Chapter 65

Dinner with my Family

Holly's POV:

Ugh, I hate getting dressed up. It's one of the worst tortures that has ever been devised by men. And honestly, this type of evil must have been made by men.

"Holly, you look beautiful. Would you please stop grumbling?" Arty sighed. Obviously, he was frustrated. Perhaps I should be chastened, but I was even more annoyed than he was.

We had dinner plans tonight, and I was wearing yet another Juliet original. The dress was white and tied behind my neck. It exposed quite a lot of my cleavage and was embroidered in glinting, white stones. The dress fit tightly in the bodice, but flared out at my waist and flowed down to my knees. The shoes were the really ridiculous part. They were white four inch heels that tied up my legs to my thighs.

My auburn hair was curled elegantly and laid heavily on my shoulders. Even my ears were weighed down with diamond, chandelier earrings that swung loosely back and forth.

"Ugh, I hate this outfit," I mumbled. "I can barely walk."

"Next time perhaps you should not allow Juliet to choose your clothes."

I tried to glare at the teen, but I knew that he was right. As always. "If I spill something on it now, do you think that I can change without feeling too guilty?"

"No, you're much too good for that," he chuckled. I looked up at Arty, enjoying his outfit. He was wearing a rather tight pair of black dress pants, a white dress shirt with the top two buttons undone, revealing chest, and a black vest that really showed off his musculature. He was wearing a pair of black loafers, and his black hair was falling into his eyes in a way that made mine widen. His golden necklace glinted softly on his chest.

"That's what everyone thinks," I winked.

"That's what I know," he replied with certainty.

The knock on the door stopped me. "That's probably Lili now. Will you please go get the door?" There was no way that I was going to go hobbling to the door.

"Of course." He opened it after making it a point to look out of the peep hole. Finally, he stepped back and allowed my blond friend to sashay inside.

My jaw dropped when I saw her. She was wearing a vividly red corseted dress that was tight and exposed her ample chest. The skirt was a mermaid tail that showed off every, single one of her perfect curves. Her long, blond hair was pulled up into an elegantly curly up do, and held in place by a sparkling silver headband. Her feet were incased in red heels that were at least four inches, though they were probably more.

"Wow, you look amazing," I gasped.

"Not nearly as good as you dah-ling," she giggled. "I'm jealous."

I rolled my eyes. What did she have to be jealous about? She was the super model. One of the 'Hottest girls in Haven.' "We're going to be late if we don't leave now," I said not wanting to get into that argument again.

"Well then, let's go," She ran out of the door in her heels like she was wearing sneakers.

I dragged my feet slowly, feeling like I was on stilts. Maybe I would be able to make it out of the door before midnight. Arty quickly caught my hip with one hand and my hand with the other. "Would you like some help?"

It definitely wasn't a time to be prideful. Not if I wanted to avoid an embarrassing fall, anyway. "Yes please." And he held me up as we made our way to the car. Honestly, at the moment Arty was my hero. Thank goodness for mudboys.

Lili sped the entire way to the restaurant. It was funny to turn and see the young genius clutching onto the seat, probably thinking about car accident statistics.

When we finally stopped, Artemis peeled himself from the seat and hurried to help me out. Frond bless him. None of my other friends would have helped me so gently and without comments. Speaking of friends… as soon as we entered the door, I could see a circular table full of said friends with three empty seats spread about. Only with Arty's help was I able to stumble into one of them. And of course, he graciously sat in the one next to me.

Artemis and I were at one end of the table. Next to Arty sat Foaly who was already beginning to be…himself. No 1. Sat beside Foaly dressed rather nicely and talking about magic and words as always. Doodah Day was next to him and pretending to listen. Mulch sat there between Doodah and Lili. Ah, poor Lili. No female should ever be forced to sit by Mulch Diggums. Though Luckily for her, she had Caballine on her other side to absorb some of that…delightful conversation.

"Aww, helping your girlfriend in," Mulch snickered. I sighed. And so begins the torture.

"Speaking of girlfriends, where's yours Mulch?" Caballine shot back. Oh, I absolutely love her. Her smart mouth and quick wit made her exceedingly easy to assimilate into our little group. And the way that she always defended me made it even easier to love her.

"Hey, that's not nice…." he pouted.

"And neither is your face, but you only hear me complaining slightly," she smiled innocently.

