Duskynite: Just finished reading' The Eternity Code'. Does anyone know if
there's another coming out? Oh yes, this is my first Artemis Fowl fic.
Disclaimer: I do NOT own Artemis Fowl or any of the characters. I do own Aunt Katherine, Uncle Joseph, Ryu Koanoshi, and Demeter.
Chapter One: Family Ties
"You would think," Artemis grumbled, sagging unceremoniously into his chair, "that a mastermind such as I would be able to figure out a way out of this..this...atrocity!"
"Since when is family an atrocity?" Butler asked mildly from his position at the door. His age progression had not in any way dampened his determination to protect his Principal and friend. His eyes kept a sharp lookout for anything unusual lurking the grounds of the Fowl Manor.
"It always has been," Artemis replied bluntly, switching on his computer and going through some files, never opening them. Butler glanced over his Principal's shoulder and frowned.
"You're doing it again."
"I know, I know!" Artemis clunked his head on the keyboard-another thing very unlike him- and sighed. "I feel like I should know something, should remember it. There was once something on this computer-very important, Butler, very important. But WHAT?"
Butler sighed and shook his head sadly. His young master had been plagued by recurring bouts of what the young genius had called 'stimulated recall'-but none of them had ever made sense. Something about fairies, and trolls. Nothing real, which aggravated Artemis to no end. He liked things he could understand and THIS was not something he understood.
"Any word on Juliet?" Artemis asked finally, referring to his bodyguard's younger sister. Butler smiled proudly.
"The Jade Princess is doing wonderfully, and she has finally started using her email to let me know how she is." Artemis laughed at this statement. After Juliet had gone to try out for a wrestling team under the stage name Jade Princess, Butler had gone just about insane with worry, watching the horribly graphic fights on T.V. To save both of his friends too much worry and anxiety, Artemis had given Juliet a laptop with wireless internet, making her swear to email either Butler or himself at least once every other day. She had been doing so, religiously, for nearly six weeks.
"Excellent, excellent." Artemis smiled, then frowned as he glared at a picture on the table. Butler followed his gaze and sighed.
"May I ask WHY you detest your cousin so much?"
"Because, I do." was the uncharacteristically childish reply. Artemis turned the portrait to the side, blocking the faces with the glare from the window. Butler picked the picture up and studied it.
There were Artemis Fowl I and his wife, Angeline-Artemis's parents- and there was Artemis himself-a pale, blond child, maybe nine at the time of the picture's taking. With the Fowls were another family. A man with dark hair, black eyes and a goatee, with his arm around a woman with auburn hair, gray eyes, and a very serious face. Between them, smiling shyly at the camera-the ONLY one smiling at the camera- was a little girl about Artemis's age, with auburn hair and black eyes. Butler rose an eyebrow.
"She looks quite harmless, you know. Very innocent."
"That's the problem. You'd think she was an alien, being born into a criminal empire as great as ours!" Artemis looked around the room with pride. Though his father had sworn to go straight after his release from the hospital, Artemis had been keeping up some small operations under the law. They reaped their benefits, while still-in a way- helping the rest of the world. But Artemis refused to go completely straight-it wasn't half as exciting to be entirely noble.
"Arty!" Angeline called from the base of the large, sweeping staircase. "Please come down, darling! Your aunt and uncle are here!"
"Show time," Butler said, putting the picture back and straightening his tie, reassuming the expressionless, professional look of the bodyguard. Artemis grunted and strode out of the study.
"Aunt Katherine, Uncle Joseph," he nodded formally to his relatives as he descended the stairway. Katherine, her hair pulled neatly back in a bun, nodded back. Joseph had his back to his nephew, trying to coax something-someone in through the door.
"Come, now, sweetheart, come say hello to your cousin."
"Why?" Was the muffled retort. Artemis cringed at the voice. Joseph sighed and nodded to the burly man beside him. A minute later, the man came in, a thirteen year old girl under one arm. She glared sourly at her father as the man-her bodyguard, obviously- set her down
"You'll have to pardon Demeter," Katherine sighed, putting a hand on her daughter's head. "She's been a bit tempermental lately."
"You speak as if I were a horse," Demeter muttered, glaring at Artemis. "Hello, Artemis."
"Demeter," Artemis nodded stiffly to the girl. At their sides, the two children's bodyguards sized each other up. Finally, Demeter's bodyguard held out a hand cordially.
