In celebration of 'The Dead, the Broken and the Living', by Kit Heart! Wahoo! At last!

Well, this is where the proverbial shit hits the fan. And probably my least favourite chapter. I think it's kind of subpar - choppy and sappy - but I couldn't force it into something better so ah well. Though, hurrah! Minerva characterisation. I think I may finally actually be starting to warm up to her... shock and awe.

Praise be to ilex-ferox, most thorough of betas. Sunrise times for Nice, people! I am a lazy author who takes advantage of her beta.

Chapter Eighteen: It's Always Darkest Before Dawn.

Minerva frowns down at the Rocky Mountains far below her. Resting her forehead on the window pane, she shifts irritably in her luxurious leather seat. Artemis and Company may have reverted to public flights, but Minerva has none of Holly's environmental misgivings. Her family's personal jet is lavish in the extreme - and yet all of this does nothing to improve her mood.

She is coming to terms with the fact that she cares for Artemis Fowl. She is realising that, unthinkable though it is, should her scheme not succeed and should she lose him, possibly forever, she will be heartbroken. And this betrayal of herself, by herself, appalls her.

However, now that she recognises her feelings for what they are - instead of simply a vindictive desire to have something because another holds it dear - she tries to trace it to its roots. Given a choice, she would cite her rescue from Billy Kong as the turning point. As the moment when she began to derail.

In truth, her attraction goes farther back.

From the moment he had applauded her at the Opera, Minerva has subconsciously begun to attach more importance to Artemis Fowl than was strictly necessary. Here, at last, was a person worthy of her admiration. Here was someone who understood her. Here was someone just like her. And, as a girl moving from childhood to adolescence, as a girl who had never been understood before, her craving to be accepted and, above all, esteemed by her peers, was strong. And Artemis Fowl II was the first person to ever, with complete comprehension, give her the applause she deserved.

Of course, it helps that he then sallied forth and, at great personal risk, rescued her from nearly certain death, only to vanish into infinity. It's really very romantic, when you think about it.

So for the first three years of her adolescence, she lived in awe of this boy-genius, made all the more awe-inspiring by his non-existence. Every teenage girl wants to be swept off her feet, wants that mysterious hero to come for her and her alone. While most girls have to settle for fantasizing about movie-stars, however, Minerva really did have her own vanished champion to daydream about. And three years worth of daydreams creates a lot of expectations - not that they are always acknowledged, even to oneself.

Teenage fantasy or not, the fact remains that she and Artemis are nearly perfect for each other. Brilliant, young, and rich, with their penchant for petty cruelty and criminal activity, they would have been an incredible match.

Minerva wrinkles her pretty nose at the 'would have been'. Would have been, if it hadn't been for someone - someone who could not be more dissimilar to them - butting in. As moral as they are corrupt, as old as they are young and as common as they are elite. As fierce as they are cool and collected. Holly Short should never have happened. She is an aberration, a mistake, the only flaw in an otherwise perfect masterpiece. And everyone involved knew it.

The girl frowns. It's time she did something about Holly Short.

A few days after their return to Ireland, Holly turns a corner in central Dublin on her way back from Meeting House Square. A car goes by and she represses a shudder at the exhaust fumes that pass her. The moon slides from behind the clouds and strikes the corner of the building, sectioning the pavement into triangles of light and dark. Holly shivers as it hits the back of her neck; with November on its way out, even the light is cold.

From an open window across the street there comes the sound of a violin being tuned. Holly turns her head to listen. The player is invisible behind the curtains but they play with confidence, moving quickly from scales to a sweet, high air. Their playing is beautiful, never slipping or scratching; making the strings hum and sing, but never screech.

Another car passes. Holly doesn't notice. She sits down on the kerb, propping her chin in her hands. In this moment she is completely happy.

When the violinist only plays a few songs, however, and when he finishes she gets up, dusts off her trousers, and continues on her way.

She doesn't get far.

Ducking into a side alley to shave five minutes off her trip, she walks straight into a waiting mob. The six men encircle her immediately, before she has the chance to run. Bending her knees slightly, she frowns. This is hardly the neighbourhood for gangs to be loitering in not-so-dark alleys. She smells a rat.

'Can I help you, gentlemen?' she asks, hands in her pockets. 'You lot do realise 8:30's a bit early for this kind of thing, right? Couldn't you have waited a couple of hours? Until it was properly night, at least?'

