A/N: Be mad at me please. I very much deserve chastisement for, not only my late update, but for the fact the I promised an update, and never did it. As excuses go, I have none that can justify my laziness and or writers block.
Dedicated to all the people who commented telling me to get off my lazy arse and write. Thank you.
Enjoy (:
“This Opal Koboi character is quite the narcissist.”
Holly snickered at Artemis’s impeccable comment. He smiled shyly. It was the first time she had laughed from her heart in the six months he had been gone. They had sat there against the headboard of his king bed, and discussed the deranged pixie for an hour, as if they were talking business over afternoon tea. And then, he finally came the so obviously conclusion that Opal was nothing more than a spoiled, self-involved cowpog.
“Oh no,” she said, regaining her breath. “She’s so much more than that. She’s a…a…” She trailed off, shuffling through her vocabulary and trying to find a word degrading and insulting enough for Koboi.
“A bitch?” Artemis offered innocently. Holly stared, eyes wide with shock and surprise. The only thought in her mind was: Did that just come out of his mouth?
She burst out laughing again and the Irish teen couldn’t help but grin. He had only muttered the word under his breath during times of frustration and annoyance. Not once had he ever spoken it aloud, especially to a lady. However, he sensed that Captain Short didn’t care about his rude comment, whether it be the carefree persona or the more obvious laughter.
“What? She is just that with the way you have described her to me. Frankly, I feel very dishonored to have ever been in her company.”
Holly calmed down eventually and wiped her eyes. “I cannot believe you, of all people, said that.” She giggled quietly. Soon, she was able to look the boy in the eye again. She smiled at him and took a moment to appreciate his bright blue irises. “So Mud Boy, any bells ringing in that special brain of yours?”
Artemis’s playfulness suddenly disappeared and was replaced with a lost expression. For a moment, he had to process exactly what he was feeling and what he did remember. Some were there and others were not. “Well, I feel them, the memories. I know that they are missing, but after hearing you relay the events of our adventures, I feel the void filling. But there is a gap. I feel it may be just a small little thing that was left out.” He sighed. “I’m not sure. Maybe with time it will start to feel more complete. This has never happened before, correct? I am the first?”
The elf nodded. Foaly had told her that tiny, miniscule details would not be very important, such as the color of the floor, or the exact painting on the wall at that moment. He said that with time, Artemis should be able to remember those things on his own. All she had to worry about were the major events and details such as locations, missions, and the people with them.
Maybe there was a small detail that was important to him, she thought.
Or you wasted thirteen hours of your life, another side of her complained. On the inside, she groaned.
On the outside, she exhaled and crawled across until she was directly in front of the teen. She decided to question him. “Do you think there is a specific event that isn’t complete?”
He thought for a moment. “I feel the gap is somewhere between saving the demons and before getting the um...what did you call it? The Atlantis Complex?”
“So possibly when we traveled back in time?” She inferred. Artemis nodded.
What could she have left out? She spoke of his mother becoming deathly ill with a fairy disease and that the only cure was the brain fluid of the silky sifaka lemur, which he had killed. She even mentioned the parts about going into the time stream in their underwear and allowing her to speak to her Commander one last time.
Then it hit her. D’Arvit.
She didn’t think the kiss would be a detail that was important to him.
“In Rathdown Park, in the gorilla cage. After I saved you, I became overwhelmed with the mixed feelings of magic and happiness knowing that you were alive and I may have…kissed you…”
Artemis looked stunned for a moment. He stared at Holly as if she was speaking gibberish; to him that’s what it was. No one had ever kissed him, as he was not the type for romance. Imagine, Artemis Fowl the Second kissing a girl. This is ridiculous, he thought.
But then he gave the thought a moment to process.
It was like placing the last piece in a jigsaw puzzle and looking down to see the whole picture. Memories came rushing in from the left and right, from above and under, and from directions Artemis was sure didn’t even exist. Everything somehow made sense with that one detail. The sudden wave of remembrance caused his head to throb with pain. He clutched the sides of his head and moaned quietly, eyes shut tight. Holly immediately grasped his shoulders, concern etched into her face.
