Disclaimer- All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

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Author's Note:

Ehh… Do people read these? Tell me in your review. Let's see how many of you actually reads the beginning A/N.

Luv

Creatress

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Persephone's Crown

Chapter 11 – Uneasy Alliances

The shuttle's terminal was empty. It had been cleared of every last fairy, save for the specially trained LEP officers who were now stationed at strategic points around the building. Two cops stood ominously at each door, with four standing around the landing pad.

Foaly watched the scene with a strange calmness. Artemis Fowl would not be intimidated by these officers; if anything, the mastermind would probably be amused. The centaur knew that he should be reacting, but all he could do was watch the screens with an alert coolness.

Finally, the pod landed, really rather unceremoniously – it could have been carrying anyone inside. A still, painful moment past by before the door slid open.

Grub stumbled out first, and rushed toward the officers. To his credit, all he did was get in line with the other four officers to form a group of five.

Artemis calmly stepped out of the pod, looking for all the world like he did it often. As Foaly had expected, he didn't appear impressed by his surroundings and only gave the LEP officials a cool onceover before half turning to look to the pod's opening. It was only after his new friend emerged that the mastermind showed the least bit of emotion – his lips twitching in a small smirk as the officers around them tensed.

xXxXx

Grub had joined his comrades, but felt little improvement in his mood. He liked to tell the story of how he brought down Butler (leaving out that he'd stood over the Mud Man for about half a second). He'd known that Fowl was the giant man's friend, and he'd wondered why for a while before some minor misdemeanor or another had diverted his attention. Now he realized that what Fowl lacked in muscle, he more than made up for with mind, money and power. All of his stories about facing Butler seemed to pale when he'd been confronted with the bodyguard's boss. He couldn't help but notice that two officers away, his brother's fist was twitching at his side.

Holly was expressionless as she stepped out into the terminal, giving the officers an almost dismissive glance, barely pausing to blink as three of the five officers pulled out their weapons and aimed. Grub stumblingly took his Neutrino out, as well. Even though Trouble's hand shook, he didn't reach for his weapon.

Trouble tried not to make it obvious that he was dumbfounded. Foaly had alerted him that something might not have gone to plan, but hadn't clarified further – because Grub hadn't clarified further. Even though he internally screamed at himself to stay calm, he couldn't help but stare at her as she gave her surroundings a once-over with a look that only she could pull off – she almost looked contemptuous, but a soldier would know she was sizing everything up, picking things apart carefully with an officer's eye. Suddenly, her eyes were on him. "You were exiled."

Trouble heard himself speak the words and almost reached out in an effort to grab them back. He snapped out of it when Holly's lips twitched. It wasn't quite the reaction he'd been expecting. He tensed, looking her over, wondering if she could be concealing a weapon. Her hair was a few inches longer, with heavy side bangs and locks covering up her ears. Other, than that she looked the same as ever – just like an undercover cop. He gulped. The Holly Short he'd known wasn't someone he'd want to tick off. Subconsciously, he raised his hand to his hip where he'd placed his Neutrino. "You should not be back in Haven. It is against the law."

Holly didn't react, but Fowl chuckled softly. Trouble's gaze whipped over to the genius, hot anger rushing through him. This was the boy who had played with and humiliated the LEP over the course of a day. This was the boy who had ruined Holly's life. Trouble turned back to Holly, his next words coming out as a bark. "Why are you with him?!"

Holly didn't answer, only cocking her head a little and regarding Fowl out of the corner of her eyes as he answered for her.

"Really, Major?" Fowl asked, lightly, raising an eyebrow. "Making futile comments and asking questions that are guaranteed to get you nowhere." He shook his head, almost disapprovingly. "And to think, you're in charge of the rest of these… officers."

Trouble's Neutrino was now in his hand and pointed at Fowl, who didn't even react to glance at the weapon. Holly was frowning slightly.

"Major!"

Trouble almost started at the sound of Foaly's voice.

"Don't harm either of them. Butler will be waiting on the surface – Fowl's probably set a time limit for their return. What do you think will happen if they're late?!"

Trouble scowled, but lowered his weapon, signaling with his other hand for the others to lower theirs too. Vaguely, he heard Ash Vein command "Lower your weapons!" to anyone who hadn't seen him. He eyed the pair. "What about Short?" He noticed the glint in Fowl's eye then.

"What about Holly?" Fowl asked.

Trouble tensed, wondering if Fowl was pointedly trying to show the LEP that he was on a first-name basis with her now.

