Arrow: Fanfic: At all costs

[m_findlow]

Title: At all costs
Fandom: Arrow
Characters: Malcolm Merlyn, Thea
Author: m_findlow
Rating: PG
Length: 615 words
Content notes: none
Author notes: Written for m_findlow's prompt "Arrow, Malcolm Merlyn, as long as he had Thea, the rest of the world could burn" at fic_promptly
Summary: Malcolm will win her over, no matter what

'You're insane, you know that?' Thea growled, struggling against the bonds that kept her tied to the chair.

'Insanity is defined as doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result,' Merlyn replied. 'That's not what this is.'

He marched across to the window and peered through the thin curtain. Just because Damien had promised him the dome was impenetrable didn't mean it was. He broken in himself enough times to know that if Oliver thought to come looking for them here, he wouldn't have any trouble doing so.

'You should've stayed with Alex,' he mused, returning to the kitchen and straddling one of the chairs. 'You could've been happy together. All three of us.'

'What can I say, dad?' she replied, emphasizing the last word with no small amount of disdain. 'You taught me how to know when someone was lying to me.'

'Then you'll know I'm telling you the truth when I say that I did this all for you.'

She let out a mirth filled chuckle, shaking her head. 'No, you did all this for you.'

'Thea,'

'We're done talking,' she said, turning her head away.

He shook his own head and left the room. Was the stubbornness inherited from her mother's side or her father's, he wondered, padding up the stairs to the second floor. He checked his watch. Not long to go now. If Oliver planned on doing anything, he was running out of time. Then, once it was all done, Thea would be his.

She hated him, that much was clear. It hurt more than he'd ever admit, but as long as she was safe, she could hate him all she wanted. She'd come around eventually, when she realised that no one cared more about her in this world than he did.

It was the Blood Lust that had changed things. Oliver Queen, he sighed, always trying to save everyone. He'd put her in that pit and corrupted her soul. She'd nearly died because of it, but it was his own selfish pride that had caused everything to unravel. If Nyssa hadn't forced him to choose between saving his daughter and being the most powerful man on earth... If he had the choice again, he'd have conceded. Instead he'd gambled and lost his hand, his power, and his daughter's trust.

Oliver had taken those things from him.

Why did she always turn to him? He was the one who'd abandoned her, who'd lied to her for years about who he really was. Malcolm was the one that had shown her the truth, who'd saved her from Slade Wilson's army, who'd taught her to fight and to become numb to pain. He was the one who'd tamed her Blood Lust, even if only for a short time. And now, when Damien planned on razing the entire planet to the ground so that he could start humanity afresh, it was Malcolm who would ensure that Thea lived to see the other side of the new world.

He'd taken so many things for granted as a father. Tommy had taught him all of life's hard lessons. He'd always just assumed that Tommy would be there, looking up to him, wanting to make him proud, wanting to be better than his father. In a way, he had. He'd chosen to save the life of the people he loved, no matter the cost. That was what Malcolm would do now. Thea was his, and only his. She belonged to him. They were flesh and blood, heart and soul.

He'd burned Starling City for Rebecca, and now he'd let Damien do the same for Thea. She was all that mattered now.