A/N: I don't own Darquesse, Anton, Valkyrie, Skulduggery or anyone else you might recognize.
But it wasn't quite fair, was it? Me getting to have all the fun of being me, and Anton being one of the good guys. Most of the time. I would have shifted back, but he laid a gentle hand on my arm, stopping me. "Please, Darquesse. Let me show you I meant it when I said I love you. Stay."
I looked at him closely. "You may never get Valkyrie back again, you know that. Like you, the longer I'm this way-" I shrugged and when he smiled I understood. I understood why his dark side never really struggled to stay out, it didn't need to. It was there in his eyes, that cold willingness to kill and ruthless efficiency that wouldn't let anything get in his way.
In a lot of ways Anton's light side was colder than his dark side, but as Darquesse I understood his reasoning perfectly. I also understood that the men we had fought wouldn't be doing much of anything ever again.
I knew without asking that it was a relief in a way for him to be with me. It wasn't that he didn't love Valkyrie, he did. But I was never going to judge him for what he'd done to protect me. Valkyrie would have cried, but had I not Surged I'd have killed all those men myself and enjoyed it. The only difference between he and I was that Anton seemed to feel nothing when he killed, neither pleasure not anger.
I wondered. Had it been me drawn to him, or Valkyrie, or both? Oh, I knew I was the same person, dark or light, but I understood his appeal to me and mine to him. "All right, I'll stay. For a while, at any rate." I said. Though from the look in his eyes I knew he hoped it would be more than a little while.
Anton was as kind and loving as he'd been before, making sure that he saw to my every comfort. At first I was naturally wary, but I realized eventually that he really was in love with me. We still did the same things, but he added touches like the romantic candlelit dinner for us one night that touched me. "You didn't have to go to all this trouble, I'm not Valkyrie." I said, still unsure why he was even bothering.
"That's exactly why I do, Darquesse." Anton said, taking me into his arms. "You'll learn eventually that my feelings for you haven't changed, you are still my incredibly beautiful and much beloved wife." He said, tenderly stroking my cheek.
He escorted me to my chair, seated me, then uncovered the platter in the middle of the table and I had to laugh. "Anton, you remembered." I said fondly, touched at the sight of the fried seafood and fries from our only date. Our. I had to admit, he'd figured out the truth. I wasn't two people or a split personality, I was me.
After that, and the ensuing night in his arms, I got used to his kind treatment and I knew he was taming me. So a few weeks later when I was tired and lagging behind as we prepared the buffet for our guests and figured out why and corrected for it, I caught his questioning glance and decided to tell the truth. "Pregnant." I said offhandedly, then looked away. I didn't think he'd want it and I personally didn't blame him. Goodness only knows what she'd turn out like. "Girl." I added, looking up again.
"And you'd have her, my child?" Anton asked, approaching me and taking me into his arms. "I want you to, you know. To have a child with you, Darquesse-" He kissed me tenderly and I returned his affections my mind reeling. He wants my child? Mine? I pulled back to stare at him, not daring to be happy, not yet.
"I know you love me, Anton. But I can't change back until she comes, or I'd loose her. You do realize she is my daughter, not Valkyrie's? I'm the same person, yes, but it makes a difference." He nodded.
"I realize that, and yes, it's your child I want. You know I'm-"
"Ruthless, logical and an efficient killing machine at times?" I asked and he nodded, not looking the least bit sorry. "And I'll give you a stronger daughter and not really care if she's like me, in fact I'm hoping she will be." I said, feeling a dark glee spread through me. "A little Darquesse. We can let her play with the guests we don't like." I said, grinning at Anton, and we both laughed.
Dad took the news unusually well. That I was now Darquesse and that it was my child Anton wanted made sense to him. "This is where I tell you he said Darquesse instead of Valkyrie a time or two when we were looking for you." He said mildly. "I wouldn't tell you before because you'd have hid again. I always told you you can control yourself." He added smugly.
"Speaking of that, I've seen how she'll be. She'll take after both of us, but there's no going back. She'll need me as her mother." When this was met with expectant silence I continued. "And I've seen her birth. It would be a good idea if a Necromancer as strong as me will be there. Just in case."
"Just in case so you don't level a few city blocks and the Sanctuary itself?" He asked gently. "I know. When the time comes the right Necromancer will be there." He said and I knew he would be.
And so he was, an imposing figure in black armour that was able to deflect and absorb any of the shadows I was helpless to control. And when my beautiful daughter at last arrived in the world the operating room looked like a battlefield. I was exhausted, but happy, and had healed myself before my daughter could be placed in my arms.
She clung tightly, and I sheltered her with my shadows, smiling gently at her. True, she would take after me, but she'd gotten Anton's sweetness as well, something I was thankful for. A perfect balance of our darkness and light, and I wanted our little one to have the prefect name, for I'd also foreseen she was the only offspring we'd ever have.
