When I'm Gone
By: ChocolateEclar
Disclaimer: I neither claim nor own Artemis Fowl, nor When I'm Gone by 3 Doors Down, which I removed the lyrics of because of the ban on FF.
Summary: The People take drastic measures when Artemis gains his memory back. Now, Butler is comatose, while Juliet is stitched up and Artemis is unconscious. Holly reflects on the criminal mastermind from outside his hospital room. (AH) A little project to get me back into the fanfic spirit. I think some of it is OOC to be honest, but this was just a little experimental practice.
Mater Private Hospital; Dublin, Ireland
Gazing at the boy – no, he was a man by human standards, and she could not degrade him by saying otherwise – lying amongst the stark whiteness of the hospital room, Holly Short let out a long sigh. What had they done? Even she, the one who should have hated Artemis Fowl the Second, did not approve of what the People had done. He was – is, she insisted – a genius in his own right.
He swore not to exploit us, thought Holly. Even I didn't believe the Council would order this…
Slaughter.
He looked much older now even though only eight years had passed since she had first laid hazel eyes on the criminal mastermind. Dark and smug and just plain gifted came to mind when she thought of that old Artemis. He started to change though, sighed Holly. Now, she feared they would never again see the real Artemis. The one who had told her that he would survive to show the People who he really was.
Fowl Manor; Four Days Before
"Do you really believe that you can survive a troop of fairies out to kill and or maim you?" Holly practically shrieked.
"I have succeeded in similar situations, but I was under the impression the People were not the sort to resort to foul tactics when someone believed to be their foe had outmaneuvered them…" explained Artemis calmly. "…again," he added as an afterthought with a slight smirk.
"I can't believe you!" hissed Holly. "I come up here, risking my neck and my badge, and you're not taking me seriously! The Council has ordered a hit squad after you tomorrow!"
Artemis let out an exasperated sigh and turned to Holly. Before the elf could react, he had become unnervingly close to her. "And I thank you for that, Holly," she whispered.
That was when he leaned in just a little closer and kissed her on the lips.
"I will live to prove the People's opinion of me wrong," he whispered.
It would have seemed as idealistic and surprising to Holly now as it did at that moment, if Artemis was not just surviving by a string.
Mater Hospital; Present
It had not been the entire Council's idea or consensus to try to murder a human. In fact, only three councilors had secretly ordered the kill. It had been sent out to five elfin assassins. Holly had heard about the future hit through Foaly who had found out from the youngest councilor. The man had overheard what three of his own had been planning and contacting his old centaur buddy. Both centaurs had decided Holly was the best person to ask for assistance.
"You don't have to do this," Councilor Todner had insisted.
"You do have a right to know though," Foaly added.
"And why would that be?" asked Holly numbly.
Smiling, Foaly had rolled his eyes. "Well... You'll figure it out."
Now, Holly knew. She understood why just seeing Artemis hurt made her grimace. Juliet and Butler were not doing that well either.
Butler, comatose and in a room on the floor above, was where Holly briefly visited. It was not much of a welcome retreat from the oppressive injustice that came down on her in Artemis's room. Why does the one time when Artemis's plans failed have to be now? she thought. Butler had been trying to protect his charge, as always.
The Cellar, Fowl Manor; Three Days Before
Artemis had been struck when Butler's back had been turned from his charge. Butler could not believe he had made the mistake of taking his eyes off Artemis. The twenty-year-old in question was sprawled on the ground, trying to get to his feet. His ankle is twisted, Butler noted with a grimace. He blasted the offending fairy in the foot with a Neutrino 3000, brought up by Holly from belowground but courtesy of Foaly, stunning the assassin unconscious.
"We need to find Holly," said Artemis, as Butler righted him. The captain had volunteered to help them– or rather, forced her assistance on them – against the hit squad. She was in Angeline and Artemis Senior's private rooms, waiting in ambush for another fairy assassin.
Angeline Fowl's Closet
"What's going on down below, Foaly?" Holly queried. She was sitting by the door of a walk-in closet filled with dresses and suits and racks of shoes.
"I've lost contact with all but Juliet, but my still-amazing scanners tell me the big guy and the Mud Boy are holding their own in the cellar," Foaly replied.
"Don't you start praising yourself, centaur," grumbled Holly.
"Aww, you sound like ol' Julius," Foaly said.
