A/N: I don't own Valkyrie, Skulduggery, Fletcher, China, Tanith, Saracen, Dex, Erskine, Darquesse, Tipstaff, Ghastly, Anton or Xena. If you read the last novel I may have taken a few liberties but this is set right after the end, so Val is in her 20s. Can I can them or what? Oh, contains spoilers, so you might want to read the novel first.


We were back in Ireland, Fletcher having transported us to Skulduggery's house. But I wasn't to get any rest. We had to report to the Sanctuary the moment I was back. I sighed as I settled into the Bentley again. "Seatbelt. I missed you, you know."

"Skulduggery, you bullied Fletcher into bringing you to see me every morning and rang me every night." I grumbled, but then smiled at him. "I can't believe you wouldn't take a case without me."

"You were my case. Grand Mage Sorrows wanted you back at any cost. Besides, I refused to work without you." I looked over at him, he was serious. "Now do you know that punishment doesn't work?" He said more gently.

"A little. But all the terrible things I did-"

"If you live long enough, and being my partner, that's a chancy thing, you can work towards redemption" He cut in smoothly.

"Do you want to even be partners? People fear me, they hate me."

"The same as they feel towards me, Valkyrie. But you get used to it. Your family doesn't fear you, your friends don't. And in the end that's all that matters. I hope you're up to a case after getting batted about. Do you need the medical wing?" He asked as we entered the Sanctuary.

"No, I'm fine. I'm glad Xena stayed behind. It isn't like I could have a dog near you, and she found a new friend."

"Indeed." Skulduggery said irritably and I realized he was jealous.

"And he's handsome, single, he's going to become a rock star, you know." I teased.

"That's enough of that." Skulduggery growled as we entered the elevator to be whisked up to China's suite. She seemed happy to see us for once, and actually gave me what seemed to be a real smile.

"Valkyrie, my dear, you've been missed." She said. "Come, sit. Have some coffee, let's get caught up, shall we?" I nodded and sat, accepting the coffee Tipstaff brought me. I didn't trust China. She wasn't evil, exactly, but she was dangerous, even more so as the Grand Mage. I planned on telling her as little as possible.

"So, how was America, my dear?" She asked and I kept the irritation off my face.

"China, I get it. I went away and you're angry with me. A lot of people are likely angry with me, and if it lasts long enough I'll just go away again." I hadn't planned on saying that, but the shock appeared on her face was worth it.

"I didn't mean to offend you. But you're right. Showing you our anger will only drive you away again." She sighed. "But you have been missed. And not just as a detective. As a friend, by some more than others." She flashed an amused glance at Skulduggery. "But we do know what went on. You were watched over the whole time, whether you wanted it or not."

"What?" I asked, startled.

"You didn't think we'd leave you unprotected on American soil, did you? Or anywhere, for that matter? You were hurt, you were coping. But had you come to me, I'd have told you to get over it. You did what you had to do, you literally had no other choice. You told your family then just disappeared, they forgave you ages ago."

"They what?" I asked, dumbfounded.

Skulduggery sighed. "Valkyrie, had your family not had a phobia of magic passed down, your life would have went very differently. You would have had magic by the time we met, grew up in it, maybe none of what happened up til now would have happened. They have as much guilt in this as you do. Imagine a world where you wouldn't have needed a reflection, one in which our partnership didn't have to be some dirty secret." There was an edge to his voice and I didn't blame him.

I'd dreamed of that world, a lot. A world with no reflection, no hiding. My parents would have interfered a lot more, yeah, but in the end they helped save the world, didn't they?

"Well, now that that cheerful walk down memory lane is over, there are people who want to see you tomorrow. Tanith, Dexter and Saracen, namely. Your family knows to wait until your ready." China said gently and I nodded.

I still couldn't face them, not yet. I was back home, but facing them would have to wait.


I stayed at Skulduggery's house that night, slept in my old bed, or tried to. I wasn't going to be told about the case until tomorrow, not even Skulduggery knew what it was about. And in the morning he saw to coffee for me at least and tossed some cold Pop Tarts at me. The breakfast of champions.

He was silent on the ride to the Sanctuary and I wondered what he was thinking about. I was seriously hoping he'd forgotten what I blurted at him in the Accelerator room. I'd told him I loved him before and I'd realized right then, at that moment he didn't feel the same way for me. And strangely, I was OK with that. Maybe it was what I deserved for all the bad things I'd done in my life. "What's the matter?" I asked at last.

