Writers comment: Um.. My English is quite miserable, that's because I'm not exactly English, rather Dutch, so…um… I hope that it doesn't bother you, especially when I may have a really bad translation or something like that. And um… enjoy, I guess. Oh, and by the way: Artemis is 23 here, and Holly must be something at the age of 102. Good luck reading is crap.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 1:

Holly And Artemis? Nah!

"Artemis." Said a voice.

"Huh? Oh, Butler, yeah, what's up?" asked Artemis, and he yawned like an old man. Butler was standing next to his desk, the desk were he was typing on the keyboard of his computer day and night now. He looked up to Butler, who was standing there with a big grin on his face, with bags under his eyes. Ever since Butler had got married, he was smiling all the time. Artemis had to admit that the Butler wife was kind of pretty, though she was already 39.

"There's a girl waiting for you." Said Butler, and his grin turned to a huge smile, something that was quite unusual for a person like him. "Someone you know good, actually."

Artemis's eyebrow went up. "Who is it, Butler?" it was an old 'friend'. He could sense it. But 'friend' was probably not the right term.

Butler smile wident even more, if it was already possible, and said: "Don't bother. I'll show her in." and with that, he left the room.

Just seconds later a small, slim female came walking in that same room. The girl was about 100 cm, had short, auburn hair and huge hazel eyes. She was wearing a pale green uniform with golden acorns and the letters LEP on the sleeve. In the holster on her belt hung a large neutrino 3000. The big, green, mechanical wings on her back were turned off, and she clicked them of their holders, who were on the shoulders of her uniform. She gently put them on a small table, in one of the corners of the room. Then she sad down on the much too large, soft chair, opposite to Artemis, with only the desk between them. "Hi, Fowl." Especially that 'Fowl' sounded pretty sarcastic. And that was the only thing she said.

Artemis raised an eyebrow, again. Usual for him. "Hello, Captain Short." He allowed him self a little half-smile, because he actually liked to see Holly again.

'WHAT? Are you mad? You don't like Holly, Fowl!' Said a voice in his head.

'Yes you do! You like her!' Began another voice teasing him.

O, shut up! Artemis felt like kicking himself for having stupid thoughts. Probably just the hormones.

'Hormones? Did you lost you're mind? Are your brain cells dying? You're no teenager anymore! Began the first voice.

'I said it already, it's because you like her! Love makes people blind, you know, so maybe dumb to.' Said the second voice.

"What can I do for you?" He waited a second and continued: "It'll probably won't mean any good, because it never does when you arrive here." Damn, why did he always had to use stupid, snappy comments?

"Well," started Holly, her eyes were twinkling in a bad way "I've come to ask for your help." She let her head hang down a bit. The People always needed help from that Mud-Boy. A Mud-Boy! Unbelievable. What would have become of the People if that particular Mud-Boy never existed? They wouldn't have any problems. Though Holly didn't really know if that was true. Maybe there would come another genius. She let her elbows rest on the desk, her face coming dangerously close to Artemis's. "Tell me something, Fowl. You like this, fairy's asking for your help, don't you?" Her eyes narrowed, and a half-smile appeared on her coffee-coloured face. Unfortunately, Fowl always had that effect on her. Strange, actually, since he kidnapped her a few years ago and brought her and all the rest of the People more then once in danger. She didn't know why she saved his father, by the way. Maybe his father deserved to be alive, but Artemis certainly didn't. At least she thought so now, but at the end of this journey she would definitely think otherwise.

"Yes, I do. You always seem to need me, instead of some, Capable LEP elves." Snappy but true. They needed him, but if he had never interfered with their lifes…

No time for getting bad conscience. Done is done, and nothing could get between that, not even some mind-wipe. "So, what can I do for you, as I have already asked, if my mind isn't fooling me?" Holly looked at him with an angry but anxious look. This was probably going to be bad.

"I… will you help me, no matter what?" asked Holly.

'Some stupid question you got there!' Said a venomous voice, somewhere deep in her head.

'Off course he isn't going to help no matter what! How stupid are you! And even if he's going to help, IF, he probably wants some stupid reward. Like some fairy gold or something.'

'But, hey! Last time he didn't ask for anything to. Well he did, but he took back his words so… maybe there's hope…?' said another voice.