Holly rubbed the bridge of her nose. "What about Juliet, Foaly?"
"She's taking the one on the roof pretty well," began Foaly before another voice spoke.
"Good to hear," said Artemis.
"You found your earpiece I see," said Foaly.
"Only one actually," responded Artemis. "Butler's was smashed in the scuffle."
"Your status?" questioned Holly. It was difficult to form long sentences addressed to him even when not face-to-face.
"One sprained ankle, but otherwise no damage present here," Artemis replied as if nothing were different.
"The next one's coming, Holly," said Foaly.
Pausing, Holly listened and picked out the sound of a window being broken in. "Later, guys," she whispered, smirking.
Mater Hospital; Present
Holly had to admit her job had been a bit easier than she had expected that night. While she was fully loaded with magic and weaponry, the assassin she faced had lost his magic from entering homes without permission regularly. He did have a few tricks though, including a nasty set of radioactive, exploding darts. She rubbed her upper arms where she had been grazed with the darts.
Her magic had healed her enough that she was completely healed, but she needed to get permission to enter the rooms to heal the others. Being a public place, she could enter the main hospital rooms and corridors without permission, but patient rooms were a different story, and if she stepped inside to try to heal Artemis, Butler, or Juliet, she would lose her magic and be sick all over the floor. If only she had had enough magic to heal them all that night.
The Trophy Room, Fowl Manor; Two Days Before
It had been a battle from nightfall to sunrise and now, Holly was the only one of them who could even stand. She could hear Commander Root chastising her in her ear. It was lost on her though. Juliet, the least injured of the humans, was trying to bandage a gash on Artemis's forehead. Holly had seen him receive the wound and knew it to be from one of the assassin sword aimed at his head. Artemis had managed to keep the blade from killing him, but not without some scraps. He had physically held the blade away from himself for a moment before his strength had started to give, and then Butler had been there to deal a final blow to the enemy.
Holly limped over to Juliet and Artemis. The young human woman was barely staying conscious from blood loss. There was a long cut down her leg from her thigh to her shin that was dripping blood. Holly brushed her hand over the wound to stitch up the injury. "Heal," she rasped.
"You could have reported this to me, Holly!" roared Root in Holly's ear. "Both of you as well!" he hissed at the two centaurs beside him. "You know I would have offered assistance! Even I don't want that Mud Boy dead anymore."
"I wasn't aware you cared, Commander," muttered Artemis with a faint, weak smirk. His head was pounding and he felt rather as if his early dinner from the night before was ready to reemerge. One thought surfaced that made his grin widen. What am I to tell my parents?
He let out a long, shaky breath. He watched Holly work her magic on Juliet. His eyes lost focus on them, and he pressed his knuckles to his eyes.
Holly was healing Juliet's bruised knuckles when Artemis collapsed. No amount of healing would wake him on Holly's part. She had barely enough strength left to have Juliet carry her to where Butler was clutching his chest in agony on the staircase. At his feet was one of the unconscious assassins with a broken jaw and bruised ribs. Using the last of her magic reserve, Holly healed the Neutrino burn mark on Butler's chest, and then was out cold.
Police Plaza, Haven City, the Lower Elements; One Day Before Present
"Status, Captain?" Commander Root demanded as Holly awoke the first time in twenty-four hours. He was in one of the moods that caused his face to give him his nickname.
"What?" mumbled Holly. "How did I…?" She grimaced, remembering.
"You were brought back to Haven by the Recon Retrieval Squad," explained Foaly, stepping closer.
"You're not behind bars," whispered Holly groggily. "Good sign."
"We're very lucky the law is on our side," said Councilor Todner, smiling from behind Foaly's shoulder. "Passage eleven, chapter nine, line four states, 'A human may not be harmed without the consent of the majority (or at least two-thirds) of the Council' and even then it's rare." He looked to be younger than Foaly with no facial hair and longish black hair slicked back.
"Where are Artemis, Butler, and Juliet?" Holly asked. Worry nagged at her. She had not healed them enough.
"Before the med wizards could arrive to heal them, Artemis Senior and Angeline Fowl arrived home and found the trio," said Foaly.
"Why weren't the wizards with the Retrieval Squad?" queried Holly.
"They were ordered by the Council to just get you and get out immediately," grumbled Root, gnawing on his fungus cigar. "We received permission for healings later."