"She's now a non-magical species, just as I am," Fowl continued. He smirked. "Which means you have no authority over her."

Trouble's eyes widened a fraction, but he didn't react, simply choosing to wait for Foaly.

The centaur sighed, attacking Trouble's ear with static for a few seconds. "He's right. When fairies lose their powers, the LEP and the Counsel lose official control over them. There was discussion on adding a clause to fix that loophole, but the Counsel just figured that no exiled or non-magical fairy would try to come back anyway."

Trouble almost smiled, before he remembered the situation. Holly was known for making history.

Foaly was speaking again. "Bring them to Police Plaza ASAP, and don't piss either of them off on the way."

Trouble nodded, gulping several times. He didn't need Foaly to remind him of his orders.

xXxXx

After leaving Trouble, Foaly tried to contact the Commander. Root wasn't responding, and after several tries, Foaly gave up. He had just resolved to sit down and watch Fowl and Holly's vehicle speed to Police Plaza, when there was the sound of metal on glass, coming in two distinctive notes that resonated through his office.

Foaly slowly turned around, freezing for half a second when he saw Opal in the doorway. She had the gold rings on her right hand against the metal of the door. She was wearing a black wrap dress, and gold jewelry. The only bit of nonmetallic colour on her came from her dark red lipstick.

"Aren't you going to invite me inside?" Opal arched a perfectly shaped eyebrow, and the contemptuous-amused look on her face almost reminded Foaly of Fowl, from a few minutes ago.

Growing wary, Foaly smirked grimly at her, as he turned a little. "I have a feeling you'll come in anyway." He watched carefully as Opal stepped inside his office, glancing around and wrinkling her nose a little at the sofa Caballine had sat in a few short hours ago, as she walked up to him. "To what do I owe the pain of this visit?" he asked.

Opal stopped a foot away from him. She only came up to the middle of his chest, even with those ridiculously high heels. "Can't the head of LEP's most trusted armory provider drop in once in a while?" she asked. She looked past him to the screens. "Besides, today's a special occasion, is it not?"

Foaly glanced back and scowled. "You are not here because Fowl and Holly are here."

Opal smiled sweetly. "Au contraire," she breathed.

Foaly raised an eyebrow. "And what business would you have with them?"

"None that concerns you," Opal answered, shortly. She glanced around, her nose crinkling again. "Truth be told, I'm surprised you have any sort of business here anymore. Your inability to come up with any good surprises during the Fowl Siege was an embarrassment, and this office…"

Foaly narrowed his eyes, but then a thought struck him and he smirked. "This office… Is mine." He turned back to the monitors, trying to look casual, trying not to choke when he realized that Artemis and Holly were already in the building. Feeling Opal's eyes on him, he resisted the urge to frantically look for them. "It was rewarded to me right after I won the medal for - "

"Don't, Foaly," Opal snapped, a warning ringing in her tone. Apparently, Foaly didn't hear it.

"Did you ever congratulate me?" Foaly asked, smirking at the look on Opal's face.

"We both know I deserved it."

Foaly almost sputtered. "You tried to sabotage my project!" he exclaimed. "Many times. If I had a gram of gold for every night I woke up in the middle of night to find you in my room - "

Opal smirked. "Any creature with an iota of testosterone would have been pleased to find me in their room."

" – with a wrench in hand?!"

Opal actually smiled at the memory, silently agreeing.

Foaly was shaking his head. "Honestly, Opal, all that trouble you caused me then… You were always bothering me when I was trying to work, too…"

A thought struck Opal and she turned back to Foaly with her eyes glittering. She reached out to touch his forearm. "Don't tell me you didn't enjoy it at the time?" she asked, her tone in itself reminding him exactly how she'd 'bothered' him.

Foaly had frozen, wondering what she was up to.

Opal opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted.

"Hello, Foaly."

Foaly glanced to the open doorway where Holly stood, but before he could react, Opal let go of Foaly's arm and stepped between them. The pixie walked up to Holly, her steps sure.

"Holly - I may call you that, may I not?" Opal asked. She hesitated a second under Holly's probing gaze, but managed to maintain her composure. Though the girl dressed like a teenaged mudman, she carried a certain air about her that made people want to stand up straighter when she looked to them. "I wanted to see you."

"Opal," Holly nodded. "You own Koboi Laboraties."

Opal turned back for a second to smirk at Foaly. "Yes," she said, turning back to face Holly. She nodded. "Yes, I am. I came here today, hoping to have a word with you."