"Me? Helping? You guys? Why?" said Artemis cynical. He shook his head. Those fairy's didn't learn too quickly. After their last Koboi adventure, he had changed again in is normal, selfish, monster-like self. Only out for money and wealth. Only when Holly was around he appeared to change to an average boy. Maybe even a young man. With feelings. "Give me one good reason for helping you. Again." his voice sounded a bit annoyed now, though it was just a set-up. Maybe he could figure out what Holly was really feeling for him, he wasn't just a person to get help from, 'cause he was not exactly to be trusted.

Holly relieved a little sigh. This was going to be difficult. Right at this moment she felt like strangling him, even with bare hands, but she couldn't lose her temper now. "I…we…the People…"she hesitated. Was it the right decision for coming to Artemis? She pulled of her gloves and laid them down on the desk. "We… have a…slight problem…"she stopped for a second then continued "Some group of Mud-Man have developed some sort of shuttle, to go to the middle of earth, even in the most unbearable heatness. They also found out about one of the chutes. They are going down the chute with that shuttle-like thing. If they find out about all the other chutes and stuff it'll mean the end of us all! And, not to forget," here came the most worst part of the whole story "m…my… my own brother, he's escaped out of Howlers Peak…" a tear tried to break lose out of her eye but Holly winked it away quickly. Nobody knew that Damien (yes it means Devil) was her true brother. That was because no one knew his real surname. Short.

For a second Artemis hold his breath. Unbelievable. How could such a cute, female LEP captain, who never ever in her entire life had been of the right path, have a brother in crime?

'What? You're starting again? What do you mean by Cute, eh?' The annoying voice was back

'It's obvious! He just likes her! Don't you understand?' The other teasing voice was back too.

'He doesn't like her!'

WAIT, WAIT, WAIT! Rewind this stuff please. What were those two stupid voices doing in his head? Couldn't they just shut up?

"I…" Artemis caused the silence by putting one hand up. "Captain, I am willing to help you. For a reward." 'Of course, why not? More gold? Probably!' Thought Holly 'I could have known that.' But she was never less right. "I…"started Artemis "I wanted to ask if you… maybe you could heal my mother… She's really sick, and the doctors can't do anything…" He sighted. Was this some act of weakness? Asking for help because of his mother? But he actually loved her, kind of, even when he usually was such a lousy son.

"She… she's going to die if there isn't anyone who can help her… she has something like a half year to live…" he stopped, and wiped away a tear. He hoped that Holly hadn't seen that.

Fowl with feelings? That was something almost new for Holly. She hadn't seen that much.

"I… I got to ask this to the Council… I can only perform such a heal with they're permission." When she saw the tormented face of Artemis, she looked away. Was it possible that even Artemis could feel pain? Strangely enough it could, as she would figure out later.

"But I think I could manage that." She added with a slight smile. Artemis returned the smile and stood up. "I'll be right back." And he walked away, out of the room, on to the landing, and out of sight. He had grown, figured Holly. She had never felt so stupid. But what were those strange things she felt for him? It was absolutely nothing in the form of Love, was it? No, no, it couldn't. But her wish to strangle him was gone too, and she had felt some sparkles for him, like that human-like acting of him had touched her somehow…

'Oh stop it!' she said to herself. 'He's a human, you're an elf, what would you ever imagine?' she bit her lower lip. The thoughts that crossed her mind were… Unusual.

Artemis crossed the landing to go to the loo. He thought about Holly. He couldn't imagine what he might had felt for her, just a minute ago. It had become more than just respect. 'Nah, it could never be, so why try to explain this feeling? Just shut it out.' Said Artemis to himself. 'And, by the way, she's something like a 76 years older than you, if she likes you to, she must be a little pervert.' He liked those little word games. Little fairy, little pervert, short. Funny. Nah, not really, but he tried to get that LEPrecon elf out of his mind. What was he actually doing on the loo? Ooh, yes, he wanted a moment alone. Time to go back, into business.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Foaly!" shouted the hologram of Root. After the commander died, that pathetic Sool came to join the club. Though that wasn't such a success. Everyone had voted against him as a commander. But they didn't had anyone to replace him and since both Holly and Trouble didn't want to be active commander, and no one else was capable, Foaly suggested to make a Root-Hologram. He was exactly like the 'old' Root, even with the same blocking mind. Maybe Foaly had better made him a little more… his own 'style'. Unfortunately the others didn't agree. So, he was saddled up with that grumpy Root, calling him ignorant nicknames all the time.

"Pony-Man! Hurry up a bit! There's a problem down here!"