Anton was by my side the entire birth and after. "Sweetheart, you should go to the hotel." I said sleepily as I stroked his long black hair. He'd gotten into the bed with me, but as a protective gesture and now he shook his head, clearly every bit as tired.
"No, I just need some rest." He said, sheltering me in his strong arms. And so we fell asleep, and woke up the next day only when our family joined us. Dad looked amused at how disheveled Anton was for once, but still greeted him warmly. He'd also brought bags of take away that were greatly appreciated.
"Fast food, breakfast of champions." He said, handing us both one. Mom had coffee for us and it hit me that they were still my family. They still loved me and that warmed my heart because I'd secretly feared I'd lost them.
When Abby visited, very excited to see my Sable Rose, she crooned over her. "She's beautiful, Sis, like you." She said excitedly, playing with her gently. I smiled, pleased I still had my family, and pleased beyond words my little sister still loved me and my baby.
I think it was my family, along with our friends and Anton that showed me my life wasn't over when it turned out after testing that there wouldn't be anymore reverting back to Valkyrie. The doctors speculated that my pregnancy had forced the permanent change, and all for the good of my baby. But my family and friends hadn't abandoned me, hadn't turned their back on my child, even if they knew she was as likely to be evil as she was to be good.
Anton had fallen in love with our child on first sight and I knew it was partly because he was a loving man, but partly for another reason too. A daughter like Sable Rose wouldn't turn on him. She'd understand him, and she certainly had no fear of his Gist. It was too early to tell if she had one herself, but with her inky black eyes and pale complexion I hoped she'd inherited his jet black hair. I knew she would, I'd seen her, but I also knew it could have been a wistful mother's imagination.
We finally got to Hawaii, baby in tow, for two glorious weeks of rest and relaxation. Poor Anton needed it. He'd been hyper-vigilant my entire pregnancy, and now at last he could relax. As we roamed the secluded island paradise we'd set down on, I admired the lush tropical beauty. "Makes me glad I didn't destroy the world." I said, cradling Sable into me. "And you two are an added bonus." I said with a smile.
Anton smiled himself, then plucked a tropical blossom for me. "For sparing the world." He said gently, and I accepted the token graciously with a tendril of shadow.
"Thank you, Anton. That's sweet of you." I said, surprised I was getting that tame. But I had no need to be cold or torment him needlessly, I never had. I appreciated that it would take a man like Anton to love me, one who accepted his own dark side. And I especially appreciated how tender he was with our Sable Rose.
He also loved that unlike Valkyrie, I preferred a two piece string bikini in black, and didn't mind me luxuriating in long swims. Because he knew I had a special connection to my child and the instant she needed me I'd be there, even if it meant arriving dripping wet and with writhing shadows because she'd had a bad dream.
Anton had just eyed me as he picked her up, then grinned. "You're a very vigilant mother, very fetching as well." He teased.
I laughed good-naturedly. "Nothing's to good for her, or you. Clam bake on the beach tonight? My treat." I offered and he seemed enchanted. I liked doing things for Anton and as we dined under the stars that night, little Sable Rose tucked safely in her carrier, it was like a dream come true.
"I always thought I was doomed to be lonely, that you'd just leave one day." I admitted and Anton looked shocked, then sympathetic.
"I know. And I feared any one of a legion of men more powerful, richer or with more of what my Darquesse wants in a man would-" I didn't let him complete the sentence, but drew him into a lingering kiss.
"I want you." I said softly and I knew that at last he believed me.
So when we at last moved on, we were content. I could easily make a secure sling of shadows for her, so Sable rarely left my side, except for naps, and as the weeks moved on and her jet black hair grew in I was beyond pleased with her. As was Anton and his Gist half. He'd hover over her, always seeking my permission first. A good idea with a mom like Darquesse, I guess. But he was gentle, crooning in a raspy, broken voice to her while he gently touched her with the back of a hand, minding his talons around her.
He was a wonderful father because, of course, he was Anton, and we both knew it. We knew we were in love as well and that our daughter was a product of that love. And I realized just how madly in love with Anton I was when he floated toward me after one visit with Sable Rose, tears brimming in his black eyes. "Please," he begged in the ruined voice he had, "fix me. Please." He begged and I felt tears in my own eyes as I nodded.
I drew him into my arms, indulging us in a lingering kiss that I used to feel and understand his magic. I felt my heart pounding in my chest as his Gist side took the kiss deeper, eagerly seeking a connection with me. And I used that connection to manipulate his magic. Anton would never tire no matter how often his Gist half was out, but neither could he ever become a full Gist.
He'd been willing to be kept as he was forever, not giving up his magic, but giving up the chance for complete transformation, even though it was naturally what his darker half wanted. As we parted he looked at me, his expression peaceful. "Thank you." He rasped, then willingly allowed himself to be drawn back in.
And when my husband opened his eyes and for the very first time seemed stronger, not weaker, I'd known I'd done the right thing.
Awww, Darquesse is being nice for once. Maybe a tad OOC, but nice. As always, let me know if you want more.