15543/Good Morning Salmon Ladder

Good Morning Salmon Ladder
Date of Scene:	03 August 2023
Location:	Queen Penthouse - Park Avenue
Synopsis:	While Oliver works out on the salmon ladder, he and Felicity have a brief after-action report about Batman's involvement at Phoenix Towers.
Cast of Characters:	Felicity Smoak, Oliver Queen

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Felicity Smoak has posed:
It had been long enough, by this point, that the Arrowsuite was becoming more like a second home. Where once Felicity had been rendered speechless by the amenities, the patio, the pool, and the panoramic view of New York, many of the day-to-day activities had become rote. Such is life.

Exercise. Sometimes a swim. Sometimes, Felicity simply enjoyed sitting on the couch, drinking her coffee and openly gawking at a shirtless Oliver on the salmon ladder as she did this particular morning -- though she at least had the decency to have her tablet sitting in her lap for pretense, even if it was mostly ignored.

She has her hair up in a messy bun (her dark roots just beginning to show), her glasses perched on her nose, and she's wearing one of his shirts. Realistically, she should know better. There was at least one instance that she'd spent a morning this way and the penthouse had turned into Grand Central Station -- to include not just one of the Fantastic Four (or however many there were, now), but a SHIELD agent. Maybe today would be better.

Ka-chunk. Ka-chunk. Ka-chunk. Ka-chunk.

A soft, wistful sigh passes Felicity's lips, elbow propped on the back of the couch, chin resting in her palm.

Then her tablet dings, and she tears her gaze away to look down at the notification.

"Hey, not to.. interrupt your rhythm. I love your rhythm. ... I mean, it seems.. effective. But did you ever find out what Batman was doing down there with you guys? I mean, other than like... swooping down out of the shadows and stealing one of the guys that was there? Have you tried to coordinate with him at all?"

Oliver Queen has posed:
All in all, Oliver Queen tries to keep things fairly flexible.

Both in the literal and figurative sense.

When it comes to his schedule the simple fact of the matter is that things come up. Emergencies happen. Occasionally they involve his activities as CEO of Queen Consolidated and the many, varied business interests that he is juggling at any one time. Though obviously the Phoenix Towers Project has consumed much of his time and attention as of late.

But of course emergencies come up on that secret part of his life. The costumed part. And while Phoenix Towers sort of represents the co-mingling of both sides of his life, that hasn't made things any less hectic. Any less prone to unexpected surprises.

So while it is not always possible to stick to a regimented schedule of exercise, not always possible to have a set morning routine, he does his best wherever possible.

That routine might have changed a little bit of course with their recent relocation to New York City. There has been another co-mingling of his business, personal and vigilante lives that has changed things up some.

In the best possible way of course.

That rhythm doesn't break as the metal bar in his hands jerks out of the tines on that salmon ladder that Felicity insured was installed at an oh so convenient vantage point for much of the rest of their layout. Again there is that *ka-chunk* as metal slams against metal and he continues that climb up towards the top of the apparatus, body moving in careful harmony as he swings just a little.

He hasn't been at it so long yet, and even with his warm up that sheen of perspiration hasn't yet started to mark his forehead or bare chest -- that Bratva tattoo prominent on the upper lef-hand corner of his chest. But despite that physical exertion he doesn't seem to have any difficulty chatting with her at the same time.

Both physical activity and multi-tasking is pretty important to his continued well being. He has good cause to work at it.

"You're joking right?" Ollie counters drily, a little smirk playing over his features as that ladder clanks again as he continues the routine. "I'm surprised that he even took the time to nod at me and acknowledge our presence. While Red Robin and I were dealing with the kidnapping victims he just grabbed the guy he was after and vanished," he says wryly. "I'm just glad he didn't do it to me when we were in the middle of a conversation. That's pretty much his schtick you know," he points out, glashing a grin Felicity's way -- eyes lingering perhaps a little.

"I suppose I could ask Emiko to check in with Red Robin. See if she can pry some details out of him. That's the most likely route to actually hear anything," he admits. "He has a few problems with communication if you ask me," he comments.

Though in fairness that has been something that Oliver has been known to have something of a problem with as well from time to time.

Look, he's trying to be better, okay?

Felicity Smoak has posed:
Um, excuse me -- that Felicity installed in a conveniently large enough space to allow Oliver plenty of room to work out without risking damage to any of the rest of the furniture or penthouse.

