Lyra awoke in a strange place, and for a moment had no idea where she was.
She had been having the strangest dream, and it slowly began to come back
to her. Reuniting with Will, learning how to travel to his world, an
angel's visit, and then, the most marvelous event of all, the revelation
that it wasn't a dream. It had been real, every fascinating detail had
really occurred!
Now she knew exactly where she was, in Will Parry's bedroom. They had traveled there from her world last night, and had been exhausted after their meeting with the angel. But now Will was suspiciously absent. She had woken up alone, except for Pan of course. Where could he have gone?
Mostly to locate clues to where he had gotten to, but also partly because of her own curiosity, Lyra arose and began to search Will's room. "Alright," Lyra thought, "maybe mostly because of my curiosity." She had matured much over the years, but the Lyra of old was still there, waiting for a time like this to have a legitimate reason to search, to spy, or to meddle in something that didn't actually concern her. This part of her had remained mostly hidden since her adventures had ended, and now it was just itching to come out.
The room she was in was somewhat small, and rather drab. There were no posters on the walls, and no clutter on the floor. Everything was so neat and tidy, nothing like Lyra's messy dormitory. Lyra walked the circumference of the room, and was heading pointedly towards a large dresser when Pan awoke and noticed her activity.
"Lyra, just what are you doing?" asked Pantalaimon in a sleepy voice, attempting to shake himself awake.
"Oh, ah, nothing," she covered, looking like a youngster caught with her hand in the cookie jar.
"Nothing my tail. You're obviously up to something! And just what is that?" Pan attempted to sound cross, but barely succeeded in suppressing a giggle. Lyra was up to her old tricks again.
"Alright, I was just looking to see if Will left me a note or something telling me where he's gone."
"Well, from the pleasant smell that's wafting up from the kitchen, I'd say he went downstairs to make breakfast," he said matter-of-factly. "Lyra Belacqua, what are you really up to?"
"I prefer Lyra Silvertongue thank you. And, I'm just. well exploring Will's room." Lyra could never lie well to Pan, since he was a part of her. Just as Pan could never refuse her, although he was obliged to halfheartedly try when she was doing something well, Lyra-like. As he began to protest, Lyra continued. "Come on Pan, I'm sure Will won't mind. I don't think there is anything here that he wouldn't want me to see anyway. I'm just interested in what Will has done all those years we were apart."
Not waiting for her dæmon's approval, Lyra continued her search. She opened the top drawer of Will's dresser, and pulled out a small silver picture frame. Inside was a photogram, 'no a photograph,' thought Lyra, 'that's what Will called them.' It was a photo of her and Will, which was taken by Kira inside the botanical garden a few days after she had been caught spying on the couple. Will had brought the camera with him that day, and explained to Lyra how it worked. There were cameras and photograms in her world of course, but they were not very common. She had seen her first and only photograms when Lord Asriel had come to Jordan College one day, that fateful day that had started her adventures. That fleeting image brought back a wave of memories to Lyra, of all her journeys that had followed. These memories still brought her a lot of pain, and not just because of her parting from Will. She had experienced many awful things, and many of those wounds were still very deep, just carefully hidden. After arriving at St. Sophia's Lyra had tried to suppress many of the things that had happened to her, and pass off the pain she was feeling as loss for Will. But with him finally back in her life again, the pain still remained. She had been through so much; great loss, sacrifice, and betrayal, and she knew she would never be able to forget, and it would be a long time until she could fully move on. A few lone tears came to Lyra's eyes, in loving memory of all that she had lost and all that she had never known.
Blinking them away, Lyra gazed at the picture for a few more seconds, turning her mind to happier things, like the day the photo was taken. The thought of Will keeping and cherishing this picture of them made her smile. Carefully replacing it and closing the drawer, she turned to Pan. "I think I'm getting a little hungry now, are you ready to go downstairs?" she said soberly.
