Artemis Fowl: The Unpredictable Future

Chapter 15: Fowl By Day

Holly scrunched up her hair with her hands, tipped back her head and let the hot shower water run down her chest. She sighed. This slightly calmed her down about the 'Artemis-incident'. She paused and covered herself with her arms when she heard the door open. Why? This was a private bathroom for the guest bedroom which only she was in.

"Hello? A little privacy would be nice. Please go away!"

Holly waited for some sort of response but was confused as to why there wasn't any. She covered everything from the neck down with the shower curtain then looked to see who was there. Her eyes widened as she swallowed, hiding completely behind the curtain. No. No it can't be, she thought. It must be my mind playing tricks on me. She covered herself again to take second look. It's an illusion, Holly. Just ignore it. She couldn't. She's spent a majority of her time today thinking about him, maybe she had actually willed him into existence? She closed the curtain and continued washing her body.

"Go into the bedroom and wait for me to get out."

She listened to the footsteps leave along with the opening and closing of the door. Letting out a deep sigh, she felt like she wanted to run out into the bedroom. She hurried to finish cleaning the surface of her body before turning the water off. She dried off and wrapped the towel around her torso and lower body, using a second towel to wrap around her hair. Once she was sure that her towel wouldn't fall off, she opened the door and stepped out, allowing the hot steam to escape into the bedroom.

"I thought you didn't wanna come?" Holly tried to hide the fact that she was happy to see him by crossing her arms and attempting to look angry.

Artemis shook his head, which was aimed at the floor. "I simply had Foaly pick me up first and come back for you and Rachel. I explained the situation to them and asked them not to tell you where I was. Of course, I didn't tell them every detail." He looked up at her. "I hear you threw quite a fit once you heard I wasn't around." Although he would normally crack a smile at this comment, he kept a solemn look on his face. "I'm sorry for the deception. Please don't blame your friends."

Holly furrowed her eyebrows and huffed. "I don't blame my friends, I blame you! 'Just stay away from me, Holly'," she mocked. "That's what you said to me, so." She pointed to the door. "Leave."

"Come now, Holly. There were a multitude of situations I had to take into account and decide which course of action I would need to take." Artemis stepped closer and reached out, holding her outstretched hands and caressing her fingers as he looked down at them. "I've had enough thinking." He stood there as silence slowly filled the air. "If we have unexpectedly conceived, then that is my fault." He looked into her eyes, keeping a warm expression on his face, "And I will take responsibility. That is... if you want to have the child." He leaned down and lightly kissed her lips. She held the immediate urge to kiss him back. She was supposed to be angry with him but her body forgave him the moment he spoke to her. She placed a hand on his cheek and leaned into his kiss, smiling.

"You know Arty, fairies aren't like humans. As an elf, I only ovulate once every ten years and even then, fairies can only breed once every twenty years. I hardly believe that our first time coincided in that time frame." Holly smiled as she attempted to use a more technical vocabulary.

Artemis allowed a smile to appear on his face this time. "That would have been nice to know a while ago Holly. Why am I now hearing about this biological difference?"

Holly punched him in the arm with a little force, "When exactly would a conversation like that be brought up casually? And it's not like you gave me much of a chance to inform you, dummy." Holding a satisfied smile on her face after watching him wince in pain, she turned back into the bathroom to put on her pajamas. "Stay out here if you know what's good for you mud man."

Artemis sat on the bed, rubbing his arm. "Holly, another thing I would like to know," he called out to her in the bathroom. "What were you and Rachel doing at the oasis before I slipped down that hill? She won't tell me and only laughs at me when I try to push the subject any further."

Holly's eyes widened at the memory. She slapped her cheeks, bringing her back to reality. "We were only playing around and having fun. Is that so hard to believe?" She walked out of the bathroom and jumped onto the bed next to Artemis. She was wearing silky, blue pajama pants with a sort of bubble-like design and a white tee-shirt that looked a little too tight on her toned body.

He stared at her for a moment then rubbed his eyes, trying not to get distracted, "But I heard loud noises from you both. If I'm not mistaken, I could have sworn you two were-."

He was stopped by a very deep kiss, "You should change into something to sleep in as well. I would guess that you had Foaly pick out clothes for you just as Caballine did for me and probably Rachel." Artemis nodded and stood to walk over to the dresser. Holly sat up, "And you had him put your clothes in my room too? How bold."

He began searching through drawers, "I figured it would've saved time and effort instead of separating each of our individual effects into different rooms." He stopped and looked down into the last drawer. Holly tilted her head as she saw a strange expression on his face. It looked like he was about to throw up. Before she could say anything, Artemis held up a pair of grass green sweat shorts with the phrase 'Kiss Me I'm Irish' written on the backside. He scowled in absolute disgust, "Un....believable... I swear when I get my hands on that centaur!"

Holly busted out into a fit of tears and laughter, "Oh dear Frond! I can only imagine what he had picked out for you to wear as a shirt!" She jumped down and walked over to the dresser, holding her stomach from her intense laughing session, which was reignited once she pulled out a bright green tank top with a four-leaf clover design on the front that was just Artemis' size. She fell onto the ground, clutching at her sides as her laughter bounced against the walls and resonated in Artemis' ears. Gasping for air, she wiped away the tears trickling from the corners of her eyes.

Artemis could only scowl and mumble under his breath. He snatched the abomination of fabric that wouldn't be acceptable for even a middleclass man. He sulked into the bathroom and shut the door with a little bit of force as if he were a moody teenager.

Holly crawled up onto the bed as she tried to get the last of her laughs out of her system. Cupping a hand up to her mouth, she called out to him, "Come on Arty, I'm sure it's not that bad!"

She could hear his muffled voice through the door, "Honestly, I'd rather die." He opened the door and came out only wearing the shorts, holding the tank top in his hand. "There is not enough gold underground to entice me to wear this godforsaken joke of a garment." He tossed the shirt over to the dresser, mildly surprised to watch it land back inside the drawer.

Holly's pupils dilated as she subtly bit her lip once he walked back into the room. This was the first time she had clearly seen his body in the light. His legs and torso were just as pale as his face but were surprisingly toned as if he worked out maybe four times a year. It must be his diet. His legs looked smooth but not shaven and he was bearing a faint happy trail.

He let out a defeated sigh, "Go ahead, I know you want to laugh some more. I'd laugh at me."

She smiled and patted the pillow next to her, "Just come to bed Arty, you look fine. At least it's not a speedo." She let out a laugh. She bit her lip to stop herself. Her previous laughing fit had made her stomach incredibly sore.

Artemis held back a laugh of his own as he sat on the bed, lying down once Holly had gotten comfortable on her side. "I'm glad to see you happy like this, even if it is at my own misfortune," he whispered.

Holly blushed as she reached over Artemis and clicked the lamp off, hiding her red face in the darkness of the night. She kissed his forehead and snuggled herself under his arm, placing her hand on his bare chest. "I'm glad you came back to me," she whispered in return as she closed her eyes.

He smiled and pulled the comforter over their bodies, burying his face into Holly's auburn hair and kissing the top of her head. "Good night Holly, dear."