Arrow: Reckoning Part 2

Trial by Fire

The days following Roy's slight breakdown had been difficult for the team, pushing them each to an unwanted truth of just how fragile they all were. Watching their teammate fall apart before their eyes was an unwanted reminder of what this life could do to them. Roy had kept to himself for the most part after that night, unable to bring himself to suit up again. The team was somewhat thankful for his hesitation to jump back into the field so quickly after the incident, even though it was painful to watch their friend suffer in such a way. Oliver had attempted to help by way of meditation, but Roy insisted that he only needed time. The nights after the gruesome discovery had been quiet and uneventful, Slade once again dropped off the radar without any trace. Oliver, Laurel, and Diggle kept up with their patrols in hopes that they would get lucky and find some clue that would lead them to their enemy. With Roy staying behind at the Foundry with Felicity, Oliver found it slightly easier to focus on what he was doing in the field as opposed to fearing of Slade dropping by the Foundry to visit the woman he loved.

The rumble of the training gear pulled Felicity away from her station, turning her gaze toward Roy as he furiously beat his fists into the mock opponent. The crack of his knuckles on the foam coated mannequin caused Felicity to cringe slightly, knowing that the force of his strikes were well beyond anything Roy should have been using for training. It had been days and no one had been able to talk to him about what had happened, despite some futile attempts Roy had distanced himself from the others. After discovering the truth behind his parents' murder and the disturbing resemblence to what Slade had left for him to find, Felicity knew it was only a matter of time before something snapped in his mind. The pain and agony he must have been feeling was too much to think about, it was something that no one should have to go through alone. The lack of anyone else being in the Foundry slightly worried her, but she knew that Roy wouldn't hurt her. Even if she was going to bring up the single most painful memory in his life, it was the only move that she could see actually making a difference and heping him. Felicity moved over toward him, crossing her arms across her chest as she stopped several steps clear of his reach. Roy continued to battle with the training dummy, unaware of her presence.

"I know that it's kind of an unspoken rule for the men on this team to keep things to themselves, but this has gone on too long." She began, speaking over the sound of his fists slamming into the fading foam padding. Roy paused for a moment and glanced at her.

"I'm fine." He assured her before pummeling the training gear with a few well placed strikes, picking up his speed while he tried to force the unwanted thoughts out of his head. Felicity sighed, reminding herself that this wasn't going to be easy. She had been able to get Oliver to confess things to her before his change in character, and she remembered how particularly defensive he had been. She couldn't handle it anymore, seeing her friend suffer by himself without anything to help him had pushed her to her limit. Roy was strong but no one could get past something of this magnitude on their own, especially when it was something that was buried deep inside. Felicity knew the damage that repressed memories could do to someone, experiencing it first hand when her father abandoned her at such a young age. She remembered the way it felt when she recieved the news of Oliver's death and only imagined that was what Roy was going through right now, and she couldn't let him fight it by himself.

"No you're not...and you shouldn't be." Felicity replied, moving closer to him. Roy stopped again, growing aggravated of his friend's concern for him.

"What's that supposed to mean?" He asked, defensively angling himself toward her as if she were preparing to attack him. Felicity took note of his posture and pushed away the fear of him losing control to his inner rage.

"Roy, what you witnessed...no one should ever have to go through once, let alone twice." She stated, inching closer to him. His breathing elevated as he struggled to hold the images at bay, fighting to keep the memories from playing through in his mind again. Felicity saw the pain he was trying to hide break through his eyes, the look of innocence and fear took hold of him as it had the night he returned from the slaughterhouse.