Stephanie
Corvus stood with Skulduggery, at the far back of the service. Gordon's death had come as a shock to all. His service wasn’t large, but his favourite brother's family were in attendance. His heart went out to them, knowing the pain they were feeling. It wasn’t long before the coffin was being lowered into it’s final resting place, and Corvus bowed his head in respect for the man that had truly been his closest family. He had tried to will his shadows into a respectful black suit, and while he had been successful, the shadows still formed his trademark long black coat over the suit. It had probably just become a strong habit at this point, that whenever he went out, his shadows automatically responded with the coat.
As the service came to an end, he could feel they were being watched. Scanning the crowd, his eyes met with Gordon’s niece, Stephanie. She was the same age as him, near enough and had clearly cried at some point in the service. Her pale skin looked flushed, which stood out even further against her black hair and dress. They held eye contact for a few moments, her curiosity clear in her eyes. Corvus gave her a respectful nod, and he and Skulduggery turned and walked through the dark woods, back to the Bentley.
Corvus wondered if he should speak to Gordon’s favourite family. He had been official made the man’s godson after he had finally taken a name, but hadn’t wanted to meet his mundane family while he was having issues with how instinctive his magic had been at the time. After he had gained as much control as was ever going to achieve, he had still declined. He still cited it down to him magic, but honestly, it was just fun to see how long they could go without being caught. It might lighten the mood, to reveal who he was to Gordon, but also might not be the best time.
“I might need you to run interference” Skulduggery suddenly said, as they were pulling up to the back of Gordon’s house. Welp, so much for waiting for the reveal then.
“Yeah, I think I can make a distraction or two.” He responded neutrally. After confirming that Gordon was murdered, Corvus had been tighter on his emotions. He had a rage bubbling deep below the surface, and without restraining himself, had been prone to a few outbursts. He had even blown up at China once. She hadn’t done anything to deserve it, just didn’t have any information on who could have killed Gordon. He had instantly fled due to guilt, but she had tracked him down and just held him while he regain control over himself. He had even asked for a spar with Mr Bliss, just to vent some of his frustrations, but he had been avoiding China, so Corvus stood no chance of seeing him.
As they snuck in the back, Skulduggery instantly split off and headed for the study. Corvus, having wondered around the ground floor for a few minutes, was suddenly accosted but a small, weasel looking man. “And who are you supposed to be? Don’t you even try and think about stealing from my family.” He said loudly, drawing the attention of others in the room. Well, he was meant to be making a distraction.
“What? Like the silverware that you’ve been stuffing your pockets with since I got here?” Corvus said, pointedly. He had seen the man pocketing anything silver when he thought he wasn’t being watched. He would be more annoyed, but Gordon had told him that it was all fake anyway.
A shrill voice nearly deafened him from the side. “You dare come into our family’s home, and accuse my grieving husband of stealing?!” Ah, these were the family that Gordon wasn’t so fond of.
“Fergus and Beryl I assume?” He wasn’t going to make much more of a scene, but he also knew that Gordon would be laughing in his grave if he managed to charm them. Or lay a verbal smack down on them. But this wasn’t the time or place for that. “Gordon spoke so very highly of you both.” He felt slimy for this, but needs must.
The pleasant tone of his voice seemed to derail them. “Uh, yes? Who exactly are you?” Beryl asked.
“Just one of Gordon’s editor’s son. I had the pleasure of meeting him a fair few times when they met up to discuss some of his work. He would always go on and on about his family.” Corvus said as he walked up to Fergus. “I am so very sorry for your loss. You must be heartbroken.” He continued, patting Fergus on his jacket. As he did, he willed a spell, that would make him very noticeable, anytime he tried to steal something. That should be enough of a distraction.
Turning and walking away, he noticed Stephanie was eyeing him again. He sent a small wink at her, which coloured her cheeks slightly, before he walked towards Gordon’s study. He had assumed that Skulduggery would be there, if anywhere. He was halfway there, when he realised he was being followed. As he rounded a corner, he stopped and waited. He had good idea who was following him, so he decided to have some fun. As his “stalker” came around the corner, he stepped out in front of her, making her jump.
“You couldn’t wait to get me alone, I see” he smirked, satisfied to see a light blush return to her pale face.
She seemed to regain herself quickly though. “In your dreams maybe.”
“Oh, definitely.” Stephanie snorted at that. “So, if you’re not trying to get me alone, why’d you follow me?”
“You’re definitely not one of Gordon’s editor’s kids. He hardly ever met with any of his editors, only when interviewing them. And he hasn’t had to do that in nearly 10 years. So who are you really?”
“Ah, well, I’m his godson.” Corvus studied her reaction, to see if there was any doubt or jealousy. He knew she was Gordon’s favourite niece. He didn’t know how she would react to having shared the man’s affection.
“That makes sense. You look a lot like the Harry Potter character from the kids books he started a while ago.” Well, he wasn’t expecting pure logic. There was clear understanding in her chocolate eyes, like a puzzle just completed for her.
“Yeah, you could say I was the inspiration for those books.”
“So, was the man you were with earlier James?”
Any happiness on Corvus’ face drained immediately. “No. He’s just my guardian. He took me in when I had no-one else.” He tried to keep his tone light, but he knew he failed.
“Oh, do you mind, um. What happened?”
“Now that is a long story.” He sighed. “Maybe I’ll tell it sometime, if we meet again after this.”
She seemed to weigh his reply for a minute. “Give me your phone.” She said, holding out her hand.
“Uh, sure?” This wasn’t how he thought this would go. She took it and quickly typed her number in.
“It’s saved under Stephanie, text or call me sometime.” He sent her a quick text, so that she could save his number too.
“Your name’s Corvus? That sounds fake.” She frowned.
“Nah, just part of the story.” He grinned.
“Right, well I better get back to my parents. I’ll call you sometime.” She said as she turned and waved as she walked off.
Corvus sighed. That had thrown his emotions all over the place. She was refreshing and he felt for her, losing her uncle. Yet she was coping better than he was. Maybe it was the positive relationship with her parents, where as Corvus had only his memories of his parents and had the best years of his life after meeting everyone in this dimension, especially with Gordon. He drifted out of his reflection, when he felt Skulduggery approaching.
