Brrrriiing.
A cloud of fogginess sweeps across her mind.
Briiiiinng.
The shrill sound of something buzzing slowly pushes through the grogginess, becoming aware of the noise erupting from somewhere around her.
Brrriiiing .
Her eyes blink open and tiredly locates the vibrating phone on her dresser, still attached to its charging cord. The jar of fireflies remains bright and buzzing with electricity, so she sleepily clicks the button on the side of the jar and allows the little creatures to settle down.
Scanning her new phone screen for any notifications and finding none, she grumbles and sits up, allowing her phone to droop into her lap.
Sunlight just barely creeps through the multicolored curtains hung across the single window in the very center of the room, separating her from her roommate's side of the dorm.
She looks over at the other side of the room in exhaustion, finding that her three-horned roommate was already gone. Three days after moving into the dorm, Luz figured out that her roommate was not one to take classes too seriously. They were always having somebody over, sneaking out to college parties, or laying in bed wasted.
Luz considered reporting them, but a little voice in her head refused to do so. She'd tried to offer them help a few times and was rejected, she would find it more entertaining watching her roommate's downfall.
Besides, if they move out, that means she can have the dorm to herself, as selfish as it sounded.
They weren't exactly nice either. They'd moved to Bonesborough from another island when they heard about the University. The island they hailed from was much smaller, consisting of a few small rock formations that ancient witches decided to settle down in after fleeing from the Titan. Luz had come to learn that the community was rather pompous .
Oh, she will be so happy if she manages to upgrade to the more spacious dorms. She'd gotten this dorm under the impression she would be alone with a single bedroom, a kitchenette, and a bathroom. But, at the last minute, she was notified she would be having a roommate.
Which ruined quite literally all of her plans.
Brrriiinng.
"Ugh!" Luz taps at her screen in tired irritation, "Shut up, it's six, I get it, shut up!"
She just wanted to lay in bed for the rest of the week. She was so tired .
A sharp pang in her stomach causes numbness to spread throughout her body, reminding her that she had not eaten since five yesterday evening. She'd been too busy studying for the tests coming up and had forgotten to eat before she passed out.
Her phone vibrates again and she glances down in annoyance at the screen.
Her heart immediately flutters upon seeing the name in her notifications bar, she slides her phone to her messages and a goofy smile crosses her lips.
A: Good morning đź’– Try not to let Edric get to you today.
L: No worries I'll reverse logic him.
She swipes to the left, briefly scanning the lavender witch's recent activity. Her brows knit together in concern.
L: Woman did you sleep at all?
The response is quick.
A: Have you gotten out of bed?
A tiny smirk tugs at her lips.
L: Don't you reverse logic me
L: I gotta get ready. If you don't sleep I am coming to your house to knock you out with sleeping nettles.
Luz clicks her phone off and lazily tosses it somewhere on the mattress, where she'll likely have to hunt for it in the next ten minutes. She slides out of the bed, locks her arms above her head, and stretches to relieve the sore muscles and tendons in her back and arms.
She had to shower, get dressed, have breakfast, and make it to her first class before seven-thirty.
But, man, did she want to go back to sleep.
Despite getting held up in the shower by the water suddenly shutting off midway through shampooing her hair, she managed to make it to class. Most of her classmates had taken their unassigned seats. It wasn't a very big class, those were reserved for the lower levels located inside the tree, but it was big enough to feel like she'd just committed a crime upon arrival.
"You're late!"
"Oh, by one minute." Luz rolls her eyes in amusement as she sets her bag down, folding her knees beneath her and getting comfortable on the cushions.
A familiar man moves to stand in front of her with his hands on his hips, Luz glances up to see the false look of annoyance on Edric's face. "One minute can still cost you a life!"
All eyes turn to them and whispers begin spreading. Luz bantered with Edric nearly every class session, it was something the other students had begun to look forward to. One time, she'd caught one of the classes from above watching them with curiosity. Gus had even heard them, pausing his own lesson about television to observe the two.
