Howdy, howdy, everyone! Nice to be back and I do apologise for the wait. Thank you for your patience and a big thanks to the new followers, favs and reviews I got. Hope you continue to read and enjoy, so kick your feet up and here we go!

I do not own Skullgirls. All rights go to the amazing team of Hidden Variable, The Composers and Cast: Alex Ahad, Michiru Yamane, Vincent Diamante, Cristina Vee, Kaiji Tang, Sarah Williams, Rich Brown, Laura Post, Kai Kennedy and all the other amazing people who make this game awesome! (I could say the other names but that would take too long)

Enjoy Chapter Seven: Strange Bedfellows (Part One)

Setting the Stage Chapter Seven

Bastet's Den, Autumn 2/9/2008

"Get ready!" Beowulf announced as he sprinted towards the enchanting beauty readying a punch but unfortunately her bodyguard stepped in and grabbed his fist before it could hit its mark.

"Sorry pal. The boss ain't the type for extreme close ups. Me on the other hand." Smirking, Albus went for a kick to the Wulf's shins. However, Beowulf simply grabbed hold of the dog's other arm, threw him over his shoulder with ease and turned his attention back to Eliza.

Landing on his back, Albus lay motionless for a second while the crowded masses gasped. Eliza at the same time, looked on in slight worry but was relieved when her servant got up and rubbed his back in angst.

Albus dusted himself off, all the while trying to contemplate what just happened. "(This guy… Picked me up like I was nothin'… pal's no joke) Boss, he-"

"It's fine Albus. Let me take it from here." The diva smiled reassuringly. The white suited man bowed his head and Eliza turned to address the unexpected guest. "Now then, what is your business with me? Oh and if you'd please, mind the tables." She asked, tapping her enigmatic staff mic with an interested look on her face.

In response, the champ went for a chop block and caught the diva off guard, tripping her up and holding her down by her shoulders. The crowd gasped. "Boss!" Albus shouted.

"It's fine! Don't move." Eliza struggled to get free, while trying to keep her servant out of the scuffle. "(I can't use any of my abilities in front of a crowd like this. It would seem I'm at a disadvantage here. Perhaps I should- Huh?)" The sapphire queen stopped her strategising and blinked when she saw Beowulf wink at her.

"Okay, um. This is the part where you push me off and do one of your moves. So, any time would be good." He whispered to her.

Eliza once again, blinked in confusion. "What are you talking about?" She whispered back.

"Our match. It's been arranged and everything. Nice that you've been keeping it clean and straight but here's where you fight back! By the way. Big fan!" He grinned slightly at her. "(Just like he said…)"

Thirty-Nine minutes earlier…

Streets of New Meridian

Walking on one of the pathways, along the river, near Maplecrest and the Cathedral, Zane power walked along the pavement swiftly, so she could catch her "student" before he left the Casino. Though she was worried he may have already given up and went back to the arena or worse, home.

"(Hm... I'm near the cathedral already… …He better not have left. That would add another problem entirely)" The manger silently cursed whoever or whatever caused this situation in the first place and quickened her pace even more, breaking into a small, light paced jog.

After a few minutes and turning a corner, she was relieved when she spotted Beowulf sitting on a bench just outside the gardens. His eyes closed, leaning up against the wood and a smile across his face. The sun was halfway behind the clouds, so it was covering the top half of his body, giving him an almost two faced glowing look as the light moved across his features.

"(A peculiar place for a person such as him… He was never one for belief in the holy mother. Hopefully, he won't be too angry about the mix-up)" Putting on a smiling façade, he walked over to the Wulf.

Meanwhile, the champ was humming his own entrance theme to himself while he continued to relax. He was thinking about the future and the fight with The Skullgirl to get over his "misleading" thoughts.

Though it didn't last long due to him hearing footsteps and opening his eyes to see his manager walking towards him, which got the Wulf immediately up from the bench. Frowning as his manger gave off a chuckle.