“Ready to go?” He said, without looking at the skeleton.
“Yeah, it was a bust. We will have to come back in a few days. No one should be around by then.”
Corvus nodded, and they quickly left the house that brought too many memories with it.
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Corvus thought that he would be able to finally catch up on some sleep that night. Unfortunately, Skulduggery had decided to pester him about his conversation with Stephanie.
“So, you got her number?”
“You did say to make a distraction. It drew attention. Especially hers. She followed me when I went to meet back up with you. I couldn’t exactly blow her off.”
“I heard you flirting.”
“I was having fun. I’ve seen China do it whenever she wants something from someone. I can see how it works now, I guess.”
If Skulduggery had a face, Corvus just knew that he would be smirking with a raised eye brow. “You hardly ever like new people.”
He snorted. “She’s hardly new. She was at Gordon’s a lot when I was there. I just hid from her. I could still hear her through the walls sometimes. And Gordon would go on constantly about her. They were clearly very similar and Gordon kept pestering me to meet her. I always said no, but I thought it would make him happy, to maybe try and see if we could be friends. I thought it might be a good way to honour him, you know?”
“You’ve gotten very sappy.”
“Nah, I’ve always been sappy. I just never voiced it before. I don’t want to make that mistake again. I never told Gordon what he meant to me. I don’t want that to happen again.”
“He knew. You never said the words, but you always showed how you felt. Now go get some sleep. We have to be at the solicitors office at 10.”
Corvus smirked and saluted mockingly. “Aye aye, sir.”
“Cheeky git.” He heard Skulduggery mutter.
“Learnt it from you!” he shouted back, as he made his way to bed.
The morning had arrived far too quick for Corvus. And sitting in the car, stuck in traffic was not doing him any favours. He just didn’t see why he had to go too. He was sure everything would have been left to Stephanie and her parents. Possibly barring a few things to Fergus and Beryl, but they would be things that would wind them up. He wasn’t jealous, he completely understood. Before he could wind himself up some more, they finally arrived. Walking up to the office, he could already hear the shrill voice of Beryl.
“-sounds like some kind of weirdo” the muffled shrill voice said. Clearly, she was already agitated. Joy.
Without preamble, Skulduggery opened the door and walked inside. “Sorry we’re late. We were a little held up.” His smooth voice sounded. He didn’t know when everyone stopped sounding so Irish. Probably when he had picked up the accent himself. Looking around the room, everyone appeared to be staring at the detective. That was fair. With his massive sunglasses, fuzzy wig, scarf and too big overcoat, he did look a bit odd. Especially in the early summer heat.
“Um, are you Skulduggery Pleasant?” the portly solicitor said. He looked to already be melting in the heat. Corvus was just glad that his shadow jacket adjusted his temperature so he didn’t over heat in the summer or freeze in the winter. He bloody loved magic for that.
Analysing everyone’s expressions, he could see the clear curiosity on Stephanie’s face. Her mother seemed unsure but willing to be polite, but her father seemed downright wary. He could understand that. They both probably looked a bit weird from their clothes, but Corvus couldn’t find it in himself to care too much. He didn’t even want to be here. Before they were even able to take their spot at the back of the room, Beryl spoke up. “Do you have something wrong with your face?”
Corvus looked to Skulduggery, “Do I have something wrong with my face? I thought I looked fine this morning?”
Without missing a beat, Skulduggery responded “Well you are rather unsettling to look at.”
“Ah.” He turned back to the others, “Sorry about my face then. Shall we crack on?” He could see the barely controlled laughter in Stephanie and her parents’ faces. Fergus and Beryl just seemed annoyed, and huffed when they turned back around to the solicitor. Giving the man a shrug, he waved for him to go on.
The solicitor cleared his throat, and started to ramble on about his dealings with Gordon, before Fergus hurried him up to get on with the part where they get stuff. It was rude and entirely disrespectful, but Corvus couldn’t help agreeing with the man on this. He wanted to be out there, tracking down Gordon’s killer. Not sitting here, listening to what other people got from his will. Stephanie spared them a glance, either to see their reaction or in apology he didn’t know. The solicitor picked up a page, and started to read from it.
“To my brother Fergus and his beautiful wife Beryl,” the man began, and Corvus could just make out a soft snort from someone in Stephanie’s family. “I leave my Mercedes-Benz, my boat and a gift.”
Corvus couldn’t see their reaction, but they didn’t seem happy with that. “That’s it? He left us his boat?” Fergus said, clearly confused.
“You get seasick. He knew that! And we already have a car!” Beryl shrieked. “This gift, is it the money?”
The solicitor shifted nervously, and pulled out a small box. Both Fergus and Beryl stared at the box for an annoyingly long time, before finally moved to open it. Only to start slapping each other, before Beryl managed to snatch the box and open it. It took her a moment, before she turned to show it to the others. Corvus could barely see it from where he was, but it looked like a plain black metal brooch, around the size of a drinks coaster. It was also kind of ugly, but he didn’t know much about fashion, only that if China wore it, it was glamorous and high end.
Corvus tuned back in to the conversation when he heard a high pitched whine. Clearly they weren’t happy not receiving any money. The solicitor, wisely decided to move on. “To my good friend and guide, Skulduggery Pleasant, I have the following advice. Your path is your own, but be mindful who you drag along with you. I will not sway you, but sometimes the greatest enemy is the darkness within. There is a storm coming, and sometimes the key to safe harbour is hidden from us, and sometimes it is right before our eyes. Remember, you are not alone.”
Everyone was staring at Skulduggery, but Corvus was deep in thought. It was a clue, clearly, but he wasn’t sure what for. A key, hidden in plain sight? He really wished Gordon would be straight forward, but he would take what he could get. When he finally looked up, everyone was still staring. He managed to catch Stephanie’s eyes and raised an eyebrow. That seemed to bring her out of it, and with her turning back, it seemed to snap everyone else out of it too. He saw Fergus mutter something to his wife, in which he recoiled at her response. What a lovely couple.
