A/N: I would lie to say thank you to those people who have left reviews for my story, in particular TheOneAndOnlyT. Your review was lovely and I really appreciated it. If you have any ideas, questions or opinions, good or bad, I would like to hear because I really enjoy reading your reviews. Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoy.
Their lives had changed so much since that night they met in Citagazze six years ago. Will and Lyra were both now 18 years old, although they had left their childhood behind a long time ago. Both had been through so much that a child shouldn't have to face, and both had been consumed by a love for one another that would last forever in their hearts.
Since that night Will had left his world and entered the world of Citagazze, he had become disjointed from his own. Although he had been back now for around five years, he still found it impossible to just slip back in to the society of the world that he had left behind. He had seen other worlds, other people, that those around him could not even begin to understand, except for Mary. She too felt as though she was no longer part of the world in which she now lived, for she had seen other ways to live her life, and it was difficult to go back to a society that seemed so rigid.
His love for Lyra had never diminished from the day they parted, despite the barriers parting them, and he thought of her every day. As he now walked along the street leading to the botanical gardens on another glorious midsummer's day, he began to think of the time he knew would come when he and Lyra would be together again, if only for a few moments. That time was close.
He sat down on the bench, lost in thoughts of her. The image of her beautiful face took over in his mind, and he could hear her soft laughter as though from a distant place. He toyed with the red rose in his hand nervously, waiting, just waiting, for the moment he knew was coming. Attached to the rose was a poem that he had written for Lyra, his beautiful Lyra. It read:
Although we seem forever parted,
In my heart you will always stay,
Forever mine your love divine,
Brightens up my every day
For though you are no longer with me,
I feel your spirit right beside me,
Although you are so far away,
I know you are with me through each and every day
As he sat thinking he began to feel her presence once again, filling his soul completely with her love. These were the most precious moments of his life, the moments he shared with Lyra, their love, still so strong, reaching through the divides and filling the void that existed in their hearts. He felt warm and content, blissfully happy, and all he could think of was her; her beautiful smile, her warm laughter, her voice, soothing and yet commanding. He clung to the feeling, unwilling to lose the connection that was at this moment so strong between them. Slowly, painfully, the feeling faded away and once again he was left alone with only Kirjava to comfort him. After a few minutes of quiet reflection, in which sorrow once again began to fill his heart, he slowly got up, with Kirjava close by his side, knelt down on the grass in front of bench and placed the rose there in silence, all the while thinking of her. After one last look behind him at the bench, he turned and made his way slowly back home to his mother and Mary.
Lyra hurriedly made her way along the streets of her Oxford with Pan by her side. It was Midsummer's Day and she was anxious to get to the botanical gardens and be with Will once more, if only for a few moments. She got there minutes later and slumped down on the bench getting her breath back. Then she felt it.
She sat bolt upright as she felt him sit down on the bench, in another botanical garden in another Oxford. Although he was so far away, separated from her by the barriers between their worlds, she could feel him there as though he was sat beside her. Her heart glowed as his love surged through her, filling the void their parting left in her heart. All she could see was his face, all she could hear was his voice, and all she could feel was the presence of his love within her heart. She sat there, comforted and contented, in the knowledge that his love for her remained. Then the feeling was gone.
She sat there with tears rolling steadily down her face, despair in her heart. She loved him dearly, and she cursed fate for being so cruel. For five years they had loved each other whilst knowing that although their love for each other was real, the world in which it had formed was no longer a reality that they could return to. Pan wrapped himself around her neck, comforting her the best he could. After a few minutes, she got up and began to walk away. Something made her turn back though, just for a second, and she looked at the spot in front of the bench on which Will had placed the rose in his Oxford. She smiled. A part of him was still there, left there specially for her, where he would remain as he did in her heart. She began the walk back to her home in the college in Oxford.
Will sat at his desk late that night, with the moon shining brightly in through his window. For the last two hours he had been sat there, writing about Lyra, about their adventures together, and the love they shared. He felt a release of his emotions. The pain he felt was no longer knotted up inside him. He was able through his writing to create his own world, his own reality, the perfect reality in which he and Lyra could stay together forever and never be parted. He knew it did not exist, yet, but he also knew their love would survive through anything, blossoming with their hearts like a beautiful red rose, never dying, forever growing.
A/N: I'm sorry if the poem isn't that good. I wrote it myself, and poetry isn't my strong point! I'm sure Will is a better poet than me really... :)