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"Do not trust your memory; it is a net full of holes; the most beautiful prizes slip through it."

 –Georges Duhanel, The Heart's Domain

Chapter Six: Suspicion of Memory

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Royal Movie Theater, Dublin, Ireland

Butler pulled up to the curb of the Royal Movie Theater parking lot. It was quiet in the backseat. Too quiet. Butler narrowed his eyes, remembering last night's conversation with the Fowls. It didn't make sense—to him, at least. Mrs. Fowl hardly knew her son at all, and her husband, being absent for most of Artemis' lifetime, despite all of his precaution and intelligence, had underestimated his son.

No, Butler knew his young charge. Very well. And Artemis knew this, Butler thought. Artemis trusted him.

Then why had he lied? Even when he knew that Butler wouldn't believe a word of the story he had fed to his parents—wanting to spend some time with Alanis and take her to a movie— this was Artemis Fowl the Second, the anti-social criminal prodigy who had earned over fifteen million pounds in the last two years.

Of course, that was not including the gold.

A month before Artemis had returned from school, Butler had received a call.

"Fowl Manor."

"Hello, I'm Joe Cartwright the Managing Assistant at Abditus Storage Systems. Mr. Fowl rented a block for the past two years. It expires tomorrow. Would Mr. Fowl like to continue storage?"

Butler, not knowing of any such storage rental, immediately went down to the company to investigate.

Inside was nearly a half-ton of solid gold ingots.

Butler checked all the records. Nothing indicated where the gold had come from, and how Artemis had gotten it. Something tugged at his memory, but he couldn't quite grasp what seemed so familiar.

Artemis was hiding something from him. He had always told Butler his plan. Always. Artemis trusted Butler with his life. Why was he lying to him?

Butler had meant to tell Artemis immediately when he returned from school. But Artemis seemed distant. Occupied. His usual disposition when he was planning something big—something that he always talked to Butler about. After all, they were a team. But Artemis hadn't sought him out at Fowl Manor. Nor had he spoken to him since in anything other than a master-to-butler way. Butler was almost disappointed. He'd missed Artemis' company and his trust.

And today. Artemis gave him no other information than what he told his parents. They had been delighted, of course. Angeline had been absolutely ecstatic about "her little boy's first date." She insisted that Butler drop them off and not follow them, for Artemis' protection.

And Artemis had agreed.

Butler walked around to the passenger door and opened it for Artemis, ignoring the curious stares of the people passing by.

Artemis stepped out, dressed impeccably in a crisp white shirt and black slacks. He reached back into the car and helped Alanis out. Her high heels snapped smartly against the cement pavement. Alanis looked the picture of a fashion model—sunglasses, haughty expression, and a stylish outfit complete with matching handbag. They looked conspicuously out of place on this normal street filled with normal people.

"Thank you, Butler. I shall see you at six o'clock." Artemis smiled at him.

Butler hesitated. There should have been something more—added instructions, a secret plan, or a case file. Artemis Fowl the Second had never been simple. He couldn't go on a date without an ulterior motive.

Could he?

~

Artemis watched the Bentley pull away and down the street. Alanis had turned toward the theater, linking her arm with his. "Okay, what picture do you want to see…"

Artemis yanked away a bit harshly. "We are not watching anything, especially not any of that mindless drivel."

Alanis stared at him, confused. "I thought you said we were watching going to the theater."

Artemis crossed his arms and gave her a cold look. "That is what my parents and Butler believe we are doing. However, I am continuing my research as planned. Don't you recall any of what I've told you yesterday? Or did you inhale too much of your hairspray this morning?"

Alanis sniffed. "I thought you changed your mind. You don't have to be a git about it."

"Let's go, then," said Artemis testily, starting to walk down the street.

Alanis stood still for a few seconds before she realized he wasn't going to wait for her. She scrambled to his side, her heels clacking. "Wait," she said, "Where are we going?"

"A library," answered Artemis tersely. "It's within walking distance from the theater."

They walked in silence, the noise of the bustling crowd surrounding them. After a few minutes of Alanis getting jostled aside by the quickly moving crowd, she linked her arm with Artemis again. "So many bloody people," she muttered.

"There are over a million people living in the city," said Artemis disdainfully.

Alanis annoyed him with her insipid comments, but there was something comforting about her presence beside him; he'd never traveled anywhere without Butler, except for school, and everyone there left him alone. The crowd unnerved him.

The street seemed to stretch, and Artemis glanced at his watch. They had been walking for fifteen minutes, and the sun was blazing high in the sky. A trickle of sweat ran down his chin, and the crowd jostled him at every step. 

"How far is this library thing anyways?" asked Alanis testily. "My shoes are going to get ruined."

Artemis kept walking in silence. Alanis adjusted her grip on Artemis' arm as they passed by a particularly large crowd on the street around a man who looked suspiciously like Master Mo.

"Draco Malfoy, the Amazing Bouncing FerretTM! Get yours today!"

A small girl rushed by excitedly, throwing a stuffed ferret in the air. "Bouncy!" she shrieked.

Artemis didn't even pause to raise an eyebrow when he passed by, spotting the large dome of the library complex in relief. The cool air and the books beckoned to him.

