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<============>Felicity entered the apartment carrying a stack of mail. She dropped it on the kitchen island and began to look through the items, tossing the catalogs and flyers into a pile to be recycled.“How many Bed, Bath, and Beyond coupons does one person need? Why do they keep sending these? We must be on some list, which I obviously need to get unsubscribed from.”Oliver approached her and wrapped his arms around her waist and placed his chin on her shoulder, “What do you have against Bed, Bath and Beyond. More coupons I see.”“This is what I get for letting my Mom talk me into registering for gifts. A never-ending source of junk-mail.”“Felicity, I’m pretty sure they send these coupons to everyone, not just couples that registered for gifts Remember, we did get that really great coffee maker that you said was a gift from God.”“You’re right, the coffee maker is great.”Oliver smiled, “I’m right. See I knew there was a silver lining in their somewhere.”Felicity tensed in his embraced, “it’s not like we went through a traditional wedding process, heck, it wasn’t even your first marriage,” added Felicity with a bit of a frown.Oliver tugged her around in his arms and lifted her chin, “If we're counting, and I’m not, we were half-married even before we stood in front of the justice of the peace last month. We were only missing the ‘I do’ before Cupid interrupted us.”“I don’t mean that wedding, I mean the one in Nanda Parbat. I guess technically you are still married to Nyssa, as far as the League of Assassins is concerned. But she disbanded the league so, who knows right.”“Why is this bothering her,” thought Oliver.Felicity turned to return to her mail sorting. “Felicity, honey, you know that my marriage to Nyssa is not valid, it was never real.” Oliver nuzzled against her neck, “It doesn’t mean anything, it never did, you know that don’t you.”“Of course, I know that, forget I said anything.”Oliver didn’t quite believe her, but thought better about pushing the topic any further. “So, you must be hungry, what should I make for dinner?”<============>The bunker was quiet as most of the team had already left to head home. Felicity was working intensely at her work station.Oliver called her name a few times, but she didn’t respond. He stepped up behind her and placed his hand on her shoulder. She jumped.“Seriously, you do need a bell Oliver. Don’t scare me like that.”“Felicity, I called your name. I knew you were focused on something. I was trying to get your attention without scaring you,” he leaned in to kiss her.“I know it’s impossible for you to switch out of ninja mode. I’m just stuck on something, pesky NSA updated their firewall and…”“Are you hacking? I didn’t think we needed to find anyone that we weren’t already tracking for our current case.”Felicity turned and scowled, “No, I’m just updating our connections, you never know when we’re going to need to run facial recognition again. I was checking for an updated version. You know software, it changes all the time.”“Okay, so do you need more time or are you ready to head home? Hey, that woman there looks a bit like Nyssa, doesn’t she?”Felicity startled and clicked a button to logout of the work station. “I guess, maybe, but it doesn’t matter. I’ll finish this tomorrow. Let’s head home.” She stood up and slid her arms around Oliver’s neck. “Did I hear a rumor that Williams was spending the night with some friends tonight?”Oliver smiled and pulled her closer, “yes, I heard that rumor too. We’ve got the apartment all to ourselves, let’s go home.”Felicity pulled him in for a kiss, “Home it is.”<============>Felicity stepped into the dark apartment. There was a dark figure dressed in black and carrying a quiver full of arrows standing in the living room looking out the window. “You’d think by now I’d be used to figures appearing out of nowhere. Especially ones dressed all in black and armed to the teeth.”“Who’s there, just letting you know that I’m armed, so I’d leave if I were you, regardless of how scary and ominous you look standing there in the dark.” Well she wasn’t really armed, but it was always better to sound like you were. The figure in black turned at the sound of her voice and stepped forward into the light. “Greetings Felicity Smoak, MIT class of 09, It is I, Nyssa al Ghul, I mean you no harm. I am only here to comply with your request.”“I didn’t think you needed to visit in person to resolve the issue we spoke about on the phone.”“In matters such as this, a personal visit is required to bestow the gift. When will my husband arrive?”“Does he need to be here? I thought you would just sign something, make a proclamation and we’d be set.”“Felicity, I may have disbanded the League, but the marriage is still bound by its laws, which have been passed down through the centuries. There are rituals, promises.” Nyssa took off her quiver and set it and her bow down on the table. She sat on the couch and folded her hands in her lap. “We shall wait for Oliver to arrive.”“I’ll just send him a quick text to see where he is.”