BLUE AND HAZEL

Fowl Manor, Ireland; Now

Juliet Butler paused at the top of the grand staircase, closing her eyes as the beautiful sound of a piano reached her. The song was magnificent and alluring, with a flowing melody accompanied with discordance that was somehow soothing. She stood there, one foot hovering over the step, wallowing in the smoothly transitioning cadences and the almost-hidden motifs that swam just beneath the surface.

Then the music abruptly stopped, followed by a small "Damn". Juliet shook herself out of her trance and walked down the hall, taking care not to drop her tray.

"Artemis?" She knocked on the wooden door immediately to her right.

"Come in," came the muffled reply.

Juliet put her elbow on the lever handle and leaned into the heavy oak door, seeing Artemis at his piano, leaning onto the polished wood with one hand on his forehead and the other rapping out a rhythm. She raised an eyebrow at the discarded, scrunched-up pages filled with musical notation on the ground, a departure for someone who usually spent a lot of time ensuring his room was immaculately clean.

"What's up?" Juliet set her tray down and brought the boy genius - No, young genius, she corrected herself - a mug of hot chocolate, bringing up another chair.

Artemis sighed and laced his fingers around his mug, drawing his hair off to a side. I need a haircut, he thought idly.

Externally, he shook his head. "It's nothing, really. Something...silly."

Juliet crossed her legs and took a sip from her own mug, eyes locked with Artemis, clearly unimpressed.

The pale, raven-headed teen gestured vaguely. "It's the Christmas party tomorrow, and, well…" He shrugged helplessly at the paper-strewn ground. "I don't have anything ready for Holly."

Juliet picked up a sheet of paper crisscrossed with lines that looked as if they were scribbled on in a furious tantrum. "Didn't you start like five months ago?"

Artemis laid the velvet cover over the keys and closed the lid. "In a matter of speaking. I have actually been working on this piece since the day I first met Holly - mentally, of course."

"Of course."

"I merely started writing it down five months ago. The problem I have now is ending it."

He stood up, stretching his fingers, and walked over to the window, deep in thought.

"Do I end it definitively, with a solid conclusion and sense of completion?" he asked aloud, as he had done multiple times as of late. "Or do I leave it in suspense, without a resolution to represent an ever-changing future?"

Juliet grinned. "You know, most young women - and I think Holly counts, despite her eighty years - are perfectly happy with a cheesy guitar cover, let alone an entire symphony."

"Concerto," corrected Artemis.

"Whatever. Look, the point is, she loves you. Do what feels right."

Artemis looked at her blankly. "Do what feels right," he repeated.

Juliet shrugged. "Hey, you two have been through a lot with each other, a lot of which there's no way you could've planned for. Take a chill pill and wing it like you've done in the past."

She stood up to leave. "Anyway, your mother's asking me for some final touches with the decorations, so I'll see you later."

The hours passed too quickly for Artemis's taste, and before he knew it he was standing in front of the mirror with a sleek black suit, adjusting a red tie. He had been agonizing over Holly's concerto - which he had decided to name "Blue and Hazel" - and had spent the last day in a cold sweat. Now it was the evening of the party, and he was expected to welcome guests as they arrived.

He looked at his reflection and sighed, putting on a fake, pained smile.

No point in stalling, he told himself as the doorbell rang, turning briskly on his heel and heading downstairs.

As the hour passed and all the officials and noblemen settled in, Artemis started becoming more anxious, desperately looking for a set pointed ears in the sea of people below. He thought back, wondering if he had somehow missed Holly's entrance. He scanned the crowd, noting the various celebrities in their respective fields, absently looking at an equestrian-like scientist apparently called Po Knieboi and his daughter Aki-

Wait.

Artemis blinked, fixing the pair with a perplexed look. He locked eyes with Aki briefly, who giggled and whispered something in her father's ear.

Artemis cocked his head as they made their way towards him. Something wasn't right; why did Knieboi look so much like-

"Pony boy." He smiled ruefully and put a hand on his forehead. "Damn it, Foaly. Which means you"-he turned towards Aki-"are an annoying little elf. I assume 'Aki' is short for 'Aquifoliaceae'?"

Aki - Holly - grinned and kissed him as Foaly cackled. "Correct, as always, but took you much longer to figure it out."

