Hello everyone, this is EndlessCreativity (now known as Across Every Universe) and I have a new story for those who have read my previous stuff. For those who are new, welcome I hope you are having a wonderful day or night.

The story I am writing this time is for Skullgirls. I got into it around mid-April and I even have the Skullgirls Mobile app (i will try to get a physical copy of it for the Nintendo Switch). And I quickly liked how original it was and how beautiful the character designs and graphics were. The story is also pretty intriguing with lots of characters who do what they do!

Oh my goodness! I am getting off schedule here, this is an Alternate Universe where Valentine is Carol's/Painwheel's mother. Don't ask me how I came up with the idea, it just dawned on me while I was either bored during a Zoom Class or staring at the ceiling late at night trying to sleep while also stressing about assignments. I don't know why, I just thought it would be a cute idea. Sure, Skullgirls has some dark stuff but there is also some sweet moments in the game.

Anyways, let the story begin! Thank you and I hope you enjoy!

(This is also crossed-posted on Archive of Our Own).

Disclaimer: I do not own Skullgirls.

EDIT (2:11 PM): I am such a forgetful dum-dum. I forgot to add a small list of things that are different in this AU, will add more in case later in case I forget:

•The Last Hope's ages are different

-Valentine will also be 37 during canon Skullgirls events. She is 22 when she had Carol

-The Last Hope is also older

•Drain and Christmas are married, in the lore/unused ending they were implied to be in a

romantic relationship so I am taking advantage of that.

New Meridian. A beautiful city filled with complicated history and many unique individuals. However, underneath the city's beautiful landscapes were some rough and dark places. Only those who could really protect themselves were worthy to walk around in no fear.

For you see, dear audience, New Meridian is not exactly the safest or the best place to settle down without any protection. There happens to be a ruthless gang known as the Meidici who actually run some businesses around this beautiful city. Many innocents unfortunately fall victim to some of the Medici's deals. Others were actually 'brought' up by some of the high-ranked members. And this in turn, caused them to be forever loyal to the Medici. While rumors and house tales have been going around, most of them seem to center around one aspect. Before New Meridian was built in all of its glory, the Medici had originally founded the land. So that was why there was conflict and unnecessary tensions in everyday life.

However, there are a select few who actually manage to…casually deal with this. Even if it can be dangerous and questionable at times. In fact, this is where we start the story.

"Geez, looks like Patty wasn't kidding when she said that it would get cold tonight. Should have brought a jacket."

A young, slim woman was walking among the unknowing public. Blue silky hair that barely reached the top of her back flowed behind her in a natural rhythm. Her right eye was covered by an assortment of her hair which housed a scar where her eye once was. Although it occasionally betrayed her by being gently blown aside by the cold-touched winds of the night. E-cup breasts and curvy hips were gently hugged by a black dress that while protected some of her skin, left little to no imagination. Although, perhaps the hanging purse that she is carrying does cover a bit more, if only by a small fraction. Her black heels clicked with rhythm against the uneven cement pavement as she strided into the city.

The name of this young lady was Valerie. And while no last name can be given right now, there are a select few who call her by her codename, 'Valentine'. Interestingly enough, the few that know her by her actual name also have holiday based names. In fact, all of the members who are a part of the team have holiday-based codenames. As ridiculous as that sounds for some, it can be rather easy and less taxing to remember if one is out on missions.

Valentine is part of a five member team who share the same mission: to fight and destroy the Skullgirl. A young woman or girl who turned into a mysterious but dangerous entity who has been corrupted by an ancient artifact called the 'Skullheart'. A sentient artifact that can grant the wish of any woman no matter how complicated or tedious. However, there is a catch: if the woman is impure, or her wish is impure in some way, she will be corrupted by the Skullheart's power and will become the next Skullgirl. Who will bring about destruction and the death of thousands of innocent people. The Skullheart and Skullgirls have been around for many decades, and possibly even centuries. But there are hardly any records, information, or solid facts that can give the public better information. Well, there is the common knowledge that the Skullheart (and Skullgirl) appears every seven years. Though no one knows why seven years specifically.

