Thought I was gone? Checked my profile or the story and were disappointed a couple of times? My apologies. But you can't get rid of me that easily.

This is just the beginning. This is the beginning of the beginning. So, take a deeeep breath, because you regulars have a long, trecherous journey ahead of you... You lovely, lovely people.

Chapter 11

Diamond snuck out into Valkyrie's garden. There were three reasons for this decision: One, she wanted to check if anything was off in the area or if she sensed any danger coming. Two, it was a beautiful garden. Three, she had a cigarette hidden in her glove compartment inside a makeup bag, and she had secretively pocketed on their way to Valkyrie's house.

She deeply breathed in the night air and then settled into silent calm and listened to the area around. There was a brisk, quick breeze that flew over her jacket in separated, slim gusts. There were no conspicuous noises to be heard, no odd shadows or shapes to see, so Diamond allowed for her thoughts to come swirling over her.

Skulduggery Pleasant was Lord Vile.

Lord Vile was Skulduggery Pleasant.

She shook her head and kept looking around. Now that Diamond had made the connection it seemed perfectly logical and yet it stunned her. In the moment she has had to jump into the situation and act before she thought. But in the quiet, the horror of it all came sloshing up and down her in waves.

She pulled out a lighter and the cigarette and tried to light it. But it seemed, anytime she came close with the flame the wind blew it out. Covering it with a hand did not work either, and Diamond kept herself from turning around and trying over and over like a maniac, and dropped her hand.

Maybe that was a sign. Diamond sighed heavily and pocketed the cigarette again. A look over her shoulder told her the house seemed fine. Lights were throwing squares of light through the windows onto the ground by her feet. She still walked back inside, closing the door behind herself, looking around at the corners inside and past the glass door. She checked on Nuce, who was sleeping peacefully on the couch. The hallway and the rooms above seemed quiet too.

She turned back to the living room, where the lights were off. Diamond frowned. She turned them on again and looked around. Nothing was wrong about this room.

"Nuce?" She asked.

"Hrm." He made; heavy lids closed.

"Did you turn off the light?"

Nuce's brows furrowed lightly. "No…" He mumbled. "I thought that was you."

Diamond's eyes widened. A door upstairs opened.

She turned again and rushed into the hallway where Valkyrie was rushing down the stairs.

"He's here." Valkyrie said, and Diamond groaned.

They both headed to the living room, where Nuce was sitting up, rubbing his eyes.

"I'll take the upper floor." Valkyrie said.

"Lower." Diamond said.

And the women split and rushed back out.

Nuce continued rubbing his eyes, and then stopped to look around in the room. It was too dark to make out detail, but he could see well enough to tell that there was no Lord Vile waiting for him.

He sighed and listened carefully to the steps of the women, nearby and upstairs, checking the rooms.

He glanced to the side and noticed the bookshelves seemed darker now, almost disappearing in the shadow of that corner. Nuce frowned and slowly got up, pushing himself off the seat of the couch. He noted it was cold here now that the cushion offered no more warmth.

He looked to the books. They were entirely gone now. So was the view onto the garden, or the door, or much of anything. And when had Diamond turned the light off again, anyway?

Of course. He should have known. Vile could not harm Diamond. He was hesitant to fight Valkyrie. Which left… him.

"Ah, crap." Nuce said, just as the shadows puffed into his face.

"Guys!" He called but realized his voice was muffled, as if the Necromancy were keeping it from radiating out from his lips.

He guessed; this was the moment he should panic. Nuce flung up a hand and snapped his fingers, lighting up a couple of centimeters before him but could still see nothing. Shadows shoved him away, making him stagger to the side. He gasped and caught himself, breath now falling heavy, but his eyes unable to see anything, not even his own hands.

Nuce started turning around and around, snapping his fingers, clapping lightly, trying to spot him in the darkness. But Vile just seemed to be toying with him, slapping away his attempts with ease, pushing and shoving him around with shadows.

This would not last long, he understood this. Whatever was keeping him from killing Nuce, it would not last. And wherever Diamond currently was, it was not here. He had to do something. Now.

Nuce gave a battle cry and clapped his hands, fire and light erupting into the entire room. For just a second, he could suddenly see Vile, the shape of his armor standing out between the faded shadows.

He did not like that.

Vile flung his arms and, in an instance, the darkness closed around him again, accumulating rapidly around the armor, then they shot towards Nuce.

