Onyx

A witch, Practitioner, and Molly’s girlfriend. She first appeared in *Good Intentions*.

## Biography

Onyx was probably born in April or May.⁠ She grew up in or near Seattle—probably Everett. Throughout her childhood and youth she had a sense of both looking for someone and that someone was coming for her.⁠ She started to explore magic during high school, and a ritual led her to Elizabeth’s bookstore, where she met Molly.⁠

### Moving to Seattle

Sometime after Onyx’s graduation from high school, Onyx and Molly moved together into a small Shoreline apartment and started studying at North Seattle Community College. Together with Molly she was bequeathed Elizabeth’s Book of Shadows after Elizabeth’s death. The inheritance turned out to be a mixed blessing, because it put interest from other Practitioners in Seattle on them.⁠⁠

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> “I didn’t plan to jump into bed with you when we first hung out,” she said. “Not even close. I had a crush, sure. It wasn’t until we got talking and… and the longer we both talked, the more we clicked. It wasn’t all about the sex appeal, either. It was the friendship. The rest was…” Onyx shrugged. “Awesome. A bonus. Everything escalated. The thing that floored me right out of the gate was feeling like I’d found a best friend. Like I was safe.”
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— Onyx, *Past Due*, chapter 9

She was curious about her bisexuality, and she and Molly had discussed sex and relationships with men.⁠ They met Alex during photography class at North Seattle. Onyx had a date with him in September during which they connected deeply and that developed into a tryst. During this she discovered that Lorelei was a demon.⁠

### Meeting the Crew

Onyx’s and Molly’s attempt to free Alex from Lorelei backfired when they saw Rachel interact with Alex and used some of Rachel’s hairs for the summoning ritual.⁠ This complicated Alex’s situation before and under the Battle of Blackthorne Manor, but they were instrumental in rescuing Alex and Lorelei from Baal and Hell.⁠

She attempted to deepen her relation with Alex, but he kept some distance from her.⁠ In the end, Lorelei sought out Molly and Onyx herself to help protect Suite 1705, to get help handling Alex’s Post Traumatic Reincarnation Disorder, and to help make Alex connect with them.⁠ She and Molly were present at the Emerald City Halloween Ball where they learned to know the Crew better as well as negotiated with and had a tryst with Lorelei.⁠

### Relation with Alex

Onyx and Molly crafted and performed a ritual to settle Alex’s past memories, during which Onyx appeared as Elena. This also opened the way for the three to begin a relationship.⁠⁠ They were instrumental throughout the Battle of Magnuson Park. After the battle she and Molly started to consult on magical topics with the Special Task Force of the FBI.⁠ This together with being on retainer for Lorelei gave them greater economic freedom.⁠⁠

As a result they went house-hunting with assistance from Alex in early December. They found, leased, and cleansed House 12573, and moved into it between Christmas and New Year.⁠⁠

The destruction of the Brotherhood of Apollo at the Battle of Blackthorne Manor led to a meeting among Seattle’s Practitioners, which turned into Battle of the Casino and then to the Battle of Suite 1705. Onyx played a pivotal role in both battles, though she was grievously wounded by the demon Evelyn during the latter.

### The Family

See also: Onyx’s past lives
When Onyx’s connections to the Family were uncovered by Zafirah, they became a major part in motivating the Crew in going to the Family party in Vancouver in March.⁠ Her past life sister Kashvi managed to partially awaken Onyx’s memories from past lives, but with no apparent long-term effects.⁠ She played an important role during the Battle of the Silver Delta.⁠

Throughout this period her relation with Alex has deepened considerably, going from friends with benefits to being “polyamorous sex trash”.⁠

### Personal

Onyx’s birth name is unknown; she began to go by Onyx in middle school.⁠ She is bisexual and identifies as a “queer pagan Seattle liberal woman”.⁠ She is a delicate, classic beauty with long and curly black hair. She is usually well-dressed in a goth fashion, and appears to treat clothes as a shield against the world.⁠

Onyx played theater in high school and has a high level of cultural awareness.⁠ She is socially adept with a strong sense of decorum. Like Molly she is more open about magic than most Practitioners.⁠

She usually gives a friendly if introverted impression and is well aware of social conventions and the feelings of others, but has a hard, disciplined, and resolute core.⁠ She reacts poorly to nightly disturbances.⁠

## Relations

Onyx has good relations with her parents and no known siblings.⁠ There is however a very slight hint that she has to work for her parents not viewing her as a kid.⁠

