Chapter Text
“I think it’s time to tell my parents.”
Amity’s words break the comfortable silence they’ve been sharing, and her fingers halt their soothing motion through Luz’s hair. Luz turns her head, glancing up at her girlfriend from where her head rests in Amity’s lap.
“Tell them what?” she asks. She has a pretty strong idea of where this is going, but she wants to be sure.
“You know,” Amity says, shifting her gaze away from Luz in discomfort, “About... us.”
“Oh.”
So it is what she thought.
Luz pushes herself up into a sitting position, mentally transitioning from relaxing with my girlfriend mode to having a serious conversation with my girlfriend mode. She feels a strange mix of fear and excitement at the thought of Amity finally telling her parents that they are dating.
From what she’s told me, they probably won’t be happy about it. But... at least we won’t have to hide anymore.
“Why now?” she asks. “Not that I don’t think we should tell them - I do! But we haven’t really talked about it, not since…”
Not since we had that fight about it.
Amity turns to meet her gaze. Her chestnut hair gleams softly in the dappled light filtering down to them through the leaves of the Grom tree, which has become a favorite spot of theirs in the almost four months they’ve been dating. Luz can’t help but admire her.
Two months since her birthday, and I still can’t get over how beautiful she looks with her hair like that.
Amity had been afraid of how her mother would react to her decision to dye her hair back to her natural colour, but Edric and Emira had backed her up, and she’d had a surprising ally in her father, Alador Blight. He had convinced his wife that at fifteen, Amity was old enough to make her own decisions regarding her hair color. Odalia had eventually given in, although she hadn’t been happy about it.
Winning that small battle against her mother has given Amity a lot more confidence in herself, which Luz couldn’t be happier about. She suspects that increased confidence is a big part of the reason why her girlfriend now seems ready to finally reveal the truth of their relationship - a secret they’ve kept closely guarded for the last four months at Amity’s insistence.
“Well,” Amity says, “We’ve been dating for almost four months now, and you know as well as I do that it’s been getting harder and harder to hide it. We’ve already had a few close calls at school as it is. I don’t think anyone’s figured it out yet, but at this rate, it won’t be long before someone does.”
Luz nods in agreement. She’d made that same argument to Amity a couple of months ago.
“And then,” Amity continues, “There’s the fact that right now, there are only a few places we can go where it’s actually safe for us to be together as girlfriends.” She indicates the tree they’re sitting under. “This tree, the Owl House, and the secret library room are it, really. We can’t go anywhere in public, just the two of us. When we’re in town with our friends, we can’t hold hands. I’m tired of it,” she says, letting out a sigh of frustration. “I don’t want to hide our relationship anymore. I’m ready to tell them.”
Luz takes Amity’s hand in hers, giving it a sympathetic squeeze. She’s had all the same frustrations as Amity, and they’ve only been eating away at her more and more as their relationship has progressed. She’s tired of keeping secrets. She wants everyone on the Isles to know how lucky she is to have Amity Blight as her girlfriend.
“Have you thought about what we’ll do if they… react badly?” she asks. She hates to even bring it up, but she’s heard enough about her girlfriend’s parents to know that there’s a strong possibility they won’t approve of their daughter dating a human.
“I have,” Amity replies. She sits up straighter, looking deep into Luz’s eyes with a serious expression on her face. Clearly, she has something important to say.
“I want to promise you, Luz, that whatever happens, I won’t let them separate us,” Amity says, her voice fierce and determined. “I don’t care what they threaten me with - I’m not giving you up.”
Something inside Luz relaxes at that, releasing tension she didn’t realize she’d been holding. She knows how much Amity values their relationship, knows that her girlfriend would fight for them, but it means a lot to hear her actually say those words.
“I know you won’t,” she says, “And I promise I won’t, either.”
She smiles at Amity and leans forward to plant a brief kiss on her lips. When she pulls away, Amity is smiling too. Then, she frowns.
“What I’m more worried about,” Amity continues, “Is that they’ll threaten you. ”
Luz nods. They’ve discussed this particular fear of Amity’s before. It’s not one Luz shares - she knows she can handle herself and she also has Eda and Lilith, who are still forces to be reckoned with despite Eda’s new reliance on glyph magic and Lilith’s weakened powers. Luz is confident that between the three of them, they can deal with anything the Blight parents try to throw at them. But she also knows how much this possibility frightens Amity, and she’s learned the hard way not to try and brush it off or take it lightly. Amity deserves to have her fears taken seriously, even if Luz doesn’t agree with them.
