Skulduggery Pleasant One Shots

Sinistre Sangfroid (Part 2)

Brother Moralis opened his eyes for the first time in 300 years, to be greeted with his favourite sight in the world. The devilish face of Sinistre Sangfroid. He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath of air, allowing a manic grin to split his face.

"Long time no see, Sinistre," he shivered in delight, still sitting on the floor. Sinistre rolled his eyes in agreement.

"Come on, get up. Off the floor, yes like that. Now head to your closet and get changed- and he's gone," Sinistre's distant chuckles sounded as Moralis browsed through his wardrobe. He frowned, parting the sea of brown suits in two, looking for something more flamboyant. Where was his usual suit? His teeth ground together in worry, ignoring the frantic screech of coat-hangers on metal. A small squeak of anticipation escaped his lips as his eyes met the orderly mess of black and white stripes, bordered with circular cufflinks. His eyes sparkled upon seeing the sign of his Faceless Gods, even if it was only cufflinks.

Sinistre waited patiently for Brother Moralis to finish picking an outfit. Cold tea oiled its way down his throat, making him grimace and set down the cup. That was awful. He sighed in amusement. Moralis would probably be a while, that man was so chaotic, who knows how long it would take him to pick an outfit. As if to contradict his very thoughts, Sinistre heard the muffled thumps of the man's footsteps. Sinistre brushed himself off and stood up. All he could smell was an obscene amount of hairspray. He grimaced at the disjointed laugh his companion gave as his nose wrinkled in distaste.

"Did you really have to use that much hairspray?" he asked, giving Moralis the most immaculate eyebrow raise he could muster. Brother snorted.

"How do I look?" he chimed, giving Sangfroid an exaggerated twirl.

"Like Beetlejuice." Brother grinned.

"Perfect!"

Prefect Misfit was poised to strike, ready to the side of Ghastly's door. He knew it wouldn't be too long now until one of his 'friends' were to enter. The question was just whom. He anxiously scratched at his knuckles, unused to the feel of leather rub against his skin, and quickly fell back into a fighting stance. Being caught unaware in your own ambush, was a humiliation he refused to suffer. He idly picked the loose threads of his muddy red vest, uncomfortable in tailored clothes, before once again snapping into position. He bit his lip, cursing his short attention span. He stood still for a few more seconds, leg bobbing up and down. He was sick of this. Misfit wandered off to find a dagger.

The Man with The Golden Eyes leaned against an uneven stone wall in a distasteful alley. He shifted his weight, feeling the cool stones dig awkwardly in his back. He glanced down upon hearing a scratching sound, which turned out to be litter rather than mice. He scowled, displeased at his friend's rendezvous point. A waft of peppermint skulked up his nostrils, and The Man with The Golden Eyes looed up, meeting pitch black eyes.

"Speak of the devil..." he muttered. The demonic creature in front of him had Satan's signature written across his face, several pointed teeth, lethal clawed hands and a more rugged face than Anton Shudder usually possessed. It was strange and disconcerting to see Gist so corporeal. Gist crossed his arms, drawing The Man with The Golden Eyes' eyes to glance judgementally at his hands. "So, how should I address you? I don't think I can just call you 'Gist?' Is that rude, or...?"

Gist grunted, bored. The other man's metallic eyes lit up with amusement, the other having obviously thought of an idea.

"I'm calling you Edward," he stated with friendly certainty. Edward's eyebrow questioningly raised. "It fits! You match the description of Edward Hyde from the original 'The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde' novella by Robert Louis Stevenson." Edward said nothing, but the golden-eyed man got the distinct impression that if Hyde's iris, pupil and sclera weren't the same sable tint, he would be rolling his eyes. "Thank god you're here. I can't stand being in this alley for one more moment!"