"Butler, I presume?"
Butler nodded, taking the hand and looking the other man in the eye.
"Yes. Ryu Koanoshi, am I right?"
"That's me."
"At least somebody is getting along," Angeline chuckled, patting Artemis on the shoulder. Katherine nodded in agreement and pushed Demeter towards her cousin.
"Arty, be a dear and show Demeter to her rooms, please."
"Yes, Mother," Artemis replied, jerking his head towards the stairs and marching up, assuming Demeter would follow. He heard her footsteps lightly tapping behind him, followed by the heavier footfalls of their guardians.
"How have you been?" She asked finally.
"As good as can be expected of someone of my intelligence. Yourself?"
"Oh, good."
Artemis turned at the vague answer, his blue eyes boring into the gray ones of his cousin.
"Could you elaborate on that?"
"Should I?" Demeter smirked, something Artemis didn't think he had ever seen her do. He rose an eyebrow skeptically.
"You have changed since we last met."
"As have you." The girl crossed her arms and planted herself firmly on the floor. Artemis glanced over her shoulder at Butler, who immediately took place behind his Principal, looking at Ryu, surprised.
"I have a question for you, cousin," Demeter said in a quiet voice. "I expect you to answer, to."
"Since when to you stand up to me?" Artemis snorted, remembering how she had hidden from him as a child, terrified of his vampire-like ways.
"Since I hacked in to your computer a few years ago." Demeter's smile widened a little. "I found some very interesting files. A diary, even. Very, very interesting, Cousin. Now, tell me- does the word LEP mean anything to you?"
"LEP?" Artemis's throat went dry, his brain kicking into overdrive.
'LEP...Short...Mulch...People...Haven..'
Demeter nodded at her cousin's bewildered, almost frightened face, and put a hand on his shoulder. It wasn't her nature to be cruel-she left that to her mother's brother's family, these Fowls. She, on the other hand, was much more partial to being decent to everybody, including this crazy genius cousin of hers.
"It's alright, Artemis. They deleted everything and wiped your memory."
"They?"
"Yes. They." Demeter smiled and held up a disk. "I have some stuff to show you, if you don't mind me using your computer. It'll come in handy, because some friends of yours are in very deep trouble and I think you might be the only one who can save them."
Disclaimer: I do NOT own Artemis Fowl or any of the characters. I do own Aunt Katherine, Uncle Joseph, Ryu Koanoshi, and Demeter.
Chapter One: Family Ties
"You would think," Artemis grumbled, sagging unceremoniously into his chair, "that a mastermind such as I would be able to figure out a way out of this..this...atrocity!"
"Since when is family an atrocity?" Butler asked mildly from his position at the door. His age progression had not in any way dampened his determination to protect his Principal and friend. His eyes kept a sharp lookout for anything unusual lurking the grounds of the Fowl Manor.
"It always has been," Artemis replied bluntly, switching on his computer and going through some files, never opening them. Butler glanced over his Principal's shoulder and frowned.
"You're doing it again."
"I know, I know!" Artemis clunked his head on the keyboard-another thing very unlike him- and sighed. "I feel like I should know something, should remember it. There was once something on this computer-very important, Butler, very important. But WHAT?"
Butler sighed and shook his head sadly. His young master had been plagued by recurring bouts of what the young genius had called 'stimulated recall'-but none of them had ever made sense. Something about fairies, and trolls. Nothing real, which aggravated Artemis to no end. He liked things he could understand and THIS was not something he understood.
"Any word on Juliet?" Artemis asked finally, referring to his bodyguard's younger sister. Butler smiled proudly.
"The Jade Princess is doing wonderfully, and she has finally started using her email to let me know how she is." Artemis laughed at this statement. After Juliet had gone to try out for a wrestling team under the stage name Jade Princess, Butler had gone just about insane with worry, watching the horribly graphic fights on T.V. To save both of his friends too much worry and anxiety, Artemis had given Juliet a laptop with wireless internet, making her swear to email either Butler or himself at least once every other day. She had been doing so, religiously, for nearly six weeks.
"Excellent, excellent." Artemis smiled, then frowned as he glared at a picture on the table. Butler followed his gaze and sighed.
"May I ask WHY you detest your cousin so much?"
"Because, I do." was the uncharacteristically childish reply. Artemis turned the portrait to the side, blocking the faces with the glare from the window. Butler picked the picture up and studied it.
