Hey lads! Here's just a quick little one shot for all u SP fans out there. It came from a prompt given to me by a friend and it was beta read by RevyCaitEll so thanks to them! Anyway, I hope you enjoy it!
Valkyrie plucked her phone out of her pocket and started scrolling through the contacts on it. She found herself and rang the number.
"Hello?" her own voice replied.
"Oh, hey it's me." Valkyrie still wasn't used to hearing herself, even if she knew it was the reflection.
"Hey."
"I'm just letting you know I'm gonna be out late again tonight. Skulduggery and I have some stuff to deal with. If you can, sneak some food up to my room and I can have it when I get back because I doubt I'm going to have time to eat before then."
"Ok."
"Eh thanks. Bye." Valkyrie hung up awkwardly, not bothering to wait for a reply. Why was she always so awkward talking to herself? She supposed it was just because the reflection always spoke in clipped, one word answers. But maybe it was just because she still wasn't used to speaking to herself. That was probably it.
Valkyrie turned to Skulduggery who was leaning against the Bentley.
"All set?" he asked in a smooth voice.
Valkyrie nodded and they both hopped into the Bentley. Their target tonight was Haranio Cray, an Elemental who was enjoying setting fire to things a little bit too much. In the beginning he'd just been setting fire to cars or making giant bonfires. But more recently he's been targeting barns, pubs and even someone's home. That was when a line had to be drawn.
There had been two children in the house Cray had burned down, as well as the mother. Luckily they all got out alive with minor burns but that was still a step too far. He had risked the mortal world learning about the magic world as well as people's lives. Hence the reason why he was the next target.
Skulduggery pulled the Bentley up in front of an old, dishevelled looking building. Music blared out into the street and drunks stumbled into one another. The stench of alcohol saturated the air along with the putrid haze of smoke. It was the smell of Ireland.
The people inside were even more typically Irish. Yelling insults at each other no one could understand, completely pissed out of their minds. It was just so...Irish. The trad music in the background just added to the atmosphere.
Skulduggery and Valkyrie got out of the car and walked over to the entrance where a bouncer stood in their way.
"The girl isn't eighteen. She can't enter."
Skullduggery slugs him before the he can even lift his arm to block Valkyrie's entry.
"Jesus Skullduggery, give me a warning or something. Don't just randomly punch people!"
"Valkyrie, in this world of violence that we live in warnings aren't necessary. Always expect the unexpected, isn't that what they say?"
"Yeah but how can you expect the unexpected. If it's unexpected then how exactly will you expect it to happen?"
"That is a very good question. How about from now on you just expect me to greet people with a nice friendly punch?"
"I guess that would work."
"Great, I'm glad we have settled that."
The pair entered the pub, searching for Haranio Cray. According to records this was the place he liked to go most evenings for a pint. If he was going to be anywhere on a Friday night, it would be here.
Valkyrie scanned the crowd and spotted the tall, black haired man in the back corner of the pub. He was drinking alone which was going to make their job easier. Scars and burns mauled his arms. He took another swig of his pint as Skulduggery and Valkyrie wandered over to him.
"Haranio Cray. We thought you might be here. I'm-"
"Skulduggery Pleasant and his young disciple Valkyrie Cain. I was beginning to think you guys were just a myth." Cray spoke with a slight Mexican twang.
"Nice to see word is getting around. Now if you would be so kind and just slip these handcuffs on it would really mean the world to me." Skulduggery removed a pair of handcuffs from his pocket. They had a pink ribbon on them.
"Skulduggery, I told you to take off the ribbon." Valkyrie rolled her eyes.
"I thought it added a nice flare. What do you think Cray?"
"I think you can take your handcuffs and shove them-"
"Now, now. We have a young girl present. There is no need to be so-"
Cray got to his feet in the blink of an eye and smashed his pint glass over Skulduggery's skull.
"Rude." Skulduggery finished.
The pub seemed to go silent as the fight broke out. Cray clicked his fingers, igniting a flame in the palm of his hand and hurling it at Skulduggery. Skulduggery ducked under the fireball and outstretched the palm of his hand sending Cray flying into a table. Pints crashed to the ground and customers complained about yet another pub brawl costing them their drinks.
Valkyrie hopped onto a table and jumped onto Cray's back. She wrapped one arm around his throat while she threw a punch with her other hand. Her fist met his mouth and blood spewed from his burst lip. Cray cried out in pain and reversed into a wall, causing Valkyrie to loosen her grip and crash to the floor.
Cray clicked his fingers and fire ignited in both hands. With a roar from Cray, the fire increased and spread up his arms. The fire was engulfing him all the way up to his shoulders. Valkyrie jumped behind the pub counter and started throwing anything she could find at him. Coke bottles, beer cans, a shoe. The things you find behind a pub counter…
Skulduggery jumped back into the action. He put his arms out in front of him, gathering moisture into a cloud above Cray. Cray looked up and saw the cloud.
"Oh shi-"
The water fell down on top of him, extinguishing his flames immediately. Cray stood there like a drowned rat staring at his arms in shock. He tried to click his fingers but the spark would just sizzle out into nothing.
"What have you done to me Pleasant?" Cray asked desperately.
"Isn't it obvious? Water and fire don't mix my dear friend."
"Yes, but this? This has never happened before." Cray said indicating towards his clicking fingers which were doing nothing to conjure up a flame.
"That's because the moisture is still in the air, drowning out your fire. Now, do you think you're ready for the handcufs? If you're lucky I might just leave the ribbon on them!"
Cray just stood there and allowed Skulduggery to put the handcuffs on him. There wasn't really much else he could do except run. But that would prove pointless considering Valkyrie was blocking the one and only exit.
"Haranio Cray, you are under arrest for being an absolute pyromaniac. I hereby quench your fiery abilities for the time being until it is decided what will happen to you."
Skulduggery dragged Cray out of the pub and towards the Bentley. He shoved him into the back of the car as Valkyrie followed them out. She stopped just before she got in the car.
"Quench your fiery abilities?" she smirked.
"What can I say Valkyrie, I am a fire extinguisher. No, actually, I am the Fire Extinguisher."
Thanks for reading! Don't forget to leave a review to let me know what u thought of it!