothes. He had forgotten to take it when switching into his Arrow gear in a hurry.

@ Dandy Darling;
Roy chuckled and nodded, accepting her invitation of him buying him a drink sometime. Hopefully she'd catch him on a night where he wouldn't be working. Roy's eyes widened when the lights went out, looking around and wondering what the hell just happened. It wasn't storming out, so it wasn't like it was a storm that had caused it. Plus, Oliver had back up generators. They couldn't risk the power going out for the sake of the hideout losing connection to anything. Roy's first instinct was to go downstairs to make sure that Charlotte was okay and that nothing was going on, but he heard Rebecca gasping for breaths. Roy's eyes widened and he jumped over the bar, landing in front of her and taking her by her arms. "Hey, it's okay," he said, rubbing her arms soothingly. "The lights are going to come back on real soon. There must have been an accident somewhere or something," he said, trying to get her to calm down. He lead her upstairs into the office, using his phone for light until he found a flashlight, switching it on. he placed it upwards on the table so that it illuminated most of the room. It was dimly lit, but it was better then nothing.

---

Charlotte furrowed her eyebrows when she heard a phone begin to go off, looking over and seeing a small light from Oliver's jacket pocket. "Are you serious," she grumbled, hanging up her phone. She was about to head up to the club when a hand covered her mouth, making her squeal in surprise. She elbowed the person in the stomach, making them let go of her. She made a run for it, gasping when they grabbed her by her hair and made her fall to the floor. Charlotte really hated not being able to see, it made fighting that much harder. Plus, it didn't help the fact that she didn't even know how to fight. She grunted when something collided with her side, making her roll over and cough. She gasped when something sharp went into her side, a hot and sticky substance beginning to spill out. Charlotte cried out in pain, tears spiling from her eyes "Really, seriously, did you have do?" she cried, shaking her head and just laying there, covering her wound. They just had to stab her.

@ Eros.

Feeling a pair of warm hands rubbing up and down her arms, Rebecca attempted to take deeper breaths to settle herself. It had not even occurred to her that Roy had hopped over the counter to come to her side. Nodding her head slightly, she stepped closer to him and hoped that it would lessen her anxiety. All that she was certain of was that she felt secure near him. The sooner the lights returned the better though. Gripping onto the loose fabric of his shirt, Rebecca followed him through the darkness and practically tripped up the steps into the office. She was starting to regret wearing heels that high. Once the flashlight flickered on, she was able to take in a long draw of air as her heart rate started to settle. The smallest amount of light was more reassuring than none. "God.. that, that was embarrassing," She admitted with a small sigh, immediately letting go of his shirt. It was almost as if had become her five year old self again. Running a hand through her long brown curls, Rebecca's eyes started to adjust to the little light inside of the room. "Thank you for the millionth time tonight. What happened?" She questioned, completely confused. It could not have been from the weather since the night was beautiful. Possibly a sudden power surge? Rebecca could not pinpoint it and blamed it on her luck.

--

"Diggle, looks like we're in this alone," Oliver commented, after finishing up with the next round of men. Looking around at their surroundings, he figured that the boss was on the highest floor and had maximum security throughout the lower ones. To avoid taking other lives, they would have to scale the side of the building. Hopefully, they had taken out the rest of the snipers. "Don't worry about it. We can take care of ourselves," Diggle responded as they regrouped together. Pausing for a moment, the pair mapped out the rest of the plan. As per usual, the Arrow and Diggle were able to successfully cross of another name on the list. There was little resistance from the man when he realized who he has dealing with, surrendering the counterfeit money. "I think this was a good day, Diggle," Oliver stated as they took their time returning back to Verdant as the police sirens flew past them to the scene of the crime.