There were Artemis Fowl I and his wife, Angeline-Artemis's parents- and there was Artemis himself-a pale, blond child, maybe nine at the time of the picture's taking. With the Fowls were another family. A man with dark hair, black eyes and a goatee, with his arm around a woman with auburn hair, gray eyes, and a very serious face. Between them, smiling shyly at the camera-the ONLY one smiling at the camera- was a little girl about Artemis's age, with auburn hair and black eyes. Butler rose an eyebrow.
"She looks quite harmless, you know. Very innocent."
"That's the problem. You'd think she was an alien, being born into a criminal empire as great as ours!" Artemis looked around the room with pride. Though his father had sworn to go straight after his release from the hospital, Artemis had been keeping up some small operations under the law. They reaped their benefits, while still-in a way- helping the rest of the world. But Artemis refused to go completely straight-it wasn't half as exciting to be entirely noble.
"Arty!" Angeline called from the base of the large, sweeping staircase. "Please come down, darling! Your aunt and uncle are here!"
"Show time," Butler said, putting the picture back and straightening his tie, reassuming the expressionless, professional look of the bodyguard. Artemis grunted and strode out of the study.
"Aunt Katherine, Uncle Joseph," he nodded formally to his relatives as he descended the stairway. Katherine, her hair pulled neatly back in a bun, nodded back. Joseph had his back to his nephew, trying to coax something-someone in through the door.
"Come, now, sweetheart, come say hello to your cousin."
"Why?" Was the muffled retort. Artemis cringed at the voice. Joseph sighed and nodded to the burly man beside him. A minute later, the man came in, a thirteen year old girl under one arm. She glared sourly at her father as the man-her bodyguard, obviously- set her down
"You'll have to pardon Demeter," Katherine sighed, putting a hand on her daughter's head. "She's been a bit tempermental lately."
"You speak as if I were a horse," Demeter muttered, glaring at Artemis. "Hello, Artemis."
"Demeter," Artemis nodded stiffly to the girl. At their sides, the two children's bodyguards sized each other up. Finally, Demeter's bodyguard held out a hand cordially.
"Butler, I presume?"
Butler nodded, taking the hand and looking the other man in the eye.
"Yes. Ryu Koanoshi, am I right?"
"That's me."
"At least somebody is getting along," Angeline chuckled, patting Artemis on the shoulder. Katherine nodded in agreement and pushed Demeter towards her cousin.
"Arty, be a dear and show Demeter to her rooms, please."
"Yes, Mother," Artemis replied, jerking his head towards the stairs and marching up, assuming Demeter would follow. He heard her footsteps lightly tapping behind him, followed by the heavier footfalls of their guardians.
"How have you been?" She asked finally.
"As good as can be expected of someone of my intelligence. Yourself?"
"Oh, good."
Artemis turned at the vague answer, his blue eyes boring into the gray ones of his cousin.
"Could you elaborate on that?"
"Should I?" Demeter smirked, something Artemis didn't think he had ever seen her do. He rose an eyebrow skeptically.
"You have changed since we last met."
"As have you." The girl crossed her arms and planted herself firmly on the floor. Artemis glanced over her shoulder at Butler, who immediately took place behind his Principal, looking at Ryu, surprised.
"I have a question for you, cousin," Demeter said in a quiet voice. "I expect you to answer, to."
"Since when to you stand up to me?" Artemis snorted, remembering how she had hidden from him as a child, terrified of his vampire-like ways.
"Since I hacked in to your computer a few years ago." Demeter's smile widened a little. "I found some very interesting files. A diary, even. Very, very interesting, Cousin. Now, tell me- does the word LEP mean anything to you?"
"LEP?" Artemis's throat went dry, his brain kicking into overdrive.
'LEP...Short...Mulch...People...Haven..'
Demeter nodded at her cousin's bewildered, almost frightened face, and put a hand on his shoulder. It wasn't her nature to be cruel-she left that to her mother's brother's family, these Fowls. She, on the other hand, was much more partial to being decent to everybody, including this crazy genius cousin of hers.
"It's alright, Artemis. They deleted everything and wiped your memory."
"They?"
"Yes. They." Demeter smiled and held up a disk. "I have some stuff to show you, if you don't mind me using your computer. It'll come in handy, because some friends of yours are in very deep trouble and I think you might be the only one who can save them."
