THANKS SOOOOO MUCH FOR THE REVIEWS! You have no idea how happy they make me feel! I'm back! I had so much work to do for school, it's not even funny. Why would it be? Anyways, updating may be a little slower now that school's started! Hope you enjoy!

Valkyrie woke up and stretched her arms and legs. They were so stiff, they felt like pieces of bamboo, and if she stretched too much they would snap in half. She slowly got up and took a look around. They were in a barn. There was lots of hay everywhere, chickens and a tractor in the corner. How had they gotten there again? Oh. She remembered now. Mevolent and his gang of miscreants were back in this dimension looking for the Magic Mirror. What is the magic mirror?

Skulduggery was standing at the door of the barn looking out at what Valkyrie realized was a beautiful sunrise. She walked over to him.

"Are you all right after yesterday," he said checking her for injuries.

"Fine, just a bit shaken. I can't get the image of Nyx's hand out of my head," she said shivering inwardly.

"Yeah, that was a spectacular fight," he said sarcastically.

"We need to figure out our next move. They're back, and they aren't just here for vacation. What is the Magic Mirror?"

He sighed holding her hand in his bony one, "The Magic Mirror is a magical artefact, much like the accelerator. A sorcerer is hooked up to it and well, it basically acts as a mirror, mirroring the sorcerer's power. What then happens is the mirror stretches, expands across the land, wherever you want. It was used a long time before the war to establish peace within the magical community. The sorcerer using the mirror, had the power to calm people down and make them peaceful and friendly. He stretched the mirror to cover the entire globe. I fear Mevolent is using it for the extermination of the mortals, and, world domination."

There was something bugging her, an extra detail. What was it? What happened that could somehow connect with what was going on? Skulduggery began muttering to himself.

"Why would he bring his servants down? He knew you were going to shunt over, but he's Mevolent, he doesn't NEED help."

And there it was.

"Oh my grapes!" she said.

"Do you have grapes? I'd love some!"

"No," she said irritatingly, "I've figured something out!"

"That's rare."

"Shut it!"

"I'm kidding silly! What is it?"

"Darquesse! He ordered Caelan to come to me in my dreams. He WANTS to let Darquesse out. In the dream, he was just testing whether I would crumble. He needs Darquesse to help him use the magic mirror! With both their power combined, they are unstoppable!"

"Hmmm," Skulduggery said, "That's not good. But Valkyrie, you're forgetting one thing, your willpower. You are tough, and you will not let this son of a lobster escape your mind. If you don't want something to happen, you won't let it happen. You have a way with things, they just WORK okay. You can do it!"

She smiled but then frowned, "I'll try." He shrugged, "Better than nothing."

"I love it how you said 'Son of a lobster'. I have influenced the world. I started this! In the future, swearing will be eradicated because everyone will be saying 'Son of a lobster'. I'm just so damn brilliant," she said.

"Language," Skulduggery said tilting his head slightly.

"Fine, I'm just so lobster brilliant," she said.

"What do you have against lobsters?" he said. She shook her head and gave him a hug.

"I am so glad that you're okay. I thought you were going to die, like full on legit die," she mumbled.

"Okay, 1. I'm already dead. 2. I'm not going anywhere, not without you." He rested his chin on her head and they stayed like that for a while. Even though he was bony, she felt the most comfortable here like this with him. She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek and she could tell that if he had had his façade on, it would be blushing.

"Sometimes, I wander how you can stand being like this with me. Heck, I'm a skeleton. I don't have ridiculous hair, I'm not warm, and I'm 400 years old. I'm hardly attractive, even if I always go on about it. Are you sure this kind of relationship will work for you?" he said. She could tell he had been planning on saying this.

"Skulduggery!" This time, she kissed him on the teeth.

"I don't give a lobster about that, and hell yes you are so attractive. Yep, I don't give a lobster. I love you, and it's what's inside that counts. Now look, here's a lesson. You can give a damn, but you can never, ever, ever give a lobster. And I didn't give a lobster okay? No lobsters were given," she said.

She looked up at him affectionately and did a double take when she realised that he was crying. Not out of sadness, but of happiness. Real, wet tears that were sparkly and glistening were rolling out of his eye sockets. He took her hands and kissed them.

"Thank you," he said. She hugged him tightly.

"The skeleton detective is crying! Wait till Ghastly and Erskine hear about this!" she said teasingly.

"Hmph, I don't care. I'm just happy that you didn't give a lobster," he said causing them both to burst out laughing.

Valkyrie was happy, she was content, and she forgot all about Nyx. Nyx turned around the corner to see Skulduggery and Valkyrie clinging to each other in some desperate embrace.

They immediately let go but Nyx just smiled.

"Has anyone ever told you that you are the cutest couple ever?"

"We have to get out of here. Are you okay, you know, after yesterday," Skulduggery asked Nyx.

"I've had worse injuries. But I'm fine, real shaken up, but I'm fine," Nyx smiled tightly.

What kind of messed up nightmares must she have had last night, Valkyrie thought.

"Oi! Get out of me farm!" yelled a frustrated farmer.

"Time to go," Skulduggery said.

They sprinted out of the barn and across fields of wheat and produce and finally reached a bus stop that had a map telling them where they were. They were only ten minutes from Roarhaven, so that was good.

Valkyrie turned away from the map to tell the others the good news but was stunned to see Erskine Ravel with a gun pointed at her. Skulduggery and Nyx were preoccupied with reading the bus times to notice.

"What the –

And then he reached for her neck, pressed down on the pressure point, and the lights went out.

Oh my gyad guys! What's gonna happen! Hope you liked! A bit OOC, but oh well!