Lyra slowly opened her eyes, the morning sunlight filtering softly through the window of the dormitory. The cool air slipping in through the vents made her shiver slightly, pulling her blanket tighter around her shoulders for a moment longer. Her body still ached slightly from the past few days, but at least now she could sleep without nightmares of the Inverted Dimension.
With a quiet sigh, she finally sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. After a few more seconds of stretching, she slipped on her thin robe and quietly stepped out of the room, closing the door behind her.
As soon as she stepped into the outer corridor, the bright morning light greeted her once again—this time far more vividly. She blinked and raised a hand to shade her eyes. The crisp sky stretched above the floating castle like a painted canvas, brilliant and endless. Then she noticed two figures seated on a bench at the far side of the courtyard.
