A/N: I wrote this with the intention of not publishing it. Then I wrote it with the intent of not publishing it until it was finished. Naturally, that meant that it is one of the stories that took me the least time to write ever. So here it is. My first successful attempt at an Artemis Fowl crossover. I hope you like it!

Title: A Heart Forged in Steel

Author: liketolaugh

Rating: T

Pairings: None

Genre: Friendship/Drama

Warnings: Earth!AU for Fullmetal Alchemist (Amestris is an isolated country located somewhere south of Russia, on the border between Europe and Asia) and slight AU for Artemis Fowl - the events of The Arctic Incident are all shunted forward a year.

Summary: In the fight with the troll, Butler loses more than is easily replaceable. In an attempt to remedy this, Artemis takes the bodyguard to Amestris, the world's main manufacturer of automail. There, they go to the best known makers of automail - the Rockbells - only to find that there is already a patient in surgery: Edward Elric.

Disclaimer: I own neither Artemis Fowl, nor the Fullmetal Alchemist. 'Tis but a dream.


The first thing Butler noticed when he woke up was that he was alive; the pain permeating throughout his entire body told him that. It was still nice to know, though. The second was the one-eighty twist in his neck, which was a less pleasant realization, given that it meant he would probably never walk again.

The third revelation fell somewhere in between the two extremes: His left arm was completely absent.

Then, one after another, the fourth thing he noticed were the blue sparks.

Later, Butler wouldn't be sure how he'd managed to take down the troll with only one arm. But he had, and that was what mattered.

When Artemis saw him, ever so slightly off-balance and expression dark, his eyes would widen, and for once, he would look his age – shocked and just a little afraid.

"Butler?"

"Artemis."

And Artemis would fall silent.

When Artemis bargained with Holly for a wish, he would first ask if she could regrow Butler's arm. She would shake her head; there were some things even magic couldn't fix. Failing that, he asked her to restore his mother's mind, and that she did. Could.

After the fact, it would be Butler who requested automail. Despite Artemis' miscalculation, he still trusted the boy – he'd gotten them out alive, in the end. And everyone was entitled to at least one mistake, as long as they learned from it.

Artemis wouldn't think twice before he booked the plane to Amestris.

"Rockbell Automail," Artemis said quietly, the usual note of smugness absent from his voice, standing in front of the meek little house in the middle of the meek little town. "The best in Amestris. Funny that it would be in a town this small, don't you think, Butler?"

"Yes, sir," Butler agreed, gazing toward the homemade sign announcing their location.

Artemis sighed and strode forward, rapping sharply on the wooden door. After a brief moment, it opened, revealing a tired-looking preteen girl with blonde hair and blue eyes.

The girl looked at them for a long moment before her eyes cleared and she sighed. "Hi," she murmured, rubbing at one eye blue eye. The other slowly travelled to Butler, landing on the empty sleeve where his left arm ought to be. "You're here for automail, right?"

"That is correct," Artemis replied curtly.

The girl nodded, matter-of-fact, and looked over her shoulder. "Granny! Customers!"

Within a few seconds, the pitter-patter of footsteps announced the arrival of a short old lady who, while not quite as tired as the girl, looked a little weary herself. Still, she looked at them with a sharp, discerning gaze, one that made Artemis more uncomfortable than he was used to.

She looked at Artemis first, gaze travelling all over him, to his eyes, each of his limbs, and then to his face again. She dismissed him and looked up (and up, and up) at Butler, who cocked an eyebrow at her, shoulders set.

The lady nodded, as though they'd passed some sort of inspection, and turned around again. "Well, come in," she said crisply, not bothering to look at them as she spoke. "Let's discuss this inside."

Artemis glanced up to Butler and nodded once, then followed the old woman in. Soon enough, they were settled on a couch, with the old woman in an armchair not far away and the girl settled comfortably on the floor beside her grandmother.

"I'm Pinako Rockbell," the old lady introduced herself, not wasting any time. "This is my granddaughter, Winry. And who might you be?"

"Artemis Fowl," Artemis introduced himself with the same businesslike tone. "My butler, Butler, lost his arm not long ago and wishes to get it replaced."

"Obviously," Pinako agreed, strangely unfazed by the aura that generally surrounded Artemis. She sighed. "Well, I'm afraid that you'll have to wait a few days. We already have a patient undergoing surgery at the moment."

Artemis blinked, not expecting that. "Is that so?" He leaned back slightly, eyes narrowing. "Well, we can certainly afford to wait. After all, it isn't as though I've planned to return home at any point in the near future."

"I'd hope not," Winry muttered, leaning her head back against the arm of the chair. "Standard rehabilitation time for an arm is two years; you'll be here nearly as long as Ed."

"Ed?" Artemis frowned. "The patient currently undergoing surgery, yes?"

Winry glanced away and nodded, not looking at Artemis. "Yeah… Right arm and left leg." With a slightly proud smile, she added, "I'm designing them myself."

Taking back control of the conversation, Pinako continued, "Edward will be in surgery for two more days, but after that, I can perform the surgery on Butler there while Winry starts Ed's rehabilitation."

Artemis nodded once, sat back, and looked to Butler, nodding again. Butler took the gesture as it was meant and looked to Pinako, right arm across his lap in a falsely relaxed position, leaning forward. "How effective is an automail limb?"

"Almost exactly like a real limb," Winry piped up, smiling brightly. "Exactly how good depends on the make, of course, but Rockbell automail is the best."

"Will I still be able to fight effectively?"

"Of course," Pinako said, almost offended. "If you wish, you may even look into specialty combat automail, though you'll want to grow accustomed to traditional automail first, naturally."

As Butler continued to ask questions of the two Rockbells, Artemis allowed his attention to drift.

He'd underestimated the fairies. He'd greatly underestimated them. While he had, in the end, not only gotten the gold, but also gotten himself, Butler, and Juliet out alive, the price had been greater than he had imagined.

Next time, he'd be more careful.

If Butler trusted him enough for there to be a next time.

The clanking of metal made Butler look up sharply, one hand going straight for his gun, and Artemis, much slower to react, looked up a few seconds later.

A large suit of armor was edging toward them tentatively, looking uncertain of itself, wringing its leather gauntlets. When it spoke, Artemis started at the youth clear in the wearer's voice, which was too high for someone of that apparent size. "Granny?" Its head turned, eerie red gaze landing on Butler and Artemis, and it stilled. "Who are they?"

"Artemis and Butler, they're here for automail," Pinako explained shortly, though her expression softened slightly from the businesslike manner of moments before. "Alphonse, what brings you down here?"

The armor started, like it had forgotten, and then wilted, head dropping slightly. "Oh, um, brother's fever is acting up again," he explained, voice quiet and worried, bordering fretful.

Winry let out a long, tired sigh and hauled herself up. "I'll take care of it," she murmured, starting toward the armor. She flashed him a reassuring smile, taking his hand fearlessly and following him up the stairs.

Artemis looked after them for a moment before looking back to Pinako, eyes intent. "Who was that?"

"Alphonse, Edward's brother," Pinako explained vaguely, then pointedly moved on, returning the focus to Butler. "The first step in the surgical process is to reopen the socket for port installation…"

Artemis listened carefully, tucking away each step into his mind, internalizing the process. Butler nodded along, almost as focused, eyes serious and professional.

As it should be.


So yeah, it's only just beginning now. But! It'll pick up eventually. Sort of. Anyway, I hope you liked it, and that Butler was alright - he's harder than I expected. Artemis is easier than he is. (Though that might be Ciel's fault...) Please review!