All characters and universe rightfully belongs to Eoin Colfer, the author of the Artemis Fowl Series.
ARTEMIS FOWL
Chapter 10 (Epilogue): Christmas Card
"Merry Christmas, everyone!"
"Merry Christmas!" called out all those present…minus one certain character.
That character was none other than…
Artemis Fowl II sat across the rich gold-framed dining chair with velvet padding, the boy clad in his usual suit and short suit-pants. He had a sour look, for a 12 year old boy in the middle of a Christmas Ball; held in courtesy by his recently recovered mother, Angeline Fowl.
The lady of the Fowl family sauntered down the marble stair case, slowly ascending herself into the party of wealthy and important men and women the Fowl's were well acquainted with. Artemis remained in his seat, his expression changing slightly as he examined his mother; not with his cold calculating eyes he always had but, with a slightly happy twinkle in his stare.
His mother was absolutely stunning. Healthy and back into her right mind, Angeline was like a goddess in her shimmering red dress with elbow-length silk gloves and adorned in her favourite jewellery; all former Christmas presents of his missing father, urked Artemis. She had a slender and once again youthful frame, but somewhat thinner due from formerly locking herself in her attic of a room on days on end. Artemis sighed, not out of remorse, but of genuine happiness. His mother was once again well, standing on her own two good legs. Maybe…the wish to heal her was worth half of the ransom gold he had collected from his…very recent event.
To be honest, they were celebrating on the same day he had triumphed over the wits and mind of the LEP, the People fairy-folk, and other mythical creatures that he can safely deem to exist. He was just as shocked, for once, that his mother had the resources to fix up the Fowl manor…after the little debacle of the troll storm-trooper the LEP had sent in. He sighed once more, this time somewhat regretting to lose half of a metric ton worth of gold in general.
"Artemis, sir?" The 12 year old criminal mastermind turned to Butler with a bored expression, "A drink sir?" Artemis could not help but to glance at the tray the man-giant gracefully held before him. They were champagne…with olives floating in them.
"…Is this revenge for sedating you and Juliet earlier in the morning?"
Butler gave the boy a steady and mischievous grin, something Artemis rarely saw, "Possibly…but your mother seemed to have loved it."
"Then, no, thank you…I'm still a minor…" Butler then whipped out a soda can he had snagged earlier from the dining table for the boy. "I guess this will suffice." Butler nodded, handed the can over. Artemis nodded a thanks and opened it.
A blast of soda sprayed a misty shot into the boy's face. Now it was Butler's turn to grin a vampire-like grin.
"I beg your pardons, Master Artemis, but that is my revenge…If you'll excuse me, Madam Fowl instructed me to serve the guests well…"
"…Carry on…" muttered Artemis, still and unmoving. Butler returned a nod, struggling to hide his snicker, and waltzed off. The 12 year old wiped the dampness from his face, grumbling under his breath about cutting Butler's salary for the next two months; no, no, the next two years...But he could not help but to think over it.
It was his fault that he tricked Butler and Juliet to drink the drugged champagne this same morning when LEP had besieged Fowl Manor. It was crucial part of his final phase in his master plan to escape the time-field, as well as evading death from the bio-bomb the LEP ignited. Still, Butler should at least be grateful for Artemis to help everyone to avoid almost certain death. But, he guessed he was asking for it. Artemis cleared the droplets from his face and he was about to drink his soda when…
His mother appeared before him, descending onto one knee to match her son's height. To Artemis surprise, his mother's fresh beauty was just too startling when up close.
"Arty? What's the matter, darling?"
"Just…thinking about before…This family has been through a lot…" lied Artemis. What was he to say, that he was still recollecting on the fairy-kidnapping scheme he won this morning. Best not, or it might be Artemis's turn to look insane. The boy gulped a, "Mother."
"Yes, Arty? What is it?" beautifully blinked Angeline.
"Could you…not be upset with father's absence anymore?"
Angeline paused, but the boy saw a visible flinch. The disappearance of his father from an incident in Russia was the source of plague that infected his mother's sanity. Since then, she had never slept right, ate well, or even acted straight. Bluntly put it, she went mad with grief. But thanks to the wish that he bought, all was well…Almost.
To Artemis's surprise, Angeline beamed like a wonderful mother she was and stroked her beloved son's cheek, "I promise…I won't be upset any more…Your father will come home…I know he will…" She giggled like a young girl, "Even though he always looks like the statue of a stern man he is…"
Artemis felt a warm sensation swell inside his body. It has been a while since he felt such feeling. The glow of hope. He returned his own genuine grin, agreeing with her mother.
