Artemis took a seat next to Holly, by the largest cherry-blossom willow outside the manor. The most beautiful thing, in his opinion, that made his backyard. Besides the electric security system that secured the premises, of course.

Artemis desperately wanted to reach out and touch his friend, but wasn't exactly sure what the consequences would be, considering his condition. The last time he felt Holly- was on the train. He wasn't sure if the event was an illusion of grandeur or not, but he specifically remembered the last time they had touched, it had been through their lips. He was wondering if Holly had even remembered his kiss. She certainly wasn't acting as if she had.

Well… if there was any better time- it was now.

He concentrated very deeply on the elf before him. She seemed to be deep in thought, still thinking about what his Mother had said earlier probably. He outstretched his fingers and wiggled them slightly, until the empty, void space that were his arms, suddenly and faintly sprouted an illusion of fingertips. He was finding that if he concentrated hard enough, he could make himself faintly, if at all, visible. Whether he was visible to Holly or not was an entirely different story.

He pushed on his thoughts harder and the 'feeling' of a hand, very soon became a hand. He decided he would spend the next few minutes on bringing the rest of himself into view. Since it would be a tad creepy, not to mention awkward, if a floating hand spontaneously decided to grope the poor thing. Not to mention the fact that Holly would have a fit.

When Artemis was more than certain he was fully eye-worthy, he tapped her.

Holly spun abruptly and was shocked to see a faintly visible Artemis. Normally she would just catch a glimpse or so of him, if she saw him at all. Other times it would simply be a voice from usually behind her. "How'd you manage that?" Holly asked

"Can you see me? Fully?"

"…Yeah. I can, actually…"

"Am I still handsome?" he said smugly.

Holly rolled her eyes in disbelief "You never were handsome, sweety." Said with no love whatsoever.

"Ouch," he said sardonically, perfecting a grimace that made him more attractive than he already was, "Minerva seems to think otherwise."



"You're on testy grounds there, Fowl" she hissed, "It just so happens I was just planning on how exactly I'm going to tell your lover of your unfortunate passing."

He glared at his hands and directed his thoughts strongly into them, focusing so that his next move didn't turn out disastrously. All he needed was to aim for her shoulder, phase through, and miraculously end up at her breasts and he would never hear the end of it. Holly would find a way to cause him some discomfort, even though he technically couldn't feel.

He raised his hand and brought it down gingerly onto Holly's shoulder. It solidified and rested on her. It didn't bring him as much comfort as he would have liked, though. He couldn't feel her…

The only way he could tell he was touching her was that his hand didn't complete the full-circle downward.

Holly took this as a friendly gesture instead of the romantic one he had intended.

"Ugh- I'll be okay, though" Holly said completely oblivious, "If worse comes to worse I can incapacitate her and steal a good half-fortune or so…"

"You don't steal," he said trying to hide the disappointment in his voice. He'd have to try harder…

"In her case- I'd make a freaking excepti-"

"Holly do you feel this?" he said cutting her off.

"Feel what?"

He squeezed his hand tighter.

"Oh. Yes. It's cold," she said pointing to the hand, "get it off me."

Artemis smiled half-heartedly and let his hand drop through her. Which, queer enough, warmed him for a minute.

It took awhile to get his incentive. "Oh! Arty, I didn't mean it like that! Not like its gross or anything, it was just freezing me to death…" she paused a minute, catching on "Unless of course you're making excuses to touch me" she said with a half-lit smile.

"Disgusting." He said like the thought never occurred to him, "Never in my life has anyone mistook me making an innocently friendly gesture for something so scandalously romantic."



Holly's smile disappeared and was replaced with something he couldn't quite tell. With her leg extensions, she was almost the same height as he was, and this wasn't fairing well with him. Considering his hormones were horridly taking advantage of him.

"So-" she began finding her mocking smile again, "You mean to tell me that you decided to materialize yourself for no reason? To tap me to tell me nothing; to ask me if I saw what wasn't there; to touch me with no excuse…" Holly looked him dead in his glassy eyes, "and ask if I could feel you?"

"Drop it would you, Short?" he said still a tad testy that his efforts had produced nothing.

"What's the problem, kiddo?" she pronounced genuinely worried for once, "you seem a bit off. And don't use your death as an excuse. If anything, you're enjoying having the opportunity to piss into my business, without me doing anything about it."

"Language, Holly. My goodness, do we kiss our mothers with this mouth?" he said jokingly, unaware he had hit something tender.

"We would-" she said, "If I had one…"

Growing up in a war had been tough on her. She and her twin brother had slept in fear of its coming. One day Udelphi's Orphanage became her new home. Her childhood seized from her at an early age. The Yenoslaruf King, informally known as Idenodine the Great's military conquest of elfin territory had left her memories of her parent's deaths. Left her without family. She watched her father killed for treason (a crime he was innocent of), and her brother for affiliating with a traitor. Her mother died whilst escaping to the surface illegally. Accidently taking refuge in an abandoned surface power-plant. She suffered immensely from the radiation. Idenodine left her with nothing. No one. And one day, she intended to return the favor.

Artemis tapped a foot impatiently waiting for whatever she was thinking about to pass. He was sure whatever it was- he was more important.

"Holly," he whined adorably (well- he thought it was adorable at least), "I'm sure whatever it is- I'm more important."

"Shut up, mud-child. Do not interrupt while I'm planning revenge."

"I hardly think Minerva qualifies as deserving for whatever you're planning. There is absolutely no need whatsoever for you ladies to fight over me."

Holly growled beast-like.



"Whatever. You do realize you have an overdeveloped sense of vengeance, right?" he crossed his arms and sank into a sitting position near the tree.

"Why even assume I was talking about that… dwarf-turd?"

"Nice. Real Nice."

Holly allowed herself to sink so that she sitting Indian style in front of Artemis. She crossed her arms over her chest.

Artemis reverted his gaze from her arms to the scenery behind her, so that he wouldn't be distracted. There was a matter at hand.

"About Minerva-"

"I'm working on it."

"Pfftt!! It's not this difficult, my dear. Why you're over thinking it is beyond me."

"She has intended to inflict bodily harm before. What makes now so different? Especially when she hears the news? She'll be suspicious. That or she'll be interest in me for other reasons. She does want that Randell Prize pretty badly…"

"Nobel?"

"That's what I said. That animal will stop at nothing."

"Oh, C'mon," he said with no expression "I'll protect you."

"Bull. You can't even protect yourself. Speaking of which, where is Butler?"

"Lady of Chalice's Hospital. I believe while you visit Minerva… I'll, erm- visit Butler."

"Oh boy," Holly said.

"Oh boy, is right." Artemis looked to the sky. They were running out of time.