"Of course," he replied softly. Lyra's tears had not escaped Pan's notice, but he wasn't sure what they meant. He was unable to read Lyra as well as he used to, before their separation. That thought still sent shivers down his spine. It was certainly something he did not wish to focus on, and he tried to replace those thoughts with ones of Kirjava, who he knew was waiting downstairs for him.
Lyra quietly tiptoed down the hall, and stood at the top of the stairs, gazing down. She could see Will through the open kitchen doorway. As she descended the stairs she was devising a way to surprise him, when an absentminded footstep on the squeaky stair gave her position away.
"About time you woke up sleepyhead," he chided, grinning, as Lyra entered the kitchen.
"Well hello yourself. And we were up quite late last night, conversing with angels and all about matters of worldly importance, so I really didn't think you'd mind if I slept in a bit. What time is it anyway?" she asked, stifling a yawn unsuccessfully.
"Oh just after nine," he smirked.
"Nine? Nine o'clock in the morning? And you're complaining that I slept in? By your tone of voice you'd think it was noon or something."
"Alright so I overreacted a bit. But I missed you, with you up there asleep and me down here cooking breakfast all alone. You're quite cute when you sleep you know."
"Oh really?" Lyra asked, blushing a deep shade of crimson, but smiling just the same. "So what have you been cooking anyway?"
"Omelets," he replied, grabbing two cokes from the refrigerator.
"Omelets?"
"Yes. Don't you remember the first time we met?"
"Oh yes, I remember it quite well Will Parry. I was just walking along, minding my own business, and then out of nowhere you came and tackled me!"
"No, it was you who tackled me! And if I remember correctly, you were quite bossy when we first met."
"I was not!"
"Was too!"
The couple continued their friendly bickering over breakfast, both relishing in their newfound hope and the angel's promise of a life together. It seemed as if all their troubles had vanished with the rising sun.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~
Mary awoke to the sound of voices downstairs. It took her a few moments to get her bearings and arrange her thoughts. There were obviously two voices, two very familiar voices. She quickly recognized the first as Will, but the second puzzled her for quite a few minutes more. Suddenly a face popped into her mind; a familiar girl with dirty blond hair and blue eyes. Lyra. But no, that couldn't be. Lyra was in her own world, in Oxford, so very far away. Mary let it slide. It couldn't be Lyra. Obviously she was still tired, and wasn't thinking straight. She needed a little more rest before she headed downstairs.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~
After they had finished, Will rose to wash the dishes, putting two omelets and some coffee aside for Mary and his mother when they awoke. Lyra just watched him curiously from the table. Unable to resist, Will turned and sprayed Lyra with water from the faucet.
This immediately got Lyra's attention. "I'll get you for that!" she shrieked, running towards the sink.
The two were soon engaged in a full-scale water battle, oblivious to the chill in the December air. Their dæmons were playfully rolling on the floor, splashing each other in the pools of water that were rapidly developing.
After a few minutes, when both were fully soaked, Will pulled Lyra close and offered a truce.
"Fine, but only because I don't think either of us can get much wetter."
"You know, I've yet to wish you a Merry Christmas. And we are standing right under the mistletoe."
Lyra glanced up to make sure Will wasn't fibbing. Assured he wasn't, she crooned, "I know all about mistletoe," and was leaning in close to him when they were interrupted by a voice.
"Just what is going on here?"
The couple slowly turned towards the stairway, grinning sheepishly. After catching a glimpse of who Will was with, Mary Malone dropped the coffee cup she had been holding, and it fell to the floor and shattered.
"Hi Dr. Malone," Lyra said, barely able to keep a straight face.
"Don't worry, I'll clean this up Mary," Will promised, but Mary continued to stare at the girl beside him.
"L-L-Lyra?" she stammered, unable to believe her eyes.
"Surprise," she stated simply, wiping a few soaked strands of hair away from her face
"But . you're supposed to be in your world . how?" Mary's astonishment was evident in her inability to form her thoughts into coherent sentences.
"I told you she'd be surprised," Will whispered to Lyra, then turned to Mary. "I know this all seems a little odd, but we'll explain it over breakfast. I've made omelets," he offered, grinning.
