Valkyrie Cain woke with a start.

Nightmares again.

But she couldn't remember this one. It danced away before her conscious self could grab hold.

Faceless Ones? No...

Jittergirls? No, that wasn't right.

Scapegrace? Ha. Laughable.

There was a feeling of loss...

Valkyrie licked her lips and tasted saline; her cheeks were taut with dried tears. She hated forgetting these things. It was as if she cried for nothing. A weakness without justification was unacceptable. What would Skullduggery say? He'd probably-

"Tonight's forecast calls for rain ladies and gents, and lots of it. Bring out your Wellies and batten down the hatches we're in for a-"

Valkyrie hit her alarm clock-silencing the static-y saccharine pseudo-happy voice.

"Ughhhhhhhh."

She was not a morning person. Sunlight filtered through the window across her room. Funny, the news-caster said rain. But Valkyrie shrugged and kicked her sheets off her bed. Motes of dust shimmered in the air, caught by the morning sun. Perhaps she should clean more. And by "she", she meant her reflection. Valkyrie had more pressing matters to attend to-and besides, Reflection-Valkyrie didn't really mind. How could she?

The real Valkyrie walked into bathroom. It wasn't as filthy as she expected. Still, some disinfectant could be of some use. She caught herself in the mirror. Dark eyes stared back at her. She resolved her hair was a mess and poked at the dark circles lining her eyes. What boys saw in her, she didn't know. Then her mind fell to Skullduggery.

Valkyrie knew she could go out like this with him. No make-up, no sleep, not even combed hair and he wouldn't bat an eyelid (figuratively speaking.) True, he'd poke fun- but realistically she knew he didn't give a damn what she looked like. That made her melancholy to some degree. It shouldn't, but it did. Valkyrie wanted Skullduggery to notice her. She couldn't admit why. Her fingers pried open her vanity cabinet reaching for the toothbrush and paste inside.

While she was on the subject...Skull was acting weird last night, at least weirder than usual. If a skeleton could avoid eye contact, he was certainly doing it. Sometimes car rides were quiet, but it was normally a companionable silence. It was only awkward when she did something wrong...or when he did.

"The glove-box!"

Valkyrie spat toothpaste foam all over the sink.

How could she forget?

She'd bet his mood had something to do with it. And he didn't want to tell her. He didn't trust his partner, not enough anyway. The thought was enough to make her cringe. She wasn't a child and Skullduggery never treated her like one. So it wasn't a matter of the sum of her years.

No.

Her integrity was in question.

Valkyrie reeled back. Calm down. Jumping to conclusions never helped a situation. She was a detective after all- maybe she should act like one. Besides, Skull had said he'd show her today. With one last glance at the mirror Valkyrie exited the bathroom to put some clothes on.

The fake her was already down stairs having breakfast with the family. Before, she was stricken with envy for the other her, but not anymore. No, Valkyrie made her choice- and she wouldn't change it for the world.

She picked a midnight black suit from a hanger in her closet. Another Ghastly creation: Stain-proof, wrinkle-proof, flame retardant, and bullet proof. The works. She was pulling her trousers on when she hear a tap at the window. A small startled sound escaped her throat before she could suppress it. Valkyrie's face flushed red. Apparently Skullduggery just heard her squeak like a startled bird. At least the curtains were closed.

Straightening her lapels, Valkyrie strode over to the window. Not that she didn't appreciate the visit, but Skull was supposed to pick her up two hours from now. Being this early was unlike him and it probably meant trouble. She parted the curtains and there stood Tanith Low, peering in from the side of the house as if gravity was something for common idiots.

Tanith Low.

Shit.

But before Valkyrie could react further, she felt something cold touch her neck. "Nice try lil' darlin', but you ain't going no-where." Billy-Ray Sanguine's razor lightly bit into the skin below her jaw.

Tanith kicked through the window.

"Hello Val."

But before Valkyrie could respond, Tanith pressed a cloth against her face. The sickly sweetness dragged Valkyrie down...down

And Down.

A/N: My apologies for the late update. I am an animation major- and finals were torture. Also break gave me less time than you would imagine. Not to mention- a good portion of my writing time has been given to the "Un Monstre a Paris" fandom.

This chapter is pretty short- but I shall make up for it.