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Butler stood in front of the large, iron cabinet, doubt staying his hand from unlocking it. Artemis had asked him to take out the artillery, to assemble the various guns and weapons so that she could have a look. All for the sake of science, Artemis had said, just to evaluate the scope of her knowledge. But he was up to something else, Butler was sure of it. He only hoped that the boy wouldn't try anything reckless. Re-awakened grief could do that to a person.

He replaced the magazine of one gun and picked up a sword. It needed to be polished. He frowned as he brought a cloth up and down the blade. Artemis was more than just his charge, that was something he acknowledged long ago. To broach the subject of the girl was... risky. It needed to be handled delicately, if not at all. Butler sighed and turned the blade over, catching his reflection in its steel. It was his place to interfere. His responsibility as a bodyguard encompassed defending Artemis against all dangers; including himself. But how to go about it?

"Butler."

He swung round at the sound of his name, grip automatically shifting to hold the sword in fighting position. There was no one there.

"It's just me." Holly shimmered into view, her nose just a centimetre away from the tip of the sword.

"Holly!" Butler abruptly dropped the sword, stepping forward to draw the elf into a bear hug. "I must be getting old, I didn't even hear you."

"You looked pretty preoccupied," Holly replied with a weak smile. Butler released the elf and took a step back.

"I didn't know you were coming," he frowned. "Does Artemis know you're here?"

Holly hesitated. "No, he doesn't. How is he?"

"Well, better than before," Butler admitted. "But there's something- I think you should talk to him."

"Why? What's wrong?" Holly's brows knitted together as she followed Butler out the door. Something was amiss; Butler was anxious about something. They abruptly stopped in front of a pair of double doors and Butler turned the knob.

"You'll see."


The keys of the piano offered little resistance as Artemis' fingers swept down the octave, moving with a grace and agility that any concert pianist would admire. There was no room for thought in his head, save that of music. He closed his eyes and imagined he was in Carnegie Hall; the Isaac Stern Auditorium. The sound would be richer there, more mellow; more haunting as it echoed against the walls of the room. He exhaled as he began his cadenza, completing fourteen note runs down the piano; falling to the floor like a scattering of shattered glass. He played a succession of rolled chords and they sung like a glissando. A smile graced his features. He loved cadenzas. He opened his eyes, adjusting his vision back to the here and now as he played that final chord. For a blessed quarter hour, he'd forgotten where he was, the last year of despondency. He had even forgotten the girl sitting beside him, watching unblinking.

"Can you name that piece?" Artemis asked softly.

The girl nodded. "Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 in B flat minor."

"Good," Artemis said approvingly, closing the lid of the piano. "One day I'll take you to see a concert; it sounds rather more expressive with the support of an orchestra."

"Could you play it again?"

Artemis started, head jerking up to scrutinise the girl beside him. Her blonde curls hid her eyes from view; was it possible that the blank mien was giving way to expression?

"Why?" Artemis queried.

She didn't look up. "I enjoyed it. I'd like to listen to it once more. If you don't mind."

Before Artemis could oblige her, the door swung open. They both looked up as Butler entered, his face unreadable.

"There's someone here to see you, Artemis," he said simply.

Artemis was about to deliver a few cutting comments when Holly stepped forward from behind Butler. A series of emotions flitted rapidly across her face; genuine warmth, apprehension, then aghast shock as her gaze settled on the other girl in the room.

"Min-"

"Butler," Artemis spoke over her, recovering from the initial surprise at seeing the elf. "Could you please escort..." he gestured to the girl beside him. "Could you please show her the ammunition now?"

Butler simply jerked his head, an indication for her to follow. Holly watched as the girl stood from the piano seat, leaving the room without a backward glance. As soon as the door slammed, Holly wheeled round. A thousand words fought for priority on the tip of her tongue, but all that came out was a choked sound of disbelief.

"Holly," Artemis inclined his head, signaling for the elf to take a seat. "To what do I owe the unexpected pleasure? Not that it isn't unwelcome, but some foreknowledge would have been-"

"Artemis," Holly firmly cut him off. "Would you care to explain?"

"Explain what?"

"Don't play stupid with me," she said sharply. "Tell me why I just saw a girl who looks exactly like your dead fiancée in this room not two minutes ago."

A flicker of hurt flashed in Artemis' eyes and Holly immediately felt guilty. Her voice softened. "Artemis, did you clone her?"

He laughed, a laugh with no humour in it at all. "No. She's not a clone, per se. I won't go into details about how it was done. You wouldn't understand any of it."