"So where are they?" Holly insisted.
Foaly pushed a button on his watch and a little hologram projected from the side facing away from him. It was a swirling building labeled Mater Private Hospital – Dublin, Ireland. "They're recuperating here. Unfortunately, we can't get permission to send med wizards in from the Council or the surface," explained Foaly.
"Fine," sighed Holly. "I have to go anyway." The objections followed her out the door.
Mater Hospital; Present
A flicker of movement caught Holly's eye. She snapped her head to peer through the thick glass and into Artemis's room. His hand was fingering the blanket wrapped around him. He did not awaken though, so she turned away and sighed. Walking invisibly down the hallway, she stopped at an open door. Juliet Butler was sitting up in bed. She was stretching sore, cramped muscles, while she flipped through the channels on the television across the room perched just under the ceiling on clamps. She settled on MTV by the time she was fully stretched.
Holly was pleased to see minor remaining injuries. A bruised jaw, stitched tear on the arm, and aching muscles seemed to be her only lasting symptoms. Making sure no one was able to see her suddenly appear apart from Juliet, Holly unshielded.
"Holly!" squealed Juliet.
"Shhh!" laughed Holly. "I'm not supposed to be here, remember?"
"Yeah, but I was worried about you," Juliet said. "What about Dom and Artemis?"
"They haven't woken up yet," sighed Holly.
"Do you need permission to enter or are you going to just stand out there?" Juliet asked after a long pause.
"Permission, thanks," Holly said. She had to admit. This young Mud Woman was sharp in her own way.
Outside Fowl Manor; Three Days Before
Juliet checked for the tenth time that the spiked metal ring was still securely on the end of her braid. She waited from her cramped position under a hedge. A red berry from the bush bounced off her forehead. C'mon, she thought, I can't stay in this position forever. She knew Madame Ko would disapprove of this line of thinking, but a girl has to set her priorities at times.
That was when a fairy alighted directly in front of her. He was the standard short height with a dagger stuck in his belt and grenades hanging from his hat. Pointed ears stuck from under his red hair and beady black eyes scanned the area. Juliet waited fifteen counts before snatching his ankles from under him.
He twisted away as Juliet sprang from the hedge. She twirled and struck out with her braid, grazing the elf with the spikes on her metal ring as it was propelled at his head. He retaliated with a grenade tossed at her feet. Juliet tackled him and rolled them both away from the exploding grenade. She had him in a chokehold when she heard a knife slicing through the air. She dived out of the way, causing the knife to hit the elf she had just released in the back. He yowled and cursed his partner until Juliet kicked him in the ribs. He passed out and she went after the knife-thrower. He was on the roof, now trying to get in through the skylight over the Artemis Senior's private study. Juliet scaled the rose trellis and peeked at her opponent. She pulled her Neutrino 3000 from her belt and aimed at the elfin assassin.
The laser bounced off a circular shield protecting the elf. "Damn," grunted Juliet.
The elf was glaring at her. "You cannot get passed this, Mud Wench."
Juliet swung up onto the roof and raised the setting on her Neutrino. "Wanna bet?" she hissed.
When faced with a constant stream of rays from the fairy gun, the shield began to blink and weaken. "Where's the weakest point, Foaly?" Juliet said. The tiny microphone attached to her neck with a skin-colored patch picked up the vibrations in her vocal cords.
"Just above his left shoulder," replied Foaly through her earpiece.
Smirking, Juliet said, "Too bad you can't defend yourself in that shield, fairy." The shield broke with three final shots aimed at the weak spot. Then, Juliet sprinted and tackled him, digging her elbow in his abdomen.
"Two down here," she announced, climbing down from the roof with the passed out assassin over her shoulder.
"Good," said Foaly. "Drop them off in the cell. Arty needs you in the trophy room."
Artemis's Hospital Room, Mater Hospital; Present
There was a moment when Artemis thought he was safe in his own bedroom before he felt the coarseness of the pillow beneath his head and the antiseptic-scented blankets. He half-opened his eyes to study his parents sitting in one corner. They were nervously talking about whether or not Juliet was telling them the true story about what had occurred in their absence. So, Juliet is awake then, Artemis thought.
He tried to lift his head further off his pillow only to feel a sting between his eyes. He fought to stay conscious. He had to know what had happened to Butler and Holly! To his disappointment, he dreamt once again.
