The next day came and Arthur didn't seem to have any idea what had happened to his daughter, but soon had something to give her that he thought she was probably ready for by now.
"Mina, I have something for you." Arthur said.
"Oh... What is it, Dad?" Mina asked.
"Mina... This was your mother's necklace..." Arthur said to her, handing a black and purple necklace with white sparkles. "It was her dream to see you wear this someday."
Mina soon took the necklace and softly shut her eyes. "I miss her."
"I know... I miss her too..." Arthur sighed.
Mina and Arthur soon shared a hug with each other.
"Thank you, Dad; I'll keep this safe, I promise." Mina told him as she held onto the necklace. Once she wore the necklace, it shined and gleamed.
"You look just like her now." Arthur smiled sadly.
"Aw, thanks, Dad." Mina smiled back.
Arthur wiped a tear away and allowed her to go after he had given her the necklace.
Mina smiled as she wore the necklace in pride and came back to her friends.
"Ooh, that's a pretty necklace." Mo smiled at Mina.
"It was my mother's," Mina smiled back. "Dad just gave it to me."
Chester and Harold nuzzled up to her in comfort as they knew what happened with her mother. Mina smiled as she hugged them, feeling touched that they felt her pain and sorrow.
"Um... Your mother...?" Cherry asked.
"She died when I was born." Mina frowned softly.
"Oh... We're so sorry to hear that," Mo frowned back. "I know how that feels."
"Y-You do?" Mina asked her.
"My parents died when I was very young..." Mo said. "I love my adoptive parents very much, they really know how to treat me right and raise me with love and kindness like I was their own child, but at times, I do think about my actual ones who birthed me."
Mina was surprised to hear that.
"For a while, I've been in and out of foster homes, I didn't think I'd need a family when I traveled the world with my dog, but I soon realized that I needed one more than ever due to living in the dangerous city streets all by myself," Mo continued. "And then I met Atticus."
Atticus smiled bashfully in response.
"And they all lived happily ever after," Cherry said in a high voice to tease. "Ooh~ I love it!"
"Is she always like this?" Bunnicula asked.
"On a good day." Atticus murmured.
"That's a good day?" Bunnicula murmured back.
Atticus nodded.
"I'd hate to see a bad one." Bunnicula muttered.
"So, what should we do today, friends?" Mina smiled.
Mo and the others had an idea what to do for Bunnicula and Mina. Drell poked his head in to see his students with Bunnicula and Mina, about to take them home, but saw that they wanted to stay a bit longer, so he decided not to bother them.
"So, what do you guys have in mind?" Mina asked them.
"You two should have a special day together to celebrate yesterday's victory." Atticus smiled.
"Us?" Mina and Bunnicula replied.
"Yeah, just the two of you." Mo said.
Bunnicula and Mina soon shared a blush with each other. They soon walked off together, holding hands and decided to spend the day together.
"We're gonna watch, aren't we?" Cherry asked before being turned into a butterfly.
"Mm-hmm~" Atticus and Mo smiled, being butterflies themselves.
"Oh, you know it." Patch added as he also turned into a butterfly.
"How do I get dragged into these things?" Cherry muttered to herself.
They soon flew off to follow Bunnicula and Mina.
The two were having a walk through a forest that was a bit creepy and spooky.
"This place is horrific..." Cherry said before smiling. "I love it!"
"And to them, it would be romantic." Mo replied.
Bunnicula and Mina smiled to each other even if the forest was a bit haunting and creepy.
"Wow... Black roses..." Bunnicula said and soon decided to pick some to give to Mina. After picking some, he soon gave them to Mina.
Mina looked around before looking to the roses and loved them instantly. Bunnicula smiled as he let her hold the roses and she soon sniffed them.
"They're lovely." Mina smiled.
"Just like you." Bunnicula smiled back with a blush.
"Were you always this sweet?" Mina blushed back.
"A little." Bunnicula smiled as he placed one of the roses in Mina's hair behind her ear.
Mina blushed to that.
"Aww~" Atticus, Mo, and Patch awed.
"Hm." Cherry simply hummed at the cute gesture.
Mina and Bunnicula soon kept walking through the forest. The four continued to follow them.