"Hooves down," I requested, wanting at least a moment of peace. "Can't we all just please say 'hi' before we start arguing?"

Caballine nodded, her face red with embarrassment. After all, she was mostly a civilized woman. And yes, I did mean 'mostly'. "I'm sorry." She turned to face Arty. "Hi Artemis! I'm Caballine, Foaly's wife." As though she needed introduction. After all, who else could she be?

He smiled at her graciously. "It's lovely to meet you, Caballine. I have heard quite a lot about you."

"All of it good, I hope."

"Of course." Not. Goodness knows that at times Caballine can be difficult, bossy, and difficult just like her dear husband, and Arty was definitely aware of that.

Speaking of her dear husband… he was being strangely quiet. "What's gotten you so quiet, Foaly?"

"Oh, he's mad at Artemis for some computer virus," his wife waved it off. She was used to the game that the two genii played. In a few minutes, he'd be laughing with the rest of us, Arty's actions forgotten.

Mulch, on the other hand, found each stroke against the centaur to be a valuable venture worthy of celebration. "Oh really? C'mon tell us what the mud boy did to you."

"Oh nothing. He just sank me in a black hole of cyber censorship. Not to mention him tampering with my most delicate systems…" he ranted. It was easy to see that Artemis had overstepped some line that they had. I don't know exactly what he had done, but I did know that Foaly was not going to take it lying down. Ah, just a normal day in the neighborhood…

"Never mess with the best," the genius smiled.

"You two. Always fighting, bickering, arguing," No 1 said. Though as always, he said what he meant with as many synonyms as possible.

"Ugh, how did I get seated next to the living dictionary?" Day groaned.

"Better you than me," the dwarf chuckled, enjoying his partner's pain. For Mulch the most enjoyable part was that he wasn't even the one causing it this time. No, he just got to sit back and relax.

I looked around at my friends. All of us dressed up in our best, and just enjoying each other's company. My friend's smile and laughter. The easy banter. I sighed, thinking to myself that I wish it could always be like this. All of us together and happy without having to stop some criminal.

"Um, sorry to interrupt, but are you guys ready to place your drink order?" The tall, thin, elfin waitress asked.

"We are," I said. "Well, what do you want to drink?"

"Well, we can't have anything alcoholic," Mulch grumbled, shooting a glare at No 1. And Arty. No 1 was still technically a child, so could not possible by allowed to drink. Arty, on the other hand, was the big problem. He wasn't a child, but according to Fairy law, if we drink with him then we will lose our powers and be excommunicated to the surface where we may never interact with our peers again. I had actually seen it happen before. Not a pretty sight. Not worth the taste of wine.

"We'll all take one of your sparkling, nonalcoholic juices," Lili said with a calm, understated authority.

The waitress bobbed her head, writing it all down. "Okay, I'll be right back with your drinks."

"Well Artemis, I must say that you look extremely handsome tonight," My female centaur friend complimented. And coming from her, fashion diva of the year, it meant a lot. Not that it really mattered to any of the men present.

"Only because Holly here is dressing and undressing him," Doodah chuckled. Ah, the pixie. All of his humor ran towards the more bawdy side. I really wasn't surprised by his comments anymore.

"Anything to get him out of those suits," Foaly shook his head. "Seriously, it had to be uncomfortable."

"Actually…" Arty began but was cut off.

"Actually, it kept the stick up my bum perfectly wedged in…" the dwarf chuckled. Even I had to giggle. It was pretty funny. To everyone but Arty that is.

"Better a stick than undigested clay," the genius muttered.

"Looks like we hurt his feelings." Day teased.

I rolled my eyes. It's easy to forget how childish we all begin to act when we get back together. But I wouldn't trade it for the world. "Artemis, I actually kind of like the suits," I admitted. They were a part of his element, and besides, he managed to look great in everything.

"Thank you, Holly."

"What did you just say?" Lili demanded.

Of course, No. 1 always had to help those who don't understand. "She said that she does actually like his suits."

"I know. I was just asking a rhetorical question," Frond sighed in frustration. Of course, she was not used to the warlock's habits yet. At first they could be a bit…. Stifling.

"Rhetorical. A question hat was not asked to be answered," he defined. Hmm, I suppose she makes him nervous. With her personality it's not very surprising. Well, at least they're not sitting right next to each other. That would have been a disaster.