"Oh, nothing. Just thinking."

"About?"

"Lots of clever little things." He said and I smiled. "About you and me, our partnership."

"If you want another partner-"

"Don't be thick. It just scares me how much alike we are at times. You went off exactly the same way I would have done."

"But you told me not to!" I growled.

"Because I knew you needed to and you never do a thing I tell you to. Had I said 'Go, sort out your feelings' you would have stayed and made everyone miserable. And by everyone, I mean me. Having you gone was an utter relief."

"I missed you too, Skulduggery." I said and I sensed his smile behind his disguise. The facade had finally malfunctioned to the point of not being functional at all, so he'd had the sigils healed over and was back to his disguises. I actually liked him better that way but wasn't going to tell him.

We were meeting the others in the cafeteria, something I thought was odd, but then I guessed things had changed. Tanith was the first to me, squeezing me so tightly I thought she'd snap my spine. "Missed you." She whispered fiercely.

"Missed you too." I managed over the lump in my throat. Dex and Saracen were next, both seemed intent on hugging me tighter than Tanith had.

"Don't you ever go away from us, ever again." Dex growled softly. "Or I'll personally hunt you don't and kill you."

"Missed you too." I said and he smiled as we parted.

"Aw, lighten up, Dex." Saracen said cheerfully. "She's got Skul for a partner. I'd run away too if I had him with me every day."

"Shut up." Skulduggery said good-naturedly.

"Yes, boss." Saracen agreed, grinning hugely. It was good to be home, with them. My real family, in a way.

"So, what is the case about?" I asked and Dex shrugged.

"No idea," He said. "I'll grab us all some Cokes. We'll be waiting until her imperial majesty deigns to see us. From what I can gather there's a ferocious debate going on as to whether or not this mission is too dangerous for us."

Tanith snorted. "And I'm in on it, something China's just thrilled with." She said, rolling her eyes. "But I'm not letting my little sis go anywhere without me." She said, giving my shoulder a gentle squeeze. So they knew, they all knew, but they were still speaking to me.

"Can anyone here keep their mouth shut? How many people know?" I asked.

"Pretty much everyone, Val. But you did the right thing, the only thing. If you hadn't the world would literally be over. You aren't the one who bonded your little sister to the Sceptre. We can thank your reflection for that. She wasn't as bright as she thought she was." Saracen said.

"Remember, Val. She had some of Darquesse in her as well. So it makes sense she did the one thing she thought would assure her a victory. And beneath it all, she was still murderous and dangerous. She wanted you to fail, even if it meant ending the world." Dex said.

"That's cheerful."I managed. We fell to small talk, finished our drinks and at last China sent for us. Tipstaff saw us up himself and it was an open secret that he fawned over China even more that he had over Erskine. He was also resistant to her magic, so it always amused me to know that underneath it all China was flustered at all his attentions. Someone was actually in love with her and she didn't know what to do with it.

China smiled as we entered the throne room. "Good of you all to show up." She said dryly and I repressed a sigh. She didn't like wherever she was sending us, and that didn't bode well for any of us. "It turns out that, to be short, there is life after death. Not the ghosts or other things we see here, but actual life after death. They get bodies and everything."

Skulduggery stared at her doubtfully. "And the Necropolis?"

"What do you expect from Necromancers? The only actual dead you saw there were your challengers." He nodded sharply as if he'd always expected that was the truth.

"And we have a chance to go on a rescue mission of sorts. Only there's a problem."

"Which is?" He asked, but I already knew what it was.

"You can only bring back two people. As you can imagine if word got out people would be beating our doors down to have their loved ones back home again. As it is, I've had to fight off many groups who would like to turn this to their advantage."

"How do we know they will even want to come back?" I asked and she shrugged elegantly.

"We don't. But there are rules. You will only be able to bring two people back, and it will only be the two people who should return. It may not even be anyone we know, it may be mortals for all we know." My heart sank. I was hoping she'd say it was Ghastly and Anton, we all were. Or Skulduggery's family.

"So. what's so dangerous about this mission?" Dex asked.

"The dead won't exactly be happy to see you. Their world is perfect, no pain, no illness, no sickness, and certainly no death. You may actually have to drag the two who are to be back here back kicking and screaming." China said. Then smiled like she secretly enjoyed the next part. "And there's every chance they will trap you in the afterlife forever."

"Well, that's cheery." Skulduggery said brightly. "So when do we go?"


OK, leaving it there for now, hope you enjoyed it!