It was the last lesson before the Christmas holidays, and Skulduggery and Valkyrie had been decorating the classroom for most of the night, after Valkyrie had woken up gone 1am to another nightmare. There was tinsel lining the ceilings against the walls, a small Christmas tree with lit candles (something Valkyrie every much enjoyed doing) and more tinsel, and a holly wreath had been hung on the classroom door, the colour of the holly changed every 30 seconds. The dummies had each been given a party hat and Valkyrie had drawn a smiley face where their normal face should have been. The mirrors at the back of the room had been cleaned, tinsel hanging at the top of them. The whole room looked very festive. Valkyrie was going to enjoy destroying it when Christmas was over.

She yawned and stretched as the sun shone through the windows.

"8am" Skulduggery murmured "Are you going to get breakfast?" Valkyrie nodded as Skulduggery adjusted a bit of tinsel hanging over the mirror.

"Yeah, I'll go in a few minutes." She ran her fingers through her hair before yawning again, and there was a knock on the door. The Pink Blob appeared a moment later, not waiting for an invitation to come in.

"Up early I see" She said primly. Valkyrie turned away scowling. This pink mass before them didn't know the half of it. "I'd like to talk to you Mr Pleasant, if you'd be so kind, before your lessons begin." Skulduggery was silent for a moment before nodding curtly.

"Of course" He said smoothly.

"Excellent. Why not accompany me to my office? It will only take a few minutes of your time." Skulduggery nodded again.

"Go and get breakfast Val, I'll see you later."

"Yeah sure" She muttered. A few seconds later she heard the door close. They had gone. Valkyrie felt shivers go up her spine for no apparent reason. She looked in the mirror and approached it, sighing. She looked at herself, how the dark circles were more like rings around her eyes, her dark hair shiny yet limp. He face was pale, but obviously tired. Her cheeks sagged and her eyes had sleep in the corners of them. She brushed it away, using the mirror as a guide before she stopped quite suddenly. Something wasn't right. Something was very very wrong. She let her hand drop as she leaned in closer to the mirror, squinting. What was it? Before she knew what was happening, the reflection grinned at her, reaching out its arms to her shoulders and pulling her through the mirror.

Skulduggery was not happy as he returned from Umbridge's office. The woman had more pictures of cats that she had hairs on the top of her head, and she talked nonsense. He hadn't said anything he didn't want to say of course, but still it was annoying. And it had taken up nearly an hour. Skulduggery was sure Valkyrie would have let the students in by now, but he quickened his pace all the time. As he rounded the corner, he saw that the students had indeed gone inside. He strolled in to see Valkyrie pointing at the blackboard, the students watching boredly.

"Skulduggery! There you are? How long did she intend to keep you?" Valkyrie smiled at him. As the door closed behind him, Skulduggery stopped in his tracks.

"You're not Valkyrie." He said quietly, but somehow she heard him, as did the students. They stood a little more attentively, but silently, watching. The none-Valkyrie smiled.

"Of course I am. C'mon we have a lesson to teach."

"No you're not. The real Valkyrie would have uttered an annoyed yet witty remark and she doesn't smile like that."

"Skulduggery-"

"What did you do with her?" The none -Valkyrie sighed, and closed her eyes. A moment later, she opened them, and she was smirking. She edged backwards.

"I knew it was a long shot trying to trick you." She began, her voice holding a new confidence that made the students quiver "But at least I can say I tried. You're going to die either way so I guess it doesn't matter." She put the chalk down and brushed back her hair, continuing to slowly walk backwards.

"What have you done with Valkyrie?" He growled. The none-Valkyrie smirked again, gesturing with her head to the mirrors lining the back of the room, their tinsel decorations now seeming limp and morbid.

"Reflection? Impossible, you're not capable of individual thought. You're not even a she you're an it."

"Funny how all seem to think that, isn't it." She grinned "I'd hurry if I were you. There was about an hours worth of thin oxygen in that mirror. That was an hour and 5 minutes ago." She grinned cruelly, her eyes sparkling.

"Find us if you can, detective pleasant." She laughed with a cold tone before turning and sprinting through the mirrors that rippled like liquid silver as she disappeared.

"Valkyrie!" Skulduggery bellowed before sprinting after her through the mirror, leaving the students to stare in confusion at what had just happened.