The solicitor finally continued on. “To my other brother, Desmond, I leave to you your wife. I think you might like her. So now that you have successfully stolen my girlfriend, maybe you would like to take her to your new villa in France, which I am also leaving to you.” That got a rise out of Beryl, and after much squawking about the unfairness of it all, to which Corvus finally couldn’t keep his mouth shut.
“Shut up, would you.” He said coldly. Magic leaked into his voice, making him sound colder and much more threatening. “Your brother in law is dead, and all you care about is the money. So just sit down, shut up and we can all move on.” He regretted it, the moment he started talking, but he was done. He couldn’t stand the disrespect. He knew Gordon would have expected it, and probably would have loved the chaos, but he just wasn’t in the mood. A firm bony hand gently grasped his shoulder, and Corvus forced himself to calm down.
The room was staring at him with wide eyes. Beryl, Fergus and the solicitor in fear. He had purposely tried to not impact Stephanie’s family. They hadn’t done anything wrong, but clearly they still caught some of it. Corvus hadn’t even thought of the solicitor. Poor man. Corvus nodded at him, and he scrambled to find his place on the page.
“Uh, if there is one regret that I have, it is that I never had children of my own. When I look at Fergus and Beryl, I consider myself fortunate. But when I look at my niece Stephanie, and my Godson, uh, Corvus?” The man seemed unsure of the name, but charged ahead regardless. “I find that it breaks my heart. I look at you both, and see you both as if you were my own. To that end, I leave you both the following.” The solicitor paused, as he looked for another page. That was good, it gave Corvus a second to mentally catch up. He was getting something? Gordon had seen him as his own? Gordon new that Corvus would never see him as a father figure. He had two dads and a mother. Anymore was just too much. But still!
The man finally found the correct papers, and carried on. “To my Godson, Corvus Black, I leave my Astin Martin DB5. You never realised it, but you were picking out, what I was hoping to be your 17thbirthhday present. I wanted to be able to teach you to drive and gift you with it after passing. I just suppose you will have to have it a bit early.”
Corvus was fighting with himself heavily. He wouldn’t cry in front of these people. He wouldn’t. Fuckin asshole Gordon, making him cry again. The man really was too much. “I also leave to you, the entire fortune that the Harry Potter series has generated thus far, along with all the royalties to it. I can think of no better person to receive the fruits of that labour, and always remember. Those who have passed may not be able to speak, however, we always live on inside you. Your parents would be so proud of the man you are becoming. I can say this with full certainty, because I know I am.”
Corvus couldn’t help but utter a small “Fuckin’ asshole” to which the solicitor continued with “And yes, I’m sure you are, or have been calling me and asshole. I love you too, kid.” Corvus let out a watery chuckle. Trust Gordon to know exactly how he would respond. Luckily, the man continued with Stephanie’s inheritance, while he composed himself.
“To my niece, Stephanie. The world is bigger than you know and scarier than you could possibly imagine. The only currency worth anything is being true to yourself and the only goal worth seeking is finding out who you truly are. Make your parents proud, and make them glad to have you living under their roof, because I leave to you my property and possessions, my assets and royalties to the rest of my works, to be inherited on the day you turn 18.”
The solicitor took a moment to let that all sink in, before continuing to read from the page. “I’d just like to take this opportunity to say, that in my on way, I love you all. Even those you that I don’t particularly like. That’s you, Beryl.” The man finally took off his glasses. Signalling the end of the will reading.
Corvus and Skulduggery were the only ones able to move, it seemed. They approached the family, and with a soft touch, Corvus laid a hand on her shoulder. “Congratulations.” He said with a wink. That seemed to bring her out of her shock slightly, as she muttered a soft “Yeah, you too.” He gave her a small, genuine smile, which was mirrored back. He started to walk towards the door, looking at Fergus and Beryl as he passed. He wasn’t petty, honest. But he wouldn’t let them ruin this any further. Taking a step towards them, and summoning the feeling of something cold and dangerous, he spoke. “Dont. You. Dare. Ruin this for her. Do you understand?” he uttered coldly. They only gave wide eyed nods in return, and maybe a small squeak from Fergus, before he finally left the office.
He wanted his bed.
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It was early evening by the time Corvus woken up. He had taken a portal home for a few hours nap, to recharge for the night. Skulduggery had planned for Corvus to join him tonight, in breaking into Gordon’s house and searching for anything that might have made Gordon a target. This hadn’t been possible during the wake, as if there was anything, it certainly hadn’t been in Gordon’s study. While they were driving, his phone started to ring. He didn’t even check the caller ID, assuming it was China.
“Please tell me you have a lead” he said, in lieu of a greeting. He received a snort as an answer.
“You didn’t check before answering, did you?” A young feminine voice replied. Oh yeah, he now had more contacts than just Skulduggery, China and Ghastly in his phone now. Doctor Grouse didn’t have a phone, since he never left his lab and no signal could reach it, hidden how it was.
“Ah, to be fair, I wasn’t expecting you to call so soon.” He said cheekily.
“Yeah, well I’m alone at Gordon’s house right now and didn’t feel like reading.” What was she doing there alone?
“Oh? You just got a house and decided to move out?” This time a huff was his response. He needed to try and think of a reason to either get her out, or for them to be going there.
“No, me and my mum came to look around. With ‘new perspective’, since it’s mine now I guess. She left a bit ago though. The car broke down and had to be towed and there wasn’t space for me.” That made sense. He was about to spell out some bullshit reason as to why he was heading there, when she jumped back in.
“Hold on. Gordon’s phones ringing. Give me a sec.” Instead of hanging up, she left the phone connected and Corvus could hear Stephanie’s side of the conversation.
“Hello?”
“Hello?” She repeated.
“If you’re looking for Gordon Edgley, I’m afraid that-“
“Why do you want to know?” Corvus was starting to get antsy. He had a bad feeling something was about to happen, and he wasn’t there to help.
“If you want to call back tomorrow-“ He could clearly hear panic starting to creep into her voice.
“My name is none of your business.” Oh, smart girl. He was still worried, but he was now grinning at the fire in her voice.
“Goodnight!” she said more firmly, before clearly slamming the phone.