"This is like something out of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." Mina giggled to the atmosphere.
"Except without the Headless Horseman." Bunnicula smiled.
"I could do without him." Mina chuckled.
"Yeah, same here." Bunnicula agreed.
The light of the full moon soon made the spooky forest enchanting.
"I'm a little hungry." Mina said, holding her stomach.
Atticus looked around and soon used his Wiccan magic to make a picnic for Bunnicula and Mina.
"That's convenient." Bunnicula smiled.
Atticus whistled innocently. Mina and Bunnicula went to sit down and have the picnic together.
"Let's see what's inside." Mina smiled.
Bunnicula smiled back and opened the picnic basket. "Roast chicken... Potato salad... Broccoli... Fruit punch... Honey baked rolls..." he then said as he took the things out. "Ooh! Carrots!"
"Wow, someone must have packed the picnic basket with our favorite food." Mina smiled back.
"Well, I'm not one to say no to a picnic, so let's eat up." Bunnicula smiled.
The two of them soon started to eat.
"Oh, if only they were adults, then I'm sure they'd get married." Mo smiled.
"Totally." Atticus nodded.
After a while, the picnic was nearly all gone and there was a creamy pie for dessert. Mina hid a smirk as she put some cream on her finger and held it out to Bunnicula. Bunnicula smirked back and soon licked it off.
"Aw." Mo smiled.
Bunnicula soon did the same with Mina and the two giggled as they became closer and closer.
"Gag me with a spoon." Cherry grumbled.
"Shh." Atticus, Mo, and Patch shushed her.
Cherry grumbled slightly. Mina and Bunnicula soon lay on the ground together and looked up at the stars after finishing their picnic. The sky didn't seem to have a cloud in the sky now.
"The stars look pretty from here." Mina said.
"Yeah, they kinda do..." Bunnicula agreed. "You ever wonder if there's any life out there?"
"Yeah." Mina nodded.
Cherry let out a yawn as she watched with the others.
"They're looking at the stars," Patch smiled. "I do that with Colette sometimes."
"This is so romantic." Mo added.
Atticus put his wing against hers.
"Hey." Mo giggled to that.
"What?" Atticus asked innocently.
"You know what~" Mo giggled.
"Can't blame a guy for trying." Atticus shrugged.
Mo then tickled him back before flying off.
"Get back here!" Atticus laughed and soon flew after her.
Patch smiled as he was happy to watch them chase each other. Cherry soon came to a tree branch and tried to turn into a bird, but she just changed back to normal and fell into a thorn bush. Patch winced to that and helped her out.
"Thanks." Cherry muttered.
"How come you changed back to normal?" Patch asked.
"I was trying to turn into a bird..." Cherry said. "I guess I need some help in animal transformation."
"Try thinking about being the animal you want to be..." Patch suggested.
Cherry closed her eyes and tried to think about being a bird and soon became a crow.
"Nice." Patch smiled.
"This Advanced Magic is really a thorn in my side..." Cherry groaned slightly.
"You're getting better though than when we first started." Patch comforted.
"I guess so." Cherry shrugged to that.
After eating, Mina and Bunnicula soon walked together and found a swing-set. Mina smiled as she decided to sit in it and Bunnicula decided to push her. It was quite fun for both of them. It seemed like the perfect first date out of many, especially after Mina was saved from Prince Damien. Nothing seemed to ruin their date at all.
Eventually, Bunnicula took Mina back home.
"You seem to be handling your daughter out with her new friends pretty well." Drell said to Arthur as they sat on the couch together to talk while the kids would wander on their own since they were teenagers.
"Well, you know, you just have to let kids be who they be." Arthur replied.
"Yes, yes..." Drell nodded his head. "Don't cuddle them too much... I have this one sister who refuses to move out because my parents sheltered her too much. I think she's developed agoraphobia."
"Whoa." Arthur said.
Drell shrugged as it was true.
"Your kids seem interesting though." Arthur said about Cherry, Atticus, and Mo.
"Thanks, they're real pieces of work." Drell told him.
"Must be hard work." Arthur said as Cherry walked by, but soon went to stay hidden as she couldn't help but eavesdrop.