Luz chuckles in response. "Well, consider me dead."
"Welp!" Edric shrugs his shoulders, "Mittens is gonna be so heartbroken."
Amity avoided Edric's teasing at all costs. He was starting to pester them about a wedding, knowing it was humiliating his sister and finding entertainment in her annoyed and flustered reactions.
"Make sure to tell her that you killed me," Luz smirks as her phone tilts slightly in his direction. "Her own brother killed her girlfriend… She'll certainly take that well."
Luz found it rather fun. It was like aggravating Hunter, but Edric had more amusing reactions considering he had grown up with two sisters. Hunter either huffed in irritation or ended up chasing her through the caves. He was getting better about it, though.
Edric's brow lifts, "Titan, no. She'd kill me ."
"Oh, the horror."
Somewhere behind Luz, an orange-haired demon with spider-like eyes giggles, excited. "If this is how this class will be from now on, I love it."
Laughter erupts around them in agreement and Edric scoffs in delight, waving to quiet them down. "Okay, okay! Entertainment's over! Lesson begins now!" He claps his hands and Batdric appears on his shoulder. "It's gonna be a fun one!"
-1 Month Later-
"Time for breakfast, girls!"
Luz's attention snaps up, it takes a moment for her mother's voice to register in her mind. A fog drifts through her head and she reluctantly sits up, resting her weight against her elbows, and groggily stares at her pillow. Dark curls fall into her eye, but she's too tired to wipe them out of her face.
Soft snoring from the floor signals that everybody else had remained asleep. Luz herself wanted nothing more than to snuggle back into the blankets and slip back into her dream world, but she needed to get up and head downstairs.
First, she has to wake the others.
Luz groans as she moves to get out of bed, throwing her legs off the edge and preparing to stand up. She stretches, her tired muscles popping as a grunt of protest escapes. A heaviness rolls through her.
The bed shifts beside her. Amity rises from the blankets, disturbed by either the shout or the sudden movement. The witch's unruly purple hair sticks out in various directions. Her black spaghetti strap t-shirt sags off one shoulder, and confused, droopy, soft golden eyes examine her surroundings as if trying to piece together her location.
It was kind of funny.
"Morning, A mor …" Luz greets sweetly.
Amity looks at her and something familiar flickers across her exhausted expression. Luz hums and leans back, propping her weight against one arm. Amity inclines toward her, meeting in the middle. She whispers an affectionate greeting as their noses brush before going in for a brief kiss.
"Stinky." Luz giggles, gently pushing the brunette away and standing to her feet. Amity scoffs and rolls out of the bed, taking a moment to gather her bearings before finally standing up. Luz was halfway to the door when a yelp and a scream broke through the room, followed by a loud thud.
She looks down, finding her girlfriend pushing herself up from the floor. Luz's eyes travel to the side of the bed and her lip curls up in amusement. Willow sits straight up with her fists held out in front of her, bleary green eyes blinking to reality and attempting to register what had just happened.
"Why were you at the side of the bed?!" Amity yells, baffled.
"I'm fine, thanks for asking!" Willow shouts back.
The sheet separating Luz's corner of the room from Vee's flies open, and all eyes turn to the shapeshifter. Amity waves sheepishly.
"You two are very loud…" Vee mutters, allowing her humanized appearance to take over. She runs her hands through her dual-colored hair, ensuring that her locks covered her ears enough for them to blend in.
Willow groans, sitting up and fixing her hair. "Ugh, why don't one of you just take the basement? Hunter's staying with Darius now…"
Vee scoffs as she crosses the room to approach the door. "What basement?"
The witches send her a baffled look. Willow stands to her feet, offering her hand to Amity to pull her up. Luz straightens her shift, "It flooded last year… Lots of water damage that is still being fixed."
"Besides!" Vee announces with a chirp, "This is my room while Luz is at University!"
Luz only sticks her tongue out at her sister.
Amity giggles, her hand clasping with Luz's and following Vee out the door. "My, you just get into a lot of trouble, don't you?"
