16. An Unexpected Visit
Will and Kirjava jumped onto the Virgin Express train, to bewildered to worry about people watching this boy with a cat. He paid dearly for getting on this train, however, as it was packed. Instead he made his way to the end of the train and sat against the wall in the vestibules area.
None of them had spoken since they left the botanic garden. Finally, Kirjava broke the silence, sitting on Will's lap being gently stroked.
'What d'you think happened back there?'
'It was their world.' Said Will confidently. ' We were in Lyra's world. I'm sure.'
'It might not have been their world. It could've been any world. We didn't see her there did we?'
This point annoyed Will, because it could well have been true. He twisted his face.
'Maybe not. But then maybe she went to our world, and we swapped over?'
'Maybe…'
She dozed as Will watched the landscape rushing past in a semi-stupor.
After a few minutes, he fell asleep.
At least, he wasn't conscious of it happening. The rushing landscape and steady hum of the train mixed with the gentle vibrations was too much to fight, and he gave in to the tiredness in his bones.
And he dreamed. He found himself inside a disembodied view, without arms or legs. He was in a richly furnished, but not posh, bedroom.
Glancing around he saw Kirjava sat on the other side of the room. Will wanted to wave to her but he couldn't. Instead he looked to what had caught her attention.
A beautifully carved pine bed was in the centre, with bedside table next to it. There was a soft light falling from somewhere in the ceiling. A girl whom Will guessed to be 19 or 20 was sat on the bed, with her back to the headrest. She had her head bowed, to allow her light brown, shimmering hair fall on either side of her face. Twisting her fingers in and out of the silky threads, she evidently could not see, or hadn't noticed Will or Kirjava.
The door to the room, which was between Will and Kirjava, opened and young man about the same age as the girl walked in. The girl on the bed looked up and smiled happily. Not a timid smile, but almost a laugh, showing the right about of teeth and a twinkle in her brown eyes. The man sat down with a bump on the bed and the girl sung her legs of the bed so she could embrace him.
Then they kissed and flopped giggling onto the bed.
Will wanted the girl to notice him. He wanted to take her up and show he was as good as the young man. But even if he could, his respect for a happy couple held him back.
Besides, he thought with relish, Lyra was better than the girl.
Then almost as if they head his thoughts, the two glanced up and the man looked Will straight in the eyes. He smiled and put his finger to his lips. The girl looked at him too and she said softly, 'wake up Will.'
Will opened his eyes and instantly felt as if he'd never fallen asleep. If it weren't for the clear dream still in his mind, or the fact that the train was pulling into the station, he never would've guess they had slept.
They stumbled back home and found Elaine and Mary watching Eastenders with mugs of tea and small box of chocolates.
'Hi.' he said,
'No! He's cheating on you! Don't trust him!' yelled Mary at the characters on the screen.
Elaine laughed and said hello to Will, who clomped upstairs to his room.
He took down from his shelves a dusty book that he hadn't touched for sometime. Almost since he got it years ago for a birthday present it had sat untouched.
He brushed the dust of it and read the cover title. '1000 dreams and their interpretations.'
He flicked to the index and looked up 'love and romance'.
'Being in love, loosing a loved one, here we go,' he said aloud to Kirjava, 'seeing two lovers.
'Seeing two people in love, or having a sexual relationship is a sign that you are unhappy, or dissatisfied with your love life.' he read,
'As much as I hate to admit it,' said Kirjava, 'they're right.'
Will re-read the passage and shut the book with a snap.
'I can't ever see myself loving another girl. But I think if I don't love someone soon, I'll go mad. It's like we've got pent up love, and no-one to use it on.'
'Reckon we should go downstairs and steal some chocolate?' suggested Kirjava,
'Why?'
'Dunno… it's what you do when you're fed up with love life isn't it?'
'Guess we could give it a go.'
They went back down the living room and sat in a spare armchair. 'Those chocolates have a purpose?'
'Yeah,' said Mary, 'they're "I hate Men" chocs.'
'Present company excepted.' added Will's mother.
'Thanks… Mind if I have one?'
Mary passed the box over and Will took a truffle.
Later on Will and Kirjava were talking in bed. It was eleven o'clock and they weren't tired yet. The rest of the house slept.
'Will you pansy- you watched half an episode of Eastenders.'
'You weren't exactly running from the room in terror.'
'I wanted to see if Phil was going to be shot or not.'
Will smiled, but his smile quickly faded as he saw the door to his room open. But there were no footsteps.
Mary never got up in the night, and Elaine could be head a mile away by her arthritis knees that clicked with each step.
'It's an angel!' whispered Kirjava, and she was right.
Xaphania herself stepped silently into Will's bedroom, illuminated, but not illuminating.
'Err, Hi?' said Will,
'Hello Will, you are a difficult person to catch up with.'
'Even for you?'
'You may be skilled in hiding, but there are always people around you. I'm only an angel after all.'
Will smiled at this statement, and ventured to ask a question,
'Did you close all the windows?'
