Chapter One

Notes: OK here it is earlier than promised although I will try to post every week as usual I cannot promise anything. This story is finished (bar epilogue) but not edited yet. I have two thanks to make to my editors. One to my usual editor, he know who he is and two to my new editor. The former has been checking my spelling, grammar and the latter who is much more familiar with the Artemis Fowl stories and has been checking my consistency and style.

I have to put my hands up and say that I have found this writing hard, when I started writing Harry Potter fan fictions I had written segments and had ideas I had abandoned before writing my first full-length story. However although I know the Artemis Fowl stories better this story is my first story of any description in this topic. So I hope you all like it. Please review and as always enjoy,

Love C.J.

Old Friend

"Yes father I insist," Artemis smiled insincerely "the twins are tired and I think I might be too."

"Sometimes Artemis it wouldn't hurt for you to be a little more grateful your mother worked hard on this party." Artemis heard the stressed tone in his father's voice it was perhaps the first time since his mother's illness that he had heard that note.

"Father I think you know that my perfect evening would hardly be spent in a social context."

"You are not spending your twenty first birthday in-front of a computer screen. I made you like this Artemis you don't socialize outside your family, you didn't have any school friends there tonight I worry about you."

"The boys I went to school with are idiots. I would Father if I am forced out of my room spend it with my family."

"You really enjoyed yourself?" Artemis Senior asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Enjoy would rather be a stretch of the word I was thinking of, but I did not have an un-enjoyable time."

"Right," Artemis Senior said not entirely assured.

As he walked up the long staircase to his room Artemis scolded himself, he had meant to put on a much more appreciative face to his mother and normally he was good,

"No excellent," he thought at hiding his true emotions but there had been one thing that really perturbed him all night. The one person that he really wanted to be there wasn't. Captain Holly Short. His Mother would not have objected, she had taken rather a shine to Holly and mentioned her often when Artemis Senior was not around. But neither the twins nor Artemis Fowl Senior knew of Holly's existence and as so she could not attend his birthday party.

Artemis himself was rather confused why this birthday was of such concern to his family. Because of his time on Hybras it was actually Artemis' eighteenth birthday rather than his twenty first.

"Just another year older," he thought aging had before never been of concern to Artemis he had never desired to grow up quickly like his peers at school nor halt the aging process like many adults. However recently he had been finding himself notice that his blue and hazel eyes had a wrinkle or so below them. At first he had declared it part of his recovery from Atlantis Complex but the fairy psychologists had declared him fit more than seven months ago.

He opened the heavy door to his bedroom with just a quick flash of an ID microchip and a fifteen-digit code on his door that changed weekly. The room was exactly as Artemis remembered it. His pages of notes concerning his new project locked away in the third drawer of his bureau. The bed was impeccably made with a copy of Stephen Hawkin's "The Universe in a Nutshell" sat on the pillow. Artemis had been annotating the copy with his own notes there were few pages of the original that had remained untouched by his red pen. His attention then fell to the window seat that sat under a large bay window with a view towards the grounds of the manor.

"Holly?" he asked calmly looking towards the small figure circled upon the seat. Her feet leant against the wall with her LEP boots on the carpet beside her making rather muddy marks.

"Artemis," she smiled "d'Arvit I was planning to surprise you but you've been ages."

"My parents dragged me out to a mediocre restaurant for my birthday."

"Yes Happy Birthday twenty one you old man." She smiled at him punching him on the shoulder.

"Yes I am," Artemis said rather dejected.

"Seriously?" Holly asked crossing the room "twenty one is hardly ancient Artemis since when did you start caring about your age? I am over four times your age."

"In years yes but you don't look much older than me." It was true if Holly had been a human most people would not have guessed her age at much over twenty three.

"Anyway I have a present for you."

"A present?" Artemis asked surprised.

"Yes I thought you usually gave them on birthday's of course if I am mistaken then..." and she reached out to pull back the little navy covered box she had placed on the bed.

"No," he said placing his hand on top of hers.

"I didn't know you liked presents that much," she laughed at his expression. Artemis took the box in his hand it was the second thing Holly had ever given him the first lay on a cord around his neck hidden under his shirt. He knew that it held no real value but for some reason he felt odd without it and he unconsciously touched it. "Are you okay?" Holly asked genuinely concerned "you look odd."

"I'm fine," Artemis said with no emotion in his voice as the mask slipped back over his face and he regained some control of himself. He tore open the paper surrounding the box with gusto revealing a small plant.

"Thank you," Artemis said graciously.

