Intro: This is one of a couple Skulduggery Pleasant fan fictions I'm working on. Compared to the others, this one is going to be a short story, just a quick idea that formed in my mind.

Synopsis: It is agreed Billy-Ray Sanguine will be the one to track Valkyrie down and kill her. But when he takes her to an island, he plans to deal with her HIS way, where she can't escape. Skulduggery is desperate to get his Valkyrie back before it is too late. Skulduggery/Valkyrie/Billy-Ray.

Rated: Right now it's T, but I might have to change it to M for future chapters.

Valkyrie Cain sprinted down the long deserted hall ways of the Sanctuary. The electricity had long since gone out and she was running from a murderer in complete darkness. She snapped her fingers every so foot in attempt to summon a flame to illuminate her way. But with every hopeful spark, it snuffed out like a dead candle. Symbols on the walls appeared whenever she tried any magic; the symbols were spells to keep any of the bad guys from making a magical escape. Unfortunately, this time she was considered the bad guy, although she and her partner would highly disagree.

Where the hell is Skulduggery, she shouted in her head, cursing herself for being too cocksure in thinking she could take on four cleavers, three Sanctuary workers, two administrators, and a partridge in a pear tree, that being the real bad guy, Billy-Ray Sanguine. While Skulduggery went off to retrieve some ancient magical artifacts from the Sanctuary's Repository, Billy-Ray had stalked after her, as usual, to murder her, as usual, along with a couple of his dangerous buddies to help him out . . . really, there shouldn't be much to worry about, this happens all the time.

But this time was different.

Once the four cleavers were taken down to two by a couple quick fire blasts and roundhouse kicks to the head, the rest of them including the Sanctuary members abandoned her once they figured out where Skulduggery was headed. She hated having to leave him to fight by himself, the two of them always worked together better as a team. It was when she made a bee-line to the Repository to go help him when she discovered she wasn't alone.

Valkyrie rounded a sharp corner, luckily not coming across any Sanctuary workers when she heard it, that crackling sound of stone breaking. Then she tripped, unaware the cracks in the stone were right in front of her feet. She fell, face first, onto the hard stone floor with a grunt, smacking her forehead painfully. A tremor shot through her head on impact, but she paid no attention to it, instead pushing her hands into the ground and flipping herself onto her back. The cracks in the stone had increased and expanded in circumference as it webbed out. Like a bad nightmare, Billy-Ray Sanguine shot up from out of the ground a foot away from where she was laying.

From behind dark sunglasses Valkyrie could see herself mirrored in its reflection, Billy-Ray grinned down at her on the ground. His lips tightened, going taut over his teeth as though he were trying to force back a white toothed grin.

Valkyrie glared up at him from behind dark tresses of hair, "I don't see what's so funny. Usually people get a little angry when someone sets them on fire."

His tight grin slipped a little, and in an instant Valkyrie sparked two fireballs, one in each hand, and forced them at Sanguine. Without looking to see if the fire made contact with him, she spun around on her hands and knees and shot up off the ground, making a run for it.

There was the cracking of stone and SMACK! Valkyrie knocked into Billy-Ray's chest; her nose popped painfully. Billy-Ray wrapped his arms around her, picking her up off the ground to minimize her escape, but when Valkyrie introduced her knee to his thigh, he grunted then pushed her away from him. When she fell again on her back she could feel warm blood dripping from her nose.

Damn, she thought, my nose better not be broken, I don't know how much more lectures I can take from Kenspeckle when he heals this one.

Sanguine let loose a long sigh, and then said with his tight toothed grin returned, "Phew, girly, you're hell to catch. I should get a honking gold medal for finally tracking you down."

"Congratulations." Valkyrie replied darkly, thinking about how she was going to get out of this. She pinched her nose tightly between two fingers to minimize the blood flow.

"Oh," He said dramatically, pointing to her nose, "Did I do that? Shoot, that's a ruin of a perfectly good nose right there, that is."

Valkyrie growled up at him, staring at his own nose, wishing she could show it her fist.

He laughed, "Hey, if a bloody nose pisses you off, boy howdy, then you sure gonna have a lot of fun for what I've got planned for you, girly. See here," He pointed to himself, "My boys in the Revengers' Club all agreed I got first dibs on you. Scapegrace also wanted a little bite, but I recon there won't be much left of you when I'm done." He chuckled, taking a step toward her. "I've got a whole schedule lined up for us, full of torture, screams, and terrors."

"Sounds like fun for the whole family." Valkyrie said, scooting away from him on the ground.

"Oh, yeah," Billy-Ray said, licking his lips in anticipation, "loads of fun."

Valkyrie thought a second, searching through her mind for a plan. A dim light bulb went off in her head. She looked over Sanguine's shoulder in sheer terror, showing the whites of her eyes as she pointed behind him with a quivering arm. Billy-Ray spun around to look behind, but the instant his eyes left her, Valkyrie had pushed the air with both her hands and forced him off his feet and against a stone wall.

It was then every light bulb in the Sanctuary went out and the symbols came on, and she was immersed in complete darkness. Without a moment of hesitation she jumped up and sprinted down the hall, mapping in her mind where the Repository was supposed to be.

All the while she ran Valkyrie could hear the occasional crackle of stone where Billy-Ray was moving. But in the pitch dark he couldn't figure out her precise location, especially when confused by the reoccurring echo of her footsteps on the stone walls and ceiling. Thankfully after taking a couple turns around the hallways, the sound of Billy-Ray's movements faded away until all Valkyrie could hear were her hurried footsteps.

