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Title: Green Arrow & Black Canary: The Green Aro

Fandom: DC Comics / Arrowverse

Disclaimer: All rights concerning the Arrowverse reserved to Greg Berlanti and Marc Guggenheim, all rights for the comics reserved to DC. This fanfiction on the other hand is entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.

Tags: QPR, Arrow Family centric, coming out, slice of life, hurt/comfort, f/f, m/f, m/m

Pairings: Zoe/Mia, Connor/William, Oliver/Felicity

DC Characters: Mia Smoak Queen | Green Arrow, Zoe Ramirez | Black Canary, Lian Harper | Red Hood, William Clayton Queen | Overwatch, Connor Hawke, Oliver Queen, Felicity Smoak

Own Characters of the Next Gen: Jonas Smoak Queen | Green Lantern, Megan Smoak Queen

Summary: Prompt: pride puns – Green Arrow and Black Canary are caught kissing after an exciting case. Now Mia has to decide if and how she wants to come out, because the way the press is labeling their relationship as a 'romance' doesn't sit right with her.

Green Arrow & Black Canary: The Green Aro

Writer's Pride Month Bingo 2023

/a dark ally, Star City, 2045\

Mia Smoak Queen carried a heavy legacy as the third Green Arrow.

Or rather, if one were to be technical, the overall fifth Arrow. And she would like to be technical, because her father – the first Green Arrow – would not have been able to retire and to be there to raise her and her brothers, be the loving husband and father she got to see during her childhood, if not for Roy Harper stepping up from being Arsenal to becoming Red Arrow, taking over Oliver Queen's responsibilities to protect Star City and his spot on the Justice League. Only thanks to that had Oliver been able to retire in peace, without feeling like he was failing his city or the world.

And after Red Arrow, when Roy decided to spend more time with his daughter Lian and step back from being a hero, it had been Mia's aunt Thea as Arrowette, part of the second Justice League.

Though neither of the two had wanted to carry the burden of Ollie's direct legacy as the Green Arrow, Mia knew their contribution to the Arrow Family had been no less important and she knew that she would not be where she was right now, knew her family wouldn't be what it was if not for them carrying the mantles they did and taking on the responsibilities they did.

The first one to take on the Green Arrow name after Oliver Queen had been Connor Hawke, the adopted son of John Diggle. Ironically enough following in Ollie's footsteps in more ways than one as he too fell in love with his own Overwatch – Mia's brother William. And so Connor had become Mia's brother too; her brother-in-law. Though the two had grown close as siblings over the years.

It was that legacy, the legacy of both her father and her brother-in-law, that Mia had taken on for herself. That Mia had chosen. She didn't have to, she could have taken on a different path.

When she'd first stepped into vigilantism, she'd gone by the name Black Star. That was the name by which she had joined the Birds of Prey too, when she'd become a real hero, following the lead of her aunts Dinah and Laurel. She had chosen her own path, her own name and way. And it was that self-confidence that she had gained by going out as the Black Star, by being a hero alongside the other Birds, that had given her the strength to take this name now.

Star City needed an Arrow and though she knew she could have become Arrowette, or maybe even taken on a new Arrow name as Black Arrow to merge her identity as Black Star with the Arrow mantle, she knew that Star City needed Green Arrow and at that point in her life, she knew she had both the strength and the confidence to be the hero Star City needed. Because she knew she could be Green Arrow without losing herself to that legacy, without losing her own identity to the legacy left by Ollie and Connor. The experience she had gathered on her own had taught her how to be a hero without tying to copy either of them, without trying to be either of them.

"Overwatch," Mia's voice was a sharp whisper. "I got eyes on the target."

"Copy," her brother's voice came through the earpiece. "Stay put. He got backup. Wait for yours."

Mia grumbled beneath her breath but accepted his orders. William had her back, he always had. Green Arrow needed an Overwatch. And though Connor had stepped back from being Green Arrow when the married couple decided to have kids, because of the dangers of it, William wanted to keep an eye on his sister, because his position behind the screen was much safer and Connor had been fine with it. He was fine being more in charge of their kids like that. So he had more experience with this format – being on Team Arrow, protecting Star City.

