A/N: Hi! This was just a plot I cooked up while day dreaming . In case you've never heard of laser tag, I'll give a brief explanation. You go to a laser tag arena, where you and other people play together. The group is split into teams; each team getting a different color vest and gun. You take the gun (not a real one, it has a laser in it) and shoot people on the opposing team's vests with the laser. If it hits them, they are out for about ten seconds. The team to shoot the most people and avoid getting hit wins. The game is played in a dark arena, usually with lots of towers and hiding places.

Sorry! The computer ate my paragraph indents when I uploaded this story! This is the second time it's done that, and It's really started to annoy me. Sorry for any reading difficulites.

Disclaimer: I don't own Arty (sniff) nor Pixie Stix. Though that would be really cool.

I'd never run out of sugar again. Oh, and I don't own Pepsi either.

Currently, Artemis Fowl was sitting at a grimy little table, eating a slightly soggy piece of pizza, while watching hyperactive children fight over rubber frogs and Pixie Stix.

He was not having a good time.

Captain Holly Short was seated next to him, struggling to sever a long strand of cheese from her own slice. Artemis daintily dabbed the grease off of his pizza, glowering at the elf.

"Arfamish, oo know da boysh wanted oo go!" Holly mumbled, her words garbled because of her mouthful of food.

"I know Holly," Artemis sighed, wiping bits of mozzarella off his face, "But laser tag? Honestly. I thought Myles and Beckett had more taste than that. There was going to be a wonderful performance at the opera today…"

Holly threw her napkin at him.

"Opera? What six-year-old boy wants to go to the opera?"

Just then, Myles and Beckett came charging over to the table, each holding an armload of orange tickets.

"Artemis! I rewired one of the arcade machines to spit out all of its tickets no matter what score you got!" Myles declared proudly.

"Tickets! Tickets! We got lotsa tickets!" Beckett bellowed.

Immediately, Artemis regretted giving Myles a screwdriver/pliers/wrench gadget for his birthday.

"Wow, Myles! Good job! That is a lot of tickets, Beckett!"

Plastered on Beckett's face was a dopey grin. He had fallen quite in love with the elfin captain. Holly was aware of this, thinking it to be the most adorable thing ever.

"You can have them." Beckett bashfully held the stolen tickets out to the object of his affection.

"Thank you Beckett! How sweet!"

Unsure of what to do with the bundle of orange, Holly took it and dumped the whole thing on Artemis' lap. For a moment, Beckett looked crestfallen, but then Holly scooped him up onto her lap and tickled his sides.

"Tickle tickle tickle!" Holly giggled, "I'm gonna getcha! I'm gonna getcha!"

Artemis rolled his eyes, wondering how little children could make fools out of some of the most respected people. Holly was putty in Beckett's hands; she would always act like a buffoon to make him laugh.

Well, Artemis thought, Holly does have a nice smile.

Myles stood next to Artemis, looking a little put out. Long ribbons of tickets pooled around his ankles, making him appear even more vulnerable and angelic. Artemis' calm demeanor was thrown by this picture of innocence. It reminded him of all the times he had tried to please his father as a child, only to fall short of his dad's impossibly high expectations. In a surge of emotion, Artemis swept Myles into a big bear hug.

"Nice work Myles! How did you do it?" He asked.

Myles looked positively radiant.

"I told a staff worker if he didn't open the machine, I'd stab him with my screwdriver!" Myles frowned, "I could have opened it myself, but I didn't have the key, or my lock picking kit. But, once I got in, redoing the electrical system was easy!"

Both Artemis and Holly looked horrified.

"Myles! Don't threaten people! That's not very nice!" Artemis scolded.

Myles frowned again, his little brow furrowed in concentration.

"But you threatened people," he pointed out, "You locked Holly in the cellar."

Upon hearing this, Holly choked on the big gulp of Pepsi she was drinking. Artemis stared accusingly at her. After regaining her composure, she just grinned weakly and shrugged.

