Skulduggery Pleasant: Raising Cain

Chapter 21 - The 'Talk'

Skulduggery – Crow

Anton – Bear

Ghastly – Panda

Dexter – Wolf

Saracen – Weasel

Erskine – Snake

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Chapter 21

The next day, about eleven, Valkyrie woke, washed again just in case someone would know what she had done at night and went down for breakfast. The others looked tired and were eating soup.

"Only just get in?" She asked, sitting down.

"Yes," Crow said. "But we completed the mission. All that's left is getting the Grotesquery, but we are certain the Hound we found was the only they had a chance of getting to."

"We're good then."

"Exactly," he nodded. "We'll be getting the Grotesquery today while everyone else sleeps. Be ready soon."

"Is Tanith coming?" She asked, pouring herself orange juice.

"Yes, but it won't be a fighting day," he said. "Hopefully."

"I assume you haven't told her that."

"God, no. She wouldn't come. I'm going to change, I'll see you in the car."

Valkyrie finished her breakfast, gave the Idiots a vague and censored story of the previous night and brushed her teeth. Tanith was already in the back seat waiting.

"Hi," Valkyrie said, getting in. "You were quick getting ready."

"Well, I have things to do later."

"Ooh, like what?" Valkyrie grinned at her, shooting texts off at Nadia all the while. "Hot date?"

"Hardly," Tanith scoffed. "I need to talk to you about your hot date."

Valkyrie looked at her suspiciously. "What does that mean? I think I know what that means but that's not fair because you already did that, and I didn't like it at all. You're not allowed."

Tanith grinned at her. "Bull's eye."

"Bull shit. I won't let you. You gave me the talk, you can't do it twice!"

"You don't get a choice. I'll pin you down. So we can do this tonight, hidden away with ice cream, or I can chase you around the house and have Dexter and Erskine sit on you, so I can talk at you. Your choice."

Valkyrie hunched in her seat, trying to text Nadia without seeming like she didn't want to talk – it was hard to talk about talking about sex with Tanith and flirt with her girlfriend at the same time. "I'll think about it. There is so much I left out. The science is not nearly the same, I promise."

Crow got in the car then and they set off, listening to the classical radio and chatting about little things on the way. Mostly Valkyrie went between two messages – one with Nadia where she spoke about a fight she'd had with her mother over a school she wanted to send her to in England, and another between her and the Idiots. It was called the 'Idiot conversation'.

The Idiots, which were Saracen, Dexter and Erskine, generally teased each other and occasionally flirted with her – or each other for laughs – in a purely innocent way or shared gifs and other pictures. It was fun to be a part of as none of them had fallen asleep yet and she knew they were all in their underwear in their beds, lying under their covers on their phones smiling at silly messages. It was just amusing to think of. No matter their size or strength, they needed each other to stay sane and together. Valkyrie loved their silly messages together, even the flirting which was a little strange, she knew, to others. But it worked, and she couldn't bring herself to care what anyone else thought. It wasn't like they'd corner her alone and do it, that might be a bit weird.