The role of Green Arrow was still incredibly new to Mia, she was used to being one of many Birds, spreading far and wide with Oracle in her ear, teaming up with different Birds, sometimes with members of the Justice League. It was different than being a team leader, carrying the titular name of a team. She was the Green Arrow of Team Arrow. There was no one to hide behind.

And then Mia could hear someone else's voice come on. "Got five goons in the back."

The faintest smile spread over Mia's lips, her fingers gently running over her bow. The sounds of combat came through the comms. Muffled grunts and screams of scared guys who stood absolutely no chance against the Black Canary. Even without being there, Mia could see it before her inner eye. Every grunt and scream from a goon resonated with an attack from Zoe in Mia's mind.

There was nobody outside her biological family whose fighting style Mia knew better than Zoe Ramirez, beside Lian Harper. She'd grown up with them, trained with them, been a Bird of Prey with them. And they had both returned to Star City with her, when she had found her calling in being Green Arrow. Because Green Arrow needed a Black Canary, according to Zoe, and a Queen would be lost without a Harper, according to Lian. And Mia couldn't argue with either of them.

"Hey, you hanging out here often?"

Mia rolled her eyes and looked up at Lian as her friend crouched down next to her. Lian's costume was dark-red leather, reminiscent of her father Roy's costume as Red Arrow. Bright, fire-y red curls cascaded out of the dark-red hood of Lian's costume, an identity-cover Lian had picked up during their time in Gotham City from Batwoman. Much like she had picked up her hero identity in Gotham City, taking on the mantle Red Hood from Roy's friend Jason Todd. She hadn't liked the idea of there being two Arrows at the same time, Green Arrow and Red Arrow, she also hadn't wanted her own father's legacy in that way, instead reinventing Red Hood for herself.

"Yeah, the club I originally wanted to go to was just too lame," Mia joked half-heartedly. "So I figured I'd hang out here, at this abandoned old manufacture, that seemed like fun."

"Same!" Lian grinned, bumping shoulders with her.

"If the two of you are done joking around, I'm done with the clean-up and ready to meet-up with you," Zoe, always the professional. "Ready to meet you from the other side."

Mia and Lian exchanged a look and nodded at each other before splitting up. The target was in the office up in the old manufacture. Three entrance points; the window behind his desk, the ceiling light from which Mia and Lian were currently watching him and the door to which a staircase led from where Zoe had just taken out the last of the guy's goons.

Mia prepared her grappling hook to swing in sideways through the window, take the guy by surprise, while Lian would take the ceiling window. Once Mia was in position, she tapped her earpiece and then gave the signal for her team to go ahead.

Glass shattered, raining down from above and behind the man as Mia and Lian came in hard, the door busting open with Zoe's artificial sonic-scream. Their target – a crime-boss who had used the power-vacuum between Green Arrows to quickly grow his empire, dealing weapons and drugs and smuggling young women – screamed in fear before reaching for his gun. It wasn't enough, not against all three of them, and not without any backup of his own. They'd taken out all his bodyguards and henchmen quickly and quietly, working their way up to the boss.

"Martino Armati, you have failed this city," Mia's voice sounded more sure than she felt.

She had the man pinned to the ground, above him she could see the smiles both Zoe and Lian offered her at that. They tied the man up and placed him upon the heaps of evidence in the office. On their way out, they passed the henchmen Zoe had left downstairs.

"Overwatch, everything is taken care of, you can call in Detective Lawrence and Detective Diggle."

"Got it, Green Arrow," a pause, and Mia could imagine the stupid proud big brother smile on William's face. "Well done, team. This one has been a sore in Star City's side for a while."

Lian chuckled and wrapped her arms around Zoe and Mia on either side, steering them along and out of the factory before the police would arrive. Not that John Junior would be a problem, but Mia found his partner a bit annoying and after they'd spent the past twenty hours on this job, she would much rather not deal with the guy. Once they were around the block, Lian retreated her arms.

"This is where I'll leave you guys. I am severely craving a burger right now. See you at home."

"Thanks for the fight," Mia lifted her hand for a final fist-bump. "See you later."

