Chapter Eighteen

Leaf peered at herself in the salon mirror, wrinkling her nose. The cut was flattering enough, a sort of bob, but the dark streaks would take time getting used to. She looked up at the hairdresser and smiled faintly, paid and left. She got in the car and started her engine, it sputtered and then stalled. Leaf cursed, banging her fist on the car horn and hopped out. Angry already she marched to the front and popped the hood. A plume of smoke puffed up in her face, coughing, Leaf waved away the smoke to see what was wrong, or attempt to anyway. She reached for a wire but the car puffed at her again, she fumbled in her jacket pocket for her cell phone to call CAA, then she called Artemis to let him know she'd be home late. Grumpy, Leaf sat down on the curb next to her smoking car, looking up at the mocking evening sun in the sky.

At Ed's Suzy was gazing at the ceiling waiting for it to open up and to be rescued. Preferably by Arthur. Artemis sat opposite her, quiet as a mouse. Presently they were both waiting for Ed to come back form next door after he had spoken to his sister. Little did they know they would wait awhile. If only I could talk. Suzy thought irritated. Artemis cocked his head to the side and then his eyebrows shot up. Suzy didn't like the look in his eyes, he was beginning to appear very reminiscent of Ed, that sort of wild frantic gleam.

"Why didn't I think of it before!" he smacked his hand to his forehead. "You speak English, you can write can't you?"

Suzy grimaced. Dame had always been kind enough to tell her how deplorable her penmanship was. But what did she have to loose? If this was her only chance to communicate and get some sort of help, so be it. She nodded slightly and was instantly handed pen and paper.

"if you can, write about how you got here, what happened right before then?"

Suzy sighed and then concentrated on forming legible letters.

Time

Time glided across the floor, back and forth, enough to make Noon go cross-eyed. "I really cannot allow you to draft Arthur's son," he said absently.

Time whirled on him, fire dancing in her eyes. "What did you say?"

"His closest friend in the house, and Chief servant, I cannot permit it. I am to act in his best interests"

"His best interests should be to please me" Time retorted haughtily, "unless of course he likes having irregular sky, it will affect his home, the time will begin affecting seasons, years, people will begin to age faster, die faster. His wife, his remaining family will perish faster then House time if I am not granted an heir"

"He is still a young boy. Arthur sure enough was game for this sort of challenge at that age but his son could be a different matter still. Lord Arthur has made it quite clear he does not want his son involved with House business"

Time lunged at Noon and grabbed him by his collar. "Don't you see anything?" she spat. "Am I to trust another mortal? One not chosen or even sharing blood with one who was? A chief servant who'll undoubtedly allow power to swell their heads?"

Noon's cheeks burned red. "I am a chief servant Time." He reminded.

Time yawned. "if it is age that concerns everyone so about the boy, that can be fixed." She swept her arm through the air and they were transported to the Time Life. Time glided over to the shelves and skimmed them for a minute before plucking Artemis's hourglass off the shelf. "That can be changed right now," she sneered. "All I need do is turn it over like so"

"Time, no, you can't do this!"

Time began to laugh. "I can and will, Lord Arthur said as much before he left. 'Do what you will' I think it was, and this is my will" and with that Time very gracefully turned the hourglass upside down.

"Time, it can become permanent! He won't be able to go back if he's not in the House, he'll age to fast, He'll die!"

"Than he shall be brought here" Time assured. "When the sand runs to the bottom"

Noon lunged at her desperately. "You can't do this!" he repeated. "Time!" he continued to yell.

The sand ran from top to bottom forming an increasingly larger pile.

"You must bring him here first! Do you hear me? Time!" Noon shouted over the clamor of bells tolling and then he heard it, the shatter of glass, his stomach rolled over on itself and he looked down to see the sand swirling on the floor returning to Nothing. "You killed him!" Noon shrieked. "You killed Lord Arthur's son! The glass shattered! It's all over now. Time, you are a murderer!"

"That was not Artemis's glass" came the weak reply. "It was mine"

"Time! What are you talking about?" Noon's eyes did a sweep of the room to see Time collapsing on herself.

"There is more than one reason for an heir" she whispered. "If I only rule over half of time, I only have half the power, and my time will run out, if I don't have someone to help me. And everything will fragment and be no more"

"Where's Artemis?" Noon rasped, rushing to her side.

