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

A/N: Hi, everyone! Thank you so much for reading, following, favoriting, and reviewing this story. It means a lot, and I'm just really glad that people are as interested in these characters as I am! Here's another part of our story that, without giving away too much, complicates things even further. :)

Enjoy, and please let me know what you think!

Luxurious Lies

26.

Shifting Ships

"Lyra?"

Her face was red and clammy, and her daemon was curled tightly on her throat. Though the room was dim, Lord Asriel could see sweat streaking down Lyra's face, and her dark, golden blonde hair was wet and pressed ungraciously over her forehead. Snorting, Lord Asriel wondered why Marisa hadn't wiped it clean already and why Lyra looked as if she had contracted scarlet fever.

Then again, he realized, where even was Marisa? Stelmaria blinked, and Lord Asriel could sense her alarm and suspicion. The woman wasn't in the wardrobe or anywhere else in the room, so she must have slipped outside. Hadn't Lord Asriel warned her not to go outside and reveal her presence? It had been a week already. Didn't she understand her place? He felt his temper start to rise, as it always did when it came to all matters concerning Marisa Coulter.

Asriel. Stelmaria pulled Lord Asriel out of his thoughts, and he turned to Lyra again. She had murmured something in her sleep and fidgeted slightly, Pan's ermine spine undergoing a spasm as he nestled closer to her. She needs help. She's not feeling well.

Indeed, the girl was pale and gangly as she lay there on her bed, half the covers off and half of them on. Lord Asriel had never seen his daughter as gaunt and sickly as this, and a strong, boiling feeling radiated from his chest as he stared down at her, not knowing what to do.

"Asriel?" Her voice was soft, and as Lord Asriel looked up, she silently slipped into the room, locking the door behind her.

"Where have you been, Marisa?" He tried to make his voice sound harsh and angry, but he couldn't quite pull it off. He glanced back at Lyra and he felt his heart drop as he again took in how utterly weak and pathetic she appeared. How had that happened in just one day?

Marisa must have sensed his worry, for she swiftly came over to his side, her face very close to his.

"She's not doing well, Asriel," she whispered, her blue eyes trained on his. She wore a silver necklace that dipped neatly into the vee of her golden blouse, but Lord Asriel tried not to let his eyes wander. "She's been consumed by that fever for hours, and I went to find some medicine to help."

"Why didn't you wait for me?" he demanded, irked at how she always had to take matters into her own hands. She was so arrogant, so stubborn – so irritating. "You do understand what would happen if you are ever found, don't you?"

"I had no idea when you would return. Did you even plan on returning this evening?"

"Of course, but do you understand that you need to stay hidden, Marisa?"

"You might not have come back in time." She rolled her eyes just then, shifting her position and ruffling her black, layered skirt. "I needed to do something."

"Yes, but if you were found –"

"What was I supposed to do? Let her die?"

"Marisa, this is completely beside the point. You need to be more –"

"Oh, Asriel!" Quite suddenly, Marisa's tone changed, and she leaned toward Lord Asriel and entwined her arm with his, her beautiful face a cascade of emotions. "I'm so worried about her. She'd been traveling far longer than I have, and who knows what she might have contracted out there! I don't know what to do, and I'm so afraid."

Light trickled in from Lyra's cabin window, and Lord Asriel saw the raw, genuine feeling nestled on her face. Her arm was soft yet firm around his, her smooth skin brushing his own haggard skin, and he could smell her lilac perfume. It was subtle, but it was just enough of a scent to tickle his nose and have him deeply inhaling for more.

At that moment, a peculiar feeling crept through Lord Asriel's system, and for the first time in a long while, he felt something. It was fierce and warm, and as he continued to stare over at Marisa, it grew stronger. It wasn't the same as it had been between them for most of their relationship. It was something different. The feel of her hand inside his and her body leaning toward him fueled this strange, sudden emotion, and for a moment, Lord Asriel was completely overwhelmed by it.

You want to comfort her, Stelmaria sneered, baring her teeth slightly as she glowered at the whimpering golden monkey daemon. You feel sorry for her and you want to make it better for her.

With a rush of annoyance, Lord Asriel blocked his daemon out and focused again on Marisa, who was staring at him timidly yet expectantly. Did she know what was happening to him? Was she doing this on purpose?

"It'll be alright, Marisa." He moved to gently brush her face with his hand, feeling tingling electricity flow between them.

"Do you promise?" She looked so hopeful, so innocent, and so young – so very, very young. "Asriel, how do you know?"

"I'll call the ship's doctor," he assured her, not sure who he was trying to pacify more – Marisa or his sick, struggling daughter. "I'll do it right now."

"But what about me? Where do I go?"

See that! Stelmaria practically spat, her hackles raised. She's just trying to get out of this room!

"In the wardrobe, of course," he replied, feeling the smallest amount of satisfaction from his daemon. "He won't be able to sense you there since he'll be focusing too much on Lyra."

He thought he saw a slight frown form around her eyebrows, but almost instantly, Marisa's face cleared as she nodded and took a deep breath. Even Stelmaria had to admit that she looked utterly exhausted and worn down, and Lord Asriel wondered if that's how she had felt ever since she took Lyra from Bolvangar.

