What if Mrs. Coulter gets given a second chance with Lyra

Chapter five

The following day Marisa held Lyra close and never left her side. The nightmare kept replaying over and over in her mind. "Let's just have a US day Lyra, we can play games, lounge around the flat.... whatever you want" Marisa said to her child while cupping Lyra's face. "Can we play adventurers and pretend we are going north to meet the bears of the ice?" Lyra looking up at her mother, Marisa thinking to herself "geez you are so much like your father".........

"Sure, we can do that, if that's what you want to do" Marisa said smiling to her daughter. Marisa is usually not into these things..... but she'll do anything for her child, even if it means doing things she wouldn't dare to do.

Lyra went and got her fur coat and then went and got her mothers fur coat. "We will need these, it's cold where the bears are" Lyra said handing her mother her coat. "Good thinking Lyra, it's terribly cold up north" Lyra gasped "you've been to the north?" Marisa giggles "yes I have, heaps of times" Lyra super excited, "have you met any of the bears?" Marisa looking at her child not wanting to tell her the truth, as there will be a million questions and not having the desire to answer Lyra's questions, she told yet another lie " no I haven't met one, but I've seen them in passing"

Both mother and daughter played pretend for hours. It was easy for Marisa as she's been pretending all her life. She pretended Lyra didn't exist, growing up she pretended she was rich and higher rank than everyone else.

It was getting close to dinner time and Marisa said play time was over and that they clean up and get ready for dinner. Lyra didn't want to stop playing and Marisa knew that but all she did was give Lyra a look and she stopped. It was a similar looker Marisa got from her mother growing up when she misbehaved. It was crossed between I've had enough and if you don't stop, something bad will happen to you kind of look.

Lyra was quiet during dinner, she would say the odd thing to Pan and the golden monkey would make a screech sound every time she spoke. In the end Marisa spoke up and confronted Lyra at the dinner table. "Lyra dear, we don't whisper to our dæmons at the dinner table. That is considered bad behaviour" Lyra just stared at her mother and left the dinner table. Not knowing what she did wrong Marisa sighed and put her head in her hands.

Marisa knew she couldn't just sit at the table, so she got up and went to her office to do some work. Usually Marisa shuts the door to her study, but this time she kept it open just in case Lyra came looking for her. Time got away and soon it was ten o'clock. Marisa got up to check on Lyra as she hadn't seen or heard her since dinner.

Marisa walked into Lyra's room to find her child asleep on her fur blanket on the floor. Marisa giggled to herself as she thought it was cute. Gently picking up Lyra and the golden monkey picking up Pan, the duo put child and dæmon to bed. The fur blanket was placed over Lyra and Marisa kissed her child on the cheek and started to walk out.

Marisa decided it was time for her to go to bed, so she got into her teal silk pyjamas and climbed into her bed. As soon as her head hit the pillow and closed her eyes she was out.

Hours passed and poor Marisa was having that dreaded nightmare again. But it was slightly different this time. Reaching out for her child, screaming "Lyra, no you can't take her from me. Nooo Lyra" in the dream Lyra was being taken by the men of the Magisterium to be cut but not at Bolvanger.

Still crying out for her child and Lyra screaming back "I'll be good, don't let them take me away mother" Marisa was shook awake. A little foggy and still half asleep Marisa was about to go off at whoever woke her up, till she realised it was Lyra.

"Are you ok? I could hear you screaming out my name." Holding her child's hand with tears dripping down her face, Marisa sighed "I'm sorry that I woke you, I had a nightmare that you were taken away from me. I hope you don't see me as a monster for that to happen. Lyra, as it would kill me if I ever lost you" looking at her mother with tears building up in her eyes "I'm sorry, I don't mean to act the way I do. This is still all new to me, I've spent most of my life wanting you and now that I have you I don't know what to do anymore"

Lyra climbs into her mothers bed, cuddling into her mothers side and goes straight to sleep. Marisa slides down and wraps her arms around Lyra and goes straight to sleep. The nightmare didn't return that night.