"Phew. I was looking everywhere for ya kid. Thought you would have went back. (He's frowning. Not good progress…)" Zane thought annoyingly.

"I was goin' to but I thought I'd just rest here for a bit. Good thing you found me before that, 'cuz I wanted to talk to ya. Listen bro, I understand what's happenin' here." Beowulf's frowned expression turned into a serious one, keeping his eyes fixed on the flashy manager.

Zane cleared his throat. "You… you do...?"

"Yeah, after thinking it over again and again... I know that you get mix ups from time to time, the papers and the guys being put in the wrong place. It must be hard to keep track of it, especially since we've just made the comeback. So, it's all cool man. I know that you're not a guy that mucks around and does what's best for business. Sorry for thinking otherwise. Just remember, I'm here for support." The Wulf beamed and punched his manager on the shoulder, who just stood there wooden.

Now if you could see the inside of Zane's mind, you would see that it was almost blank at the idiocy of the man standing before him. "Well…you… Yeah! You worked it out babe, nice work! Heh-heh-heh. You had me worried there. Ehhh, let me explain the situation. The fight was a mix up, you know, papers… like ya said and everything was just happening so quickly. People, deadlines, Skullgirl and all that, so I'm very sorry bud but but buuuuut I've found your actual opponent, who is also very near here! Locations changed too, good thing you left the Casino!"

Beowulf grinned in approval "Awesome bro! Who is it?"

The dirty blonde closed his eyes and folded his arms, all the while shaking his index finger. "Tsk, tsk, it's a surprise babe! Wouldn't want to spoil it."

The Wulf's expression turned to excitement. "(Oh cool, we're bringing back those!) Nice! I love surprise fights. Haven't had one in forever! …Can I ask… one thing though…? It's been… It's been on my mind lately…" He asked hesitantly.

Zane frowned. "Yes?"

Beowulf stayed silent for a moment, his expression shifting. "Well… It's just… never mind... I'll tell you later. Where is my match at?"

"(Hm… Well, it doesn't matter anyway. He'll probably forget about it) Cool babe. Anywho, yeah, your match is at a place called "Bastet's Den" nice little fighting arena. Now, your opponent is already impatiently waiting on you, so you better get going. They've been waiting enough, even with the mix up!" Zane advised.

"(Bastet's Den… rings a bell… I think I know where it is…) Right on man! See you…" Preparing to jog to the "fighting arena" the champ suddenly stopped after remembering the interaction he had in the Casino. "Actually bro… before I leg it… Something weird happened… at the casino…"

His ears twitching at the last words, Beowulf's manager looked at him suspiciously "Like what?" He asked slowly.

Beowulf responded with silence.

"Listen bud, just hurry up and tell me please... This is annoying enough… I need to be somewhere a-sap so don't waste my time." The dirty blonde snapped.

Taken aback by Zane's slight outburst, it took a couple of seconds for Beowulf to process what had just been said. "I… err sorry... Right… Well, I was looking around for that Big Band guy. Who is the guy I wasn't supposed to fight?"

Zane slowly nodded.

"Right… Thing is… see… When I was searching for him by the slot machines… well it wasn't exactly by the slot machines, cause they were a bit further away-"

"Get on with it…" Zane hissed.

"Sorry, sorry." Beowulf cleared his throat, still concerned about his manager's change in tune but he continued. "So, I decide to stand for a moment and you know, gather my thoughts and stuff, since I was a bit confused. Then out of nowhere, this guy slugs my shoulder and says "Sorry bro, in a bit of a hurry. Hope you find him" or something like that." The Wulf tried his best impression of the man but then, he wasn't very good at impersonation.

His manager didn't even notice that he was acting. It felt like time had stopped for him on his end. "…This… "guy" what did he look like…?" He asked quickly and directly after regaining sense.

The black-haired charisma rubbed his chin. "Uh… Let me see… I think he was… nah, wait…"

Zane clenched his fists in impatience and his teeth began to dig deep into one another. He could feel himself heating up, not seeing his skin tone changing. "ANSWER ME!" He demanded angrily.