"Also not meant to be defined," Doodah chuckled, elbowing Mulch. The two laughed at their joke quite proud of themselves for 'making a funny'.

"So, what have you guys been doing all week?" Caballine asked, over the chuckling of the dwarf and the pixie.

"Well, we went to the Fountain of Youth, the Artificial weather park, Police Plaza, the mall, and we watched all of the Artemis Fowl movies."

"Interesting," Foaly nodded, and I could see the mischief shining in his eyes. The only question was: What was he going to say next? "You haven't taken him to the cavern?"

My face automatically reddened. The cavern was not a place that I would ever take Artemis Fowl. It was a place that fairies who were lovers or who wanted to be lovers would go and… confess their feelings or just engage in…activities. Seeing as Arty and I are not and will never be lovers, I see no reason to take him there. "We both know that taking him there would not be appropriate."

Arty cleared his throat. "Pardon me. I am still here and would like to know more about this 'cavern'."

Everyone's eyes, including No 1's lit up as they chuckled behind their hands. One, they knew something that Artemis didn't. Two, it was hilarious and none of them were going to tell him. Ugh, that left this to me.

He must have come to the same conclusion, because he turned to me. "Holly. Tell me."

"Think along the lines of the humans 'make out point.' It's full name is the 'cavern of lovers'."

As soon as these words clicked in his mind, his face reddened. Honestly, at this point, it was darker than Lili's dress. "Ah," he muttered.

"So, it'd be perfect for you two," Doodah shrugged. "It's obvious that you're in loooove." And there it was, I had been sure that we wouldn't get through the entire dinner without some comment about the two of us. Though, I must admit that I was expecting it to be Mulch.

"Obvious to everyone but you. Can you not see that you're head over heels?" Lili sighed in frustration. "Ridiculous."

"Aww, they're still worried about what everyone will think," No. 1 contributed. Ugh, I couldn't believe that the young warlock was in on this too. He was usually the innocent one. Correction: he was always the innocent one.

Caballine snorted. She worked for PPTV, so she know everything about…. Well everything. "Oh please. Everyone's waiting for this to happen. You guys even have your own celebrity name smoosh. It's Hartemis, in case you're wondering."

"Name smoosh? I've never came across that term before." I can't say that I was surprised. Artemis knew quantum physics, chemistry, and anything else academic that you could care to name. But as it pertained to pop culture…. Well, he was blissfully unaware.

"Name smoosh. The combining of the names of two celebrities components of a couple. The becomes what he couple is called by the general population. Example. Holly Short and Artemis Fowl is Hartemis." Also not surprised that he knew exactly what it meant. He is our living dictionary, after all.

"Geeze. Even I knew that," Mulch shook his head. "And you call yourself a genius?"

"Stop! Can you not see that he only said that to change the subject?" Lili shook her head. Well, it had almost worked. So, she was smarter than she looked. Good to know. Dangerous in this situation.

"She's right," Day sighed, a bit upset that he had been tricked so easily.

"Just admit it. You two really do like each other."

Seriously. At this point, I felt like I was in some sort of dark dream. Everyone ganging up on us, trying to get us to… lie about our feelings.

I turned and looked Artemis in the eyes. "We're only friends."

"Best friends," he corrected.

"We're just best friends," I corrected myself. "Seriously, you guys should know better by now.

He nodded in agreement as the waitress came back with wine glasses full of juice.

"Okay, are you guys ready to order dinner?" she asked with a perfect smile.

"Yes," Lili answered for us.

I had barely looked at the menu, but I was sure of what I wanted. All of us ordered and she disappeared back off to the kitchen to deliver them.

"So, Arty…. When are you taking our dear old Holly on a date?" Foaly asked.

Artemis chocked on his liquid and began coughing. I gently patted his back until he had regained his ability to speak. "Do you remember that black hole that I dug for you?" he asked, his voice dark. "Any more comments from you and I'll go and make it so deep that you'll never tumble out of it. Your entire system will be at my mercy."

His cold voice… it reminded me so much of when I first met him. Apparently, Foaly had the same thought because he immediately quieted down. And he didn't make another inappropriate comment for the rest of dinner.

"Did anyone else feel a shiver run up their spine?" No 1 asked and everyone including me and excluding Artemis himself raised their hands. The genius chuckled dryly, and unrepentantly. I could practically read his mind. He was serious, but to be the fair, the centaur really had deserved it. In fact, I just wish that I had had my own ace in the hole so to speak.