"Now, come and enjoy yourself, Arty. It's Christmas Day!"
"Yes…I shall mother…" Artemis Fowl rose from his seat, taking a sip from his soda before he would discard it.
"Uh…M-Mistress Fowl…Master Artemis?"
Artemis reacted to the call of his name. Instantly, he gagged and spat out his drink into a nearby tree-pot. Not believing what he was seeing, he turned to the one that called him.
It was Butler's young sister, bodyguard-in-training, and the only maid of the Fowl Manor: Juliet Butler.
The girl…was completely different than what she looked like this morning. She was gracefully bounded in a stunning pale-pink dress, with matching sleeve-gloves. Artemis had seen the 16 year old girl make-up before, which always attracted unwanted boys for her to send them packing, but this time…this time. The cosmetic she placed on was evenly powdered and set, illuminating her beauty and innocence. She was…she was…For once, the 12 year old criminal master mind, who have exploited, abducted, and won against the fairy race, was speechless. There were no words inside his intelligent mind of his that could do justice to say how lovely Juliet was tonight.
The little Butler fidgeted, not at all comfortable from the stares she was getting from on-looking party members. Too bad these people were too important, otherwise she would have decked and table-tossed several of those diplomats that gave her lewd looks. Slowly, she struggled to pull off a curtsy. Never in her years of bodyguard training tell her how to survive on forsaken high-heels. They were killer to the teen girl and it was far worse than her experience in learning how to pilot a Boeing 747 through a tight crevasse at night; with broken radars of course…
"M-Merry Christmas!" she stuttered, more to keep herself balanced. Angeline adored Juliet to her heart's delight…while Artemis blankly wiping his mouth clean from his previous gagging.
"Merry Christmas to you too, Juliet!" beamed lady Fowl with a small squal, "You look absolutely gorgeous. You greatly remind me of a princess!"
"R-really?" wobbled Juliet. The girl didn't like those fairy-tale wimps, always waiting for some prince they've never met to save them and then get hitched. She preferred to be the warrior to rescue the damsel of a prince, but she'd still dump him for lacking strength to even protect himself. All she answered was, "Why th-thank you Mi-Mistress Fowl…" Juliet tripped on the spot, but her military training saved her just in time.
Angeline gave the girl a dreamy smile as she whispered, "Arty?"
"Yes, mother?"
"Would you give Juliet the honors?"
"I shall…but for what, may I ask?"
"To dance with you, silly!"
"WHAT?" startled Juliet and Artemis simultaneously.
Angeline – oblivious – nodded, "Take care and have fun you two!" Before either the 12 year old or 16 year old could change her mind, she went skipping off to greet a heavily decorated general – who looked more than a scrawny 80 years old waiting to teeter over – and instantly dove into a lively chat.
Artemis and Juliet blinked.
Never before was this in Juliet's training. Heck, she always hated school dances when she was back in high school and had never befriended a boy who would not have any wrong ideas in their relationship. As she likes to quote herself, she throws people farther than she trusts them. Suddenly, a frail but gentle hand stretched out to her. She glanced at it, before at Artemis. He was bowed slightly in a humble stance, a half-grin on his lips.
"May I…have this dance with you, your highness?"
…Juliet's cheek turned a raging red. All of her senses went numb and her body just moved on its own, extending out a returning hand into Artemis's, "S-sure…" She took a step forward…and slipped. "UWAH!"
Juliet stumbled and collided into Artemis, sending them both into the ground. Guests turned to stare at them, exchanging worried glances or mischievous gossip.
Juliet lied across Artemis in a heap as she picked herself up in a frantic pace.
"S-Sorry Arty!"
"Apology…accepted…" wheezed Artemis. The boy picked himself up, brushing the dust from his clothes. He tried again, reaching out a hand to help Juliet up. Again, she lost her footing with her impossible high-heels and the two crashed to the ground once more. Laughter hummed around them, but several glances from Butler with his hand slipping into his chest instantly killed the laughter. Worriedly, he stared at his baby sister and his young employer.
"Ow…Hey, Arty, are you al…Arty?"
"…Below you…"
"EEK!" Juliet found out that he was sitting across his back. She leapt off him, but this time Artemis grabbed her wrist. He rose to his feet, once again slapping dust from his suit and sternly turned to Juliet with his cold eyes.