What does scare Luz, more than anything, is the idea of losing Amity. She knows what Amity just said, and she knows Amity means those words with her whole heart - knows that she would never willingly give up on their relationship. But Amity is only fifteen and she still has to live under her parents’ roof. What if her parents forbid her from seeing Luz and take steps to ensure that she can’t? What if they make her transfer to another school, or send her away somewhere? What if they do everything they can to physically separate Luz and Amity - by any means necessary? What will they do then?
There’s only one course of action that Luz can think of. She wonders if Amity has come to the same conclusion.
“You mentioned before that you’ve thought about what to do if something like that happens,” she says. “What did you come up with?”
Amity looks down, absently rubbing the hem of her tunic between her fingers as she gathers her thoughts. “Well…” she begins, “If they try to forbid me from seeing you, and I can’t convince them otherwise… I think the only option will be for me to leave home. For good.”
“You mean run away?” Luz asks.
“Yeah,” Amity says. “I haven’t worked out where I would go yet-”
“You’d come live with us in the Owl House, of course,” Luz says confidently.
Amity glances at Luz in surprise. “Really?” she asks. “I was hoping… but I didn’t want to assume…”
“You’re not,” Luz assures her. “I had the same thought. It’s the only option that makes sense, really. And hey,” she adds, smiling brightly, “It would mean we’d be living together, and I’d get to see you all the time. Sounds like a dream come true to me!”
Amity smiles as a now-familiar blush spreads across her cheeks. Luz loves that, even after three and a half months of dating, she can still make her girlfriend blush.
“What about Eda?” Amity asks. “Don’t you think she would mind?”
“Of course not! Eda would never turn you away,” Luz promises. “She’ll grumble and pretend to be put out, but she won’t actually mind. She enjoys company more than she lets on, and she likes you. Plus, she knows how much you mean to me,” she adds, reaching over to brush a stray strand of hair behind one of Amity’s pointed ears.
Amity scoots closer, wrapping her arms around Luz and burying her face in Luz’s neck. Luz rests her head on Amity’s and breathes in the sweet scent of her girlfriend’s hair, giggling when the soft strands tickle her nose. They stay like that for a little while, enjoying the fact that here, they can hold each other without worrying about anyone seeing them.
Then Amity lifts her head, but she doesn’t break free of their embrace. “If we want that to be our backup plan,” she says, “Then you need to talk to Eda first. Before I tell my parents.”
“Okay,” Luz agrees. “I’ll talk to her tonight.”
“Okay,” Amity says, swallowing nervously.
They stay under the tree for a little while longer, cuddling against each other and taking comfort in their closeness. Telling Amity’s parents about their relationship is something that Luz has been in favor of since the beginning, but now that they’ve actually decided to do it, she’s surprised by how anxious she feels. Luz is generally a positive, look-on-the-bright-side kind of person, but it’s hard to assume the best when it comes to Amity’s parents. And far too easy to imagine all the things that could go wrong.
From the way Amity’s hands clutch at the front of her jacket, she can tell that her girlfriend is dealing with similar fears. Luz strokes her russet hair soothingly, aware that whatever is going through Amity’s head is probably far worse than anything she can imagine. After all, Amity knows her parents best.
Too soon, the time comes when they need to part ways. Amity has to return to Blight Manor, and Luz is expected back at the Owl House. They walk through the woods together for as long as they can, before reaching the point at which they need to split up.
“I’ll call you tonight, okay?” Luz says, giving her girlfriend a hug goodbye. “After I talk to Eda.”
Amity nods. “Okay.”
Then, she surges forward, wrapping her arms around Luz’s neck and kissing her, a bit more fiercely than usual. There’s a desperation to it that Luz responds to, pulling Amity close and holding her tight.
“It’ll be alright,” she promises, slightly out of breath, several moments later.
Wow, that was some kiss...
“I hope so.” Amity’s face is pinched with worry - a far cry from the dazed expression Luz is used to seeing her wear after a kiss like that.
“It will be. We have a plan. We won’t let them come between us.”
“But what if they threaten you?”
“Then we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. But I don’t think they can get me kicked out of Hexside. I’m pretty sure ol’ Bump has a soft spot for me,” Luz says, with a cheeky grin.
Amity cracks a smile. “Sure he does. Anyway, I guess I’d better get going. See you tomorrow?”
“See you tomorrow.”
“I love you, Luz,” Amity says, her voice wavering.
“I love you too, querida,” Luz replies.
Amity flushes prettily, the way she always does when Luz calls her a pet name in Spanish. She gives Luz’s hand a final squeeze and then departs for Blight Manor.
