Holly ran down the stairs and, yet again, almost fell on her face. Artemis doubled over in laughter as she got up off the floor, "At least my face missed the floor this time!"
"Aw man," Artemis smirked, walking past her to open the door. He cringed, stood up straight, putting on the most cold face he could, and opened the door.
"ARTEMIS!" Veronica screeched and hugged him, almost knocking him over.
"I missed you too," he muttered sarcastically and moved back.
"Hi," She said lamely to Holly, who crossed her arms and glared daggers at her, "So, where is your friend."
"Right here," Holly growled, crossing her arms and still glaring.
"Oh, sorry," She said in a fake voice, "I just wasn't thinking."
Holly was about to remark when Artemis interupted, "Why don't we get something to eat?"
"Where to?" Veronica asked happily.
"Do you want to go somewhere new Holly?" He asked her and she shrugged.
She then smiled and laughed, scratching the back of her head, "Well, this is going to sound funny but, I've never been to Pizza Hut."
Veronica looked at her strangly and Artemis raised an eyebrow, "Pizza Hut it is." 'Oh this is going to be funny.'
"Do they have salads there?" Veronica asked.
"Crap!" Holly yelled smacking herself in the head, "I just remembered I'm on a diet!"
Artemis laughed, "I highly doubt one day will do anything."
"Do you know how much fatty stuff there is in pizza!" Holly exclaimed, "I want to beat up Lily so bad! Just to prove to Kelp that I am better than her!"
"What is it with you two anyways?" Artemis asked, "I thought you two were like best friends?"
"We are but he thinks he is better than me and one day I will beat the crap out of him and prove my point," She growled in one breath.
"I guess you can choose the place to eat than Veronica," Artemis sighed and she smirked at Holly.
"Okay, let's go to Miachi's."
Holly smiled as she waited for her order. She may hate the girl but she picked a good place. Italian food was the best. Okay, Holly liked food from just about anywhere, but everything Italian was good.
The waiter brought there food, "So, how is your winter break so far?"
"Great, but a little depressing," Veronica replied, starting to eat her salad.
"Why?" He asked taking his pizza from the waiter, because it was an italian resturant and pizza is italian.
"Well, it is so difficult to see you on breaks," Veronica said, pouting and almost making Holly spit her pasta across the table. Luckily only Artemis and the old couple in the table next to theres noticed, "How is your stay so far Holly?"
"Okay," Holly smiled, "It's nice to see the gang again. I mean it hasn't been as long as it usually is but, I'm starting to know them so much it's hard to say bye."
Artemis put on mock happiness, "Really?"
"I never meant you," Holly smirked and laughed. He laughed with her and Veronica glared at Holly.
"So, what school do you go to?" Veronica asked as if she was interested, but her and Holly knew it was only pretend for Artemis.
"I'm home school," She replied and taking another bite of her pasta.
"Are you planning on going to college?" She asked and looked her up and down.
Holly nodded and smiled to herself, "Yeah, I'm mostly likely am unless I get called back."
"Called back?" Veronica asked confused.
"Oh yeah, Holly is an ex-cop," Artemis got into the conversation that he wasn't in.
"How old are you?" She asked.
"Eighteen," Holly smiled and took a sip of pop, "I proved myself useful. My father was a cop and I wanted to be just like him, so I followed his footsteps, ending up here."
She gave Artemis a look and he smiled, "It wasn't my fault, blame my other half."
Veronica seemed to be more and more confused but asked, "So, why is it ex-cop?"
"Well, my Commander died in the line of duty," Holly said looking down at her hands, "We got a new Commander who hated me and would never let me try to help anyone, so I quit. My other Commander and me knew that we only did the job for the People."
"That's sweet," Veronica fakely said.
Holly laughed and frowned, "Yeah."
Artemis looked back and forth at them, still thinking they were becoming friends, "So... what do you guys want to do when we're done?"
"The mall..." Veronica got cut off.
"I'd like to go back to the Manor if that's okay," Holly looked up from her pasta. There was no expression on her face that Artemis could read. Veronica smiled as if in triumph and Artemis was astounded.
"Alright," Artemis replied dumb-founded for the first time in his life.
They finished eating in silence and drove back to Fowl Manor. When they got there, Butler was searching the perimeter, "Do you have to do that?"
"It's my job Artemis, that is what I'm paid to do," Butler said confused.
"Well, can I pay you not to do it?" Artemis laughed and got out of the car. Veronica and Holly followed.
"I don't think s..." He started and looked at Holly, "Is something wrong."
She shook her head no and Butler winked at her. She seemed to act just as normally as she usually did but Butler seemed to think something was wrong. She walked up to him and winked back so Artemis couldn't tell, "I'm perfectly fine. Maybe you're just mental?"
"Me?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Exactly, Big Man," She replied punching him in the stomach softly. He didn't even feel it.