It was quiet without Lian as Zoe and Mia walked for just another block. Not speaking, not touching, until they rounded the corner into another alley. And as if on cue, both looked up at each other. In the darkness of this alley, more secluded than the ways they had come, all alone now, the adrenaline of the fight ebbing down, they turned toward each other. Mia tilted her head and entangled her fingers in the weird criss-cross pattern of Zoe's dark-blue leather-top – she was convinced the only purpose of that criss-cross pattern was for her to put her fingers in it to pull Zoe in for kisses. Zoe smirked against her lips just before they kissed, deep and slow and long. It didn't take long for Zoe to move against Mia though, pushing her against the wall and pinning her.

/Next Morning, Queen Estate\

Oliver Queen was in a very good phase in his life, if someone were to ask him. He was married to the best woman he had ever met, the love of his life who had made him a better man for it. He'd worked hard as the Green Arrow to make Star City better and he thought he had done good, but now he was working hard to make Star City better in a very different way, as the mayor of the city. Not only was he happily married but he had four children, three of them with the love of his life and even though Felicity wasn't William's biological mother she had never loved him any less than their children together, which only made Oliver love her even more.

At this point in their life, they were even blessed to be grandparents, which admittedly, Oliver was still struggling with a little bit. He loved it! Loved his grandchildren! To wrap his head around it though, around the fact that William was a married man himself, had children himself?

"Good morning," Oliver rounded the corner into the kitchen.

"Morning, dad, coffee's nearly ready. You'll wanna sit down before you read the newspaper."

A soft smile spread over Oliver's lips as he looked at his youngest daughter, Megan. She was studying to become a doctor and between the exhaustion of her time-consuming studies and the potential of running her own household, and the sheer pointlessness of getting a separate place while they had this large mansion, she was living with Oliver and Felicity still. Though Oliver also felt as though she was keeping an eye on them, for her siblings. Out of the four Smoak Queen siblings, Megan looked the most like Oliver – she had a lot of Moira's features and she had Oliver's eyes. Walking over to her, he brushed her blonde curls back and kissed the top of her head.

"Good mo—orning."

Felicity dragged the o out with a yawn, stretching wide as she walked into the room. She look so tired, her shirt inside out as she walked over to the coffee maker to fill the biggest mug they had, before sitting down at the table. Moments later, Megan walked over to her to place a plate in front of her and kiss her cheek. Always watching out for her mother.

"Morning, mom. Did you pull another all-nighter? You know that you have work hours."

"Wasn't for Smoak Industries," Felicity yawned again and drank from her coffee. "Other work."

"I feel like there was this compromise we made," despite his words, Oliver couldn't help but smile. "There was a point to Connor becoming Green Arrow and William becoming Overwatch, and that point was both of us stepping down from the hero business, mh?"

Felicity made a face that scrunched up her nose in a cute manner and Oliver couldn't resist leaning in kissing her. "I couldn't help it! Babs texted me. Babs, okay? She's retired too! But something caught her attention and… It was just hacker-work, you know. Not going out into the night physically fighting dangerous people. Just… three old friends, having some… fun."

"Three," Oliver raised one eyebrow. "So you two called Chloe too, mh?"

"The OG Oracle, Overwatch and Watchtower back together. For old time's sake."

"We—ell, you weren't the only one who got up to something last night…"

There was something in her voice that was either mischief or concern and the fact that Oliver couldn't tell them apart was concerning. Megan unfolded the newspaper and slid it across the table to lay between Oliver and Felicity. On the front page, Mia and Zoe – in their full costume, so more accurately, Green Arrow and Black Canary – kissing each other. The headline read ROMANCE BETWEEN STAR CITY'S FINEST? Oliver furrowed his brows as he stared at it for a while, scanned the article, and then looked up at his wife. Felicity's lips were pursed.

"Did we… know about this?" Oliver asked tentatively.

He was aware that Mia and Zoe lived together, but they were also living together with Lian, so he'd assumed that was a simple logistics thing for the team, practicality. Friendship. However, Oliver also wasn't exactly the fastest or most observant when it came to these kind of things. It had taken him a while to figure out that William and Connor were more than friends. Oliver kept thinking that William had a thing for Jon Kent, to which William back then had just given him a flat 'that's Superboy. Every gay kid has a thing for Superboy', which hadn't… helped Oliver much.