'I'm afraid we're in a bit of a hurry, actually,' replies a heavyset blond on her right. 'There's someone we know who's very keen for your ... help.'

'Really?' Holly's fingers curl around the keys in her pocket. They aren't a fully-charged Neutrino but, then, you've got to work with what you have. 'What an odd way of asking for help,' she raises her eyebrows.

'Well,' the blonde shrugs, 'we're told you're not known for your charity, eh?'

'Ouch,' says Holly and jumps. She takes one out with a jab across the windpipe and another with a kick to the head. Recovering quickly from their momentary shock, the remaining four jump on her simultaneously.

She fights dirty without a moment's hesitation, swiping at eyes with her keys, biting earlobes and clawing at whatever skin comes her way. Another two go down, before the blonde, helped by a tall, slender brunette, gets her arms behind her back, hoisting her off the ground. She kicks when the brunette comes too close in an attempt to gag her. In the end, the blonde yanks her arms tight against his chest, pinning them there with one gigantic one of his own, and clamps a hairy hand over her mouth. She promptly bites his fingers but he just laughs.

'Get the guys up 'n outta here,' he tells the brunette. 'I'm taking her to the car.'

At the other end of the alley they're met by a sleek black sedan. A uniformed chauffeur opens the back door and Holly is quickly and unceremoniously thrown in. The blonde man follows more sedately.

Clutching her head where it has hit the opposite window, she grabs the door handle in an attempt to escape out the other side.

'Don't worry,' Minerva speaks from the front passenger seat, 'I've put the child lock on.'

Holly whirls at the sound of a familiar voice. The blonde man takes advantage of her momentary distraction to slap a pair of handcuffs on her.

'Minerva! I might have known,' Holly growls, lashing out at the girl with a free leg. The girl ducks, laughing, as the blonde man grabs Holly by the foot and cuffs her ankles together as well.

'As feisty as always, Holly,' Minerva smiles at her captive. 'I wonder that Artemis doesn't find it trying.'

All her limbs bound, Holly resorts to spitting. 'I'd rather feisty than treacherous.'

'Ah, but that's something Artemis and I have in common, isn't it?'

'What can I say?' Holly flops back against the seat, glaring. 'Opposites attract.'

Minerva's lip rises in a slight sneer. 'Goodness only knows why.'

Juliet paces her tiny living room, her mobile jammed between her ear and her shoulder as she listens to the ringtone on the other line. She is getting worried. Holly promised to be back in an hour. They had had some serious wrestling to watch, after all. Now it's past midnight. The phone in Juliet's hand rings again. 'Come on,' she growls, 'pick up your damn phone!'

'Hello?'

'Artemis? It's Juliet. Is Holly there?'

Silence. Then, 'No. Should she be?'

'I dunno. She was supposed to be back here by 9:30, to watch a film with me. But she never came back from her errands. She's been gone more than four hours.'

More silence.

'Artemis?'

'Have you called her phone?'

'Obviously,' Juliet scoffs. 'She hasn't picked up.' She hears tapping in the background. 'What are you doing?'

'Running a trace on her LEP communicator's tracker.' There's a brief pause. 'Apparently the reason she's not back yet is because she's in the south of France.'

'What?'

'Come to the Manor. I'm calling Foaly.' Abruptly, the line goes dead.

'I believe Minerva may have kidnapped Holly.'

This is not Foaly's idea of the model opening sentence for a conversation.

'You're kidding me, right? Artemis, your girlfriend is a serious pain in the derrière.'

For a moment, Artemis is puzzled. How is Holly to blame in this situation? Then it clicks. He rolls his eyes. 'And now is not the time for pubescent jokes, Foaly. I need Mulch. And blueprints to Minerva's villa. I know it's bedrock underneath, but just how deep is the topsoil, can you find out?'

Foaly whinnies indignantly. 'Can I find out? I'm not your personal secretary, Master Mud Boy.'

'Holly,' Artemis replies.

The centaur sighs and calls Mulch. While the phone rings, he pulls an LEP satellite out of orbit and snaps a few shots of Minerva's seaside villa. Hurriedly, he sends the satellite back to hovering over Tara - before Trouble comes for his tail. As his computers make a 3D schematic from the snapshots, Mulch answers his phone.

'Diggums and Day.'

'It's Foaly. It pains me to say this, but you need to come down.'

'Frond, can't you even do your laundry without my help?'

'It's Holly.'

