Laurel pulled open the door and saw Tommy holding a pizza box from Mario's. As soon as he put it down on the table, Laurel hugged him tightly. "Hey," she said when she pulled away from him.

"Hey, I knew your mom is in town. I thought she might have stopped by and if she did, I thought you would need some comfort food" Tommy said.

"Thanks, Tommy. You were right" Laurel said and she took her first slice.

"Where's Ollie?" Tommy asked.

"He is tied up right now, a lot going on," Laurel said and Tommy nodded.

"Well, I wonder what because I haven't seen much of him lately," Tommy said. "He hasn't been doing too much for the club recently".

"Well, Thea's birthday is coming up and Oliver is collaborating with Thea's boyfriend on how to celebrate," Laurel said, only in partial honesty. She knew that at this very moment Oliver and Barry were head to head with the Royal Flush Gang.

"Well, I suppose that is more important than being there to comfort his girlfriend when she needs him the most" Tommy uttered sarcastically.

"Tommy, c'mon, I'm a big girl, and Ollie can't be there for me every second" Laurel said. "Though I do appreciate you caring".

"Laurel, you are my best friend," Tommy said.

"You aren't still resentful about me choosing to go out with Barry after you... and I- had a few lapses," Laurel asked.

Tommy shook his head. "I think it was a healthy decision. You needed a break from the bad boys. Don't get me wrong I am really happy for both you and Ollie, but if he hurts you again so help me god- I'll make him wish he stayed on that island".

"I appreciate that sentiment. If it makes you feel any better, Ollie is really good to me now. And he is coming over as soon as he finishes up".

Derek and Kyle Reston, dressed as their alias's King and Ace, both had their machine pointed at a security guard that was only armed with a taser. "Please, don't do this, I haven't seen your faces, I won't call the cops" The security guard begged.

Before another word could be exchanged, a red blur whizzed by the robbers, stripping them of their weapons and giving the security guard time to run.

The Hood stood face to face with the Royal Flush Gang. "Derek and Kyle Reston, you have failed this city," he said angrily.

"This time we came prepared" Ace replied and he picked a large shield he had stashed handed it to Derek. "I'll handle the fast guy" he assured his father.

Oliver knew his arrows couldn't penetrate King's shield, but he also knew Derek Reston was decades older than him. Instead of using his bow, Oliver focused on just an arrow. He pulled a sharpened arrow from his quiver and stabbed Mr. Reston in the shoulder.

"Ahhh son of bitch" shouted Reston and dropped his shield. Oliver used his arm to choke Derek only to render him unconscious. He looked over at Barry and saw that Barry had managed to knock Ace out cold as well.

Police lights fell over the bank, so Barry grabbed Oliver and sped back to the Foundry with him. When they got there, Thea had shown up like Oliver had asked her too. Quentin looked up from the computers. "Good work out there, tonight. My colleagues have the entire Royal Flush Gang back at the station. And, Oliver, though I am sure it had something to do with Allen's presence... no one died".

"So... that's a compliment," Oliver said.

"I guess it is," Quentin said.

"Okay, now where is Rory? When you are here, he usually is too" Oliver said.

"Rory insisted on going out on his own to investigate Ted Gaynor," Quentin said and saw Oliver's face begin to get red. "Don't worry. I've got him"

Oliver shook his head. "No, I've got him" Oliver picked up his gear and started to walk out.

"Hey, Oliver" Barry called after him. He followed Oliver upstairs. "Oliver, stop".

"I don't have time to stop, Barry. Not all of us have super speed" Oliver growled.

"Look, if you really think that Rory can't hold his own, I'll go after him, but c'mon, he's been training with those rags his entire life, he's got this" Barry encouraged. "If you're willing to let Laurel, in fact, encouraging Laurel to join this fight, you owe that encouragement to every member of this team," Barry said.

Oliver rolled his eyes. "There is a difference, Barry. I will always have Laurel's back. Rory's out there alone right now".

"He will be fine, Oliver. And trusting him is another way of having his back. Speaking of Laurel, she needs you. She's been going through it lately" Barry said.

Oliver was silent for a moment but he knew Barry was right. He looked at Barry and said: "Just join the comm link with Quentin and if Rory needs you-"

"-have his back" Barry finished the sentence.

Oliver nodded. "Could send Thea up for a minute?"

Thea came up and walked over to her big brother. "Why do I get the sense that you called me here to tell me that I wasn't ready to pursue Scott Morgan".

"You aren't," Oliver said and Thea rolled her eyes. "But the important thing is the outcome, you are safe and Scott Morgan is offering a more than reasonable discount on utilities to The Glades".

"Fine" Thea said. "But you realize that I am treating Sara as my primary trainer, right. No offense, Ollie, but she believes in me".

