Onyx, after a few minutes, stopped crying as she began to ball her little bunny fist. Finally, she punched Sami in the stomach, not caring he was already tired.
"YOU IDIOT!" she yelled. "Do you not realize you could've died!"
Sami just shook his head as he rubbed the spot that Onyx had just punched. "I know, Onyx, but I couldn't just leave you to die," he responded. His body was all sore from the overuse of magic. Oddly, his nose wasn't bleeding nor was his head hurting like before.
Onyx once again saw her beloved overlap Sami again. Not only that, but she could see her kids too in his image. Not wanting Sami to see her tears, she hopped off his lap before turning her back to him.
"Oh, come on, Onyx, can you please not be mad?" Sami whined as he scratched the back of his head. "Look, we won, right? That has to amount to something."
Onyx held her back to him and crossed her arms with a hmph, pretending to be mad but honestly still shocked at the fact Sami was able to beat the Minotaur. The Minotaur was wrapped in chains before her. The chains were stronger than the ones he used before. She could feel the energy constantly draining off the giant beast.
Onyx was impressed with the fact Sami was able to use part of her powers so soon with a lack of any training. He used her ability to manipulate shadows to hide the chains in the Minotaur's shadow. Mixed with his intangibility, he placed multiple chains on the end of each sword he threw. A simple but effective strategy against someone physically stronger, using the Minotaur's own massive body against itself.
"Stop looking at me and grant me a warrior's death," The Minotaur's deep voice weakly murmured.
Onyx didn't say anything as she looked down at his body and shook her head at him. This boy could've been better, no, he should've been better. It's all her fault why he ended up this way. Onyx was so deep in thought that she didn't notice when Sami was crouching down next to her.
"You ask for death, but don't you realize you're free? Free from whatever curse trapping both you and Onyx," stated Sami, as if talking to a small child. "Even if you committed evil, now is a time to change. You both have been in prison for years to the point the majority of people you wronged are probably dead."
Onyx looked up in wonder at Sami. How could he be so forgiving of him trying to kill him earlier? The Minotaur struggled to raise his head as he attempted to glare at Sami. Smoke coming out of his nose at the anger, the audacity that he would back down from his own rules.
"You insult me, boy! I don't need your friendship bullshit to tell me what my honor means to me!" the Minotaur shouted, though his voice was weak. "I don't cheat my games; even when Theseus bested me, I only lived because of Onyx. She stole not only my honor but my freedom as well, locking me in a prison not of my own making. For years I was trapped by myself with my own thoughts, just to be robbed once again of my honor and pride."
"That's because you kept slaughtering armies, and not stopping once it was over," Onyx replied. Tears forming in her eyes, her voice began to waver. "I couldn't just watch you keep going on with a crusade, I wanted to stop."
"IT WAS YOU WHO TAUGHT ME THAT, MOTHER!" interrupted the Minotaur. "You raised me to be your weapon, and I did everything you asked until you left me. Alone as you hid away from everyone, ashamed at how we won!"
"Son, I'M…," Started Onyx.
"Shut it, Mother, I lived years without your pity. I don't need it now," interrupted the Minotaur once again. The clearing went quiet once he finished talking. The only thing that could be heard were miscellaneous animals in the clearing.
Sami just stood in shock at what he just heard, his mind going blank to piece things together. Onyx's ears flopped down as she rubbed her paws together, sadness coming off her in waves as she looked at her son. The Minotaur weakly put his back to the ground, his body strained for just the little bit of yelling he did.
"Ugh, stupid bookworm and not eating meat," Lyra muttered to herself, her shoulders slumping with exhaustion as she walked back from the woods. "Better appreciate this big meal we are having for how long it took me to find these animals."
Thankfully, Lyra decided to hunt in the woods closer to Sami's house due to how covered in blood she is. She decided to hunt for one deer and one cow so not only can they make a bunch of different foods tonight, but also turn some into jerky so they can have it while traveling to the royal academy.