Willow grabs her glasses from the nightstand.
Luz lets out a scoff, "Ah, mi Corazon , you knew that when you started dating me."
Willow steps between them, causing their hands to separate. The slightly older witch has an exasperated expression on her face, "We had enough of that last night. Do not need any of it in the morning, thank you." She brushes by them and enters the kitchen, smiling happily and greeting Camila.
Luz exchanges an amused smile with her girlfriend and her heart skips a few beats. Despite having been dating the brunette for three or so years, she still blushed and stuttered like a middle school girl with her first crush.
But, that's what love is, right?
"Luz, get the bowls and utensils ready!" Camila calls as the teenagers enter the kitchen.
"Yes, Mama." Luz answers.
"Amity, get the food out of the oven for me."
Amity quickly approaches the oven.
"And Willow, could you get the laundry out of the dryer please?"
"Yes ma'am!" Willow replies, leaving the kitchen.
Luz's jaw drops agape. "Hey! Why does she get asked to do something?!"
Camila smiles, "She is a guest."
Amity suddenly grins and her golden eyes sparkle. "That means I'm family now," Luz smiles a little at the comment, "and there's nothing you can do about it, so ha !"
Luz just laughs, glancing up as Stringbean bounces away from her mother's shoulder and soars over to her. The palisman lands on Luz's head in dragon mode and sniffs at her as she grabs the stack of plates. "Morning, Bean!" The girl greets, reaching up and stroking Stringbean's chin affectionately before strolling to the utensils drawer.
The palisman crawls down to perch on Luz's shoulder, her head tilting to the side in a dog-like manner. Stringbean's split tongue slithers as she hisses in curiosity. "What is it, girl?" Luz asks as she opens the drawer.
Stringbean remains silent, watching her expectantly. Luz could feel that the palisman was trying to tell her something but didn't know how to get the message across.
A sharp meow rings through the kitchen and Luz looks down. Ghost stands at Luz's feet with her tail twitching, the brunette kneels to allow the feline to join Stringbean on her shoulder, but the white cat only steps toward her and sniffs in befuddlement.
A twinge of fear tugs at her heart. Did she smell the alcohol they'd sneaked into her room last night? Oh, please, don't let her mother find out…
"Luz, is the table ready?"
Luz stands back up, "It is!"
Camila watches her from the sink, her brows slightly pulled together in observation. Amity stands next to her, glancing between the two of them in mild confusion.
"What?" Luz asks.
The woman shrugs. "So anyway," Willow re-enters the room, having taken the clothes to the living room to be folded, "what did you girls do last night?"
"Oh, just played some games." Willow answered, "Bothered Vee… Talked about things that have happened at Hexide…" The older girl smirks a little, "Watched Amity argue with her siblings because she didn't tell them where she was going."
"It was hilarious," Vee agrees from her seat.
"I shouldn't have to tell them!" Amity complained from the table with her arms folded in a very annoyed manner. "I am eighteen years old, I should be able to make my own choices."
Camila laughs, preparing the bowls. She sets one down in front of Willow when she joins Amity at the table, sitting directly across from the golden-eyed witch. "Well, I would worry about Luz if she went off somewhere without telling me…" The woman eyes the teenager knowingly.
"Yes, well," Amity clears her throat nervously. "you are her mother…"
"And your siblings love you," Camila informs her, handing Amity her bowl back, "I'm sure they're just looking out for you."
Luz scoffs from the fridge. "Sometimes they can be a bit…"
"Full of themselves?" Amity lifts a brow, monotone.
"Well, I wouldn't say…" Luz answers sharply. She hesitates for a brief moment and her shoulders deflate. "Yeah…"
"Oooh," Willow chirps from the table with one hand coiled beneath her chin and a brow raised, "sounds like somebody else I know."
Behind the spoon of steaming breakfast, Amity's lip curls into a growl, unamused by the comment. Luz approaches the table and sets a glass of milk at each seat.