A brief silence. 'Why am I not surprised? Give me ten, wouldya?'

The computer chimes as the schematics finish processing.

'I'm sending you the blueprints now, Artemis.'

'Thank you. Ah, Butler, Juliet, just in time.'

A window pops up on Foaly's screen, a video of the three above ground. Foaly returns the favour.

'What's the game plan, Artemis?'

Artemis smiles his vampire smile.

Hands on hips, Minerva eyes her captive. Holly glares back at her, securely strapped to a chair in the middle of Minerva's study.

Her eyes wandering, Minerva catches sight of a slight bump under Holly's jacket. Stepping forward she pushes aside the coat and rifles through Holly's shirt pockets. Her fingers close on a small smooth object which she twitches irritably into view. Abruptly Minerva's frown changes to a look of total bafflement.

'What is this?' she asks, dangling Holly's fairy communicator in the elf's face.

'Highly advanced portable video game equipment?' Holly tries.

Minerva closes her eyes briefly, two fingers on her temple. 'You didn't get rid of her electronics?' Her voice is deceptively calm.

From the corner, Harold shrugs. 'I chucked her phone back in Dublin. Besides, don't know if you noticed, but I kind of had my hands full as it was. Besides which, I don't even know what that thing is; it's not a cellphone.'

Which is exactly my problem. On any other occasion, Minerva would have jumped at the chance to dissect what was clearly fairy technology - and not of the entertainment variety. Right now, however, she just wanted it as far from her as possible. Goodness only knows what it could have built into it.

'You imbecile,' Minerva snarls. 'Here, take it! Take it and get it as far away from here as you can. Leave it in town somewhere. I can only hope Artemis hasn't gotten suspicious yet. At this moment, him on my doorstep is the last thing I need.'

As Harold leaves, Minerva groans quietly to herself. Holly sniggers loudly. Minerva shoots her a withering glare. 'It doesn't matter. You're still here, aren't you? He'll never make it in time.'

Holly snorts. 'Right. Sure. Whatever.'

It's nothing, Minerva tells herself, wishing she believed that. Let Artemis come if he wants to. I will see this through.

Mulch makes it to Fowl Manor in record time. He's always preferred autumn and winter, the nights are so much longer.

Munching on a chicken leg, he peers at the map before him. Artemis traces a line across it with his finger and explains the plan. 'Foaly's ground survey shows that the topsoil is markedly deeper at the rear of the house. Presumably this is because of the vegetable garden they have just begun beside the back drive. Butler and I will park there. It's not unusual for us to use the back door, after all. From the car, tunnel straight down and, once under the house, go right. There's a pantry there which I believe is mostly unused. Parked correctly, the car will provide you with cover from the security cameras.'

He says this in a way that leaves no doubt that the car will be parked correctly.

'Here's the floor plan of the house,' Artemis continues. 'You'll be taking Juliet with you, in case you find Holly and she needs to be moved quickly.' He doesn't offer an explanation as to why Holly would be unable to move herself.

Mulch nods, politely refraining from speaking with his mouth so full.

Juliet makes a face at the prospect of crawling through Mulch's recycled clay, but knows better than to say anything.

'One question,' Foaly asks from the computer, 'how do you know it's Minerva? Why would she want Holly?'

'Well, the fact that the locator in Holly's communicator shows her to be in Minerva's villa outside Tourrettes Sur Loup was, I thought, a relatively clear indicator.'

'What if it's a decoy; Minerva's too smart to leave Holly with a locator on her.'

'True, but Minerva hasn't dealt with the People as I have. Should she find Holly's communicator she likely won't know it for what it is. Not to mention, her henchmen certainly won't know what to make of it. Besides, they'll throw away her phone and expect that to be the end of the matter. Holly doesn't exactly flaunt her communicator. Moreover, Minerva knows Holly has changed species. I believe she may want to do research on her.' He doesn't mention the vial of stolen serum.

'What?' Foaly gapes.

'Right, well, let's get a move on then, shall we?' Before Foaly can verbalise his disgust more eloquently, Mulch swallows and speaks. 'And next time, go heavier on the pepper, Butler.'

Artemis frowns at the dwarf.

'Hey, relax, Mud Boy. We've been in worse jams than this, and when have I ever not pulled through for my little girl?'