"This entire experience has been awful," she murmured, as if reading his thoughts. "We've faced so many obstacles, and why I knew I could get past them, there was that extra fear of making sure Lyra could, too." She paused just then, her eyes distant. "You know, I honestly never thought I could care more about a child than I do for myself, but I was wrong."

Was she? Stelmaria wasn't convinced, but kneeling there in front of Lyra's bed and seeing Marisa take the girl's little hand and kiss it, Lord Asriel didn't know what to believe. Marisa had always been full of surprises, but the biggest surprise of them all was figuring out Marisa's true meaning and intentions. She was by no means an open book, but sometimes, she opened up a bit for Lord Asriel to read, like she did at that moment.

Ignoring Stelmaria's repeated warnings, Lord Asriel stood up, his eyes trained on Lyra. "I'll go get the doctor now. Please take a seat inside the wardrobe now."

As she stood up and smoothed her skirt, Marisa stared at Lord Asriel with a tenderness he'd never seen from her before. She took his hand and squeezed it lightly before turning around and heading for the wardrobe, glancing behind her shoulder once to smile at him.

You fool, Stelmaria thought to him, her tail thrashing. You complete, utter fool. We've been through this before! What do you think you're doing?

In all honesty, Lord Asriel didn't know what he was doing. But as he unlocked the door, left the room, and locked it shut again, he didn't care. He was living in the present, and at that particular moment in time, he was doing what he thought was best.

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

"Is everything alright, Asriel?"

"Yes." Lord Asriel gritted his teeth, and he felt Stelmaria shiver beside him. With her dark, piercing eyes, Serafine Pekkala stared at him, stared through him, and he felt eerily aware that she knew he was hiding something.

It had been a couple days since Lyra came down with what the doctor diagnosed as a rare type of flu contracted in the northern regions of the arctic. As had been dutifully noted, the symptoms included constant, restless sleep, high fever, and weakness of the limbs, and the only treatment was rest and nourishment. Her condition was improving under Lord Asriel and the doctor's care (along with Marisa's), but everyone on the ship was warned to steer clear of her, including Serafina.

However, as Lord Asriel was learning, sometimes Serafina Pekkala thought she was above the rules. She flitted along the ship at will during all hours of the day, and sometimes, Lord Asriel sensed her presence outside of his cabin door at night. The thought made both him and Stelmaria shudder, though they didn't fully comprehend this reaction.

"Is that so?" She narrowed her eyes. "How is Lyra doing today?"

"Much better, thank you."

"Is she awake?" Her eyes flashed. "Can I see her?"

"No," Lord Asriel replied, thinking fast. "She's not well enough for visitors. She actually vomited a while ago and needs more rest."

"How is she doing much better if she just vomited?"

Damn it, Asriel! Lord Asriel felt his cheeks redden as Stelmaria unsheathed her claws near his shoe, and everything spun around him. His heart was pounding at an audibly hard rate, and while he merely stood there and stared at the witch before him, he could sense her mind considering and evaluating him.

"Please excuse my behavior as of late, Serafina," he eventually mumbled, looking down. "Lyra and I are… Having problems."

"What kind of problems?" Lord Asriel expected the question to be shot at him harshly and in an accusatory tone, but instead, it was soft and sympathetic. Looking up, he saw Serafina gazing at him with a strange sort of tenderness nestled in her bright green eyes. Stelmaria's fur fluffed out a little.

"Well," Lord Asriel said, taken off guard, "she's been through quite an ordeal the past several weeks, and I'm not exactly sure how to… comfort her."

"Comfort her?" Serafina took a few steps toward him until they were standing about a foot apart. "Are you not the comforting type of man, Asriel?"

Despite himself, Lord Asriel blushed. He understood what the witch was hinting at, and while he didn't understand why she was acting so brazen and frank, he couldn't help but feel flattered and, at the same time, afraid.

"Serafina, I don't think that –"

"Shh." In a flash, she extended her arm to put a finger on his lips. Lord Asriel felt how soft and cold her touch was, and he felt another shudder run through his body. And Serafina felt it as well.

"You don't have to hide it anymore, Asriel."

Hide it? Stelarmia leaned against her human's leg, and Lord Asriel could feel her fear. Does she know? How could she know that we're harboring Marisa on the ship?

"Serafina," Lord Asriel began, panic seeping through him, "It's very difficult to explain. You see, there are so many –"

Before he could finish, Serafina leaned forward, looked into his eyes, and then kissed him. Lord Asriel felt her lips moving hungrily on his, and he smelled her wild, earthy scent waft through his nostrils, distracting him from the mania that was happening. He didn't respond to her movements, but he didn't pull away, either. It was the wildest and most sudden thing to have happened to him in weeks, so he felt himself freeze with shock.

After a few moments, the pressure was gone and Lord Asriel opened his eyes to see Serafina gazing at him.

"You don't have to hide it anymore," she repeated, a smile curving on her lips. "I understand your feelings for me, and truth be told, Asriel, they are most definitely reciprocated."

Lord Asriel's mind was reeling, and he merely stared at her with his mouth slightly ajar and his thoughts flashing instantly to Marisa in her golden blouse with the silver necklace and those bright, blazing eyes of the softest blue.