"Aren't you lactose intolerant?" Willow asks, confused. Amity retrieves a small piece of her breakfast and slides it beneath the table, offering it to Ghost, who eagerly takes it and begins chewing.
Luz sits next to Vee and pulls her bowl closer, "Almond milk."
Amity's brows pull together, refocusing her attention on the conversation. "How do you milk an almond?"
"With your fist!" Luz announces sarcastically, her hand folding into a fist to emphasize. "Squeeze it until it pops!"
Mischief flashes through Amity's eyes and her lip pulls into an upwards smirk. Luz pauses, her heartbeat quickening with recognition. The paler witch's hands fold beneath her chin and she speaks teasingly, "Squeeze it with what, my dear? Your 'weak nerd' arms? Sounds like it will work out splendidly."
"How did you hear about that?!" Luz answers quickly, embarrassed.
Willow chuckles, "People talk. We listen."
Amity hums her agreement, allowing her act to fall.
"Anyway!" Camila takes charge of the conversation, adjusting her glasses and stirring her bowl. "Almond milk is made when you grind almonds with water, and other ingredients companies use." She lifts her head proudly with a smile, "We make our own!"
"And it isn't near as sweet," Luz whispers.
Camila hears her. "You know how sugar affects your sleeping schedule, M ija . We do not want another repeat of-"
Luz's cheeks reddened, "-Mom! That was so long ago!"
Willow's expression lights up with curiosity. "What happened?"
Amity's ears twitch with interest. "Oh, we simply have to know!"
Vee remains silent, finishing her bowl with the shadow of a knowing smile on her face. Luz knew Camila had shown her sister every picture in the house, and told her the stories behind them. It was rather humiliating, but at least only Vee knew them, as Hunter, as far as she knew, only knew a selected few.
"When Luz was five, she stayed at my abuela 's house while Manny and I went to see a new movie…" Camila began explaining, seeming to forget all about the gradually cooling bowl of food in front of her. Luz slowly sinks into her chair, pulling her red beanie down over her eyes and whimpering. "We got back around one in the morning, and discovered that my sister had come over with her six-year-old twin boys!"
"Uh oh." Willow comments.
"We could not find those three anywhere! Abuela was about to call the cops! But, Manny found Luz and the boys in the basement." Camila laughs a little, "They had gotten into Abuela's candy and ate all of it ! A whole bag full! Two hours after we got home, I thought somebody was breaking in because Luz was bouncing off the walls in her room because of the sugar still in her system. She finally tired out at nine in the morning."
Amity giggles, side-glancing at the embarrassed human. "No wonder she and King are siblings."
"That sounds just like Luz, though." Willow agrees, earning a grunt of disapproval from Luz.
"Okay!" Vee stands up with her bowl, "I'll rinse my dish, and then I'm heading to the library with Masha!"
Luz throws her chair back in an attempt to grab her sister. "Wait, wait, wait, wait!" She shouts moments before crashing into the floor, scoffing at the shapeshifter when she just barely manages to surprise a loud snort. Luz pulls herself up from the floor, "Can you check and see if they have the new book of Freedom Fires?"
"Sure," Vee answers with a laugh, setting her bowl into the sink. She smooths out her hair to ensure her ears blend in, "I'll send you a text if they don't have it."
"There's a new book?" Amity asks, handing her bowl to Willow as she stands up to take her dish to the sink.
"Yeah!" Luz answers excitedly, "It's called 'Trial by Tears'."
"Bye!" Vee calls, jogging out of the kitchen.
"What's 'Freedom Fires'?" Camila questions, confused.
Amity shrugs, "Oh, just a book series about survival and romance… The first one wasn't all that great."
"Excuse you," Luz gasps in mock offense, "it was very good!"
"Renaut literally used Roysia's heart!" Amity argues, "She was just there so Ansell didn't know Renaut was gay, and then she ends up pregnant while Renaut runs off and frolics with Iohannes!"
Luz is quick to respond, "Somebody online said Renaut pays for that, and Roysia has a female lover now. Iohannes even finds out Renaut is the reason his family is dead."
