Beast as Ally

One of the most powerful and recurrent themes throughout the heroine’s labyrinth model is the beast as ally. The heroine often meets a beast-like archetype, often masculine, who in many ways, shares the appearance of her enemies or even the masked minotaur himself. Although this beast displays many of the behaviors of the monsters the heroine fears, he will recognize the courage of the heroine and come to respect her. 

The heroine is also gaining confidence in her own transformative powers and leadership abilities. The beast is no knight in shining armor either. The beast reflects the heroine’s curiosity or even attraction to the dark side of the world, but also her potential to change darkness to light. The emergence of the beast as a supportive figure signals the heroine’s growing readiness to confront the masked minotaur at the center of the labyrinth.