Chapter 6

Two weeks after the incident in the Hibernian, Mr Bliss was in the Sanctuary. The place had seen total carnage that night when Serpine broke in, just over fifty staff members killed and even more Cleavers in the most grotesque of ways, and Bliss wasn't there to do anything about it. Instead he was playing lacky to Nefarian Serpine. Bliss didn't regret it. He knew that if he hadn't stepped in, if he hadn't been there to make sure that Serpine didn't go so far over the line as to jeoprodize the country...that wasn't even it. Bliss had been afraid that they might not have been able to stop Serpine with his new power, and his never-yielding determination. Bliss had backed out eventually though. And now, his penance was this. Helping to set up the Hall of Statues in the new Sanctuary.

"Steady now, Cleavers," he ordered as the six Cleavers lowered a statue onto one of the small podiums. "I won't tolerate any accidents. Not with that statue."

This particular statue was the reason that the Hall had been built. A kneeling figure, his head cast down, hands by his sides, one balled into a fist, the other touching the cement. If one didn't know better, they would have thought that the statue had already been damaged, as long cracks seemed to etch themselves into the stone. But no. Those cracks had already been there.

"That's it Cleavers," Bliss called over to them as they dropped the statue lightly onto the podium, managing not to let it fall onto their gloved hands. "Mr Bespoke deserves to be laid to rest peacefully. Good work."

The Cleavers bowed to him in unison as he stared at them with his piercing, blue eyes, and scattered off to tend to the other busts and statues of famous dead mages, that had really just been put there to fill up space. They scattered very quickly, he noticed. He was intimidating even to these Cleavers, who were terrifying reapers themselves, with their scythes and faceless stares.

Bliss looked at the stone Ghastly Bespoke. He looked as though he had been carved by a very skilled, if morbid, mason. Bliss had only known him as a good tailor, and a good man. He shouldn't have been involved in such matters as fighting Cleavers and saving the world. But still, he had fought, and he had gained Bliss' respect for that.

"A gallant gentleman," Bliss muttered to himself as he looked up at him. More gallant than I, anyway, he thought bitterly. Then from the doorway behind him he heard a throat clear.

"Mr Bliss?" came a female voice. Bliss turned around to see the Sanctuary Admistrator standing in the doorway. She had been appointed to the post after the old Administrator was killed. So far he had seen that she had taken to the job, but really she was a P.R, a secretary, a tour-guide. If a good one.

"Detective Skulduggery Pleasant is here to see you," she told him with a deep breath. Again, he was intimidating. "Shall I show him in?" She was an attractive woman, even if sombrely dressed with her hair pinned back, to obey by the Sanctuary dress-code.

"Yes, of course," Bliss said, getting to the point, as usual.

The Administrator gave him a bow and a small smile with pink lips, before he turned to look back at Mr Bespoke. The Admistrator looked him up and down, and sighed, just before she left, to get Mr Pleasant.

A minute or two later, he heard the Detective beside him. He turned to see Skulduggery Pleasant in his usual detecting attire. He gave a small bow.

"Mr Pleasant," he said.

"Mr Bliss," Pleasant said with a bow of his own head. He looked over at the statue of Mr Bespoke to his right, and said softly. "I see that you've taken care of him."

Bliss looked at the statue. "We felt that he deserved a place of honour, for the service he gave to his country. Eachan Meritorious would have wanted it."

Skulduggery looked at Bliss. For such a patriot, Bliss had been quick to betray his country and go off with Serpine. But Skulduggery did understand that, even if he wasn't happy about it. Strangely, he was less angry about Bliss' betrayel than a certain other person.

"Ghastly wouldn't of wanted it," Skulduggery commented. "Or he wouldn't have asked for it at least. But as for deserving it, I think he would. Thank you."

"You are welcome," Bliss said lazily.

"Though Professor Grouse would be needing him transported to the Hibernian now and then."

"Kenspeckle Grouse?"

"Yes. He wants to...check up on Ghastly. He hasn't met many Elementals who have used the Earth Power, so he wants to experiment."

"And you do not mind him doing that to your friend?" Bliss asked.

"I hear you turned up in Galway," Skulduggery said, skipping to the next subject. "How did that happen?"

"An incident with a Teleporter," Bliss said with a shrug, not wanting to get into details."It's a complicated story."

"I understand," Skulduggery said with a nod. Bliss had never been one for small talk, but this seemed to be what he was attempting.

"How are Tanith Low and Miss Cain?"

"Valkyrie is fine," Skulduggery replied with a nod. "She couldn't come today, she..." He seemed to struggle with himself. "She didn't feel she could come here yet, after what happened, so she's with Grouse. Tanith just got out of hospital."

"Did she?" Bliss asked emotionlessly, glancing at the floor."How is she?"

"Alive." There was a pause. Skulduggery cocked his head as Bliss still stared at the ground.

