Chapter 56

Build it Up Break it Down

Training Day.

Holly's POV:

I woke up to a bright Haven faux-sun, and a perfectly warm morning.

Today's going to be a good day. A great day.

For the first time in a long time, I actually got up, showered, and got dressed before going to get my ritual cup of coffee. As soon as I entered the living room, my nose was assaulted by the scent of hot, fresh brewed coffee. Ah, the joys of having an early riser in your house.

Speaking of my "early riser"… there was Arty sitting stock straight at my kitchen table, reading a massive book. "Artemis," I sighed, momentarily forgetting my morning routine. "You're on vacation."

"I'm well aware," he replied, flipping to the next page. Ugh, this boy needs some serious help. I understand that he's a genius, but a vacation should be all about relaxation.

"When normal people are on vacation then they at least try to have fun."

"First of all: 'fun' is in the eyes of the beholder. Just because you don't enjoy it does not mean that it is not enjoyable for me. Second: I have never pretended to be 'normal' by any measure of the word.

I couldn't help but chuckle. Arty was right as usual. After all, no normal person could have found and saved a supposedly mythical race. "Good point, but you still need to put the book down and change your clothes."

"Why?" he asked, still primarily focused on the book in front of him. "You did choose these clothes for me. I would think that it would be to your liking." I glanced down at his plain blue t-shirt and jeans. Yes, I did like it. Very much so.

"We have training to do." And for the first time since I entered the kitchen, his eyes snapped up to actually focus on me. Ahhh, and that's all that I needed to say to get his undivided attention? "What? You didn't just think that you'd relax the entire time, did you? Butler would kill me."

"But Holly, I thought I was on vacation," he replied, obviously trying to annoy me. And as usual, it was working. Honestly, no one can push my buttons like him.

"Go change before I hurt you," I threatened, though I knew how very hard it would be to actually hurt him. Almost impossible. Thankfully, he didn't know that or we would never get anything done.

"Yes master." He bowed slightly from the waist. "Where exactly would I find these clothes?"

Arty. Ugh, he has a way of making you just want to punch him. Luckily, I don't give into my baser instincts. Well, I don't most of the time anyway. "Hmm, well if you go into my room, you'll see a blue pair of short shorts and a matching tank top that I will make you wear if you don't find and put on exactly what I laid out for you."

"Yes master." He bowed again, leaving the room.

I rolled my eyes, but was thankful that I didn't have to change. I was already wearing a tight pair of shorts, my work out tank, and tennis shoes. So, it wasn't exactly 'hot', but in my opinion I didn't look too shabby.

Artemis came back a few minutes later. And I must admit that it looked even better than I had thought it would. His baggy shorts that fit just well enough and the tight tee that showed of… everything including the slightest bit of musculature of his arms. His chest and completely flat stomach that was almost to the point of being close to abs. Almost anyway.

"C'mon," I said, leading him to the door that I almost always kept closed. I flung it wide open and let him go into my exercise room.

He glanced around warily. The mats, the treadmill and weight lifting devices. Obviously, this was very much outside of his comfort zone. "Relax Arty. This is going to be fun."

He looked at me like I had lost my mind as he took a position in the center, far away from the machinery. "So?" I asked. "What does Butler usually teach you?"

"Martial Arts and basic defense tactics," he responded quickly.

Thankfully, as a LEP major I have been well trained in both disciplines. I suppose in this case I am second best only next to the Butlers. "Good. I guess we should start with stretching."

And with that, I split my legs, dropping down into the splits. I grinned up at Arty's sour frown. "Too much?"

"What do you think?"

"I think you should try it." As if Artemis really could.

"No thank you. I prefer speaking in my normal voice and not crumpling over in pain." Aww, it's too bad that he won't try. But at the same time, I really don't want to have to pick him up off of the floor.

"Stretch," I commanded, hopping back up to my feet. I watched him bend and touch his toes, and made sure that he was doing it correctly. And he was doing very, very well. "Enough," I finally called. "Time for the real test."

I tried to think of something to do. Something that wouldn't be too far out of his realm of experience. After all, I didn't want to hurt his tender feelings. "High kicks." After all, who didn't know these basic moves? Butler would definitely not let Artemis out of his sight without them.

Arty turned and automatically assumed the correct posture before sending his leg up to the perfect point for a high kick. Surprising or maybe not, his posture and presentation was perfect. Sure, he was slightly clumsy, but his moves were synchronized in a way that I did not see often in beginners. I can't help but wonder how much time it took for Butler to teach him all of this.

"Left leg…right leg. Over hand chop. Right arm. Underhand chop. Left hand." I continued calling out orders and watched him follow without thinking. Ah, the joys of being a genius. "Combination." And surprisingly or maybe not he put all of my directions together easily.

After about an hour of drills, I was bored to tears. And so was Arty. So, I decided to spice it up a bit. "Okay Arty. Let's see how good you really are."

