Thanks Mademise Morte, Harmony-Rose Temptation, They cant take all of me and Onyx Sprita for your reviews :)
The last chapter was Plug In Baby as China got electrocuted, so Mademise Morte was right :)
MuseGleek123 - Hey, thanks everybody for all your reviews and a special thanks to Reia who has been an amazing help :) I can't say when we're going to kill Valkyrie but it won't be for a while yet!
Reia - MuseGleek123 and I are writing this over MSN (well she's telling me ideas and I'm writing this down) so it's a wonder this story ever got chapters completed, what with us being distracted by Futurama and Family Guy while writing the first chapter ;) Plus she really needs to write longer single A/Ns, mine's like three times as long -.- Oh and yeah MuseGleek123 is awesome and shit. There amn't I nice?
Ghastly hummed a little song to himself as he wandered round his shop, clearing up evidence of the guy's wild night. He picked up a feather boa and winced. Anton had a lot of explaining to do. Skulduggery walked through the door, eyes glued on his phone. ''Ghastly, have you talked to China recently?'' The tailor looked up and shook his head. ''No, why?'' ''I've been trying to contact her all morning but she's not answering my calls. That's never happened before.'' Ghastly shrugged. ''Maybe she's busy stealing the heart - and wallet - of some helpless billionaire. Times are hard Skulduggery, the last time I saw her I think she was only wearing three pieces of priceless jewellrey.'' The skeleton chuckled at his friend. ''Probably, but I think I'll just go check. Catch you later, remember we're meeting with the girls and Fletcher for dinner.'' They bumped fists and Skulduggery left.
Ghastly checked his clock. Half an hour to opening time, better hurry up. He swept the floor quickly and started setting out his fabrics occasionally smiling as he found relics of last night including pictures of Thurid Guild doing a pretty badass YMCA dance. Ghastly finished up and glanced at his phone. Should I do it? Maybe she'll say no. Of course she'll say no. She's gorgeous. But then again, what do I have to lose? I'll ask her out once and if she doesn't want to I'll accept it. ''Be cool Bespoke, be cool,'' he muttered as he picked up his phone and began to dial Tanith's number. A sudden crash startled him and Ghastly dropped the phone as he turned round. ''Hello? Finbar, if you're trying to sneak into my wardrobe again it isn't working.''
Nobody answered.
Ghastly clicked his fingers, summoning a flame, and walked over to his back room. ''Hello?'' he called again, warily. He felt something shift, and years of training moved him before his brain caught up with what he was doing. He came up from his roll, noticing the knife that had narrowly missed his head and searched with swift eyes for his attacker. There was a whip of black outside and Ghastly threw open his back door and rushed outside. He didn't have a back garden - his house was built in front of a sprawling forest. The tailor stopped, calming his breathing and listening for a clue. He heard or rather felt a shiver, a movement to his left and whirled round, throwing a ball of flame that narrowly missed a shadowy figure that had been an arm's length from him. The figure wheeled around and sped away through the trees as Ghastly scrambled after them.
Somehow the cloaked attacker gained on Ghastly, pulling ahead and leaving him scanning the forest. He shook his head and made to pull his phone out his pocket then realised he had left it in his house. ''Crap,'' he groaned, knowing it would take him at least half an hour to get back to his house and notify the Sanctuary. Ghastly took a step forward then felt a pair of strong hands shove him. He tipped forward, twisting as he fell, properly seeing for the first time the shadow that had pushed him. ''You,'' he gasped as he fell backwards, hitting not ground but falling through a concealed hole into blackness.
Ghastly's life didn't flash before his eyes as he fell. The best parts of his life did, however.
Fletcher
Valkyrie
Skulduggery
Tanith Tanith Tanith
Ghastly felt a rush of love and sadness go through him in the few short seconds as he fell, accompanying him into the dark.
And then Ghastly felt nothing at all.