Which is what makes Valentine so curious about both the Skullheart and Skullgirl. There is such an enigma surrounding the mysterious artifact itself that it left Valentine itching to learn more about it. While some people would think it better to leave these kinds of curiosities alone, some people were not Valerie 'Valentine'. Second-in-command of The Last Hope, who were trained after applying to the Anti-Skullgirls Lab. Dedicating their lives to fighting and making sure to gather information on the Skullgirl. Should it come to it, there may be a chance where they will have to give their lives while fighting the Skullgirl.

Most consider those brave enough to face the Skullgirl an honor. Others might consider it a suicide mission and a waste of someone's life. Now there are some people who are...in between these kinds of fine lines. Valentine is a person who does not seem to make a big deal out of either of the mentioned topics of honor and fear. She is not what one would call, an 'average' mind-whatever that might mean is up to you, dear audience. But for the sake of this story, it might be best described as someone who would rather live life without the thrills or questioning anything and everything in this universe that everyone is inhabiting.

Valentine, while a nurse with outstanding ninja skills, is aware that the human mortality rate varies from individual to individual. She is also highly aware that there are higher powers that while out of current human conscience understanding, can still be understood in some way. That, and there really is no reason to fear death. Life and death are actually on the same level: there is no life without death and no death without life. Which is one of the reasons why Valentine became a Nurse, and even became part of a Black-ops team of ninja nurses. It was not to die protecting the spineless cowards who waste their potential on a daily basis, or the wussies hiding behind their excuses and death. She wanted to do this because she was hungry for information that not too many humanoid figures would bother themselves to do in their short, pathetic life-spans. In fact, Valerie 'Valentine' was so curious about the Skullheart, that she was willing to sacrifice a lot of herself to get the information.

Sure, she put up with some of the other scientists who were less willing to go into notion or ponder the facts around the Skullheart. But they also forget that they were not the ones who are responsible for searching possible (and may she add, willing) candidates that could be an Anti-Skullgirl unit. But of course, this led to a few-somewhat-heated arguments with some of the said scientists. Although, this time it got a bit out of hand. The scientists stated that nobody should be used as an Anti-Skullgirl Unit. Valentine bit back by saying that unless the ASG Labs want blood on their hands, the ASG Labs need to find someone and fast. Time does not wait for anybody.

After the argument settled down, Valentine's leader, codenamed Christmas, suggested that her second-in-command take the night off. Lest she wants to deal with paperwork for about a month. To which, Valentine begrudgingly agreed upon.

Which is why she was out walking around New Meridian at this moment. So far, nothing exciting has happened-

"Hey, little lady~."

…why?

Sighing Valentine turned around to see who out of all these morons actually had the iron guts to catcall her. And of course, the one to call her out had to look like a creep...literally. He even looked the role with his dark maroon hair slicked back with cheap-looking hair gel, unattractive eyes, thin mustache and goatee, and a body that seemed too lanky. The young man was leaning against a brick wall, arms crossed, a cocky smile...all of these were poor attempts at being confident. And Valentine was starting to feel second-hand embarrassment just by looking at him. Along with some goosebumps that were starting to make Valentine slightly shiver. Seriously, this guy was giving her major creepy vibes.

Valentine forced her shiver away and merely quirked her brow before letting out a scoff, "Sorry, pal. Not interested."

"C'mon, pretty lady. Let's go get a drink, I promise I could make it worthwhile for you~", Valentine rolled her eyes as the guy got off the wall in a vain attempt to get closer to her.

"I said 'no'. Now get lost."

"Playing tough to get, huh? That's alright, I have all night-."

"Hey buddy, the lady says she is not interested! Get. Lost!"

A large, beefy hand let itself be known to the over persistent man's shoulder. Both Valentine and the man looked over to see a man who towered over both of them. The giant of a man had a buff built, black hair naturally flowing towards the back of his head, a small stubble, and by the looks of it: a workout body.

"Oh, yeah. And what-?"

And before anyone could blink, the sucker was thrown into an alleyway. Five good seconds of hard crashes, tumbles, and curses were heard before silence settled in.

He was probably going to have to get a doctor to check on him. But that did not happen until the morning.

"You'll end up in the trash."

"Whoa ho ho ho~, I'm impressed."

