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It was time to stop hiding. That didn't mean she was going to fully integrate herself into island society again. She still wasn't going to go to her dance classes, especially not with Percy there, but she had decided to go ahead and live in her own place again. As grateful as she was to Charlie and Edmund for letting her crash at their place, she wanted to be back home.

She had left notes in the mailboxes of everyone that had gone home with everyone. They simply said I'm sorry. -Valkyrie

She wasn't sure what could be said beyond that. She hated herself for what she had done to them, even if becoming Darquesse had been to save them. In the end, she hadn't been strong enough to save her friends, not from herself. Not only that, but each time she became Darquesse, it was harder and harder to find her way back. If it hadn't been for the ending of the dream, she wasn't sure if she would have come back from that.

Then there was the fact that all of her closest friends now knew her secret. It wouldn't have been so bad except that her secret was that she had the potential to become some sort of crazy-powerful nut job without any conscience. Go her.

Sighing, Valkyrie curled up on her couch and hugged her knees to her chest. She'd just sit here for a while and try not to obsess over what happened. Later, much, much later tonight she would head to the ring and take out some anger on one of the bags and maybe go for a run along the beach.

[This can be set for any time between the 1st of June and now.]

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Valkyrie was torn about wanting to see Jess again. On one hand, Jessica was awesome and a great friend and person and someone she could probably talk about this with and be happy with. On the other hand, she had totally gone all Dark Side on her friends and really hurt them, mentally and physically. So there was that.

"Oh good," Valkyrie called, getting up off the couch and heading to the door. Opening it, she gave her best effort for a smile. "Do you have any gifts that say 'I'm sorry for sucking you into my zombie apocalypse dream and turning super evil?' Because... I could really use some gifts like that right now."

"I'm sure we can work out a gift basket," I say, tossing her a slightly-awkward but slightly relieved smile in return. She's answering her door and trying for levity, I take these as pretty good signs. "You can never go wrong with muffins and chocolate. It's really not necessary, though."

I pause. "...although now I wish I'd brought muffins."

Valkyrie was appreciative of the smile. Jessica had a great smile and even if it wasn't a full on beaming grin, it wasn't entirely forced.

"I'm pretty sure I'm the one that should be giving you gifts for what I put you through," she said, moving aside to let the other girl in.

"It's really not necessary," I say, shaking my head as I step inside. "I don't think you should beat yourself up about any of that."

I wince, again. That might be a poor choice of words. No, it's a common turn of phrase, it's fine. Just because there was beating up and multiple selves, it doesn't make that a weird thing to say. I hope.

"I mean, I say that knowing that saying that probably won't make it not happen or anything. But I don't blame you."

"I know. I mean, I know in the way that if our situations were reversed, I'd be telling you the same thing."

But that only helps so much because there were so many "I should haves" running through her head that it seemed like there were a dozen times she could or should have avoided becoming Darquesse.

"But I should have been able to keep that from happening. It's not like I shouldn't have been able to do that stuff without becoming like that. And I should have told you guys before so that you could be ready to get away. Of course, you're all so stupidly wonderful you probably wouldn't have run off."

I find a piece of furniture to perch on while I mull this over. I've mulled it for a while already, but it's the kind of thing that lends itself to mulling.

"I think I'd swap that around and say 'wonderfully stupid.' We knew it was a weird coma dream, and yet, our reaction to you going -- I'm not sure of the best way to put this -- kind of... Mr Hyde, there, is to try and beat you up? Maybe we should have waited it out, and instead, we went ahead and made sure you'd have lots of great vacation memories of doing... all that."

There is that concern that she'd have woken up still as Darquesse, but we didn't exactly solve that in the moment, did we? And if she had, she'd have been the depowered version, I'd have my gadgets, and we could bundle her up and take her to the probably-surprisingly-qualified-in-this-kind-of-thing psych staff.

"I probably would have done the same thing. And it's not like I warned you it could happen or how to bring me out of it."

Of course, at this point she wasn't sure she could be brought out of it again if it happened. Each time it was harder and harder, and the last time it happened only Skulduggery had saved her. Maybe all of her friends working together could have done it.