She has lived together with Molly in a committed relationship for several years. She has a side relationship with Alex together with Molly that is still evolving, and considers him family.⁠⁠ According to Molly, Onyx’s and Alex’s relationship is much more serious than the one between Molly and Alex.⁠

She has had a tryst with Lorelei together with Molly.⁠

Together with Molly she maintains a wide circle of mundane friends.⁠ Following Molly’s lead she has however kept a relative distance to the other Practitioners in and around Seattle.⁠

## Abilities

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> She walked around the kitchen counter toward the living room with Drew close behind. “It turns out I’ve got good eyes,” said Onyx. “I notice stuff…”
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> Her friends carried on. Rain pattered gently against the balcony glass door. The office tower across the street lay dark and still… except for the dim light from the broad pane of glass directly across from Lorelei’s balcony.
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— Onyx, *Personal Demons*, chapter 20

Onyx is highly perceptive and observant, both with and without magic.⁠⁠

She is a capable and extremely talented Practitioner, and especially so in magics of the mind, auras, souls, and spirits. This includes breaking spells, managing wards, and working with angels and demons.⁠ Reading and understanding auras comes naturally to her, and she has turned a spell of pain and disorientation into a deadly weapon.⁠⁠ She is also highly skilled in all forms of perception and divination magic: hiding and discovering people, magic, and items, as well as seeing through illusions and having a sense of upcoming events.⁠⁠ Her magical powers have grown greatly in the past year.

## Possessions

Onyx’s wand is made out of ebony. She made her first wand in woodworking class in her senior year of high school, but it was broken during the Battle of Suite 1705.⁠⁠ She soon either repaired it or crafted a replacement wand.

She has a set of brass knuckles, a gift from Molly.⁠ She usually wears several earrings that she uses as disposable casting tools, *e.g.* for eavesdropping.⁠ She drives a used Chevrolet.⁠

Together with Molly she owns Elizabeth’s Book of Shadows.

## Theories

It is possible that Onyx’s natural talent for magic was accelerated early on by the dual spells laid on her soul by herself and by Malike. The first was of freedom and escape, the second of other people not protecting her.⁠⁠ While the second spell had been broken by Simon, there might still have been residual effects remaining.

It is possible that her role in the destruction of the Brotherhood of Apollo led to her being able to claim much more of the available magical power in Seattle.

Onyx was less psychologically and emotionally impacted than Alex when her memories of past incarnations were awakened.⁠⁠ Molly speculates that this is because Onyx had her wards up, blunting the impact of the spell, and that the spell worked in a different manner than the potion used on Alex. Another possibility is that Onyx spent more time in Heaven between reincarnations, thus blunting the emotional trauma from each life, and that her lives were less traumatic in general. The long-term impact of the memories from past lifes is however unknown.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 “Naked Justice”
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4  *Past Due*, chapter 9
3. ↑  *Personal Demons*, Prologue
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 “Authenticity”
5. ↑  *Good Intentions*, chapter 14
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1  *Good Intentions*, chapter 11
7. ↑  *Good Intentions*, chapter 15
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3  *Good Intentions*, chapter 17
9. ↑ “Minor Errands”
10. ↑ 10.0 10.1  *Natural Consequences*, chapter 4
11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2  *Natural Consequences*, chapter 5
12. ↑  *Natural Consequences*, chapter 10
13. ↑  *Natural Consequences*, chapter 11
14. ↑  *Natural Consequences*, chapter 18
15. ↑ “More Than Friends”
16. ↑ 16.0 16.1  *Personal Demons*, chapter 3
17. ↑  *Past Due*, chapter 8
18. ↑  *Past Due*, chapter 19
19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 19.3  *Past Due*, chapter 26
20. ↑ 20.0 20.1  *Past Due*, chapter 28
21. ↑ “Legitimacy”
22. ↑ 22.0 22.1  *Past Due*, chapter 12
23. ↑  *Natural Consequences*, chapter 12
24. ↑ “Constellations”
25. ↑ 25.0 25.1  *Past Due*, chapter 2
26. ↑  *Natural Consequences*, chapter 6
27. ↑  *Personal Demons*, chapter 22
28. ↑  *Past Due*, chapter 4
29. ↑  *Past Due*, chapter 10
30. ↑  *Past Due*, chapter 20
31. ↑  *Past Due*, chapter 22