It just so happens that the salmon ladder (installed in the middle of that conveniently large enough space) happens to be in easy view of the couch. And the kitchen. And the panic room. And, if she sits just right on the bed and leaves the door open, also the master bedroom.

Total. Freaking. Coincidence.

Ahem.

/You're joking right?/

"I... wasn't. But I'm starting to get the feeling I should have been. He and I aren't really like pen-pals or anything."

The description of grabbing the guy and vanishing gets a little nod. "Yeah, I was watching on the body cams, and I've gone back over the footage. It was pretty.. efficient." She seemed to be searching for a 'nice' word.

That lingering gaze meets her eyes, and Felicity's expression softens. There's even a little, preening adjustment of her glasses. The intensity of Oliver's gaze always made her feel like he was looking at all of her under a microscope, and though she obviously adored it, it also made her blush a little.

"That would be a good idea, I think. There was obviously a reason for him to be there, and every little bit will help."

/He has a few problems with communication if you ask me./

"Huh. I used to know someone like that." Felicity's smile broadens, reaching her eyes. "I'm guessing he doesn't have a girl in the chair to try to pull him out of his own head. It's pretty easy to forget that no man is an island when you feel like you're fighting literally the whole world all on your own. You don't have a whole lot of need for communication if you don't feel like you can trust anyone."

Oliver Queen has posed:
There is no denying that Oliver's workouts tend to be fairly intense. Given that he can't always be sure of just how much time he'll actually have to devote himself to conditioning, it helps to make them focused on some very high-impact activities. From that perspective the salmon ladder is a pretty great choice.

The fact that she happens to like to watch him while he is doing it is just a bonus. One that he certainly does not mind however it seems. And if she absolutely has to get work down, well, at least she can seal off the panic room. With all the precautions they've taken the thing is practically a fortress and will almost certainly block out that steady rhythmic *ka-chunk* *ka-chunk* as the blonde billionaire makes his way up and down it.

"You wouldn't be," Oliver agrees, a hint of dry humor creeping into his words once more. "Because you're not crazy. I have a feeling that's the only sort of person he'd want to pretend to befriend. Largely so he could then think them in the head with some sort of bat-shaped implement and then haul them off to that nightmare of an insane asylum," he says with a snort.

Pretty big talk from someone with an Arrowcave, an Arrowcar and now an Arrowsuite. Not to mention an array of trick arrows that includes one that folds out into a boxing glove of all things.

"But I'll see what we can find out," Ollie agrees with a sigh. He probably would have done it regardless. Because it makes a lot of sense. But it no doubt helps to cut through some of the delay, the muttering that it comes from her.

There's not a whole lot that he wouldn't do for her afterall. Even if it means reaching out to 'that Bat'.

A smirk slowly creeps over his features as she points out the obvious and while it might be tempting to drop down and go over to the couch where Felicity sits and show her just how well he has learned to communicate, he keeps up that rhythm, the clang of metal on metal even soothing in it's own way. Familiar. At least to him.

"Yeah, but it was charming when I did it," Ollie protests, his tone making it very clear he is well aware that it was not. Exasperating, he expects, might be a more fitting word. Annoying, perhaps even infuriating might also apply.

"You might havea point," the archer conceeds. "He's not exactly a sharer at any time. Even with the League. Maybe he's better with his own crew in Gotham," Ollie allows.

But he wouldn't exactly want to lay any wagers on that fact.

Felicity Smoak has posed:
"Well, /now/ it feels like a challenge," Felicity muses about not being Batman's pen-pal, humor glinting in her eyes. "It's fine, though. I've only got enough room in my life for one muscular, ninja-like, masked vigilante." Beat. "Plus.. Roy. And Emiko. And the Justice League. And.. SHIELD. Look, the point is, I'm not going to try to make that connection unless you ask me to for some crazy reason. I haven't even tried to get into the Batwork.. or the Batdrive.. or the Batframe. Whatever he calls his network. But the last time I bounced off of SHIELD's servers, they showed up. So."

Beat.

"Granted, I've got things set up better than I did that first night."

That first night. Felicity's lips tug into a knowing smile.

"I mean.. not the /first/ first night.. that was.. kind of perfect. But, the first night you..." She makes a little leaping motion with her finger and shrugs her shoulders. ".. went to the towers..."

