A.N OH MY GOSH! YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING! You're reviews just completely and TOTALLY made my day! Now, I wanted to update this chapter now because I'll be going on a trip tomorrow and I wanted to keep up with my quick updates. So, I hope you like the chapter and look out for new AF stories in the future!
Disclaimer Me: Roses are red. Violets are blue. Sugar is sweet and so are you. But that's not all, you are also wonderful and nice and cool and neat and…tall?
Lawyers: No way. He STILL doesn't belong to you.
Me: thinks Hm. Eureka!
Lawyers: narrows eyes What?
Me: His kitten form belongs to me!
Jimmy the Head Squirrel Leader: You idiots! I told you to strip her ownership of EVERYTHING Artemis Fowl!
P.S Thank yous are, as always, at the bottom!
Promise Me
Artemis coughed and sputtered and batted the water like it was his archrival. And, at the moment, it was. However, while Artemis was not in the least amused, Kelp and his buddies sure were. They did not question the kitten's strangeness of being there; they had heard the whole hall conversation. Kelp chuckled, but with sympathy in his eyes, stuck in a room with Foaly and Root? Ouch, that had to hurt. He smiled down at the kitten and plucked it up and into his lap. "Hey kitty, you're going to get a cold if you stay like this."
Artemis just glowered. This day had started out bad and had only gotten worse. The next person he saw he was most definitely going to grind into dust. But wait, cats can't talk, and thus can't criticize and ground into dust. Okay, his glare would have to do. Goodness knows it would send shivers up peoples' spines.
Well, it just so happened that the 'next person he saw' was mistaken for an angel by him.
"What are you guys doing now?" Holly asked innocently.
Kelp smiled, hoping that his cheeks were only warm, and not pink. "Saving innocent victims of course."
"Hm?"
The well known captain lifted the kitten to Holly's eye sight.
"Where did you get him?" Holly's eyes softened as she took the kitten from Kelp's hands.
"How do you know it's a he?"
"Just a feeling. He's got gorgeous eyes, hasn't he?"
"Yeah," Kelp's eyes narrowed. "Actually, to tell you the truth, they kind of remind me of someone."
Artemis could feel himself start to sweat, no matter how soothing Holly's hand was. His pride would not take another blow.
"Do you mind if I take him?"
"Huh?"
"Do you mind if I take the kitten home with me, I'm heading off now. The poor thing's soaked."
"No," Kelp replied then murmured: "In fact, I envy him."
Artemis could feel himself blush, going home with Holly. He gulped. It was easy for Holly; she didn't know she was stroking her former enemy. But that was okay. As long as she didn't know, he was content.
Holly was extra careful as she went home this time, holding her back pack to her chest gently. The kitten was in there after all. Mud anything usually lead to panic from civilians. But, surprisingly, even with all of the pushy-shovey people, they arrived home without incident. She opened her flat door and walked in, letting it shut behind her. She turned on the lamps with a command and a golden light filled the room. She opted for these dimmed lights rather than the ones that reminded her of her cubicle. She needed a haven, not that she didn't love her work, but even she got occasionally burnt out. She zipped the backpack open and watched as Artemis the kitten nudged his head out, one of his ear's perking up.
Artemis looked around as he felt his warm and fuzzy body being lifted out of the rough texture of the backpack. He had never seen where Holly lived before, and found it not necessarily predicted, but slightly expected. It was cozy and safe. Artemis twitched his tail in content, Holly observing.
Then a small breeze from the window reminded his body of his current state. So, as his body's protest, his tiny kitten form jerked forward as he sneezed in such a way that the captain felt compelled to snuggle the ball of fluff, no matter how wet. She brought Artemis up to her face and nuzzled noses with him, "You're so cute," she whispered.
Artemis felt like he had been struck by lightening, but instead of feeling stiff he melted. He didn't even notice Holly had grabbed a warm kitchen towel before he was being smothered with it, albeit gently. The world's greatest criminal mastermind could feel himself blushing, feeling thankful for his kitten body for the first time that day. Holly chuckled and strolled through the dim living room and into her bedroom. She sidestepped some paperwork and clothes, and then flopped onto her bed, sighing as she felt the kitten curl and softly change position on her chest. To tell the truth, Artemis was slightly uncomfortable. Holly was someone whom he respected immensely, and was this, really acceptable? Meaning, Holly did think he was an innocent kitten, but he knew. And that was all it took to feel slightly undeserving of this. He liked Holly. He liked her a lot.
"You know, you remind me of someone," Holly eased onto her elbows and scratched the kitten's ears. "Of course, you're obviously different in some respects. But the feel of you is the same," she stared into Artemis' stormy eyes and sighed. "The boy I'm speaking of has literally skipped his childhood or just decided to ignore it. I feel sorry for him. No matter how tough he acts, he's still just a boy and he's been through so much. Underneath all of the malice, calculations, plots, vampire smiles-"
So, she was talking about him. Artemis decided he couldn't really do anything in his current predicament except be the cute little confidant Holly was taking him for. There was really nothing much he could do. That is, save for enjoy it.
"-and his downright evil incarnate, little attitude-"
Artemis could feel his hair start to rise…she was getting angry.
"-he's a good kid," Holly's anger deflated abruptly.
Juliet had often shared parts of cartoons where the obnoxious characters did 'face faults' when they were completely surprised. Artemis was ashamed to say he almost did one at that moment. He looked up at Holly with wide, questioning eyes, trying to figure out how she had gone from being angry at him to saying he was a good kid. He was probably one of the world's most knowledgeable people on psychology, and yet he couldn't answer this question.
"Geez," Holly flopped back down and smiled at the kitten. "I'm always so confused around him. I don't know whether to kick him-"
Artemis recoiled slightly and winced, though he wasn't shocked at the statement. How many times had she punched him now? He shook his head. He would rather not recall the humiliation.
