Disclaimer: I do not own the His Dark Materials series.

A/N:Hi everybody! Here's another chapter. I had some writer's block with this one and I still don't really like how it turned out, but I thought I'd post what I had. Hopefully my head will clear soon so I can write more and maybe even edit this. Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think!

13.

Cruel Complications

"Is she asleep?"

Slipping into the warm, dimly lit space of the hotel's guest lounge, taking care not to directly touch the handle of the germ-infested door, Mrs. Coulter sighed, coming to stand in front of Lord Asriel. He had so striking a habit of cutting to the point that it was disgusting. "Yes. And I don't think she'll wake for quite some while."

Lord Asriel gave a curt nod before turning back to the fire and staring at the flames. His daemon was perched at his feet, her ears perked and alert, and Mrs. Coulter hesitated a moment before pulling up an armchair and sitting beside him.

It had been quite a night, and frankly, Mrs. Coulter was exhausted. The golden money jumped into her arms, letting out a soft screech, and she ran her fingers through his long, luscious fur. It always amazed her how smooth and comforting it was. Without fail, it always lulled her, and it simply felt so incredibly good. Closing her eyes, Mrs. Coulter just sat there and took in that soft, blissful peace. Everything had happened so fast, and so just for a moment, she wanted to relax and enjoy the warmth of her daemon and the fire.

But she inevitably began to think and worry about things, and Mrs. Coulter understood what she eventually had to do, though she'd admit that it caused a bit of unease to flicker through her system. Detecting it as quick as it appeared, the golden monkey sat up a little bit straighter and played with the collar of Mrs. Coulter's sleeve.

You can't get soft on me now, Marisa. He moved his hand to gently touch hers. I know how you feel, but think about Lyra. Think about the bigger picture.

He was right, of course, and that made it all the more difficult. She shifted in her seat and diverted her attention over to Lord Asriel, who, to her mild amusement, was now staring intently at her.

"You've really changed, Marisa. Do you know that?"

What kind of thing was that to say? Especially at a time like this? Mrs. Coulter could never understand him. "Is that a compliment or an insult?"

"The former, I would think." He gave a small, tired smile. "In all of the years of our knowing each other, I had always pegged you as the charming, devilishly clever heroine who would stop at nothing to achieve her goals. Everything you did was so graceful and so perfect, and I couldn't help but marvel at how beautiful you were. I honestly didn't think you could do anything wrong."

Gazing at him, Mrs. Coulter raised an eyebrow. It wasn't like him to give out praise, and the feat almost made her laugh. "Over the past few months, however, that changed to the vile, wicked temptress who would immorally capture innocent children to use for the Church's haughty, unorthodox bidding." Of course. Mrs. Coulter looked away then, letting her fingers curl around the golden monkey's tail. He let out a low growl, and she clasped his tail tight.

"Also," Lord Asriel continued, his eyes still trained on the fire, "even more recently throughout the past few days, I've got you pegged as someone else." He then paused to look at her, his gray eyes dancing in the fire. "Now, I'd say that you're nothing more than a proud, brazing mother clinging to her child, for whatever reason you may have."

She kept her eyes fixed on him, aware of some strange, powerful tension filling the air. It all felt so intense and meaningful, and Mrs. Coulter felt herself growing uncomfortable as she assessed what she had to say and how she had to act. The golden monkey was now looking down at Stelmaria, who returned his stare, and Mrs. Coulter leaned forward. She had no idea where this was going. "So do you approve? Or do you disapprove?"

He stared at her for a long time, seemingly searching her eyes. "I'm not sure. But if I had to guess, I'd say I approve. And I don't even know why."

Very slowly, the golden monkey climbed down from Mrs. Coulter's armchair and moved over towards Stelmaria. She was sprawled out on the floor, and the monkey moved to rest the tip of his finger onto the edge of her paw. She stared at him, her yellow eyes unblinking, and it was then that Mrs. Coulter knew that she had him.

The golden monkey's hand moved to softly caress Stelmaria's paw, and Mrs. Coulter inched closer to Lord Asriel, her hair falling from behind her ears. "Maybe because you know my intentions are pure?" He gazed back as she moved even closer. "Or maybe because you feel it, too?"

Without meaning to, Lord Asriel seemed to jump a little bit, as if shocked by an anbaric charge. Mrs. Coulter sensed the monkey moving his hand up to Stelmaria's white chest, and she prepared to move in herself.

But before she could do anything, Lord Asriel stood up and strode towards his daemon, nudging the golden monkey away. Mrs. Coulter felt that eerie, tingling sensation run through her body as the side of Lord Asriel's foot touched her daemon's fur, and she shuddered as he jumped back into her arms.

"I'm going back to Adolfo's," he said, resting a hand on Stelmaria's head. "I'll see you in the morning."

Watching him leave, Mrs. Coulter stayed rooted to the spot. She was thoroughly confused.

"What happened?" the golden monkey exclaimed, snapping his face up to glare at her. "What did you do?"

"Nothing," she replied, sitting back. She really thought she had played all of her cards right. "I was just about to lean in when he abruptly got up and left."

"We shouldn't be wasting our time on this." The golden monkey jumped down and went over towards the door, glancing at her behind his shoulder. "We're just going to abandon him anyway. We should be thinking of a plan, not trying to complicate things."

Was that what she was doing? Complicating things? Mrs. Coulter followed her daemon back to their hotel room, and she couldn't stop thinking about it. Her intentions had been to solely seduce and deceive Asriel, thus giving him less reason to suspect her of any foul play, but deep down, she wondered if she maybe wanted more.

The golden monkey grunted, and as Mrs. Coulter climbed into bed beside Lyra, she realized that he was right. She was letting her feelings get in the way and complicate things; she was playing some sort of strange, barbaric game.

And in the end, it wasn't going to get her anywhere. Listening to Lyra's slow, deep breathing, Mrs. Coulter knew that she had to escape back to London to have any kind of hope for her future. Asriel was a dangerous and wanted man, and getting tangled with him wouldn't do her any good. It never has.

Sighing, Mrs. Coulter finally closed her eyes.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Lord Asriel stood outside the hotel, shivering slightly as the late-night wind batted against his thin blazer. He was leaning against the front of the hotel building and looking up at the sky, which blazed a brilliant blast of silver and white.

"You have to let the woman go." Stelmaria sat by his side and flicked the tip of her tail. "She'll only cause trouble. Are you willing to risk everything for her?"

Lord Asriel turned away from her and looked instead at the outskirts of town. It was dark and foreboding, but it was also peaceful. There wasn't the rustle of a movement or the snap of a twig to be heard. "I don't know, Stelmaria. I really don't."

A few minutes passed, and the snow leopard said nothing. They both continued to stare upwards, and there was a tense sort of tranquility between them.

"We need to take Lyra and run." It was Lord Asriel who spoke this time, his voice trailing in the wind. "That's the only way to keep her safe from the Church. If Marisa has her, she's as good as theirs."

Raising her stout, sleek head, Stelmaria blinked once. "We'll do it tomorrow before she does the same herself."