"Juliet…"
The maid gulped, her once hardboiled voice cracking, "Y-Yes?"
"…Why don't you take off your shoes…Won't that be the best for both of our lives…"
In a flash, the girl beamed. She instantly whipped off her stupid shoes, feeling a lot better to feel the cold of the marble flooring with her bare feet. She tossed them over her shoulder, which was miraculously caught by a swift Butler before he hid them under a clothed table and casually cleared his throat.
Juliet hesitated. She didn't know what to do in a dance like this. It was way out of her league. However, she felt soft hands placing her own across Artemis's shoulder and hand, as well as sensing one of them pressed against her back. If these hands had belonged to someone else, she would have personally creamed him into whip-cream…but this was the one and only Artemis that she trusted.
Knowing what he was coming onto, she instinctively followed him. Every step he took and every move he made, she mimicked them perfectly. When they parted away in their dance, linked by their hands, their eyes would lock. The two young boy and girl exchanged grins as they returned to each other's side.
"Say…Arty…" The boy perked his head up to the soft heed of his partner. "About…that whole fairy-kidnapping thing…" Artemis felt a light stab to the heart, something he rarely felt at all. "Could we…not do it anymore…It felt terrible to trap that elf-girl like that…Not to mention being turned into an absolute idiot when she gave me that…that uh…that uh…"
"It's called a mesmer…a magical ability to hypnotise someone's will to the caster…" replied Artemis. Juliet moved closer to the boy, their shoulders connecting. Even though Juliet was several centimetres taller than Artemis, they did look like a perfect pair; as commented by a smiling Angeline Fowl and a certain smirking man-servant.
"Honestly, Artemis…no more schemes that involve those fairy people…If you really want, we can take on those other bad guys out there…" Juliet grinned, "Heard that this Jon Spyro's the number one crime lord in America. Heh, just wait until he gets acquainted with you…"
"Funny…and all I thought you like to do was watch professional wrestling…Who'd thought you had the brains for criminal corporations?"
The two exchanged light laughter, but Juliet swiftly added, "Not funny," with a deadly tone. For once, Artemis gulped. Mental note: never get onto the bad side of any members of the Butler family. But nonetheless, the pair enjoyed their dance.
"Hmm?" wondered Artemis. He suddenly stopped, catching Juliet's attention.
"Arty? What's the matter?"
"To the balcony," with that the boy dashed for the said destination. Juliet hurried after her, extremely glad she had taken off her shoes. The two zipped by Butler, instantly kicking on his alarm senses. He tossed the tray aside to let it perfectly land onto a pyramid of champagne glasses and raced after the teens. Artemis pried open the balcony door, unsealing the threshold of warm light and cold night, and charged through. He stopped at the balcony railing, looking all over.
"What happened, Arty?" appeared Juliet.
"Artemis?" wondered Butler, slipping his hand into his vest to be draw out his Sig Sauer pistol. The boy held up a hand, and the world obeyed in silence. His hard eyes glanced all over the place: the air, the slightly torn garden below them from before, and the trees. It was somewhere at the gates of his mother's private garden, where he saw it.
A shimmered. After a blink, it was no more.
"What?" whispered Butler, "More of them?"
"I thought I told you not to get involved with this fairy-thing anymore!" uttered Juliet.
Artemis sighed. He lost it, whatever he was looking at. It was until, his eyes wandered to look at his feet. Hello, a card? He picked it up, which was instantly snatched by Butler. He examined it, every fold and corner to check for booby-traps. His job, reminded Artemis.
"That's fine Butler…I doubt any assassins would break the international 'no killing on Christmas day' rule tonight…"
The said Butler stopped, hesitated, and reluctantly handed the card back to this employer. The boy glanced at its front.
To his surprise…it was writing in a strange language; a language that he knew well: Gnommish.
MERRY CHRISTMAS MUDMAN
Artemis opened up the card, sharing the contents with both Butler and Juliet.
WE WILL BE WATCHING YOUR EVERY MOVE, ARTEMIS FOWL. COUNT ON IT.
Sincerely: Lower Element Police (LEP) Reconnaissance – Retrieval One,
Captain Holly Short.
The 12 year old child prodigy chuckled, on the pleasing verge to transform into a maniacal laughter. He widened his vampire grin, causing both maid and manservant siblings to shiver.
"Indeed you will, my dear Holly…and so will I…"
[~THE END~]
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Emerald Sonata.