Shaking himself from his horror, Foaly pipes up. 'I'm going to have to cut contact, guys, before someone down here gets suspicious. I'll be around if you need me but-'

'Only if it's absolutely necessary. Or when we find her,' Artemis nods. 'We are, however, going to need you to make a loop for the security cameras. Juliet and Mulch are hardly invisible.'

'Way ahead of you, Arty; I sent a present along with the Smelly One. It's like my fibre optic twists, however, not only does it allow me access to closed systems but, if I'm too busy to bother, it's programmed to automatically film a ten minute clip of everything the networks sees and then feed it back into the cameras indefinitely. At least, until someone reboots the system.'

'Clever,' Artemis says.

'I think you mean brilliant, but I get the point. Good luck,' Foaly is lining up his monitors as he closes the screen.

'Well,' Artemis straightens his cuffs, 'shall we?'

'Who wants to fly the jet?' Butler dangles the keys.

Minerva swabs the inside of Holly's elbow and takes a sample of her blood. 'Now I'm going to show you a magic trick,' the blonde smiles thinly, shaking the vial slightly.

'So, look closely at this,' Minerva waves a Petri dish of blood under Holly's nose. 'This is your blood.' Minerva slides the dish under the microscope and puts the lens to Holly's eye. 'Look.'

'It's blurry,' says Holly with evident satisfaction.

Minerva sighs, adjusting the focus.

'Stop, it's clear.' Holly peers through the microscope. 'What exactly am I looking for?'

'Nothing, just look, and remember.'

'If you say so.'

'I do.' Minerva takes the microscope back. 'Now I'm going to add my own version of the serum - with elfin blood instead of human.' She squeezes a capful into the dish. The blood swirls of its own accord, incorporating the new substance. 'Look again.'

Holly does, swallowing. 'The shapes are different.'

'Yes,' Minerva replies scornfully, 'the "shapes" are different. That's because those are elfin "shapes", not human ones. That's elfin blood, you're looking at. Note the magic which attaches itself to the red cells.'

Holly looks up at the blonde, eyes wide. 'Magic? But that's my blood.'

'Exactly,' Minerva smiles.

'You found a cure?' Holly whispers.

'You and Artemis owe me a Nobel Prize,' the other woman says.

'No,' Holly shakes her head. 'No! You can't show this to anyone, it'll be even worse than capturing N°1!'

'Not at all. I don't need to use fairy blood; I could turn a dog into a cat, or a dolphin into a chimpanzee. I could recreate extinct species.'

'And the magic? How would you explain that?'

Minerva shrugs, unconcerned, 'Don't worry your pretty little head, I'll think of something.'

Holly growls, straining at her handcuffs.

Minerva tightens a rubber strap around Holly's arm. 'Why are you struggling? Don't you want this?'

Holly glares. 'Yeah, I just love being treated like a lab rat. Frond! I can't believe this. Butler is usually a better judge of character than this.'

The girl pauses midway through re-swabbing Holly's arm. 'What I am doing isn't bad. I get my Nobel Prize, you get your magic back. How am I hurting anyone? Honestly, you should be thanking me.'

'You kidnapped me! Again! Never mind the havoc you'll wreak with that serum.'

'I'm not going to wreak havoc. I have matured. And you were hardly going to come with me if I asked nicely, now were you?' The girl squints at the syringe as it fills with liquid.

'Gee, I wonder why?'

As Minerva turns back to her worktable, Holly frowns, leaning back in her seat. 'This isn't just about a Nobel Prize, is it?'

'I don't know what you're talking about.'

'Sure you do, you're a smart kid, after all.' Holly licks her lips. 'Do you really think getting rid of me will bring him to you? This is all a bit paperback romance-y, don't you think?'

Minerva puts the Petri dish down very carefully. 'I don't know what you're talking about.'

Holly sighs, and begins lying through her teeth. 'He really isn't worth it, you know. He's just a scrawny little man. He's not worth all this effort.'

'I know,' Minerva turns to face Holly at last. 'They are never worth the effort.'

'Tell me about it.'

'But there is no one else.'

'Minerva, there are over six billion people on this planet. There's always someone else.'

Minerva glares at the equipment on her desk. 'You don't understand. I have had enough of being talked down to because I'm young and because I'm a girl. No one takes me for serious. And I am tired of talking down to everyone else because they are stupid and useless. He and I ... we are equals. I have never had an equal before. I want ... I want to be respected. No, that's the wrong word. I want ...'