"Freeze time,"

"What?"

"Freeze" her breath blew out and she became like stone.

Noon's heartbeat quickened. Now what was he supposed to do? Arthur was gone searching for Suzy, Artemis is somewhere in his realm aged, or still aging and now Time was, frozen. He had not even known Time had a clock, he didn't think anyone immortal could have one as that would mean they ran a natural life, ending with a death. Then again, Time was a part of the Architect, and perhaps in one last act of bitterness towards Time's increasing power, to make Time's confinement that much more unbearable had created a clock for her, in just such a case. As a sort of threat to Time to ensure she would have her part of the will carried out. But now, she was as much as finished, how could she possibly be revived?

Puberty Extreme

Suzy gaped in bewilderment as she watched Artemis's legs grow longer and his arms start to sprout, the features of his face began to shift rapidly, shoulders broadening, throughout it all though she could hear ligaments snapping, bones cracking and rebuilding, and above all were Artemis's screams, his ear splitting screams of agony. He doubled over and writhed on the floor in pain. He would have cursed if he had the mind to, his head was pounding, everything was black, he couldn't catch a proper breath before another part of his frame shifted, worst of all were his hands, every little digit, cracking, crippling him with pain. The knuckles stiffening, the joints feeling as though they'd been yanked free and then rammed back in much to hard. Suzy leapt up from where she sat and kneeled at his side, she wished she were more useful, or had any idea of what was happening to Arthur's son. He was beginning to look like Arthur, if only maybe ten years younger, he was approaching the age of twenty-five and rapidly moving on to twenty-seven. Artemis's howls were unlike any sound made of an earthly creature, he was contorting in ways that shouldn't be humanly possible. At last he began to calm down, twitching on the floor with his eyes wide open and mouth gaping, panting for air.

Behind Suzy she heard something land on the bed with a thud. She looked over her shoulder to see Artemis's likeness lying facedown on the bed, dressed in a toga. Her heart leapt, it was Arthur. He struggled to sit up right; at the sight of Suzy he scrambled to get off the bed and wrapped her in his arms. "You're alright," He huffed. He pulled away just as quickly and flopped backwards, running on the improbable stair was exhausting. Suzy frantically waved her arms in the air, gesturing at the floor where his son lay, sprawled, and at least ten years older than when Arthur had last seen him. "Argh what is it?" he grumbled crawling to the edge to look down. "Who's that?"

If she could she would have shouted, "it's your son you idiot" but she couldn't, all she could do was sigh pathetically, pointing at Arthur and then pitifully gesticulating the actions of someone growing. Arthur frowned at her unable to comprehend. "He sort of looks familiar"

There was a sound in the hall way, footsteps, more than one persons. "I have to go, we have to go" Arthur corrected, reaching for her hand. "Come on, we'll use the stair. Why won't you say anything?"

Suzy felt like crying. Artemis was dying for all she could tell, and she was unable to tell Arthur his son had just grown into an adult in mere minutes. And, with any luck, Ed had come home from next door.

"Artemis" Sure enough Ed walked in and instinctively poised himself to kick Arthur in the face. Which he did. Arthur went tumbling backwards off the other end of the bed, his head spinning, a boot to the head had the ability to knock someone off center. "Who are you?" Ed growled.

"Ed, Ed, relax, it's me Arthur"

"Who are you and where's Artemis?"

A look of puzzlement crossed his face. "Artemis is here? Where?" then Arthur blanched and peered down at the floor, his son had gone still. "No, no, no, Suzy!" he demanded. "What happened?"

Again Suzy helplessly attempted to mime the last ten minutes. Arthur threw himself on the ground and cradled Artemis's head. "Ed, I don't have time to explain Suzy and I have to take Artemis with us"

"Where? Suzy is that her name? She couldn't talk before"

"Wait" Arthur whipped his head around so fast he got a crick in it. "You can't talk?"
She shook her head no.

"Arthur, what's going on,"

Arthur looked down at Artemis, his lips beginning to turn blue. No, no. He willed it not to be true, he didn't understand what had happened but whatever it was, it was about to take his son away. Arthur looked up, alarm evident in his eyes. "there's no time"