“Steph?” he finally spoke. He needed to get her somewhere safe in the house.
He heard her gasp. “There’s someone at the door.” That settled it for Corvus.
“Get somewhere safe or hidden. Not near any windows. I’ll be there soon.” He hated himself for doing it, but with those last words he hung up.
“Someone’s trying to break in to Gordon’s house. Meet me there.” He said to Skulduggery, before opening a window, and transforming into his crow form. He had learnt that he could still open portals as a bird, but they weren’t 100% accurate and he couldn’t use any other magic as a bird.
He flew straight through the portal, which luckily had him maybe 100 feet away from the house. He didn’t bother turning back into his human form, and flew straight at the broken window that he could see. As he flew in the house, he could see a man grab Stephanie by the front door. He was impressed with how naturally she fought back, kicking him in the shin and aiming a blow with a fire poker to his head. Unfortunately, he caught it and started to strangle her, but luckily, he was there. He flew at the man as fast as he could, before transforming back human, and planting a solid kick, straight to the man’s chin.
Unfortunately, the man had wrenched the poker, out of Stephanie’s hands and land a strong hit on Corvus’ side. Lucking, his shadow tanked all the damage, but the force of the hit still sent him sprawling. Corvus shot back on the his feet, and placed himself firmly between Stephanie and his attacker. He didn’t expect the man to start chuckling though. “The junior detective?” he laughed. “The skeleton’s gonna walk into a slaughter.” The man was now grinning, with a maniacal look in his eyes.
“Buddy, you don’t know how right you are.” Corvus said, injecting as much venom in his voice as possible. “Just don’t make this too easy. I’ve got some shit to work through” Clicking his fingers, he fed the spark a dense portion of magic, before throwing the nearly solid flames at the man.
The man started laughing, as the flames washed over his body. “That tickles. Gimme more!” He laughed, before launching himself at the two pre-teens. Corvus stood his ground, while Stephanie ran back to the living room. In a blink of an eye, Corvus’ shadows formed his armour around his body. He purposely didn’t make it as strong as it could be. He needed to save some energy for the night and need to keep this man alive to interrogate. A heavy punch connected with Corvus’ head, but he didn’t even move.
“Is that it?” his voice coming out slightly warped, into a deeper, colder version of itself. Before the man could move, he launched his own punch to the man’s gut, slightly winding him. Before sending another strong hit to the man’s arm, potentially fracturing it. The man grunted in pain and disengaged, running into the room Stephanie had just ran to. Quickly giving chase, he saw the man reach for Stephanie. Reacting quickly, he released his armour and launched some shadow tendrils to grab the man. Once they wrapped around his wrists and waist, he span, and threw the man out of the window, getting him as far from Stephanie as he could. He stared out of the window, waiting for any movement for a solid minute or two, when he heard Stephanie’s shaky voice next to him.
“Is he gone?” She sounded really shaken up. Not surprising really.
“Yeah, I think so.” He said, with as much cool indifference as possible.
“Cool. You still owe me that story.” Her eyes were starting to go glassy. That also checked out.
“That’s completely fair.” He said with a soft smile.
“Cool. Can you catch me? I think I’m about to-“ she fainted before she could finish what she was saying, but Corvus had already moved to catch her. Laying her on the sofa, there was a knock at the front door. Opening it, Skulduggery was standing there with his gun pointing up, but ready to fire if need be.
“You, are about 3 minutes too late.” He said, as he laid a blanket over Stephanie. He didn’t know how long she would be out for, but best make her comfortable. It was going to be a very long conversation after this. Seeing the state of the room, he sighed. He couldn’t be bothered to fix it right now, but he will have to do it before he left. He decided to get comfy, and wait for Stephanie to wake up. Hopefully, it wouldn’t take too long.
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Corvus had been sat in the chair next to Stephanie, going over anything that he would be willing to share, for when she started asking questions. He realised pretty quickly, that there wasn’t anything he wouldn’t share with her. It was weird, there was a certain draw to her. Like, in a crowd full of people, how would always be able to find her. It wasn’t attraction, in a romantic sense, though he could admit, without shame, that she was attractive. Her dark hair and eyes stood out due to her lightly pale skin. She was clearly athletic, probably playing sports of some kind. He had to fight a small blush, so maybe there was a small amount of physical attraction. The attraction he felt was magnetic. Something literally drew him to her, it was a puzzle that he was more than willing to figure out.
A soft groan from the girl in question drew him out of his musings. She looked around, slightly groggily, before locking on to the broken glass and general disarray of the room.
“Oh god, this is all real” she said under her breath. He couldn’t help it, he laughed so hard that he doubled over and had tears in his eyes. After a minute, he finally settled down, only to see her glaring at him. It still didn’t stop his stupid smile from hurting his cheeks. That had made him feel better than he had in days.
“Are you quite finished?” she said, the glare getting more intense as his smile grew.
“I’m sorry. It’s just, that was my reaction too. The fainting and what you said. It’s just too funny.” He said, struggling through a chuckle. Stephanie’s glare started to dim and her lips twitched, before she finally gave in and gave a small chuckle of her own. “How are you feeling?” he asked, after calming down.
“A bit weak, but not awful.” She said, as she started to get up. He moved to support her, and steadied her when she swayed. But she gave him a nod after a moment. They started walking towards the kitchen. “So are you going to tell me why you’re here?”
“Other than you being in trouble?” She gave him an unreadable look.
“You came to help me because I was in trouble? Why, you hardly know me.”
“I can give you three very good reasons why I did.” He raised a finger to start counting off. “1, we were on our way anyway. 2, it’s part of my job, and 3, I like to think we’re friends, and I’ll always be there for my friends.” He said, staring into her chocolate eyes, gauging her reaction.
He could see the light dusting of a blush form on her face, but she held his gaze. “Ok then.” She said, before finally turning away. “You still owe me that story.”
“I think you will hear it soon. Let’s just wait for everything to calm down a bit.”
“You don’t think things are calm now?”
“They won’t be, in about 5 seconds”
“Why-“ she started, before stopping dead in the kitchen door way, staring at something with her mouth hanging open. “Why is there a walking skeleton in the kitchen? And why is he making tea?