"yeah, yeah, I'm on my way!" Muttered Foaly. "Irritant, annoying, grumpy, smoking, old Root hologram!" he whispered, but the (still) smoking hologram heard him though, and shouted: "HORSE-MAN SHUT YOU'RE TEETHY MOUTH UP AND COME OVER HERE!"

Foaly ran at full gallop to the office of commander Root, and with that he almost overrun some unlucky fairy's who couldn't get out of the way quick enough. "So, what's up, Julius?" asked Foaly without realizing that the fulltime commander didn't really liked to be called 'Julius'. "You don't call me Julius, young Horsy-Man!" shouted Root. "Sure, sure, now tell me what that problem is." Foaly felt a little relieved that he didn't get a kick at his butt, this time.

"The problem is, that some STUPID group of STUPID Mud-Man have made some STUPID shuttle…" but Foaly interrupted and said: "Yes, Holly is already on that case. She's…"then he shut his mouth quickly. Damn, he and his big horsy-mouth. Couldn't be silence for one second.

"Yes?" Asked the acting commander. "Go on!" a big grin appeared on his cigar-chewing mouth.

"I…um…" Foaly stammered. "Okay, Okay!" he broke. That importunative gaze of Root's made him go mad already one time, and it almost did again. "Holly is going to ask help from our…" he hesitated "hem-hem" cleared his throat, and continued "… Mud-Boy…actually Mud-Man, now…" Root kept staring

"You… You mean… You're not saying… Foaly! Tell me you don't meant that… D'arvit! Why didn't you tell me anything?" The truth was that commander Root felt like Holly was the daughter he never had. Even now he was a hologram, the feelings stayed. If anything happened to Holly, he would never forgive himself, nor Foaly, nor anyone or anything else.

"I, we thought that you might not approve to it…" Foaly let his head bend down a little, Maybe out of shame, maybe because he realized that he was wrong. He knew how Root thoughts about Holly, because of the fact that he read the commanders personal logbook by accident once. "I'm sorry…"

"No time to act like a big baby, Pony-friend! Time to contact Holly to see if everything is okay."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"The shuttle is almost done. I guess we can start diving into that hole in the ground by at least a month" Laughed a man. He was slim and slender, about 185 cm tall, and he was wearing some science-like white jacked. His fair hair hung slovenly down his head, and his sharp-pointed cheek went up and down on a kind of freaky way when he talked.

"What do you, eh, by the, eh, way thinking, eh, to find, eh, there?" said a short, fat man with a little beard and a moustache. He was wearing huge glasses on his big nose, and sweat was dripping of his head.

The guards standing by a door glanced at each other and grinned. How stupid could that piggy be? Actually they didn't know what to expect down there too, but it would be such a stupid action to say that.

"What… I expect to find there?" said the tall man. A half-smile appearing on his face. "How dumb are you? What do you THINK… I expect to find there?" Oh, some people were so…so… indescribable.

"I…um… maybe…eh, worms with helmets and wings…eh?" said the fat man stammering. He wasn't totally wrong, only that worms part wasn't really correct.

"NO! You fat idiot!" Shouted the tall one "We're going to find a whole new civilisation! People capable of living underground! This can be a whole new way for us to survive when some comet is going to crash in our damn planet! Don't you understand? I can win a Nobel Prize with this!" he huge devilish smile had appeared on his face. World domination was the plan, this was going to be even more. He just knew that there were people living underground, maybe to stay away from other life, but he was definitely going to find them! Yes, he would, and he was going to be the richest, wealthiest, most important man on earth. At least that's what he thought…

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Holly" said a voice. "Holly, can you hear me?" Holly pushed a button on her watch-like thing(in fact it was a watch, a computer, communicator and several more things, another invention by Foaly.) "Yes, I hear you, commander Root. What's up." Holly smiled a little smile. Foaly couldn't shut up for one time, but it didn't matter anyway, Root would figure out however.

"How are you doing? I know about you being by that Mud-Man, are things going according to 'plan'? " he said sarcastically.

"Yeah, everything okay, our genius is at the loo now. Even a genius as to go to the loo." A soft laugh slipped from her mouth. It made her feel good when even such semi-perfect people had to go to such things. Only a little disgusting, a loo in your house. "Yes, he's breaking already, but he wants a reward…" a short silence.

"Of course… Why not. That heartless freak can't do anything without a reward, can he?"

"Well… um… this request is actually… Pure hearted." She couldn't believe she actually said that.

'PURE HEARTED? Where the heck did you get that nonsense from? Some idiot Mud-People movie?'

'Nah, she likes him.'

