She spread her wings wide as she took to the sky. The setting sun dyed the ocean a beautiful orange, and the skies before her were no different. Magnolia petals floated around aimlessly in the wind, surrounding the young gryphon with the very essence of their goddess.

The golden streaks in her brown wings glimmered endlessly in this light. Her true beauty was striking; enough to make a mortal human bow down to her. Behind her, her furry paws welcomed the flow of the winds.

Before her was their great city, the place where their queen, a descendant of the daughter of the goddess, ruled with a kind claw. It was strange to recall that she'd known the queen well since she was just a fledgling. Yet they'd grown up together, pouncing and play-fighting like any other tiny gryphon would.

Luminea chuckled quietly to herself. Finally, they'd reunite face-to-face. She'd been preening herself all day, just awaiting this evening bliss. There was nothing she wanted more but to see her again.

From the Greatest Tower came a strikingly beautiful gryphon. A smile rested on her dark beak and at once, Luminea knew that it was her long-time friend. Not a word was spoken between them, yet they knew how joyous the other was.

She carried the features of a harpy and a snow leopard, only the most regal of gryphonesses. Though she looked incredibly fierce, she was a kind soul with enough love to last for millenniums. The Queen nuzzled her engineer, purring softly.

Luminea returned the favor, her purr louder and slightly rougher, but a sound that the Queen welcomed. She too had waited a long time for this. Finally, these two childhood friends were reunited.

They linked their talons together and flew side-by-side through the evening sky. Neither of them were willing to let go. The two pressed together, rolling endlessly through the sky and diving beneath the clouds. Laughter sounded across the twilight sky.

Separating for a moment, they dove around the rocky outcroppings of the beach that lie beneath their queendom. The two gryphonesses raced through the many arches and tunnels that many humans had yet to explore. They laughed and played in the evening light, diving in and out of the stones. Together, they were unstoppable, though no matter the distance between them, they'd always be bound by their love.

She soon found herself reunited with the queen. They rose beyond the clouds yet again, flying above their home. Luminea smiled as only a gryphon could smile, most of her happiness radiating from her beautiful eyes. The queen was silent, though equally as joyous as her companion.

The two gryphons circled the floating city together, beaks raised to the coming eclipse. As the moon took its position, the queen approached her engineer, gliding gently through the sky. With their sense of time lost to the eclipse, the two creatures met, holding talons.

Their gesture of affection and togetherness looked effortless. They hovered there until the eclipse passed, by which time they broke away again, pulling in a reverse loop. The gryphons rolled through the air, meeting again beneath the astral bodies.

They were in love and there was no denying it. It was such a pure and innocent love, one with the fierce devotion and love of a lion, but with the gentle touch of a lamb. Nothing could pull them apart anymore. She was a hero, who had saved her queen and her people. And she loved her queen more than any of her subjects.