A Love Unbound

Note: I do not own any of the original characters/plots/ideas/stories from the His Dark Materials trilogy, including The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass, all written by Philip Pullman. The only things I claim to own are the characters of my own creation and the respective storyline that they follow. I sincerely hope you enjoy the story. I am not attempting to submit what I believe to be a better version of the original story, nor am I disappointed with it. I simply wish to continue it.

B.S.

Prologue:

One year. It had already been one year. Not exactly one year, mind you, but near enough. All of the windows, excluding the one leading from the world of the dead, had been closed. With the knife destroyed, and many fears laid to rest, all of the respective worlds settled down and attempted to regain their sense of what life was. Everything seemed all backed to normal. Seemed, that is…

NFTA: In an attempt to give this story a feeling of ominous foreboding, I (The author. Not to sound sarcastic, but merely to inform. Also, "NFTA" stands for "Note From The Author".) will hint that there will be another prominent character appearing later, a boy, with a special secret, trying to find his only friend again. That is all.
Today was a special day for William Parry. He soon would be graduating the Robert's Academy for Boys. He had been back to school for only eight months, but his sharp mind and intellect and the tutoring of his legal guardian, Mary Malone, caused him to advance farther than anyone expected, and his receiving an astonishing 98 on the Accumulative Board Final Examinations convinced the Dean and the school board that he should be allowed to graduate early.

He came upstairs to Mary's room, dressed smartly in a shirt, but no tie. The tie was in his hand.

"Hey, Mary?" he asked tentatively, "Can you help me to tie this thing?"

She understood and came out of her bathroom, in a nice dress but with her hair in rollers. Having had no father for all of his life, he could hardly be expected to know how to tie a tie, and she made no comment on it, knowing that he was thinking the same thing. She lifted up his collar and, with her limited knowledge of watching scientists late for meetings put their ties on quickly, helped him to get it on and tied in a satisfactory manner. While she helped him, she had time to study him properly. She saw a lean, strong-jawed young man of 16. It would hardly do to call him a boy anymore. He had experienced more in six months than any ten men had seen in their whole lives. As he swept his brown bangs back across his forehead, she looked into his eyes and saw a person comfortable with death, as one might be comfortable with an acquaintance or friend even. Will had become her only friend in life now, and she would never find a nicer or kinder person to take his place, but she remembered that death was still in there, lurking around in the darkness, smiling in his own little corner of Will's mind, always waiting.

However, she didn't prefer to think of Will that way, so she finished his tie and told him that he should go make some toast to eat before graduation and that she would be ready to leave when she took her hair down.

Will walked down to the kitchen, amazed at how loud his new wing-tipped shoes seemed to stomp and clomp on the wood floors. He set his bread to toast and poured a glass of orange juice. When the toast was done, he spread it with marmalade and began eating it. He mulled over the coming events in his head, and presently began to feel more at ease. Any type of public appearance like this made him nervous, and he had been worrying for two days straight what this graduation would be like. He only wished his mother could be there to see him. She would be so proud. She had been in a hospital for a while now, though. The doctors said she was making good progress, however, and that a complete recovery of her mindset was not an impossibility. This delighted Will every time he thought about it, and it made him merry now, to think that his mother could be well soon. He heard footsteps from the stairwell. Mary came into the kitchen, ready to go, holding a small handbag.

"Are you ready, dear?" she asked Will.

"Yes, as ready as I will ever be", he replied with a smile on his face.

She smiled back and gave him a hug. They walked out of the door, down to the street, and left in Mary's car to start the next part of Will's life. Unknown to them, however, an unexpected visitor would put a halt on Will's graduation, and send his life spiraling in another direction altogether. The car pulled off down the street, and Will was happy.