"So are you guys staying here now?" He asked and started to walk to the house.
"I was wondering if me and Artemis could go back out if you're feeling okay Holly," She smirked when Holly turned around to face her. To Veronica's surprise she didn't seem mad or jealous.
"I don't care," Was her only reply and she turned back around, going into the house.
Veronica turned to Artemis to say something but he said, "I think I should stay here, something isn't right I can feel it."
"But she just said..." Veronica started.
"I know Holly and she's a fighter. Which means if something is up she won't show it and I think that's what she is doing," He replied sternly.
She crossed her arms unhappily but replied, "I'll call you later than."
With that she turned around and walked away. Artemis rolled his eyes and turned around to find himself alone. Holly and Domvoi had dissapeared into the house and he had to find them. He new something was up.
Meanwhile Holly and Domovoi were sitting in the lounge, "So you wanted to punch her but you would have cried while you were doing it?"
"It's not my fault," Holly pouted, "I don't want Artemis to be mad at me for wanting to kill the only girl he has a chance with, yet I despise her and wish he would hate her to."
He laughed and replied, "So why were you going to cry though?"
"Something was mentioned about parents and I was thinking about my mom and dad," Holly looked down, "She could care less. She'd act like she was sad for me but inside I could tell she was giggling that little, evil, brunnet head of hers off."
"You sure can say a lot of things about someone when you're mad," Artemis laughed from the doorway. Butler turned to look at him and Artemis smiled. Butler got up and walked from the room leaving the two alone yet again, "You and her really need to hide your remarks."
"We tried so hard," Holly smirked, "She even thought we were fooling you."
"I almost believed you though!" He exclaimed sitting down on the love seat next to her. She itched her head and he laughed.
"What's so funny?" She asked and then scratched the other side of her head fast.
"You," He laughed, "Just the expressions you make and what you do."
She rolled her eyes but smiled at him, "So you think I'm funny huh?"
"Not all the time," Artemis moved closer, "Just when you're trying not to be funny."
She leaned forward and whispered, "Maybe that's my plan."
"I highly doubt it," He whispered back and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, "Cause when someone is trying to be funny they don't do it in such a cute way."
"Are you trying to flirt with me?" She suddenly asked, trying to catch him off guard. He wasn't.
"Isn't it obvious enough?" He asked back, blowing a strand of hair from his face.
"You do know that I could hurt you very easily?" She replied giving him a soft glare.
"I kno..." He was cut off when Analay ran into the room.
"HOLLY!" She screamed, running to her and jumping on top of her, "MOMMY SAID WE CAN GO OUTSIDE FOR A WHILE!"
"Okay," Holly said calmly, "but there's two things you have to do."
She waited for Analay to nod and went on, "One, please don't scream like that in my ear and Two, you have to answer me this question. What do you want to do outside?"
"We can do anything!" She exclaimed and whispered in her ear, "We can be undercover spies and spy on Artemis."
Holly laughed and Analay smiled, "Want to?"
Holly nodded and Analay jumped with joy. She grabbed Holly's hand and started to drag her to the door. Artemis crossed his arms and Holly stuck her tounge out at him, glad to be out of the room. Her and Analay put on light jackets and went outside. They hid behind bushes and gave each other code names. They then jumped in and out of trees and did army crawls over the ground. Holly was happy to do it even though she knew that in real life it wasn't so much fun.
"Hoppy, what's your position?" Holly asked through a fake walky talky.
"You're supposed to say over, over," Analay said in a duh kind of voice.
"Repeat, what's your position, over," Holly said into her fist and giggled.
"Behind the big oak tree, over," Analay replied from behind the oak tree not ten feet away. Holly ran, ducked, and rolled to the tree where Analay was. She looked around and saw Artemis's father come out of the house, "Time for tactic four-eleven."
"What's tactic four-eleven?" Holly asked looking around the tree to see Artemis come out of the house too.
"Just go the opposite way I do, then we ambush," Analay nodded as she spoke and turned to go the opposite way. Holly suppressed a giggle as she ran the other way, dodging in and out of trees and behind bushes. When she reached the other side, she waited for Analay to make the next move. She started to sneak up behind her father slowly with a small smile of joy on her face.
Holly then noticed something, "Where did Artemis go?"
Just then someone grabbed her arm and turned her around, pushing her to the ground. She screeched and Analay hurrily looked over to where Holly was, giving her father the chance to turn around and grab her. She screeched and giggled.
Holly lay on the ground laughing as Artemis almost sat on top of her, "Dang. I should have known something was wrong when you came into the picture."
"You should have known when I stepped out of the picture," Artemis smirked, "Oh wait I forgot, you didn't notice until it was to late."
"You guys are pretty good," Holly commented, turning her head and seeing Artemis's father walking Analay into the house. She missed what Artemis had said first.