Willow giggles from behind them, "This is what happens when two book nerds date…"
Amity rolls her eyes, "I'm not reading the second book."
Luz turns away from her, "Fine then, I will."
Willow leans close to Camila to whisper, "I'm surprised they didn't break up about the whole Azura thing."
A dark brow lifts in perplexity, "What was that about?"
Next to her, Amity's ear twitches in annoyance, having heard the conversation. She groans, hiding her face in her hands, exasperated. "Do not bring that up, that still makes me so mad ."
"Yeah, no. Dropping that subject." Ghost follows Luz to the sink, staring at her with wide and curious blue eyes. Camila glances over in observation, lifting her coffee to her mouth. "Anyway, the portal door should be set to take you to the Owl House."
"M'kay," Willow sounds off, retrieving the key and clicking it. A golden spiral forms at the kitchen door and Willow approaches, "I gotta go. Dads want me home early."
Luz looks up from the sink, "Are you sure? Your hair looks terrible…"
Willow stares at her for a moment before shrugging, "Eh. Who am I trying to impress?" She waves goodbye, setting the key back down on the table. "See you later, Luz, Amity! Thanks for breakfast, Camila!"
The portal closes as Willow steps through.
"I should probably be going too," Amity says as she finishes her water and moves away from the table, "Malphas said we're short-staffed, he could call me today. I don't want to rush getting ready for work…" She emphasizes her point by running her fingers through her untamed violet hair.
Luzz scoffs, waving a dismissive hand and smirking. "You look great! I've seen it far worse!" Amity visibly bristles as the tips of her ears turn red, she glances at Camila and Luz lifts a brow, "What? Up at the Knee with Ed and Em when the blizzard came through!"
"Right…" Amity murmurs, relaxing.
"The Knee?" Camila inquires, "Hunter told me that was inaccessible."
Amity bursts out into obnoxious laughter, causing Luz to roll her eyes in familiarity. She now has another thing to lord over Hunter's head. "Well, he lied. We have a cottage up there-"
"Had." Luz corrects.
"Had." Amity repeats, deflated, as she recalls her father selling it to pay some bills. She'd gone from having nearly everything and not having to worry about if they will have the money to eat that night, to a wooden house in the main village where bills were nearly always late to pay and took some time to acclimate to.
Luz giggles, setting the last dish into the drain and walking over to her now grumpy girlfriend.
"Well, I happen to like it!" Luz chirps.
Amity's lip twitches into an amused smile, "Yeah? You like the fact I'm poor now?"
"I wouldn't call picking a previously dead company up from shambles poor ." Luz answers. "But yeah."
Amity rolls her eyes, "How sweet of you."
"Hey, it makes good character development!" Luz kisses her cheek, stepping by her to approach the lounge. "Now go get a shower, you stink."
She didn't, really. They'd all showered before the movie last night. It was just fun to poke at her.
Amity's brow lifts subtly, "Join me, then?"
She was playing back. That's new.
"Oh…"
An audible thump from the table breaks them into reality, Luz avoids eye contact with her mother as Amity's gaze snaps over to look at Camila as she sets her mug down. "Luz, why don't you run some leftovers to Miss Helmick?"
Humiliation shoots through their souls, having forgotten they weren't alone.
The witch's ears turn red and Luz clears her throat, turning away and swiftly approaching the table. Amity remains quiet, bolting from the room as quickly as her feet could carry her.
Camila's lip quirks into a teasing smile, Luz snaps a lid onto the bowl and swiftly walks by her. The woman lifts her mug to her mouth again, "Easy to forget there are others around when you are teenagers, right?"
Heat courses through her being and Luz let out an exasperated noise, prompting her mother to lightly snort.
Luz collapses with her back against the couch and drapes her legs over the arm, covering her eyes from the light with her forearm. She heaves a sigh, her chest rising and falling deeply.
