Chapter 4: Family Dinner
CHAPTER 4: FAMILY DINNER
"So, you're really gonna help us?" Myles asked, wide-eyed.
"Of course I am," Artemis confirmed while checking their snake friend's vitals, "and I believe our parents will not hesitate, either. This specimen needs to be in its natural habitat."
Myles didn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed. He really wanted to pull off a big scheme, like how Artemis used to.
"Isn't that great?" Beckett asked their new reptilian acquaintance. "Now we won't have to worry about getting permission!"
"Are you speaking to that reptile, Beckett?" their brother asked. Beckett simply nodded. "You never cease to amaze." Apparently, he thought it was all in Beck's imagination.
"He can talk, too, but he's not feeling okay now. Right, Myles?" Beckett turned to him. Artemis lifted an eyebrow.
"'S true, Artemis. This snake can somehow imitate and utilize human speech patterns!"
"Interesting…" now Artemis was eyeing the snake as if drinking its blood would give him information on how it worked. He got that look often nowadays, whenever something piqued his interest. Apparently, his fairy friends were running out of adventures.
"You look like you're about to suck its blood," Beckett voiced both their thoughts.
Myles shivered to think what it would feel like on the receiving end of that stare. Both he and Beckett have heard their brother's fabled 'vampire smile' described, but they never saw it in person. If it's half as unnerving as this, Myles thought to himself, I don't wanna see it. Artemis blinked and actually shook himself out of it. Artemis never shook his head like that—he didn't want to rattle his precious brain around—so he must've been in a serious trance this time!
Mere seconds later, the trio was called down for dinner. Sitting around the table, they and their family admiringly ate the shrimp lo mein before them. Apparently, their mother was taking an Asian cooking class and wanted to try some recipes out.
Artemis Fowl Senior looked just like his two black-haired sons, except he had a prosthetic leg with flames painted on it. Of course, the leg was usually covered by long pants. Tonight, he was especially cheery for some reason. When the boys told him and Angeline their plans for nursing a python back to health, they were 'so proud' and would, of course, arrange for transporting the exotic animal back to South Asia.
"So, boys," Artemis Senior looked at the twins, "your mother and I have an announcement for you."
"Really? What is it?" Beckett asked, stuffing his face and not minding the fact their mommy definitely forgot the actual ingredients and used a store-bought bag instead.
"You're going to public school this fall!" their mother announced happily, grinning.
About Angeline's cooking: I honestly do not think the series mentions her cooking abilities, so I went with not really labeling it as fantastic (which would make her a bit of a Mary Sue, the way I see it) or horrible (which, let's face it, is almost as cliché as making her food the best in the world). Rather, she's simply taking classes for a specific kind of food and forgot the recipe/ingredients in this specific case. Cute and humorous, all in one!
No, I did not just randomly pick Asian food without giving it any thought XD! It's where the Burmese python is from (Asia), which ties it into the story; meanwhile, a Fowl would take Asian cooking classes because the Butlers are Eurasian!
Shrimp lo mein specifically, though…I just thought of that when I thought of frozen food because I remember liking it.
I own neither Artemis Fowl by Colfer nor Harry Potter by Rowling.