Holly could kill herself at the moment for doing ridiculous. But she didn't only because Artemis hopped into the room and flopped down on the chair he sad in earlier.

"Who hopped in?" came Roots voice out of the speaker.

"Our famous Mister Fowl." Said Holly cynical. She smiled a half-smile at Artemis and wanted to strangle herself.

"Who is it?" Mixed Artemis himself in the conversation. He returned that smile but quickly rearranged his face.

"Commander Root," said Holly. "He's on. Want to talk to him, commander?" asked Holly.

"Er…sure…" said the hologram of the one-time alive commander Root.

"Hey, commander!" said Artemis. "How are you?" a big grin appeared on his pale-coloured face. To avoid Holly from seeing it he acted like coughing and placed his hand in frond of his mouth.

"I'm doing great, Fowl." Said Root. "Don't you wonder why I'm talking to you? I mean, hey, I'm dead." He laughed.

Artemis raised an eyebrow, though the commander couldn't see it. His eyebrow reached just out of the camera's view. "Yeah, how come you're here?" said the young, genius gentle-man.

"It was an invention from me, of course!" Foaly's head appeared on the little screen, pushing away the commander. "He's a hologram! The exact same person as our once-died commander, but then in hologram form!" His smile was so big that you could see all his horsy teeth. A disastrous sight.

"Cool, you once got to tell me how you did it." Grinned Artemis at a oh-my-you're-looking-terrible-oops-I'm-sorry way. Crap.

Roots face came back on the screen, pushing Foaly away. "Yeah, right. Now, I guess you heard about those guys, MUD-MAN," especially that 'Mud-Man' came out real sarcastically, though Artemis wasn't sure why Root wanted to be sarcastic.

"Yeah, Hol…er…Captain Short told me everything." Said Artemis, his cheeks turning a bit red.

Suddenly a strange hairy face was being seen on the screen. A dwarf we all know very well. He's a kleptomaniac, and always on the run, but now he was here. "Hey there, old friend!" said mulch. "How are you" he grinned such a scary grin that Artemis kept the device a little farther from his head, but then he realized that Mulch couldn't bit his head of, even if he had wanted to, what probably wasn't the meaning of all this.

"Mulch! Good to see that hairy face of you again." Artemis grinned. Al those years, from his 12th 'till now, Mulch had always a big role in his life. After Holly had started as a private detective, and asked Mulch to join, it had been even more 'fun', though LEP always got involved somehow, especially Foaly. Root just hopped in, it probably had taken ages to make a hologram so 'perfect'. For what you can Root call perfect.

Mulch grimaced. "Yeah, good to see you too." Then commander Roots face came up again.

"Enough reunion stuff," he started "time to move on, make a plan. Can you give me Holly for a second, Fowl?" his smile looked like someone's who just got sting by a wasp.

"Yeah, sure." Said Artemis and he gave the communicator to Holly.

"Yeah, Julius, I'm here." Said Holly clichéd

"I can see that, captain," nodded Root seriously. "Do we have a plan? Does Fowl have a plan? Will we EVER come up with a plan?" Now he started to sound real melodramatic.

"Relax, commander," said Holly "We'll think of something. Now, first I think we should take Artemis with us, and Juliet too."

Root nodded. "Sounds okay, for a start."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Dom, bro, Did you saw that?" Juliet giggled

"Saw what?" said Domovoi Butler, the one-time bodyguard of Artemis. He raised an eyebrow. Maybe he had spent to much time in the presence of his employee.

Juliet giggled again and said: "I think our little Arty has fallen in love!" she relieved a little laugh, like a young child who hears a secret.

"Artemis? What do you mean." Butler didn't seem to understand.

"You didn't see it?" Juliet grinned. "Arty is in love, that's for sure. I think it's Holly, you know."

Butler was confused. Holly and Artemis? Nah, no chance. "No, I don't think so. Artemis isn't the person to fall in love." He shook his head. Girls always saw more than there was.

Juliet nodded. "Yes, he does, girls feel such things."

"How did you saw that, by the way?" acted Butler not-knowing.

"Um… I peaked around the corner…" said Juliet ashamed, but then her smile cam back, even wider. "Yeah, and she likes him too." She laughed.

"Nah, consider it wrong, Sister of mine, their not in love, trust me on this."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Writers comment: Um…that was the first chapter, and um… there's something between Holly and Arty but they don't realize, but I guess you figured that out for yourself already, so um… read the next one but that's going to take a wile, because I actually have a wrighters block... sorry feels like kicking herself