"I believe in you too, Speedy but it's okay. It's better actually. I focus on training Laurel, and Sara trains you. That way neither of us will have a blind spot" Oliver said.

"Laurel is your girlfriend" Thea laughed.

"Okay, so a small blind spot but at least with Sara training you, we will both have a single focus. Splitting my focus between the most important people in the world to me while still focusing on the mission is more than even I can handle" Oliver reluctantly admitted.

When Laurel opened her door, Oliver quickly stepped inside. After she closed it, Oliver said: "Baby, I am sorry, I should've been here a lot sooner".

"You're here now," Laurel said and she hugged him. He hugged her back, protectively, and kissed her temple.

"Ollie, I- am I doing the right thing... with- with my mother?" Laurel asked her boyfriend.

"Honestly, babe, I don't know. But I do see this two different ways... for me, with my father... I would do just about anything I could to reconnect with him if that were possible, so part of me wants to advise you not to wait with your mother, but my dad and I have a different story, a different relationship then you and your mom. Laurel, If you choose to re-establish a connection with your mother, just like training with your powers, it has to be done on your terms, only if and when you are ready" Oliver said and Laurel's lips immediately met his. When they pulled away, they were both smiling at each other.

"You're the best" Laurel said. She took his hand and led him to the kitchen.

Rory shook the hand of Ted Gaynor. "I am honored and humbled by this opportunity. Thank you so much, Mr. Gaynor"

"Well, kid. You are a perfect fit. But it isn't gonna be easy. Now, why don't head out to the common area and meet the other recently employed agents" When Rory entered the common area, he headed straight for a familiar face. He cleared his throat. "John Diggle. Name is Rory Reagan. I'm the newest hire. You used to work for Oliver Queen."

"Yeah, how do you know that?" Diggle asked.

"I know everything about Oliver Queen. Spent months trying to kill him- well The Hood" Rory said.

John's eyes widened. "Am I being punked?" he asked.

"No, no. I work with The Hood now. Ragman" Rory said.

"Ragman" John repeated. "You and The Flash stopped a bank robbery"

"Actually, me, The Flash, and Oliver" Rory said.

"Stopping a bank robbery? That's real hero stuff, not exactly The Hood's brand if I am correct" Diggle scoffed.

"I used blindly hate The Hood too, but I was wrong about him and I know you're wrong about him," Rory said.

"He's crazy" Diggle insisted.

"Okay so you know the identity of a psychopath who the police have wanted for months, why have you not turned him in?" Rory asked.

Dig changed the subject. "So private security... why'd you choose this career?"

"To help people, that is all I ever wanted to do" Rory answered.

"The Ragman persona isn't enough?" Dig asked.

"It is, but you don't make any money for it," Rory said.

"I knew it had to be the money" Diggle smirked. "Private security is not the career lane I would turn down with the helping people goal".

"Well, I am helping people by taking this job. Ted Gaynor, his name is on Oliver's list"

Sara did not look happy with Dinah when she showed up back at Quentin's apartment. She pulled the door open frowning at her mother. "You went to see Laurel".

"Sara, yes. I had too. She's my baby. She's my baby, too" Dinah defended.

"Yeah, well you can't abandon her when she needed you the most and expect her to welcome you back into her life. You hurt her, mom" Sara said.

"I know, I just thought that you and your father said things were getting better with the two of you and I..." Dinah said.

"Things are... slowly. As bad as what Ollie and did to Laurel was, you left her, mom. And I can even accept the blame for tearing our family apart. I should and I am so sorry. And I am working every day to make things right... you, mom, you haven't done a single thing to prove you even care about Laurel" Sara ridiculed.

Dinah nodded, a tear slipping down her face. "Sara, you know I never wanted this. I never meant to make Laurel feel like she didn't matter to me. I begged you not to betray your sister" Dinah said.

"I know, Mom, and in the end, you could not have stopped me from getting on that boat. But there was a whole lot more you could've done. The least of that being there for her when she found out what happened. I know you were hurting, but Laurel's pain was so much worse" Sara said. She then pulled Dinah into a hug. "I love you, and honestly I know that Laurel still does, but when it comes to your relationship with her, she is still where she was 5 years ago, sobbing as you left her. Laurel has a huge heart. I think she will be open to repairing your relationship but it is going take time, some gestures, and a open and honest dialogue"

"Are you sure?" Dinah asked.

"No, but I am pretty sure she will. Go home, mom. Next time, you want to reach out to Laurel, start with a phone call, and pour your heart out. Tell her how sorry you are. Tell her how much you love her and be willing to do whatever it takes" Sara said before grabbing her keys to drive her mother to the train station.