Luz's phone buzzed with a silent alarm. She silenced it as quickly as she could. She went to the bathroom to take a short shower, then quickly and quietly made her way to the kitchen to make breakfast for herself and Amity. She cracked some gryphon eggs and started heating a pan to make pancakes. Luz separated the eggs and added some of Amity's favorite meats from the Boiling Isles to her half. The smell of cooking food drifted down the hall and rapidly filled the apartment. Soon, amity appeared in the kitchen, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Her lavender hair was sticking up at odd angles, as she didn't have time to make herself up.
"Morning sleepyhead." Luz smiled and kissed Amity's cheek.
"Morning." Amity yawned. "What's the occasion?"
"No occasion. Can't a girl decide to make breakfast for her long time girlfriend of six years on a day neither of them have any major plans?" Luz said with a smile she hoped was convincing.
"Mhmm." Amity arched her eyebrow. "Whatever the reason, I'm happy for it. Breakfast smells amazing!"
A few minutes later the couple were sitting at their dining table. The eggs and pancakes were both perfectly fluffy, and the coffee each woman sipped was hot and energizing. They talked about the dreams they'd had the night before. Luz's involving a talking slitherbeast sending her on a quest, and Amity's being one where she got ready for work and went through her day only to wake up. After the meal, Amity sat back in her chair with a satisfied sigh.
"That was so good, mi batata." Amity smiled. "Now, are you going to tell me what you've got planned today or am I going to have to drag it out of you?"
"You caught me." Luz chuckled. "I may have an all day date planned since neither of us have anything going on today."
Amity smiled at her girlfriend. "I love it. What's first on the agenda?"
"I was thinking we could watch the new Azura movie together, then swing over to the human realm to visit my mom for a bit. She'll probably insist we stay for lunch." Luz said with an affectionate chuckle.
"A good start, I miss Camila." Amity smiled.
"After that, we'll head over to the carnival that's in town where I may or may not be planning to win you a prize." Luz said with an air of mystery, causing Amity to chuckle. "The last thing on the agenda is a secret."
"I'm intrigued." Amity said. "Do you want help cleaning up?"
"No, I've got it. You pop the popcorn." Luz kissed Amity's cheek and began clearing their plates.
After the dishes were cleared and corn popped, the two settled on the couch. As the opening sequence ran, Amity leaned her head on Luz's shoulder and cuddled up close. The newest Azura movie had been released straight to video and streaming. Foregoing a theatrical release, they knew it did not bode well. However, they were die hard fans to the end and would watch it regardless.
"That was certainly... a movie." Luz said as the credits rolled up the screen. "What did you think?"
Luz leaned away as she saw a her girlfriend's tomato red face, eyebrows furrowed and lips pursed. Luz knew what this meant, she'd only been unlucky enough to be on the receiving end of this look a small handful of times. She braced for the incoming explosion.
"If you're going to make a movie based on a beloved and established book series, at least read the source material so that the characters can act like they're supposed to! Or maybe don't name the movie after one of the books and have it hardly follow the story! Can you believe this?" Amity whipped her head to look at Luz.
"I know! It was so bad! I had hope, but it let me down at every turn." Luz slumped back into the couch. "I don't know if I'll see the next one-"
"There better not be a next one if this is what they're going to do to it." Amity folded her arms and leaned angrily against her girlfriend.
"Unless the original team that worked on the first ones comes back." Luz finished her thought with a chuckle. She loved how cute Amity looked when she was upset like this. "Let's not let this sour the rest of the day though, okay sweet potato?"
"You're right, but I'm going to need a series of kisses to forget about what I just saw." Amity said playfully.
"I'll happily oblige." Luz smiled before pulling Amity into a deep kiss which was followed up by multiple smaller kisses on her cheeks and nose.
"Mmm much better." Amity said with a sigh and contented smile. "I'm going to take a shower to wash off the stink of that movie."
"Good idea." Luz chuckled.
"Care to join me?" Amity said with an arched eyebrow.
"As much as I'd love to, and I would love to. I've got to make a few calls to make sure everything is ready for today."
"Alright." Amity kissed Luz once more and turned around, her lavender pink ponytail swinging. "See you in a bit." Amity made her way to the bathroom.
Once the door was closed, Luz let out a breath and continued to clean the dishes. Once the kitchen was cleaned Luz went to their bedroom and chose a new outfit. She picked a grey tank top and flannel shirt to go over it, a pair of stylishly tattered jeans and a pair of high top sneakers. An outfit she knew was one of Amity's favorites.
She grabbed her phone, a beanie and her wallet. Then, making sure the shower was still running she opened her drawer in their shared dresser to grab the object she had hidden there. She looked down at it for a moment with a smile on her face. The shower shut off and she quickly stuffed it into her pocket. Amity entered a few minutes later, wrapped in a towel.
"You look great, I love that outfit." Amity smiled. "Give me a minute to get dressed and we'll head out."
"Take your time sweet potato." Luz said. "No rush."
She sat on the bed and watched her girlfriend dress.
"I can feel your eyes on my back." Amity said as she secured her belt.
"Can you blame me?" Luz responded.
Amity responded by throwing a shirt at Luz's face. While she fought with the offending article of clothing, Amity slipped a different shirt on. She had decided to go with a pair of black pants, and a purple tunic top. She pulled on a dark cropped jacket and tied her lavender hair back in a loose ponytail before slipping on a pair of boots.
"Ready to go?" Amity smiled.
"Yes ma'am!" Luz beamed, hopped off the bed and took Amity's hand. "Let's go!"
The two young women called for their palismans, Ghost and Stringbean, then exited their apartment. Once outside, their palisman changed shape into staffs and the women flew to the door that would allow them to travel to the human realm. Once through the portal, Amity took in a deep breath.
"I never get tired of the smell of human air." Amity smiled. "Or your blue sky. It's so different from the purples and reds of the Isles."
"It's always nice to come back." Luz said. "Let's go see my mom! Maybe Vee's home too."
The duo made their way leisurely through the stretch of woods. They walked in a comfortable silence, taking in the natural ambiance of the forest. A few minutes later, Luz's childhood home appeared before them. They excitedly crossed the street and knocked on the front door.
"Coming!" Came Camila's voice from inside. She opened the door and beamed from ear to ear. "Luz! Amity! ¡Entra, entra. Te extrañé mucho!"
The pair entered the threshold letting their palismen scamper and slither off to play.
"¡Te extrañamos a Camila! Ha pasado demasiado tiempo." Amity responded and hugged her tightly.
"Your Spanish has gotten so much better." Camila complimented. "I see Luz has been a good teacher."
"Did you really have any doubts?" Luz asked before wrapping her mom in a big hug.
"Oh my sweet girl." Camila sighed, then more sternly. "Usted necesita visitar más a menudo."
"I know mama, but school has kept me busy and I haven't had a lot of free time." Luz laughed. "Don't worry, the semester's almost over and then you'll see us so much you'll be sick of us."
"Not possible." Camila said. "Amity, could you get Vee and Masha? Dinner's almost ready, they're in the backyard."
"Of course." She kissed Luz's cheek and headed out back.
"Is everything ready?" Camila asked with excitement once Amity was out of earshot.
"Yep, I've got everything planned out." Luz said with a smile.
"Did you bring it with you?" Camila asked. "Can I see it?"
Luz made one final check to make sure Amity wasn't coming back and produced the small box from her pocket. She opened it to reveal the ring held inside.