Beowulf in response, took a step back from his manager, distinctly even more shocked at Zane's now pissed expression… And looking at him again, he could see his boss's skin was quite sweaty, almost… gooey…?

Taking a step forward to apologise, he noticed again that his manger's skin was now turning into a more liquid like substance. "... Zane... You ain't looking so hot. You okay?"

Zane looked down in anger but that expression faded entirely when he saw that his form was coming apart. "(What… How…?")

"Zane?" Beowulf asked hesitantly.

Not responding, the dirty blonde slowly turned around before finally muttering. "Beowulf… I'd appreciate it if you would go to the fight now… my… condition is acting up again… I can't talk about it… since it's embarrassing but I'll tell you later… Please understand…"

Taking a moment to process the shaky words, the black-haired man didn't ask any questions only a silent. "Oh... But..."

"Beowulf… Please… I need to be alone… Just go. I'll be better once you return to my office... Knock em dead babe…" The manager gave an up-beat sad reply, while the Wulf took a notice of the change in speech. Only just getting a glimpse that Zane was maybe not telling the whole story.

Thinking better of his manager and despite the condition he was in, Beowulf still wanted to ask more but he knew his friend was always like this with privacy, so he simply said a "Got it. Take care bro…" And began to walk in the other direction.

Before he was out of reach however, the shades wearing man called back to him. "And remember, if you're met with obliviousness, it's just part of the act…"

The wulf stopped in his tracks, nodded and then off he went.

The man herself meanwhile, stood still for what seemed like ages. Trying to process the situation that just occurred… Moments past before his hands formed into uncontrollable fists, his entire body began to shake and the flesh on the right side of his face peeled away to reveal a sweating incensed expression of anger and a deep black-red eye, full of malice and teetering contained rage.

But then, suddenly, she couldn't breathe. She had froze on the spot. Her body wouldn't move as it still began to produce sweat and a liquid puss like substance. She felt sick. Desperate, she tried to get some sort of air back but then everything was going dark and she was coughing uncontrollably now.

Stumbling over, all she could see were stars... what was happening...? Why... "WHY...?!" Falling back on her heels, everything slowly seemed to return to normal... Breath back, vision fine, body responding.

Everything went quiet, when she finally broke her trance and stomped his foot hard on the floor, the Shapeshifter then turned and began to quickly head back to her home.

She needed to be alone…

Bastet's Den

"(Hopefully he'll be better by the time I get back. He said it was cool though so he should be fine… Anyway!) Psst, so again. Ready when you are!" He whispered to the diva.

Incredulous would be an understatement to describe how Eliza was feeling at this very moment.

This weird man had just arrived out of nowhere, interrupted her performance and challenged her just like that.

Worse, he knocked over some of the lovely tables! She had them custom made for this event! The nerve of some people… She'd already heard of The Skullgirl reappearing, so who knows what kind of weirdos are affected by her power.

There had to be a hidden motive. Could he know her true identity or was he just one of her stalker fans? Even if she had no idea what he was doing here, he did seem somewhat familiar…

On the other end the champ was getting impatient. Well it was time to shake things up! "Fine! If you won't then I will!"

A shouting Beowulf locked his arms around her waist and prepared to perform a belly to belly suplex but not before Eliza realised the situation and fought out of his hard grip by using her staff to trip him up, despite the tight space.

"(What impressive strength… he looks surprisingly familiar but…)"

Picking himself back up, Beowulf went for a punch but Eliza effortlessly dodged to the left with a simple side step and elegantly elbowed his side. "My, my. Such direct offence! I'm actually beginning to enjoy this despite the ruckus! (Shouldn't let ourselves get too pent up however…)"

The diva's lips formed a tiny smirk, all the while the crowd and Albus looked on with slight excitement, confusion and horror.