Holly's eyebrows rose. "With me?" she asked. "I don't believe we've met before in person?"

Opal shook her head, and locks of her hair swayed about her shoulders and back, like Medusa's serpents. "No, we haven't. However, you caught my attention when you first became a cop in Recon - the first female ever to do so, correct?"

Holly didn't respond. There was no need to. Everyone in Haven knew her story.

Opal continued, clasping her hands in front of her stomach. "Then, I would have been proud if you had used a piece of my technology. After your... Episode... With Fowl, I had hoped to be able to see you while you'd been incarcerated." She smiled tightly when Holly raised an eyebrow. "I was, of course, told that would not be possible."

"Of course," Holly echoed, glancing at Foaly. The centaur didn't move; only watched the two females closely, making no move to disguise his eavesdropping.

"I just wanted to say," Opal sighed. She glanced at Holly with a kind of hesitation that any average individual might have mistaken for shyness. "The world of business is very different that the world of public safety. Yet, I know exactly how you feel." Opal paused a second and drew in a deep breath, locking eyes with the redhead. "It is near impossible to make it as a female in this world. You were unfairly judged."

Holly stared at Opal for a second, then the corner of her lip twitched. Though she graced the pixie with a smile, her face didn't soften. "Was I?"

Opal inhaled slowly. She almost reached out to touch Holly's shoulder, but thought better of it. "Yes. You were. Reports say that you exhibited symptoms of Stockholm Syndrome after they 'rescued' you." Opal moved around Holly, and stood in the doorway beside her. "Every single police report and news reporter tried to make it out to look like your fault. I never believed it for a second, and neither did you. If you ever need anything, you know where Koboi Laboraties is located. I do hope to see you again." Opal stood, looking almost awkward, right outside the OPs booth as she waited for Holly's response.

Holly's eyebrows rose a fraction, before she finally gave the pixie a neutral nod. Opal gave her a wide grin before turning on her heel and leaving. Holly watched her go for a second, weighing the pros and cons of going to the other female about anything. She wasn't here to make friends, but there was no doubt that Koboi could be useful.

She wasn't here to make friends, but there was still the important task of seeing to everyone who were already close to her. Holly closed the OPs booth doors with one fluid motion before turning to Foaly.

Suddenly a weight flew off her chest as Holly shot into Foaly's arms. She only came up to his waist, so he reached down to hug her, holding her tight for a long moment before she pulled away.

Foaly kept his hands on Holly's shoulders as he quickly looked her over, making her think that her old friend had a stronger grip than he let on. "Are you alright?"

Holly smirked. "I wouldn't be here if I wasn't," she said, gently shrugging off Foaly's hands. She touched his forearm. "Thank you."

Foaly turned away to glance at his monitors, clearing his throat. "It was nothing."

"It was risky," Holly commented, as if she hadn't heard him. "I owe you so much. You, Mulch and Butler." She punched his arm lightly. "I suppose Mulch owes you as well, hmm? You set him free, too."

Foaly made a face. "I've resolved to do volunteer work on my weekends."

"Really?" Holly laughed.

Foaly's face fell. "Well, New Year's has passed, so I can't really hold myself to it random resolutions..." he rationalized. He trailed off and turned to Holly, frowning in concern. "How has he been treating you?"

Holly nodded, her lower lip momentarily disappearing between her teeth as she thought about her new landlord. "Well."

Foaly raised an eye-brow. "Well?" he echoed. "That's it?"

Holly sighed, a few strands of hair around her face moving against her breath. "Aside from the daily random... Challenges..." She shrugged. "He acts the way you expect him to act, my friend. Please don't worry. He doesn't torture me."

Foaly was suddenly scowling. "He wouldn't let me talk to you nor Butler," he informed her.

Holly didn't look as impressed by this information as Foaly had thought (and hoped) she'd be. "Artemis Fowl," she shrugged, looking neutral. "What did you think he would do?" She felt Foaly's gaze on her face and she turned to face him with a resolved expression. "I'll talk to him," she said.

Foaly looked uncertain. "You'll... Talk... To Fowl?"

Holly laughed, quietly, looking around the OPs Booth, trying to think back on times when she hadn't missed the place so much. She remembered the exact spot where she'd dump her equipment after a mission, or her favourite places to lounge around while Foaly showed her his newest toys for her. "Yes, I'll talk to him." She smirked, looking toward the monitors. "He can be flexible, I think - if approached correctly."