"So—o…" Felicity drawled the word out, her cheeks puffing up cutely. "I knew that, Dinah and Laurel knew about that, I don't think that you knew, and it's not that I kept it from you exactly but Mia never really told me, we kind of… more or less walked in on her and Zoe before when we helped the Birds of Prey out with something. We never really… talked about it though. I didn't want to push it, I figured she'd tell me when she was ready. So far… she wasn't really… ready…"

"Mh," Oliver nodded, feeling a little better that he hadn't been left out. "Do you… I mean, why do you think that is? William is gay and we handled that well, right? We've been… supportive parents. It wouldn't have just been an assumption that we'd be supportive, she's seen us be supportive of her brother for all her life. Did we… give her the feeling that this wouldn't be the case with her?"

"Okay, gotta stop you there, dad," Megan piped up, her voice gentle. "Mia's coming out? Not about you. When or how she'd tell you, or why she didn't tell you, isn't… about you. And you can't make that about you. And… being supportive of one sexuality…"

Megan paused and pursed her lips in the same manner as her mom did when she was thinking about something, and it looked as cute on her as it did on Felicity. "Being a gay man or a lesbian are… different experiences and they face different prejudices and different oppression too. I'm not saying that you have anything against her being a lesbian, I'm just trying to explain to you that seeing someone of one sector of the queer community be supported doesn't automatically mean another identity will also be welcomed. Think about Connor and what he told you?"

"Right," Oliver leaned back in his chair, reaching out for Felicity's hand.

She linked fingers with him, gently caressing him. It'd been some time after William and Connor had gotten together, after they'd gotten engaged even, that Connor had come out to Oliver as asexual. They'd been alone on a rooftop, he'd been… nervous. Awkward. Over time, he'd grown more comfortable. And he'd told Oliver about intersectionality – his intersectionality as a black queer man, but also as a gay and ace man, because even among other gay men, when they learned he was ace, he had been met with less than favorable opinions. People who thought him less queer for it, less deserving of being a member of the community for it.

"And that's, again, that's not about you. That doesn't mean she thinks you love her less for being a lesbian or anything. I don't know what it means. I don't know why she hasn't come out to you. I just know that you can't make that reason about you, okay?"

There was such a gentle smile on Felicity's lips as she pulled Megan close enough to hug her. "I am so proud of you, you know that, sweetie? Don't think I'm not noticing what you're doing."

Megan tried to duck out. "I'm not doing anything. I'm having breakfast with my parents."

"You're doing the emotional labor so Mia doesn't have to have this conversation with us."

/The Same Time, the Hawke Clayton Home\

Connor had gotten approximately two hours of sleep last night, which was a lit for him. The twins were teething. Both of them. Now, Connor loved them, dearly, but this was a challenge and he honestly thought that going out as Green Arrow every night had been easier and less exhausting.

"Mornin', babe," Connor grunted, wrapping his arms around Will from behind.

He kissed the top of Will's head and then rested his chin on top of it, nose buried in the fluff of Will's soft hair. He loved that hair. So soft. Slowly, Connor's eyelids closed again and he felt like he could fall asleep standing right there. A hand came up to rest on top of Connor's, patting them.

"Good morning, Con," Will tilted his head back to rest against Connor's chest. "So… you… haven't been on the Arrow Fam group chat yet?"

"I barely got up," Connor frowned. "Don't know if I am up to Thea complaining about whatever Young Justice did this time. They're adults now. That they're still such a tight-knit bunch is wild."

"It's not about aunt Thea," Will paused. "So Mia and Zoe got… caught on camera kissing. And now they're all over the news. The… epic romance of Green Arrow and Black Canary. And we've been discussing who should go and talk to Mia. Jonas is still off-planet with Diggle and the other Green Lanterns, so he volunteered 'literally any other family member who's actually on Earth'. Megan says she already took over talking to mom and dad so someone else gets this one. Lian said 'literally anyone but dad', which Roy and Thea reacted to with a thumbs up. I kinda volunteered you. And everybody liked that suggestion. So…"

"Okay."

"Huh," Will tilted his head so he could look at his husband. "That took little convincing."

"I make the most sense. I think want to talk to her about this. You tend to be a bit too much the… fluffy cuddly big brother teddy bear and… your sister isn't into that."

Will smiled up at him and leaned in to kiss him on the corner of his mouth. "And that is why I love you and why you are the best husband, and clearly brother-in-law, in the world. Thanks you."