The Wulf stumbled back from the hit and grinned again. "Looks like you're finally fighting back. That's good because the Wulfpack here and everywhere, are dying to see this awesome encounter!" He announced to the hidden cameras… wherever they were…

That name… she'd heard it before. "Wulf…pack?" "Wulfpack…" She muttered the words like they were alien but still, they seemed so familiar, just out of reach...

"Here we go Wulfpac-huh?" Before Beowulf could charge again, the vision of beauty put her hands into a time out gesture.

"One moment… You're… Beowulf… Aren't you?" Yes! Now she recognised him!

"Yes! It is you! Heh-heh. Well what an unexpected pleasure this is! Excuse me for not recognising you before. I was distracted by your oddly constructed face and mannerisms but how wondrous it is to see another fellow entertainer and celebrity!" She addressed the man before her and then turned to the masses in attendance.

"Gentlemen, Ladies. Please let me apologise for the small out of the blue performance however, allow me to introduce Beowulf: The peoples champion and our special guest performer!" The crowd slowly broke into an applause for both, once they realised the fight was just an act.

Waving back to keep up the charade, the diva walked eerily over to the now confused Beowulf and smiled sweetly at him. Her deep blue eyes watching him closely, while saying. "Now then hon. Let's sort this out, shall we?"

Grand Cathedral

Finally making it to the holy structure once more, the returning resident shed her already fleeting disguise and opened the two-handled door to the confines.

Walking steadily, she could see her chamber in sight and increased her pace so that the others, (who she prayed were still locked in their tussle) would hopefully not be able to see or talk, "Yo." to her…

She halted and looked at the person who greeted her, glaring all the way. Valentine on the other hand, had a curious look plastered on her face, while the rest of her body leaned against one of the many pillars in a relaxed posture, arms crossed.

Inspecting the nun, Valentine could see her stance and movement didn't match up at all. "You seem to be in quite the hurry. I thought you'd be at least pleased to see me. We made it back unfollowed and unscathed well… Marie did anyway but then again, you're not the type of person that cares about that kind of stuff. Are you?" The nurse raised a playful eyebrow.

Despite being in the fight before Valentine didn't seem banged up at all, not that Double cared.

Ignoring the scalpel expert, she continued on to her private chamber but once again her subordinate called after her. "Hey. Where's the unemotional comeback? I had all mine ready and waiting." Still ignoring her, she pushed the already slightly opened door further however… "Well that's just too bad. Seems you really-"

"Valentine…"

Double slowly turned around with her bleeding black, red eyes staring right back and her face twitching like it was going to detach.

"Just... d̷o̸n̷'̴t̴…" She hissed silently and walked into her room, slamming the door behind her.

The nurse meanwhile, though stunned for only a moment, could not stop the smirk forming on her lips. "No "lady?" Well…"

"What are you two bickering about?" An echoed emotionless, though slightly irritated voice came from behind the confession booth.

"Nothing, dearest Marie. Double just wants some time to herself is all." Valentine replied ironically.

"Interesting. I didn't think she'd be one to tolerate her own existence." Afterwards the voice went silent.

The nurse stopped leaning against the pillar and went to sit on her usual spot leading up to the altar. "Have a nice rest Marie." She muttered and sat down on the red carpeted marble steps, halfway up.

Marie had been surprisingly quiet when she returned. It was though she was trying to process the failure of a well-constructed and thought out plan. Well, not total failure. It wasn't like either they or Double were responsible.

Knowing the good Skullgirl however, she would raise the entire city to the ground before another interference postponed her vengeance.

Looking up at the lovely cream sculptured ceiling with the Trinity carved into it, the pineapple haired woman let her thoughts dance. "Hm… (It does seem things have taken a turn for the better despite the interference. For now, I'll leave the rest to her, while I continue to do my part)"

Thirty-Nine minutes earlier…

Little Innsmouth

Valentine kicked the stuffed animal to the side, while she slid out Christmas's scalpel swords. Quickly dropping the IV pole and lunging at the girl before her.

