Hello! This is the next chapter of Do You Believe and I must say that I had a hard time writing it. There were times where I had to stop typing because I was laughing too hard or because I couldn't think of how to move the story along. This was written at School, home, and at my friend's house. I will be putting where I wrote each section in parentheses so you guys can evaluate where I write best at. This way I can create better stories for you guys.
The reason why this is so late is because I was working on AP Language homework X.X. Let me tell you, it is not fun revising something when your teacher doesn't give you much to revise. I mean, I had 7 pages of work and she only marked my paper 7 times, and one was a good job v.v. So, I revised it and now I must finish very quickly before 8th period so far, I have 8 pages and I am on the 6th page of the original story (just made it to 6 that is).
So, what do you guys think of the chapter? Should I make it longer? Shorter? More interaction between Conan and Arty? Less? It's all up to you!
On with the chapter!
Chapter 4
Conan munched on a chip that he had gotten from the bowl beside him as he listened to Mori and Butler talk. Well, Mori ramble and Butler silently listening, that is. Conan took another chip out of the bowl and placed it in his mouth, chewing it slowly as he placed his chin in his hands. It was just yesterday that he had put Artemis Fowl II in jail and he was reluctant to admit that it had eased him a little. He now had full range of the Fowl Manner and Butler seemed to be a little more comfortable with him as well.
Another chip found its way to his mouth and he closed his eyes and smiled at the taste; he always was a softie for Salt and Vinegar chips. He heard someone sit next to him, but didn't bother looking at them since it was obviously Ran fresh from her bath. He decided to be sneaky and lean into the girl a bit, after all, he had to take advantage of being in this tiny body, right?
Ran was slightly damp, he concluded as he snuggled into her lap, and her clothes were really soft. A lot softer than usual… 'It must be those new clothes that she bought,' he concluded as his nose brushed against her clothes. 'And she smells like spring…'
A soft gasp was heard from somewhere behind Conan, but he paid no heed to it as he placed another chip in his mouth… that is, until the person spoke. "Conan-kun…"
Conan's eyes snapped open as he heard Ran from behind him. 'But I'm lying on…' he lifted his head and saw a very smug looking Artemis Fowl II looking down at him.
"Hello, Little Detective," the black haired teen said smugly as the Conan sat up and pointed at him, not saying anything. Artemis chuckled at the boy and shook his head before looking over at Butler. "I presume that everything went alright during my absence, correct?"
"Of course," the tall man said before looking down at Conan who was now turning a brilliant shade of blue. "Shouldn't we…"
Artemis blinked a few times and then looked over at Conan and laughed a bit at the boy. Conan eventually swallowed and glared at Artemis, trying (and failing) to turn the teen to ice with his eyes. 'Stupid idiot,' he thought to himself as he cleared his throat. 'How could you go and choke on a chip during something so vital?!'
"I must say, Conan-kun," Artemis said as he took a chip and popped it in his mouth. "You did better than any one else… for a child, that is."
Mori frowned, suddenly wanting in on the conversation now that Artemis was in the picture. "Didn't I put you in jail…"
Artemis merely smiled and then pointed to the T.V. that was left on. Mori and Conan both felt their jaws drop at the English words going across the screen while Artemis's picture floated above it. "This just in: Artemis Fowl II posted bail and was released from prison this after noon. More of this story and others tonight at 11."
"Dang," Mori and Conan said at the same time. Bail… why didn't he think of that before… the boy was rich enough that he could post bail with his piggy bank alone!
"Ironic, isn't it," Artemis said with a chuckle. "After all of your hard work, Mori-san." He looked over at Conan as he said this, a hint of mischief in his eyes. "By the way, Mori-san, where are Conan-kun's parents?"
Mori, who had just gotten over the fact that Artemis was right in front of him and not behind bars, cleared his throat and straightened his shirt collar. "They are currently traveling the world and I must baby sit the runt." He glared over in Conan's direction for a moment before looking back at Artemis. "Why the sudden in interest in his parents, anyways?"
Artemis smirked and glanced over at Conan who, in turn, glared back at him. "Well, I was thinking of offering him a room in my house for the a few months as a foreign exchange student of sorts. I see great potential in him and I would like to see him grow and be able to harness his talents."
"Talents?" Mori asked with a hint of sarcasm. "He's a runt and all he does is get in the way of my investigations! What kind of talents could he possibly-"
"Of course, I would be willing to pay for all of the expenses and your one month vacation including the money you would have gotten if you solved two cases a day."
"And now he has many," Mori said with out hesitation as he thought of the money. "Of course, I want weekly updates on what he is doing…"
"Of course," Artemis said as he grinned. "I wouldn't have it any other way."