Foaly's face almost fell, but he stopped himself and turned to the monitors, trying to look absorbed with the fairies who were ambling about in the hallways. His mind was on the redhead a few feet away from him, as he tried to reconcile her with the girl from a mere couple of months ago. She was even more different than he'd expected her to be. He hadn't expected her to bounce on the balls of her feet at the sight of new weapons and go off into tirades about trivial matters, but he also had expected her to be so... Controlled. He glanced sideways at her, to see that she was still studying the monitors. "Holly?"

"Hm?"

"Are you..." Foaly trailed off. How to finish that question? What exactly did he want to know? 'Happy? Are you happy?' Was he sure he wanted to know? Before Foaly could decide, he detected movement. He looked to Holly just in time to see her whip around and walk out of his office, disappearing out of the doors before he had a chance to react.

Bewildered, Foaly turned to the screens, wondering what she had seen. He quickly realized that Fowl had just knocked on Root's door.

xXxXx

Artemis felt a tingling at the back of his neck, and two seconds later, Holly was at his side. He could feel the irritation emanating from her, but he was more aware of how nervous she felt. He glanced stealthily at her. The cool demeanor she'd held around Haven and Fowl Manor for the last few weeks was starting to develop a few cracks that she was obviously desperately trying to cover up.

Artemis wondered briefly if he should touch her shoulder – not to comfort her, but just to be touching her when Root opened the door. But in a rare moment of mercy, he decided to keep his hands to himself.

The Commander looked well enough when he opened the door. The only differences Holly noticed immediately were that there was no cigar between his lips and his face was not its usual scowling, red self. In any other situation, these two changes could have been seen as improvements. Root didn't even looked at Holly, and he only made eye contact with Artemis for the half second he needed to before he turned around. "Come in and sit down." His voice, though quieter, was still much the same.

Artemis led the way into Root's office, almost as if he owned it, before settling down in one of the chairs opposite to Root's own. Holly quietly sat down in an identical chair next to him. Root shut the door and walked around the desk to his big, pleather chair. "This is quite the surprise," he said, sitting down.

The note of admonishment in Root's voice almost made Holly smile. She missed him yelling at her.

Artemis glanced at Holly, read her expression and mentally shuffled his hand. "Commander, please," he said. "We've agreed to work together on our problems. Wouldn't you rather have Holly with me, with her memories intact than…" He waved his hand dismissively. "Well, I won't spell out the worst case scenarios for you." He frowned neutrally when Root turned to glare at him.

Holly kept her eyes fixed on the edge of Root's desk. She wanted to say something – anything. But the only thing she could think of was to comment idiotically on the weather – 'The weather's practically non-existent down here, hm?' She licked her lips. Her stomach was hurting.

"What are you going to do now?" Root asked thickly.

"What information do you have on Ursula?" Artemis asked, easily.

Root's eyebrows rose. "Ursula?" he asked, surprised. He glanced at Holly. "The Sorceress Ursula?"

Artemis pretend to think. "Or Ursula the Sorceress," he said. "Whichever."

Holly suddenly wanted to snap at Artemis for speaking to Root like that, for being so cutting. But she couldn't get her mouth to open and froze as she suddenly realized where she was sitting. She was sitting beside Artemis, facing Root. Another thought then hit her, and it almost made her laugh – she was referring to Artemis by his first name, and Root by his last. That wasn't right. That couldn't be right. Her stomach flipped and cramped, constricting.

"Ursula lives somewhere on the coast of England," Root muttered, ignoring the sardonic tone of Artemis' voice. "We don't know where. Foaly comes close to finding her, but loses her again. She can only be summoned." He paused and turned to Holly, almost as if directing his next question at her. "What do you want with Ursula?"

Artemis responded, turning to Holly as well, wondering what had her so troubled. He had imagined her meeting with the Commander, but none of his ideas ever included her being silent. "Holly's powers," he said.

Root started. He'd forgotten Holly had lost her powers. He'd actually forgotten. When he'd gotten word that Holly had returned to Haven with Fowl, he'd felt like wanting to turn over his desk. He'd felt worse than angry – he'd felt anguished. He'd felt betrayed – why would Holly run off to the enemy who had ruined her life and cut her off from everyone who loved her? Why why why why why Could Leymus have been right? 'Short could have demanded that Fowl hand over all the gold and submit to a mindwipe before she cured his mother! But she didn't! It makes you wonder…' Was Holly working against the LEP now? Against Haven? Why? Why would she have gone back to him? Why why why why why why Why else?

