Before you read this, I need to state that do not own Lyra, Will or any of
the other characters in this story. His Dark Materials, The Golden Compass,
The Subtle Knife, The Amber Spyglass and all related characters, concepts,
and commercial offspring are the property of Philip Pullman, Scholastic
Books, Random House Inc, New Line Cinema and all other right-holders. This
is not for profit and is not intended to infringe upon any commercial
endeavours.
If the Master was taken aback by the arrival of the witch he didn't show it. It was now halfway through the morning and he sent Cousins to arrange for some coffee to be sent in. Cousins recovered his composure and left.
The witch sat in a chair indicated by the Master but did not look comfortable. Although old for a human she was comparatively young for a witch. Lyra did not think she had seen her before. The witch was studying Lyra. She had obviously guessed who she was, although the Master had not yet introduced them. He did so now.
"My name is Saeunn Leira," she replied. She had recognized Will's name and was evidently surprised to find him present. However, it did not distract her from the mission that had brought her to Lyra.
"I have sought out Lyra Silvertongue, as she is known to us, to ask for her help." The witch did not seem to know whether to address Lyra directly or the group.
"Serafina Pekkala, the queen of our clan, went to mediate in a dispute between two clans," the witch continued. "However, her daemon has returned to us, alone, to tell us that she has been captured by the other witches." She stopped as Lyra gasped out loud.
"That in itself is unusual. Clans feud and fight but it is rare to take captives in this way. Sometimes witches have been held for ransom or to make them undo a spell, but it is rare. No one has contacted us to bargain for her release."
"Are you sure that they captured her?" asked Will.
"Kaisa saw her being trapped in a net." Saeunn replied.
"No. I meant are you sure that they did not kill her after that."
The witch hesitated.
"We have to consider that she may be dead. We have attempted several spells to discover where she is but the results are very difficult to interpret. It is as if something is blocking them or shielding her from us. That is why I have been sent to find Lyra. We are hoping she will use the alethiometer device to try and locate Serafina."
Lyra had been sat on the edge of her seat curious to know what she could do to help. Now she looked horrified.
"I find it very hard to read now. The ability has left me and I am only re- learning it slowly." She looked as if she was about to burst into tears, but then mastered herself. "Of course I will try, I will go and get it immediately."
"Wait just a moment Lyra," said the Master. "I suggest we ask Dame Hannah to come and assist and to bring some of her books."
"Can we trust this Dame?" asked Saeunn suspiciously.
"I believe so, said the Master coldly "or I would not have suggested it." There was an awkward silence.
"Very well," said Saeunn, "but I would prefer that as few people as possible know about this."
Lyra left to get the alethiometer, and the Master went to have a message sent to Dame Hannah requesting her presence as soon as possible, with as many books on the subject of the alethiometer as she could manage to bring.
Will found himself alone in the room with Saeunn. He found himself looking at her appreciatively. She was, after all very beautiful. Her dark hair fell around her body in long waves, she shone with vitality and her eyes were fascinating. He gazed deeply into her vivid blue eyes. She was so beautiful; her blonde hair was . He shook his head, bewildered. No, her hair was dark. It was Lyra who was blonde.
He looked at the witch again, at her red lips, half open. He came to himself and looked at her properly. She had been smiling, confident in her power over him, over all men. But now her eyes narrowed. Will thought of the witch who had offered her love to his Father. Was he about to offend Saeunn in a similar way?
"I love Lyra," he said simply "there is no one for me except her. If you and I both know and accept that, then we can perhaps work together to help Serafina Pekkala."
The witch stared at him and then nodded. Will started to breathe more easily.
"Where was she when she was captured?" he asked trying to start a safe conversation until the others returned.
"The meeting she was due to attend was off one of the remote Scottish islands. But the chase was complicated and Kaisa became confused. She is still in a frantic state. My daemon is trying to comfort her until we know where to start looking."
She was looking intently at Will now.
"You have much power in you." She said.
Will did not know how to respond to that statement.
"I hope that you will be coming with me." She continued.
Will thought about saying that he had not agreed to any such thing, but realized it would be a stupid thing to say. He would go to help Serafina anyway. Lyra would insist on going and he would go with her. He owed Serafina his life. But he would go because he knew he had to or he would not be Will Parry.
The Master returned first, having dispatched a messenger. Lyra returned with the alethiometer, unaware of what had passed between Saeunn and Will. In the meantime Cousins had brought in the coffee.