Skulduggery looked up at her. “Because you need something sweet to help you after fainting.”
“Thank you, but why are you a skeleton?”
“So are you. You just have extra bits. Like skin, and organs, and hair.” Skulduggery tilted his head. “I miss hair, how it used to be, sort of there.”
Corvus sighed in exasperation. “You know China can make you a illusion for a disguise. I could probably alter it so that you actually feel the hair and skin. Organs would be too hard though.
Skulduggery nodded, “Yes, but then you would be experimenting, and I don’t want to be a lab rat.”
“I’ll make you a real rat if you keep whining”.
“Are you guys always like this?” Stephanie interjected.
They both turned to look at her and spoke at the same time, “Like what?” the slightly scaring thing, was that they were both genuinely confused.
“So what actually happened to you?” she said, waving vaguely at Skulduggery.
“There was a war. A secret hidden war between sorcerers. The 300 year war, we call it. It’s very to the point. Anyway, a bunch of leaders on our side were targeted, since we were winning. I was one of them. I was lead into a trap and killed. My body was burnt in public as a warning, which worked. And so I came back, turned the tide of the war again. And now we’re here.”
Stephanie waited a beat, before turning to Corvus. “You better be a better story teller than that.”
Corvus snorted. “Don’t worry. I’ll try not to miss any details.”
She nodded seriously, before turning back to Skulduggery. “So, can you do magic as well? Or are you just a walking pile of bones.”
Skulduggery seemed rather offended by that. “I’m far more than just a walking pile of bones. I ALSO talk, as you can clearly tell. And yes, I can do magic.”
“Cool. So what happens now?” She asked.
“Now, we leave and you stay here. It isn’t safe for you to come with us.” Skulduggery said seriously.
“No” both Corvus and Stephanie said at the same time. Stephanie seemed quite surprised at Corvus’ outburst, but pleased nonetheless.
Skulduggery tilted his head his head slightly, looking at Corvus. “She will be safer here.”
Corvus stared directly into his eye sockets. “She wasn’t the target, the house was. But now that they know she was here, and involved has been attacked now, she will be a target. She is involved now. Like it or not, she IS safer with us.”
Skulduggery was silent and still for a few moments. “I hadn’t thought of that.”
Corvus scoffed, “Of course you didn’t. That’s why I solved more cases than you last year.”
“They were all low profile and I was focused on something bigger. That still makes me superior.”
“I’m nearly 13, they won’t let me take bigger cases on my own.”
“All I’m hearing is excuses.”
“And all I’m hearing is an old man whining.”
Stephanie stepped in, breaking up the banter. “Ok, so just to be clear. I coming with, right?”
Skulduggery nodded, “So it would seem.”
Stephanie seemed to be holding back her excitement. “Brilliant, I’ll just grab my coat. Don’t even think about disappearing.” She said, jabbing a finger at Skulduggery, before turning on her heel, and darting towards the living room. Corvus followed after her, half to make sure no-one had come in while they were talking and half to clean up the mess.
He found Stephanie shaking her coat, send shards of glass everywhere. She looked around at the mess, her face tightening someone. “I really don’t know how I’ll explain this to mum.”
Corvus snorted, “I wouldn’t worry too much. Wanna see something cool?”
She nodded vigorously, and Corvus raised his hand and clicked his fingers. There was no spark, as he wasn’t focusing on making fire. Instead, the furniture started to slide back into their proper places, and damages fixing as they moved. Glass shared quickly flowed back to the window, slotting back in place like a rapid jigsaw puzzle. About 10 seconds after it started, the room was repaired, like nothing had every happened. He looked at Stephanie, and he eyes were sparkling in awe. She looked at him and squealed, “That. Was so cool.”
Corvus grinned. He knew he was showing off a bit, but he was introducing someone new to magic. He had to. They finally made their way to the backdoor, where Skulduggery was waiting, when he suddenly thought of something. “Before you get in too deep, there are two rules you must know.”
Stephanie raised an unimpressed eyebrow at him, “You’re giving me rules?”
Corvus raised an eyebrow back, “Rules of magic. Rule number one, with magic, nothing is as it seems.”
She looked confused. “How?”
Corvus smirked, “Try taking my jacket.” And he held his arms out.
Stephanie looked even more confused, but complied. Just after she took his jacket off him, it burst into shadows, and flowed back to, and over Corvus, before forming back into his signature look. Her mouth was agape slightly, before he walked up to her, and gently closed it. “Nothing is as it seems.” He reiterated with a wink.
Stephanie shook herself, before finally speaking. “Alright fine. That’s a good rule. Anymore rules I should know?”
Corvus nodded seriously. “Never tell anyone your name. At least until you have taken on a new one. Any sorcerer who uses the name you were given at birth, will be able to control you. If you trust me on anything, make it this. Do not let anyone know who you are.”
“Another good rule. Shall we go then?”
He nodded, and they finally go in the car. Skulduggery cocked his head at them again, but whatever he was thinking, he didn’t voice, and the drove off.
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Stephanie had made a massive mistake when she got into Skulduggery’s car. It wasn’t leaping into this world feet first, and not thinking about the consequences. It wasn’t trusting the people she had just met with her life. No, it was worse than that. She had asked about his car.
She had to listen to him waffle on and on about his Bentley for more than 30 minutes now, and he didn’t seem to be stopping soon. And what was Corvus doing, while she suffered? He had morphed his shadows into earmuffs and had pulled out a book. The traitor. She tried to get a good look at the book, but the darkness was obscuring the title. They finally stopped at a traffic light, and the streetlight illuminated the book cover. “The wayward traveller’s guide to magic, by Merlin Emrys.” She didn’t even realise she had spoken out loud, until she saw the looks she was receiving. Well, look. Skulduggery was staring at her in what she assumed was shock, going off the look Corvus was giving her. He looked like he couldn’t believe his eyes.
“What did you say?” he asked, weakly.
“Um, the book title?. What’s wrong with that?” she asked, confused.
“No one could read that book until he came along” Skulduggery said slowly. He tilted his head in thought, and then looked back at the road as they continued driving.