Mary dodged the puddles of water, and sat down in the chair farthest from the sink, which was only slightly wet. She got the feeling she was in for quite an explanation. But thinks were starting to make sense now: Will's midnight excursions, his newfound happiness, and the secret he just couldn't reveal. Until now.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~
Later that afternoon, both Will and Lyra found themselves outside, sitting under the mulefa tree. It was growing dark, and they knew their time together was growing short, for Lyra was expected back at St. Sophia's that day.
She shivered in the old sweat suit Mary had lent her, since her clothes were still sopping wet from their morning battle. Will pulled her closer, wrapping her in his arms. He looked calm, but inside his thoughts were going a mile a minute as he fingered a little black box in his pocket. He'd purchased the ring inside it months ago, long before the angel's visit last night. Ever since their reunion in the garden he had saved up for this, doing odd jobs around the neighborhood and getting part time jobs after school whenever possible. Once he'd purchased the ring he'd been waiting for the perfect time to give it to Lyra. It would have to wait until Lyra finally was able to travel with him. After their breakthrough and the angel's words last night, he finally felt like it was time. But one dismal thought still clung to the back of his mind; what if she turned him down?
He didn't doubt her love for him, but they were both so young. And then there was the matter of where they'd live. Even with the angel's guarantee that their dæmons would be unaffected by the years in a foreign world, he knew the choice of where to stay would still be difficult.
Will sighed, trying to quiet his raging emotions long enough to gather all the courage he had. He soon realized Lyra was looking at him strangely.
"Seems you were miles away just now," she said softly.
"I was just thinking."
"About what?"
"Well, before you go back there's something I need to ask you. I've been thinking about it for awhile and after everything that happened last night, I think now is the time to ask you."
"Ask me what? What are you talking about Will?"
He pulled away from her then, got down on his knees, pulled the box from his pocket, and opened it up to reveal the ring inside. "Lyra Silvertongue, will you marry me?"
Lyra stared at the ring for a few moments. It was made of gold, and had a small diamond in the center. But what caught her attention was the two small chips of something in the band, one on either side of the larger diamond. She was unsure of why its unique color and sparkle seemed so familiar, until she realized that they were pieces of Will's knife. It was only after this realization that his words began to sink in.
Taking her silence as rejection, Will tried to plead his case. "I know we're still young Lyra, so young. But we've seen and experienced things people five times our age never have. We've been through so much already. And we don't need to get married right away of course; we can wait as long as you want. And as the angel said last night it is our destiny, but I can understand if you don't want to. But I love you so much Lyra."
By this time Lyra had stopped looking at the ring and was focusing on Will. "Yes," she replied, interrupting his speech. "Of course I'll marry you." When the angel had told them about their final task last night, her heart had leapt at the thought of marriage to Will. But at that time she thought such a union would be years away. She never dreamed that he had been planning a proposal beforehand.
Relieved that she had agreed, Will broke out in a huge smile. "You will?" She just nodded, a few tears coming to her eyes. 'Look at this, the second time I'm crying in one day,' she thought wistfully. He slipped the ring on her finger and the two kissed, not even realizing when Pan climbed onto Will's shoulder and Kirjava onto Lyra's lap, an unspoken agreement of the marriage proposal.
A/N Yes I know, many people have been waiting for this chapter for what seems like forever. I apologize that it's taken me so long to write, but unfortunately I have little time to write due to an ungodly hectic schedule because of school. But fear not, I am not giving up on this story. And its not finished yet, there is still two chapters to go. I'll try to get them out in a relatively short period of time, but I can make no promises.
I'd like to take a few moments to thank everyone who had reviewed this story! It has gotten a very good response and I am quite proud. I know how easy it is to read a story and not review, (I do it often myself) so that makes each and every review I receive more special. If you've enjoyed this story, I'd love it if you'd take the time to review. It means so much to me! (
And as always, all normal disclaimers apply. I do not own Will, Lyra, pan, Kirjava, Mary, or any of Philip Pullman's characters or the plot of any of the books in the His Dark Materials trilogy. I do own Kira and the plot of this fanfic.