Inside the mirror was cold. Icy cold. It was dark, but somehow there seemed to be a landscape. Almost like a field on a new moon's night, with dark clouds caressing the sky. The air was still, dry, lacking in oxygen. It was a good thing Skulduggery didn't need oxygen. He couldn't see the reflection or Valkyrie anywhere. He turned in a circle, looking, almost in a panic. There was a rectangle of silver that represented the mirror, but it seemed smaller. The reflection was undoubtedly trying to close the portal, but Skulduggery couldn't go back, not without his partner. He began to sprint away from the portal, calling her name, but there was no air to carry it. His mind played cruel scenarios in his head, each one more depressing and soul-splitting than the last. Then he saw her. She looked like a small lump, her clothes and hair blending in with the darkness, but there was no mistaking the colour of blood. Skulduggery sprinted towards her, nearly colliding with her. Her breathing was shallow and ragged as Skulduggery knelt down beside her.

"Valkyrie" He murmured. Her eyes fluttered and she looked up at him. She was clutching her arm, crimson liquid running between her fingers. Skulduggery picked her up bridal style and sprinted as fast as he could to the mirror, the portal shrinking rapidly. With a cry, he leapt through it, and he felt solid ground on the other side. He skidded in a circle as he landed back in the classroom, Valkyrie in his arms.

The students gasped as Skulduggery staggered slightly. He moved to the edge of the room and put Valkyrie down gently.

"Val, oh God" He muttered quietly. She was shivering, breathing rapidly, her eyes half open, her body convulsing slightly. Skulduggery peeled her hand away from her arm to reveal the open fracture, bone sticking out through the arm. He took off his jacket quickly and placed it over the wound, trying to stem the bleeding before a sinister laugh came from behind him. He stood, whirling around, drawing his gun from his pocket. He clicked the safety off and pointed it at the reflection, who was grinning wildly.

"Found her did you? She'll be brain damaged for sure." Skulduggery growled, his finger on the trigger.

"I should kill you now." He snarled. The reflection laughed.

"Go ahead. You've shot me before. I just have to go back in the mirror and I'm fixed."

"Then I'll break you into so many pieces no mirror in the world could fix you."

"Funny, but then you wouldn't know what happened to her family, would you?" Skulduggery froze, then cursed under his breath.

"See, I have the upper hand." She smiled "It's amazing how many real criminals don't even think of getting to you through her family. They're the most important thing in the world to her, and she's the most important thing in the world to you, isn't that right?"
"You would hurt her family. They're your family too." He said threateningly.

"I never said I hurt them" she grinned "I'm the real Stephanie and I'll have my family, but that doesn't mean I didn't take a few precautions to make sure ou saw things my way."

"I don't negotiate with criminals. Usually I just kill them."

"Of course you do, but let's make an exception this time? I kill her and leave the rest of you alone."

"No deal." He said immediately. She scoffed.

"Of course I knew you would say that. That's why I brought this." She reached behind her back to the mirror and touched it with the tips of her fingers before an object seemed to melt into her hands. She held it up for him to see.

"Darquesse brought this back from the other dimension. She thought she'd lost it, but I knew better. I found it under a truck she flipped over. I knew it would come in handy." She grinned, pointing it at him, the black crystal in the middle shining dangerously.

"Give me Valkyrie, or I'll destroy this castle and everyone in it."

"Blackmail."

"Isn't it just?" She grinned "Put the gun down." Skulduggery hesitated, then cursed under his breath, putting the gun down and shoving it backwards across the floor with his foot.

"Good" The reflection said, smiling. "Now listen carefully, skeleton, I'll only say it once. I'm the real Stephanie Edgely, and I'm going to be the one to kill yo-" A single gun shot went off. The reflection was still grinning, before her grin turned to a pained frown and she looked down at the large hole in her chest.

"Oh" She murmured, before another shot went off, and an additional hole was blown into her head, scattering brain like porridge across the floor. The room was silent as her body collapsed to the floor, revealing the real Valkyrie, holding the gun in her good arm. She was shaking and pale, but alive, and standing, almost in shock.

"I hate it when they monologue." She said, a small smile on her pale cracked lips, though the tone of her voice betrayed her. She was going to cry. She dropped the gun and sank against the wall. Her arm was still bleeding as Skulduggery moved over to her quickly.

"Let's get you to Madam Pomfrey." He muttered quickly, picking her up again. She grunted.

"I can walk." She muttered.