"Holly?" Root turned to stare at Holly, who was sitting on the other side of the desk, at the right hand of Haven's most feared enemy. But she looked no different than an undercover officer; she still looked like Holly, his captain. Suddenly, his anger vanished and was replaced by silent stillness. It was just as quiet in the office as he leaned toward her a little. "Holly?" he asked again, his voice hoarse.

Holly didn't look up at him. Artemis turned a little in his seat, wondering if anything was wrong with her. Fairies became physically ill if they walked into a house uninvited, and the thought had crossed his mind about what would happen if the same magic attacked her in Haven.

Root reached his hand out, laying it palm up on his desk. "I tried to stop them," he said quietly - beseechingly. "Holly?"

It took Holly a moment to realize that she'd shot up and out of Root's office, and that she was running blindly down a hallway. She hurled through a few doors; officers were jumping out of her way. She finally reached a less populous section of the building and stumbled through a final set of doors into a dark stairwell. Trying to catch her breath, she sunk onto the second last step and buried her face in her hands as she attempted to rearrange her thoughts to make sense.

It wasn't long before Holly heard the door creak open, and then creak shut again. She wasn't surprised to move her hands away her face to find Artemis staring down at her. He ran his hand through his hair before moving to sit down beside her. Holly almost laughed through her confusion. She wouldn't have thought he'd sit down on a dusty staircase in his suit.

"Care to explain what just happened?" Artemis asked.

Holly leaned away from him to rest her head against a metal bar in the banister. "My stomach was hurting… Then my head started hurting." She brought her feet up to the first staircase and wrapped her arms around her knees. "I just needed to get out of there. I'll be fine in a moment."

"I've no doubt you'll be fine in a moment. You're a fighter," Artemis acknowledged. "But Holly, this… partnership… Is never going to work unless you learn to talk to me." He paused for a moment, watching the back of her head. He couldn't see her face, and he resisted the urge to take her shoulder and turn her around. "Tell me what's wrong."

Holly tried to inhale. "When you kidnapped me… Or when you were planning it, or when you - " she broke off and gulped. "You never felt guilty about any of it, did you?"

Artemis answered without skipping a beat. "Never."

"How?"

Artemis fell silent for a second, one eyebrow furrowing. "How what, Holly?"

"How did you keep yourself from feeling bad about yourself? From doubting yourself?"

"I don't. I never second guess myself. Do you?"

Holly gulped. "It was so easy on the ride to Tara. I had it figured out - it was me against Haven. It was so easy to hate Haven. But now, Foaly and Root are making everything so difficult…"

"So you spare them and punish the rest."

Holly finally turned around to look at Artemis, who was staring ahead at the door. He smiled, wryly before turning to her. "Holly, it's perfectly fine to want retribution. To settle the scores, as it were." He shook his head. "I know you've probably been taught all your life to let it go, to turn the other cheek, but Holly, it's so much more… Satisfying… To get a sense of…" Artemis trailed off while he debated his word choice. "Closure."

"Closure?" Holly echoed, quietly. She laughed, short and sarcastic. "I don't know if… That is…"

"I'm not going to try to undo everything your family and friends have taught you all your life, Holly. To not want revenge. However, I will give you a testimonial – there's a much easier way to deal with everything."

Holly exhaled slowly, trying to untangle the knot that her stomach had built itself into. "Spare my friends, and punish the rest of Haven?"

Artemis nodded. "After our two missions are complete."

Holly stared at the closed door, thinking. "How?" she asked.

"However you want. It's all up to you."

Holly sat up a little and turned to look at Artemis as if she'd never seen him before. Her indecision, her faltering hesitation was easy to see in her wide eyes.

Artemis suddenly thought of the clay that he used to make models for projects. It would just be there before him, white and smooth and perfect before he got his hands on it, his fingers twisting it, flattening it, pulling at it, playing it into his ideal shape, molding it into something that he could use and enjoy. He ran his eyes over her face for a second, and he almost smiled. She was like a child, who was, for the first time, pondering whether or not she should steal the cookies from the cookie jar. An angry child, who wanted to be bad, but didn't want to upset her parents by doing something they always taught her not to do. She didn't to listen to them though… But she didn't know who else to listen to… So vulnerable, desperate to be guided, to be led. He wanted to bury his fingers into her hair, over her brain and tell her…

"Look at the door."

Holly started for a second, then turned to face the closed door they'd come in through. It looked heavy, made of dark, faded metal. It was dark in the stairwell, but the door wouldn't have shone if the area had been flooded with light.