"You don't know what it is," Holly said smiling at him. "It's a health plant, touch it," Artemis looked skeptically at her but touched one of the leaves of the plant the small fern unrolled itself and stretched upwards two small flowers beginning to grow one a deep red and the second a sapphire blue. "See," Holly smiled "now it's yours," when you are ill the plant will weaken and when you are strong the plant will grow. They are very rare and if you remain well they can grow to have several beautiful flowers."

"Holly thank you," Artemis said "it is beautiful."

"I'm glad you like it for the people it is a traditional fiftieth birthday present but I couldn't wait that long."

"Do you have one?" Artemis asked and Holly shook her head.

"My mother did though it was a peach colored flower really beautiful I can still remember it." Holly felt a tear at the corner of her eye but she fought back against it giving her face for a second an odd composure.

"I am sorry Holly," Artemis said softly "that was unthoughtful of me."

"It's ok," Holly smiled Artemis picked up the plant and placed it on his bedside table.

"Is that ok?" he asked "will it be safe there?"

"Yes," Holly smiled "it will be fine."

"How are you Holly?" Artemis asked the question caught her off guard.

"I am fine Artemis," she replied "does it look like there is anything wrong?"

"I haven't seen you in a while," he replied lying down on the bed.

"Well," she said lying down beside him "you know the Lower Elements there aren't many quiet days plus Trouble gives Root a run for his money in his slave driving abilities."

Artemis smiled weakly he didn't like Trouble Kelp. He knew that logically he should Trouble was an excellent solider and had saved both his and Holly's hides on more than one occasion. However for a reason that he just could not place the Commander was not his favorite person. After a few moments of silence with Artemis lost in thought Holly broke the quiet.

"Artemis I have something to ask you?"

"Yes," he said cautiously by way of reply.

"Do you remember being Orion?"

"Well yes I thought we had this conversation Holly."

"We did that wasn't the question give me a moment. You know what Orion said about me? Well I talked to Argon and he said Orion acted on your already existing thoughts, feelings and memories."

"And?" Artemis asked fully aware of where this conversation was going and completely unwilling to aid it in getting there.

"Is that true? What Orion thought and felt did you?" Artemis felt his whole body freeze. She had gone there why was it the only two people in existence who could manage to make him feel emotions were his mother and the small elf lain on the bed next to him. Artemis knew the truth he knew exactly what he should say and exactly what he wanted to say the problem they contradicted each other. He had that choice between his head and his heart a choice that he would normally categorize as far too simple for a complex decision that was almost certainly going to change his life.

"Holly," he turned over to face her "Orion was partially right. I did, I do feel for you I want to be close to you and share things with you I would not tell anyone and I want my head to stop playing that one memory like a broken record." Holly did not need to ask which memory it haunted her daydreams too. Rathdown Park in the Gorilla's cage that rash, young impulsive elf that looked like her had pressed her lips to a mud boys lips.

"But it cannot happen. I know enough of rudimentary psychology to know that if you are asking we that question then you must feel something for me whether it is friendship or something more I don't know but we have to stop it Holly. If you are found to have a relationship with a mud man then you will be forced out of the Lower Elements at the very least. We have to stop this now." With every word Holly felt her heart break a little she knew he was right and as the older of the pair she told herself off for not being able to control herself.

"I just have something to say I was going to tell you later but..." she let her sentence fizzle out "I have been promoted to Major. I will be spending more time below the surface I won't see you again for a long time."

"Holly," Artemis said "let me,"

"No Artemis," she said the wobble in her voice obvious. So Artemis did the only option left to him. He pushed himself on Major Holly Short he felt her lips on his knowing that absolutely nothing had changed since that memory that had so pervaded his thoughts he felt the spark between them again. He felt Holly's hand subconsciously curl around his head and lodge itself in his raven hair. And he felt her kissing him back. The kiss was soft and sweet at first before becoming desperate and passionate as though they both knew they would not see each other again. So many emotions where tied into that kiss. It was Holly who took control pushing him away lightly.

"Bye Artemis," she said as she stood on the window ledge for a moment before her slim frame disappeared into the blackness.

Artemis' thoughts where interrupted by a loud bang at his bedroom door.

"I thought I heard a voice," Butler said storming into the room pistol in hand.

"No," Artemis said sincerely as he furrowed his brow "I do talk to myself Butler surely you know that by now."

"Yes sorry enjoy the rest of your birthday Artemis." But Butler smiled as he turned his back on his employer out of the corner of his eye he saw a pair of tiny muddy black boots.