Lyra had unwrapped the alethiometer and placed it on a table. She had brought several of the books she had on the subject and put them next to the instrument. She started to make notes about the question she would attempt to ask.
Dame Hannah appeared, bringing several bags of books with her and Will started to wonder how long this was likely to take if so many books had to be consulted. He remembered ruefully how simple it used to be.
The Master and Saeunn Leira explained the situation to Dame Hannah and she and Lyra discussed the way they should ask the question.
"I suggest we ask several short, precise questions to try to make this easier." The Dame suggested.
They began their work. Will had not realized how demanding it was to use the alethiometer in the normal way. He saw Lyra in deep concentration, her face screwed up as if she could obtain the answers she wanted by sheer force of will. She moved the hands over the instrument, read the response, scribbled some notes, referred to the books, scribbled some more notes and continued. Dame Hannah did not seem to be of much use other than to find the most relevant books. Lyra might have lost the gift of being able to read the answers instantly but she was still far more attuned to the device than anyone else in her world.
Will started to become concerned. After half an hours work Lyra looked exhausted. A faint sheen of perspiration covered her face. She was constantly pushing her hair back behind her ears and then running her hands through it disturbing it again.
"Lyra, it's time to take a break." He heard himself saying. Saeunn shot him a look but he ignored her.
"No. I'm nearly there. I think I have it. Please be quiet Will. Just for a few moments more." She looked at him and smiled. "I'm alright, honest."
But it was another half hour before she brought her notes together and left the table.
"I think I know where she is. It's near a small Scottish village called Cragsden. It's very remote. I think she must be underground. It kept saying that she was in the darkness but I'm sure it didn't mean she was dead. Perhaps she is under some sort of spell. Anyway if we set off now we could be there before nightfall and see what we can do."
"And how do you intend to get there?" asked the Master.
Lyra just stared at him.
"Master, please. I thought you would let us use the craft again. It will take ages to get there any other way." She looked at him desperately, and then turned to Will for support.
"We need to speak to Serafina Pekkala," said Will quickly. "I know that this is witch business, but we are involved already."
"I was sent here to ask for help in locating our queen not to beg for assistance in rescuing her," said Saeunn haughtily. "We will look after our own clan business."
She rose and left the room without another word.
"Now," said the Master holding up his hands to stop the protests he knew were about to be launched at him. "I will let you use the craft. But I want to impress on you the importance of not getting involved in a conflict between witches or of involving this College. Also if you want to borrow the craft again you will do it sensibly. That means you will rest before setting off," he looked specifically at Lyra.
Will looked at Lyra. She was clearly exhausted and it would indeed be foolish to attempt to fly with her in this condition. She started to protest, but Will pointed out to her the wisdom in the Master's argument. Reluctantly she relented and went to her room.
The Master waited until she had left.
"A war between witches is no place for either of you to be," he told Will. "and I don't trust Saeunn Leira." He smiled. "I know I can't stop either of you from going, but I think you should do so by yourselves rather than as part of a witches assault force."
He sent Will to explore this world's Oxford with an eye to looking for anything useful to take with them. However, Will had the feeling that the Master simply wanted him out from under his feet for a while.
The Master really wanted an opportunity to discuss things with his friend the librarian but as he was currently away in London the Master sat talking with Dame Hannah, which wasn't quite the same, but did give him an interesting insight.
"Well, I have clearly been wasting my time," she said as soon as Will had gone.
"I thought Lyra did very well. I can't think of anyone better with the alethiometer, even if she has had to start again from scratch. It was a good idea to use several smaller questions."
"No. I don't mean her studies with the alethiometer; she is progressing very well with that. In some ways it was quite an easy problem. It was mainly a question of finding symbols to represent the names involved. I meant the boy. Not that he is a boy, not quite a man yet, but certainly not a boy."
The Master looked confused.
"I have been waiting for Lyra to start to get over him," she explained. "She was obviously desperately in love with him when she returned, but I have seen that sort of thing in girls before. It passes with time; they meet other boys and get on with their lives. They always remember their first love of course, but they move on. I thought Lyra was taking a bit longer to get over it than usual but now I see that she wasn't going to."
The Master still looked baffled.
"I only have to see the way they look at each other," she said in exasperation "That isn't a love that either of them are going to let go easily. I don't think that they will be able to let go of it at all. The angel, Xaphania, I don't suppose she recognized it either. She just patted them on the head, said 'thank you for saving the universe, now go back to your worlds and be happy' and thought that they would be content. Well they aren't going to be content. They have reached an age when they won't accept things just because they are told that they have to be that way. I think they will move heaven and earth to carry on being together."
