CHAPTER ONE: SOMEWHERE ONLY WE KNOW

I walked across an empty land
I knew the pathway like the back of my hand
I felt the earth beneath my feet
Sat by the river and it made me complete

Oh simple thing where have you gone
I'm getting old and I need something to rely on
So tell me when you're gonna let me in
I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin

I came across a fallen tree
I felt the branches of it looking at me
Is this the place we used to love?
Is this the place that I've been dreaming of?

Oh simple thing where have you gone
I'm getting old and I need something to rely on
So tell me when you're gonna let me in
I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin

And if you have a minute why don't we go
Talk about it somewhere only we know?
This could be the end of everything
So why don't we go
Somewhere only we know?

Drawing back the curtains, bathing the room in sunlight, Moira Queen tried to get her son out of bed. The boy groaned and rubbed his eyes against the sudden light. It was a beautiful day and the end of the summer was approaching. Some birds were chirping in a tree not far from the window. The grass of the garden behind the mansion looking greener than ever.

"Oliver, sweetheart, you have to get out of bed. Felicity will be here soon."

"Who is Felicity?" The eight-year-old sat up in his bed.

Moira chuckled softly and walked over to her sons bed and sat down on the edge.

"Do you remember uncle Malcolm?"

"Yes. Is she his daughter?"

"Yes. And she's really sweet. But you can't play with her if you're still in your pajama's."

Oliver nodded and scrambled off the bed and to his dresser. Moira stood up and walked over to her son, placing her hands on his shoulders and leaning in.

"Why don't you take that new shirt I bought you yesterday."

He nodded again and reached for a pair of khaki trousers to go with the denim shirt they had picked up the day before.

"If you're ready you can come downstairs and have breakfast with your dad and me."

"Can I have pancakes?"

Moira smiled. "Of course, sweetheart."

She walked out of the room, her son very capable of dressing himself and headed downstairs to look for Robert. She found him reading the morning newspaper and sipping coffee.

"Well, at least your son's excited about it." She sighed as she moved to the seat next to her husband. Robert didn't answer, but she could see how his face fell into a sad expression, his jaw clenching just a little bit. Taking a sip of her orange juice, she leaned back into the chair and tried to calm herself a little.

"Are you sure this is the right thing to do?" She asked after a moment of silence.

Robert swallowed his coffee and put the paper and the mug down before looking at his wife.

"Malcolm is my oldest friend. If he needs this, than I'm going to help him in any way that I can. You weren't going to let the poor girl live all on her own in that house, were you."

Moira smiled a little. "No, of course not. I guess you're right."

He reached out and took her hand in his, squeezing it softly.

"Don't worry, the kid is like an angel." He reassured her.

Moira nodded. "I know."

She took another sip of her orange juice as Oliver came stomping into the room with a big smile on his face.

"Morning dad" He greeted as he pulled himself on the chair across from Moira.

"Good morning, buddy. Did you have any more bad dreams last night?"

Oliver shook his head. "No, only nice dreams."

Much to Moira's concern, her son had been 'terrorized' by nightmares more and more over the last few weeks. He had told her that he couldn't remember what they were about, but that they gave him the feeling like something bad was going to happen, and he didn't like it. His grades in school had dropped due to the lack of sleep. His teacher had suggested seeing a psychologist, but Moira hadn't taken her advice yet, because he seemed to be getting a little better, Robert sitting beside his bed every night until he fell asleep.

"That's great. Are you excited about today?"

The boy nodded as he scooped a couple of pancakes on his plate and dug into them. Moira met Robert's gaze and smiled a little. They fell into easy conversation and continued eating their breakfast. Oliver was excited about meeting his new friend, and was the first one to be hopping out of his chair and running into the foyer when Raisa came in and announced that Mr. Merlyn had arrived and was coming up to the front door. Moira and Robert followed after their son, ready to meet their guests and start the new stage of their life.

Malcolm Merlyn had always been a good friend to Robert and Moira. He had his charm, and expert business skills, but he could get carried away and act rash and make snap decisions that weren't always in the best interest of those he loved. As they were waiting in the foyer, Malcolm was driving up to the front door to drop off his daughter. His wife Rebecca passed away three months before, and after weeks of depression he decided to go, travel around the world, anywhere as long as it wasn't Starling City. What he hadn't thought of was his five year-old daughter, Felicity, and what that would possibly do to her. As soon as Robert became known to this plan, he offered to let her stay with them in the Queen Manor, his heart not able to let the girl live alone in a house full of servants.