She watches him smirk, his eyes drifting down to the couch where she's sitting, and her eyebrows lift playfully. Well, if the mountain will not come to Mohammed...

Felicity sets her coffee cup down on a coaster and stands, ambling her way barefoot through the living room towards that exercise corner, her arms folding across her stomach and pinning his button-down shirt against her stomach.

"Charming?" she asks, grinning. "I think you mean exasperating. Annoying. Infuriating. Do you even remember how many times we shouted at each other because you wouldn't tell me what was going on? I do."

She gets close, but not close enough to be in danger if he were to miss a rung which had... never happened. Ever. Actually, she wasn't even sure it was possible to miss, at this point, though she'd never tried it herself.

Oliver Queen has posed:
Oh yes, she has managed to gather up more then a few masked vigilantes to keep tabs on. Though maybe not quite enough to keep her out of a little further mischief, perhaps. There are only so many things that he can do afterall. He's not a miracle worker afterall.

But that doesn't mean that it isn't fun to at least try.

And in all fairness she has quite a bit on her plate too, if she is going to try to keep him out of trouble. So it does go both ways. One more on the list of reasons why they work so well together.

"It was not," Ollie assures her with a quiet laugh, giving a shake of his head as he reaches the very top of the ladder, pausing for just a moment to dangle loosely there, swinging back and forth idly. He probably doesn't really need a breather -- not yet -- but it is a little easier to admire her like this, those icy blue eyes surprisingly intent.

Hey, it's not just her that likes to watch him afterall. He has, on more then one occasion, simply paused in the doorway of that panic room, watching her at that elaborate computer layout she has created. Or out on the patio, under that warm summer sun.

Not to mention the bedroom. Rawr.

"Though it might be interesting to see what happens," he adds after just a moment, lips curving into a little smirk. There is a part of him that might be just a little bit of a troublemaker, a part that has survived Lian Yu and the deaths of his parents. A part of his misspent youth that hasn't entirely gone the way of the dodo. "I mean, my understanding is that some of that crew of his are pretty impressive with the computer skills themselves, so they probably have all sorts of precautions set up," he muses. Probably not in a helpful way if the goal is to keep her out of trouble with the Gotham crew. "And who knows how much money on hardware," he adds.

Yep, definitely not a challenge at all.

The quiet clank of metal on metal begins once more and he is back in motion, back in that rhythm as he starts back down the ladder towards the base, though as she starts to walk over to him, pointing out the obvious despite his protestations of being oh so charming, he does abruptly release that bar, suddenly dropping down right in front of her, landing in a crouch to soften the impact at least a little.

But he is back up almost at once, those arms draping around her shoulders lightly as that impudent little grin slides over his expression. "Fair. But I'd like to think I've made up for it since then..."

Felicity Smoak has posed:
There were times when it didn't seem like Felicity understood what Oliver was looking at or perhaps why he was looking. She'd just been openly, unabashedly gawking at him in a way that plenty of people would have screamed 'objectification' about, but when she caught him doing the same thing to her, she often got this shy, quizzical look on her features.

It was like she wanted to ask him if she had something on her face.

She'd learned, of course, that he looked at her in the same way she looked at him. She'd never really 'gotten used to it,' though. It still made her irrationally nervous... and maybe a little giddy with anticipation.

"You /really/ want a war with the Batfam, don't you?"

Felicity wasn't as easily goaded into making ridiculous decisions as some of the more testosterone-driven members of the team, but she wasn't immune to the gauntlet of challenge being thrown down at her feet, either.

"Because that's how you get a war with the Batfam."

She was grinning up at him when he dropped. She squeaked and almost took a step back out of instinct when he landed so close, but he was up with his arms around her shoulders before she could move.

"That must be what it's like when you're chasing someone, from their point of view."

Her eyebrows knit.

"Well, hopefully not /exactly/ like this.."

She grins. Her arms slip around his middle, his skin cool and moist with sweat, but she runs her hands around to his back and pulls herself up against him anyway, tilting her chin up to look at him.

"/More/ than made up for it." Her lower lip disappears briefly between her teeth as she continues to grin up at him. "You know, we could both use a shower. Maybe we could... continue communicating with each other... in there." Her eyes glint with mischief, her smile broad an inviting.