"Dad!" Ran said as her eyes grew large and she rushed over to Conan, hugging him to her chest. "You can't do that to Conan-kun! He's just a child… he can't be here all alone with a criminal like him!"
"Oh, that hurt," Artemis said with fake hurt laced in his voice. "In case you weren't paying attention Ran, I just said that I was waiting for someone to solve the crime. Even though Mori-san solved it, I saw great potential in Conan and I think that I can help him grow in many ways."
Ran opened her mouth, but Artemis put a finger to her lips, his skin cool against her. "Yes, I wanted to be caught so I could help someone better themselves… Believe me, Ran, when I say that if I did steal something no one would have found it. I mean really, what kind of idiot would put something like that under their bed?"
Conan frowned and crossed his small arms over his chest. Artemis was right… he had walked into right into what the teen had wanted all along. "Ran-neesan," he said as he broke away from her grip. "I want to stay here with Artemis… he can teach me a lot and I can keep an eye on him for Uncle."
Ran was speechless as she watched Conan walk over to Artemis and stand by his side. "Conan-kun… why…" Conan kept his head low, not wanting to listen or see anything at that moment because if he saw Ran, he would immediately run into her arms and beg her to take him back with her.
"Then it's settled," Artemis said as he turned to Mori who was looking a bit to happy for anyone's likings. "Conan-kun will stay with me while you and Mori go on a vacation. Or, as the case may be, you go to school and Mori sleep in his office. Whatever you prefer, after all, your father does have paid leave."
Mori rubbed his hands together as he smiled at the thought of just sleeping around the house and not having to worry about anything. "Alright, well, we already bought our plane tickets to leave tomorrow morning, so we will be out of here then, alright?"
Artemis nodded his head before looking down at Conan. "This is going to be fun, isn't it, Conan-kun?"
'Just suffocate on your Ego already,' Conan thought as he smiled and nodded at Artemis. 'Or drown in it…'
"Good," he said as he smirked and turned on his heel. "I am going to take a bath, Butler. Being in that jail cell has made me dirty and the rain on the rain has made me all wet. I will be out shortly." He walked away and left Conan alone with the others in the room as an eerie silence crept over them.
"I'm going to go to bed," Ran said as she shook her head and started up the stairs. "Too much in one day…"
"Me too," Mori said as she yawned and stretched. "See you in the morning, Conan."
"Night," Conan whispered as he looked down at his shoes. He then looked up and said good night to Butler before he ran up the stairs and into his room.
He needed to contact Agasa.
-
Morning came all too quickly for Conan and he found himself rolling out of bed and onto the cold floor. "Darn floor, it followed me from Japan," he said tiredly as he walked out of the room and started down the stairs. He saw Butler and nodded his head at the tall man, silently telling him good morning. He saw Artemis leaning against the door frame that led the kitchen and leaned his head to the left a little at the Teen.
"Are Mori and Ran still asleep?" Artemis chuckled and shook his head, his dark hair falling over his eyes slightly.
"Mori was able to get an earlier flight and they left earlier this morning. They tried to wake you, but you wouldn't wake up. Isn't that a shame?"
Conan's jaw dropped slightly and he felt anger swell inside him. "You got them an earlier flight…"
"Of course," he said as he shrugged. "I wanted them gone sooner so I could speak to you without them annoying me half to death. After all, I don't want to talk to Mori; I want to talk to the person who put me in jail. I want to talk to you, Conan."
Conan was speechless for a moment before he smirked and raised one of his eyebrows. "When did you figure it out," he asked his voice deeper than it was a moment ago.
Artemis seemed a bit surprised at the sudden pitch in his voice, but then recovered as if he never heard it. "I figured it out after you started to snoop around my home. You see, you were the only person who actually gathered evidence and attempted to solve the case. Mori just slept, ate, went to restroom and then checked out the local bar. It wasn't that hard to figure out, Conan."
'Next time I will have to be at bit better then,' Conan concluded before he walked past Artemis. "Well, I'm famished, what's for breakfast?"
Artemis inwardly chuckled and pointed to the kitchen. "Butler made eggs and other breakfast items for you to eat. It's in the oven so it would keep warm since you slept so late."
"It's called jetlag," Conan stated as he walked past the dark haired teen and into the kitchen. "And since I'm a child, it affects me more." 'Or since this body is that of a child,' he thought as he made his way toward the stove.
"Of course it does," Artemis said as he walked to the counter and took a green apple from a basket.