"She's ashamed of you, you know," Skulduggery told Bliss in a hard voice. Skulduggery looked at Bliss and Bliss sagged.

"I know."

"She dosn't understand how you could have left us for the side of evil so easily."

Bliss looked at Skulduggery with his dangerous blue eyes, but Skulduggery was one of the few people whom they didn't faze. They were China's eyes after all.

"I sided with Serpine-"

"Oh, I know why you sided with Serpine, Bliss," Skuldugggery assured him. "You thought that there would be no other choice, and I understand that. But for Tanith it is a different story. She just fails to see what chance any of us have if you, the strongest and most physically powerful man on earth, could be swayed so easily by the forces of darkness. She admired you, and you let her down. That's all."

"What would you have me do?" Bliss hissed, before a female voice came from beside them.

"Sorry, if...if this is a bad time."

The two men turned to see Tanith Low standing in the doorway of the Hall of Statues, looking at them with anxious eyes. Her blonde hair was a mass of blonde curls around her head, and she was dressed in a black leather jacket, black tunic and jeans tucked into boots. She looked perfectly healthy again, if awkward, standing in that doorway.

"I just wanted to talk to Mr Bliss for a moment," she said, glancing at Bliss as he stared at her.

"No, that's fine Tanith," Skulduggery told her before Bliss could say anything. "Mr Bliss and I are finished, anyway. He's all yours." With that Skulduggery nodded politely at Bliss.

"Thank you again, Bliss. For taking care of him."

Skulduggery left then, and Tanith smiled as he passed her. Then she walked towards Bliss. He did have to admire her for her balls. She looked fearless now striding up to him, ready to tell him off probably. He had it coming. He had called her over here from London, to help all of them, and then he abandoned them. He abandoned her. She stood in front of him, and her hard tigeress green eyes were strangely soft. There was colour in her cheeks, and she stood proud and strong. It was as if she hadn't been injured at she looked at the statue of Mr Bespoke and her expression softened even more.

"Skulduggery was right," she muttered, mostly to herself. "He's exactly the same."

Bliss looked from Tanith to the statue, and how she was staring at it. The tendernesss of the scene made him awkward, which was an odd feeling for him, and he looked at the floor.

"Miss Low," he began slowly. Apologizing to her might be a good idea. Then at least he might be able to see her smile before she left. Even if he didn't really mean the apology.

"I would just like to say-"

"No," Tanith interrupted, holding up a hand. He stopped and stared at her. Nobody ever interrupted him. It just wasn't done. He was Mr Bliss, the strongest man on earth and people feared him. This girl, however, did not. Or she did not seem to, at least.

"I don't want you to apologize," she said, staring at him with green, cat-like eyes. "But then, you might not even mean it anyway, so it wouldn't matter."

Is she a psychic as well as a martial artist, Bliss thought drily.

"But I want to tell you something, since I'm going to be leaving for England today anyway."

She took a deep breath. "I understand why you sided with Serpine, Mr Bliss. I don't like it, but I understand. You did it because it was best for you, and because you felt that it was the only way to go. And that's okay. But don't think that I'm being arrogant because I'm telling you that I don't care, and yet I'm just a lousy freelancer."

"I don't think that," Bliss said quietly, but she heard him.

"You don't?" Tanith asked, puzzled. Did she really think he was such a monster?

"No," he said firmly. "And I don't want to apologize, but I do want to let you know why I sent you over here." She waited with hard eyes.

"I had been watching your progress over the years, and knew that you would be a valuable asset to us. I also knew that I would be joining Serpine, even then, so I knew..."

"That we'd be one man down," Tanith finished gently. Bliss hesitated and nodded.

"Yes."

Tanith looked at him with those dark green eyes and nodded. "Another thing. I don't believe in faith as such, right, but...I do think that, probably, it was better that you left. Because if you didn't-"

She paused, licking her lips and not looking at him. She swallowed. "If you didn't, it could have been different. It could have been worse. We...we all could have died, Mr Bliss. The world could have ended. Could have, I'm not saying it would have. But you, me, Skulduggery, Valkyrie, all of us, could have fallen. So-"

She suddenly stepping forward, and did the ballsiest thing Bliss had ever encountered. She took his hand in both of hers.

"So I forgive you," she said intensely, smiling softly. "For what you did, because if you didn't, things could have turned out differently. If you didn't-"

She looked at the statue of Ghastly Bespoke, and her eyes began to glisten.

"We could have lost him,"she finished quickly, kissing Bliss' hand quickly and spinning around to walk away. Bliss watched her leave the Hall of Statues, and went back to looking at the statue.

"If only you knew, Mr Bespoke," he said softly, before heading off to instruct the Cleavers.

A/N: Yes, this was a tribute. Kind of. Sort of. For those of you who have read book three, anyway. I think Bliss deserved it...and yeah, I always thought he had a paternal side for Tanith, him being a fighter. Well, and her being a fighter...anyway, hoped you like it. There's more to come!