"I can't believe you're making me watch Titanic with you again," Skulduggery grumbled. "Especially if you're going to cry,"

"Just shut up," Valkyrie slapped his arm.

"Couldn't you ask Tanith or Fletcher or someone else to watch it with you? Why is it always me?"

"Tanith's with Ghastly," Valkyrie rolled her eyes. "You can ask her if you want to, but she'll probably beat you up. And Fletcher is just annoying,"

"If he's so annoying why is he your boyfriend?" Skulduggery teased.

"He is not my boyfriend!" Valkyrie glared at him. "I broke up with him ages ago!"

"Three months is not 'ages'…"

"Stuff your smart-ass-ness," Valkyrie crossed her arms in front of her chest and turned back to the sinking ship on the TV screen.

Although he would never admit it, Skulduggery did not understand her. Sometimes she flirted with him and sometimes she was so moody and anything he said would make her mad.

But then again, Skulduggery never really understood women.

She's a woman, Skulduggery mused absentmindedly, looking at Valkyrie. She wasn't that twelve year old who somehow stumbled into his care. He found his eyes lingering on her face, her hair, her body.

He shook his skull; he shouldn't be having thoughts like these about Valkyrie. She was his student, his partner and best friend.

Presently, Valkyrie whimpered a "Nooooo," and tears started gathering in her eyes. Sighing to himself, Skulduggery put an arm around her shoulders and hugged her. Then he handed her the box of tissues.

That was something else he didn't get about Valkyrie. She was always watching Titanic and she cried every single time, but that didn't stop her from watching it. Sometimes, Skulduggery seriously thought she liked inflicting pain and sadness on herself.

"Dammit, Rose, let Jack get on the board," Valkyrie muttered. "You know," she said, now at Skulduggery. "There's plenty of room on that board for both of them. She should move over and he wouldn't die,"

"I know," Skulduggery wiped away a tear on her face with a tissue. Valkyrie cuddled into Skulduggery, an arm casually resting across his torso.

"What would you do if you were Rose?" he asked offhandedly.

She looked at him for a while, her expression soft. "I'd jump into the water and make sure he gets onto that board." She whispered, completely sincere.

"What if you die?" Skulduggery murmured, now serious.

"Oh God this sounds so cheesy," she muttered under her breath, biting her bottom lip. Her face flushed with a light pink tinge as she answered. "I would sacrifice my life for the ones I love," she looked down at her lap, embarrassed.

She wiped her tears with a tissue as Jack's body slowly sunk to the bottom of the sea. "Rose you idiot…" she whimpered.

Skulduggery stared at her for a few moments incredulously. He would never, ever understand what was going on in her mind. But that was part of what he loved about her. He could never predict what she was doing next and he loved the surprise.

"Why are you staring at me?" Valkyrie gave him a weird, slightly creeped-out look.

"Valkyrie, why do you like Titanic so much?" he asked out of sheer curiosity.

She hesitated. "I don't know, I guess it's kind of like a guilty pleasure thing, you know?" She looked at him. Then she sighed. "You probably won't understand, you don't even have a guilty pleasure."

"Yes I do,"

"Oh yeah?" she raised an eyebrow incredulously.

"You, Valkyrie Cain," he murmured, his eye sockets looking into her dark eyes. "You're my guilty pleasure,"

She blushed a delicate shade of light pink, but she returned his intent gaze into her eyes.  His face was an inch from her's. He could feel her breath fan across his face. Then her lips touched his teeth in a kiss and he kissed her back as gently as he could.

It was sweet, short, and innocent, and it felt as right as crying while watching Titanic. Which is to say, extremely right.

"Skulduggery Pleasant," she said with a sweet smile as she broke the kiss. "You're my guilty pleasure, too,"