The angel smiled back and said,
'I wondered how long it would take you to ask that. But yes they are all closed. However, that is the reason why I have come to you. It seems you may not need them to move to another world.'
'So we didn't dream it?' said Kirjava,
'No (here Will looked triumphantly at his dæmon). You achieved today when even the angelic have not seen for aeons.
'The first time man opened a way through the Northern Lights, two people met from separate worlds and fell in love. They were called to each other, like yourself and Lyra, but not chosen. They were heartbroken afterwards when they learned that they could not remain together. One day though, they found that during times of emotional stress, if they were close, they could bend the will of nature, and nearly pass through the fabric of reality.'
'Did they meet again?' asked Will,
'No. Their case was only made worse by their experience. They were closer than it was possible to be, but they never saw each other again. They saw that if they continued, they would only drive themselves insane with hope that they would one day meet again.
'You and Lyra however, have proven the abilities that they did not fully posses. A phenomenon beyond the understanding of angels.'
'Does that mean that we'll be able to see Lyra again?' said Will cautiously,
'That is the question I cannot answer.' replied the angel, 'We understand all that is to be known, but you have found something that we do not know.'
'Could we be damaging Dust by doing this though? Like the windows did?' said Kirjava, but the angel shook her head again.
'I do not think so. The knife was a doomsday weapon. For all the good you did with it, it was a man made object that was hurting nature. Much like the way your people treat severe illness with radiation, you can cure the illness, but you have caused a less severe illness in the process.
'But what you achieved today was through love, a natural existence that cannot harm the world. However, I do urge you not to speak about it but to your closest friends. As you are well aware, the authorities of your world wish to take the knife and any other means of travel from you. They must not have them.'
'OK. The knife is broken. I destroyed it and hid the pieces in our loft. It can't be fixed a second time.'
'That was wise of you. I can see you will not be outsmarted. But as the saying of your people goes, keep your powder dry. Make sure you are ready when they catch up with you.
'Now I must leave. I have much to do.'
Will nodded and Xaphania turned to leave, but will said,
'Xaphania-'
'Yes?'
'About my mother… Will she get better?'
'Your mother's recovery is the result from that of your own. Before you lived in hiding, you took care of your mother better than anyone else could, but without your confidence and bravery, she could never be in her own mind. Now you have learnt to face your tasks head on, much like Lyra, you have become stronger. Much like your recent experience in school.'
She nodded to him and left silently. Will looked out of his room, and down the stairs, but she was gone, and the house dark.
Will and Kirjava jumped onto the Virgin Express train, to bewildered to worry about people watching this boy with a cat. He paid dearly for getting on this train, however, as it was packed. Instead he made his way to the end of the train and sat against the wall in the vestibules area.
None of them had spoken since they left the botanic garden. Finally, Kirjava broke the silence, sitting on Will's lap being gently stroked.
'What d'you think happened back there?'
'It was their world.' Said Will confidently. ' We were in Lyra's world. I'm sure.'
'It might not have been their world. It could've been any world. We didn't see her there did we?'
This point annoyed Will, because it could well have been true. He twisted his face.
'Maybe not. But then maybe she went to our world, and we swapped over?'
'Maybe…'
She dozed as Will watched the landscape rushing past in a semi-stupor.
After a few minutes, he fell asleep.
At least, he wasn't conscious of it happening. The rushing landscape and steady hum of the train mixed with the gentle vibrations was too much to fight, and he gave in to the tiredness in his bones.
And he dreamed. He found himself inside a disembodied view, without arms or legs. He was in a richly furnished, but not posh, bedroom.
Glancing around he saw Kirjava sat on the other side of the room. Will wanted to wave to her but he couldn't. Instead he looked to what had caught her attention.
A beautifully carved pine bed was in the centre, with bedside table next to it. There was a soft light falling from somewhere in the ceiling. A girl whom Will guessed to be 19 or 20 was sat on the bed, with her back to the headrest. She had her head bowed, to allow her light brown, shimmering hair fall on either side of her face. Twisting her fingers in and out of the silky threads, she evidently could not see, or hadn't noticed Will or Kirjava.
The door to the room, which was between Will and Kirjava, opened and young man about the same age as the girl walked in. The girl on the bed looked up and smiled happily. Not a timid smile, but almost a laugh, showing the right about of teeth and a twinkle in her brown eyes. The man sat down with a bump on the bed and the girl sung her legs of the bed so she could embrace him.
Then they kissed and flopped giggling onto the bed.
Will wanted the girl to notice him. He wanted to take her up and show he was as good as the young man. But even if he could, his respect for a happy couple held him back.
Besides, he thought with relish, Lyra was better than the girl.
Then almost as if they head his thoughts, the two glanced up and the man looked Will straight in the eyes. He smiled and put his finger to his lips. The girl looked at him too and she said softly, 'wake up Will.'
Will opened his eyes and instantly felt as if he'd never fallen asleep. If it weren't for the clear dream still in his mind, or the fact that the train was pulling into the station, he never would've guess they had slept.