"You could, but you won't." He scolded her, speed-walking from the room. "Stay there, don't touch the body." He ordered the students as he disappeared through the door, leaving them in silence. In a few short seconds the students had seen a different side to Skulduggery and Valkyrie. They had sent he ruthless Skulduggery who had openly threatened to kill someone, and the Skulduggery who cared for Valkyrie more than anything else. And then they'd sent he truly injured Valkyrie who had shot and killed someone. Someone who looked exactly like her. Hermione was almost in shock as she stared at the bits of brain and pools of blood on the floor. She had never seen anything so gruesome and terrifying as the scene that had just taken place. She had seen how Skulduggery had run through the mirrors (physically impossible she kept telling herself) and returned what seemed eons later carrying a nearly unconscious bloody Valkyrie in his arms. Hermione thought she had glimpsed bone in the wound as the blood dripped onto the floor. As whoever it was had been so focused on Skulduggery, Hermione watched Valkyrie slowly pick up the gun from the floor and disappear into the shadows, almost as if she had cut them and folded then around herself to conceal her in them, and then she was behind the girl, gun pressed to her back, and Valkyrie had pulled the trigger. Hermione wouldn't have believed it if it hadn't been for her own eyes telling her it was real.

The students around her seemed to regain their voices and began quickly chatting about it. Some of the girls, and even some of the boys, turned away from the body. One girl ran from the room to throw up in the closest bathroom. Hermione hadn't realised she'd gone pale and zoned out until Harry shook her shoulder.

"Did you see that? Please tell me I'm not just having a crazy dream." He said quickly.

"It's the same crazy dream I'm having." Hermione muttered.

"I saw bone" Neville whimpered "Did you see the way her head exploded?"

"It's didn't explode, it's just got a giant hole through it." Someone piped up. Another student edged a few inches forwards, and then ran back, too scared to go any closer.

"What is that thing?" Ron asked.

"Um, a girl?" Harry suggested.

"Not her, that. That staff thing." He said pointing.

"Dunno, but it must be powerful for Skulduggery to drop his gun." Harry muttered "And who's that Darq-whatever she said about?"

"Darquesse I think she said" Hermione whispered "That girl said she brought it back."
"She must be pretty strong to be able to flip over a truck." Ron muttered. Harry and Hermione nodded, and then Skulduggery arrived again, just as another student edged forwards to try and get closer to the body.

"Hey! I said stay away fro a reason." He barked. The students shuffled backwards as Skulduggery approached the body carefully. She was definitely dead, so Hermione didn't see why he was being so careful, until she realised he was walking around the staff thing to his bloodied jacket. He picked it up and then returned, kneeling down beside the body. Using his jacket, he picked p the staff by the handle and stood, wrapping it in the jacket so it looked almost like a parcel.

"What is that?" Harry asked. Skulduggery tilted his head to him.

"This" he began, turning to face them slightly, holding the staff a little away from himself "is the Sceptre of the Ancients. It's a one of a kind WOMD – that's weapon of mass destruction for those who don't know."

"Has it ever been used?" Ron asked, looking at it.

"Oh yes. I've used it myself before. But it's dangerous. It was used for destroying Gods, turns anything its ray touches into dust. It's incredibly dangerous."
"So why did the Darqessie person bring it back?" Harry asked. Skulduggery seemed to freeze at the very mention of her name.

"How did you know about Darquesse?"

"The girl mentioned it, said she'd brought it back." Hermione said quickly.

"We needed it to kill a sorcerer. He was vastly becoming unstoppable and planned on either giving everyone magic, or killing all those who didn't have it. She thought she'd lost it."

"Then the sorcerer is still out there?"
"No, we killed him. He's long dead." Skulduggery murmured "One of the things you learn in the business, kid, most of the bad guys end up being killed by the good guys, which leaves the question, who's the real good guy? You wanna know my answer? None of us. We're all just as bad as each other, capable of doing terrible things." He said darkly, his rimmed hat making shadows cross his skull. "I have to keep this safe, as for you lot, follow me."

"Where are we going?" Someone asked.

"The body can't be moved. You really want to stay here until it starts smelling? 'Cos I'm telling you now, rotting flesh doesn't smell nice. Come on." He grunted, striding out of the room. After a moment's hesitation, someone scurried after him, closely followed by another, and soon the whole class was out in the corridor, following the skeleton detective.