Reunions and Partings

When Valkyrie awoke from her exhaustion induced slumber, all she could see was a white tiled ceiling. Lights illuminated the shiny porcelain and bounced off every surface going straight for Valkyrie's eyes. She moved her head slowly, a throbbing pain resounded in her brain. Her vision was hazy as she sat up and rubbed the side of her head. A low groan escaped her lips. Around her the walls had the same white tiles as the ceiling. It seemed she was in some kind of hospital. There were tubes of a see-through liquid that were connected to her arm. She looked around, trying to get accustomed to her surroundings. She was lying on a blank white bed in a room almost completely empty. Beside her, a short table stood there with a potted plant sitting on top. She tried calling out to her saviour but her throat was dry and raspy. After clearing her throat and trying to get some saliva back into her mouth, she called out a "Hello?" A few seconds after, the door swung open to reveal a woman in a medical mask and long white lab coat.
"Hello, Valkyrie. You fainted due to blood loss. Luckily, your friend was there to bring you here." Her accent had a hint of Australian.
"My friend? Which friend?" The woman looked outside the door and to the left.
"A boy, blonde hair. He was very worried about you. He's waiting outside." Valkyrie's eyebrows knitted themselves and turned her expression quizzical.
"Fletcher...? But he said..." The woman noticed Valkyrie's loss of words.
"Would you like to see him? I'm sure he would want to know if you're alright."
"...Yeah. Yeah, I would." She replied.

Fletcher bounded into the room not long after the doctor left to get him. He paused to look at her, his face creased with worry. After seeing that she was okay, he sighed a sigh of relief and smiled at her. She motioned for him to come closer and he complied. She did not smile back at his grin. She did not hug him back as he gripped her tight and said "Thank God." She let a tear roll down her cheek as he began sobbing into her shoulder.
"Fletcher." She said.
"Yeah, Val?"
"What the hell? I thought you said we're too different or something? So why are you here? Why did you save me?"
"...Why wouldn't I? Valkyrie, just because we're not good for each other doesn't mean I don't love you! I'd never stop loving you, even if you were evil and you were going to murder me." Valkyrie stared at him hard. Her composure was breaking and her lip began to tremble.
"But that doesn't make sense. It's stupid!" She closed her eyes to stop the tears.
"Well, yeah but it's been established that I'm not the brightest." He half smiled.
"Obviously." She hissed. This made him laugh aloud and he kissed her cheek. They hugged each other and stayed like that until Valkyrie remembered.

"Fletch, did you by any chance, see a girl with brown hair and ripped up clothes?"
"Yeah and I saw most of the fight, too. I brought her in here so that she couldn't escape. I told Skulduggery about a harpy that tried to kill you and he went nuts." Valkyrie bit her lower lip.
"Doctor?" She shouted for the woman from before. She appeared from around a corner.
"Yes, Valkyrie?"
"Which room is the harpy girl in? The one that Fletcher brought in?"
"I'm afraid I can't tell you that. But I can tell you that she is currently being questioned by Sanctuary members." Valkyrie's mouth parted slightly.
"...Good. They'll take care of her, then." Fletcher looked at Valkyrie. Her face was sad, almost like she regretted something.
"Is that all?" The doctor asked.
"Yes, that's all. Thank you." The doctor walked away to another room.
"Hey, I have Skulduggery's phone number. I can call him and tell him to come to this room if you'd like." Fletcher offered.
"Yeah, that'd be good." With that, Fletcher got out his phone and clicked a few buttons. He walked out of the room to make the call and Valkyrie fiddled with the bed sheets as she waited for Fletcher to come back. His face was angry as a remnant of the conversation he had just had with Skulduggery. They never really did get on well.
"He'll be here in a few minutes. He's still as annoying as always."
"I don't know why you two can't just suck it up and be friends."
"Because it's impossible. He dislikes me for irrational reasons and I dislike him because of it." Valkyrie rolled her eyes and sighed. Fletcher was sitting on the edge of her bed with his fingers intertwined with hers. He examined her face, every detail, every eyelash, the curve of her nose. He had seen her face a thousand times before yet he never got bored of it. He leaned his head down and kissed her, she kissed back and squeezed her eyes shut.

They were interrupted by a deliberate cough and Fletcher removed himself from Valkyrie's lips and gave an annoyed stare at the well-dressed perpetrator. Skulduggery doffed his hat at the two.
"Hope I'm not interrupting anything." He said in a tone that Fletcher found irksome.
"Of course not." Fletcher said through gritted teeth.
"Valkyrie, how are you doing? You gave us quite a scare." He took a step forward.
"I'm fine. And I'm assuming you got here so quick because you were talking with Evie?"
"If you mean the harpy then yes, but we've been told her name is Evangeline Serre. She is a member of a harpy tribe in France. She's been living here undercover as a student for a few years now. We'll be taking her for a hearing once she recovers from your scrap with her." Valkyrie's mouth was a thin line.
"Good. I'm glad she's getting a fair trial then." Valkyrie's eyes dropped to her hands.
"And Valkyrie," Her head shot up. "I'll be expecting you to help me on the next case once you get better." Valkyrie nodded and watched her best friend leave the room waving a gloved hand at her. Fletcher stood up and stretched.
"I'm gonna head off for a while. If you need me, just tell Dr. Mirrors. She'll phone me." Valkyrie nodded and the space that Fletcher had been standing in became empty. Valkyrie sighed and let her head fall onto the pillow supporting her neck. She sunk into a deep sleep and found herself wandering in a familiar park.

She sat in front of the Melancholia tree this time. She had learned her lesson from the first time she was here. Valkyrie noticed that a lot of the leaves on the tree had fallen and the black orbs of power moved slower.
"Hello." Melancholia's voice was faint.
"Hello, Melancholia. What's going on?" Valkyrie inquired.
"Well, you see, now that I've helped you, I feel no reason to be here in your mind anymore. I'm slowly drifting back to my own mind." A leaf fell and hit Valkyrie on the head. It slid down her back and joined the rest of the leaves.
"I guess it'd be for the best. You didn't even like it here, anyway."
"No, I didn't. But it's been nice seeing the world one last time."
"Don't be daft. You'll see the world again."
"Valkyrie, they put me in a coma. I'm never opening my eyes again." Valkyrie felt slightly saddened by this.
"But you had a hell of a life, eh?" Valkyrie laughed.
"Yeah... I really did." And then the dark orbs burst and dark energy showered Valkyrie. The tree groaned as it snapped and fell to the ground. Valkyrie stood up and looked at the broken tree trunk. From it, a shimmering figure appeared. Melancholia stood before Valkyrie and smiled at her.
"Thank you." She said and flew into the air leaving a shocked and teary Valkyrie standing on the ground.
"You're so welcome, Melancholia."