“Ok, so spoiler for the story time. I’m from a different dimension. No magical in this dimension has been able to read this book. Hell, no one without magic could either. Merlin charmed it to only be read by wizards. The magicals from my own dimension. You shouldn’t be able to read it.” Corvus gushed. It all came out so quickly, she could barely understand him.
“I’m sorry, back up. You came from a different dimension?” she asked, incredulous.
“That’s honestly not the weirdest part. He travelled accidently, just before he turned 7. And there are rare sorcerers who can dimension hop. Nothing is impossible with magic.” Skulduggery said, distractedly. He was clearly still in thought.
“Did anything weird ever happen around you? Stuff you couldn’t explain?” Corvus asked, almost giddy in his seat.
Stephanie had to rack her brain a bit. Her life had been so dull until now. There was maybe one or two things that stuck out though. “My cousins were making fun of my hair once, I think I was about 7? Anyway, they started to pull my hair and then Crystal noticed that Carol’s hair was starting to fall out. Fergus took her to the doctors the next day. They said she had Alopecia? It didn’t grow back for about a month. That’s all I can really think of though.” She looked at Corvus, and he had the widest smile on his face. His eyes were shining, with what could be unshed tears, but she couldn’t be sure from where she was sat. His demeanour suddenly shifted, and he was looking seriously into her eyes.
“I promise, that I will teach you everything I can about magic.”
“What if I can’t do magic though?”
“Then I will find away anyway.”
He was clearly so serious and dead set on this. She fully believed that she would be able to use magic, one way or another. It made something warm coil in her chest and stomach. “Uh, thank you.” She managed. He clearly saw the blush on her face, because his seriousness dropped and became playful again.
“My pleasure” he said with a wink. She just new she was blushing harder. She wasn’t even sure why she reacted like this to him. No one got under her skin like this. But there was something to him. Something magnetic and magical. He wasn’t just attractive, even though he was very attractive, with his messy black hair and emerald eyes that shone brighter than eyes had any right doing. He also screamed danger and protection at once. He was an enigma, and she was getting more and more drawn in by him.
It wasn’t long after that, that they arrived. The car park they left the car in was full of graffiti and litter. It didn’t seem like the sort of place Skulduggery would leave him beloved car. She would have spoken up, but both Corvus and Skulduggery seemed unconcerned. “So, what magic can you do, Mr Pleasant?”
“Skulduggery, please.”
“Skulduggery, can you show me some of your magic?”
“I...suppose.” and he held his gloved palm facing Stephanie. It took a second before water started to drip down her face. A moment later, her hair was drenched.
“How did you do that?”
“You tell me.”
She thought for a moment. “I dunno. Did you manipulate the moisture in the air?”
Skulduggery and Corvus both looked at her, impressed. “Very good.”
“So, what magic can you do? Because I doubt it’s just making water.”
Skulduggery responded by clicking his fingers and summoning a fireball in his hand, holding it close enough to Stephanie to dry her hair after a moment. Once she was dry, he launched the fireball into the air, where it rocked up a while before fizzing out. “I’m an Elemental. We have some control over the elements. Not enough to part the Red Sea, but we can do things like that.”
“So you can manipulate all the elements? What about earth and air?”
“Hopefully, you’ll never see earth. It’s purely defensive but with a massive cost. Air however,” he suddenly flex his palm at a low wall, the air warbled towards the low wall, where it exploded outwards. Next to her, Corvus sighed and clicked his fingers, and she watched the wall repair itself.
“Can we not cause property damage, outside of a fight? The place looks shit enough as it is.”
“But that was so cool.” She said in awe. “How long until I can do something like that?”
“When we have a bit of time? A few hours to do something weaker. At that strength? A good year of training at least.” Corvus said, tapping his chin. “I need to grab a few other books for you while we are here. I’ll meet you inside.” She watched, stunned as if form seemed to blur, before a small black fog formed around him. When it disappeared, there was a black crow in his place. She knew her jaw had dropped, as the crow let out a caw-like laugh, before it flew up to an open third floor window and went inside.
“He can turn into animals” she said, weakly.
“No. Just the crow. It’s his true animal form. You being a wizard might have one too. We will have to make a stop somewhere else before the night is over and get your potential tested. Now that, you will find cool.” Skulduggery said, humour lacing his voice.
They made their way inside the building and up the first few flights of stairs. There was a stark difference between the lower floors and the third. Below, the building was much like outside. Graffiti and litter everywhere and it just felt dirty and ran down. Up here, was clean and even the air felt lighter. They passed a few doors, until coming to one that had a sign for a Library. Skulduggery knocked on the door and an elderly, wiry man opened the door slightly. He looked at Stephanie, before looking back at Skulduggery. He nodded slightly, before opening the door further for them.
Walking inside, she could see that the library was more akin to a labyrinth. Shelves full of books and tomes where everywhere, seemingly without reason. She couldn’t see Corvus anywhere, but she could see a few people scattered about. Nearly all of them were reading, but most had masks or just looked off so she didn’t stray from Skulduggery’s side. He walked through the maze quickly, taking turns seemingly at random, before they came to a small clearing in the shelves. Sat in a regal chair, was the most beautiful woman Stephanie had ever seen. Time seemed to slow, as the woman just sat there reading. Each breath she took seemed to increase her beauty, until she finally looked up at them. She smiled and Stephanie felt herself grow very hot. She was gorgeous, and she felt like she would do anything this woman would ask. She knew she was blushing, and that her breathing was becoming slightly laboured, but she didn’t care. Because this goddess of a woman was right there. The woman opened her mouth to say something, when Corvus’ voice cut through the fog that had settled in her mind.
“Stop that.” He said. It was a simple two words. Suddenly, everything she had been feeling felt wrong and fake. The woman looked at Corvus almost apologetically. It was enough to realise that whatever she had been feeling must have been caused by this woman.
“I’m sorry, I was working with someone who needed a bit of persuasion.” She didn’t sound too sorry about it though.
Corvus shook his head and snorted. “You need to work on dialling it back when you’re done. I could feel it all the way from outside your window, as a bird.”