Luz returned from the neighbor's place rather quickly, but not before a very unsettling conversation regarding her lack of a 'man' at her age. Miss Helmick was a sweet old lady with one of the biggest hearts in the neighborhood, but she had grown up in a rather conservative family. She was aware of Luz's relationship with Amity, but she seemed to believe it was some sort of 'phase' and that both girls would grow out of it and find male love interests.
Amity especially didn't like her after that comment. But, thankfully, she managed to keep her cool and they were still on good terms with Miss Helmick.
"How did it go?" Camila asks, coming into the lounge. "Did she like it?"
"I don't know," Luz answers, "she started testing my patience…"
A light 'mrr' and a hissing noise reach her ears. Recognizing the sounds as Ghost and Stringbean respectively, she removes her arm and looks up, glancing around in confusion before locating the solid white cat on the back of the couch with Stringbean shifted into dragon mode above her.
"Hey," she croaks, rubbing the feline's head with the tips of her fingers, Ghost purrs and headbutts her hand, sliding her body across her arm as she carefully lowers herself down to Luz.
"How?" Camila inquiries.
Stringbean perches on Luz's head, curling her tail around her chin and staring down at her curiously. Luz hums, laying her arm against her side, expecting Amity's palisman to curl at her shoulder in her usual places. However, Ghost doesn't move. She remains still, her ears perked and her nose twitching.
Ghost's belly touches the cushions and she reaches out with one unsure paw, her claws sheathed, and tenderly batting at Luz's stomach. Butterflies of laughter erupt through the teenager, escaping as a soft and bubbly laugh.
"Oh, just asking when I'm going to get a boyfriend…" Luz replies, now in a better mood thanks to the palismen. "I'm starting to think reproduction is more important to her than love ."
Camila is quiet, clutching her half-empty mug tight.
"No wonder, though. The woman has eight kids." Luz pets Ghost's ear as the palisman curls onto her stomach, purring affectionately. "She also asked where I've been going to college… I told her it was out of town."
Her mother clears her throat, "Luz-"
Rapid footsteps approach from the hall.
"Gotta go!" Amity announces, running into the room. Her lavender hair is slightly damp, and she's wearing her maroon cat-print hoodie, black leggings, and matching heels.
"Where are you heading?" Camila questions.
"Malphas called, working overtime tonight to help clean up." Amity explains in a hurry, "Ghost!" The cat lifts her head abruptly, springing toward her owner and wrapping herself around her shoulders. Amity grabs the key, "Bye!"
The portal opens and closes as Amity rushes through with the key still in hand. The house falls awkwardly quiet save for Stringbean's hissing of acknowledgment at her head.
"So!" Luz announces to break the silence. "What're we gonna-"
"Luz, when was your last period?"
It takes a few seconds for the question to process. The gears in her head churn, desperately, trying to properly calculate the math. The attempt is, unfortunately, futile. She did, however, have an estimated time span. Her throat tightens, "Three months ago, maybe?"
Camila's eyes widened in credulousness, "Three-?!"
"I kind of lost track…" Luz shyly admits.
"I want you to take a pregnancy test," Camila answers immediately. "Conveniently for you, your cousin left a box of them here last month."
Luz's lip curls in disgust at the mention of her cousin. The girl wasn't loyal to any of her partners whatsoever, she slept around with anybody who would take her in at that moment. During her last visit, she attempted to convince Luz to join her because it was supposedly fun as their 'main' partner would 'never know'. She claimed the thrill of not knowing what is going to happen tomorrow made it all worth it.
Luz was disgusted by the idea. It baffled her how people could so happily, and willingly, cheat on their partners without a shred of guilt. She lets out a strained laugh. "Mama, be reasonable... If anybody is pregnant, it's her. I have a girlfriend-"
"Now," Camila repeats. "I will not repeat myself."
A tremor of uneasiness races up Luz's spine. She swallows a huff of aggravation and swings her feet off the side of the couch to stand up. Stringbean clings to her shoulders.
A pregnancy test… How ridiculous. It was likely just a result of stress.