Now she knew exactly where she was, in Will Parry's bedroom. They had traveled there from her world last night, and had been exhausted after their meeting with the angel. But now Will was suspiciously absent. She had woken up alone, except for Pan of course. Where could he have gone?
Mostly to locate clues to where he had gotten to, but also partly because of her own curiosity, Lyra arose and began to search Will's room. "Alright," Lyra thought, "maybe mostly because of my curiosity." She had matured much over the years, but the Lyra of old was still there, waiting for a time like this to have a legitimate reason to search, to spy, or to meddle in something that didn't actually concern her. This part of her had remained mostly hidden since her adventures had ended, and now it was just itching to come out.
The room she was in was somewhat small, and rather drab. There were no posters on the walls, and no clutter on the floor. Everything was so neat and tidy, nothing like Lyra's messy dormitory. Lyra walked the circumference of the room, and was heading pointedly towards a large dresser when Pan awoke and noticed her activity.
"Lyra, just what are you doing?" asked Pantalaimon in a sleepy voice, attempting to shake himself awake.
"Oh, ah, nothing," she covered, looking like a youngster caught with her hand in the cookie jar.
"Nothing my tail. You're obviously up to something! And just what is that?" Pan attempted to sound cross, but barely succeeded in suppressing a giggle. Lyra was up to her old tricks again.
"Alright, I was just looking to see if Will left me a note or something telling me where he's gone."
"Well, from the pleasant smell that's wafting up from the kitchen, I'd say he went downstairs to make breakfast," he said matter-of-factly. "Lyra Belacqua, what are you really up to?"
"I prefer Lyra Silvertongue thank you. And, I'm just. well exploring Will's room." Lyra could never lie well to Pan, since he was a part of her. Just as Pan could never refuse her, although he was obliged to halfheartedly try when she was doing something well, Lyra-like. As he began to protest, Lyra continued. "Come on Pan, I'm sure Will won't mind. I don't think there is anything here that he wouldn't want me to see anyway. I'm just interested in what Will has done all those years we were apart."
Not waiting for her dæmon's approval, Lyra continued her search. She opened the top drawer of Will's dresser, and pulled out a small silver picture frame. Inside was a photogram, 'no a photograph,' thought Lyra, 'that's what Will called them.' It was a photo of her and Will, which was taken by Kira inside the botanical garden a few days after she had been caught spying on the couple. Will had brought the camera with him that day, and explained to Lyra how it worked. There were cameras and photograms in her world of course, but they were not very common. She had seen her first and only photograms when Lord Asriel had come to Jordan College one day, that fateful day that had started her adventures. That fleeting image brought back a wave of memories to Lyra, of all her journeys that had followed. These memories still brought her a lot of pain, and not just because of her parting from Will. She had experienced many awful things, and many of those wounds were still very deep, just carefully hidden. After arriving at St. Sophia's Lyra had tried to suppress many of the things that had happened to her, and pass off the pain she was feeling as loss for Will. But with him finally back in her life again, the pain still remained. She had been through so much; great loss, sacrifice, and betrayal, and she knew she would never be able to forget, and it would be a long time until she could fully move on. A few lone tears came to Lyra's eyes, in loving memory of all that she had lost and all that she had never known.
Blinking them away, Lyra gazed at the picture for a few more seconds, turning her mind to happier things, like the day the photo was taken. The thought of Will keeping and cherishing this picture of them made her smile. Carefully replacing it and closing the drawer, she turned to Pan. "I think I'm getting a little hungry now, are you ready to go downstairs?" she said soberly.
"Of course," he replied softly. Lyra's tears had not escaped Pan's notice, but he wasn't sure what they meant. He was unable to read Lyra as well as he used to, before their separation. That thought still sent shivers down his spine. It was certainly something he did not wish to focus on, and he tried to replace those thoughts with ones of Kirjava, who he knew was waiting downstairs for him.
