WARNING: Yep, Artemis Fowl is not mine. Diana, Alex, their parents, this storyline are mine however.
YES. THIS IS A TEEN RATED STORY. Hint: It's like that for a reason.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Heyo! How's everybody been? Ready to kill me yet? :P
I'm currently doing a wonderful job of procrastinating my homework by writing and this is what came out of it. Anyway, I have to thank those of you who are still reading and the few new followers I got! Always appreciate you guys! (even if I am an ass sometimes)
"Can't believe they made us ship the mud boy and mud girl up. I mean seriously! It's not okay."
"We just have to listen to orders Pixie," the gruff dwarf grunted as he handed his papers over to the official.
"Why don't we just dump them in the incinerator or something? Not like the mudpeople would ever notice," the green pixie snorted and picked out the dirt from beneath his nails.
The dwarf continued on now that they had received clearance to take the packages up, "Apparently they were big shots or something. Would be a big deal if two important mudpeople disappeared at the same time."
"I personally think that it would be a bigger deal if they both showed up dead at the same time."
"Nobody asked for what you think."
The vain companion opened his mouth to retort when he looked at the screen with a look of shock. "Hey, that's a life reading!"
The dwarf didn't even look over at the screen before saying, "Must be a bug." He finally leveled a look on his partner, a look that more than screamed you fix it.
"I'm not checking it out," he said as he held up his hands. "Are you kidding me?"
"You know I had a delicious taste of some fine air packed earth today…"
That pixie was out the door before the dwarf could continue.
Muttering less than complimentary adjectives about a very short partner of his the pixie opened up the back of the van. Now if he remembered correctly the reading came from the bag on the left, right? He unzipped the bag and stared into the pale and still face before him. He waited a minute. No sign of movement there. He headed over to the other side of the van to open the other bag when a hissing sound came from behind him. The area filled with grey smoke and did nothing to help the poor pixie's situation as hands came around his neck and shoulder.
"Now, I would like some questions answered if you don't mind…"
***Artemis Fowl***
The screen went black after Trouble passed along the information leaving words that hung dangerously cold in the air.
"Artemis?" Holly's normally headstrong voice was quieter than normal. I waited one more moment before responding to her wordless inquiry.
"I'm still breathing Holly."
The day had come when I had a grasp on the edges of joke. It was and would've been a true moment had the heavy, oppressive feeling in the air not caused it to fall flat. Normally Holly would've no doubt congratulated me, normally. And the fact that this was not a normal situation is not a fact that I was fully willing to admit to yet.
There was another few minutes of dead silence before a grumpy voice cut it in half, "I'm hungry." Mulch held a hand over his belly and his face was curved into a frown. The entire room stilled and stared at the brown dwarf. He just shrugged, "Hey, if you're hungry, you're hungry!" Holly sighed, motioned awkwardly, sputtered out some words about getting someone to shut up, and dragged Mulch out of the room.
I numbly got up and crossed the room. My hand fell on the table I had been working at previously. My mind, requiring something to distract it from the full blow of the consequences of this object, continued on verifying if the painting was authentic. 100% percent real and no doubt worth millions. Part of me expected to feel that rush of triumph and was disappointed when it didn't come.
This was what their lives had been worth.
Millions of dollars is not a small amount to be worth, a small section of my mind added.
Yes, but even for a life?
...
My fingers turned white as they gripped the table.
Butler said nothing and remained at my side the entire process.
A few hours later and a cup of fresh spring water with no ice (lest that filthy tap water contaminate it) my entire emotional palette had been properly rearranged. I sighed and went back to my computer.
My fingers tapped the password into the computer and loaded up the two files. The bright red word, terminated, stared me in the face. I sighed.
I don't have the right to ignore this.
***Diana O'Carroll***
I'm a genius. I whistled cheerfully to myself as I trussed up the small creature in green. I had gotten the information I had wanted, no sweat. Just the threat of a few burns and bone breakers had been all I needed to get what I had needed. They were fairies, though this green one was adamant about me calling him a pixie and nothing else, and they were technologically advanced magical beings. Apparently the girl I had caught before trying to steal my artwork was an elf. Artemis Fowl was a threat to the LEP, their version of the police, but had quickly gained their trust. Lastly, the best part of this was that I was currently underground on the way above ground towards my house.
Not bad for a few hours work and a previously hopeless situation.
I hummed with appreciation and fingered the small necklace locket. Thank goodness for textradoxin. Apparently with the elven healing powers it hadn't completely expelled all the poison rather just shortened the effects of it drastically. Also, if my lack of pain was any indication, I had achieved my original goal, freedom from the grasp of death. The pixie said the elves had healing powers that could bring back the dead, if recent, so I had no doubt that it could cure a small concern like cancer.
I turned towards the darker, shorter fae that I had tied up earlier. I had taken the helmet from him and the wonderful piece of weaponry that was fit for a child's hand. If I adjusted it I could no doubt make a fortune reproducing it and selling it. Now if I could take their magic and sell it...well there's time for that later.
The vehicle stopped with a jerk and I took that as a sign that the ride was over. I pushed open the back and was greeted with eye burning light. My hand rose to cover my eyes from the sun's rays and I stepped out of the back. My feet hit soft grass and I took a moment to just breathe in the sweet air. A gentle breeze ran over me and I shivered.
I took in the area around me processing where I was. I was about a mile away from my property in a small glen. Trees encircled the area preventing anybody by the road from seeing me and only the slimmest dirt path was open. I looked into the back again and grabbed a small bag made of a silvery material and shoved the helmet and gun inside. I slung the bag over my shoulder and looked back towards the sun hope welling up in my chest.