She actually flinched at that. It was barely there, and she would have missed it if she hadn’t been studying her so intently. When her magic dialled back, her beauty didn’t fade, but it did seem almost muted. As if she was trying to hide her presence in a crowd. It was a stark difference from the beacon of adoration she was before. “So, who’s this?” the lady said, glancing at Stephanie.
“A friend. I need teaching material and to find a focus crystal, if you have one. And Skul has some questions.” Corvus said.
“And you’re not going to introduce us?” She said with a smirk.
Corvus signed, but his eyes were playful. “This,” he said, gesturing to Stephanie, “is my friend. And that’s all you get for now” causing the woman to pout. “And this beautiful pain in the arse” gesturing to the lady, “is China Sorrows. She is possibly the most dangerous person you will ever meet. She has also, much to my unending suffering, earned the right to be my aunt.”
Stephanie was confused, but she assumed it was part of the story. China, however, looked a mix of proud and annoyed. “You’re going to ruin my reputation, spouting out sapping stuff like that.” She said, before moving over to Corvus and giving him a hug.
“You sound almost ashamed to be considered family.”
“Never. Now you can take one of my Elemental tomes. I have a few of those, just try to bring it back undamaged. And you’re in luck. I managed to procure a focus crystal for Kenspecle to examine. He wanted to try and recreate one. I assume you will visit there next?”
Corvus nodded. “Before the end of the night at least.”
“Alright. Now, Skulduggery.” She turned to look at the skeleton. Who had been silent this entire time. She didn’t notice it, but he had been studying her since she met China. “What can I help you with? You know I have passed everything I know already to Corvus.”
“Gordon’s house was broken into tonight. Was there anything, anything at all, that Gordon might have collected that they could be after?”
“Well, there were rumours that Serpine was asking about the sceptre. I personally think he’s just finally lost the plot.”
“But he seemed to think Gordon had it? But why wait until- ah.”
Stephanie felt her confusion rise. “What? What ah?”
“It wasn’t about stealing something Gordon had, but waiting until he was dead to claim it” Skulduggery explained. She looked at Corvus, he seemed to thinking about something. He had a frown on his face and his finger tapping on his chin.
“But why does that matter?” she asked.
This time, China spoke up. “Gordon was a collector, same as me. There are somethings, that are bound by the person who claimed them. Either making them inert on another’s hands, or impossible to steal. The bindings on break after the person is dead.”
“If you hear anything, can you let me know? Skulduggery asked.
“What do I get in return” China asked, a delicate eyebrow raised.
“My appreciation?”
“Tempting. It really is”
Corvus looked up a China, making himself look as innocent and young as possible. “Please, auntie China? For me?” even his emerald eyes seemed to sparkle, and Stephanie found herself enraptured by how bright they were in that moment.
China groaned quietly. “That really isn’t fair” she said, even as she pulled him into a tight embrace. “Fine, for you.”
All the put-upon innocence faded, and he seemed to look like a teenager again. “Thanks auntie!” He said brightly, before turning to Stephanie. “Come on, let’s walk down to the car and I’ll give you a brief rundown on what you’ll need to do when I start teaching you.” He grabbed her hand and started pulling her towards the exit of the library.
China followed them with her eyes as they left, a small smile on the lips. “He seems to be doing better.”
Skulduggery was also watching the two kids leave. “I know you know who she is. I’m trusting you this once with free information.”
China’s head snapped to his, “So this is important. Big important.”
“She could read Merlin’s book. She’s a wizard, like Harry. What we don’t know is how. We both know she didn’t travel from a different dimension. And I highly doubt any of her ancestors did either.”
China nodded in thought. “You’re right. And she can’t be a descendant of Merlin, from his notes, he only came here through a ritual, giving up his fertility to do so. It was a hefty price, but it made him a form of shunter.”
“Keep your ears open for anything that could explain it, please.”
“For Corvus? Anything.”
Skulduggery nodded, and finally followed after the two wizards. There were two massive mysteries in front of him, and he couldn’t help but feel like they were connected.
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It wasn’t long before they were all piled back into the Bentley, and on their way to their next destination. Corvus had explained to Stephanie, that they had to test her “potential” in magic. Apparently, it involved holding a crystal and willing it to activate. He wouldn’t elaborate further, saying the surprise would be worth it. He was incredibly excited to see what she would do best in. He could teach her basically anything to do with magic. Other than some sorcery magic, only because it was so obscure that he hadn’t found any books on some subjects. Other than that, he wanted her to use the focus orb so that she could get a feel for her magic. He wouldn’t let her use it other than the once. It would be too much of a crutch. He was snapped out of his planning when he heard Stephanie ask a question that had been at the back of his mind.
“So what’s this sceptre thing that China was going on about?” Corvus would have asked sooner, but he was too excited about having another wizard around. He hadn’t realised how alone he had felt, being the only wizard in this dimension. Now he just felt lighter, and he would do anything to protect her, if only not to feel so alone again.
“The Sceptre of the Ancients. It’s a legend, a myth. Supposedly it was used by one of the Ancients to rise up against the Fallen Ones. They were horrific gods that ravaged the Earth simply because they could. The Ancients, tired of being hunted and hiding from the Fallen Ones, crafted the ultimate weapon to fight back. After the gods were banished, the Ancients began turning the Sceptre on each other. The last Ancient, horrified by what they had done, through the Sceptre into the Earth, where it was swallowed up, never to be seen again.” Skulduggery answered, sceptical of his own words.
“So Serpine’s after this weapon?” Stephanie asked.
“It seems so, but he won’t get far. It doesn’t exist. A campfire story.”
“But he believes that Gordon had it anyway.”
“It would seem that way, yes.”
“But what I don’t get is why he wants it anyway. And just how bad is he anyway?”
“Serpine is very bad news. He was one of the top officers for the bad guys in the war. With Malevolent gone, some might consider him the bad guy. And he deserves the title. China is a collector of books, Gordon was a collector of artefacts and stories, but Serpine is a collector of magic. He will gladly torture and maim and kill anyone, if it meant learning some new form of magic. He either wants the Sceptre to study it, or to some how bring his gods back. I honestly couldn’t tell you which is worse, assuming the Fallen Ones are real. He was already dangerous enough, if we ever meet him, hide. Don’t let him point his red hand at you.”