Lyra did think ahead and cut up part of the meat before leaving the forest, leaving the bones and most of the innards for the wild animals to eat. She did skin the deer since it had some magical property, intending to make a gift for him. A leather pouch so he can store items since he wouldn't have one for battle.
Actually, Sami really didn't have much of anything she noticed. Even for all his love of books, he didn't own any. His house barely had furniture, just a small couch in the front, and two beds. Funny enough, he has three rooms and the third room doesn't have anything in it, just covered in dust.
Most of Sami's clothes consist of library uniforms, so before leaving she's taking him shopping for decent training clothes, using the money left by General Mercer to help fund the trip for Sami. Lyra knew General Mercer well and could tell he was excited with Sami being so interested in learning, though he tries to hide it.
Lyra hiked up the leather bag on her back and she finally made it out of the clearing of the woods. Today was strange in the sense the woods seemed to hide the sunlight, but maybe that was just her imagination. With it in the late afternoon, it shouldn't take too long to make a stew out of the meat she collected.
After ten more minutes of hiking, she finally entered the quiet house, a heavy sigh escaping her lips as she sat the backpack full of meat on the ground next to the door. She carefully removed her bloody cloak and boots so as to not track blood into the house. Picking the pack back up, she made her way into the kitchen.
Sami's house had the front door enter right into the kitchen, then the living room was past that with four doors, the three bedrooms and one bathroom. Lyra finally sat the pack down for the last time in the refrigerator before going to wash her hands in the bathroom. Deciding to rest as she has been so busy for the first half of the day.
Walking past the back of the couch, her eyelids feeling heavy, as she made her way to the bathroom door. Before she could knock, it opened on its own. Instead of seeing Sami come out, a small, fluffy brown rabbit with wide, intelligent eyes walked out, still puffing out its fur as steam curled around it.
"Oh, you must be Lyra, my name is Onyx, nice to meet you," Onyx introduced herself, shaking a bit of water from her ears after her shower.
Lyra, not even blinking at the talking rabbit, made a decision to go in and just sleep. Honestly, she was far too tired to deal with whatever shit Sami had gotten into today.
Onyx looked stunned at the abrupt end to the conversation. "Um, sleep well then?" She called out, confused.
All Onyx got in response was a loud door slamming to the right of the bathroom. She did look tired, Onyx mused, recalling what little she'd gathered before Sami passed out. Lyra was hunting in the woods. If she did get close enough to her son's spell, then it probably drained her magic, though she wouldn't be aware.
Onyx then shrugged, realizing that she was overthinking things; Lyra probably was just tired from hunting all day. Onyx went to the front of the couch to check on Sami, who she had put fresh clothes on and cleaned up as he lay asleep on his stomach. Next to him lay the horn of the Minotaur, its rough surface catching the faint light. Onyx nudged it gently with her nose before circling it once.
On his back was the tattoo of the Minotaur, a swirling pattern of dark vines that subtly incorporated the shape of a bull's head. Sami gained that as a symbol that her son was also Sami's familiar. A better outcome than just dying, a fresh start for both, she thought in her heart.
Onyx was knocked out of her thoughts as she saw Sami shaking, quickly snapping her fingers to summon a blanket woven from shimmering purple magic to keep him warm. She hopped closer and settled near his hand, her small form a silent vigil.
Between overusing his magic and binding both of them to his soul, it was amazing his body hadn't burnt out from overuse. That ring she and her husband blessed years ago was still as strong as ever. Being bound to Sami… perhaps this was a chance for her son too. A chance at a different path.
Sighing, bored with nothing to do, Onyx decided to make a stew and cook for everyone in the house, knowing Sami wouldn't wake up until tomorrow at the earliest and probably would be really hungry.
With determined hops, she made her way towards the kitchen, having to hop onto a chair to peer at the countertop, her tiny paws already planning the meal, her mind on the future and what it could be now that she was truly free. Maybe she could actually make a difference this time and repent for the mistakes she'd made.