Chapter One - Keys

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(Dedicated to arty_writes for inspiring me to write my own Artemis Fowl fanfiction, even if she didn't know it. Thanks!)

Dublin, Ireland

Myles quickened his pace, trying to get home. He gritted his teeth, thinking back to school. There was no reason for the detention. He shouldn't have got it. It wasn't his fault that the teacher was such simpleton. And that she didn't take corrections well.

He trudged along, feeling slightly lonely. Beckett had offered to wait for him, but he had shooed his brother off. He sighed as his thoughts went back to school that day.

The teacher had been teaching them the most elementary sciences, (and teaching them wrong) so he had gotten out a sheet of paper, and begun to plan.

Mr. Fowl, said a voice from above. Myles hadn't looked up. Mr. Fowl, repeated the voice, and his teacher loomed into view. Are you paying attention?

Myles sighed. If I already have the knowledge, he said, then it is not fair for me to suffer the tedious task of trying not to correct you, when it is quite obvious you know nothing on the subject. he finished witheringly. The teacher shank a little.

Beckett made a cutting motion across his throat from the other side of the room. Myles gave him a look that clearly said, 'You're just expecting me to take this?' and turned back to the teacher.

Just what were you doing that was so important? said the teacher, deciding that she should simply ignore Myles's comment. She picked up the boy's paper. Drawing? She asked, really?

The thirteen year old scowled, annoyed at how inept his teacher was. No, he stated, I was designing a solar powered energy source which is at least ten times more effective than the ones we use today. He could not resist a jab at her. Although, perhaps I should switch to wind-powered sources. You could provide enough hot air to power it single-handedly. He caught Beckett's eye, and couldn't resist a smile.

In retrospect, perhaps it was not that hard to figure out how he had received the detention.

He sighed, finally making it to the Fowl residence. He searched himself for the house key, groaning when realized it wasn't on him. He knocked a few times on the door, waiting as Beckett yelled, "I got it!" The door swung open. Beckett grinned at him.

"Lost my keys." explained Myles, though that was not the case. Beckett raised an eyebrow. It was unlike his brother to lose anything. He was not the sort to simply misplace things. But he shrugged, opening the door wider to let Myles in.

"Hey Myles, I need your help with something, I've been working on it all afternoon and it just won't..." the two boys headed headed off towards Beckett's room.

It was about half an hour before anything interesting happened. The door swung open again, and laughter filled the house. "You know, I might think, if I didn't know better, that you were a bit jealous of Frond." came a voice, as Butler's laughter continued.

"I am not!" Holly told Artemis indignantly, horrified he would even suggest it.

"Hate to tell you Holly, but that's what it sounds like." said Butler, grinning at the elf. She glowered at the two of them.

"You know how many times they've gone out? On again, off again. It's getting quite annoying."

Artemis simply smiled at her, calling into the house, "Mother!"

Angeline poked her head around the door to the kitchen. "Arty! Holly, Butler. Come on, dinner is almost ready." she smiled at her eldest son.

"Where are the boys?" asked Artemis. Angeline sighed.

"Where they always are. I will take away that computer someday..." she trailed off, muttering. Artemis smiled at his mother, than set off down the hall, opening the door.

"So, if we go by reality, then the design is highly unrealistic..." Myles was saying. Beckett was only half paying attention, checking his phone, scrolling through something on the screen.

"Beckett? Myles?" said Artemis, looking in on his little brothers. They stopped using the computer, looking up.

"Arty!" Beckett caught his brother in a fast hug, Myles a few seconds behind.

"Come on you two, mother almost has dinner ready." he said. Beckett proceeded to tell his sibling exactly what they had been doing since Artemis's last visit, which was only a week ago. Myles stayed quiet, his mind on other things.

Artemis noticed this silence right away. Myles usually had some project in the making that he was happy to tell Artemis about, but today he was quiet. All through dinner, while everyone else laughed and talked, Myles stayed quiet, wearing a look that said, if you studied it close enough, I've screwed up this time.

After eating, Beckett decided he would challenge Butler to an arm wrestling match, the outcome of which was fairly evident. Artemis talked to Myles quietly as everyone watched Butler and Beckett with amusement.

"Something eating you, Myles?" he asked. Myles sighed.

"I left my jacket on my chair at school. I wasn't allowed to wander through the school to return to my classroom after detention was over." Artemis raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. "My keys are in it. Although a few are simple house keys, others are not really ones I'd like others to get their hands on..."

More raised eyebrows. "It's fine." The boy assured his older brother. "I know exactly where it is, I'll retrieve it at school tomorrow." Artemis did not look fully convinced, but turned to watch Butler win for the eighth time.

Myles just hoped that those keys were still there the next morning.

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