“Why?”
“Either agonising torture until you die, or if he’s in a rush or feeling generous, instant death.”
“Ok, so he’s pretty bad, and if what he believes is true, this is all very bad. But what did all this have to do with my uncle?”
“We’re not sure,” Skulduggery admitted. “That’s why they call it a mystery.”
The whole time Stephanie and Skulduggery were talking, Corvus had been alert. He couldn’t be sure how, but he felt like they were being watched or followed. He hadn’t seen anything on the roads, so he had been sending out waves of magic, like a radar. It was a bit draining, but he felt safer for it. So when the cab of the car filled with light, he launched into action. He didn’t have time to save the whole car from being hit, but he was able to make a black, bubble-like shield, to cover both himself and the only other living passenger on board. He had to dive out of his seat towards Stephanie to cover her though. He couldn’t control gravity inside the shield however, so when something slammed into the Bentley at high speed, sending it flying, they were rocked and rolled inside the shield. They kept rolling for a few seconds, and when they finally stopped, Stephanie was on top of him, her face inches from his. If they weren’t in danger, he’d find this both hilarious and mortifying.
“Are you ok?” He asked. He wouldn’t drop the shield until he knew she was.
“Yeah, just a bit bruised I think.” She replied, and he let out a sigh of relief.
“I’m going to have to let this shield go, I’ve used far too much magic today to keep it going for much longer. When I do, run. Just run as far as you can and I’ll find you ok?”
She looked furious, “I’m not leaving you two!”
“I appreciate that, but you haven’t had a single lesson on magic yet and I’m not going to lose you before you can learn. So run, me and Skul can take him and then I will get you. I promise.”
She seemed to fight with herself, before letting out a sigh and nodding.
“Ok, on three. One...two...THREE!” instead of just releasing the shield, he shattered it into a concussive wave, aiming to send anyone nearby sprawling. He was glad he did. The man that had attacked Stephanie earlier had been sent flying, crashing in heap by his own car. After using his armour earlier, and that surprisingly draining shield, he was worn out. He would have to get creative with how he fought, or this would end badly for him. He scanned the area for Skulduggery, and saw him trapped in the now ruined Bentley. Shit. He was on his own then.
As the man was rising, Corvus pulled out his gun-foci, firing a shadow bullet into the man’s shoulder. The man yelped and staggered back from the damage. Whilst charging at the man, he fired a cutting charm at his leg, but the man managed to drive to the side. Corvus was surprised by the gun the man pulled out of seemingly nowhere, and quickly dived to the side to dodge the shot fired at him. He hadn’t expected this to turn into a gun fight!
Corvus started to fire multiple weak shadow bullets at the man, they weren’t strong enough to do any real damage, but it was enough to stagger or jolt him when he was lining up a shot. Making his way to cover behind a low wall as he fired, Corvus kept his eye open for anything he could use to help. Spying a broken bottle on the street near the man, he focus on transfiguring it into a snake. He saved some energy by making it more glass like, rather than a real snake. The glass snake slithered to the man silently, hidden from the man, as his focus was on firing at Corvus. Ducking behind the low wall, he heard the man roar in pain and the sound of glass smashing. Using the distraction, he quickly turned into a crow, and flew towards him, using any cover he could to keep hidden. Managing to get behind the man, he flew at top speed, transforming at the last second to aim a kick at the man’s head.
Unfortunately, he wasn’t falling for the same trick twice, and Corvus found his ankle being grabbed, and slammed into the ground hard. The man then stomped on his chest, winding him. Luckily, his shadow coat kept him from feeling most of the damage. The man then aimed his gun at Corvus’ head, but he quickly transfigured it into a metal snake, which coiled round his hand and crushed it in an iron like grip. The man screamed in pain as his hand and fingers were crushed, and then screamed louder as the metal snake bit down into his wrist. The transfiguration didn’t last long, as Corvus hadn’t focused much power into it, but it was enough for him to get up and start running in the opposite direction that he saw Stephanie run in. He was really cursing his earlier use of his shadow armour. He knew it was a draining technique, and to truly recover from it, he needed to sleep for at least 4 hours. It really was a once-a-day last resort move, but he was over confident in his ability to end the fight quickly.
He could hear the man chasing him with heavy, awkward steps. Well at least he had done some damage. Aiming for a narrow alley, he was surprised by running into Stephanie. She has a metal pipe in her hands, readying a swing. He would be mad, but he was too exhausted to worry about it right now. They could hear the man approaching the alley, and Stephanie swung as hard as she could. The pipe smacked him straight in the face. Blood flew from his clearly broken nose and Corvus fired a repulsion hex to launch the man back. He was seriously low on magic, so the spell wasn’t powerful enough to launch him more than a few feet.
Corvus grabbed Stephanie’s hand, and they ran away from the man, towards a bridge that crossed a river flowing through the town. As they were running, Corvus let go of Stephanie’s hand and started to slow. He finally had a plan, he just hoped it worked. The man was gaining on him, as he reached the bridge, Stephanie was already halfway across. He suddenly stopped and turned to face the man as he was grabbed, and fired a repulsion hex into the man’s side, sending them both off of the bridge. The man panicked and let go, whilst Corvus turned into a crow and flew back up to the bridge. He turned back into himself after landing on the bridge and looked over the side, confirming his suspicion.
The man had made himself immune to fire, which was an impressive feat. However, it came with one major drawback. The man had a major weakness to water. Normally, this wouldn’t be an issue. As long as he remained somewhat dry, either by wearing a raincoat in the rain, or taking showers and ensuring he kept some part of himself dry, the man would be fine. The issue became once he was fully submerged, for even a moment. Corvus watched as the man slowly dissolved in the water, as if it was a massive body of acid. It wasn’t the worst he had seen, hell, he had done worse himself. But it wasn’t a pretty fight.
He turned to Stephanie as she approached. “Is he gone?” She sounded exhausted, but she had done well and managed to help him when he needed it.
“Yeah. We won’t have to worry about that guy again. Come on, let’s get back to Skulduggery.” He said, and they slowly walked back to the car.