Artemis sat, just in the shadow of the tree, staring up at the great, white moon. It was full tonight. That was why he was here. But would she be coming?

She couldn't come every time. It just wasn't possible to get permission. And it had been four moons since he'd seen her last. Artemis was eager to see her again - the time before she had been quiet, distant, troubled.

He sighed and leaned back, moving his arms to support himself. Something cold and hard brushed against the little finger of his right hand. He picked it up; it was an acorn. Artemis closed his hand around it briefly, feeling its weight, and then threw it away without looking at it.

Ten minutes passed, in which Artemis only shifted uneasily. What if she wasn't coming? She'd never let five moons pass without coming to see him before - was this to be the first time?

A twig cracked behind him. Artemis's head whipped around, and a word escaped his lips before he could stop it. "Holly?" His voice sounded small and desparate in the empty silence.

He could not see who it was in the gloom. The silvery light was barely even enough to distinguish a dark shadow. Yet it looked too tall... And as she slowly walked over to him, Artemis saw that it was not Holly but Juliet.

She made no noise as she sat down beside him, and neither of them spoke. They watched the moon in silence. Nothing was said about why either of them was there, nor about how beautiful the night was, nor of the possibility that Holly was not coming - now or ever again.

That had always been one of Artemis's secret fears, hidden at the back of his mind. Each and every time he had seen Holly, he had always wondered if it would be the last. In the months until their next meeting, would something happen that convinced her not to come back?

In some ways, Artemis had hoped it would. It wasn't enough to meet three or four nights out of every year. A small part of him had always wished that Holly would find someone else, a fellow fairy, and build a happy life for herself.

A cloud drifted in front of the moon. Artemis turned his head to look at Juliet. "She's not coming, is she?"

Juliet stayed quiet, dropping her gaze. It was a short while before she replied. "Perhaps you should be asking yourself whether or not you're going to wait for her any longer." It wasn't exactly an answer, but it was probably what Artemis needed to hear.

The cloud floated on, and silver light fell upon Juliet's pretty face. "That depends," began Artemis, "on whether I have to wait alone." He wasn't sure if he meant he wanted Juliet to stay, or if he wanted Holly to be waiting to come and see him.

"I've been waiting a long time, Artemis." She was looking up at the moon again, and there was a strange tone in her voice.

Afterwards, Artemis could never work out what made him say it, but he hoped it had been a selfless thought for Holly - making her free to pursue happiness, not keeping her tied to him when they could never be together. "Why don't we both stop waiting then, and get on with living?"

When their eyes met, both knew they had understood the other. Smiling softly, Juliet got to her feet. "Come on," she half-whispered. "Let's go home." She walked a few feet back the way she had come, away from the moon, the opposite one to the direction they had faced whilst sitting. Then she paused, to wait for Artemis.

He stood up slowly, and dusted himself off. Glancing at the perfect orb in the sky one last time, he knew it was the right thing to do. Maybe Holly had just not been able to make it tonight; maybe she was never coming again. Either way, she had not been here. And Juliet was.

"Goodbye, Holly," he said. And then he followed Juliet, to go back to the Manor. He didn't take a single look back.