The guy turned his head to look at Valentine, innocent surprise sparkling in his eyes, "Really?"

Valentine let out a genuine soft scoff, "Ha, no. I've seen better knock-out lines from kids when they play pretend."

The man in front of her comically hung his head in shame, "Hmm, I thought it was cool."

Valentine felt a small twinge of guilt at her earlier choice of words. Immediately, she decided to make it up to the fellow, "Well, you did make my night by knocking that creepy asshole out for a week...or two."

"Heh, don't mention it, Miss-?"

"Valerie."

"Right, Miss Valerie. Anyway, it looked like he wasn't going to give up or get the message that you wanted to be left alone."

An eyebrow quirked for the second time from Valentine that night, "Like you?"

It took the big guy five seconds flat to register what she had said to him. Then the man brought his body back up to his full height, "Well, in that case. I hope you have a good night, Miss Valerie."

Valentine repeated the man's previous actions of merely blinking in confusion as she watched the man give her a small bow and walk away. This man...was probably one of the most dense people she had ever met in her life. Did he not know she was being sarcastic? Maybe he was one of those really naive people who probably took everything said to them rather seriously? His actions definitely told her that he was not afraid to stand up to people. Or that he believed that he did the right thing after nobody got hurt (except for the creep, but he doesn't count).

It took Valentine about two seconds to register that the man was starting to walk away from her, "H-Hey, wait up! I was only messing with you!"

Not a split second later, the man turned his neck around, genuine surprise on his face, "Really?"

...

"So, what's your story, little man?"

"Haha! Little? You seem pretty confident for such a little lady."

"...Dude, I'm literally 6 foot."

The two stared at each other before they burst out laughing. From Valentine's apology, they dedicated themselves to enjoy each other's company for the night. They walked around town looking for a more-than-decent bar before deciding on a fancy-looking restaurant instead. Surprisingly, it was pleasant and even had a homey second floor, which the two strangers decided to sit at. Best part was: that there were only two to three other couples occupying the other tables. So it might as well have just been themselves enjoying a dinner and the night sky.

"Well, if you really want to know, I aim to be the top dog in wrestling! The best of the best."

"Oh, really? You shouldn't have a hard time, you know, with your name and all."

"Heh, good point-hey!"

At his realization, Valentine laughed. It felt so good to tease and poke someone else who wasn't Hallow or Drain. Beowulf had given his name to her after he accepted her apology. And while it was a strong name the man himself is a little...thick-headed and dense. Though it was quite refreshing actually compared to all the research talk, discussions, and theories that go around all day at the Labs.

"Come on! I can do it, for real! Watch me get to the top! People will be howling my name for miles on end!"

"That, I would love to see."

"Heh, don't worry, you will! By the way, what about you?", Beowulf had stopped being passionate about his ambitions and turned to Valentine. Who had a look of slight surprise that the man suddenly stopped being compassionate. The man in front of her truly was one of a kind.

"Oh? What about me?"

"I mean," Beowulf started, pausing as he attempted to hold eye contact with her, "you obviously work out. Though it seems you've seen your fair share of work?"

Hmmm? Oh, now Valentine knew where he was trying to avoid looking: her eye and lip scar. Well-

"If you really want to know, I am a nurse. The scars here are from surgical accidents from uncooperative patients. The one on my eye was when a patient started panicking and tried to get out of a planned operation. They grabbed the nearest sharp object and without thinking plunged it right into my eye. My lip is from when I was being reckless with some of the supplies we had. Luckily, it wasn't too painful but it still left a scar as you can see. "

"Man, you are one tough cookie. I don't know how you make it look so easy. You save a lot of lives, you are a hero."

But...sometimes it isn't easy. Repeating what was told by the Lab Directors actually made her feel awful lying to Beowulf. Valentine did not know why, she knew that no one is supposed to know about the Labs besides the Renior Family. But she did just meet him, maybe the guilt will go away after she goes back home?

"Well, I guess that depends, some of the people me and my colleagues saved wished they were not saved at all. Most thought it would be better that they had stayed at death's door. Fewer actually threw insults and ranted about how our lives were probably better than whatever they were going through."

Beowulf blinked, "Man, that must be tough. I'm sorry to bring up that topic."