Dr. Hendrickson's Office
"What exactly is wrong with him, doctor?" asked Artemis the First.
The balding doctor flipped to a page on his clipboard. "A concussion, sprained ankle, laceration on the right temple, broken wrist, and minor cuts and bruises," he read off. "All in all, I'd say he'll be conscious in a few hours, but he will need assistance in moving for at least a couple of weeks."
"No lasting damage then?" asked Angeline.
"None physically anyway. He may be traumatized by the experience though," responded Doctor Hendrickson.
Artemis's Hospital Room
"It's your fault again!"
"You caused them to be hurt because of you!"
"Again!" screamed a chorus of voices.
"Poor Butler is in a coma!"
"Juliet needed stitches!"
"Holly could have lost her life and her job!"
Artemis stared coolly at the surrounding nightmare figures. "I know," he replied.
"Filthy – "
"Demon – "
"Scum!"
"You don't deserve to live!"
The little monitor beside Artemis's bed showed his heart rate slowing in his sleep.
Butler's Room
"You can come in, Holly," said Juliet, glancing back at the seemingly empty doorway.
Holly unshielded and stepped into Butler's hospital room. He was breathing steadily but he was connected to an IV and totally unconscious. She rolled up the sleeves of her green LEP jumpsuit and placed her palms flat on Butler's arm. Juliet shut the door behind her and stood guard next to it. "Heal," she breathed. Butler's body convulsed as little blue sparks danced across it.
Butler's eyes shot open. They were wide and unfocused as he grabbed Holly's hands. When he realized it was her though, he set her back down on her feet.
"Dom!" said Juliet.
Holly pushed her sleeves back down and grinned. "Thanks for that, big guy."
Butler smiled. "Good to see you both," he said before pausing. "Where is Artemis?" When both girls paused, dread filled the bodyguard. Had he let his charge down?
"It's nothing like what you're thinking," insisted Juliet.
"He's on the floor below this one and still unconscious," added Holly.
"Do you have enough magic to heal him now?" grimaced Butler.
"Well, he may still have trouble walking, but I can give him enough energy to be up and around in a few hours," Holly replied.
Artemis's Room
There was something different about Artemis now, as Holly stood over him, preparing to start his recovery off better. Juliet had stayed upstairs to be with her brother after giving Holly permission to enter Artemis's room.
Artemis's eyes were flickering under his eyelids, indicating he was dreaming. What he was dreaming about, Holly could somehow tell, was dreadful. Maybe it was the set of his mouth – sort of pinched – and how his face would periodically crinkle.
She studied the monitor attached to the human man and translated the symbols. With a heart rate of only fifty-two and low blood pressure, it worried her. She was no doctor, but this seemed dire to her.
"C'mon, Artemis," she hissed, pressing her palms to his chest. "Heal!"
"Heal!" The word rang in Artemis's ears. His blood felt suddenly electrified. "Don't you give up! You said you would live to prove the People wrong about you!" cried out the voice.
The nightmare voices screams were fading.
"Loser!"
"Human rat!"
"Heal!"
Artemis's opened his eyes wide. He looked like a person who had nearly drowned, coughing and sputtering. There was a figure above him with nut-brown skin and heavily cropped auburn hair. "Holly," he wheezed.
There was raw feeling there for a moment until he gathered himself together and sat up. "You returned to heal us then," stated Artemis evenly with one eyebrow cocked.
Holly nodded even though she knew it had not been a question. She stood back and asked, "How do you feel?"
"I feel rather like I have been a car accident, but I have had worse days," said Artemis.
"Liar," Holly accused blandly.
Artemis gave her his vampire smirk. "Perhaps."
Holly stepped closer and whacked him in the arm. He winced and gave her a mild glare. "What have I done to you this time, Captain?" he queried amusedly.
"Just be glad I didn't punch you," Holly replied before biting her lip and kissing him. This time Artemis had no retort.
A/N: Well, that was strange, now wasn't it? I was going through a dry spell really, and I had to write some fanfiction, so this is what came of it. It shows, no? (grimaces) At least, it's just a one-shot… The song fit Artemis and Holly quite a bit in my mind, but I'm not pleased with the actual ending though. It's too…cliché. Bah. In any case, please review. I hope to get away from this blasted half thought-out drivel soon.