With the effects of the taint practically gone, and his magic completely out of reach, Skulduggery was one of the very few people genuinely enjoying himself. He would have liked access to his Elemental powers, of course, but that was a price he was willing to pay for the guarantee he wouldn't be able to use the darker aspects of his magic. He left the suite, looked up to see the sun shining, and for the first time all month, he was happy to be alive.

The same couldn't be said for many of the people he knew, and so Skulduggery went to the Hotel first. It occurred to him briefly while he was walking that this would be his first time alone with Anton Shudder since their last private conversation, and while the thought brought some measure of trepidation along with it, it wasn't enough to stop Skulduggery from pushing open the door and walking in.

He took in the damage with a glance, and didn't stop. "Anton?" He paused at the doorway between the lobby and the common room, reveling perhaps a little too much in finally being able to put mental puzzles together again. He could pick out exactly how the battle which caused the damage had gone, and that was an ability Skulduggery had sorely missed while he was incapacitated. "Anton? Are you dead?"