"You have got to pay more attention to things," He shook his head but then smiled at her, "I think I should teach you a lesson."
"Oh really," She replied trying to squirm away from him but he held her down. He didn't reply but nodded and started to tickle her. She laughed and tried to get him off of her, "STOP!"
After a minute he did and she flipped him onto his back, trying to tickle him," What the heck!"
"Maybe, I'm just not ticklish," He smirked and sat up.
"You suck," She pouted and crossed her legs Indian style to prove her point.
He crawled over to her and whispered in her ear, "Im cold."
"So, what do you want me to do about it?" She asked, turning her head away from him.
He scooted closer to her and whispered in her ear again, "I was just letting you know."
His whisper sent chills down her spine and he put his hand behind her neck, rubbing it. Which sent many more shivers down her spine, "I think you're cold to?"
She shook her head and he leaned a little closer, "Are you sure?"
She bit her lip and turned to face him. There faces were inches away and he was giving her a gentle look. It made her breath catch in her throat. He said something next but she couldn't reply. He leaned in further and there noses touched. There lips rubbed against each other, "HOLLY!!"
They moved back from each other and Holly stood up, "Will you read me a story to me and Austin, so we can fall asleep?"
Holly nodded and was about to walk away but stopped. She sat down next to Artemis and whispered in his ear, "You were so close."
She got up and ran to the house and he groaned, 'Why did she have to do that?'
Holly closed the door softly and turned around. She jumped and covered her mouth. She punched Artemis in the arm and whispered angrily, "You jerk. If I would have screamed they would have woken up. It took me a half hour to get her to sleep."
He laughed and said back, "There room is practically sound proof. I don't think they're going to hear you."
She punched him in the arm again and asked, "Do you have to do that?"
"You made me mad!" She replied, turning and walking away. He followed after her and kept close, "What do you want?"
"To talk," He replied as they turned the corner.
"Well talk," She growled under breath.
"In private," He said grabbing her arm and pulling her through a doorway. He shut the door and turned on the light. She crossed her arms and glared at him as he walked up to her.
"Why do we have to talk in your bedroom?" She barked, taking a step back as he stepped closer.
"Because my room is entirely sound-proof and no one can hear anything," He replied taking another step forward. She predictably took another step back and fell on his bed. She freaked out and scooted backwards on his bed.
"You really should control your nerves," Artemis laughed, walking around the bed and sitting next to her.
She nodded and sighed, "I know."
He cocked his head to the side and asked, "Does it have anything to do with me?"
She bit her lip and looked up at him innocently, "It does a little bit but only because of something else."
"So if I asked Foaly, would he know?" Artemis asked.
"You know you could ask me?" She replied sadly, surprising Artemis.
"I didn't think you'd tell me," He told her softly, taking her hand and rubbing it.
She bit her lip and looked up at him, "Do you have to do that?"
He looked at her softly and nodded, "Yes."
She couldn't look away so they just looked at one another in silence. He looked away but back again in a second. He put his hand behind her head slowly, never breaking eye contact. He then leaned in slowly till there foreheads touched. Holly then closed her eyes and moved her head so there noses touched.
He smiled and leaned in so there lips barely touched. She held her breath and he slowly kissed her. She could barely breath as his other hand wrapped around her waist. At first she did nothing but then she kissed him back softly.
He moved back and lifted her to face him with a finger. He smiled at her and she blushed, "Why do you have to be so convincing?"
He laughed and replied, "Because I get what I want."
She stopped blushing and cocked her head to the side, "What would make you want to kiss your best friend?"
"Three reasons, one, I'm eighteen and I have hormones that I can't control," he started, "I have never kissed a girl before. You're extremely beautiful and hard to resist. Plus, I think somewhere deep down... I like you."
"That's four," She whispered and leaned foreward, kissing him on the cheek.
He looked up at her and asked, "Are you okay with that?"
"No," She laughed and went on, "I mean I'm not okay with it but I would kiss you back anyways."
He rolled his eyes and ran a hand through is hair, "So does that mean you're okay with it?"
She nodded and stood up, "I just have to think."
He nodded and looked away as she walked out of the room. She went to her room and shut the door. She then leaned against the wall and slid down it. She smiled to herself, 'How am I ever going to explain this to Foaly."
Artemis walked down the stairs and into the kitchen. Butler was sitting in a chair reading the newspaper and asked, "So did you do it?"
"Do what?" Artemis asked, even though he knew. He sat down next to Domovoi.
"You know exactly what I'm talking about," He replied, setting down his paper.
Artemis smirked, "What do you think?"
"I think you shouldn't mess with Holly," Butler answered, picking the paper back up.
Artemis rolled his eyes and got up, "Where's Juliet?"
"Out with this guy," Buter replied gruffly, obviously not happy to have his baby sister out on a date with some guy. Artemis just nodded and walked out of the room. He went back into the lounge and started to read a book.
