It was a beautiful spring day. The air was warm and the sun was shining. There was a cool breeze blowing at Artie's back. The only thing making it better was the company he was keeping. He was holding hands with Vanessa, walking around Univille. Oh, he had missed her, and the softness of her hand in his made him feel warm all over. He pulled her around to face him, and they stopped. "I really have always enjoyed our walks." He told her.
She smiled, and her eyes wrinkled at the edges. "You still owe me dinner!" He touched her cheek tenderly, and brushed a lock of blonde hair out of her face. They leaned in for a chaste kiss.
The sound of the Farnsworth woke him. Suddenly he was in the stuffy warehouse, and Vanessa was gone. What else was new? He found his Farnsworth under his papers, opened it, and turned the dial. Claudia's face showed up on the screen. "Hey, Artemis, are you ever planning to leave that place? Seriously, we finished work over an hour ago. Dinner is almost ready, get your butt back here!"
"Alright, fine. I'm coming. Make sure Pete doesn't eat it all."
"No promises, you better hurry, Artie! Abigail made cookies!" Artie heard Pete reply, and held back a smile. Pete may be the only person in the world that liked cookies more than him.
"I'm on my way. See you soon." He closed the Farnsworth and gathered the papers on his desk. Let's be honest, it wasn't like he was working on them here, but he may as well try to work on them at the B&B. "Trai. Come on, boy, let's go." He tapped his leg and the dog got up and followed him through the umbilicus and up to the car. He opened the passenger side door so Trailer could hop in, and then walked around to the driver's side. He started the car and turned on some music. Classical music always helped him calm down.
He thought back to the exchange on the Farnsworth with his friends. Yes, they were agents under him, but they were his friends. He was amazed that they still trusted him after the horrible things that he had done, after the horrible words he had said to them. Claudia most of all. Claudia was like a daughter to him, and he told her she was a child, and that he had never loved her. He told her she would never grow up. Yet she had been the most help in his healing. When she rescued him from his own mind, he had retreated, playing piano and ignoring the world. She would sit there with him silently, just listening, for days at a time. Artie had known she was there, he just didn't acknowledge her. One day, she spoke. "You know, none of us are mad at you."
Artie had stopped playing. He turned around to face her, looking someone in the eyes for the first time in days. He could see she had been crying, which surprised him. He thought only he was crying. He didn't understand how life went on. "I don't get it. Why aren't you mad? Why are you trying so hard to help me? I said terrible things to everyone. I killed Leena. I don't get it." He turned around on his bench again, and set his fingers on the piano keys. But he didn't play anything anymore. He couldn't play that sad song again.
Claudia got up and sat down on the bench next to him. She stared straight ahead as she said her next words. "Remember when Leena used the thimble, and everyone thought I was a breech at the Warehouse? I was so mad at her, like it was her fault, like she chose to victimize me. But when I helped Pete and Myka snag those trunks, Myka told me something that I carry with me every day. When I asked her why we were letting that man go, she said to me, 'an artifact took control of him, and he hurt someone that he loved. These things happen. I think we can forgive that, don't you?'" She turned to face him, and there were tears in his eyes. "Artie, it wasn't you. You didn't kill Leena, an artifact did. An artifact that took control of you, and made you hurt the people that you love. I think I can forgive you for that. I know everyone else can. Can you?" They were silent for a while, neither of them spoke. He knew she was right, in a way. He just hoped the other agents felt the same way. He had sighed and looked at the clock. He stood up from his bench, and walked toward the door. Claudia and stood up and followed him. "Where are you going?"
"Its dinner time, isn't it? I want to eat at the table tonight." He watched a huge grin come across the face of the younger woman. She hugged him tightly. "Welcome back, Artie." He hugged her and stroked her hair. "Thank you, Claudia."
When Artie thought about his darker times, it scared him. He didn't know what he was capable of when he was like that. Claudia had kept him grounded over the past two months. One way she continued to do that was to make sure he was never alone. If a person couldn't be with him, Trailer was. She usually checked in on him a few times a day, much to his annoyance, but he knew that his best interests were in her heart.
When he got to the B&B, he let Trailer run around for a few minutes before letting themselves in the building. He opened the door and could immediately smell some of his favorite things, lasagna and oatmeal cookies. He smiled and hung up his jacket, walking towards the parlor and dining area.