It was after she was one more turn away from the Repository when she realized she hadn't come across any Sanctuary members, or cleavers. Where were the cleavers? This place was supposed to be crawling with them. She put it in the back of her mind, thankful to be actually fortunate enough to not have to deal with them. Hopefully it was going to stay that way as she searched for Skulduggery.

Valkyrie was speeding up to a sprint when suddenly she felt as though she ran into a brick wall. But as she screamed, falling backward, the "wall" fell down with her and she realized it was a person.

Billy-Ray, she shouted in her mind, how did he move so quickly? He's just getting better and better, or I suppose worse and worse for my case.

Not considering how much lighter he weighed while he laid on top of her, she quickly found his shoulders to register where his head was and shot a fist into his face with the power of satisfaction. God, I've always wanted to do that, she thought as she imagined Billy-Ray's surprise being punched in the face by a seventeen-year-old girl.

But unexpectedly she heard a familiar voice, "Ow."

Valkyrie gasped. "Skulduggery?"

He coughed, and said, "Nice shot."

"Sorry, I thought you were Billy-Ray Sanguine." She explained.

He pushed himself off Valkyrie and reached a hand out to her blindly in the darkness and helped her up to her feet. He said jokingly, "Don't be silly, my dear, I'm much more handsome." Then he replied more seriously, "Was he alone?"

"As far as I could tell, but I think he brought a couple of his buddies with him."

"Marvelous." Skulduggery sighed. "Well, this should be fun trying to escape."

"Always thinking on the positive side, aren't you?"

"Well, of course, how else can I live with myself?"

"But you aren't living."

"You know what I mean."

"But you aren't." She mumbled.

He sighed again, and then he took her hand in his and guided her down the hallway.

"Did you get the artifact from the Repository?" Valkyrie asked.

"Easy as pie."

"And the cleavers?"

"Not so easy. I knocked a couple of them out; the rest, including the Sanctuary workers, retreated, probably gone to get back up."

"I wish I was there to help you." Valkyrie said.

"Hm, you know I can do quite well by myself."

"Yeah, but I still get anxious leaving you to fight alone."

Skulduggery was silent a moment as he guided her through the darkness. Then he replied gruffly, "It was a very brave thing you did, distracting the Sanctuary members for me. I am proud of you, but understand if it were any other situation I would have never allowed you to deal with them alone."

She shrugged as if to say "It was nothing." But he couldn't see her through the darkness so she mumbled, "It's okay."

Then they heard the familiar crackle of stone breaking.

"Sanguine." Valkyrie exasperated.

"Fabulous, time to run," Skulduggery said, pulling her along side him while he broke into a sprint. He was running so fast Valkyrie was nearly swept off her feet, flying over the stone ground, and she grasped his hand tighter.

She felt as they spun around corner after corner, and she wondered how Skulduggery turned each corner in the darkness and she asked, "Do you have any idea where we're going?"

"Uh," He said, paused, "No. But we're underground, so really, there are only so many places we can go. There's bound to be an exit around here somewhere."

Valkyrie groaned, but then Skulduggery suddenly rushed them into a wall which unexpectedly flipped open and sunlight poured in as they went outside. They made it to a back exit that led to an alleyway behind the Waxwork museum the Sanctuary resided under.

Valkyrie looked up at Skulduggery, squinting in the sunlight, "You knew exactly where we were going, didn't you?"

He gave a short laugh, "Of course I did, Valkyrie, I mean really."

She resisted the urge punch him square in his skull face that seemed to grin mischievously down at her. But then his posture straightened and he became ridged as he said in a somber voice, "You're bleeding."

She reached a hand up to her face and wiped beneath her nose, when she brought it back it was drenched in crimson.

"It's just a nose bleed." She replied modestly.

"It looks like it might be broken." He said as he raised a glove hand up to her face.

She turned her head away, "Seriously, Skulduggery, I'm fine."

"Valkyrie," He said warningly. "Let me see."

"I'll punch you again if you hurt me." She said, but she gave up reluctantly and winced as he ran his fingers over her nose.

"Ow!" She said when he reached a tender spot. She brought a fist up to swing it at him, but he caught it with his other hand.

"It's not broken, fortunately, but there will be a nasty bruise, that's for sure," He said.

Valkyrie took her fist back from him, and began wiping away the blood with the back of her hand.

"Sanguine did it?" He asked.

She nodded.

"Did he hurt you?"

She shook her head.

"Are you sure? Because you are aware I would have the pleasure of killing him if he did."

She gave him a side smile, raising an eyebrow up at him.

Skulduggery sighed, "Well, anyway, this will be another problem Kenspeckle can handle. He's sure not to be very happy about it, as usual."

"You'd think after almost six years he'd be used to it by now, healing me, case after case."

"He cares about you; you're like a daughter to him. And I understand how he feels seeing you get hurt."

"You can't possibly agree with him, that you shouldn't be taking me with you on the cases."

"All I'm saying is I know what it's like to see people you care about get hurt, that's all." He stood up straighter, adjusting his tie, "I had a family once, too."

Valkyrie suddenly felt her cheeks grow hot, she knew how difficult for Skulduggery it was to think about his family. She felt the need to apologize, but then they heard it again, the cracking of ground like crumbling gravel. The pair spun around, looking for the growing web of cracks.

Skulduggery grabbed her suddenly, spinning her around to the other side of him, because right below her feet the cracks had been forming.

"Run." Skulduggery shouted as he pushed her and they began sprinting in the opposite direction of Sanguine's movement.