Chapters: 1/5 Fandom: Arrow (TV 2012) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Oliver Queen/Felicity Smoak Characters: Oliver Queen, Slade Wilson, Patience and Fortitude the New York Library Lions, Felicity Smoak Additional Tags: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Remember the fic I’ve been talking about only as IndyFic, This is Indyfic, Indiana Jones inspired, If you think you recognize a plot device or nod from somewhere you’re probably right, I have stol…Borrowed so much, From Uncharted to Indiana Jones to The Mummy to Clive Cussler books to Aladdin Summary:
She didn’t plan on ever having an adventure unless it said ‘turn to page 34 to open the door’, but somewhere between being kissed in the library and running from a one-eyed man with a gun, Felicity was pretty sure adventure had found her whether she wanted it or not.
It’s like The Mummy, only not really.
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Author’s Note: This fic has been over a year in the making now, and I owe so many people thanks for the help they gave me along the way. First, to @dettiot, for being the first person to cheerlead for me on this, and for the beta work to make this first chapter pack some punch. Really, the entire fic idea wouldn’t have happened without your comment about Robbie Amell’s Twin being a patron that one day. Happy birthday!
I would be remiss if I didn’t thank all of the people who betaed for me with all the drafts that this went through. @andcreation, @adiwriting, @ohemgeeitscoley for their grammer catches and tense hunting, and @ellefraser17, @almostvivian, @lynslogic and @nightkeepyr for yelling at me with excitement as they read. Couldn’t ask for better cheerleaders!
Many MANY thanks to @green-arrows-of-karamel for assistance with later chapters and answering my many questions about Venezuela!
Finally, there will be artwork throughout this fic. This chapter features BEAUTIFUL art from the wonderfully talented @cherchersketch
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Tagging the few people that expressed interest in knowing when I posted this: @thatmasquedgirl, @realityisoverrated-fic, @imusuallyobsessed
Read it below or on AO3
Growing up, she had never planned to be a librarian. Felicity’s life had been computers from the moment she built her first one at age seven, all the way through her graduation from MIT with her Masters at age nineteen. While IT work had never been her ultimate goal — she couldn’t think about a life of telling people, “have you tried turning if off and on again” and not lose her mind — she knew it would have been the first step into a company through which she could then rise the ranks.
Of course, by the time she had graduated, the economy had gone down the toilet faster than her hacktivist days had. Given that the only other job she could find was working part time at Tech Village in her own personal version of hell, clearly the best option was to go back to school to get another degree, especially if she wasn’t the one paying for it.
Growing up in Vegas with an income coming only from her mother’s waitressing, she spent a lot of summers in the library, reading programming books, joining in on book clubs they had going on, or even a few of the arts and crafts things. Of course, that had all been when she wasn’t old enough to be allowed on the computers that weren’t just full of learning games.
She could have gotten around those blocks in a minute now, but at eight years old, it was a different thing entirely.
Basically, she had good memories of the librarians and libraries from growing up. When she did her research and saw that it would take a year, at most, for her to get her degree in Library Sciences, Felicity didn’t think twice before resigning her lease in Boston for another year. That was followed up with an email to her old advisor to let them know she was interested in coming back to MIT and could she maybe sign up for courses even though it was technically after the due date?
As it turned out, having masters in both library science and computer science & cyber security, along with a minor in Latin America studies (a few electives here and there and the next thing she knew, she had somehow gotten a minor) made her quite a catch for any library that was hiring.
The main branch of the New York Public Library had given her an offer she would have been stupid to refuse. Not only was it in New York, where she knew she could still apply for tech jobs while she worked at the library, but she would also have full access to their archives. Plus, moving from Boston to New York wasn’t all that expensive, especially once she had gone through her belongings and had donated what she didn’t need.
Okay. Firstly, @acheaptrickandacheesyoneline I am so damn proud of you!! You worked your ass off on this, and stuck with it! And I have no right or claim to be proud...but fuck it. I am. Okay. So there. You did it!! Secondly, people, you need to read this! The characterisation is wonderful, there's excitement and intrigue, and sass and fun!! I love the little parts, and the excellent while they make up. Red pens, and smirks, and leather jackets make an appearance. And it's hella good!! The accompanying art work is wow too!!! Amazing job!!!! 👏👏👏