Suddenly, Artemis hand was over Holly's right eye, almost making her jump. His hand was warm – it was almost shocking in the coolness of the stairwell. "What are you doing?" she asked. He was close enough that she could hear his breathing – slow and rhythmic.

"Did you know, Holly, that if you lose the ability to see in one of your eyes, you only lose one fifth of your vision?" Artemis asked. Without waiting for her to respond, he continued. "Do you still see the door?"

Holly's eyebrows furrowed, as she wondered what he was getting at. "I see it," she said, but then faltered as she decided to amend her answer. "I see a part of it. I don't see the doorknob anymore." She was suddenly aware that her stomach had settled down, and wondered why.

Artemis was quiet for a second. "Our vision, Holly – the way we see life, is created and shaped by those around us. Namely our family and friends. The problem with this is that, more often than not, your family and friends tend to share a similar set of beliefs and values… Especially here in Haven. So you only get one view. One view doesn't give you the whole view." Artemis' tone changed a little as his voice dropped to a murmur. It almost sounded as if he was talking to himself. "One fifth of something doesn't sound like much. But now you've no depth perception. Your peripheral vision has been cut – what if something attacks you from the right?" He paused for a second. "Holly, how will open that door?"

Artemis removed his hand from her eye and Holly blinked a few times. She couldn't bring herself to look at him. "What are you trying to tell me?" she asked softly.

"Everyone is built to seek pleasure and avoid pain," Artemis shrugged. He paused for a second. "But mostly to seek pleasure. And we'll risk pain if it brings us that pleasure," he muttered, getting up.

Holly suddenly felt lonely on the staircase without him, and she stared up at him, wondering if he was going to leave without giving her a clear answer.

Artemis stood at the door, his hand on the doorknob before he turned to face her. "I know you've been taught all your life to be noble and merciful and whatnot," he said. He didn't say the words contemptuously, but there was another note in his voice that made them sound… Insignificant. "I just want you to consider that other one fifth of your vision." He cocked his head a little, surveying her. "Will you, Holly?"

Holly didn't answer for a second. She was staring at the doorknob under his hand, wondering what or who was losing heat at the contact. "I will."

"Take some time to compose yourself. I'll be waiting outside."

"Okay."

After the door closed behind Artemis, Holly sat still for a few long minutes, watching the shadows of the stairwell. It was dark and cold, and reminded her of every cage she'd ever been in. The cell at Fowl Manor, the cell under Police Plaza. She'd never been able to open those doors… She wanted to open this door and go to Artemis. The darkness in the stairwell was further clouding her vision, blinding her other eye, too. She needed to leave soon. But there was a faint whispering at the back of her head, in a place that was still untouched by Artemis' hands and the shadows of the cells. Any world she'd follow Artemis into would be colder and darker than this stairwell.

xXxXx

A/n

Chappie took forever. My excuses? You can't HANDLE MY EXCUSES!

I'm still a little hyper because Canada won Hockey gold today. OUR game, America! You can dominate our TV channels, take over our radio stations and slowly repress our culture until this country is nothing more than your hat… BUT YOU WILL NEVER HAVE OUR GAME!

Tim Hortons kind of sucks, because I work there and my manager made me work well into the game. I kept getting news of penalties and scores from our beloved regulars and through text messaging. HOWEVER! Sidney Crosby – who scored in the last seconds of OT – started playing Tim Hortons Timbits hockey as a child. Like, his picture was on Tim Cards last year, remember? Tomorrow morning, Timmie's is going to go out and claim ownership of tonight's victory. Hehehe… So hyper. Perfect ending to the Olympics. Annnd tomorrow –

RRRRRRRRRROLL UP YOUR RIMS TO WIN, CANADA! MWAHAHA! It's the second most wonderful time of the year…

Okay, the purpose of that little speech was (originally) to tell you that I got a second job. Don't get excited for me – it's a telemarketing job. I'm just clinging to the silver lining that, since turnover is so high, it's easy to move up and make more money. … I'm always so rude to telemarketers myself. To quote KitsuneHeart in The Dead, The Broken and The Living, "Karma is a joke!" … And not a funny one.

What I need YOU guys to do in your reviews is convince me that writing fanfiction is as important as work, because I want to be a professional writer and this helps me hone my skills. Also, what did you think of the chapter?

Okay, this AN is as long as the fic…

GOLD IS POWER!! We have GOLD! All you Americans out there, enjoy your silver HA!

REVIEW!

- Creatress : D