Training Day

[run_barry]

After the excitement of last night the morning is pretty quiet.

Even the bustle at CC Jitters is pretty tame when Barry steps into the coffee shop to meet up with Oliver and Felicity.

"Hey," Barry greets the pair cheerfully.

Oliver doesn't bother with greetings, starting the conversation with a tip instead. "The bad guy that you're after, the one who robbed the bank, his name is Roy G. Bivolo."

That bit of information is a surprise and Barry smiles before becoming hesitant when a thought strikes brought on by his last conversation with Joe.

"The guy's still alive, right?" he asks tentatively.

Oliver gives Barry a Look and Barry backs off.

"I'm just asking," Barry says, then cants his head at Oliver. "I thought you didn't want to help."

"I'm not. It's just a name," Oliver replies.

Before Barry can try and work on convincing Oliver to team up, Iris arrives with Oliver and Felicity's orders in tow.

She's all smiles and staring as she sets down Oliver's coffee, then pulls Barry aside to gush about Oliver.

"Oh, my God, he's even more handsome in person," Iris enthuses to Barry. "And his arms are, like, twice the size of yours."

Wounded, Barry tries to deny that statement from her. "Technically they're not twice the size."

Iris ignores him and goes on about the handsome Oliver Queen while Barry stands by and sighs.

By the time Iris gets back to work and Barry rejoins Oliver and Felicity, Oliver is standing and steps up to meet Barry.

"Okay," Oliver declares, which earns a quizzical head tilt from Barry.

"Okay, what?" Barry asks.

"Okay, we'll help you catch your bad guy," Oliver says.

Barry's face splits into an excited grin, and he nods eagerly.

"Great," Barry says, then corrects, "Metahuman."

"I am not calling him that, Barry."

Oliver's reluctance to use the proper terminology aside, Barry is still excited and promptly offers his hand to the other hero.

"Partners?"

Oliver looks down at Barry's open hand and then finally shakes in agreement.

"Partners."

*****

Oliver picks a meet-up spot on the edge of town at the old abandoned warehouse where Barry had met Team Arrow before. In plain clothes, holding onto an arrow, Oliver is already waiting when Barry arrives and Oliver immediately calls the speedster out on his lack of punctuality.

"You're late," Oliver admonishes, "Barry, how can you have superspeed and still not be on time?"

Ducking his head, Barry offers an apologetic shrug. "Sorry, I guess the super-tardiness kinda neutralizes it."

Looking out at the open, vacant space, Barry's excitement for being here dims a little in confusion.

"So... how do we catch Bivolo here?" Barry asks.

Oliver is quick to respond. "Oh, no, we don't here. We're here to train."

Barry gives a chuckle, amused by the idea, but also by the thought of Oliver not being aware that Barry has already had training sessions at a bar at the end of the universe.

"What? Like Rocky?" Barry asks with a smile.

Oliver doesn't laugh. Instead he starts a lecture.

"I read your friend Iris's blog post on the Flash, and I visited all the crime scenes you fought at," Oliver informs Barry as they step out into an open spot in front of the warehouse.

Oliver brings up Snart and the whole train derailing event, and when Barry tries to defend himself over what happened Oliver breaks in.

"Barry, when you approach a new environment, do you case every inch of it?"

That stops Barry short, knowing that he doesn't, and Oliver continues on with his point.

"You could. You have the time, but you don't. You just run in blind."

Oliver starts to move and Barry throws an eyeroll and sighs while he follows. Being chided over something that happened because a bad guy with a cold-gun wanted to make off with a diamond wasn't really what Barry imagined with this teaming up thing.

"There's a difference, Barry," Oliver goes on, "between having powers and having precision."

That's not really a fair judgement and Barry finally speaks up again, reminding Oliver it was him who helped Barry choose this path.

"When I came to you thinking about going out and helping people, you said I could be an inspiration," Barry says as Oliver approaches his parked motorcycle, pulling the mounted bow off of the front of the bike.

"Living this life, well it takes more than a mask," Oliver says, nocking the arrow he's been holding onto, "It takes discipline. And since you are probably as stubborn as I am-- "

Oliver's actions with the bow and arrow finally register and Barry speaks up, pointing at the weapon, "Uh, wha-at is that for?"

Oliver arches his shoulders, and gives a nod towards a point in the distance.

"You're going to run over there, you're going to come back at me, and you're going to get hit with an arrow."

Barry can't help it, he laughs. The idea is ridiculous, not only because it's crazy, but because Barry knows he's faster than any arrow.

"No, I'm not," he informs Oliver with a grin.

Impassively Oliver gives his own laugh that's more mocking Barry's than real amusement and replies, "Yes. You are."

Barry is tickled by Oliver's stoicism; clearly the guy has no idea of the things Barry is capable of. If any of Barry's friends were here they'd be laughing, too.

"Okay, fine, I will humor you," Barry says to Oliver, giving the man a smug smile before speeding off to the top of a hill a fair distance away.

Cupping his hands together over his mouth to be heard over the distance, Barry calls out, "Ready?"

Part of Barry wishes he had a camera or something to catch this. After giving Oliver time to draw back his bow, Barry takes a breath and runs at the man.

Oliver fires his arrow and Barry easily catches it, bare inches from his chest.

"Nice try," Barry says to Oliver, self-satisfied to have proven Oliver wrong.

The feeling doesn't last as a moment later Barry is struck in the back by two arrows fired from crossbows concealed in the grass.

Hit between the shoulder blades by both, Barry jumps and cries out in pain.

"GAH! What, dude you shot me???"

It hurts. A lot. And the feeling doesn't get any better when Oliver walks up behind Barry and yanks the arrows out.

"I heard you heal fast," Oliver says simply.

Barry cries out again, realizing this isn't like Rocky at all.

[ooc: dialogue taken from episode 1.8]