1.

She resisted the urge to sob the whole way back down to Haven. She wanted to, badly, so badly, to give into the urge, but then everyone would know something was wrong. And she didn't want everyone to know - especially not everyone. The bombarding she would be sure to get would probably make her head explode at that point. She wasn't altogether sure that it wouldn't explode anyways.

She had lost her best friend.

It took most of the ride for what had actually happened to sink in, but the hurt was there long before that. Her heart was ahead of her head - a common problem for her - but this time, it was on something that seemed more severe than it was. It felt like it was worse than Turnball, the B'wa Kell, hell, even Opal…

Opal… Frond help her, but Holly hated that pixie, now more than ever. And then, as she slowly let her anger eat away her sadness and hurt, the feeling overwhelmed her. She might have lashed out at something had the thought not popped into her head, but once it did, the fight and the fury both rushed out of her as she fell in a heap back into her seat. I wonder if Artemis feels the same way right now...

And there it was. He was. In her thoughts even though right now she should probably be trying her hardest to forget about him. In due time she would. But now she needed to mourn, and the urge could be controlled no longer. She broke out into sobs, and, as the shuttle landed, she let it park itself and climbed out, running towards her flat as fast as she could with her head down. She didn't even bother to clock out or let anyone know she was back.

oOoOoOoOoOo

She went straight home, but it only aroused much suspicion. Foaly was the first at her door the next morning.

She refused to answer the door, but what she didn't consider was that Foaly had designed her locks - he could deactivate them and get in without batting an eye. As a result, she came out from getting her coffee to find the centaur sitting in her living room.

"Not coming to work today?" he asked dryly.

Holly's eyes widened, and she quickly ducked her head and headed for her room.

"Yeah, I, um, don't feel so good today. I'm staying home," she said uncomfortably, not looking up. It wasn't technically a lie; the sadness and anxiety that were curdling in her stomach were making her physically sick.

"Oh, really. And you didn't even bother to call in?"

"I..." She sighed and mentally cursed herself. He was right; she hadn't. She should have known someone would investigate when she didn't. "Look, I forgot, okay? I'm sorry. I'm going back to bed now."

She made to scurry off, but he grasped her by the arm and turned her towards him, stopping her. "Look, I know something happened with Artemis," Foaly said, dropping the pretense. "I need to know what's going on to help though."

Holly closed her eyes and swallowed, sinking down in her chair. "There's no helping us this time, Foaly," she said quietly, after a minute. "I messed up big time."

The centaur sighed and shook his head, flopping down in the chair opposite her. "It couldn't have been anything worse than what he's done to you before," he said as he settled in beside her. "I mean, really. What could top kidnapping you, lying to you, almost costing you your job, not to mention your life-"

Holly wasn't listening. She was staring at a picture on her mantel. It hadn't really been taken with consent from either of them - it was a clip Foaly hijacked from security footage of her and Artemis together, during the whole catastrophe with the C-Cube thing, but she couldn't bring herself to care - it was a picture, with them both in it, and that in itself was enough for her now.

"I topped that," Holly finally said, sullenly, not even caring that Foaly was still speaking. "Gods, Foaly, I hurt him bad enough he threatened to abduct me again and threw me out. Artemis! And he threw me out!" She dropped her head into her shaking hands, attempting to blink away tears.

Foaly sighed and got up from his chair, moving to stand over her and place a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Tell me what happened," he said quietly, pulling her close and cradling her against his side.

The tender gesture was nearly enough to make her break completely. Holly lifted her head from her hands and swiped her sleeves over her wet eyes. "He-" Holly started to say, but then she had to stop and clear her throat before she could continue. "He called me up because he said he needed to talk to me, and that it was important. I was so worried something was wrong… I rushed up there. You should know that much - you gave me the visa." Foaly nodded solemnly, so she went on, rubbing her eyes. "He.. He told me he loved me," she whispered, her voice trembling. "And I told him that I didn't love him. And he didn't believe me, which I suppose was fair considering I was lying, but Foaly, you know it would never work and I just was trying to keep us both from getting hurt-"

"Holly," Foaly interrupted. He squeezed her shoulder again, a bit harder this time. "Take some deep breaths, then continue. I get why you're so upset, but-"

"No, you don't, because I didn't get to finish!" Holly half-yelled at him, but she was sobbing to hard for it to really have any vehemence behind it. She took a breath. "I had to make him believe I was telling the truth, and I just… I was trying to figure out how to make him believe it. The first thing that I thought of was Opal… and she popped into my head and then just kinda came out of my mouth." She looked down, ashamed and unable to meet his eyes anymore.

Foaly sighed and hugged the elf to him, letting her bury her head in his horsey side and cry until she finally ran out of tears. Eventually her sobs subsided and she relaxed against him, still trembling and sad, but no longer crying. Her head ached as she pushed herself back off of him.

"I'm a horrible person," Holly mumbled. "I broke his heart and then turned around and compared him to his mortal enemy. I said he was just as bad as Opal… if not implied that he was worse. Artemis, just like Opal? Once upon a time, maybe, but now?"

Foaly patted her shoulder. "He has his moments," he said slowly, "But I agree. That was wrong of you. I understand why you said it, but...he won't. It's no wonder he threw you out. Anger is a much easier emotion to manage than pain." He pushed her back gently, pushing back her hair and meeting her now bloodshot eyes. "Just give him a few days, Holly. Let it sink and let him cool down. I'll get you a visa for a refill this weekend, since it's a full moon. Root won't question it. You can go see him then."

Holly looked away. "What if it's not enough time and he's still mad?"

"Then he's still mad. Explain it to him, Holly. You can make him calm down." He squeezed her shoulder. "What do you think the worst that will happen is? He could abduct you and throw you back in the cell, but it's Artemis. He'd come to his senses within a day, and if he doesn't...I'll keep you linked in. We can track you and go in and get you."

Holly sighed and looked down, nodding slowly. She could think of a lot of ways that his idea could go wrong. Not that she wanted to, but it was like Artemis had once told her: plans don't always translate smoothly from paper to reality. She flinched at the thought and sat back. "You're right," she told Foaly hoarsely, even though she wasn't entirely sure he was. "I'll just give him and few days and go sort it out once he's calmed down."

"That's a girl." He squeezed her shoulders. "Stay home and get some rest. I'll take care of Root. Sort yourself out. If you can't come tomorrow, just give me a call."

Holly nodded and looked at her coffee. "Okay. Thanks, Foaly."

The centaur nodded and left.

Holly waited until she was sure he was gone, then went and dumped out her coffee. She made tea instead, going and settling back down in her armchair. She stared into it until it got blurry, then laid back and closed her eyes, her chest aching. She missed Artemis already. Was he as miserable as she was? Was he in as much pain as her, locked away in solitude and suffering?

She sat up. He probably was. Truth be told, she was wasting her time by waiting, wasn't she? She now had two whole days off work guaranteed, and Artemis probably wasn't doing anything either. He tended to sulk in solitude on good days. She should just go see him now, and clear it up, and end both of their suffering...assuming they could both keep it together for long enough.

Holly nodded to herself, getting up and going to get dressed. Ten minutes later, barely thrown together in a pair of old jeans and a purple turtleneck, Holly slipped on her communicator ring and left.