The Story of Marisa Coulter Part 4
Marisa was walking down the road the next morning, looking around curiously. She saw a church in the distance, but she didn't know what it was. She went over to it curiously, and looked up at the giant building. She went inside, and looked around. There was a small hallway, with a few small doors, and a very tall, and wide door at the end of the hallway. This got Marisa's attention. She went over to the door, and struggled to open it. It was quite heavy. She saw paintings, portraits, and drawings on the wall. She looked up at one of the Authority. There was a priest at the stand, in front of a crowd, sitting at the benches. He was in the middle of talking, that sounded like a speech to Marisa. The door slammed behind her, and Marisa gave a gasp, as everyone in the room, including the priest, turned their heads towards Marisa. She smiled weakly.
"Hi."Marisa said. Almost everyone in the room smiled, as did the priest.
"Come. Come to me child."He said, a warm smile on his face. She walked over to him, in a skipping manor. There was complete silence as she walked. It was so quiet, that Marisa's gentle footsteps sounded like booms.
"Now what's your name, child?"He asked her.
"Marisa."She answered.
"Marisa. We welcome Marisa today, to our church, and may He be in her heart."The priest said, as if speaking to the crowd. A roar of applause filled the room. Marisa smiled.
"Now, she's got filthy clothes, and tangled hair, but her smile is warm, and her heart is pure. Let us praise her with our joy, for this sweet youth, and let her have it for as long as she can possibly have it. Let her be beautiful beyond belief, and let the roses bloom in her presence. Bless this wonderful little child, Marisa."He said, then turned to her, and kissed her hand. Her eyes sparkled, and she looked at the crowd, that was cheering, and saw a seat that was open in the first row, and she sat down in it. All was quiet now. She brushed off her clothes, and smiled up at the priest, and he smiled back, then continued with the speech he was giving before. Marisa listened to every single word exactly. His voice sounded like loud booms.
Later on, church let out, and Marisa went up to the priest.
"Excuse me, but could I ask you a question?"Marisa asked.
"Yes, child."He said, with a smile. He looked old, and he was short. His hair a white grey, almost white. His skin was wrinkled up, and shriveled.
"What were you saying about that thing you called, dust? It doesn't sound like the normal kind."
"Ah....Dust. Well, it's a very complicated matter, far too complicated for children."
"But I want to know about it. Please tell me."She said, her voice soft, sweet, and deceiving.
"Well, Dust is a strange particle, that we believe contains Sin. It's apart of particle metaphysics. Sin, is something you'll learn when you're older. Run along now."He said, and Marisa nodded, then walked out of the room, down the hall, then out the door.
After that, Marisa went to church every day, and she learned particle metaphysics from the priest. She knew basically everything about it now. Except the most puzzling part, was understanding Dust. Marisa couldn't understand it yet. She went to a library, and looked around. She saw a book containing information about particle metaphysics. This joyed Marisa. She took it off the shelf, and opened it, and started reading from the very first page. She read as she walked over to a chair at a table, and sat down. It was a large book, and it had the thickness of a dictionary. After three hours, she finally finished. She put it down, and it made a slight bang noise. The librarian, who was watching her, walked over to her.
"Excuse me Miss, but did you read that entire book?"The man asked her. Marisa nodded.
"Yes. Particle metaphysics, is so....intresting...exciting...fasinating."Marisa said.
"And, how old are you?"He asked, curiously. He was amazed that a girl such as Marisa, was interested in particle metaphysics.
"Eight."Marisa answered, and the librarian looked astonished. Almost shocked.
"Well, we have many books here for that subject. Would you like me to show them too you?"He asked. Marisa's face lit up.
"Really? You do? I'd love to see them. Please."Marisa said. He smiled, and took her hand, and walked her over to a section of the library. It had a portion of the shelf, that had about fifty or sixty books on it. They were all on particle metaphysics. Marisa had a look of excitement.
"I can read them all?"She asked. He smiled.
"If you'd like. You know, you could bring these with you, if you get a library card. Then you can check them out."He said.
"But, I don't really have any money."Marisa said.
"You don't have to pay to get a library card. You just fill out a form, and you'll have one in two days."He told her.
"Alright. May I have one?"She asked.
"Of course."He said, then walked her over to the desk. She stood on her toes, to get her head over the counter, as she watched him get a pile of forms. He took one off the top, then gave it to Marisa.
"All you need is your name, date of birth, and you'll have a lifetime library card."He said.
"Ok."She said, and got the pen from the desk, and wrote out her name, Marisa, and her date of birth, that said that she was eight years old. She handed it to him. He looked at it, but he didn't take it.
"Last name too, sweetie."He said. She looked at it, and wrote down a last name:
Maron. Marisa Maron. She decided that this was the name that she was going to go by now, since she didn't know her real last name. She handed it to him, and he took it, smiling.
"Thank you. You can come pick up your library card this Monday."He told her, and she nodded.
"Can I read one of those books now?"She asked. He nodded.
"Go ahead."He said, then she ran off, over to the shelf, and she picked out the first one she could grab, and sat down in that spot. She leaned against the book shelf, opened the book, and started to read.