"Hmm, well they may have to do just that," said the Master. "But given their past achievements I wouldn't be surprised. When those two work together you have to wonder if there they have any limits."
If the Master was taken aback by the arrival of the witch he didn't show it. It was now halfway through the morning and he sent Cousins to arrange for some coffee to be sent in. Cousins recovered his composure and left.
The witch sat in a chair indicated by the Master but did not look comfortable. Although old for a human she was comparatively young for a witch. Lyra did not think she had seen her before. The witch was studying Lyra. She had obviously guessed who she was, although the Master had not yet introduced them. He did so now.
"My name is Saeunn Leira," she replied. She had recognized Will's name and was evidently surprised to find him present. However, it did not distract her from the mission that had brought her to Lyra.
"I have sought out Lyra Silvertongue, as she is known to us, to ask for her help." The witch did not seem to know whether to address Lyra directly or the group.
"Serafina Pekkala, the queen of our clan, went to mediate in a dispute between two clans," the witch continued. "However, her daemon has returned to us, alone, to tell us that she has been captured by the other witches." She stopped as Lyra gasped out loud.
"That in itself is unusual. Clans feud and fight but it is rare to take captives in this way. Sometimes witches have been held for ransom or to make them undo a spell, but it is rare. No one has contacted us to bargain for her release."
"Are you sure that they captured her?" asked Will.
"Kaisa saw her being trapped in a net." Saeunn replied.
"No. I meant are you sure that they did not kill her after that."
The witch hesitated.
"We have to consider that she may be dead. We have attempted several spells to discover where she is but the results are very difficult to interpret. It is as if something is blocking them or shielding her from us. That is why I have been sent to find Lyra. We are hoping she will use the alethiometer device to try and locate Serafina."
Lyra had been sat on the edge of her seat curious to know what she could do to help. Now she looked horrified.
"I find it very hard to read now. The ability has left me and I am only re- learning it slowly." She looked as if she was about to burst into tears, but then mastered herself. "Of course I will try, I will go and get it immediately."
"Wait just a moment Lyra," said the Master. "I suggest we ask Dame Hannah to come and assist and to bring some of her books."
"Can we trust this Dame?" asked Saeunn suspiciously.
"I believe so, said the Master coldly "or I would not have suggested it." There was an awkward silence.
"Very well," said Saeunn, "but I would prefer that as few people as possible know about this."
Lyra left to get the alethiometer, and the Master went to have a message sent to Dame Hannah requesting her presence as soon as possible, with as many books on the subject of the alethiometer as she could manage to bring.
Will found himself alone in the room with Saeunn. He found himself looking at her appreciatively. She was, after all very beautiful. Her dark hair fell around her body in long waves, she shone with vitality and her eyes were fascinating. He gazed deeply into her vivid blue eyes. She was so beautiful; her blonde hair was . He shook his head, bewildered. No, her hair was dark. It was Lyra who was blonde.
He looked at the witch again, at her red lips, half open. He came to himself and looked at her properly. She had been smiling, confident in her power over him, over all men. But now her eyes narrowed. Will thought of the witch who had offered her love to his Father. Was he about to offend Saeunn in a similar way?
"I love Lyra," he said simply "there is no one for me except her. If you and I both know and accept that, then we can perhaps work together to help Serafina Pekkala."
The witch stared at him and then nodded. Will started to breathe more easily.
"Where was she when she was captured?" he asked trying to start a safe conversation until the others returned.
"The meeting she was due to attend was off one of the remote Scottish islands. But the chase was complicated and Kaisa became confused. She is still in a frantic state. My daemon is trying to comfort her until we know where to start looking."
She was looking intently at Will now.
"You have much power in you." She said.
Will did not know how to respond to that statement.
"I hope that you will be coming with me." She continued.
Will thought about saying that he had not agreed to any such thing, but realized it would be a stupid thing to say. He would go to help Serafina anyway. Lyra would insist on going and he would go with her. He owed Serafina his life. But he would go because he knew he had to or he would not be Will Parry.
The Master returned first, having dispatched a messenger. Lyra returned with the alethiometer, unaware of what had passed between Saeunn and Will. In the meantime Cousins had brought in the coffee.
Lyra had unwrapped the alethiometer and placed it on a table. She had brought several of the books she had on the subject and put them next to the instrument. She started to make notes about the question she would attempt to ask.
Dame Hannah appeared, bringing several bags of books with her and Will started to wonder how long this was likely to take if so many books had to be consulted. He remembered ruefully how simple it used to be.