Luz takes her time walking back to the Owl House, mulling over the afternoon’s events. She’s proud of her girlfriend for mustering up the courage to finally go public with their relationship, but she can’t deny that the idea scares her more than it used to. Amity’s reaction the first time Luz had brought up telling her parents had been… pretty chilling. Luz had never seen her act like that before - so utterly panicked, to the point of lashing out.
Amity wouldn’t have reacted that way if she didn’t have a good reason to.
Luz can’t deny that their relationship has been relatively smooth sailing so far. They’ve had their ups and downs, certainly, but they’ve always managed to work through any problems and come out the other side stronger than before. Nothing has ever seriously threatened them as a couple.
But this might.
Even worse, the threat is external. It isn’t something they can talk through and work out between themselves. She and Amity can’t control how her parents will react - they can only control how they will respond.
Which is why we needed a Plan B. And I guess we have one, now.
But what if it’s not enough? What if she tries to run and they stop her?
Then I’ll free her. Just like I freed Eda. I fought the Emperor - surely I can handle Odalia and Alador Blight.
But deep down inside, Luz knows that isn’t really what she’s worried about. She’s not afraid of Amity’s parents, even if they are powerful witches.
No, what she’s really scared of is something far worse than a simple threat to her safety.
What if she decides this isn’t worth fighting for? What if they say something… and she realizes that actually, they’re right, and she never loved me after all?
I’m me, and she’s… Amity. Her loving me was always too good to be true.
***
“Hey, Eda?” Luz asks, poking her head into Eda’s open bedroom door. “Can I talk to you for a sec?”
“Yeah, sure kid,” Eda says, from where she’s lounging in her nest, a book in one hand and a glass of apple blood in the other. “Come on in.”
Luz pushes the door open the rest of the way and enters the room, closing it softly behind her. She doesn’t really want an audience for this conversation.
It’s that after-dinner quiet time, where the residents of the Owl House have mostly retreated to their rooms to engage in solo activities. Luz usually spends this time doing her homework or talking to Amity, but tonight she needs to talk to Eda and she’s chosen this time because she knew she would be able to catch Eda alone.
“What’s up?” Eda asks, as Luz takes a seat on the floor near her nest.
With Eda, it’s always best to get straight to the point. “Amity thinks it’s time to tell her parents,” Luz says. “About us dating.”
Eda quirks an eyebrow. “Darn it, “ she says, “Now I owe Lilith money. Baby Blight worked up the courage sooner than I thought she would.”
“Hey, this is serious,” Luz chides her mentor. “Amity thinks there’s a good chance they won’t react well.”
“From what I remember of ol’ Alador and Odalia, I’d say she’s probably right,” Eda says, dropping her teasing tone. “But she’s sure she wants to go through with it?”
Luz nods.
“And are you sure you want to go through with it?”
Luz hesitates for just a moment, before nodding a second time. “I know it’s a risk,” she says. “But I’m tired of hiding, and so is Amity. And we’ve thought about what we might do if they… don’t take it well.”
“And what’s that?” her mentor asks.
Luz takes a deep breath, steeling herself. She really needs this next part to go well.
“Well, I was thinking,” she begins, “That if they threaten her in some way, and she has to get out of there, then maybe she could… come stay here? For a little while, anyway. It wouldn’t have to be forever.”
Eda regards her levelly. “You’re asking if your girlfriend can move in? Luz, you’re fourteen.”
It’s obvious what Eda’s implying, and Luz can feel her face reddening in response. “I didn’t mean it like that!” she exclaims, waving her hands in the air as she backpedals as fast as she can. “I just meant - if she needed a safe place to stay! She doesn’t need to share my room or anything - we’d sleep on opposite sides of the house if you want us to!”
Eda lets out a chuckle at her obvious discomfort. “Relax, kid, I’m just messing with ya. If Amity needs to get away from her parents in a hurry, then of course she can crash here.”
Luz sighs in relief. “Thanks, Eda.”
Her mentor smiles, but then her face grows thoughtful. “Hey, Luz, when you told me about the fight you and Amity had, didn’t you say she was worried her no-good parents might threaten you? ”
“I did,” Luz says warily. “But what could they do to me, really? I don’t think it’d be that easy for them to get me kicked out of Hexside, and Emperor Belos already hates me, so... how much worse could things get?”
Eda narrows her eyes. “A lot worse, probably. Belos has largely been ignoring us for now - he knows that I’m powerless, and he probably also knows that Lily has been weakened. But if something - or more accurately, someone - were to draw his attention to us again…”
Then, she shrugs. “Ah well, it’s not like I haven’t been on the run from him before. It’ll just be harder this time, without my powers. But with the glyph magic you’ve taught us, I’m sure the three of us can manage.”