Both she and Annie's swords clashed. The nurse holding both her blades up in a cross defence, while the girl of the stars kept putting the pressure on both. Her strength was immeasurable and the nurse knew she would lose in this battle.

Retreating her blades, Valentine back-flipped and in mid-air, threw her blades at Annie.

Those were just a distraction of course, Valentine planned on using the blades to sway her, then she'd grab her pole arm and catch the girl unaware and she wouldn't have time to react due the nurse's incredible speed and precision.

Unfortunately, that was not to be the case because just as Valentine was about to grab the staff, Annie was already coming straight for her, by flying right at her.

Magic. Typical rule-breaking nonsense.

Valentine saw her blades had been deflected by the girl and quickly grabbed hold of her old friend's staff, closed her eyes and braced herself for the impact.

But… It never came.

Understanding the situation Valentine relaxed. "And I take it we're clear?" She opened her eyes to find Annie standing in front, Segan in one hand, the nurse's blades in the other and her sword sheathed.

"Yeah, we are and please… no puns. You seem to have wanted it to go on for longer though? Already thinking of your next attack pattern." The turquoise haired girl handed the blades back to Valentine, who took them casually and put away herself.

Turning around and gesturing Annie to follow, they both began to walk along the wide wooden catwalk, away from their little tussle area. "Can never be too careful Ann. Especially when dealing with a Skullgirl. You don't know, she could be looking down on us right now." She warned half-jokingly, while folding her staff away into her back pouch.

"I can understand that. However, you seem to be let's say… "close enough" to trust each other so I think you may be overreacting a little bit." Annie advised lightly.

"Hm, agre-QUICK ANNIE! WHAT'S THAT!?" Valentine gasped suddenly and pointed at the sky. Looking back around, all she could see was the girl of the stars with a not so amused expression on her face and her arms typically folded. "Right, right. Point taken."

Annie simply sighed. "Still… it was a good move to make nonetheless. Anyway, how are things?"

"The same as usual."

"I didn't mean like that."

"Of course, you didn't..." Valentine lamented a sigh. "…Coping. I'm coping. It's hard though... I never know when either one of them will look at me the wrong way and… well, you get the picture."

"I understand... and hey. Don't blame yourself. You did what you had to."

"Yeah, sure it's great that everyone looks at me like I'm the goddess damn plague... ...Maybe it's good that I am…"

In response Annie gave the nurse a stern stare. "Valentine. You've got an opportunity that not even I could get with all my gifts and with that opportunity, comes sacrifices. Both big and small. Yes, there could have been a better way but you need to focus on the now."

"…And I'm supposed to be the nurse." Valentine lightly quipped.

"A nurse in biology and chemistry. Not a doctor in psychiatry." Annie replied with a hint of satisfaction.

"Thanks for not mentioning physics, we both do like to break it at times." The nurse smiled slightly.

The girl of the stars expression broke into a humorous smile before then giving a cough.

Seems like she was able to bring her out of her mood swing. "Hm. By the way, did you manage to encounter the idiot yet?"

"I did as a matter of fact. Brash, outgoing, unpredictable, up-beat, incredibly stupid and amazingly strong."

"That about sums him up." A tiny smile formed on Annie's lips.

Continuing to catch up as they left the Little Innsmouth area, they began to make their way down-town.

Hardly no one was around due to the curfew and the few that were, didn't pay them any attention and merely kept to themselves. Few people, cars abandoned, hardly any flat lights on or shops open. It was like a ghost town.

"Yeah and good, we're here." Valentine regarded the café they were about to enter and walked inside, Annie following close behind.

"Madman's Café"? Weird title." The girl of the stars mused.

After ordering their drinks and sitting down on the far-left corner, next to the window for privacy, both were thankful that there was only six people present, including the bartender and maid.