“Artemis!” she exclaimed. “Artemis, what’s wrong?” She studied him closely. Could he be remembering?
The room was quiet. The only sound was the teen’s heavy breathing as he tried to process what was happening in his mind. Holly cautiously moved to his side and rubbed small circles on his back, trying to calm him. Whatever was happening needed to happen and there was no way either of them could stop it.
Suddenly, the Captain found herself on her back, arms wrapped tightly around her.
“Oh Holly!” Artemis was…crying? She gently pushed him off and he supported himself on his elbows. Sure enough, a few tears were running down his cheeks. They fell onto Holly’s uniform. “Did you read my letter?” His voice trembled as his bright blue eyes locked onto hers. In there, she saw sadness, joy, and worry mingling.
She smiled softly, trying to keep her own tears at bay. “I did. And I love you too.” The words were out of her mouth before she even had a chance to think about saying them. Her mismatched eyes widened in worry, but it quickly vanished as she saw the small smile playing on Arty’s lips. It was a smile she had never seen him do. This one was caring and loving, and it reached his eyes.
Holly noticed that he moved a few centimeters closer to her face, but he pulled back. Using what little strength he had, Artemis pulled Holly into a sitting position. She was the first to break the eye contact and silence.
“I have something that belongs to you. I want you to have it back now that you’re, um, alive.” She undid the clasp on the necklace he had given her. He looked down at the pendant, the smile never leaving his lips. She reached around his neck and secured the necklace, grinning.
“Thank you.”
“You know, if it wasn’t for you, that necklace would not have even existed.”
“Well,” Artemis’s smile turned playful again. “If it were not for you losing your trigger finger, there would be no reason for this necklace to exist.”
Holly chuckled. “And it’s my fault I lost my finger? I think this leads back to you Mud Boy.”
He put his hands up in defeat. “Okay, you got me. The whole thing was my fault.” They smiled fondly at each other, and then it was quiet again.
Holly decided she did not mind the silence. It gave her time to think about what was really going on. So they...loved each other?
Maybe he only loves you as a friend should love a friend, her subconscious spoke.
Or, her other side piped in. He love loves you.
She sighed and glanced out the window at the Irish landscape, attempting to clear her thoughts. You two need to make up your minds, or rather, my mind. It is not healthy to have conversations with myself! When she looked back at Artemis, she immediately recognized the look on his face. That was his thinking face. She briefly wondered if he was having the same internal struggle as she was. But that thought, along with all others, were quickly abandoned as his lips crashed into hers.
Her mixed eyes widened again in shock and surprise, but his were firmly shut. His lips were soft and gentle as the moved against hers, and Holly soon found her eyes fluttering shut. Her lips moved with his.
Artemis did not have words or thoughts. After what was a very similar internal struggle to that of the fairy, he decided to take the risk. Though later he would see that talking could have been a safer way to sort and discuss feelings, he would not regret kissing Holly Short. Her lips were soft and smooth, as he remembered them. They tasted of strawberries, so sweet. Artemis found he was beguiled by this elf. When she began kissing him back, he tentatively ran his hands up her slim arms and buried them in her hair, deepening their kiss.
Then there was a knock at the door.
They jumped away from each other, faces flushed and breathing heavy. When Butler walked into the room, Holly hid her face like a guilty child. Artemis blushed.
The bodyguard gave his principal an amused look. “Artemis, dinner is ready. Are you okay to come downstairs or would like me to bring food up here so you can rest more?” Butler tried to stifle a smirk.
Artemis took a moment to catch his breath. He glanced at Holly, who currently was hiding underneath a mountain of pillows, and replied. “We will come downstairs. Mother is probably anxious.” The Eurasian man nodded and left the room, forgetting to shut the door behind him. “You may come out from under there now. He is gone.”
Holly’s auburn hair and a single hazel eye peeked out from behind the pillows. After confirming that the intruder was no longer in the room, she emerged. She turned to him and the eye contact was all it took to get them laughing.
A/N: All for now guys. I’ve had really bad writers block for five-ever. I hope this satisfies for now. More to come later.