<============>Why was she nervous? This is what she wanted. Was it too much to ask for an official declaration that she was the only wife of Oliver Queen? Not that they ran into Nyssa much, but to be honest, hearing her greet him as ‘husband’ was getting on her nerves. “Oliver, where are you?”As Oliver approached the apartment he heard voices, “was Thea coming over and I forgot?” he thought. “Felicity, I’m home where are you?” he called into the dark apartment.“In the living room,” answered Felicity.“Why are you sitting in the dark?”Oliver flicked on the light and stopped short at the sight of the two women sitting on the couch.“Hey honey,” said Felicity.“Good evening, husband,” added Nyssa.“Nyssa, what are you doing here? Felicity?”“Well, remember when I was running the facial recognition software - well I told you I was looking for an upgrade. I was actually looking for Nyssa. I wanted to ask her about annulling your League marriage. I was going to talk with you about it tonight, but as it turns out the process is a bit more involved than I realized.”“Okay, what do we need to do?”“You don’t think I’m crazy?”“It is obviously bothering you, so let’s just get it done. Nyssa.”“We will need two witnesses. I will also need a bowl of salt water, a candle and some matches.”Felicity raised her eyebrow and looked to Oliver. “I’ll get the items. Can you find the witnesses?”Oliver pulled out his phone and dialed John first. John and Lyla were a no. John Jr. was running a fever. Next he dialed Rene, no answer. Dinah was third, and another no. She had picked up a graveyard shift for another officer whose wife just went into labor. “I’m coming up empty,” he said, turning to Felicity. “I’ll try Thea and Quentin next.”The phone was ringing too long. Thea was probably out too. “Hello, Ollie,”“Thea, Felicity and I need a favor. Can you come over to the apartment?”<============>The coffee table in the living room was filled with the items that Nyssa had requested. Thea and Quentin were sitting on the couch, both looking quite uncomfortable as the preparations continued.“We are ready to begin. First we will recite the vows of release. Felicity will you light the candle? Oliver, join my hands, and close your eyes. I will translate it into English so that everyone will be able to understand the vows.”“We pray to the elders who have gone before us for guidance and understanding. We ask that they bless us as we go our separate ways…”Felicity tried to sit still and listen as Nyssa's prayer continued. Geez, how many dead ancestors needed to provide guidance and understanding? Her eyes were fixed on Oliver who was working very hard not to crack a smile. Each time Nyssa paused in her prayer he opened his eyes, only to snap them shut again when Nyssa continued to beseech her long dead forebearers for positive vibes.“Husband, I release you from our marriage contract in accordance with the laws of the league.”“I release you too,” Oliver added.“That is not necessary. The husband has no say in this matter. And now we extinguish the candle with the salt water to symbolize the end of our marriage.”“Are we done?” asked Oliver expectantly. “The wedding was shorter than this procedure. Maybe I should have pulled out a knife to speed things along.”“Next the witnesses will sign the annulment agreement scroll.”Thea and Quentin looked bewildered as they rose from their seats to follow Nyssa to the kitchen.“Well, that was a bit more involved than I would have thought,” said Felicity.“Yes. But it could have been worse,”“Worse?”“I think if the league had not been disbanded I might have had to travel to Nanda Parbat and grovel to get this done. Lots of groveling.” Felicity smiled, “Thank you honey. I know it was silly, but it really means a lot to me to know that I am your only wife.”She went up on her tippy toes to give him a kiss. Oliver pulled her close and whispered into her ear, “just so you know, I would have traveled anywhere and groveled, to make you happy.”Felicity didn’t answer, she just kissed him again. Nyssa called from the kitchen, “Former husband, it is now time for us to sign the scroll of release. Please join me.”“If you’ll excuse me, I have a document to sign.” Oliver was relieved. He walked Thea and Quentin to the door and thanked them for helping as witnesses for that very unusual ritual that had just concluded. “So, all these ceremonial rituals have made me hungry. Who’s up for Big Belly Burger?” asked Oliver. “I most definitely am. I’ll order our usual. Nyssa, are you staying? Would you like a burger, fries and a shake?”“Felicity, I would greatly enjoy a milkshake. I have not had one since…I was here training Laurel”Before long the three of them were enjoying their food and milkshakes at the kitchen island. “We owe you one Nyssas. If you ever need a favor, let us know.”“You are most welcome former husband. I was happy to relinquish you to Felicity’s care. I can see that she has gladly accepted you as well. Be sure to be a good husband to Felicity. If you fail to meet your responsibilities you will incur the wrath of my blade.” Nyssa was smiling as she said it, but Oliver knew that she really wasn’t joking about the wrath part.Oliver knew he had nothing to worry about. He would do just about anything that Felicity asked. He just hoped that her next request would be a little less involved.<============>
