Thea Queen

While expecting some kind of reaction, Tim was not at all prepared for that one, quickly bracing himself as Thea suddenly leapt into his arms. “Not kidding at all- does this seem like a joke? I mean if it was, it’s a terrible one.” His arms wrapped around her in an embrace swaying momentarily before she reeled back.

Thea’s squeal made him laugh a big, even cringing slightly at how high it was. He was more than happy to kiss her back but it was over all too soon. Who could blame her with this level of excitement though? “You should most definitely bring a dress– There’s a nearby island with tons of nightlife.” 

“The feeling is mutual, My Queen.” He catches the blouse out of the air and sets it aside before wrapping his arms around Thea from behind, and kissing at her shoulder. “Private resort– if that makes any sense.”

“Private resort, why did I expect anything less of you” 

She was nearly hyper from excitement, she had not had a proper holiday in so long. Well a holiday where a certain someone didn’t ruin her fun anyway, she might be a little shameless to admit to herself that there was a certain ease to be with someone that didn’t have to worry about keeping up with her. 

Not that money mattered but...well with a previous relationship there was an element of almost feeling ashamed of her lavish lifestyle. 

“Stop...you’re tickling me” she scrunched her neck turning her head to kiss his nose. He was so handsome, so lovely. 

Who woulda thought they’d be such a match. 

“Thank you, thank you thank you. I could eat you up right now with all that sweetness” Okay, four outfits...no seven outfits...nine outfits later she had a pile of clothes to fold into her luggage. 

“Come here sugar-” she’d reel him in by wrapping arms around his neck to stare into his sparkling eyes and steal a kiss of those soft lips. 

The last thing Moira wanted was for Thea to feel guilty about what had happened. If anything she was the one that should feel the guilt, because if she just had told Thea the first time she asked about Malcolm this might not have happened.

“Thea, sweetie,” Moira began, “you, don’t have to say that you understand, but I wanted you to know, at least some of it.” She let out a breath, “and yes, I needed someone, but I could have picked better, and not your father’s friend,” she said, “or Oliver’s best friends father.” Did she regret her daughter, no, but she would have preferred Thea to have another father. “He never did anything like that, it was a one time thing, a moment of weakness, and I think a part of Malcolm was feeling the same.”

“I could never regret you, you’re my daughter,” she said, and placed a hand over Thea’s arm, “and you should know that Robert have always been your father, he raised you as his own, and he never saw you as anything but his daughter. If anything you helped our marriage last.”

“I do understand. I was so angry with you...with Oliver for always keeping secrets. I always am the last to know anything in this family but I do understand mom.” she meant it as well beyond just wanting to comfort her upset mother. “I don’t think me or Oliver would have made your marriage last, it lasted because you made it last.” 

How many things did Moira have to sacrifice just to be Robert’s wife and their mother? 

“Mom-” she didn’t have words left to say maybe that was why she climbed to sit next to her as tightly as possible and lay her head on Moira’s lap much like she did when she was upset when she was younger wanting to have her hair pet and to be soothed. 

“Forgive me-” she muttered under her breath. 

She was nothing but cruel and passive aggressive to her lately, maybe she now felt like an utter ass for it.

“Why is it always the women blamed for what dickish men do-” she pondered out loud. 

Moira wasn’t the only one being indiscreet was she. Took a whole other adult male for her to come to existence.

the island WAS HELL,   but he was glad that not all of him came back,  he was glad that parts of ‘Ollie Queen’ didn’t come back,  the parts that he had grown embarrassed and ashamed of.     The side of him that had brushed off his kid sister and her attempts to get his attention.

“ I was hardly great. ”   But he likes the way that she remembers him,    that she loves him still regardless of how he acted.     The topic shifts to who’s going to pay and he lets out a frustrated laugh,  head tipping back for a moment with a shake.

“ Prince privileges, Speedy? Really? ”     The fact that their last name was still QUEEN was bad enough,   contrary to what the press liked to say, the were not ‘star city royalty’.      “ Fine—”   he pushed open the door for her.   “—You can pay, this time. ”

“I’ll take today’s victory, we can fight over next dinner next time” Thea looked vindicated to have won once more against Oliver, no matter what blood or life said they would always bicker like siblings and nothing would change that. 

“We can sit and reminis about all the times you were a jerk as a teenager or you can just agree to move on since you’re a better person now and not ruin my delicious pancakes.” Or hot dogs. Or dirty fries. Whatever she decided to order eventually. 

“Yes really. You are a hard ass but eventually you always relent because you love me and you spoil me rotten.” Princess priviledges indeed. 