The Master and Saeunn Leira explained the situation to Dame Hannah and she and Lyra discussed the way they should ask the question.
"I suggest we ask several short, precise questions to try to make this easier." The Dame suggested.
They began their work. Will had not realized how demanding it was to use the alethiometer in the normal way. He saw Lyra in deep concentration, her face screwed up as if she could obtain the answers she wanted by sheer force of will. She moved the hands over the instrument, read the response, scribbled some notes, referred to the books, scribbled some more notes and continued. Dame Hannah did not seem to be of much use other than to find the most relevant books. Lyra might have lost the gift of being able to read the answers instantly but she was still far more attuned to the device than anyone else in her world.
Will started to become concerned. After half an hours work Lyra looked exhausted. A faint sheen of perspiration covered her face. She was constantly pushing her hair back behind her ears and then running her hands through it disturbing it again.
"Lyra, it's time to take a break." He heard himself saying. Saeunn shot him a look but he ignored her.
"No. I'm nearly there. I think I have it. Please be quiet Will. Just for a few moments more." She looked at him and smiled. "I'm alright, honest."
But it was another half hour before she brought her notes together and left the table.
"I think I know where she is. It's near a small Scottish village called Cragsden. It's very remote. I think she must be underground. It kept saying that she was in the darkness but I'm sure it didn't mean she was dead. Perhaps she is under some sort of spell. Anyway if we set off now we could be there before nightfall and see what we can do."
"And how do you intend to get there?" asked the Master.
Lyra just stared at him.
"Master, please. I thought you would let us use the craft again. It will take ages to get there any other way." She looked at him desperately, and then turned to Will for support.
"We need to speak to Serafina Pekkala," said Will quickly. "I know that this is witch business, but we are involved already."
"I was sent here to ask for help in locating our queen not to beg for assistance in rescuing her," said Saeunn haughtily. "We will look after our own clan business."
She rose and left the room without another word.
"Now," said the Master holding up his hands to stop the protests he knew were about to be launched at him. "I will let you use the craft. But I want to impress on you the importance of not getting involved in a conflict between witches or of involving this College. Also if you want to borrow the craft again you will do it sensibly. That means you will rest before setting off," he looked specifically at Lyra.
Will looked at Lyra. She was clearly exhausted and it would indeed be foolish to attempt to fly with her in this condition. She started to protest, but Will pointed out to her the wisdom in the Master's argument. Reluctantly she relented and went to her room.
The Master waited until she had left.
"A war between witches is no place for either of you to be," he told Will. "and I don't trust Saeunn Leira." He smiled. "I know I can't stop either of you from going, but I think you should do so by yourselves rather than as part of a witches assault force."
He sent Will to explore this world's Oxford with an eye to looking for anything useful to take with them. However, Will had the feeling that the Master simply wanted him out from under his feet for a while.
The Master really wanted an opportunity to discuss things with his friend the librarian but as he was currently away in London the Master sat talking with Dame Hannah, which wasn't quite the same, but did give him an interesting insight.
"Well, I have clearly been wasting my time," she said as soon as Will had gone.
"I thought Lyra did very well. I can't think of anyone better with the alethiometer, even if she has had to start again from scratch. It was a good idea to use several smaller questions."
"No. I don't mean her studies with the alethiometer; she is progressing very well with that. In some ways it was quite an easy problem. It was mainly a question of finding symbols to represent the names involved. I meant the boy. Not that he is a boy, not quite a man yet, but certainly not a boy."
The Master looked confused.
"I have been waiting for Lyra to start to get over him," she explained. "She was obviously desperately in love with him when she returned, but I have seen that sort of thing in girls before. It passes with time; they meet other boys and get on with their lives. They always remember their first love of course, but they move on. I thought Lyra was taking a bit longer to get over it than usual but now I see that she wasn't going to."
The Master still looked baffled.
"I only have to see the way they look at each other," she said in exasperation "That isn't a love that either of them are going to let go easily. I don't think that they will be able to let go of it at all. The angel, Xaphania, I don't suppose she recognized it either. She just patted them on the head, said 'thank you for saving the universe, now go back to your worlds and be happy' and thought that they would be content. Well they aren't going to be content. They have reached an age when they won't accept things just because they are told that they have to be that way. I think they will move heaven and earth to carry on being together."
"Hmm, well they may have to do just that," said the Master. "But given their past achievements I wouldn't be surprised. When those two work together you have to wonder if there they have any limits."