"Telling people I'm supposed to destroy the world in the future isn't something I really talk about much though. Sort of a bad habit from home."

"Kind of a tough one to know when to drop into the conversation," I say. It's part of why I keep my own stuff under wraps, mostly. In addition to the parts of it which make the secrecy advisable. "'Hey, I just met you, and my dark side's crazy, her name's Darquesse and she'll destroy the world maybe?'"

That's kind of from a song. The jukebox has been playing that one a lot, it's been getting stuck in my head a little. Possibly... not entirely appropriate to be modifying song lyrics right now. I do have a bad habit of that.

"Um. But, so... that's a thing? Is it in some wizarding scrolls or something?"

Valkyrie let out a little laugh at that. Jessica was probably the most clever person she knew after herself and Skulduggery and she only included herself in there because she was vain like that.

"It's hard to look right at you baby, but I'm all sane now, so call me Valkyrie?"

Okay, not as clever as Jessica's line, but not bad for coming up with it on the spot. Plus, that stupid song had been running through my head ever since I first heard it.

"But pretty much every medium and fortune teller and anyone with any talent at reading the future has been freaking out about this Darquesse person destroying the world. I even saw one of the visions and I watched my parents die. Then I found out my true name and it was Darquesse. I've sort of been keeping that under wraps but nothing I've done yet has changed the visions."

I flash her a grateful grin, for letting me know that my default reaction of throwing bad jokes into the mix isn't offensive. It's not that I want to undermine the gravity of the issue under discussion, it's that discussing it solely in grim and horrified tones seems unhelpful and maybe even counter-productive.

"But visions can be changed," I say. Once again, I'm working on a limited understanding of the workings of magic, but if she's been trying, there must be a way to do it. That's good. That's hope. "That- I'm sorry you had to see that. But -- I'm not a fan of predestination -- there must be some way to change it, you just haven't found it yet. You will. That's probably what everyone says, but- I'm not just saying it. You walked into a group pf ravenous zombies, that takes strength of will, you know? You can show those vision-havers what's what."

Valkyrie was glad for the smile, and not just because Jessica had a pretty one. If they could make jokes and smile about this then maybe it would be okay. Of course, the only that was really making a big deal out of it was Valkyrie, but it wasn't like she could just blow it off, not after what she had done.

"They can be," Valkyrie said with a nod. At least she would change hers. "They're just possibilities of what could happen. But right now, no one is seeing possibilities of happy endings. The whole magical world is sort of hunting for me so they can kill me."

"Yeah, back you into a corner, that's not going to bring out the emergency dark half, nossir," I grumble, shaking my head. "That can't be fun. Any of that. Do they know the person they're looking for- you know what, I've heard the explanation and the arguments, I'm still not calling her you."

I don't know what pronoun to apply to it, but I know it's not that one.

"My partner knows that I'm Darquesse and he's not telling."

Skulduggery would keep her secret to the grave. Or, you know, just keep hanging onto it during his immortal life as a living skeleton, which was just as secure as far as she was concerned.

"Then there's my best friend. Or former best friend. She was possessed by a Remnant, which is like a demon. Oh, also apparently I'm the savior of these Remnants which is totally not something I want on my resume."

"That's kind of one of those entries you rewrite," I agree, squinting at the ceiling. "'Valued as a leader even by hostile elements.'"

This is kind of a trip. She's sort of a supervillain. And it's not that I don't like punching supervillains, I'm by no means a pacifist, but I certainly don't want to punch Valkyrie -- kind of leaning towards the opposite -- and if there's ever a case for trying to unvillain the supervillain, it's here. She doesn't want to be that. I don't know how the heck to figure a way to stop it, when it will only happen if she goes back home, but that's not going to keep the problem from nagging at me.

Doc Connors didn't turn out so well. I'd like this one to.

"Anyway, it's good you don't have all of that coming directly down on you. Gives you time to do... I'm not sure. But there'll be something. There's no fate but what you make." I pause a beat. "I stole that from the Terminator movies but I think it applies."

"I think it fits. I've already gone through some... pretty horrific stuff to prevent it all from happening. Just nothing has worked yet. But I'll find something that does. I didn't save the world all those times just so I could destroy it. Plus, that would totally be evil."