Valentine blinked as well before taking a sip of champagne, "It's okay, there are many people who are ungrateful towards a lot of things in life. And while I understand, it can be...rather difficult to keep going. I've told my co-workers that I got used to it-."

"But you shouldn't get used to it," Beowulf started, staring Valentine hard into her good eye, "I mean, yeah there are going to be people who keep doubting you and even be ungrateful, Valerie. But despite all that, you are actually helping people for the greater good. You and the other people you work with helped them get another chance at life. What they do with it is up to them."

The new information settled in Valentine's mind as she realized that this simpleton giant actually said something that was smart and empathic. Life never gave Valerie a chance to relax or indulge in too many of the good pleasures that existed...besides dark chocolate. It was a simple but easy reminder of why she had started as a nurse (and black-ops) in the first place. However, there was also the fact that this carefree and easy-going stranger did not know that she also worked in one of the most top-secret labs that was studying subjects like the Skullheart, theonite crystals, and even parasites (though the information on them is still vague and there seems to be little to no evidence of too many parasites left). Life was never the same, nor could she go back to the old lifestyles she used to have, everytime there is something new that could cause panic to the general public. It was a heavy burden to carry but she, her teammates, the good doctors, scientists and the Labs will carry on. This was all for a better tomorrow, even if all of those involved may not live long to see it.

In the end, all she could do was say, "Thank you. That means so much to me."

Beowulf flashed her his signature smile, "No problem!"

And so, the night continued. The young man in front of her was obviously suave in his own way. They both had some similarities despite their differences. He wanted to leave behind a legend that will keep people's hopes up and howling for more (pun intended) even when he is gone. She wanted the Skullheart gone. When asked why by Beowulf, Valentine responded that it is so that people have one less big thing to worry about. The night still felt young even when they noticed that it was long past midnight. Perhaps they should both go home, get each other's numbers and whatnot. Try to keep contact with perhaps a kindred soul that people can hardly find nowadays.

But good ol' Valerie 'Valentine' knew better than that.

Aw, what the hell! This actually looks much more cozy than my place, Valentine thought as she and the gentleman entered his apartment. The two decided to spend more time at his place. He offered her another drink but she told him that she was full from dinner. So the two talked and talked until they once again lost track of time. Eventually, it ended up...escalating.

Valentine did not know when they started to make out and toss their clothes to the side without a care. But she did know that they were both on his bed and got to work. And much to her surprise, he was actually pretty good and quite considerate. In fact, she melted under his touch several times. He took it slow and asked if she was comfortable or if it hurt anytime they went to the next level. Did it hurt at first? Yes, it was pretty painful. And sure he was dense, but he made up for it with his sweet compassion. At one point, Valentine remembered Hallow calls these kinds of men 'himbos'.

Speaking of Hallow: she really needed to tell Hal to lay off the Feral Boy magazine that she reads. It was starting to have some effects on her...jokes. That, or the practice drugs were boosting her libido. Yeah, that immediately became part of Valentine's To-Do list. Along with finding Beowulf again after getting rid of the Skullheart.

But nevertheless, Valerie 'Valentine' did not feel the night go by. Nor did she wish for it to finish.

And as the usual cliche goes, both people will never probably never see each other again. But who knows? Life, Destiny, and Fate all have a funny way of bringing back people into each other's lives-.

Hang on, I am getting off track, let me get back on schedule. Basically, Valentine woke up first, being used to having to work so much and sleep less. Quickly gathered her clothes in less than five minutes and sped off back to her apartment to quickly change. In her haste, she forgot to leave Beowulf a note and her phone number.

Said stranger found that he was alone when he awoke. And though he knew that this was one of life's short thrills, a tickling feeling slowly made itself known around his brain. Giving him goosebumps but nevertheless, a primal instinct that told him they would meet again. But like most people, he shoved it down. Dismissing it as a weird feeling in his gut that was meant to be ignored.

Little did they both know, life was going to find a way to throw a monkey wrench into their lives.

And that's a wrap! I have to cut the ending short because it is late where I am and I really want to sleep!

Let me know your thoughts and constructive criticisms. Thank you and have a wonderful day or night!