Set book 4 Dark Days after Valkyrie has rescued Skulduggery.
Valkyrie Cain sighed deeply as she settled into the dark leather couch in Skulduggery Pleasant's living room. She tried to banish the worries of the day, hell, the week, as much needed rest threatened to consume her. Worry for Dr Kenspeckle and Tanith Low in the hands of the enemy caused Valkyrie to toss and turn on the couch.
With a frustrated huff she willed herself to blank her mind, a technique Skulduggery had told her did wonders for his own meditation. Speaking of Skulduggery, she was worried about him, too. Only a week ago she had gone through the portal that he had been dragged into by a Faceless One almost a year ago. While Skulduggery had always been unique, even eccentric, the way he would now drift off half way through a sentence or mutter to himself was bordering on the insane. She had tried talking to him but he always insisted that he was fine. She'd even begged Ghastly Bespoke, one of Skulduggery's longtime friends, to try and talk to him about what had happened to him in the realm of the Faceless Ones. Ghastly, too, had been unsuccessful. Moments where Skulduggery would share memories, particularly painful memories, were few and far between and Valkyrie knew she was kidding herself if he was about to change now.
A drawn out sigh escaped her and Valkyrie pulled the throw up to her chin and closed her eyes, the soft, familiar sounds of the house creaking and shifting in old age allowing her to drift off. She had only been dozing for a short while when she was jolted upright by a loud crash coming from somewhere in Skulduggery's house. Rubbing her eyes and combing her dark hair out of her face Valkyrie sat there for a moment, listening for the source of the sound. Another crash sounded, followed by low cursing that sounded a lot like Skulduggery and Valkyrie leapt to her feet, running towards the room where Skulduggery usually spent his time meditating on their down time. Snapping her fingers, fire leapt into her hands and Valkyrie burst into the room, ready to come to the rescue. After a moment of staring she let the flames fizzle out and walked towards the slumped, trembling figure of the Skeleton Detective against the wall, the low lamp light glinting off the top of his skull. Beside her friend, the room was empty and looked as though a bomb had hit, which wouldn't be surprising after all they had been through and the amount of enemies they had. Cautiously, she made her way further into the trashed room.
"Skulduggery?" Valkyrie asked warily, making her way towards him. Skulduggery didn't move beside the slight trembling that shook his frame and Valkyrie bit her lip in worry. Quietly, so as not to startle him, she knelt beside him, taking in the way his usually pristine shirt was crumpled and his tie was loose and askew. She repeated his name and waited until he looked up at her, his skull tilting in that way that made her chest ache with familiarity.
"You're not real," Skulduggery murmured, his usually velvety voice distinctly raspy and hoarse as if he had been shouting. Valkyrie frowned and reached out to touch his arm, her brows furrowing when he flinched but she didn't remove her hand.
"Of course I'm real," she said firmly, squeezing his arm to prove it. He was still trembling slightly and he looked away from her. "Skulduggery, we got you out, remember? I came to find you, you tried to scare me, I helped put you back together…do you remember any of that?"
"It was a dream," he whispered, his tone soft and filled with despair and Valkyrie's eyes widened, filling suddenly with worried tears.
"Skulduggery – "
"I always dream that you come and find me, even knowing that it's ridiculous, I'm trapped here and I know it," Skulduggery interrupted her, his voice barely above a whisper. "The Faceless Ones finish torturing me and I try to put myself together and you appear." The tone of his voice lifted slightly and Valkyrie thought she could hear a smile.
"You would walk through the doorway, that impish smile on your face, and you would come sit with me. You would talk about what I'd missed while I was away, we would bicker, as we usually do, and then when I would try to touch you," he trailed off and his shoulders slumped, his voice low. "You fade away and I remind myself that it's only a dream, that you haven't come to rescue me and that I'm stuck here, alone, forever." Valkyrie sat in silence beside Skulduggery, willing the sting of tears away. She had wanted to know what he was feeling since being back but hearing this…that he still thought he was trapped in the realm of the Faceless Ones was breaking her heart. Sitting as close to him as possible Valkyrie tucked herself against Skulduggery's side, wrapping her arms around one of his and intertwining her fingers with his gloved hand, squeezing gently. He didn't flinch this time which she took as a good sign.