Holly scowled, then shook her head. "What are you doing to yourself, Artemis? Are you trying to avoid getting some closure? It wasn't fair, what happened to her... but copying her isn't going to bring her back."

"You think I don't know that?" Artemis said harshly, standing from his chair. "Do you have any clue what it feels like? To have someone snatch away your future to make a statement, one that wasn't even intended for either of us? Damn it Holly, I had just propsed to her, we were ecstatic! So don't you dare talk to me about getting closure."

"You're not the only one who lost someone that day," Holly whispered shakily.

Artemis slowed his breathing, then shook his head. "I'm sorry," he said, sitting back down, his tone becoming deadpan. "I needed a project to keep myself in check. This seemed the safest one, seeing as I was completely useless trying to track down the people responsible for the explosion."

Holly faltered, then spoke before she could regret her decision. "I have something to tell you. But promise me you'll leave it up to the LEP to take action."

"What?" Artemis breathed. "What, you found them?"

The elf bowed her head and nodded near imperceptibly.

Artemis stood again, putting himself directly in Holly's line of vision. "Where are they, Holly?"

"Promise me you won't do anything."

"I can't," Artemis murmured. "Tell me, Holly. You can trust me."

"Can I really?" she shot back bleakly. "I gave you space, like you told me to, and you ended up cloning or recreating her, or whatever it was you did."

"I have a right to know. You know I do," he said smoothly. "It was meant for the LEP and happened at my expense. If that isn't enough, you promised."

Holly sighed. "Amalgam Subversives."

"What?"

"That's all I'll be telling you," Holly said quietly. The band at her wrist began to flash an urgent red and she looked up at Artemis. "I have to go."

Artemis smiled wryly. "It was good to see you again. Pity we didn't get enough time to catch up properly. Let me know when you'll drop in next time."

"Take care of yourself."

Holly exited the room, passing Butler in the hallway on her way out. "Don't let him get into trouble," she muttered. The manservant nodded in reply, then entered the room. Artemis was leaning against the piano, one hand over his face.

"Send her back in," he said without looking up.

Butler pursed his lips, then went to find the girl. She walked into the room and took a seat by the window, watching as Artemis closed the door behind Butler. He turned around, his expression completely calm.

"I expect you know who and what our visitor was?" he said evenly.

"An elf, one of the Lower Elements Police," the girl murmured softly.

Artemis smiled bitterly. "And I suppose you have questions for me?"

The girl nodded. "Yes. I do."

"Well then, ask away."

She shifted in her seat, smoothing out her skirt. "May I have a name?"

"What?" for the second time that day, she had taken him aback. Of all the things to ask, why this? "What name would you have for yourself."

"I don't know, what name would you have for me?"

Artemis closed his eyes. A name. What would be fitting? His mind trawled through the various words in his head, the millions of stories behind each one. At last, he found one. "How about Galatea?

The girl was silent for a moment. Then, ever so slowly, she began to smile for the first time. Artemis tried to keep the shock from his face as he spoke.

"Galatea it is then."


The day of Holly Short's visit was an opening into Artemis' soul.

He is a sight to behold when he's at the piano. Not only because his skill is beyond the virtuosic, but because of what you see on his face. It's completely peaceful, not neutral exactly, but he seems almost content when he's playing. It's as though he ventures into another place entirely, he's somewhere that grants him a temporary state of nirvana.

I wanted to see him play again, if only for that superficial shadow of peace that he felt. I learned later why he did not do so immediately, unlike his usual response for my other requests. It was one of her favourite songs. I only learned that later, courtesy of Holly Short.

Encountering Holly for the first time was a discovery in itself. I knew what she was of course, an elf, an underground inhabitant. A species yet undiscovered by the rest of the world. But she looked at me in astonishment, she called me by a name I did not recognise, not in all the bounty of knowledge Artemis had programmed into me.

For the first time, it occurred to me that I did not know everything he did.

Later, when he sent for me, I chose not to question him. I would not let him think that I was in the least bit curious; I did not want his careful and evasive answers. Instead, I asked for a name. I wonder why I never thought to ask for one before, or indeed, why he had never given me one. Perhaps he saw it as a form of attachment, perhaps he wanted to keep the illusion that one day I'd become the one he lost. The name he chose is even more of a surprise; Galatea. The creation of Pygmalion, the statue he fell in love with.

Given the events that would transpire, the irony would not be lost on me.