"Yeah, especially Cherry," Drell said. "You know, when I was about her age, I was always put through hard work so I could show that I wasn't meant to be walked over. I'm a bit tough on her, but I just don't want her to be seen as a scrawny weakling when she grows up, and I want her to defend herself and not rely on others to save her, because they might not always be there, and she should learn independence."
"That sounds reasonable." Arthur said.
"She's a smart kid, she just tends to say dumb things at times..." Drell said. "It kinda reminds me of me when I was a kid."
"Really?" Arthur asked.
"Well, believe it or not, I got myself into a lot of trouble when I was younger." Drell hid a smirk.
"Surprisingly, I can actually believe it." Arthur said.
Drell glanced at him for that. "I think I should make a phone call now."
"I think I should make a phone call now." Arthur said before leaving.
Drell smirked to that, and he didn't even turn around. "You can come out now, Cherry, I know you're there." he then told her.
Cherry soon came out, already knowing that she couldn't hide from him.
"Hello there." Drell smirked.
"Heh..." Cherry said, a bit nervously. "How's it going?"
"Didn't your mother tell you eavesdropping is wrong?" Drell tutted.
"Well, I just got so curious." Cherry told him.
"Mm-hmm...?" Drell smirked.
Cherry smiled nervously to him.
"I don't know why you get so worked up, you're already passing school." Drell told her.
"I know." Cherry said.
"You did well." Drell said
"I did?" Cherry's eyes widened.
"You saw the villain and you came right to me..." Drell told her. "That was a smart move."
"Thanks." Cherry said.
"Run along now." Drell told her.
Cherry then wandered off back to the others.
She soon found the others once she left the living room.
"You in trouble again?" Atticus glared slightly.
"No, no, he's actually proud of me." Cherry said, a bit surprised about that.
"H-He's proud?" Atticus smiled.
"Yeah... I'm surprised too..." Cherry said. "He said I did the right thing by coming to him when I found the demon prince while you guys were sleeping."
"And he's right." Mo said.
"I'm ALWAYS right!" Drell called out from the other room.
"Anyways, I'm glad that he's proud." Atticus smiled.
"Yeah... Me too..." Cherry said.
"Come to think of it, Drell has been a little cranky once in a while, but he's actually been a lot nicer to us as we're almost out of school before graduation." Mo commented.
"Yeah, now that you mention it, he has been a lot nicer." Atticus said.
"Maybe he removed that stick from his butt." Cherry muttered with a smirk.
"Well, whatever the reason, I'm glad that he's been nicer." Patch smiled.
"Unless of course you sleep in his class." Mo smirked once she remembered what happened to Cassandra.
"Yeah, luckily, none of us will ever do that." Atticus added.
Cherry soon held her stomach as it growled and she smiled sheepishly to the others.
"Let's get something to eat." Atticus said.
Mina came to them with a small frown.
"Mina, are you okay?" Mo asked.
"I'm gonna miss you guys a lot when you leave." Mina said to them.
"We'll miss you too." Mo told her.
"It was really a lot of fun..." Mina said. "Especially with what you did for Bunnicula. That was so awesome and kind."
"Well, it's my job to help those in need." Atticus said, a bit bashfully.
"It's true." Patch smiled.
"Thank you," Mina said before hugging them before hugging Cherry and Mo. "Thank you all so much."
"You're welcome." Mo smiled.
"I'll miss you a lot... Maybe we can meet again?" Mina replied.
"Well, I'm not sure, but we'll find a way." Cherry said knowingly.
"Oh, that makes me happy!" Mina beamed.
"And I just know that Bunnicula's gonna be a great boyfriend for you." Atticus smiled.
"I never thought about it before, but I feel like you might be right about that." Mina smiled back.
"But we better let your dad know about Bunnicula so he doesn't start getting worried that your cute bunny is missing." Mo said.
"I suppose, but, I just don't know how to explain it to him honestly..." Mina said, a bit shyly and nervously.
"Hmm... There must be someway." Atticus said.
"He does say I have quite an imagination, like my mother and her aunt did..." Mina said softly.
"Does he know much about your great-aunt?" Cherry asked.
"Mostly that she left us this place in her absence." Mina replied.
Atticus and the others began to think up of how to tell Arthur and how to get him to believe them.