“The four of us,” Luz reminds her. “You’re forgetting Amity.”
Eda cracks a smile. “So I am. She’s a strong witch, too - I’m sure the four of us will get along just fine.”
***
Hey, I just talked to Eda. Can I call you? :)
The message from Luz comes through to Amity’s scroll at around eight-thirty in the evening. As is the case most evenings, she’s alone in her room, working on homework. She quickly messages Luz back to let her know she’s free, then positions herself beside her globe to await the incoming call.
She doesn’t have to wait long. The globe lights up and then her girlfriend’s face appears. Amity smiles at the sight of her. True, it’s only been a few hours since she last saw Luz, but she could look at her girlfriend’s face every minute of every day and never get tired of it. It’s her favorite face in all of the Boiling Isles, after all.
“Hi Luz,” she says.
“Hi Amity!” Luz smiles brightly as she greets her, looking much more cheerful than she had when they’d parted ways earlier that afternoon. Amity’s glad to see it - she could sense that Luz was feeling anxious when they’d spoken about telling her parents. But now, she seems to be back to her usual optimistic self.
“How did things go with Eda?” she asks. She assumes the talk went well, or Luz wouldn’t be in such a good mood.
“Good!” Luz says. “She said yes. If the worst happens and you need to leave, you can stay here. At least until we can figure out a more permanent solution.”
Amity exhales in relief. “That’s good,” she says. “I still feel weird asking her for such a huge favor, though. I hope you told her that I’d be sure not to overstay my welcome - I’d figure something else out as soon as possible.”
Luz gets that look in her eyes - the one she gets whenever Amity says something that makes it clear just how messed up her upbringing has been. “Amity, you’re allowed to ask for help,” she says. “Eda cares about you, and she’d never turn you away. You know that, right?”
“I know, it’s just… a Blight never shows weakness, remember?” Amity replies, rolling her eyes. “That’s been drilled into me for so long that I still feel like a burden if I have to ask anyone for anything. Especially something as big as this.”
“You could never be a burden,” Luz says. “I promise. And I promise that Eda sees it the same way. She let me stay with her, didn’t she? And besides,” she adds with a smile, “Don’t you like the idea of living together? I know I do.”
Amity does. She really does. She’s worried about intruding into Eda’s space, and being an imposition, and a charity case. She can’t quite shake the worldview she’s learned from her parents, that to ask for help is to display unpardonable weakness. But the idea of living with Luz? That, she loves.
“I do too,” she says, returning Luz’s smile.
They spend a few moments in companionable silence, each lost in sweet daydreams. Then Amity remembers the unpleasant task ahead of her, which must be completed before that future she’s dreaming about can come to pass.
“It’s really happening, then,” she says. “I’m really going to tell them.”
“I guess it is,” Luz says, picking up on Amity’s shift in mood. “But it isn’t too late to change your mind. I know how much this scares you.”
“No, I need to do this,” Amity says firmly. “For us.”
“I’m here for you, whatever you need,” Luz promises. “Do you want me to be there with you when you tell them?”
“No,” Amity says regretfully. “I think it’s best if I tell them alone.”
“Are you sure?” Luz asks. “I don’t like the idea of you being by yourself if things go bad.”
“I’m sure,” Amity says. “Trust me, it’s better if you aren’t there.”
“Okay.” Luz frowns, unhappy with her decision but accepting it. “When do you think you’ll do it?”
Amity considers. “I’ll need to pick my time. But… sometime in the next couple of days. If I wait any longer, I’m afraid I’ll lose my nerve.”
“Wow. That soon, huh?” Luz says nervously. Clearly, she’s as anxious about the outcome of this conversation as Amity is.
She nods. “I just want to get it over with. And it’s not like they’d react any better if I waited another week to tell them.”
“That makes sense,” Luz says. “It’s just…”
“Scary. I know. But we’ll get through it,” she promises, trying to sound braver than she feels.
Luz smiles. “I know we will. And as long as we’re together, everything will be okay.”
The conversation moves on to other, lighter topics after that. Eventually, they say goodnight, and Amity finishes her homework and then goes to bed, half expecting to toss and turn all night. But she finds that she’s surprisingly calm, now that the decision has been made.
She’s determined to do this, come what may. She needs to break free of her parents’ hold on her. For Luz, and also for herself.
It’s not long before Amity falls into a dreamless sleep.