“We need a holiday. Just you and me somewhere without phones.” 

She’d start with a milkshake and then....changed her mind on food and went for the spicy chicken wrap instead with a side salad. 

“I am much better with people than you..period. Young kids, old foggies, as adorable as you are Ollie you are too reserved and brooding unlike me. Years of being a socialite trained me to be pleasant even when I would rather kick people out of windows” Oliver was of course the favored son that so many rushed to speak to during functions but she, she was the life of the party. 

She thrived in being the center of attention unlike Oliver that lately seemed uncomfortable to just be at a party. 

“Drown them in syrup. Drown me in syrup .” she demanded with a laugh fastening the seatbelt.

“Yeah, yeah sush. Lemme do my thing” Thea waved Oliver away she could guess where the child’s room would be. 

Knock knock. 

Right what does she say?

“My beloved brother is about to set the kitchen on fire trying to cook us pancakes, don’t make me laugh at him and mock him on my own” she spoke to the closed door. 

​

“There are far better excuses than this,” She muttered, lightly shoving aside the unconscious lackeys as she carried Thea out of there. It didn’t look like a bad wound, but she could do more damage, or sever a nerve in this state. “Don’t look at it,” she added. The knife was still lodged in there. Let a professional remove it before stitching her up.

“Merlyn escaped,” she said ruefully.

“Yeah I am not surprised”

She felt the sting of guilt ping in her stomach, if she had not gotten injured Donna would probably have him in her custody, story of  her life always impeding the hero from doing their duty. She looked at it, wished she didn’t as soon as she did. 

I have kept my drafts with @titanofthemoon , @thedemonconstantine , @thewxnderer , @adventurepunks ,@iiingenious and moving my reply into a starter for @thegreenxrcher 's new blog.

Everything else is dropped, I need a fresh start rather than to be intimidated by draft count. I will consult my permanent starter call and do a starter for everyone on it to start new interactions.

Even before Tim could say anything, Yoyo was already gulping everything down like a greedy little piggy.

CHICKEN!!!

“Slowly, Yoyo, or else you’ll choke and I’ll have to do a heimlich and I’m not quite sure how it’ll work on an owl,” Said Tim half-amusedly for Yoyo was so enthusiastic whenever he saw chicken.

“I couldn’t sleep,” He admitted after a while, rubbing his arms as he looked away from the window.

“Every time I close my eyes I just see this wintry landscape, and I’m trudging and trudging and fighting a snowstorm and I’m just going nowhere. A manifestation of my current predicament I suppose,” Morpheus always liked to induce self-reflection in dreams.

Tim took a nugget from Yoyo and settled with Thea by the table.

“It’s quite alright. I understand the precaution, thank you Thea. What tourney- oh. Right then,” If Thea wasn’t interested then Tim wouldn’t bother.

“There’s nothing waiting for me in London to be taken back to. I have no one there,” Mary Hunter was dead, supposedly. Bill Hunter died. Molly and her brothers wanted nothing to do with him and Leah was no longer in the Prime, even. John…John was all over the place now too, wasn’t he? 

“John has a certain knack to be at places when he needs to be, even when he doesn’t realise it himself. It’s never a coincidence when the Arcane is concerned, but what can we do, really? He’ll sort himself out like he always does, I suppose.

…Unless you’d like to help him? I’m open to it,” Tim could be quite the sly fox, hiding behind the reflection of those big glasses and a youthful, seemingly innocent face.

“I try. What of you then, Thea? As much as I do appreciate your efforts looking after me, well…what about you?”

CHICKENNNNN!!

“Okay Yoyo, that’s enough,” Tim would have the rest of it for himself.

“Happy and content is a state I don’t foresee ever achieving in this lifetime, but I am alright. Comfortable. You have done so much for me already. Well, for me and Yoyo.”

LITTLE QUEEN AND CHICKEN!

“Selfishly, as willing as I would be to help John I want to keep him as far away from you as possible. If it had been just me perhaps I would out of a sense of curiosity go help him cheat a victory out of said tourney. Don’t take this as you are holding me back just that I have more responsibilities now.” He was a boy that could look after himself plenty without help, he did so with nothing but the clothes on his back while running for his life, she was certain he could easily cope with being left on his own for a few days with the access to resources he now had.

“I might go then, three nights in Britain if you have no temptation of returning. I’ll leave you my Am-ex. I have a feeling that if I don’t go, next time when he really needs help  he won’t reach out and...well he did help me out a time or two when I needed help.” 