Lyra quietly tiptoed down the hall, and stood at the top of the stairs, gazing down. She could see Will through the open kitchen doorway. As she descended the stairs she was devising a way to surprise him, when an absentminded footstep on the squeaky stair gave her position away.
"About time you woke up sleepyhead," he chided, grinning, as Lyra entered the kitchen.
"Well hello yourself. And we were up quite late last night, conversing with angels and all about matters of worldly importance, so I really didn't think you'd mind if I slept in a bit. What time is it anyway?" she asked, stifling a yawn unsuccessfully.
"Oh just after nine," he smirked.
"Nine? Nine o'clock in the morning? And you're complaining that I slept in? By your tone of voice you'd think it was noon or something."
"Alright so I overreacted a bit. But I missed you, with you up there asleep and me down here cooking breakfast all alone. You're quite cute when you sleep you know."
"Oh really?" Lyra asked, blushing a deep shade of crimson, but smiling just the same. "So what have you been cooking anyway?"
"Omelets," he replied, grabbing two cokes from the refrigerator.
"Omelets?"
"Yes. Don't you remember the first time we met?"
"Oh yes, I remember it quite well Will Parry. I was just walking along, minding my own business, and then out of nowhere you came and tackled me!"
"No, it was you who tackled me! And if I remember correctly, you were quite bossy when we first met."
"I was not!"
"Was too!"
The couple continued their friendly bickering over breakfast, both relishing in their newfound hope and the angel's promise of a life together. It seemed as if all their troubles had vanished with the rising sun.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~
Mary awoke to the sound of voices downstairs. It took her a few moments to get her bearings and arrange her thoughts. There were obviously two voices, two very familiar voices. She quickly recognized the first as Will, but the second puzzled her for quite a few minutes more. Suddenly a face popped into her mind; a familiar girl with dirty blond hair and blue eyes. Lyra. But no, that couldn't be. Lyra was in her own world, in Oxford, so very far away. Mary let it slide. It couldn't be Lyra. Obviously she was still tired, and wasn't thinking straight. She needed a little more rest before she headed downstairs.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~
After they had finished, Will rose to wash the dishes, putting two omelets and some coffee aside for Mary and his mother when they awoke. Lyra just watched him curiously from the table. Unable to resist, Will turned and sprayed Lyra with water from the faucet.
This immediately got Lyra's attention. "I'll get you for that!" she shrieked, running towards the sink.
The two were soon engaged in a full-scale water battle, oblivious to the chill in the December air. Their dæmons were playfully rolling on the floor, splashing each other in the pools of water that were rapidly developing.
After a few minutes, when both were fully soaked, Will pulled Lyra close and offered a truce.
"Fine, but only because I don't think either of us can get much wetter."
"You know, I've yet to wish you a Merry Christmas. And we are standing right under the mistletoe."
Lyra glanced up to make sure Will wasn't fibbing. Assured he wasn't, she crooned, "I know all about mistletoe," and was leaning in close to him when they were interrupted by a voice.
"Just what is going on here?"
The couple slowly turned towards the stairway, grinning sheepishly. After catching a glimpse of who Will was with, Mary Malone dropped the coffee cup she had been holding, and it fell to the floor and shattered.
"Hi Dr. Malone," Lyra said, barely able to keep a straight face.
"Don't worry, I'll clean this up Mary," Will promised, but Mary continued to stare at the girl beside him.
"L-L-Lyra?" she stammered, unable to believe her eyes.
"Surprise," she stated simply, wiping a few soaked strands of hair away from her face
"But . you're supposed to be in your world . how?" Mary's astonishment was evident in her inability to form her thoughts into coherent sentences.
"I told you she'd be surprised," Will whispered to Lyra, then turned to Mary. "I know this all seems a little odd, but we'll explain it over breakfast. I've made omelets," he offered, grinning.