/The Quiver, later that day\

By the time Connor got to the Quiver, he could hear the grunts of an angry Mia and the sounds of her hitting something. She was wearing black shorts and a dark-green tank-top that was already soaked in sweat, her muscles tense as she worked herself to the bone. Now that, Connor recognized. The way she worked through her emotions by working her body to exhaustion. He'd seen that when he'd still been Green Arrow, when she'd been Black Star, a rebellious young woman who had worked with the Birds of Prey as much as with Team Arrow and on her own.

"Hey there, Speedy."

"Don't," Mia looked up at him with the fiercest glare. "Don't call me that. I'm not a kid anymore."

The most crooked grin spread over his face. But he also still remembered that. When she'd tried to be a sidekick for the first time, as a little girl, copying Lian who had taken her father's mantle as Speedy back then already. Now, as an adult woman, Mia was embarrassed about the bright red and yellow outfit, about the child sidekick idea. Connor chuckled and caught the punching bag, holding it into place, forcing Mia to take a break. Her breath was labored as she glared up at him.

"Did my brother send you to talk to me?"

"It was actually a unanimous vote from all three of your siblings," Connor offered casually. "But I would have come even if they hadn't asked me to, Mia. Because we're family. And I-"

"No, don't get sentimental on me, I don't want to-"

Before she could finish her sentence, he lifted his hands up in surrender, letting go of the punching bag in the process. "Copy that. Not in the mood to talk, in the mood to punch. Feel like punching someone who can punch back, instead of punching a bag?"

That had Mia perk up some and nod. Like he didn't know her. Like she wasn't one of his oldest friends, part of his family, his sister – not by blood, not by adoption, but his sister nonetheless. He'd married into this family and he had been welcomed into it and though him and Ollie had had a rocky, awkward start, Felicity and Mia in particular had become so close to him. Jonas and Connor had a peculiar relationship, considering they had become each other's father's legacies – Jonas becoming a Green Lantern, Connor becoming Green Arrow. While Connor and Megan weren't really close at all, they had nothing in common, their lives grew into different directions.

/break\

For an hour, the two Green Arrows went hard at it without speaking. Only breathless grunts and the occasional groan of pain when a hit landed a little too well could be heard in the Quiver. That was the thing that Mia appreciated about Connor; he actually could stay quiet. They all had the Smoak gene – even William, who wasn't even genetically a Smoak but had been raised by Felicity for so long that nurture led to nature in his case – and they tended to have the need to fill the silence.

"It's not even the fact that we got photographed that bothers me so much."

She was leaning heavily against Connor and just like that, their sparring ended. Both panting, but Connor remaining quiet. Waiting for her to continue. They stood there, like that. Her leaning against him, him supporting her, waiting. The tenseness remained in her muscles, still ready to fight.

"It's the pay allos saw us kissing and just. Saw romance," Mia growled softly and leaned her forehead against Connor's shoulder. "It's this fucking Disney brainwashing. Kissing means romance! True Love's Kiss! Everyone seeks their ultimate romantic match. Everything is about romance. Kissing is literally just physical. Kissing means different things; you kiss your parents, your friends. Even allos kiss their one-night-stands too, doesn't mean they want to get married, does it? So why does aromanormativity always instinctively kick in with these things?"

"I don't know," Connor replied honestly, wrapping one arm around her shoulders in comfort. "I really don't know. Same reason I don't know why people are so invested in whether or not I have sex. Why it matters to some people so uncomfortably much that I don't want to. That I don't feel sexual attraction and don't have the urge to act on that either. Some people are… too focused on their own experiences and narrowed their world view to that. They don't consider the possibility of other views even just… existing. Theirs is the default, to them, for everyone."

"Guess so," Mia huffed and pushed against Connor, stepping away from him some.

She went over to where her water-bottle was standing. Connor followed her, to sit down with her.

"You know what you can do though."

"Mh," Mia made a face. "You really think it'd matter? Change? Help?"

"You really think it wouldn't?"

It was the gentle force of his words that left Mia without words for it. "I don't know. I just… coming out… Am I the kind of person to make a public thing about it?"

