Im ant.”

    “ant? Youre a bit young, arent you? I t you ed to s she like?”

    “S things were changing.

    “Yes, but personally,” Adele Starminster insisted. “I mean, is sient or w? Do you live s se?”

    “Solidly.

    “ sort of things do you do? how do you help her?”

    “I do calculations and all t. Like for navigation.”

    “A was your name again?”

    “Lyra. I come from Oxford.”

    “er pick you to—”

    Sopped very suddenly, because Mrs. Coulter herself had appeared close by.

    From tarminster looked up at ated ering around ell t t supposed to be at ty at all.

    “I dont knoer very quietly, “but I s out es, and t again. No up very quietly,  making a fuss, and leave. I mig w you here will also suffer.”

    Mrs. Coulter seemed to be c: a  smell, like ed metal, came off  somet earlier, but noed at someone else, and poor Adele Starminster o resist. ing, and to be unable to stand fully uprig as and out of tco he swooning daemon in place.

    “ell?” said Mrs. Coulter to Lyra.

    “I never told ant,” Lyra said.

    “ was she asking?”

    “Just about .”

    As s, Lyra noticed t Mrs. Coulter  her daemon.

    be? But a moment later t ook ly to her shoulder.

    At once s ease again.

    “If you come across anyone else ed, dear, do come and find me,  you?”

    t metallic smell  again, and t of oter smiled at Lyra in a  seemed to say, “You and I understand t o greet some ots.

    Pantalaimon was whispering in