To make up for my terrible faux paux, I have added another chapter tonight. Again, I'm so sorry for that!

When Artemis awoke the next morning, Finn was sleeping in the bed beside him. Artemis shifted and Finn blinked open bleary eyes.

"Are the trolls coming Daddy?"

Artemis smiled. "There aren't any trolls. You're safe Finn."

Finn wrapped his arms around himself. "I had a scary dream last night Daddy. Troll's were chasing us around the house and Butler was trying to fight them like he did in the story, but there were too many this time…"

Artemis put a hand on his son's arm. "It's alright Finn. There are no trolls. Butler is downstairs making breakfast at this very instant."

As if to prove his point, at that moment, Butler yelled from the kitchen. "Artemis, breakfast!"

"See," Artemis said, getting out of bed.

Finn jumped out of the other side of the queen bed. He ran over and hugged Artemis's legs. "I'm glad you're here Daddy."

Artemis knelt down and hugged Finn. "I'm glad I'm here too." After a moment he stood. "Now let's go down and get breakfast before Butler gets cranky." He ran his fingers through his hair a few times and straightened his pajamas before following Finn downstairs.

Butler had set out plates on the counter. Myles and Beckett were already at the table, inhaling their food.

Artemis got a plate of food for Finn, who voluntarily sat beside Beckett. Artemis sat on Finn's other side, always attentive to the things his brother put into Finn's head.

Beckett patted Finn's head. "How did you sleep little guy?"

"I had a bad dream, but I'm fine now."

"What was it about?" Beckett asked. Myles rolled his eyes. His brother still couldn't remember his manners.

Finn glanced at Artemis, who shook his head, before answering. "I can't really remember anymore. All I know is that it was really scary."

Beckett glanced suspiciously at Artemis, who returned the look with an equally terrifying vampire smile. Beckett shrunk back and looked away. Sometimes he swore his brother really was a vampire ready to drink his blood at any moment.

Myles glanced up at Artemis with a conspiratorial smirk. "So who were you talking to last night Artemis?"

Artemis froze for a moment. But he collected himself. "Excuse me?"

"We heard you, you know," Beckett said, stuffing some toast into his mouth.

"You were talking to someone named Holly," Myles speculated.

"Is she pretty?" Beckett asked, his mouth still full, meriting some more eye rolling from Myles.

"What you heard was a discussion with a business associate, nothing more," Artemis stated, slicing off a piece of egg and eating it with far more dignity that Beckett had eaten his toast with. "Besides Beckett, don't you already have a girlfriend?"

Beckett nodded and turned back to his plate, knowing that he'd been beaten by Artemis, again.

"Well then, who's Foaly? And what kind of business associate is Holly if you're discussing kidnapping with her?" Myles inquired.

Artemis almost swore under his breath before he remembered it was unnecessary and undignified. He settled for clenching his fists under the table while he came up with some more expertly fabricated lies scattered with bits of truth.

"Obviously you didn't hear the entire conversation. We were conversing about the kidnapping that had taken place a few days prior to today. They just found the victim last night. Foaly is the associate of Holly's that informed her. We were talking about how all our tax money is going to go the police now that they've found the victim, to pay their wages."

Myles frowned. Maybe Artemis was telling the truth, maybe he wasn't. He intended to research this kidnapping and see if it actually happened. But for now he decided to stop arguing with Artemis, he always seemed to lose.

Artemis, of course, knew that there actually had been a kidnapping a few days earlier, so if Myles researched it, he would find it. But he was sure that Beckett and Myles weren't going to bother him now so he finished his breakfast hurriedly.

"I'm going up to my study for a while Finn," he told the boy. "Can you busy yourself until I'm done? Then maybe we can go out for a bit."

Finn nodded enthusiastically and finished the last bite of his breakfast. He placed the plate by the sink, said thank you to Butler and ran off.

Artemis thanked his friend and headed off as well, but to research the human aging process rather than play with toys. That and to hide his bottle of scotch so Myles and Beckett wouldn't find it.