They stumbled back home and found Elaine and Mary watching Eastenders with mugs of tea and small box of chocolates.
'Hi.' he said,
'No! He's cheating on you! Don't trust him!' yelled Mary at the characters on the screen.
Elaine laughed and said hello to Will, who clomped upstairs to his room.
He took down from his shelves a dusty book that he hadn't touched for sometime. Almost since he got it years ago for a birthday present it had sat untouched.
He brushed the dust of it and read the cover title. '1000 dreams and their interpretations.'
He flicked to the index and looked up 'love and romance'.
'Being in love, loosing a loved one, here we go,' he said aloud to Kirjava, 'seeing two lovers.
'Seeing two people in love, or having a sexual relationship is a sign that you are unhappy, or dissatisfied with your love life.' he read,
'As much as I hate to admit it,' said Kirjava, 'they're right.'
Will re-read the passage and shut the book with a snap.
'I can't ever see myself loving another girl. But I think if I don't love someone soon, I'll go mad. It's like we've got pent up love, and no-one to use it on.'
'Reckon we should go downstairs and steal some chocolate?' suggested Kirjava,
'Why?'
'Dunno… it's what you do when you're fed up with love life isn't it?'
'Guess we could give it a go.'
They went back down the living room and sat in a spare armchair. 'Those chocolates have a purpose?'
'Yeah,' said Mary, 'they're "I hate Men" chocs.'
'Present company excepted.' added Will's mother.
'Thanks… Mind if I have one?'
Mary passed the box over and Will took a truffle.
Later on Will and Kirjava were talking in bed. It was eleven o'clock and they weren't tired yet. The rest of the house slept.
'Will you pansy- you watched half an episode of Eastenders.'
'You weren't exactly running from the room in terror.'
'I wanted to see if Phil was going to be shot or not.'
Will smiled, but his smile quickly faded as he saw the door to his room open. But there were no footsteps.
Mary never got up in the night, and Elaine could be head a mile away by her arthritis knees that clicked with each step.
'It's an angel!' whispered Kirjava, and she was right.
Xaphania herself stepped silently into Will's bedroom, illuminated, but not illuminating.
'Err, Hi?' said Will,
'Hello Will, you are a difficult person to catch up with.'
'Even for you?'
'You may be skilled in hiding, but there are always people around you. I'm only an angel after all.'
Will smiled at this statement, and ventured to ask a question,
'Did you close all the windows?'
The angel smiled back and said,
'I wondered how long it would take you to ask that. But yes they are all closed. However, that is the reason why I have come to you. It seems you may not need them to move to another world.'
'So we didn't dream it?' said Kirjava,
'No (here Will looked triumphantly at his dæmon). You achieved today when even the angelic have not seen for aeons.
'The first time man opened a way through the Northern Lights, two people met from separate worlds and fell in love. They were called to each other, like yourself and Lyra, but not chosen. They were heartbroken afterwards when they learned that they could not remain together. One day though, they found that during times of emotional stress, if they were close, they could bend the will of nature, and nearly pass through the fabric of reality.'
'Did they meet again?' asked Will,
'No. Their case was only made worse by their experience. They were closer than it was possible to be, but they never saw each other again. They saw that if they continued, they would only drive themselves insane with hope that they would one day meet again.
'You and Lyra however, have proven the abilities that they did not fully posses. A phenomenon beyond the understanding of angels.'
'Does that mean that we'll be able to see Lyra again?' said Will cautiously,
'That is the question I cannot answer.' replied the angel, 'We understand all that is to be known, but you have found something that we do not know.'
'Could we be damaging Dust by doing this though? Like the windows did?' said Kirjava, but the angel shook her head again.
'I do not think so. The knife was a doomsday weapon. For all the good you did with it, it was a man made object that was hurting nature. Much like the way your people treat severe illness with radiation, you can cure the illness, but you have caused a less severe illness in the process.
'But what you achieved today was through love, a natural existence that cannot harm the world. However, I do urge you not to speak about it but to your closest friends. As you are well aware, the authorities of your world wish to take the knife and any other means of travel from you. They must not have them.'
'OK. The knife is broken. I destroyed it and hid the pieces in our loft. It can't be fixed a second time.'
'That was wise of you. I can see you will not be outsmarted. But as the saying of your people goes, keep your powder dry. Make sure you are ready when they catch up with you.
'Now I must leave. I have much to do.'
Will nodded and Xaphania turned to leave, but will said,
'Xaphania-'
'Yes?'
'About my mother… Will she get better?'
'Your mother's recovery is the result from that of your own. Before you lived in hiding, you took care of your mother better than anyone else could, but without your confidence and bravery, she could never be in her own mind. Now you have learnt to face your tasks head on, much like Lyra, you have become stronger. Much like your recent experience in school.'
She nodded to him and left silently. Will looked out of his room, and down the stairs, but she was gone, and the house dark.