I glanced at Artemis strangely. I don't know why, but something stood forward at the forefront of my mind. He had threatened Foaly, but he hadn't refused to take me on a date… no. No, I didn't just think that. I wouldn't agree to any date with Arty anyway.

"Geeze Artemis. Remind me never to get on your bad side." Mulch winced. "Of course, you don't have anything on me."

"Really?" he asked, his brows waggling, and his voice lifting in a way that made it almost impossible to know if he was lying or telling the truth. "Are you sure about that?"

"I am. You're bluffing." But Arty's face never wavered. "He is bluffing, isn't he, Holly?"

I shrugged staring into Arty's face. His serious eyes, his easy smirk… That look was familiar. "No, he's serious."

"D'Arvit!" The dwarf cursed.

"Ah, the joys of being a genius."

"We should make a toast…." Lili said enthusiastically. Wow, talk about a random time.

"We should," Caballine agreed. As I looked at the two, I realized that they would probably become great friends. Knowing my luck , our groups of two would become the three shopping musketeers.

So, we all gathered our glasses and raised them.

"To good friends," No 1 said.

"To family," Caballline cheered.

"To looove," Dooday grinned.

"To black mail," Foaly smirked.

"To death-defying-seat-of-the-pants-adventures and the quiet life," Mulch said

"To vacation and the pursuit of knowledge," Artemis added.

"To new experiences," Lili grinned.

"To us," I finished. We all clinked our glasses together and brought them to our mouth.

"Wasn't that cool?" Lili smirked. "We have to do this again sometime."

"Yes," No. 1 added. "Too bad Artemis won't be here next time."

"I will miss all of you," The genius replied. Perhaps it was my imagination, but he seemed to be looking directly at me the entire time.

"Hey! You still have one full day. Don't get weepy on me yet," I chided.

"Weepy? Perish the thought."

The waitress came back with the three assistants each carrying two plates apiece. Surprisingly, they actually got all of our orders rights. That's the first time that's ever happened to me. And that's probably why this is the best restaurant in town. Of course, the delicious food could also have had something to do with that. Sure, it was expensive, but it was delicious.

We continued on with our joking banter, each of us taking a turn at being teased. Though someone came to the rescue every time so that no one got too much teasing at one time. And in between banter, we actually had some serious conversation.

I could have went on all night, but before long, we realized that it was almost midnight, and time for the restaurant to close.

The waitress sashayed back to us with the bill. We all paid her and left what amounted to a rather generous tip. She deserved it. Dealing with us and doing it with a smile was more than I could ask of almost anyone.

We stood in the parking lot for a few minutes. None of us wanted to leave, but we all knew that we had to. "We'll see you guys tomorrow," Caballine grinned, waving. "Sleep well."

"Yeah. Have a good, cushy night," Mulch sniggered, wiggling his brows suggestively. Charming. I can see why we're such good friends.

I rolled my eyes as Artemis helped me wobble to the car. This time he chose to sit in the back seat next to me. The entire ride was quick and quiet since we were all full and sleepy.

"Night Lili. Have a good day at work tomorrow."

"Ugh!" she groaned, and I knew exactly how she felt. I wouldn't have wanted to go either, but a LEP officer never really rests…

I grinned to myself as Arty and I made our way into my house. "I'm sleepy," I yawned.

"As am I," he admitted, and I could see it around his eyes. The dark circles, the lack of a certain luster. He was exhausted.

"Good night Arty," I smiled. This time when he leaned in and kissed my cheek it wasn't a surprise. If anything it was an expectation, but I still felt a strange clenching sensation whenever he did. Like something was strange… different.

"Good night Holly."

I stumbled into my room and quickly changed my clothes, before climbing into bed. I just laid there on my back, staring at the ceiling. I sighed. Obviously, sleep was not going to come easily for me tonight.

A/N:

One more chapter down. So, sorry about constantly using the same A/n. I guess I got lazy for a bit there. So, sorry.

Okay, so I know the length is annoying for some people, and I totally get that but I'm asking that you just stick with it. The end will be worth it. And it's really not that far from here. Well…. Not relatively far.

So, I also just want to tell you guys how much I appreciate the reviews and favorites that you've added. I love you guys so much. Thanks again. The next chapter should be coming up soon. In the mean time, you guys should check out my other stories. I think they're pretty good.

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