"Not all of us are as tall as you, Fowl," Conan told him as he grabbed some cooking mitts and opened the oven, taking out his food and walking over to the table after he closed the oven door. He placed his food down in an empty seat and sat down, taking off the mitts and putting them beside him. He picked up a fork and began to eat some scrambled eggs that butler had made while Artemis sat down in the seat across from him.
"How is it, Conan? Is it to your liking?" Conan glared at Artemis as he bit into a piece of toast, lightly toasted and buttered. He wasn't going to admit that his had to be the best meal he had ever had, that would be giving into the young genius.
"It's alright, I've had better," Conan mumbled as he took another bite of his toast. Artemis just smiled, his eyes telling Conan that he knew he was lying. Artemis laughed again and sat down across from Conan, an apple in his hand. He watched as Conan began to eat the food that had been prepared for him – eggs, bacon, saugsage, grits, pancakes, and fresh fruit. Sure, it seemed like a lot for a child, but he was given smaller portions and he had a high metabalism. Artemis looked at his green apple and took a bite, wincing a bit at the sour taste.
" "So, what got you into being a detective, Conan? I mean, you are a bit young and it's not exactly normal." 'Then again, ransoming fairies isn't either… '
"I read a lot of Sherlock Holmes," he said, shrugging. "The man is a genius and I look up to him."
'That explains so little,' Artemis thought as he took another bite of his apple. 'This kid is getting smarter…' "I prefer Lupin myself."
"The theif?"
"Well, he is a genius as well, Conan, and even if I don't look up to him persay, he is still a man I admire."
"Well, I guess a thief must look up to theif," Conan said before he put his fork down. "I'm done."
"Indeed you are," Artemis said as he took one last bite of his apple. "Well, it seems that I am done as well."
Conan looked at the apple and then back at Artemis. A smile slowly made it's way across his face as he picked up his plate and brought it over to the counter. Artemis, never one to miss anything, rose an eyebrow at this.
"What is it that made you smile, Conan?"
Conan just smiled more as he turned to Artemis. "Did you know that Shinigami's like apples?"
"What?" Artemis was stumped. Shinigami? What was that and what did it have to do with apples?
"You figure out, Fowl," he said as he left the kitchen and a confused Artemis.
-
Conan went up to his room and went over to his suitcase, pulling out a small silver cell phone. He dialed a number and cursed when he heard the answering machine. "Agasa, what is the point of you having a cell phone if you never have it on…" the teen turned boy was lucky to have caught him last night when he did, though. He was able to tell Agasa what had happened and asked him to send down some gadgets to help make his stay more…enjoyable.
Of course Agasa agreed and even told him that he would send him a lap top that would enable him to get online without having to use Artemis' computer.
Right now though, Conan just wanted someone to talk to and see if Ran and Mori were alright and on their way home.
"Guess I'll just have to wait," he said to himself as he jumped on the bed and laid on his back, looking up at the ceiling. "I'll call back in a few minuets… maybe I'll try Haibara instead…"
-
Artemis once again found himself in his library, leafing through an old fairy tale book his mother had gotten him when he was a child. He could still remember criticizing how they all ended with happy endings, the princess usually riding off into the sunset with the handsome young prince. His Father had been the one to correct this mistake.
"Not all people in fairy tales have happy endings. The witches usually die and the evil villains suffer for the rest of their lives. There are always two sides to a story, Artemis, never forget that."
Two sides of a story, yes, he never forgot that important lesson. He himself tried to remember it every time he met someone, such as Holy Short. She was a one sided coin.
Conan, however, had more than two sides.
He just couldn't figure the child out. He was smarter than the average adult, yet he acted like… like a… an adolescent. That was impossible, however, and he vowed to figure out exactly what made Conan tick and what made him… Conan.
"I haven't had this much of a challenge since the LEP erased my memories," he said to himself as he chuckled at the fond memories. He often let his mind wander to Captain Holly Short and her friends and wondered how they were doing. Sure, he could call them whenever he wanted, but he tried to keep it for emergencies only.
"Well, I wasted enough of my day reminiscing on the past," he concluded as he put the book on a table next to him. "Time to plan out what fun activities Conan and I can do today…"
-
A chill went down Conan's spine as he snuggled deeper into his bed.
-
Woots! Tis done! So, what did you guys think? School? Home? You decide XP. Oh yeah, the 19th is my 18th birthday (Is happy). I am hoping to buy a DS with my birthday money The new red and black one looks absolutely gorgeous!
Edit on my part: Today is my b-day and I did get my red and black DS I also got 2 games : Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass and Spectrobes. I already started to play Zelda It's lots of fun.
Anyways, please review for the Shiko? XP