She burned that bridge, the one she called John Constantine but bridges often were rebuild once the debris of the previous carnage was cleared away. 

John of course did not have a phone number and she didn’t know any of his haunts. 

She knew he lived in Twickenham. 

So she’d take a chance, she’d leave it up to fate to answer for John, if she should help him he’d just find her. If not then she’d enjoy a shopping trip in London and know that fate spoke an answer, that she ought to not bother with that friendship and trust her instinct. 

It would be from a working girl that she’d even know where John loitered occasionally. In SoHo of all places and not Twinckenham. 

She found him before with no leads, sure enough there he was. 

“Changed my mind. Decided to help you” she spoke a greeting first going to shake his hand and then just putting an arm around his waist and pressing a cheek to his. 

The first time they met she jumped in his arms and kissed him just to avoid the onlookers thinking they were in the middle of a domestic squabble due to her yelling at him, what was a hug and a Europrean kiss really.

“But my help is not for free. You are going to do me a favor in return-” Thea stood with her arms under her shoulders. 

“Tim can’t sleep. You are going to look into it, if there’s some magical crap in the Dreaming that’s keeping him from sleep. If yes, you will solve it. If not send me a letter and I will look into finding Tim a therapist for it might be trauma. Do we have a deal?” 

Right…how tactless of him.

“I’m sorry, Thea. I really am,” Said John who fiddled with his paper napkins because suddenly he didn’t know what to do with himself.

“If I kin make it up ‘ta yeh, just let me know, I…” 

John’s words trailed off when she kissed him on the cheek. Friends again. It would be a good start.

“Alrite, ask ‘im den. ‘Ta, luv, give th’ lad a squeeze fer me.”

He watched her settle the bill and leave on her motorbike, ignoring the no-smoking sign and pulling out his pack for one. Would he ever watch his mouth around people?

The answer was very unlikely.

The lights in the living room was still on when Thea returned and Tim was standing by the balcony and looking out into the starry night sky. He did not respond at least until she was close enough, then the boy turned to look at her with a wan sort of smile.

“Can’t sleep,” Said Tim who was already in his pyjamas, looking thin and frail as ever, perhaps because the wind was billowing away at his oversized clothing and tousled hair.

CHICKEN?! LITTLE QUEEN CHICKEN! CHICKEN FOR YOYO!

“You’re going to catch a cold” Thea remarked wanting nothing more than to shove a thick puffy jacket on him just for being close to the open window and subjected to the cold wind. 

“Can you ever really sleep? You’re more a night owl than..” she gestured to Yoyo with her head and peeled the paper bag open to let the owl feast on nuggets. “A little treat for being a good boy, I know they’re not the healthiest Tim but I was stuck for options this time of night” Thea explained but would let Tim decide if it was okay for the owl to have them. 

“I had a feeling you’d still be up.” 

“Bumped into our old friend John” she made herself a hot cup of milk peeling off her jacket and protective trousers. “He mentioned something about a tourney in London, I wasn’t playing that close attention. I think the man misses you, I hope you will understand why I didn’t invite him over to see you.” 

She was protective over Tim, the more people knew where he lived was one more set of lips and tongue that could wag and slip. 

“Do you miss London? You’ve yet to ask to be taken back.” 

“He doesn’t look well. John. Thinner than last time, stank of smoke. What are the chances that a random encounter isn’t as random a coincidence?” she asked the boy. 

She looked at him, took a long good look at him. 

“I’m proud of you, you know. You’re trying really hard to adjust to your new school and life.” His grades left something to be desired in the sciences but he didn’t need them. 

Should he chose further education her name would guarantee him Ivy League acceptances...although Thea doubted Tim would aim for them. 

John’s words did leave her thinking though. 

“Are you happy? Wait, happy might be going too far. Are you content.”

Do you feel safe to be alive and exist in our home. 

@iiingenious​

“No!No...you’re kidding” Thea jumped up and down from excitement and nearly jumped into Tim’s arms when he announced he was taking a long weekend off his duties at Wayne Enterprises and she ought to do the same so they could fly off for a long weekend in Bora Bora.

“Eeeee!” Thea grabbed Tim by the cheeks and crashed her lips into his already texting her assistant and opening her wardrobe. What to bring, what to bring. “Are we going just to be beach lizards or shall I bring a dinning dress with me? Oh what the heck, of course I’m gonna bring an evening dress”  That black one. 

“You are a sweetheart. What did I do to deserve you, hm?” she asked looking over her shoulder as she threw one of her blouses at him. 

who even are you //stolen from @adventurepunks​

Muse: Thea Dearden Queen