"Surprise!" He heard as he walked around the corner. Myka, Pete, Steve, Claudia, and Abigail were all standing there, clapping and proud of themselves. There were red and blue streamers lining the ceiling, and red balloons.
"You guys do know that my birthday was two weeks ago, correct?" he asked them, as he placed his bag on the couch.
"Well, we did, but we were so busy with case work and artifact hunting that the date just slipped our mind." Myka explained.
"And everyone deserves a birthday party!" Pete chimed in.
"I even have a clown on speed dial if you want!" Claudia joked, and everyone laughed. They held unwrapped gifts out to him, one by one. Claudia gave him another new jacket, and Pete and Myka got him a notebook with sheet music in it. "We noticed you were running out, so we thought we'd save you the trouble of having to buy more." Myka explained.
"Thank you guys so much. You know I never expect anything." Artie was grateful. Then he noticed that Claudia was grinning, grinning that maniacal grin she gets when something is up her sleeve. "What. What is it?" he asked.
"Happy birthday, Artie." The voice from behind him was all too familiar, and it made the hair on his arm stand up straight. He turned around to see the woman of his dreams, literally. Vanessa was standing there, looking beautiful, as always. She had on a black blouse and grey pants, and she was smiling the biggest smile he had seen.
Artie swallowed. He didn't know what to do. "Can you excuse me for a second?" He asked. He then turned around and marched toward the kitchen, reaching out and pulling Claudia along with him. When they were safely out of earshot, he looked at the younger woman. "Why must you always bring me people as presents? First, my Dad, now Vanessa! There is a reason I haven't contacted her. I don't know how to face her! Why do you have to meddle in my personal life like this?" He tried not to yell, but Claudia could hear how upset he was. She spoke evenly, and with conviction.
"I was just trying to help. I know you miss her, you talk about her in your sleep, when I catch you napping at the Warehouse." This was news to Artie. He didn't realize he talked about her in his sleep. "So I guess I'll just go out there and ask her to leave then." Claudia started to walk out of the kitchen, glancing back behind her as she left.
"Wait." Artie called after her, and she stopped, looking at him with a look on her face that just screamed I told you so. "Let me at least try to talk to her I guess." He grumbled. Claudia stuck her arms over her head triumphantly as she left, an even bigger grin on her face, if that was possible. Artie regained his composure and left the kitchen. Back in the parlor, he tapped Vanessa on the shoulder. "Do you mind, taking a quick walk with me?" he asked her.
She smiled, eyes wrinkling, just like his dream. "I thought you'd never ask." She grabbed his hand and they walked through the door together, and down the street.
"I don't want to make this too long, I know Pete is hungry. He might eat all of my cookies." Vanessa laughed at him. Her hand felt nice in his, he had really missed this.
"So, Abigail seems nice." Vanessa started.
"She is. I guess you know about everything then." Artie didn't need to ask her, he knew that she knew.
"Yes. In a way, that explains your behavior when Alice was loose again. It wasn't entirely you."
Artie took a breath. "Vanessa, I'm sorry I never called you after everything happened. For about two weeks I just retreated, and Claudia was the only person who could bring me out of that place. Then I just couldn't face you. I was, am, worried that after all of that, you won't look at me the same way you did before, that you would see me as a monster. I just couldn't face that. I was happier to live alone, than to think that you thought I was a monster."
"Artie, don't forget that I know about the warehouse, and I know how things happen that we just can't control. I don't think you are a monster, I never have and never will." They turned around to head back to the B&B. "Remind me that I need to thank Claudia. If she was able to help you when you needed it, then I really need to thank her for bringing my Artie back." She stopped, and turned herself toward him. She leaned down and kissed him quickly. He tensed. She pulled away. "I understand that you are still healing, and that's okay. I just want you to know that I am still here, and I still want to be with you, whenever you are ready." She grabbed his hand again, and they headed into the B&B. Before they walked into the parlor, Artie stopped her.
"How about we do dinner again, next week? No crazy Alice running around to ruin it. Just the two of us."
She smiled. "Sounds like a plan." She held his hand and walked into the parlor again, where everyone was eating.
"Please tell me there's more?" Artie asked.
"Yeah, plenty, yours is waiting in the microwave." Pete answered. "I just couldn't wait for you two lovebirds to get back." He explained. Artie went to the kitchen to grab some food for him and Vanessa. As he sat at the table, surrounded by his very strange, extended family, he realized, this was really the best birthday yet.