"-Or hug him."
Artemis eyes widened again. 'Hug? Holly…wants…to…hug…ME!'
Holly's eyes narrowed. "You know what? He would probably be reacting the same way to my statements as you are."
Artemis could feel his heart speed up. He had to convince Holly he wasn't who he really was. So, he did the only thing that came to mind. "Meeeeeooooowwwwww!" Artemis meowed in the most endearing way possible.
Holly's serious face broke into giggles as she huggled the kitten. "Okay, maybe you're not him. Maybe he would, but I can't imagine the great Artemis Fowl meowing. Though, if you promise not to tell anyone-"
Artemis snuggled under her chin from an unknown reflex.
"He really is a good kid, and getting to be somewhat of a cute one too. He's even beginning to smile. Not maliciously, no smirk, no sneer, no cynical grin, just smile. I think hanging out with us is fueling that decent spark at his core…"
Artemis sighed and could feel himself drift into contented sleep as he continued to listen to Holly talk. Now she was just talking about work, life, and such things as one would put in a journal or diary. Though, he could hardly picture Captain Short having a diary.
Holly looked down and saw the kitty's eyes drift open and closed for the final time. She gently eased into a sitting position and moved him onto her lap. The kitten stretched, and then curled up again. Artemis yawned, his pink tongue dipping into the air and then back in, his face scrunching up and relaxing. Holly grinned and followed suit. "You're making me yawn, kitty."
Artemis just smiled.
Holly's smile grew wider, almost in satisfaction and victory at her well done pampering of this kitty. Especially so when she heard the low, soft purring of the black kitten. She looked up at the ceiling, closing her eyes too and enjoying the warmth of the kitty when said fluff ball suddenly gained a little more than a few pounds. Holly looked down, almost afraid of what she might find and found herself staring down at an extremely content Artemis, his hair still slightly wet and most definitely mussed. She sighed and let a small smile grace her lips, despite her irritation. "Alright Artemis, I'll let you go for now. But you just wait."
Artemis grinned. "I'll be interested to see what you have in store."
"Oh, by the way…"
Artemis peaked one eye open, wary of what she would say next.
"Did you switch the crown jewel on Lady Fei Fei's tiara with a fake."
Artemis sighed, reaching his hands up to rub his temples.
"Out with it Artemis. Now," Holly's voice was firm but calm, a deadly sign.
"You wouldn't believe me even if I told you."
"Did you make it into some weapon? A laser perhaps?"
"Good guess, but no."
"Then what?"
"Promise you'll believe me?"
Holly narrowed her eyes. Was this Artemis being unsure? It was almost as if he wanted her to believe him. "Promise."
"I put it on a chain and gave it to my mother. It's the exact hue of my father's eyes."
"And yours," Holly whispered.
"Yes. I promised her I would find my father."
"And you kept that promise."
"I keep my promises."
"Then promise me something."
"What?" Now it was Artemis's turn to narrow his eyes.
"Promise me you'll continue to blow on that spark. And maybe smile too."
"…"
"Artemis."
"All right. I promise."
Silence followed, Artemis shifting once to be closer to Holly. He hoped it went unnoticed. But then he thought of something and his gut churned slightly. His brow furrowed for a second. "So, this, erm, is okay?"
"It's okay just because you said something that wasn't a word."
Artemis smiled again, giving Holly the rare pleasure of seeing him truly smile and keeping his promise. 'He really is cute.'
A.N grins I'm actually really proud of this fic. It's not perfect, but hey, what is perfect? Did you guys like the cuddle time? Don't worry. In the next AF story it'll be longer and maybe they'll even kiss. Who knows. But, I am a sucker for light romance…Next fic: Wicked: Artemis sped up for a final time and took a leap of faith, literally. He sailed through the air and tackled the awestruck fairy to the ground, landing in a two foot snow drift, with the disgruntled, female (Artemis realized upon tackling the poor thing) fairy underneath him. He got off the fairy, sat up, and took off his goggles just as the fairy ripped off her helmet to reveal….((ArtemisXHolly))
IhateBeetroot- I know! You will not BELIEVE how many times that scene ran through my head before it finally got down on paper/compie-chan! Sorry to say, this is the end of this fic, but there will be more!
boogalaga- Thank you! Thank you! THANK YOU! You're awesome! And yup, I managed to forward your review to Artemis and I ACTUALLY got a reply! So, here ya go:
Dear boogalaga:
I am quite aware that 'cuteness' is a very powerful force. But, it is one that I particularly do not like to use. Also, what makes you think I want a cat toy? They are somewhat amusing I admit but I would not let myself be caught dead with one. The same goes for cat nip; though Holly for some reason agrees with you (I hate it when she reads over my shoulder. She agrees with you on almost all accounts, by the way). The one she doesn't agree with is the women. For some reason she seemed irritated when she read that (no matter how likely it is to happen should the situation arise). But I do agree with you on that second to last statement. I do intend to try a bit more, but in my own body. Finally, I know how much I amuse my fans all too well.
Sincerely,
Artemis Fowl II
Did you like it? I hope you did! Thank you again! I will!
Sqarecool321- I know it! Thank you for reading and reviewing!
Chaos- Yay! I'm glad I made your day! Thank you! And yes, he does! But you already know that now! I hope it met your expectations! I think so too! Thanks!
Lost Darkness- Ah, as blunt and brutal as always, aren't you? Don't worry. I won't kill you, you'll just be unconscious. I'm a genius! YAHOO! That's a real compliment! ARIGATOU GOZAIMASU! Hm? Call you? With what? This thing? pokes the phone with a stick What is it? random crowd laughs No, seriously, what is it?