Stina's POV:

I couldn't wait! My boyfriend, Fitz Vacker, my boyfriend, FITZ. VACKER! Invited me, his girlfriend, ME! To a DATE! In a cottage HE had gnomes build for ME! And HIM! And I. Can't. WAIT!!! He JUST invited me, through a message on my Imparter. 

I pulled on my favorite purple dress ("It brings out the violet side of your navy eyes," my mother would say), it was slim and had a slit leading up to the middle of my thigh. The sleeves went to my elbows. It wasn't plastic or rubber clinging material, just a soft fabric.

I brushed my mane of curls and pulled some of it back in a windswept look. I settled for some light silver eyeshadow, eyeliner, light mascara, and my wine-maroon lipstick. Looking at my reflection, I decided that I could use my diamond and silver necklace. No heels. I'm a disaster when I wear them. 

Instead, I used my silver sandals with a gentle lift in the back.

I checked myself out in the mirror. The date was in fifteen minutes (he knows how fast I can get ready. I've told him a lot, I guess that info came in handy - FINALLY!). Maybe I could add one more thing... yes! The diamond-embroidered shawl Fitz gave me would fit perfect! I messaged him -

'Do I need 2 bring food? If it's picnic or smth. -S' Within moments, I got a reply -

'No. U r good. U can come early, I am ready. -F' Yes! Early! Then, I got a second text - 'Bring blanket tho. Pref big and soft. Ily. -F' A big blanket? Okay. I walked to my large pink bed and snatched my foot blanket at the end of my bed. 

I twirled up to the Leapmaster.

"Everglen!" I called happily. The Leapmaster complied, and let down the clear crystal. I allowed the light to take me, and I appeared in the front gates.

'Here I am!' I messaged Fitz. The gates opened the moment it was sent. Alrighty!

"Hello, Stina. Fitz is waiting for you, let me show you where he's at." Della smiled at me and walked me down a small gravel path through a grove. The trees were so pretty! "You look nice today," Della noted, "did Fitz invite you into the cottage tonight?"

"Yep!" I was happy. Really happy. "You look nice too, as always."

"Why, thank you, Stina! Here's the cottage." Della pointed me to a small house. The outer walls were a soft creme, the wood was dark and firm. The rectangular windows had teal shutters, and the flower gardens held white and pink Mary Jane tulips. 

It was adorable! I walked up to the white door and knocked, holding my shawl and blanket in one hand.

Fitz's POV:

"Hey, Sti-bee (Couldn't help myself!)! Nice to see you." I smiled, and she blushed. She looked beautiful today. "Like the dress." I nodded in Mom's direction, giving her the 'You can go now' look. Mom left in the direction of Everglen. 

"Where was I? Right, right." I leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. "Come in." I held the door open for her, like a gentleman, and led her over to the living room. "You can drop off your blanket on the couch."

"Okay!" She threw it onto the chaise lounge and followed me into the kitchen.

"I made your favorite pudding puffs and cinnacreme, with whipped cream on top, chocolate shavings, and a roasted marshmallow. The pudding puffs are blueberry and chocolate on that pan -" I pointed to a rectangular pan on the stove "- and these are mint and chocolate." I pointed to the cooling rack on the counter.

"What did you make all of this for, Fitz? And what's that big old black thing in the living room?" Ah, yes, she has seemed to remember the television.

"We're going to do a movie night! It's a human thing that Sophie and Dex introduced me to. Basically, you invite your special one and you watch a movie of your choice, maybe two, at night, with your favorite snacks and drinks. After that, you could do a sleepover if you're with a lot of friends, too."

 I grinned and waved my arms in a 'ta-da!' Sti-bee blushed.

"This is gonna be a fun night! What are the movie choices?"

"Well, we got some old ones and new. I'll give you summaries and you can choose." I picked up a case that had a computer-graphic kid with a big fluffy robot next to it, and some teens. "This is 'Big Hero 6'. Basically, it's about this kid, whose brother's robot accidentally leads him on an adventure, and it also brings along some of the kid's brother's friends. 

They stop the bad dude, there's a huge plot twist, character redemption, you lose a character, happy ending." I then set Big Hero Six down and pick up another case, this time it has grown men in costumes.

 "This here is 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail'. It's a super silly retelling of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. It's from the 80's or 70's so it would be of poor quality in showing, but not in humor. It's British, too." I picked up the next, it had a green thing and a donkey on the cover. 