"We don't have a lot of time, so let's get down to it." Sitting forward and resting her chin on both her hands Valentine's usual calm and collected demeanor turned completely serious. "Basically: The operation was sabotaged. I don't know who, I don't know what but somehow, someway, they knew what was going to happen and told Ben he was being tricked."

Just as the nurse finished, both their drinks were brought over by the black-haired waitress wearing a green apron. Thanking her, both drank different amounts of their respective Beveridge before Annie replied. "And when did this happen?"

"Right after I called Double about the whereabouts of Beowulf. The plan was for him to distract Ben, while me and Marie attacked the Lab. We waited a few more minutes and then he just came waltzing back, telling the other residents about the goose chase and then everyone is on high alert. I have no idea how far he got or if he even made it just a few feet away from the Casino but for this to happen when it was just the three of us that knew…"

Annie put her hand to her chin in a thinking like manner. "…Something sinister is going on here. Why would someone help the Labs and even be aware of your plan in the first place? It just doesn't add up."

"Yeah… One things for sure. Whoever it is. They're out there, somewhere in New Meridian. They're aware of the situation, they know who we are and though I hate to admit it, they probably know what move we're going to make next… I think the best course of action would be to just go back to what we were doing before this and pretend like we know less like everyone else. We don't know what this person or thing is capable of or where their allegiances lie." Finishing, Valentine took a sip of her Peacock cocktail.

"Agreed. In the meantime, try to keep both The Skullgirl and Shapeshifter under wraps for as long as you can. We can't have them getting involved, less catastrophe strike. Meanwhile, I'll continue to keep a watch over Beowulf in the meantime. Speaking of which, where is he right now?"

"Double said something about sending him to go after another target. Someone who might be responsible for the recent predicament. Also, there's something not quite right about her. …More than usual, I mean."

"Should I be concerned?"

"…No, it's fine. She's probably never had to deal with an issue like this before. (But still…)" Valentine's posture shifted slightly, however the girl of the stars didn't notice.

Finishing her drink Annie quickly shimmied out from her seat and stood up. "Right. I better get going then."

"Hm. You really care a lot for him, don't you?" The nurse said gently.

Feeling a bit flustered from what Valentine said, Annie looked down at the polished floor, not looking the nurse in the eye. "He… he was a good friend… still is… I just don't want him to get his stupid self-killed…"

"Hey, if he can beat me, he-Hold on… Who…" Valentine swiftly turned her attention to the window. Looking outside, she saw nothing but parked cars and an empty street. She could have sworn she saw someone out the corner of her eye.

Annie looked out at the same time the nurse did but only saw and thought the same thing. However, the atmosphere. It wasn't right… A chill. Eyes in the corner. "I think we should continue this talk later." The turquoise haired girl muttered.

"Yes." Valentine replied in the same tone.

Both silently took their drinks to the bar table and thanked the bewildered waitress and owner, before walking out into the grey dark morning. Despite it being relatively early, the scenery still seemed like night time.

"…Right, well, I'll see you later then." Annie waved goodbye while turning to leave.

"…Yeah, see you." Valentine returned the gesture while walking the other way.

Both knew they were being watched but by who or what, they didn't know. However, the same could not be said for the interloper who was just up above. Watching, legs dangling over the side of the building the two just left from.

And in a brief second, it was like there was no one perched at the edge of the structure at all.

Now

Grand Cathedral

"(It's vexing that we can't do anything but then) you do need to fear the unknown…" Saying that grimly to herself, the nurse hung her head low and began to let sleep take her, confident that Annie and Beowulf would be able to take care of the problem themselves. Before that though, one final positive thought entered her mind and it made her smile.

"(It'll be interesting to watch how this effects the others as time goes on)"

Thinking that, the nurse began to drop off.

Meanwhile, down below in her private chamber, Valentine's subordinate was trying to keep herself from destroying her own personal space and her own being especially…

Going on its own little path now... we'll be back with the two celebrities in the next one and perhaps some surprising emotion? Hope you enjoyed. Review at your leisure and have a good one!