Artemis gave her a once-over, a look of bemusement on his face as he took in the green eyes, brown hair, and Nordic features. "You did not make it easy for me, love."

He gestured to the grand hall, hand extended. "Shall we?"

Artemis held the door open for his lover, admiring how graceful she was despite the magic that concealed her fairy features. Foaly wanted to test his Illusionator, and he had selected the Fowl ball because of the family heir's famous adventures with the underground; If the Illusionator failed then nobody would really care.

As soon as Holly entered Artemis's room, however, she deactivated it, reverting to her normal, auburn, short self.

Artemis smiled at her. "Much better," he said, picking her up and swinging her around. "Although," he continued once he set her down again, "dancing with you was easier this time around."

Holly scoffed. "Thanks."

Artemis ignored her. Now that the time had come, he was suddenly nervous again. "I-I want to give you your present," he said, trying to still his beating heart.

Holly smiled lazily. "Oh?"

By this point the normally-cool youth was babbling. "It-it's not much, I know, but I've been working on it for a couple years now, and I know you'll like it- I mean, I hope you'll like it, but we've been through so much together now, and I didn't even know if you'd want to hear it, but-"

"Shh." Holly placed a finger on his lips. "Play it for me. I'm guessing it's something on the piano?"

He nodded mutely.

"Okay then. I'll sit off to the side. But remember; even if you mess up, even if you play your worst, I'll still love you - klutz and all."

Artemis forced a smile. "Thank you for that speech of confidence."

Holly laughed, a sound as sweet as bells. "Sit down, sweetheart."

Artemis took a deep breath as he lowered himself onto the bench. "All right. I call this piece 'Blue and Hazel'." He flexed his fingers, and began.

At first, there was nothing, apart from a clashing, dark chord with intermittent treble turns and flourishes. Artemis's left hand played out an ominous bass line, growing louder and faster, increasing in intensity and urgency and-

Silence. The first chord rang out again, and as it died away Artemis entered the second part.

A slow, sad set of triplets rang out, flowing in free time but always timid, always yearning. As Artemis played more, he moved more, and flowed with his hands, adding more to the motif in subtle but present ways. The piece went in numerous directions - sometimes it was a harsh, discordant march, but other times it was a lullaby, filled with a sad nostalgia of unfulfillment.

As Artemis neared the end, he suddenly knew how he wanted to conclude. He brought the song into one final crescendo, slowing down until he was moving with every note change, reaching a final ethereal chord that brought closure, yet played with a hemiola that indicated an ever-changing mood.

As the piece died down, Artemis let out a sigh. Holly was by his side, silent tears streaming down her cheeks.

"That," she proclaimed, wiping her eyes, "was beautiful."

She sighed contentedly. "You managed to encapture our entire history together in seven minutes."

Artemis smiled, finally satisfied with his concerto. "Not our entire history," he replied, kissing Holly's forehead.

She headbutted his chin. "No, I know. You managed to finish the song yet keep it unresolved - like saying how we are one yet there is more to come. That was truly a great gift. But now"-Artemis felt her rising and moved back in confusion at the change of her tone-"it's time for me to give you something."

She rose, dimming the lights until the bulbs barely glowed. Then she turned towards him, shedding her crop top and unzipping her skirt. Artemis's eyes grew wide with the realization of what she intended to do, and the last thought he remembered before allowing all higher function to cease was how perfect her bare skin looked in the dim light.

Author's notes:

My, oh my, some implied actions are happening.

Anyway, just a short piece for Christmas, even though it's almost completely unmentioned in this story. I just wanted to write to apologize for my absence; I've been sidetracked by college, exams, homework, new games (CoD:AW, XCOM, and Steam games FTW!), politics-

Anyway, enough about my personal life.

This piece was very straightforward, though I think my boring essay voice is starting to show. I may have to reread the entire series again (not that that's a problem, mind you) to recapture Eoin Colfer's voice, but I'll do that when I have time. When I was imagining Artemis's concerto, I had two things in my head: one was a concert band piece called "With Heart and Voice" by David Gillingham, which starts in an ethereal way and goes through a number of styles. The other was the game Deemo and one of its first piano songs, which I found heartbreaking and beautiful. The actions at the end are brief and may be a little rushed, but if you consider the rest of the stories in my AF universe then it's perfectly viable.

Anyway, happy holidays, depending on what you celebrate!