The door swung open and a smiling Malcolm walked into the foyer.

"Robert, Moira. How are you today?"

Robert stepped forward and shook the other man's hand.

"We're fine. Maybe a little curious about how this is going to play out, but otherwise everything is great."

"Wonderful to hear. And you, Oliver, don't you ever stop growing?" Malcolm said smiling as he reached out and mussed the boy's hair. Oliver chuckled and after his voice faded the room was filled with silence for a moment.

Malcolm sighed. "Now, Oliver, buddy, I would like you to meet my daughter, Felicity."

The little girl had been hiding behind her father, hanging on to his hand as if it were a lifeline. She had been carefully examining all the new people, vaguely remembering the two grown-ups, but the boy was someone new. Her eyes wide behind her glasses, dark brown curls tumbling around her face and cascading over her shoulders, one of her hands nervously playing with her necklace. Oliver stepped forward and curiously cocked his head to the side.

"Hi. I'm Oliver." He said cheerfully.

Felicity looked up at her father as if to get permission to take Oliver's extended hand. Malcolm nodded slowly and then jerked his head in Oliver's direction.

"Go on then, don't be shy, sweetheart." He said.

Felicity took a deep breath and slowly let go of his hand, stepping towards Oliver. Her small hand fit perfectly in his slightly larger one. She smiled a little as they shook hands, and then shyly diverted her eyes to her royal blue ballet flats.

"I'm Felicity." She said hesitantly.

"Oliver, sweetheart, why don't you take Felicity to your secret hide-out?" Moira chimed.

Oliver looked at his mother for a second before turning back to Felicity.

"Do you want to see it?" He asked her.

Felicity hesitated for a second before she nodded and she followed Oliver with a skip in her step as he led her to his favorite spot on the Queen grounds. The adults moved to get more comfortable in the living room, Moira sitting down on one of the couches, Robert next to her, Malcolm on the couch across from them.

"Robert, I can't thank you enough for doing this."

He held up his hand to stop Malcolm. "It's nothing. You would do the same for me."

There was a second of silence before Malcolm spoke again. "Of course."

"So? Any idea on where you will be going?" Moira asked.

Malcolm pondered for a moment, lips pursing and eyes narrowing.

"I'm thinking China, Thailand, India, maybe Tibet."

There wasn't any enthusiasm in his voice that there would normally be when about to travel the world. Moira smiled softly, trying to hide her discomfort.

"Sounds lovely."

Malcolm nodded in agreement. "I trust that you will take good care of Felicity."

"Of course we will, she's a sweetheart." Robert said immediately, resulting in a soft scoff from Malcolm.

"Just enjoy your moments of silence, because when she has found her place, she won't be able to stop talking. It's endearing, but makes you appreciate a moment of solitude."

"I'm sure it's all meant well." Moira said with a soft smile.

Meanwhile, Oliver had taken Felicity almost all the way to the back of the Queen lands, they had already passed the stables and were now walking in a more forest-like area. Oliver stepped over a fallen tree and held out a hand to help her over. She took it gratefully and hopped on and off the tree again.

"Oliver? Are we going much further?" She asked.

"Don't worry, we're almost there." He said, looking over his shoulder and smiling at her.

A little while later they stood in front of an enormous oak tree. From its branches, hundreds of colored glass jars with lights in them were hanging just a little too high for them to reach. Oliver stepped towards the trunk of the tree, his hands reaching for a sturdy looking piece of rope tied around one of the lower branches. He unknotted it, letting it slip through his fingers. He looked upwards and smiled a little. Felicity followed his gaze and stared in awe at the enormous tree house above them. With Oliver loosening the rope, a rope ladder came clattering down against the trunk of the tree.

"Did you build this?" She asked curiously.

"Yeah, with my dad. You wanna see the inside?"

