I'll keep you safe

Please stay

Everything started to die down, the Gyptian children weren't getting taken from their families so they let their guards down and got on with their lives.

Marisa was doing her daily walk to the warehouse where the children were being kept. Marisa always walked with her head down so on one could recognise her. The golden monkey stopped in his tracks, he could sense another daemon was close, yet no one else was around. Just before the pair walked around the last corner, Marisa spotted a small figure.... One she has seen before and has been searching for, for a long time.

"Hello Lyra..... It's Lyra isn't it?"

Lyra looked up in shock as she was off in her own world talking to Pan. The woman becomes the same height as Lyra, getting really close, so if she tried to make a move, Marisa would have an upper hand at catching the child.

"What are you doing out here by yourself child? Aren't you scared?"

Lyra mumbles something then looks at the ground. "My mum doesn't know I'm here, she thinks I'm playing with the other children, but they are boring, I want to have adventures"

Marisa got mad at the thought of Lyra calling Maggie her mother. She's not your mother I am. The golden monkey had to break Marisa out of her anger trance. Marisa puts a smile back on her face.

"You know, I've been on a few adventures, they aren't as fun as you think you are. I had to give all that up when I had my daughter. You know, you'd be about the same age of my daughter" Marisa places her hand on Lyra's face. The girl jumped at the touch, the touch felt like something she felt before.

"What happened to your daughter?" Lyra asked hoping it wouldn't make her mad.

"When she was born, her father thought it would be better if she lived with him and not me"

Lyra looked at the woman so confused as she didn't understand why a complete stranger would tell her something like this.

"It was nice seeing you again, but I have to go"

As Lyra was turning to walk away, Marisa grabs her hand a little too hard.

"I'm sorry but I can't let you go this time. I won't let that happen again"

Lyra started screaming, sadly no one was around to hear the young child screams for help. Marisa drags Lyra off to the warehouse so she can call for a car to take the pair home. Once the car arrives Marisa has the driver hold Lyra while she gracefully sits in the car, she nodded to notify the man she was ready for Lyra to be placed in the car.

Lyra remembered all the skills she was taught from all the Gyptians she met over the years. Nothing was making Marisa loosen her grip on her child. After a few minutes Lyra finally calmed down, then the car came to a stop in front of a fancy building. The building looked familiar to Lyra as she likes the trees that are growing down the street, they are good climbing trees for a small child.

"Come Lyra" Marisa said in her sweetest tone. And then sticks her hand out for Lyra to take like she sees other mothers do with their children.

As soon as Lyra stepped out the car, she tried to make a run for it, the man that was with Marisa had quick reflexes and caught the child just in time.

Marisa has a tight grip on the child's arm. Lyra squirmed but the gip just got tighter and tighter. In the end Marisa had to carry the child while her daemon carried Pan. Lyra was kicking and screaming, one thing she would do when the other children would pick her up as she was the smallest.

The pair walk into the giant building, Lyra still carrying on, the residents of the building were whispering, this was making Marisa very nervous. The elevator operator kept looking at Marisa strange as he knew she had no children. Marisa noticed the man staring.

"Don't worry, I said no to a toy and she's having a fit over it"

The gentleman just smiled, he knew not to get on the fancy woman's bad side from seeing it happen to other staff that work in the building. The elevator stopped on the top floor, he held the door for Marisa. Once in the clear Marisa put Lyra down.

Marisa goes for Lyra's arms to keep her still so she can talk to her. "You remember when I told you that you were the same age as my daughter and that she was taken away from me"....... Marisa takes in a breath "You are my daughter Lyra"

Lyra steps back in total shock. She was a very bright child for being five. "Are you serious?" Pan runs straight to his human to comfort her in the form of a husky pup.

"I know it will come as a shock, but you are mine Lyra"

At this point Lyra doesn't know what to do, does she run to the woman who says she's her mother, stay where she is and have Pan try and comfort her. The poor child was so confused she just started to cry. Marisa wanted to comfort her daughter so bad but decided to give her the space she needed and just sat on the floor till she knew she was ready.

"Ma Costa is my mum, she rescued me when my father was killed. You can't be my mum"

The only way Marisa could prove that she was Lyra's mother, was to stand in front of a mirror.

"Lyra look. We have the same eyebrows, you have my eyes, your father's lips" she would rattle off other features the pair shared.

"If what you say is true, who was the man that wanted to kill me?"

Marisa took a deep breath, trying to hold back tears as that's one night she wishes she could forget, no matter how much she tried to repress that memory, it always came back to haunt her.

"The man that killed your father and almost you was my husband" Marisa takes another deep breath. "He found out that you weren't his, I wanted to keep you, but if I did, he would have eventually figured you weren't his and kill either one or both of us. I didn't want that to happen, so I told your father to take you away. Someone somehow told him you weren't dead and set off to kill you"

Marisa realised this was too much for the five-year-old, she knew the child would take it all in. She of course is half Asriel and herself.

A cold drink was ordered for Lyra to help her cope with all the news she just received.

"Now Lyra, now that you know the truth, you can't leave.... You have to stay here where you are safe. I'll keep you safe.... Like I should have five years ago"

Lyra looks at her mother who is staring back at her.

"If I stay, I can't look for the nasty people that have been stealing my people. A lot of Gyptian kids have gone missing, that's why I go on adventures, I go looking for them"

Her people, ha who does she think she is? Snarked the golden monkey. Marisa wasn't exactly happy to hear that come out of her child's mouth. "If she was raised by Asriel and me, she would be living the life of luxury. Fancy dinners, balls, she would have the life I wish I had at that age. Those people wouldn't be allowed to be near her. In another way that would've been something she would have done at that age. Marisa shakes her head then smiles "Darling, you don't have to worry about that, I know some men that can do that"

Pan looks at human, he loved living on the boat with Ma and Toney. "We need a new adventure Lyra, maybe we should stay" Lyra nods her head agreeing with Pan.

"Ok, we will stay with you moth.... Ma'am?"

Marisa lets out this big giggle "Mother is fine dear"

Lyra runs into her mother's arms. This was something Lyra had been craving all her life, this was something Marisa was looking forward to since her last cuddle with Lyra before Asriel took her away.