"Very," he retorted.

"We'll see." So, I moved to stand right across from him. I assumed a loose fighting posture which Arty quickly mimicked as I checked his posture. Arms up to block blows. Legs slightly apart and up for poise and balance. His stance… It was perfect. Almost too perfect.

I stepped out behind him and gently swung my foot into the crease behind his knees. I had expected him to fall over, but he only winced in pain. "Nice," I grinned. Maybe this wouldn't be as easy as I had expected.

"Hit me," I ordered.

Artemis just looked at me like I was insane. "No, I will not." Ugh, his stupid outdated attempts at 'gentlemanly conduct. It was so… frustrating, and it would only serve to limit him in life.

"No," he said once again. Honestly, this was just like my first martial Arts class at the Academy. No one wants to hit the girl because they might break her. Though in this case, it wasn't fear of fragility. Rather it was … out of respect. Kind but irrelevant.

"Hit me," I repeated, striking Arty on the shoulder just hard enough for it to sting. I don't want to accidentally knock him out, but I do want to make him angry. He glared at me, but still refused to lift a finger. "Fine. Be that way." And I kept hitting out at him. With every blow his eyes scrunched up in what seemed like pain.

"I cannot hit a woman, Holly."

"Arty… I'm not a woman. I'm just Holly," I replied angrily. "And we're not fighting. We're just training." I could still see the resistance warring in his mismatched eyes as I played my trump card. "What if I was Opal?"

His eyes hardened perceptibly, letting me know that he would have no such qualms when deciding with her. He would attack her with all of his strength. Good. There are some people that just don't deserve any mercy and she's one of them. "That's different," he said, his voice cold. "Female or not she needs to be stopped."

"That's a double standard, Arty. You're a genius. You see logic. We're not trying to hurt each other, we're just practicing. Look at it that way instead."

I could see his morals and the logic battling it out. And then finally he made a decision. "I'll parry your blows, but I will not hit you back."

I nodded in agreement. That was as much as I could expect to get from a born and raised gentleman. At the moment anyway. So, I assumed the position and struck out. Artemis tried to block but I easily swatted him aside.

And so we went back and forth. At first, he didn't seem to be able to even block, but soon he caught on to my rhythm and was actually managing to avoid getting pummeled. In fact, he actually did get a few good shots in.

This was so different from any fight that I had ever really been in. When I would spar with Trouble or one of the LEP fairies then it was more like fighting. But with Arty… it was art, a battle of the strongest will and the quickest person.

We continued for almost two hours before he was too tired to go on. When we finally did stop, I couldn't help but stare at Arty .This was one of the first times that I had seen him really sweat. Slight stains under his arms and behind his back . His hair was plastered down to his head and trailing into his eyes. It gave him a sort of glow and made him look… different. "Artemis Fowl? Sweaty? I never thought I'd see the day."

"Haha. Very funny," He replied sarcastically, pushing his hair back and only managing to mess it up even more. I wanted nothing more than to fix it.

"Your hair is a mess," I smiled, wiping away a trickle of sweat that was about to run into my eyes.

"I'm well aware." He stood lingering, part of him wanted to go and get a shower. And the other part, wanting to stay with me.

He reached out and tucked a limp strand of hair behind my ear. "Your hair's also very disarrayed."

"I'm well aware," I repeated loftily, grabbing his hand and holding it just a bit longer than necessary. Just to bother him, of course. "I need to shower," I remarked, sniffing delicately.

"As do I, Artemis said, his face disgusted by his own stench. I, personally, didn't understand it. He wasn't stinky as some guys became after activity. No, it was the scent of a… masculine man. The scent of pure testosterone.

"Come on," I said, leading him out of the gym.

"That was interesting." Interesting? I get the mud boy genius to exercise and it's just interesting? Try miraculous instead.

And so I stood in front of my door. "If you liked that, wait until you see what I have planned for tomorrow," I winked before stepping into my room and shutting the door behind me.

A/N:

Another chapter down.

Well, that's another chapter down! Yay! So, I know I haven't updated in forever. Sorry, I've been stressing over papers and the like, but you'll be happy to know that while I've been away I've actually been busy. So busy that I actually finished writing this story. Thank you. Your love is very much appreciated. ;)

So, I know this chapter was not up to my usual standard. Just be patient. Things get back to normal after the next chapter. Be patient and stick with it.

Rest assured that I am working on this story quite a bit. I haven't abandoned anything, and don't plan on it. The next chapter should be coming up soon... hopefully. So, in the mean time, you guys should check out my other stories. They're pretty good, I think.

So, yeah, thanks to all of my reviewers and people who added me or this story to favorites. I love you guys. Keep reading and I'll keep writing. Oh and to review. Flames are welcome. They're what keep me warm and toasty at night. ;)

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Yours truly, madly, and deeply,

Einstinette