Description: Your gaze didn't have to linger on Artemis the way it did for her to step forward, notching two arrows in her bow and giving you a playful smile, "I'll cover you."

Request: Hey it's the anon who had the YJ question, could you please write an Artemis x female! reader? One where the reader is a sidekick of Black Canary who tries how to ask Artemis out in vietnamese, which she spent ages practicing. Unfortunately, Artemis doesn't understand, either from bad pronunciation or Artemis simply not knowing the language- since they don't specify in the show! Which leads to awkward cuteness. Thank you so much and sorry it's so long!

Words: 1787

Notes: I love Artemis more than the sub my mom is planning to bring me. I love Dinah Lancedsalhasdlkhgirls

_

"I mean, how did you do it?" you asked.

Dinah Lance looked you over, trying desperately to hide her laughter beneath a decisive frown. There was a note of wistfulness in her walk; here was her little Hummingbird, chittering nervously about girls, dancing from foot-to-foot in an anxious hop that reminded Dinah so much of the bird. She could have sworn that you were ten years old a couple of months ago, eyes wide and awe-filled, "You want me to be your partner, Dinah...? Really? Are you sure?"

"Well, it wasn't really me. Oliver had been asking to go out with me every day for a year, and eventually, I just said yes," Dinah shrugged.

This didn't seem to help you much. Your feet only bobbed faster to catch up with her long strides. At least that's still the same, Dinah thought, picturing you in your old costume as your little legs raced to keep in time with hers. She'd been so wary about training you at the time, but thinking about it from your perspective must have been ridiculous. You were strong and tall and capable now. Regardless, Dinah would still see the little girl with her matching Canary jacket and her green-blue tights.

"Why?" Y/N asked, "I mean, I know you love Oliver and everything—but why then?"

"Because, like you said: I realized I loved him." Dinah smirked, "But just between you and me, all the asking was starting to get a little annoying."

A smile flashed across your face, but it faded fast enough to make Dinah stop in the middle of the Watchtower's corridor. There was a moment where you turned away from her in favor of staring at the Earth below. Dinah joined you quickly, and in unison you approached the glass wall that displayed the planet you protected beneath.

She gave you a minute to breathe. Sometimes the world was just too loud for you, and Dinah knew above anyone how much you valued silence and the need to feel small. You always looked at your problems like they were the end of the world. Sometimes they were, sometimes they were pretty damn close, but more often than not you just needed to see how big the world was and let the confidence flood you. Dinah gave you that breath, then moved in.

"Hey," Dinah said. She wrapped an arm around you, pulling you into her side and patting the three tiny, colorful birds on your jacket, "Think about it this way: You know that she likes girls. You know that she likes spending time with you, and you know that there's not a lot stacked against you here. Even if she just wants to remain friends, then this will prove how strong that friendship is, right? If she doesn't, then look at you! You've got a great girlfriend and a happy relationship."

"Yeah," you said. "Yeah," you repeated, "I can do this. Any idea on how?"

"Well, what are you good at?" Dinah questioned.

You pulled a smug face, "Uh, beating the shit out of people? Impressing people with how smart and fast I am? I'm smart and fast?"

"Don't get carried away," Dinah laughed, pleased to hear you join her, "But... you could use that. She sees you beat up people every day, yeah, but you could try impressing her. All you need for that is you."

"Thank you, Dinah. I think I'll do something along those lines," you turned in her arm and hugged her, finding an incredible relief in being held in return. It was like being hugged by your mom. You were being hugged by your mom.

"You're the best."

"Suck up."

"Am not."

"Am too."

"I don't think that's a correct English phrase, D."

"Then I'll try another language."

"..."

"Holy shi—that's it!"

___

"They're running," Kaldur'ahm said, speaking as if he was informing you what he had for lunch.

No one in the group of teens made a move to chase after the villains. Dick only huffed, clearly displeased that they'd escaped his "master binding", making no move to order someone to follow them. In his defense, it was only Firefly and Killer Moth—Conner and M'Gann had nabbed them during the team's mission, and had been (quite literally) dragging them around all day. You watched their retreat with a sigh.

"Is no one going to go get them?" You asked.

Everyone around you gave non-committed grumbles, some looking over each other and pointing exhausted fingers. Dick chuckled, "They can't go far. But if you want to...?"

You searched the faces of your comrades to see if any of them were going to join you. Your gaze didn't have to linger on Artemis the way it did for her to step forward, notching two arrows in her bow and giving you a playful smile, "I'll cover you."