He could only gasp before the wall of Necromancy crashed into him. His air shot from his lungs, and he felt himself flying, spinning as he did, his forehead hitting something hard. The pain did not even arrive with him, as the world went dark.

"HEY!" Valkyrie called and shot a handful of lightning at him, and some of the shadows evaporated, as it hit him in the side.

Lord Vile turned around and looked at her, as she stood there in the doorway, arms and legs held wide and strong, in jeans and a t-shirt.

But he did not even have time to raise his hand because, suddenly, Diamond was around him. Valkyrie could barely follow, as she flew up, legs spinning in the air, then around his neck. There was a heavy crash as they went down to the ground.

The remaining shadows of the room retracted back to him and Vile bucked up, but Diamond had her arm around his neck, and her legs straddling his torso, lying underneath him, almost disappearing in the darkness of the armor. She shifted, her arms and legs turned to crystal, and went perfectly still.

Vile tried to wiggle himself out, boots kicking, but there was no way to escape a visor grip made of diamond.

Before he could consider shadow-walking, Valkyrie right above him.
At a spot by his chest, where Diamond was not in the way, she swung one knee over, so that her legs were holding on from top. She knew Vile would be able to simple use Necromancy of any part of the armor to get around their grip, but it seemed he was busy fighting two battles at the same time.

She grabbed his helmet and forced him to look directly at her. "Well, this is disappointing." Valkyrie said. "Are you finally getting old?"

His hand twitched, shadows shot up from it, but Valkyrie pushed hers onto it, making it glow with magic. "Nah-ah." She made warningly. "That's it. You had your chance to throw a temper tantrum. Now, it's over, and I need you be a big boy again and snap out of it."

Vile's stirring slowed a bit, the shadows still licking at the two bodies holding him in place but thankfully, not attacking.

Valkyrie did not know for how long Diamond would be able to maintain her shift, so she pushed her palms harder onto the cold metal of the helmet. "I can't do this, right now. I just came back. I barely know what to do with myself, let alone with you. Please, don't make me do this on my own. Please, come back."

He went stiller, did not fight Diamond anymore or tried to shadow walk away, so Valkyrie went for a last stab. "Skulduggery." She said sternly, keeping her eyes on the visor. "Do it. Do it, now."

For a moment she was not sure what was going to happen. She watched for shadows moving, ready to wrap themselves around the armor to disappear. But they did not, instead his hand twitched again, fingers stretching helplessly beneath one of diamond's legs that were still wrapped around his midsection.

Valkyrie patted hard against the crystal surface of her arm. "Diamond."

The transformation receded and her skin turned into flesh and skin again, making her look tiny beneath Skulduggery. As soon as his hand was free, it wandered up to the helmet, shakily undid the latch, and Valkyrie helped pull it off his head.

Skulduggery groaned and his freed skull lulled backwards against Diamonds shoulder, who sagged with an exhale, loosened her arm around his neck, and rested it on his still armored chest. They stayed like that for a moment, all three of them catching their breath, before Valkyrie pulled him up into a seat, and Diamond pushed from below, and dragged her body out from underneath him.

Once she was free and sure that Skulduggery would stay upright, Diamond quickly got up and rushed over to Nuce, who was still on the ground. Blood was running from a deep cut in his forehead, covering almost an entire half of his face.

"Nuce?" She asked worriedly, cupping his jaw to move his head, but het he stayed unconscious. Diamond checked his pulse and his breath, and she seemed remotely calmed by what she found.

"I'm taking him to the hospital." She said, pushed her arms underneath Nuce and shifted them, before lifting him and getting up without much effort, to take him to the door.

There, she turned for a moment, mustering Valkyrie and Skulduggery on the ground. "I'll call." Diamond decided to simply say. Then, she carried Nuce out, and the front door fell into its lock.

Valkyrie looked at Skulduggery, who was taking the pieces of armor off his arm. She watched him do it, silently, watched him pile the metal up on its stack, melt it, pull it back into himself.

She waited for a comment, an answer, even a joke. But by the time all of the Necromancy had been returned to the inside of his head, Skulduggery just sagged.

She quickly caught his head before it could hit the floor, set it carefully down, where it just fell to the side.

Valkyrie looked at him. At the couch. At him again. Sighed. "You just know how to throw a girl a good welcome-back party, don't you…"