Stained Glass

Chapter Two: Fire of Unknown Origin

If what Kara was offering was friendship, well, if he was honest, Oliver was never too good at that. Before the Gambit his circle was small, and he tended to sabotage it a lot. Tommy was the friend that really stuck by him. Tommy...and Laurel. He knew he should follow his own advice, avoid Laurel, and let her get on with her life, safe, but...she had been one of the few things to get him through the island, and that was easier said than done.

Maybe they could be friends? Just friends. She'd never trust him again, and he didn't blame her. He didn't deserve someone as good as her, especially not after his screw-up with Sara.

...After getting Sara killed.

Ice cream was friendly, right?
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"No cape!" Booster Gold said, flatly, as Supergirl walked into the training room; no red sunlight this time...with his old cape on her shoulders. "You can't handle the cape. You have to earn the cape."

"He's saying that because he nearly got strangled by it when an enemy got ahold of it." Blue Beetle snarked, from his seat outside the training circle. "But he has a point, no cape."

"All right." Kara agreed, sulking a little as she removed it. "So what are we doing today?"

"Training." Booster replied. "With powers. You're doing better without them, but using them in combat is a lot different than heating up your white chocolate mochas."

Supergirl somehow manage to resist the urge to point out that she often heat visioned his coffee too, and took up a defensive stance.

"Oh, and when you've gone rounds with Booster, then you're facing the Beetle." Blue Beetle commented from his seat, popcorn in hand.

Supergirl whirled to face him. "But you don't have shields like Da...." Kara hit the floor as an energy ball hit her in the back.

"Lesson One: Don't turn your back on an enemy." Booster Gold said, smirking.

"Lesson Two: Don't get distracted by someone who isn't your enemy yet, but keep aware of them." Blue Beetle added.

"Lesson Three: Never underestimate a human opponent just because you're Kryptonian." Booster finished. "Now get up and try again."
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Oliver realized he had three options.

He could do what Laurel suggested, and say no to his mother. What's more, he could present the idea to the entirety of the city that he was unchanged by the island and put all his energy into his secret, or could do what his mother wanted, and take a place of 'leadership,' within Queen Consolidated. That would mean long board meetings, stock portfolios, and company dinners that would eat into any free time he had and curtail his mission -- but he could improve the company and make it a force for good.

Those were the two options he had originally seen. However, Kara, his new supposed assistant had offered a third possibility. A compromise, of sorts. He could take a smaller role at the company, work with the people instead of the board, which would require less hours, leaving him time to do his real work. And hey, if he had an assistant, he could delegate, couldn't he?

Taking a deep breath, he left his room and walked toward the library, where his mother and Walter often were after dinner. He had something to suggest to them, after all.
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Kara had actually dressed up for the dedication, a bit. She wasn't attending as an employee, but as a member of Star City's elite, and also, slightly as a scientist. That, however, didn't mean that positioned between her dads, she wasn't smiling proudly at Oliver Queen where he was sitting on the stage, and when he stood to speak, she took a deep breath in solidarity.

"I want to welcome all of you for coming today." He said, looking over the crowd. "And to thank you, because we're here to break ground on the new Robert Queen Memorial Applied Sciences Center. I wish he could be here with us, but unfortunately, I'll have to do. I've never been much of a legacy myself. I'm not half the man my father was, but I hope that the scientists of Star City can make advances to make our city and our world a better one here."