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

A/N: Hi everyone! I'm so sorry that it's been so long since I last updated. I've been crazy busy with work and with life, and I've found that I had a lot of writer's block with this particular story. However, I managed to crank out this chapter, and I hope you all like it! Please read and drop off a review so I can gauge how to continue :) Have a great day!

Luxurious Lies

21.

Churning Changes

Darkness suddenly filled her vision, and Lyra let out a sharp gasp. Pan leapt from her lap into the air as a golden owl, and he peered at the door and listened for footsteps.

"What's happening, Pan?"

"I dunno," he hooted, his wings ruffling, "but we need to find out. Did you hear anyone do anything?"

It was quite puzzling because Lyra had heard nothing. She was just sitting there minding her own business when the lights flickered off, and though she expected to hear the shuffle of feet and the whispers of voices, everything was eerily silent.

Everything felt so out of place. Mrs. Coulter had dragged her in here yet had assured her it would be alright; these guards had locked her in this room yet had told her she'd be let out. Why would such contrasting things happen like that? What did it all mean?

"Lyra, someone's coming!"

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

"Lyra!" Mrs. Coulter felt the entirety of her heart pound and crash within her as she watched Lyra disappear into the crowded street. She saw her wild blaze of golden hair move behind a stout tradesman, and as she moved forward and looked around the figure, she was gone.

"Help," she cried, turning to the nearest person. It was a tall man with thick furs, and she couldn't help but throw herself on him, tears pooling in her eyes. Even the golden monkey lashed his tail in nervous desperation, and Mrs. Coulter felt panic swirl deep within the pits of her stomach. "My daughter got lost in the crowd! Please help me!"

And he did help her as he looked above everyone's heads and called out Lyra's name. Mrs. Coulter shouted until her throat felt sore and raspy, and the man finally turned to her and rested a hand on her shoulder. "I'm so sorry, ma'am, but I can't find her. You should probably go to the police now. Would you like me to come with you?"

He looked like a genuinely nice person. He probably had kids of his own, even. His dark eyes glittered kindly and sympathetically at her, and for the first time in what seemed like forever, someone was paying attention to Mrs. Coulter for something other than her position or her looks.

"No, but thank you very much." Mrs. Coulter felt a lump start to form in her throat, and she patted the man's shoulder as the golden monkey stroked his cat daemon's fur. "I really appreciate all your help. I can take care of it from here."

He watched Mrs. Coulter as she turned away back towards the Magisterium, but she hid the tear that slipped silently down her cheek. The golden monkey clutched her shoulders as he felt his own heart start to stir with strong, strange emotions, and Mrs. Coulter just closed her eyes and tried to make sense of it all.

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

Wind slapped Lyra in the face as she ran through the crowd and ducked behind people's bags, taking quick looks back and hurried steps forward. Pan moved in front of her as a light-colored moth, checking for any forward threats, and Lyra did her best to blend in with the crowd.

She heard Mrs. Coulter and some guy yell her name repeatedly, but luckily no one else in the street bothered to look around for anyone. After a few moments Lyra was hidden in a crate by one of the stores, and as Pan promptly joined her and then changed into a mouse, Lyra sat down and thought about her options.

When the guard had opened the door back in the Magisterium building, Pan changed into a tiger and leapt at him before following Lyra out. She had run like mad until she found the front door and then burst outside, but it didn't take long for Mrs. Coulter and her soldiers to catch up with her. They still couldn't quite capture her, but they had come close, which made Lyra feel sick to her stomach.

Now, after all those moments of fear and silence and all those weeks of staying by Mrs. Coulter's side, Lyra was alone and forced to think on her own. She knew Lord Asriel had to be somewhere nearby in pursuit, and though Mrs. Coulter had warned her to stay away from him, Lyra wondered if that meant she could actually trust him.

"She said he would try to hurt us, but look at how she tried to hurt us!"Pan swished his little mouse tail, and Lyra felt his anger surge in with her own. "I don't think she ever wanted to take us back to London with her. I think she just wanted to bring us back here."

However, even though Pan's logic was plausible, a part of Lyra couldn't help but notice how it didn't quite make sense. If that had been Mrs. Coulter's plan all along, why did they detour to the wild regions of the North and spend so much time trying to get away from everyone? Why didn't she capture her from the beginning at Bolvangar and then take her back on a zeppelin? That didn't quite line up with wanting nothing but to re-capture her, and as Lyra sat there and thought about it, she found herself creating more questions than answers.

Just then, footsteps sounded from outside Lyra's crate. Shrinking down in the shadows, Lyra held her breath and clutched her daemon as the noise stopped and rough breathing filled the air. The crate was tilted to the side, and as Lyra let out a gasp and slid out onto the cold, hard gravel, she looked up to see a tall, broad-shouldered man with thick, heavy furs and a sleek snow leopard daemon. "Hello, Lyra. If you could manage it, please get up and follow me out to the docks where the Gyptians are waiting."