I grinned at it and then took off in the direction of my house. The wind blew my hair back and pressed my clothes against my body. My feet pounded against the ground and the grass bent underneath my pressure leaving behind a trail of small footprints. My lungs took in air desperately but for the first time in years, without pain.
I could run.
I felt like I was walking on air, flying high.
When was the last time I felt this free?
I burst through the trees to the side of the road nearby my house. The walk had been tenuous and long but somewhat welcome. It was a nice reminder to be able to rest and not have to continuously worry about dying the next moment. I stepped up to my gate and keyed in my password. The gate swung open to reveal an immaculate house sitting on a hill, no signs of the previous destruction.
Now if only I could bottle and sell their magic…
Regretfully it doesn't work that way. I shrugged and then headed up to the estate. I stopped and stared at the car in the driveway...and it hit me.
Oh dear. My parents. I had been doing an excellent job of ignoring their existence and my disappearing act was no doubt unappreciated. I sighed with dread.
This was going to be interesting.
I pushed open the door carefully and peered inside. I crept inside and closed the door quietly. The moment my hand left the door my mother's sharp voice cut into the air.
"DIANA O'CARROLL!"
Shit.
Fuck me.
Hell, I'm dead.
I took a deep breath and turned around to face my mother. Her face was a mix between horrified and stern. Her hands were on her hips. Her clothes were a mess, a surprising look compared to how she normally dressed. Normally she was donning neatly pressed, girly clothing and to see her in my preferred outfit of jeans and a tee-shirt was unnerving. She had dark rings underneath her eyes and her skin was pale and had the sallow look of sickness to it. My father came dashing out of the room when he heard my mother's raised voice. His hair was mussed and he looked as bad as my mother did in sweatpants and a grungy white v-neck. His eyes had darker rings beneath them than my mother's eyes did. Derrek tailed close behind my father. He was the one who looked like he had come of easiest, still sharp clothes and firm expression but he had hints of worry in him as well. A surprising show of emotion was on his face and he had stress lines on his forehead that had not been there before.
"Hi," I said weakly.
I barely got the words out before I was crushed in a hug by both parents. My vision was covered in black as all I could see was the fabric of their clothes.
"Oh my gosh, Diana," my mother sounded dangerously close to sobbing. "You-"
"WHY WERE YOU GONE?!" My dad had pulled away first and his expression wasn't anything akin to forgiving. I shrank away from the cutting glare and domineering tone.
I racked my brain for the best response, explaining that I got locked up by fairies was highly likely to get me locked up in another place just as bare as the previous place with a whole lot of more white.
Derrek is the one who saved me from answering, "Where's Alex?"
I leapt on my chance to escape everything, "He's gone."
There was a heavy silence as my parents tried to figure out as to which gone I meant.
"What do you mean gone?"
I took a steadying breath and carefully chose my words. "We were kidnapped and now I have to get him back," I said quietly.
There was another moment of silence.
"Kidnapped?"
I nodded slowly. The entire room was frozen as if someone had pressed the stop button on the remote of time. I was the one who broke the stillness by side stepping in an attempt to get to my room. "Diana," my mother's voice was soft. "When you were gone-"
"Marie," my father moved to cut her off.
"No, she deserves to know," my mother looked back at me.
I stopped in my tracks realizing that tone. I turned around slowly to look my mother in the eyes.
"Mother?"
"While you were missing-look I know maybe this isn't the best time but-you need to know. Diana you're going to have a sibling."
Whatever I had been expecting and bracing myself for, it most definitely had not been that. I blinked, "What?"
"When you went missing, well, it was a mess and-and we thought you were gone and with you being sick-"
"Dear!" my dad's voice overpowered my mother's words and the rest of the words died in her throat. But the damage had been done.
I realized what had gone through their minds.
"You were trying to replace me," my voice had flat lined. I looked up at them. "You were trying to replace me, weren't you?"
"NO!" My father's adamant reply shook the walls.
Love is a lie.
Suddenly Alex's belief popped back into my thoughts and rattled me to the core.
You're the only one.
That realization made me wonder as to who was dependant on who again.
He's the only one.
Not me.
Not them.
Where is he?
I whirled around and flew up stairs.
"DIANA!"
I stopped my escape and a strangled word escaped my throat, "Yes?"
"...we're here for you, you know that right?" my father said softly.
Bullshit.
I left without saying anything.
I slammed the door closed behind me and slid down the door. That painful and enclosed sensation I remembered so well flooded over me. No.
I'm fine.
I curled up into a ball and breathed in deeply. Exhaled slowly.
Inhaled.
Exhaled.
I let myself stop thinking about my family and I directed my thoughts towards Alex.
What am I going to do about Alex?
The helmet in the bag would let me hack into the LEP's system to figure out as to where Alex was being held.
I felt my heart slow as I fell back into my rhythm of planning. My mind threw itself into the process and it thrived away from the turmoil of emotions hovering at the edge.
It would be a simple matter from there to just accesses the building security and let Alex have a clear route out of the place and back at my side. If Alex was incapacitated by them it would be a little more of a challenge trying to get him free but I would face that if it came to it.
I wrapped the string of the bag containing the helmet around my fingers and watched with mild interest as my fingers lost circulation and began turning a shade of purple.
...And once Alex was free I could tell him. I would tell him and I would make sure I never let him go.
He's mine.
There was never any doubt that I wouldn't be able to get him out. It's implausible.
Alex is mine and I'm not letting him go again.
I forgot how little life cares for the whims of it's players.