"This is called 'Shrek'. It's... you gotta watch it to understand it." I got to the last one. "This is named 'The Incredibles'. It's about a family of superheroes, and there's a sequel, too, 'The Incredibles Two'. You won't want to watch Shrek's follow-ups, the fifth one is coming out in human theaters... there's a lot."

Stina looked blown away. "I - I don't know! Let's go with... Shrek I guess? Sounds funny."

~A Few WhAt ArE yOu DoInG iN mY sWaMps later~

Stina's POV:

My sides hurt from laughing, Shrek was definitely the right choice! But the funniest thing was how humans imagined Ogres! A big green Ro stomped into my mind, yelling at animated knights with torches. Fitz was as bad as me, everytime someone said

"Ogre!" he burst out laughing, I had to keep him from falling off the couch! Sighing contentedly, I buried my head in his chest, snuggling up with the fluffy blanket. It was a nice change from super-fancy-over-the-top dates, though those were fun. 

He wrapped his arms around me, and I shivered as warmth spread throughout me. We shared the last of the pudding puffs, then Fitz turned to me and said,

"You up for a boat ride on the lake?" I nodded, and untangled myself from the blanket. A chilly breeze whisked through the trees as we made our way down to the lake, I shivered, and he pulled me closer. When we got to the shore, a sliver boat studded with blue diamonds and baby pink stones (see if you can catch what I did there) was floating just offshore.

"It's beautiful!" I gasped, as he helped me into the boat. Just as I sat down, my ankles gave way, even though I was wearing the tiniest heeled sandals, and I landed with an "Oof!" on Fitz. Blushing crimson, I quickly stood up. 

He just laughed and pulled me onto his lap, kissing my hair. The silver vessel swept out onto the lake, leaving ripples behind us. I watched the moon's reflection warp and twist, tracing it with my fingers.

"Hey, Sti-bee?" Fitz asked, a little nervously I thought.

Fitz's POV:

I blew out a breath, yes this was right.

"Stina? Ever since that sleepover, I couldn't take my eyes off you. You are so beautiful, and I still can't believe you love me," She looked at me curiously, waiting for my next line. 

"The past year has been the best of my life, all because of you. I've never felt so loved, so cherished. I need you, I can never bear to leave you again. Wh-which why I must ask you- Stina Heks? Will- will you marry me?"

She was silent, and for a terrifying moment, I thought she might refuse. Then her eyes filled with tears,

"Yes, yes, YES!" she screamed, the sound echoing across the lake. I sighed with relief and swept her into my arms, laughing with joy. My Sti-bee looked up at me, brilliant, navy eyes shining with happiness, and kissed me. 

The world fell away, and I pulled her closer, our warmth heating up the night. I never wanted her lips to leave mine, my fingers danced through her hair, and her arms wrapped around my neck.

Stian's POV:

I sunk into him, melting into the kiss. His fingers played with my hair, and I held him closer than ever. He tasted like everything we've had tonight - mint and chocolate, caramel and butterscotch and cinnamon and just pure sugar. The moon shined down from above, illuminating the world into a magical dance of light. 

A moonlark called across the lake, its haunting song of love and longing gliding on the wind. A few frogs croaked and crickets chirped, adding to the symphony. Finally, we broke apart gasping for air. The sun had begun to peak over the water's edge, flooding the lush gardens of Everglen with warm light.

 I giggled and Fitz laughed, once again pulling me onto his lap as the boat rowed back toward the shore. Hand in hand, we ran through the maze of flowers and trees toward the elaborate mansion.

Fitz's POV:

The second we burst through the door, a squealing Biana appeared in our path. Noticing our hands she said,

"I take it went well?" Stina nodded, and Biana shrieked, wrapping her up in a hug. "Was he too sappy? I told him not to be. You kissed him, right!? Did you like the boat?" she bounced on her toes. Sti-bee grinned,

"It was perfect. Of course! And yes, it was beautiful." Biana punched my arm playfully,

"Good for you! Not screwing it up!" I mock glared at her,

"We'd better go tell mom and dad the good news, I said.

Biana's POV:

They reacted pretty much the way I expected, crying, mom especially, hugging, and bombarding them with questions. Finally, I stepped in,

"Okay, give the lovers some room to breathe." Fitz was looking a little blue. I shooed the parents upstairs, gave the lovebirds each one more hug, promised, unwillingly, I would let THEM tell everyone, and ran upstairs, bursting with excitement.

Stina's POV:

I laughed at Bi's enthusiasm, and squeezed Fitzy's hand. We had decided to throw a party next week, and spill the secret there. It was going to be amazing.