Valkyrie had been very distant lately and Skulduggery was trying to figure out what was wrong. She hadn't been eating around him, she hadn't insulted him, she hadn't turned up for work, she looked like she hadn't slept in weeks and every time he asked about it the answer was always "I'm ok!" or "I'm fine Skully!" but he knew this wasn't right. She was blocking him out like she didn't want him too see something. He felt like a dog who had been locked out the house after he had done something wrong, and it was hurting him. He didn't know what to do or say, how to cope like this. Valkyrie and Skulduggery have always been close and they have never done anything apart from follow each other. Valkyrie wouldn't just shut him out for no reason, there had to be an answer and he was determined to find it "Valkyrie?" he said and she looked up at him "There is something going on!"
"No theres not Skul." she said, her voice emotionless "No! You keep saying that, but there is something wrong! I know there is! Please Valkyrie, I want to help you!" he yelled and Valkyrie flinched at the harshness of his words "I don't know what you talking about." she whispered and Skulduggery braked harshly and grabbed her wrist and she hissed and it didn't go un-noticed "What?"
"That hurt!" Valkyrie cursed herself, had she just revealed her secret? "That should not hurt." he muttered and lifted her sleeves up and made a gagging sound. Her entire forearm were covered in jagged scars and dried blood. She took her arm back and pulled the sleeve back down as Skulduggery remained unresponsive, refusing to believe what he had just saw "Why?" was the first thing he said after a long while, it was the voice of a broken man who sounded like he had just lost the person who meant most to him "I'm fine Skul-"
"No, no your not. Don't you dare say your fine." Valkyrie didn't reply and Skulduggery didn't know what to do, he hadn't even noticed his best friend trying to kill herself. How could he have been so blind? His shoulders started to shake and gasping sounds whistled through his teeth, he was crying. He hadn't cried since he witnessed his wife and child murdered in front of him and in the space of a few minutes Valkyrie had brought all of his walls crashing down "Skul?" she whispered and touched his shoulder but didn't respond to her "I'm ok Skul! I'm still here." she tried even though she knew Skulduggery was broken, she had broken him. Her best friend. That was her breaking point she jumped out of the car and sprinted down to the pier listening to Skulduggery's shouts and cries for her to stop as he ran after her but this was what was best for her. She was Darquesse, world destroyer she might as well save the world now rather than watch it burn, she was doing everyone a favour. She climbed the fence separating her front her painful death and just as she was about to jump Skulduggery's arms wrapped around her skinny waist and she was hauled back into him "Valkyrie!" he breathed and held on tighter as if she was about to be taken away "Let me go." she whispered "No! I will never let you go."
"This is what I deserve."
"No! Don't you dare say that! You are worth more than this world Valkyrie. I love you!"
"W...what?" Skulduggery looked at her "You honestly didn't know how I felt?"
"No." she had tears rolling down her face now and he gently wiped them away and tapped his façade tattoo "Why cant you let me go?" she asked "I can never lose you. Because if I ever did i would have lost my best friend, my partner, my soul mate, my smile. My everything." that's when he chose to kiss her.
The kiss obliterated her, it was like finding an entire half of her which had been missing. Her lips were warm and soft against his and they moved perfectly together as the kiss build and grew. He pulled away for a second to look into her tear stained eyes before she pulled him back into a kiss which knocked the ground from underneath her.
He broke down her walls without her even noticing. And when he rebuilt the walls he added windows to let the sunshine in.
