A/N: Thank you to everyone who has stuck with me through this story. I know it's been a long road, and I appreciate your patience and loyalty. Here is another chapter, one of the final few. Keep an eye out for a couple more chapters and an epilogue... and then this story will, sadly, be over. But I suppose that's not really true. Stories are never really over, are they? Oh, also, if anyone out there has a Pottermore... go Ravenclaw! :)

The next week passed more slowly than any other in her life, at least it seemed that way. She went to classes, did her homework, studied the alethiometer, and practiced piano like any other week. The difference was, however, that at the end of this week she would see Will again. Her teachers and Hattie could tell that Lyra was trying her best to pay attention but was failing miserably. Even Tyler, Lyra and Hattie's friend from St. John's who met them at the park each week, noticed a change in her. Knowing of her past –Hattie much more than Tyler, though –they didn't pry. It was clear this was something she needed to figure out on her own.

In his own universe, Will was facing similar problems after receiving the shock of his life. On Tuesday morning, just as Will was about to eat breakfast before heading to his job at Mary's office, there was a knock on the door. A bit perplexed, he padded to the door and opened it to reveal none other than Serafina Pekkela. Too shocked even to speak, he just stood in the doorway, his hand still on the knob.

"May I come in?" she asked politely when she realized he was too shocked to invite her in.

"Oh! Yeah. Yes, of course," he said, jumping to attention and moving to let her enter the apartment. She nodded her thanks and entered. When Will closed the door and turned, he nearly shouted. There, standing (floating?) in the middle of the living room was Xaphania, the angel who delivered a devastating blow five years ago.

"What's going on?" he asked, automatically tensing for bad news. If they were here, then something had to be wrong.

"Calm yourself, young man," Xaphania said, making some motion with her arms that Will didn't quite catch. "We are not here to deliver bad news. We spoke with Lyra yesterday, and are here to explain the same things to you."

Ever since his discussion with Serafina and Xaphania and Kirjava afterwards, Will had been in a daze. He'd gotten up, checked on his mother, gotten ready, and gone to work each morning. At lunch, he'd returned to check on his mother again, ate lunch, and returned to work for another few hours. Mary had noticed that, while he seemed a bit more zoned out than usual, Will had a spring in his step that she'd never seen before. Even his mother had commented that he seemed happier, "freer" she had said.

Finally, Saturday morning dawned bright and sunny, in Will's world, at least. Lyra, on the other hand, woke to a torrent of chilly rain and thunder. It didn't phase her much, though. No, today she would see Will again, and they would talk about their future, a future that was now possible unlike ever before. She threw on a dress, brushed her hair, and she and Pan nearly ran down to Dame Hannah's quarters. She nearly shouted a hasty 'goodbye' –they'd already discussed her return to Will's world – and returned to her room. She shoved the dresser out of the way and let out the breath she didn't know she'd been holding when she saw the window still floating there. Though she'd checked every night and every morning to ensure it still existed, she was still terrified that it would simply disappear one day. She stepped through the window, Pan faithfully on her shoulders.

Once on the other side, she immediately saw Will and Kirjava sitting a few feet from the window, off to the side so passersby who noticed him wouldn't notice the window as well. When he saw her appear, he nearly jumped to his feet. She ran the few steps and catapulted herself into his waiting arms. It was bliss, of that they were both sure. Being in each other's arms was perfect and warm and comforting and home. He buried his face in her hair and inhaled her scent, something that had always been uniquely her. When they were younger and running for their lives and, essentially, the lives of all beings in all of the universes, she had smelled much more earthy; this was no doubt of their lack of bathing opportunities. Though she now retained some of her earthy smell, it was much more subdued, overpowered almost by what Will identified as oranges and cream.

They pulled away from one another, and Will took her hand.

"Come on," he said, tugging gently. "Mary is waiting for us at a café just over there. Have you had breakfast yet?"

"No," she replied, smiling. "I came here as soon as I got up. I want to test something about the window before we leave it, though."

She pulled his hand from his hesitantly and walked back to the window. She stuck one finger through and felt for the edge. She found it much more slowly than Will would have, but she did find it nonetheless. She gently pushed on the edge; it had an elastic feel to it, very unlike the harsh edges cut by the knife.

"What are you doing?" Will asked, looking at her actions over her shoulder. She felt his cool breath on her neck and shivered. But this was not the time to get lost in him again. Now, they needed to be serious.

"I was wondering the other day if we could move the window. This is convenient for me, but not so much for you," she replied, taking a deep breath to steady herself. "Feel the edge; it's not like the ones created by the knife. It's got a lot more give."

Will did as told, poking and prodding at the edge until he was satisfied.

"You're right. I've got an idea," he said pensively. "Put your fingers here, too. Let's try together." He took her hand and placed her fingers by his. With a look at one another, they pushed gently on the edge of the window and felt it shiver before slowly inching to the right. Lyra yanked her hand away in surprise, a gasp escaping her petite lips. She and Will looked at each other wide-eyed. Then, Will's face was nearly split in half by a grin.

"It moves!" they both stated, voices filled with awe. What was this new window? Could it really be the answer to all of their problems. He grabbed her hand again and they quickly made their way to the café where Mary was waiting.