"HE WHAT?!" Carmen shrieked, but stopped smiling when Holly glared, "I'm sorry but I know you're happy."
Holly smiled and replied, "Of course."
"Is he a good kisser?" Carmen asked excitedly.
Holly nodded and explained, "I can't believe it. I mean I'm one for hating it when a guy tries to be smug and stuff like that but, it really works for him."
Carmen laughed, "Well, I hope he doesn't end up being a jerk."
Holly rolled her eyes, "I was hoping you weren't going to be all protective."
"If he even thinks about hurting you," She said and then huffed.
"I don't think Artemis would be the kind to do something so stupid," Holly replied and then sighed, "I guess it's time to tell Foaly now though."
Carmen laughed, "Good luck."
Holly stuck her tounge out at her and hung up. She was just about to call Foaly when her phone rang. No video came up on the screen put she answered it, "Hello?"
After a few seconds she heard a reply, "It's been a while hasn't it?"
"Excuse me?" She asked confused, 'that voice.'
"You look great," Was the only reply and then it was gone. The signal was disconnected and Holly sat there in confusion. The phone rang again.
"Hello?" She said harshly.
"Well, I just wanted to talk," Came Foaly's reply.
"Was that just you?" Holly asked hopefully.
"What? No, I was trying to get a hold of you for the past five minutes but it was busy," He replied.
"Oh, sorry. I was talking to Carmen and then I got a strange phone call," she said shaking her head to clear it from her mind, "Whatcha calling for?"
"Um, you're going to hate me," Foaly said not looking at the screen.
"Whatever it is, I could care less right now," Holly laughed and he looked at the screen.
"No matter how good of a mood you're in, you'll still hate me," He commented and asked, "Why are you so happy?"
"Well, you see.." Holly tried but then blurted out, "Fowl kissed me."
His mouth dropped open and then he smiled. He turned to look away from the screen and typed something on his computer. She then heard Trouble's voice, "What did you have to tell me that was so important?"
She saw him come into the screen, "Hi Holly."
"You owe me six bottles of carrot juice, Kelp," Foaly replied proudly.
"YOU BET ON ME!" Holly screeched.
"Don't tell me you really let him kiss you?" Trouble asked surprised. Holly nodded and he went on, "I can't believe he..."
"She liked it to," Foaly said proudly.
"I never said that," Holly growled but a blush was saying other wise.
"Oh please, it's written all over your face," Trouble smirked.
"Are you on his side now?" She shrieked.
"Hey, I'm just telling you the truth," He laughed. She groaned and then smiled, "I can't help it."
They laughed and Holly thought, "So, what was it that you had to tell me?"
Foaly's face paled but he replied, "I don't think I should ruin the moment."
"Oh please, nothing can bring me down today," Holly smiled widely.
Foaly looked down at his hoofs and replied, "Someone got out of jail today."
Holly raised an eyebrow, "And I should be concerned why?"
"It was Jason," He said solomnly. Holly's eyes widened and she stopped breathing. She was over come with memory's of the past and started to shake, "Holly."
"I have to go," She chocked out and hung up. She jumped off the bed and ran out of her room, frantically searching for Artemis. She ran past Butler, "Have you seen Artemis?"
"He's in the lounge," He replied calmly even though he noticed how frantic she was.
She ran straight to the lounge and knocked on the door impatiently, "Come in."
She closed the door behind her and tried to walk over to him calmly, "Can I sit in here with you for a while?"
She tried hard to keep her voice steady but she failed and he looked up at her, "What's wrong?"
"I was just... I don't want to talk about it," She replied biting her lip.
"Well, you're welcome to sit in here with me," He motioned for her to sit next to him. He went back to reading his book.
After a moment she asked, "So what are you reading?"
"Bag of Bones, by Stephan King," He replied without looking up at her.
"Is it good?"
He sighed and set it down on his lap, "You're not going to stop asking question's are you?"
"I don't want it to be silent," She bit her lip in apology.
He sighed and put a pillow on his lap, "I'll read it out loud if you'd like me to."
She nodded and laid her head down the pillow, looking up at his face. He ran his hand through her head and she smiled, closing her eyes. He then started to read out loud and she relaxed. After another ten minutes she was asleep, leaving Artemis to run his fingers through her hair and read to himself.
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OF PEEPS!!! This is my Christmas gift to you. Hey, I may be able to give you two if I can type up the next chapter fast. lol You know the deal, read and review. Hate mail, love mail, weird mail, (raises eyebrow)
Also, Artemis Rox Mi Sox, I think you should read faster cause you just read Veronica yesterday and now you have to read this one. lol YOU LOVE IT THOUGH!
Well, Merry Christmas and I hope you all enjoy the holidays.
Crazygirliecaptain!!