Felicity nodded and Oliver gestured to her to come closer and climb up the ladder. She took hold of the ladder and climbed up to pull herself onto the platform. Dusting off her jeans, she waited for Oliver to come up, looking around her, there was a rope bridge that lead to another little cabin. They were surrounded by green and even more jar lights hanging around them. Oliver stepped past her and held open the door to the first cabin.

"Welcome" He said with a smile. She smiled back at him and stepped inside, taking a look around the room that was set up. There was a little couch with a fluffy carpet in front of it, a small table with three chairs and a stack of seemingly old board games, the cardboard boxes faded and clearly used often. In another corner stood a small cabinet with a cooler on top. From the inside of the gable roof, hung a cord of fairy-lights and a single jar light to illuminate the room at night.

"How do you power these?" She asked, turning around to look at Oliver.

"Hmm?"

"The lights, where do they get their electricity?"

Realization hit Oliver and he nodded. "Uhm, my dad called it a generator. It's hidden in some bushes somewhere behind the tree."

Felicity nodded in understanding.

"Why don't you pick out a game to play and I'll get us some juice pouches." Oliver said, pointing at the stack of board-games.

"I would like that." Felicity chuckled and stepped towards the games. She picked one and put it on the table, lifting the lid of the box and taking out the board.

"Orange or strawberry?"

"Strawberry please."

Oliver handed her a drink and sat down across from her. "Thank you." Felicity said with a smile and a blush.

They played Monopoly for hours. Chatting about anything and everything. From Oliver's treehouse to Felicity's favorite books. The initial shyness had fallen away quickly after they started playing, both in it to win it. Both with parents in business, they were taught how to play Monopoly from a very early age. Felicity didn't know how long they had been up there, but she found she didn't really care. This was the most fun she had had in a long time. After her mother had passed away she had grown apart from her friends, not being able to understand how they could possibly be so happy and joyful when all she could feel was sadness and grief. The loss of her mother had torn her apart. She adored her, Rebecca would paint her nails and braid her hair and together they would read books about faraway places and magical kingdoms.

"My dad is leaving me here, you know." She suddenly said.

Oliver stopped moving his pawn, eyes a little wide in surprise.

"He's going out of town for a few days."

"I didn't know that. But don't worry, that just means that I get to spend more time with you."

He smiled at her and she couldn't help but smile back at him.

"So? What's in the other cabin?"

Oliver chuckled. "A TV and a couple of mattresses for camping."

"Ohh! Can we do that sometime?"

He nodded happily and laughed, trying to make her laugh again. A little while later, they climbed down the ladder and started walking back towards the house. Sensing Felicity's mood hadn't improved as much as he would like it to, Oliver had held her hand until they reached the back door of the Queen Mansion.

"Mom! We're back!" Oliver called out, walking back into the sitting room, where Moira was reading a book. She looked up as they walking into her line of sight and put the book down.

"Hi sweetheart, did you two have fun?"

Oliver and Felicity nodded in unison, both noticing it and chuckling softly. Felicity stepped a little closer to Moira.

"Mrs. Queen? Where is my dad?" She asked in her small, high-pitched voice.

Moira was silent for a moment, her gaze moving from Felicity to Oliver, who frowned a little and back to Felicity. She sighed softly. "Oh, sweetheart."

Felicity didn't need to hear anything more. Her eyes started welling up with tears and her bottom lip started trembling.

"He already left, didn't he" She didn't ask, she simply stated, in a shaky voice.

"He didn't even say goodbye."

Moira exhaled slowly and pulled the girl next to her on the couch, tears already streaming down Felicity's cheeks. Shaky huffs of air escaping from her lips, shoulders trembling. The older woman pulled the girl against her side and wrapped one arm around her, the other hand reaching out to stroke her hair.

"Oh, sweetie. He didn't say goodbye because he was afraid that if he did, he wouldn't want to go anymore, and this trip is really important for his job."

Felicity's sobs continued but in a slightly slower pace. Oliver had come to sit next to her and held her hand, softly stroking the back of hers with his thumb. He looked up at his mother for a second, wandering what to do to help. Moira gave him a sad smile and continued comforting the sobbing five year-old girl in her arms.

Please review! I would love to hear what you think and how you think this story should develop. I'm always open for suggestions! I'm really excited for this fic and I wanna thank all the people who have supported and convinced me to write it!

Love, Carolina