'To be appreciated?' Holly tilts her head. 'I used to be a member of the Fairy police. Part of a really elite branch. I was the first female fairy to ever be allowed in. I think I may understand perfectly.'

'That must have been very trying.'

'It was.'

'And did you find someone who was worth your respect? Who respected you?' Minerva focuses on her with such intensity that Holly nearly flinches.

'Yes,' Holly nods. 'I found several people.'

The girl's intensity vanishes and she spits out, 'Then why don't you go back to them! You want to, don't you? You don't care for him. I care for him; we are made for each other, as you English say.'

'First of all, I'm not English, and secondly, that may be so, but Artemis has changed drastically since he was "made". It's what he does that matters, not what he is. I mean, it's what he does that makes him what he becomes. It's what we all do that makes us what we become. And he has become nothing like you.'

'You tell yourself that because you want to make a pet of him, a good little lapdog. "Look how I've changed him!" you'll say. "Look how I've made him better." You love him because he is something you can fix.'

Holly blinks. 'That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard.'

'Ah yes? Then why do you love him?'

Holly frowns, momentarily silent.

Minerva snorts. 'Exactly.'

'No, wait a minute. Give me a second to gather my thoughts, here.' Holly takes a deep breath. 'Because he has become different. Because he's trying to be good. Well, better. He chose to, I didn't make him do anything. And that's what I love. That there's more to him than just his brilliance. And honestly, if anyone's the lapdog here, as much as I hate to admit this, it's probably me. I'm the one running around pandering to his ridiculous schemes.'

'Then just say no. Leave him.'

Holly shakes her head. 'It's too late for that. He and I... we were the same person once, you know. In the time tunnel, we were just one and it felt... it felt... I knew I would never be more comfortable than that. It was home. That sounds stupid.' She frowns at nothing in particular. 'And we're nothing a like but it works, everything balances out. Without him,' she shrugs, 'without him, there wouldn't... there isn't... there isn't anything. I would be alone and I wouldn't even be me. I'd be... I don't know. I've forgotten what I was before. Good God, would you listen to me? I sound like a total sap.' Abruptly, she refocuses on Minerva.

The two women look each other in the eye and, for a moment, understand each other completely.

Having entered the grounds without difficulty - the guard at the gate knows them well, after all - Butler drives past the villa, heading towards the rear car park. As the car comes to a standstill, carefully blocking the security camera above the back door, Artemis turns to his three companions, two of whom lie hidden below him.

'Does everyone understand what they need to do?' he asks. They nod silently. Juliet mouths duh; Artemis ignores her. 'Excellent. If all goes according to plan, we'll be seeing each other in another few hours. Good luck.' He opens his door to get out of the car and Mulch and Juliet quickly clamber out with him.

As Butler and Artemis walk away, Mulch opens his jaw, diving into the ground below without further ado. Juliet takes a deep breath and, with one last look at the moon - still just visible in the early morning dark, crawls after him.

The autumn sun won't be up for at least half an hour.

'She's fine,' Butler says, as they walk to the door.

'Who said she wasn't?' Artemis replies with apparent calm. To all intents and purposes he could be going on an early morning stroll. In his mind, however, he's hearing Minerva's words on a loop. "You'll never be good enough for Holly. For what she believes she deserves. Someday, someone will find a cure, and she will go. Do you really think that you are enough to keep her above ground, away from her people? Away from her magic?"

It's not her safety I'm concerned about; he wants to say. Minerva won't hurt her, she'll cure her...

'Artemis, you don't need to worry.' Butler reiterates.

'Trust me, old friend, I'm not worried. In fact,' Artemis turns to his bodyguard, a cruel smile on his face, 'I'm positively looking forward to this. My guile has been getting rusty.'

Butler eyes his charge's tense shoulders and sighs. 'Whatever you say, Artemis.'

There's a knock at the door. Minerva loosens the tourniquet, puts the syringe down and goes out to see who it is, locking Holly in behind her.

'There're two guys here to see you,' Harold is waiting for her in the drawing room outside. 'Everyone's favourite bald giant and malnourished teen. What should I tell them? That normal people don't make social calls at seven a.m.?'

Minerva presses her lips into a thin line. 'Putain de merde,' she mutters.

'Pardon?'

'Stay with the prisoner, I'll deal with them.' Minerva hands him the keys. 'And for goodness sake don't touch anything, or I'll have your head on a platter.'

Harold gives her a mocking salute as she rushes past.