~

The library was huge. It was quiet and scary. The silence made Alanis nervous. How did all of the people stand it? She followed Artemis, who did not seem at all scared by the tall shelves filled with books. Fat books. With hard words written on their covers. Alanis shook her head. None of them looked like they had pictures.

Artemis led her to a small table in the corner. "Wait here until I return," he said.

So that meant she had to wait then. Alanis sat down on the small chair. It was hard. And uncomfortable.

Artemis was taking a very long time. Alanis was bored. She tapped her fingernails on the table. They were still Violet Passion. Maybe she should repaint them. Alanis watched her fingernails tap the table, making a very nice tapping sound. She wasn't quite so bored, but still wanted something to do.

Maybe she could talk to someone. A girl sat at a nearby table, reading a book. She was wearing some really out-of-date jeans and sweater, but she didn't look that scary. "Hi," said Alanis loudly.

The girl looked up and gave her a mean look. She stood up and walked away, taking the book with her. Alanis stared after her, wondering what she did wrong, tapping her fingernails on the table.

"Would you cease that incessant tapping and transfer these books to the table?"

Alanis stopped tapping and lifted the top book. She was greeted by a shock of black hair, blue eyes, and a pale forehead.

"Hi," she said to Artemis, setting the book on the table. It was heavy.

Artemis rolled his eyes and put the other books on the table, making a heavy THUMP. A man at the other table next to them gave Alanis a mean look and moved too.

Alanis looked around the library. People looked at her funny, if they looked at all. She frowned. She didn't belong here.

Alanis turned around and found Artemis reading one of the fat books. She bent over and tried to see what the book said, but Artemis turned the page. There were no pictures, but a bunch of words so small she could barely see it. Artemis turned the page again. He read fast. And he was very smart, she thought. He fenced well, but played unfair. Alanis smiled at the memory and wished she had a blade right now. Swoosh! Heh, Artemis falling in the pool was really funny. Fencing was one of the things she was good at. But then that list was pretty short, unless you wanted to count looking pretty for the camera.

Alanis vaguely wondered why Artemis didn't ever smile. She poked him and he looked at her, angry again. "How come you never smile?"

He gave her a weird look. "I smile when there is something worth smiling for."

"But it's not a smile. It's a mean smile, or a smug smile. It's not a happy smile." Alanis knew a lot about smiling.

Artemis looked annoyed. He got up and walked away. Alanis looked down at the book he was reading. All of the words swimming together looked too confusing. There was one picture. Alanis looked closer—hey! It was one of those pieces of jewelry Daddy had asked her to look at.

Artemis glared at her and pushed a magazine into her hands. "Amuse yourself." He sat back down and read.

Alanis glanced at the magazine. She'd seen this one already. She flipped through the pages and stopped at an advertisement. Oh, bloody hell. There she was again. Alanis glared at the picture, wishing she could rip it out. God. She hated her face. Was that all she was good for?

The Lower Elements, Chute E16>

Mulch Diggums chomped on a piece of carrot he found in one of the bags. His stomach protested at the centaur food, but it was food nonetheless. He ran an expert hand around the other pockets of the fat suitcase, and found a delectable Fairy Fortune Express card, as well as some coupons for Spud Spud's Emporium. These Mulch stashed away in his pocket, checking the name. Fern Black. He sniffed, thinking it was a stupid name to go by. Someone named Fern Black probably liked to eat carrots.

More of the bags went through Mulch's careful inspection, and when he reached the end of the baggage compartment, his pockets were lined with more items, mostly were things he didn't need. Mulch sat down at the end, listening for the familiar grate of the shuttle landing at Tara. He smiled as he fingered his new belongings, and somehow his hands wound up on a little gold medallion on his neck. Mulch Diggums, although he knew he was alone, looked around suspiciously, then pulled it out.

It still gleamed, but after two years of wear most of the gold leaf paint had brushed off. That Fowl boy was clever, all right. Mulch wondered curiously what was in the disk—it looked like a disk—and then decided to look in the bags again for more food. Artemis better have some good grub at his place. He was starving. What kind of storage compartment was this, if the shuttle didn't even store food in it?

The disk gleamed with secrets locked away as Mulch dozed off. While he was dreaming of Fort Knox, the key to Artemis' memories hung around his neck, as the shuttle sped towards the surface of the Earth.

A/N:I'm terribly sorry that this took so long. I wanted to make this chapter longer, but I'm incredibly busy and suffered from writer's block. I'm going to stop giving previews of the next chapter, because I keep changing them around to suit the story as it progresses.

Ngyhtvision: Thanks for your support! ^_^ Now when will the Ivory Files be updated..*poke*

lutefa: Interesting name...and I have posted more.

starLOver11: Artemis gets his memories back sometime in the story.

Tide: The pieces...are somehow coming together. Hehe. Is Alanis in the prophecy? Is her name in there? o_O

Mystic Unicorn: Hmm, chess. I should fix that. Thanks. :)

Lady Storm: I hope you haven't forgotten..chapter six is here!

Libro: Thanks for your comments! ^_^ I appreciate the support.

the Spaminator: o_O A dumpster with a bag of feral weasels? NO! Not the song! THE HORROR!

darklight ascendant: Gonna fix the chess thing. Got that. ^_^ My OC is not an OC? o_O I'm trying...the consistencies are strange, but I'm attempting...Hehehee..

And until Chapter seven!!! Review and I shall be happy. Review and I shall write. ^_^