"I'm sorry to tell you but… it is a public thing already," Connor's smile was crooked. "And I can't tell you if you are the person but I also think that… maybe you have to think of other people. You asked if it'll matter, change or help. And I think it does, every time. Every time one of us comes out in public, stands true with our community in costume and lets bigots know that our community is protected by heroes, heroes who are part of that community, and lets the members of our community know that… that we're like that, that… Representation matters, Mia. You know that. You know that. Alan Scott matters to the gay community. Kate Kane matters to the lesbian community. Diana Kent matters to the bisexual community. Nia Nal matters to the trans community. I matter to the ace community. I know that, I've seen that. I see that."

Mia tilted her head, looking up at him near unsure from beneath her lashes. "Yeah?"

"Oh come on, like you never googled yourself," Connor huffed, looking only mildly embarrassed. "But yeah. Yeah. When I… especially when I feel suffocated by bigots and their shit, I do seek out the people I have helped. Not by directly saving them as a hero, but by showing them that they can be a hero. It's something Wally West and Jackson Hyde taught me, actually, about what it means for us as black men. When they'd felt that way about being black superheroes, they started looking at the black kids who look up at them to feel a different kind of strength. And… I applied it to my asexuality. It was… different. Overwhelming."

"Yeah?" Mia's voice sounded smaller this time.

"Yeah," Connor laughed, voice a little shaky. "I mean, I was a black kid! I know what it was like looking at the news and admiring mom and dad… admiring Green Lantern and Vixen, even before they adopted me. Signal and Black Lightning, before I ever got to meet them in person. I remember the awe of looking at these amazing heroes who looked like me and saved the world. But before me, there was never an out ace hero, so I didn't… reading about these kids sharing their stories, drawing art of me with the ace flag, expressing how proud they were that we shared a community. It felt different, because I never experienced this from the other end. I… was the first hero these kids got to see who made them feel seen. Who made them feel… real."

"So… you think I should… do it. For others' sake."

"No," Connor's answer was quick. "Your coming out is about you and it should be about you. You should do it for your own sake. Because others writing about your romance makes you feel angry and violent and that's not healthy. But… I do think that… being that inspiration for others isn't exactly just about others, it's also about you."

There was a long beat of silence as Mia thought about his words. She knew he was right, of course she did. Kate Kane being an out and proud lesbian and being so unapologetic about it had meant so much to her, to other lesbians too. And that went for every queer hero she saw, every open lesbian hero she knew about, but just generally seeing bi and pan women together made her feel as seen just on a sapphic level. She knew that every single one of them was so important. And on that same level, she knew that she was important. Even if she maybe didn't want to be.

/that evening, Queen Estate\

Mia heaved a tired sigh and ran her fingers through her hair, still slightly damp from her shower. At least she'd cleaned up before going to see her parents. Her legs carried her toward her parents' office – the mansion was big enough that they could have separate offices, and though Felicity had a separate lab for her more practical experiments, the two loved sharing space too much so they shared an office, with two desks, working in each other's space. True to her suspicion, she found both of them in their office, brooding over their respective laptops.

"Hey, parents."

"Mia," Felicity smiled and was out of her chair in a moment. "How are you, sweetie?"

She cupped her daughter's face before bringing her in for a hug. Mia noted the way her dad lingered just a little behind. Giving her some space. He was good at that, had always been good at that. Walking up to him, Mia was the one to initiate the hug. She buried herself in his chest just a little.

"There anything… you wanted to talk to us about, kiddo?"

Mia sighed at that and walked over to sit on the couch in the corner. For a moment, she was overcome with memories of her childhood. Of being so very, very tiny and sitting on this couch, coloring while her parents were working. Going to elementary school and doing homework while her mom did Overwatch work from home. Even of sitting at her dad's desk herself, doing homework as a teen while watching over her younger siblings who were on this couch.

"I'm sure you saw… the picture, of me and Zoe, in the newspaper."

"We… did," Felicity nodded, but turned to look at Oliver.

The way those two could just communicate entirely without words. Generally, the way they looked at each other. There was a reason why Mia had never come out to them. The epitome of romantic love, Oliver and Felicity Queen. She'd seen them live the example her entire life and she'd always thought 'one day'. One day, she would be old enough to want this too. She was just too young. But at one point, she had gotten too old to believe that any longer.

"Me and Zoe are… a thing," Mia replied. "But we're not in a… romantic relationship."

"Okay," Oliver made just the slightest face. "So this wasn't something you wanted to come forward with because it's nothing serious, between the two of you?"