"Thanks," you said. Someone snickered when you turned your reddening face out of view, and you made sure to kick up a little dust in their direction when you took off running.

You were no Wally when it came to speed, but you had very short bursts of it where it appeared that you were flitting very quickly back and forth; it was the reason you were called Hummingbird. This was no supernatural or man-made ability, either. You were just fast. Very fast.

Firefly and Killer Moth ran the length of the street, looking down alleyways and trying to cling to the crowds surrounding the situation the team was handling. It didn't do them well, as two full-grown men wearing villain costumes tend to make people scatter. One of them had managed to get their hands on a gun from the task-force helping your teammates, and was now firing haphazardly in your direction.

"The little bastard is so fast!" Said Moth.

"Shut up and run!" Firefly retorted.

Leaping up onto a car, you rolled to the roof of a truck and ran along the length of it in order to avoid the crowd. There was the familiar fire of an arrow from Artemis' bow, and Firefly fell into the street in a mess of green netting. You gave Moth no chance to get more than a shot in. He swung around just as you jumped from the truck and fired at you when you landed. Flitting out of the way of it, you punched him full force and knocked him out with the throw.

You began the usual routine. The crowd settled down, making room for you and Artemis to do your work. She picked up the arrow that had launched the net and returned it to her quiver, then laid a heavy boot on Firefly's chest.

"Nice hit."

"Nice aim."

You were proud of yourself; it was one of the first times you had managed not to stutter around her. In the last weeks you'd been jumpier around her than usual, as never before did you stutter around your best friend, nor did you blush so deeply. It was truly frustrating, but not hard to understand.

Artemis dragged Firefly to your side, dropping down on her knee to cuff and net him too. You were hit by her perfume and had to catch yourself before you began to sway. That damn perfume, that damn smell, and it always seemed to be all over for you. You could ask her right now. You had been practicing ever since Dinah mentioned it, and you were confident you had it down and could tell her... Until that smell hit you. You didn't even know what it was, but it was wooden and creamy and made you want to play with her platinum hair.

"Art-Artemis?" You posed tentatively.

Dammit.

"Yeah, hot-shot?"

Double dammit.

With a deep inhale, you quickly spilled your guts to her in the fastest Vietnamese you probably would ever speak, "[I just wanted to say that I like you a lot, for a long time. You're the most beautiful woman I've ever had the honor of meeting, you're so cool and nice and scary, and I was wondering if you would like to go out with me?]"

Artemis swung around, hair swishing and arrows rattling in her quiver. Her chocolate eyes had blown wide, lips parted and fists curling and uncurling in mid-air, as if she was going to reach out for you. The air around you turned to ice and your blood curdled. Oh no.

"What did you just say about my mom?"

Oh no oh no oh no.

"I'm—I'm sorry, I just wanted to say that Ilikeyoualot and I—uh, sorta used an a sorta-unreliable website to learn howtosayit, so if I totallybuturedit I'm sososo sorry and I hope you can understand—!"

Artemis' round face was now rounded stone. You were suddenly not prepared at all for rejection, for total embarrassment, but were now entirely ready for the Earth to swallow you whole and the sweet release of death that it would give. Your mind had gone blank but for the sensation of the blood pulsing in your ears and up your neck, beating so hard under your skin it had begun to choke you—

"...You know I'm kidding, right?"

You sat in flustered silence for several seconds, which spanned a thousand years of you cursing yourself internally. Wildly, your hands flew up to your face, and you shook your head so hard it practically rolled off of your shoulders. "No... I didn't... yeah, no... That was stupid of me..."

Calloused hands pulled your palms from your face. Artemis squeezed your wrists, flashing a grin. The caterpillars in your stomach instantly turned to butterflies the moment her face appeared between your hands. When she did not release your wrists, a pink tint brushing against her skin, the butterflies burst into flower petals that you awkwardly choked on.

"You're not stupid. You're pretty brave, actually—I don't think anyone's asked me out like that before," Artemis grinned. Picking up the netting of one of your captors, she began to drag him along the street and back towards the team. She beamed at you over her shoulder, "That's a [yes], by the way."

You watched her go, the blush on your face as unwavering as the setting sun. A happiness, a relief, had settled into your stomach, driven there both by her yes and the extremely Artemis way in which she went about it. Her perfume seemed to be clouding your vision, and you may have let out a dreamy little sigh that only dreamers with fulfilled dreams can make.

"Hey, so are we going to go, or what?" Firefly asked.

You held the spot on your wrist that she touched, sighing, "Shut up and let me enjoy this."