Valkyrie was sure that she would be able to find away. Failure in that area was not an option. She and Skulduggery would find a way to make it happen.

"Speaking of saving things, I saw you go totally ninja back in the dream, attacking Cass."

Insufficiently ninja, if you ask me. I need more practice at fighting sans super powers. Maybe I rely on gadgets too much in their absence, and clearly I'm not always going to have those with me. I'll redouble my efforts.

Might have to do better at keeping the skillset under wraps, too, although it was pretty avoidable, there. I have a mixed reaction to her having seen and remembering having seen on waking. I'm a little alarmed at how many people know, but at the same time, having Valkyrie know is kind of a relief. I don't feel intensely against it. Might even like it a bit.

Which is why I stop the, "Who, m-" that I start saying partway through the sentence. Plus, no real way around it. "-yeah, that's not gonna work, huh. So, um, I may have... misrepresented the amount of costumed crimefighting in my life?"

Wow. That was... not one of the things that Valkyrie was expecting to hear. She tried to picture Jess as a superhero but she sort of got stuck at the part where she wore a skintight costume. Maybe it was more like a suit of robot armor or something. She wouldn't be surprised if her friend could build something like that.

"Well, you never really said how much you did or didn't do. But let me get this straight... not only are you brilliant, funny, kind, clever and gorgeous but you're also a superhero? That is... really intimidating."

I get steadily redder as the sentence progresses. It's a nice list to have made about you, and I have to take a moment, because the idea of intimidating someone -- whilst not wearing a full face mask, mind -- is sort of alien, let alone Valkyrie, because let's face it there's a list to be assembled there, too.

"Jeez, Cain, talk a girl up, why don't you," I say, absently pushing my hair back with one hand and looking away and then back again when I think the blush situation is a tad more under control. "I'd put 'not' and 'enough' around most of those items, personally. I don't think I succeed at any of that as much as I should, so, I shouldn't be intimidating anyone." I pause, then shoot her a mischievous smile. "I mean, I'll take gorgeous, though, I don't know that I have a use for that I'm failing at."

The blushing was adorable and Valkyrie filed it away under "things to make Jessica do in the future because it's super adorable." It also made Valkyrie feel like she wasn't babbling off compliments like some sort of idiot. Next time she was going to have to add 'humble' to that list of Jessica's qualities though.

"I'll right, you can have gorgeous then. But I'm going to make you take brilliant and clever, because I really like that about you."

I make a slight pbbt noise through my lips and make a comical, joking show of rolling my eyes. "I guess I have to take it then. No, I'll trade you, I'll only accept if you take a few out of..." I squint at her, as if deciphering what to offer, "brave, charming, witty, ravishing. Any of those."

"That hardly seems fair since I haven't even begun to ravish you yet," Valkyrie said, giving an exaggerated waggle of her eyebrows. There was an unmistakable rush though at the compliments and flirting. At least she hoped it was flirting.

"Besides, those are four things and I'm greedy enough to take all four and if I take four, you have to take four."

My eyebrows start to go up, but then at the exaggerated waggle of hers I just crack up, snorting a little. This is somewhat less drama-filled than I'd anticipated, and I am a fan. "Three, if ravishing is on layaway. ...I really hope they call it that in Ireland, otherwise that probably sounded weird and more suggestive than anticipated." Maybe I should have said 'on hold.'

"Well yeah, it means eventually you're going to sleep with that person," Valkyrie said with a nod. If there was one thing she was good at, it was being able to say just about anything with a straight place.

"Wait, you mean you're not being suggestive?"

This time my eyebrows do go up, before I squint at her in a show of suspicion over what I am mostly sure is her blatantly joking. "You're as shifty as you are saucy, young lady, and you are certainly saucy. I was being, like, ten percent suggestive."

"Anywhere from ten to twenty-five percent suggestiveness would have been acceptable," Valkyrie said with a nod, glad that Jessica had caught on to her joking. She was also rather pleased at being called saucy.

"Look, I know we just had a 'I'm sorry I went evil and tried to mess with your mind' talk but... I really like you, Jessica. Have I lost all chances at going on that science experiment date with you?"