"They wanted me to tell them some stories about you, Arty." She admitted sheepishly.

Artemis turned back to Myles.

"That was one of the worst mistakes I ever made, Myles. I was not the friendliest child-"

At this point, Holly burst out laughing, her whole frame shaking from the guffaws. She pounded her tiny fist on the table, startling Beckett. The unsettled boy climbed off of her lap, looking on curiously.

"-and I wouldn't want you to copy my past behavior." He finished, shooting Holly a frosty glance.

Myles nodded emphatically.

"Okay. I won't threaten any other people with my screwdriver. Did Holly really punch you in the face and tell you to be a good boy?"

"Yes!" Holly chortled, "You should have seen his expression! I still haven't gotten you that lollipop, Arty."

Artemis was about to deliver a scathing and witty retort when someone announced that the first round of laser tag was about to begin.

"That's us, guys," Holly announced, rising from her seat, "If you win, Arty, I'll buy you a churro. Would that be an improvement over the lolly?"

"No, Holly," he pronounced wearily, "I do not wish to eat a piece of deep fried bread covered in cinnamon sugar. I am already bound to get indigestion from that revolting pizza."

"Shut up and come on, mud boy." Holly ordered, teasingly punching him on the arm.

Artemis' hazel and blue eyes opened wide, and he gripped the table tightly with both hands.

"You mean, actually play the game?" He spluttered, "B-but I thought I was just going to sit here and wait for you!"

"No way! You paid good money to play this game, and I'm not going to let you just sit here and stare at the wall!"

Artemis didn't move.

"Laser tag is fun, Arty! "

"No. I don't even know how to play. I'm staying here."

A spark of determination flared up in Holly's eyes.

"Okay. You've got three seconds before I physically force you to join us."

Myles and Beckett stared with wide eyes. They had never seen their brother this frightened before.

"One…"

Artemis' face drained of the little color it had.

"Two…"

He gulped, steeling himself for whatever was to come next.

"Three!"

Holly swooped in behind Artemis, grabbing him under both of his arms and heaving him up out of his chair. He hung on to the tabletop for dear life.

"Please! Please, Holly! I'll do anything! Don't make me go!"

Artemis was terrified of the thought of playing a game with a bunch of gun-toting, unsupervised little boys keyed up on sugar, in the dark. It didn't matter if they were harmless lasers; he knew it wouldn't end well. To top it off, Butler wouldn't be there to protect him. Physical activity wasn't his strong suit.

He had limited knowledge on laser tag was. This was a first for Artemis Fowl, for he rarely ever said the words, "I don't know". But, how could you blame him? He mostly spent his time researching ways to protect the environment, not childish games he never dreamed of playing. If he had been warned about the excursion to the arena (they had just hopped in the car and asked Myles and Beckett where to drive to), he would have spent hours researching the game. Maybe then he might have considered participating. Laser tag was a foreign concept to Artemis, and therefore he was afraid of it. Not that he would ever admit such a thing.

The chair toppled over as Holly hauled him towards the room where all the players were supposed to meet.

"You…are…going to…play…this…game…if it is…the…last…thing I do!" She grunted, "It'll…be…good for you!"

After Artemis felt the curious stares of the other people in the room, he admitted defeat for the first time in years.

"Fine. I give up, Holly. You win. Please let me up."

As Artemis struggled to his feet, Holly punched him playfully in the arm for the second time that day.

"You'll thank me for this someday." She said happily.

They each took one of the twins' hands and ventured into the dim room. Artemis had a sinking feeling in his stomach. He was sure he was walking to his doom.

What have I gotten myself into?

That was his last thought before he stepped through the doorway into the darkness.

A/N: How did you guys like the first chapter? I don't think it was as good as my other story, "Getting Ready", but oh well. What do you guys think? Was Artemis too OOC? Any predictions, comments, questions? I won't update 'till I get 5 reviews! Tee hee! Review review review!

I I I

V V V