Chapter Five

Lyra and Mr. Scott looked at each other and both rushed towards the door. Mr. Scott was intent upon knocking, whilst Lyra wrenched the door open in a most undignified manner to find the room empty. She gasped as she walked further into the small space. Her head twisted as she looked for an escape route that the mysterious young man may have taken. She patted the wall as Mr. Scott came to stand in the room behind her.

"How awfully odd!" He exclaimed, and then as an afterthought, "I suppose it's a good job, he did seem like a strange fellow. I for one have never seen him anywhere before." His eyebrows furrowed in confusion and amazement.

Lyra spun around to face him, but did not anticipate him standing so near to her, so she glared at his top button before slowly finding his face.

"Good job?" She echoed. "Good job?" She asked as her voice rose in pitch, her earrings swinging around her face. Mr. Scott seemed taken aback and stepped away from her, rather alarmed.

"It e'nt a good job at all! He's gone, an' you don't give a monkeys!" She automatically switched back to her childhood accent, not realising in her haste to get her point across.

Pan eyed up his dæmon before hopping onto the small seat and scurrying around the edges, clearly conveying Lyra's anxiety. Mr. Scott tried to calm her down, but she seemed to have blocked him out of her senses, as she ran her hand along a wall, as though a secret door would spring into existence.

He cleared his throat loudly, "I'll go and...er, fetch someone then, shall I?" And he walked off without waiting for a reply.

Dame Hannah sat in a corner sipping her sherry as she watched the girls of St. Sophias mingle. She hummed a little to herself, as the alcohol worked its way through her veins, making the evening seem even better than it already was. She couldn't help but notice that her favourite student had caught the eye of a very influential young man slightly earlier in the evening. She had watched them dance and walk onto the terrace. She was sure Lyra was in good hands, and the sherry was quickly going to her head. She looked around the room and decided to make her way over to the Duchess of Devonshire; a rather skinny woman with an overly plump husband practically attached to her hip.

However, Mr. Scott quickly intercepted her, looked her in the eye, and inclined his head. "I noticed that Lyra seems to attend your school, St. Sophia's, am I right?" He asked.

Dame Hanna replied with a nod; it was not every day that she was approached by a handsome young gentleman, whether he was romantically interested or not.

He ploughed on, "Lyra seems to be acting a bit oddly, Ma'am" He said, and Dame Hannah quickly became aware that she had seen Lyra return from the terrace with both Mr. Scott and another young man. Hoping no harm had come to one of her brightest students; she gave a curt nod, drew up to her full height, and swept from the main area of the ballroom.

Lyra stood in the middle of the small room, feeling confused and confined. Pan had calmed down from his frantic dash, yet his black eyes seemed to sparkle as he moved his head, peering around the room, his whiskers twitching nervously.

Dame Hannah bustled into the room, a worried frown creasing her forehead, and her golden dress rustling as she walked. "It was very sensible of you to fetch me, Mr. Scott. I'm sure she has just become a bit too excited and become indisposed."

Mr. Scott hummed in response as he walked away to fetch Lyra's shawl, vacating his place from behind the older woman, and leaving the two women in relative privacy. Lyra sat on the small seat embedded into the wall with her head in her hands, and Pantalaimon curled in her lap. Dame Hannah crouched down gracefully next to her.

"Look at me, child" She commanded in a soothing voice, and Lyra felt her eyes drawn to the upwards to do as her mentor bade her. "I dare say you look quite pale, Lyra dear, I shall call for the carriage while Mr. Scott waits with you." Mr. Scott had just appeared in the doorway with Lyra's shawl and Dame Hannah motioned him forward before leaving the room.

He stood looking awkward in the door for a while, before moving over to the seat, pulling up his trousers, as all gentlemen are taught to do, before sitting down next to Lyra. She could feel his leg against hers, and his breath fluttered against her neck. She subconsciously leaned into him, as he rigidly patted her on the back.

"The carriage should not be long, and you will soon feel better, Miss Lyra." He murmured. Lyra thought he was being a bit forward with the use of her first name, but chose to say nothing and they continued to sit in silence. At the return of Dame Hannah, Lyra stood up straight, took her shawl form Mr. Scott, and bundled it in her as Pan settled himself on top of it.

"Thank you very much, Mr. Scott, for accompanying me in my time of need, I'm sure I shall be fine tomorrow. I wish you a very good evening." And so she left, a stunned silence following her. Dame Hannah nodded her head as Lyra left, possibly in appreciation of Lyra's manners.

"Yes, well, Mr. Scott, I shall be taking my leave as well. I do hope you enjoy the rest of your evening," she smiled, hoping Lyra hadn't lost out on his attentions, despite her early departure.