That was the 'dad doesn't really want to know or think about his kids having sex' face. Which was entirely fair, if she was being honest, she didn't want him to know about that either. Groaning softly, she covered her face, rubbing it slowly to sooth herself.

"No. That's… not…" Mia struggled to find the word. "What we have is serious. It's just not… not romantic. We're in a queerplatonic relationship. I'm a lesbian. But I'm also aromantic. I… don't… feel romantic attraction. The same way Connor doesn't feel sexual attraction. So I don't seek a romantic relationship. Zoe knows that, and is cool with that. And what we have… works for us."

"Oh," Felicity looked at her with that doe-eyed expression. "Okay. I'll admit, I didn't see that coming, but that does explain why you never said anything after, you know, me and Laurel and Dinah walked in on you two. And I'm glad you're telling us about this, even though I have to admit I'm not entirely understanding all of it so I'll have a lot of reading up to do and also I think now a lot of what Meggie said this morning does make… a lot more sense."

Of course did Megan try and prepare them. Maybe Mia should go buy her sister a cake tomorrow. Or something. She'd always been in Mia's corner. A small smile, as Mia nodded at her mom.

"We love you, Mia," Oliver's voice was as fierce and firm as ever, his eyes filled with determination at the declaration. "And we'll always love you. And support you. Whatever you want to do about this – the newspaper announcement – we're right by your side and do whatever we can to help."

"Thanks, dad," the smile on Mia's lips grew, just a little. "Maybe the Green Arrow could use the mayor's help on one thing. I think I could use a press conference."

Oliver smiled at her and nodded. "You got it, kiddo."

/that night, the home of Zoe, Mia and Lian\

This day had been entirely too long and Mia was ready to simply collapse and fall asleep but she knew she had one more conversation ahead of her that she had maybe been putting off the longest. Because Mia knew she'd just kind of ran out this morning, even though she was aware that Zoe also had feelings on this. And perhaps those feelings were why she'd run out too.

"Look what the cat dragged in," Lian sounded snarky but playful.

When Mia got deep enough into the apartment to see her roommates in the living room, she was also relieved to find take out decked out on the table in front of Zoe and Lian on the couch. Before she allowed herself to plop down with them though, she searched Zoe's face.

"O—Okay, guess I'll, I don't know, go and get some ice-cream? Very… very… slowly?"

Lian looked awkwardly between Zoe and Mia before she made her way into the kitchen. Leaving them alone. Ruffling her hair, Mia turned just a little away from Zoe, which made Zoe huff.

"Got it all out of your system, then?"

"I just-" Mia gritted her teeth.

"You don't like when people assume we're a couple. I know you don't like that label," Zoe's voice was very calm, there was no bite or accusation to it, or to the look on her face. "I know that. And that multiple news outlets were talking about our relationship and 'epic romance' was… a lot."

Mia visibly relaxed at that. "I'm sorry I ran out. This… wasn't just about me though. It's… our relationship though, even if how they label it was wrong. It's about us. And… it was wrong to run away like it's just about me."

Zoe offered a crooked grin and reached out to grab Mia's hand and pulled her down onto the couch. "It's all good. You dealt with it your way. I… dealt with it my way. I went to Dinah's bar and talked to Dinah and Laurel pretty much… all day long, honestly. And I know that wouldn't have been what would have helped you, but it was what helped me. So… Yeah, I would have appreciated if you had talked to me first before leaving, but… I also know you and I know why you ran off, okay?"

"I love that about you," Mia couldn't help but grin at that. "So we're… good?"

Because she did. She loved Zoe, she loved Zoe a lot. She just wasn't in love with Zoe. She'd never been in love, she'd never felt that flutter of butterflies or whatever it was supposed to be. Never wanted to share her life. She loved sharing her bed with Zoe, and also spending time with her as a friend the way she did with Lian and Connor too. But sitting on each other 24/7 the way she saw it with her parents, or Connor and William? It took so… exhausting and suffocating to her. Dating, all the extreme affection. Sex, she understood, the physical. The fuzzies? Not so much.

Zoe shrugged. "We are good, with each other. With the world? Debatable. Like, I think we actually do have to debate what we do about that and we should do that together, yeah?"

"Oh, yeah. Absolutely. And I actually had an idea…"

That was when Lian yelled out to them. "I'm not hearing shouting, does that mean I can stop pretending to get ice-cream because I'm actually hungry and dinner is probably getting cold?"