Mary dodged the puddles of water, and sat down in the chair farthest from the sink, which was only slightly wet. She got the feeling she was in for quite an explanation. But thinks were starting to make sense now: Will's midnight excursions, his newfound happiness, and the secret he just couldn't reveal. Until now.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~
Later that afternoon, both Will and Lyra found themselves outside, sitting under the mulefa tree. It was growing dark, and they knew their time together was growing short, for Lyra was expected back at St. Sophia's that day.
She shivered in the old sweat suit Mary had lent her, since her clothes were still sopping wet from their morning battle. Will pulled her closer, wrapping her in his arms. He looked calm, but inside his thoughts were going a mile a minute as he fingered a little black box in his pocket. He'd purchased the ring inside it months ago, long before the angel's visit last night. Ever since their reunion in the garden he had saved up for this, doing odd jobs around the neighborhood and getting part time jobs after school whenever possible. Once he'd purchased the ring he'd been waiting for the perfect time to give it to Lyra. It would have to wait until Lyra finally was able to travel with him. After their breakthrough and the angel's words last night, he finally felt like it was time. But one dismal thought still clung to the back of his mind; what if she turned him down?
He didn't doubt her love for him, but they were both so young. And then there was the matter of where they'd live. Even with the angel's guarantee that their dæmons would be unaffected by the years in a foreign world, he knew the choice of where to stay would still be difficult.
Will sighed, trying to quiet his raging emotions long enough to gather all the courage he had. He soon realized Lyra was looking at him strangely.
"Seems you were miles away just now," she said softly.
"I was just thinking."
"About what?"
"Well, before you go back there's something I need to ask you. I've been thinking about it for awhile and after everything that happened last night, I think now is the time to ask you."
"Ask me what? What are you talking about Will?"
He pulled away from her then, got down on his knees, pulled the box from his pocket, and opened it up to reveal the ring inside. "Lyra Silvertongue, will you marry me?"
Lyra stared at the ring for a few moments. It was made of gold, and had a small diamond in the center. But what caught her attention was the two small chips of something in the band, one on either side of the larger diamond. She was unsure of why its unique color and sparkle seemed so familiar, until she realized that they were pieces of Will's knife. It was only after this realization that his words began to sink in.
Taking her silence as rejection, Will tried to plead his case. "I know we're still young Lyra, so young. But we've seen and experienced things people five times our age never have. We've been through so much already. And we don't need to get married right away of course; we can wait as long as you want. And as the angel said last night it is our destiny, but I can understand if you don't want to. But I love you so much Lyra."
By this time Lyra had stopped looking at the ring and was focusing on Will. "Yes," she replied, interrupting his speech. "Of course I'll marry you." When the angel had told them about their final task last night, her heart had leapt at the thought of marriage to Will. But at that time she thought such a union would be years away. She never dreamed that he had been planning a proposal beforehand.
Relieved that she had agreed, Will broke out in a huge smile. "You will?" She just nodded, a few tears coming to her eyes. 'Look at this, the second time I'm crying in one day,' she thought wistfully. He slipped the ring on her finger and the two kissed, not even realizing when Pan climbed onto Will's shoulder and Kirjava onto Lyra's lap, an unspoken agreement of the marriage proposal.
A/N Yes I know, many people have been waiting for this chapter for what seems like forever. I apologize that it's taken me so long to write, but unfortunately I have little time to write due to an ungodly hectic schedule because of school. But fear not, I am not giving up on this story. And its not finished yet, there is still two chapters to go. I'll try to get them out in a relatively short period of time, but I can make no promises.
I'd like to take a few moments to thank everyone who had reviewed this story! It has gotten a very good response and I am quite proud. I know how easy it is to read a story and not review, (I do it often myself) so that makes each and every review I receive more special. If you've enjoyed this story, I'd love it if you'd take the time to review. It means so much to me! (
And as always, all normal disclaimers apply. I do not own Will, Lyra, pan, Kirjava, Mary, or any of Philip Pullman's characters or the plot of any of the books in the His Dark Materials trilogy. I do own Kira and the plot of this fanfic.