"I'm really here," Valkyrie said softly, resting her head against his bony shoulder. "I'm sorry it took me so long to come and get you but you're here, with me, and I'll never leave you. Until the end, Skulduggery." They sat in silence for a moment until Skulduggery suddenly shuddered, pulling away from her swiftly, bringing his gloved hands to his head and cradling it between them.
"No," he muttered. "No, no, no, no. You're not real; you're a hallucination, trying to trick me into going with you and leading the Faceless Ones to me. I have to give you credit where it is due, I've never hallucinated so realistically before, this room, my home, and that I can feel your warmth …" he chuckled humourlessly. "Looks like I've finally cracked. You shouldn't have come. Just leave me here." He started to laugh harder and Valkyrie flinched at the sound, a tear slipping down her cheek.
"Stop it," she said, wiping angrily at the tear but Skulduggery just continued to laugh, the sound bordering on hysterical. She had never seen him like this before and it terrified her. Wanting nothing more than Skulduggery to return to his usual, sardonic self, Valkyrie moved until she was kneeling in front of him and then swung a fist at his jaw. The punch knocked his head to the side, his jaw snapping shut with a click and cutting off his laugh. In seconds she was invading his space and cupping her hands around his jaw, peering into the dark depths of his eye sockets.
"You look at me, Skulduggery," Valkyrie demanded, her voice cracking with emotion. "Right here, right now, this is real, I am real. I didn't go through ten months of searching for your original head, missing you, worrying about you, for you to think you're still in the realm of the Faceless Ones." Her fingers tightened on the bones of his jaw and she rested her forehead against his. "You are here, Skulduggery, with me and I finally feel like I can start living again." Tears began to silently slip down her cheeks and Valkyrie closed her eyes, her expression anguished.
"Please, please, come back to me. I can't lose you now, not after I finally found you. Until the end, remember?" She started to cry softly, the fear of losing her best friend to his mind after she had finally found him again threatened to consume her. At the brush of soft leather against her cheek Valkyrie opened her eyes and looked up. As Skulduggery didn't have eyes it had always been difficult to know if he was looking at her but as she looked into the darkness of his eyes sockets she could feel his gaze. His gloved hand rose and cupped her cheek, his thumb brushing beneath her eye, wiping away the steady stream of tears.
"Until the end," Skulduggery murmured, his voice low but strong, without any of the absent mindedness that she had been hearing since she had brought him back. With a broken laugh Valkyrie smiled and moved her arms to wrap around his neck, holding him tightly as she buried her wet face into his bony shoulder. After a moment she felt his arms wrap around her and draw her close as she leant into his cold, hard body. One of his arms wrapped tightly around her waist while the other moved to the back of her head, long bony fingers tangling in the dark locks.
"Forgive me, Valkyrie, for frightening you," Skulduggery said quietly into her ear and Valkyrie tightened her arms around him. "Thank you for finding me." They held the embrace for a moment longer, taking comfort in one another after months of being apart. As Valkyrie drew back she smiled softly at him and cupped his jaw.
"Always," she whispered. "I will always find you and bring you home." They stared at each other for a long moment before Valkyrie pulled away and moved to stand. She stretched and released a tired yawn before turning back to Skulduggery and holding out her hand. His gloved hand fitted in hers and she pulled him to his feet. She tried to smother another yawn but Skulduggery caught her.
"You should get some sleep," Skulduggery said softly, straightening his tie as he followed her back into the living room. She settled on the couch, wrapping the blanket around her shoulders.
"You should get some rest, too," Valkyrie said and Skulduggery inclined his head. He didn't move from his position in the middle of the room and Valkyrie watched him for a long moment. "Would you sing to me? Please, to help me get to sleep? I keep thinking about Tanith and Dr Kenspeckle and what's being done to them." She paused in her ramblings and offered a shaky smile. "Please?" With a soft sigh Skulduggery approached her, kneeling down beside the couch and meeting her gaze.
"Of course."
He turned so his back rested against the couch as he sat and started to hum softly. He heard Valkyrie settle beneath her blanket and started to sing quietly, his voice low and smooth, a slow blues song resonating within his rib cage. He faltered slightly when her hand came to rest on his shoulder, squeezing gently.
"I'm really glad you're back," she whispered and if Skulduggery had a face a smile would be curling his lips. He reached up and placed his hand over hers, holding it there, the weight and warmth of it reassuring him that where he was and who he was with was real, that he was safe and home.
"It is good to be home," he murmured and resumed singing, his partner's hand clasped firmly in his.