/the next day, Star City City Hall\

Zoe and Mia were in full costume, and they weren't alone. Lian and even Connor were standing with them also in costume. Team Arrow, minus Overwatch who never showed his face. Mia stood front and center though, with Zoe at her side, Lian and Connor flanking them slightly behind.

"There are things about our relationship that we wanted to clarify," Mia spoke up, once they had the attention of everyone gathered at the press conference. "And… I want to clarify something about myself. I am a lesbian. But I'm also aromantic. So I would… appreciate it, if you'd refrain from referring from our relationship as 'romance', because that's not what it is. It's not who I am."

Oh, that felt weird. That felt strange to say. She felt kind of blurry herself for just saying it. It felt like the entire interview took her over, blurting together. She wasn't even sure what she was saying, and she was glad that she had Zoe beside her, being more eloquent after the start. She started feeling panicked, like she was oversharing, like this was too private, nobody cared, nobody needed to know this, should know this, it was dumb to say this in public, why was she doing this. She should just leave it at that, let them say whatever. People were looking at her, kept asking for clarification like they didn't even understand what aromantic meant and urgh, too many people still didn't, but she didn't want to have to explain it, she wasn't a queer dictionary. It wasn't her job to teach people.

And then the awful horrible no good ordeal ended and… there was a giant green arrow over her, glowing. Like a confirmation. A reassurance, that she was the Green Arrow, whatever was happening here. Nobody could take that away from her. And when she tilted her head back and following the glowing arrow's light, it led to a ring attached to the finger of a blonde Green Lantern. He grinned and winked at her as he flew up to fall in line with Connor and Lian.

"Hey, figured you could use some… additional back-up," Jonas whispered.

"What are you doing here," Mia asked back as softly, while Zoe was answering questions. "I thought you were in deep space with Diggle?"

"Used the puppy dog eyes on Hal Jordan," Jonas smirked and shrugged. "I am irresistibly cute. Also I'm like Barry's favorite godson so if the puppy dog eyes fail, usually the 'I'll tell Barry you left me behind' usually works because Hal doesn't like Barry's kicked puppy dog eyes."

Mia snorted and resisted the urge to ruffle her little brother's hair. "...Thank you. For coming."

"You know I'll always manage to be there when you need me, sis."

/the next morning, the home of Zoe, Mia and Lian\

Mia stretched out, feeling oddly satisfied when she woke up. Okay. Maybe getting it off her chest had done something. Even though she expected some various levels of outfall from it too. After a quick shower, she headed into the kitchen, where she found both Lian and Zoe sitting at the table with amused looks on their faces. Well, that was rarely a good sign.

"What's… with the looks?"

"You're either going to laugh with us, or you will make an irritated call to National City."

With these words did Zoe turn her tablet over toward Mia, which only added to Mia's confusion, until Mia read the open tab on it. CatCo's front page article, featuring a picture of Zoe and Mia from the press conference yesterday, but it was the headline that did it.

GREEN ARO & BLACK CANARY: Star City's Finest Come Out.

Mia narrowed her eyes and though she didn't have to check, she still found herself looking at the author. By Lara Kent. Of course. Of course it was by Lara Kent. Who else. Holding up one finger at her roommates, Mia walked out to return to her bedroom and get her phone. It kept ringing the whole way back to the kitchen, and Mia didn't even act surprised when she found both Jonas and Megan sitting at the kitchen table by the time she returned. Because when Jonas was back on Earth, he loved abusing his ring powers for silly things. And she wasn't going to complain about some squeezed in sibling time. This time, she didn't resist ruffling Jonas' hair though.

"Lara Kent, star journalist."

"Green A-r-o. Really," Mia sounded the most deadpan. "That's so lame."

"Shut up!" Lara squeaked offended. "It is an absolutely genius pun! Don't even try to deny it! Aro and Arrow are phonetically so close! Plus, Green Arrow. But the aro flag is green. It's perfect. It's genius, don't act like it's not the greatest gay pun you have ever heard! You're just mad you didn't come up with it and are super lame, just going by Green Arrow."

"I'm hanging up," Mia stuck her tongue out at her phone. "I am so hanging up, shut up."

~*~ The End ~*~