Groom him. Right. Groom an Archangel. That wasn't exactly the first thing Skulduggery would have expected to leave the Professor's mouth, when he got handed a cloth and a holy-water based poultice. What he would have expected, he had no idea, but that definitely wasn't it. Medical jargon, or another barked insult. Not a command that might have been applied to a professional pet handler.
'Groom you?' Skulduggery repeated silently to Gabe, bewildered. He almost chalked this up to another petty attempt of Professor Grouse to embarrass him, like the pink hospital gown with small elephants on it. But Gabe spoke up a moment later to confirm it, and Skulduggery's bewilderment only grew. It helped a little that Fletcher looked just as confused, although his reasons might have been very different.
'It may surprise you to hear this,' Skulduggery tried explaining, more bemused than bewildered now, 'but I've never really groomed anything before. Dogs never seem to take me seriously. They keep trying to pull off my legs and bury them.'
~~
China didn't try to stop Solomon from leaving. She found, when he stood up, that she very suddenly and violently did not want to be alone. Suddenly, every fiber of her being wanted to leap up and invite him to stay, make him tea, tell him everything. Tell him about Vile, and who Vile was, what she'd seen, what Solomon had undoubtedly seen when he encountered the Archangel. Her world was falling apart, and somehow, the only company she wanted was the company of another man whose world was falling apart.
But, with immense difficulty, she pulled herself together. The magic surrounding her promise to the Archangel pulsed gently under her gut reaction, and China used that as a crutch; raised herself up to the point where she could simply smile at Solomon. It was an empty smile, but a smile nonetheless. "Of course. Take care."
She waited until Solomon was almost at the door, and then she did get to her feet. If China was going to keep getting handed second chances for the rest of her life, she may as well start using some of them now. "Solomon, I owe you an apology from earlier today. I confess, I didn't believe a word of what you were saying. I find myself in the unique position of having to eat my words, and..." She hesitated, but the phrase came out much more easily than she thought it would. "I'm sorry."
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'Groom you?' Skulduggery repeated silently to Gabe, bewildered. He almost chalked this up to another petty attempt of Professor Grouse to embarrass him, like the pink hospital gown with small elephants on it. But Gabe spoke up a moment later to confirm it, and Skulduggery's bewilderment only grew. It helped a little that Fletcher looked just as confused, although his reasons might have been very different.
'It may surprise you to hear this,' Skulduggery tried explaining, more bemused than bewildered now, 'but I've never really groomed anything before. Dogs never seem to take me seriously. They keep trying to pull off my legs and bury them.'
~~
China didn't try to stop Solomon from leaving. She found, when he stood up, that she very suddenly and violently did not want to be alone. Suddenly, every fiber of her being wanted to leap up and invite him to stay, make him tea, tell him everything. Tell him about Vile, and who Vile was, what she'd seen, what Solomon had undoubtedly seen when he encountered the Archangel. Her world was falling apart, and somehow, the only company she wanted was the company of another man whose world was falling apart.
But, with immense difficulty, she pulled herself together. The magic surrounding her promise to the Archangel pulsed gently under her gut reaction, and China used that as a crutch; raised herself up to the point where she could simply smile at Solomon. It was an empty smile, but a smile nonetheless. "Of course. Take care."
She waited until Solomon was almost at the door, and then she did get to her feet. If China was going to keep getting handed second chances for the rest of her life, she may as well start using some of them now. "Solomon, I owe you an apology from earlier today. I confess, I didn't believe a word of what you were saying. I find myself in the unique position of having to eat my words, and..." She hesitated, but the phrase came out much more easily than she thought it would. "I'm sorry."