As she stepped into the carriage with the help of one of the footmen, Lyra could not help but grin at the look on Mr. Scott's face when she left him staring after her. She swallowed at the butterflies in her stomach and the goose bumps on her arms. It had been a very eventful night. Not only had she met Mr. Scott, but also the mysterious young man, who disappeared as quickly as he had arrived. Plus, she been able to leave the party early (always a bonus as she was sure it would last until the early hours of the morning). She unravelled her shawl, and found, to her surprise, a note embedded in it.

Miss Lyra,

I am dreadfully sorry that you have to leave and I apologise for the handwriting. I am writing this quickly as I am under the guise of retrieving this shawl for you. If you ever need, or want to write me, my address is as follows;

's College,
Street,
Oxford.

I hear you have a love of walking, so you may wish to visit instead. Either way, I hope to hear from you soon,

Yours truly,

David Scott

Lyra stared at the note for some time before smiling and scrunching it in her hand. She would make sure she wrote to Mr. Scott tomorrow. She wasn't sure what she should write in reply to the note, but an apology should be acceptable to start with.

"What is that I see, Lyra?" Dame Hannah asked.

Lyra was glad the inside of the carriage was dim as she could feel a flush rising up her cheeks. "Just a note, Dame Hannah" she shrugged off nonchalantly, "just a note."

She leant her head back against the red velvet cushion of the seat, the gentle sway of the carriage, caused by the canter of the horse, calming her frazzled nerves. She had not expected this ball to be any more eventful than the others; have some drinks and hors d'oeuvres, avoid detection by those of the opposite sex, and become endlessly annoyed by the silly girls of St. Sophia's.

She sighed. She could feel a headache coming on, which wasn't good, as she wanted to consult the alethiometer about the events of the evening. That meant getting down to some serious study, as she couldn't remember what all of the symbols meant off the top of her head. So frustrating.

The carriage ride passed by surprisingly fast for Lyra as she didn't have to listen to Kitty's mindless prattle. As she stepped down from the carriage, helped by the footman, whose dog dæmon, a bloodhound, waited obediently by his feet. Lyra thanked the man as Pantalaimon crawled around her neck eyeing up the other dæmon. She stepped aside as Dame Hannah descended from the carriage behind her.

She bid the footman and her tutor goodnight, and hurried into the college building, her heels tapping on the stone steps and echoing down the corridors of the nearly empty college. Once she reached her room, she breathed a sigh of relief as she reached up to take the many thousands of pins out of her hair.

After her ritual was complete, she brushed out her dark blond hair. It frizzed around her shoulders and tickled her back as she swung it over her shoulder to slip out of her dress and into a comfortable nightgown. She glanced at the clock, and collected the things she would need to ask the alethiometer about the mysterious man. What had he said his name was again?

She sat on her bed, her legs tucked under her and Pan tucked down the side of her, a warm weight and comfort along her side. Lyra laid the alethiometer on her lap, and tried to focus on what kind of question to ask. Dame Hannah's words echoed in her mind, "You must focus on quite a specific question; so it is not too vague, but it must be vague enough for the alethiometer to answer it in enough depth…" Lyra wasn't quite sure what Dame Hannah meant, so she tried to block all other thoughts from her head while she thought about the young man from the ball.

Her mind suddenly became clear and she turned the three dials along the edge of the circular instrument, closing her eyes she focused, and tried not to grasp too readily at an answer. She opened her eyes and gasped.

As he gazed out of his window across Oxford, the streetlamps blinked up at Will and he sighed. Kirjava was curled tightly around herself on his lap, burrowing into his warmth, confused as to what had just happened. Her eyes were slightly glassy as she gazed unblinkingly up at Will. He turned to look at her and sighed again.

"So you didn't see anything?" He asked as Kirjava began to shift her weight in his lap.

"I could hear so much, Will, so much. It was so confusing, the music, the dancing…I just didn't know what was happening," She paused and butted his side with her head. "You wouldn't wake, and I was worried."

Will looked down lovingly on his dæmon, and picked her up as he wandered over to the bed. He lay down and she crawled up to his face, tickling him with her whiskers.

"Don't sleep Will. Please don't sleep again." She mewled.

Will turned to regard her, and muttered, "I don't think I can, Kirjava. Tonight was just… I don't know what happened, but I intend to find out. So many thoughts swimming in my head, I just…"

"I know, Will, I know…" The cat finished, curling into his side. Both knew something strange had happened and as they caught each other's eyes, they both knew that they would get to the bottom of this mystery.

The sun rose over the horizon, yet the streetlights still shone on the sleeping neighbourhood, and all seemed quiet but for the breathing of one young man and his cat dæmon.

A/N: To my older story favourites/readers/reviewers; thank you for your patience - you have no idea how much I appreciate you sticking with me. For my newer favourites/readers/reviewers; thank you for joining me on this adventure to Oxford, and I hope this next chapter is enough for now.