"Ste… Steph… Stephan…" Alice gurgled. Valkyrie laughed as she watched her little sister struggle through the syllables of her given name.
"And who's that?" Valkyrie said, pointing to the skeleton sitting in the corner of the room, idly twirling fire around in his hand while he thought about a case.
"Skul… Skull!" Alice shouted decidedly. "Skull!"
"Looks like you've got a new nickname, Skulduggery," Valkyrie commented as Alice crawled over towards the skeleton.
"Nickname? No thanks," he said, extinguishing the flame in his hand as he spun round to face Valkyrie.
"Skull!" Alice said again, almost at Skulduggery's foot. He moved it away and watched as Alice turned to crawl towards it again.
"I don't know, she seems rather taken with that name," Valkyrie said. "It's not exactly inaccurate though, is it?"
"And neither is the term 'flesh' for you, yet you don't see me calling you that, do you?" Skulduggery pointed out.
"Give her a break, Skull." Valkyrie winked. "She is only two, after all."
Skulduggery did not reply, instead picking Alice up with both hands and sitting her on his lap. She giggled happily and started playing with his tie.
"She's really quite taken with you," Valkyrie said.
"Yes."
"She likes your tie."
"So it seems."
"Go on. Admit it."
"I'm sorry?" Valkyrie could almost see Skulduggery raise an eyebrow as he cocked his head to the side.
"You like playing with Alice, don't you?" she said.
"She does seem to be good company, if that's what you mean."
"Skull!" Alice helpfully shouted out again, pulling on Skulduggery's tie and making him jerk forward. Valkyrie couldn't help but laugh.
Skulduggery harrumphed and put Alice down on the floor, where she quickly crawled over to her older sister.
"Hello, Alice," Valkyrie said, holding Alice's hand as she attempted to get up and keep her balance.
"It seems silly to think that out of anyone in the world, you two are the ones directly descended from the Ancients."
"How so?" Valkyrie smirked.
"Well, look. I mean, it's you and a two year old who harness some of the most powerful magic in the world."
"And that's unbelievable how?"
"Because… Well, Alice isn't that unbelievable, but you?"
Valkyrie feigned hurt. "Well, aren't you nice?"
"I wouldn't trust you with my hat, let alone that kind of magic."
"Shut up." Valkyrie smirked again, throwing one of Alice's toys to the other side of the room and encouraging her to crawl over there to get it.
"Or what?" Skulduggery said, once again cocking his head to the side. She loved it when he did that.
"Or I might have to make you."
"Oh really?" Skulduggery said, leaning forward in his chair so that his face was eye level with Valkyrie's. She leant in so that their noses were touching.
"Really."
"And just how would you go about doing that, young lady?"
Valkyrie pressed her lips to Skulduggery's bony teeth, which were quickly covered over by soft lips as Skulduggery activated his façade. He pulled her up onto his lap and kissed her cheek.
"Is that a good enough way to shut you up?" Valkyrie asked.
"Oh, I'd talk much more if I knew that was coming every time," Skulduggery answered, and this time Valkyrie could see him smirk.
"I don't know if I'd be able to cope with much more talking," Valkyrie said, laughing. "I'd probably walk."
"I'll hold back on it then," Skulduggery said, smiling.
Valkyrie's attention suddenly turned to Alice gurgling in the corner of the room. She'd managed to reclaim her toy and was now in the process of chewing its ear off. When she noticed Valkyrie staring at her, she abandoned the toy and crawled over to her.
Valkyrie clambered off Skulduggery's lap and sat down on the floor, cradling Alice in her arms. Skulduggery tried to amuse her with a fireball but had to whisk it out of the way a couple of times when Alice's curiosity meant her fingers got too close.
The clock on the living room wall struck four. Her parents would be home soon.
"Right, Alice, you're going to have to say goodbye to Skulduggery because he's got to go, okay?"
"Skull!"
"Yes, that's right. Skull's got to go now. Can you wave at him?"
Alice tried to wave, giggling. Skulduggery smiled and waved back.
"Good girl."
She picked Alice up and went upstairs, Skulduggery following behind her. She called to her reflection, who was sitting complacently in her bedroom, and told her that she'd be leaving with Skulduggery soon. The reflection merely nodded in response.
After walking into Alice's room and placing Alice in her cot, Valkyrie turned to Skulduggery.
"You were a good father, I can tell," Valkyrie said.
"I tried to be," Skulduggery replied nonchalantly.
Valkyrie couldn't see any way fit to continue that train of thought, so she took Skulduggery's hand and led him out of the room, into her own. The reflection looked up from her homework, shrugged and then continued whatever she was doing.
"Back to mine?" Skulduggery asked, opening the window and holding Valkyrie's waist as they clambered over the windowsill so they could drop. She didn't need help any more, but she liked the way his arm fitted around her hip so she didn't complain.
"Back to yours," Valkyrie agreed.
The Bentley was parked outside the front of the house, and Valkyrie got into the passenger side while Skulduggery took his time admiring his prized possession.
"You really do love this car, don't you?"
"She's wonderful. Just like this certain other girl I happen to know."
"Do I know this girl?"
"Probably. Quite short, cocky, but incredibly witty sometimes and very beautiful."
"Nope, haven't heard of her," Valkyrie said.
"Probably a good thing I haven't either, then. I might be tempted to go for her instead of you," Skulduggery teased, kissing her on the cheek. He started the car and drove halfway up the road before stopping abruptly. Valkyrie was flown forward in her seat, narrowly missing the dashboard as her head shot forward.
"What was that for?" she shouted, slapping him as he smirked.
"Seatbelt."