SPOILER ALERT: this takes place after the 8th book. I have warned you, so I do not want people commenting on how I'm about to ruin everything for them. I will try not to include spoilers, but if I think it will be relevant, it will be used in this story. If you are okay with that, by all means continue reading! I welcome it greatly.
Shout out to KisaSohmaCookie for all her ideas and for betaing the story. Thank you so much!
Reaching Through the Veil
The tale of the Fowl twins begins not with them, but their older brother, Artemis Fowl, as he lightly thrummed his fingers on the keyboard in rhythm with Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata playing softly in the background. This was the fifteenth time this week he listened to this song, and who knows how many times in the past two years? Ever since the Great Techno-Crash, Artemis had been bleaching his skin more in computer glow as his eyes darted across a dozen screens each day, especially on cold winter days like this one. He was the People's link to Earth, and as such was expected to help monitor fairy activity on the surface. Every so often he would team up with Holly to go and cover up a scene with money, wits, or even violence. Usually, though, he was cooped up in his room looking for any unusual signs across the globe, one of his computers running a constant internet search for anything that looked like a match to fairy activity.
It should have been incredibly boring to someone as intelligent as Artemis, to use his mind in such a menial way, but he found it quite enlightening. For the first few weeks, it was as boring as he anticipated it would be. But then he started to notice a pattern happening across the globe. It was subtle at first, but once he spotted it, it was hard to miss. Humans began to help one another, began to have hope that things would get better, even better than before.
There were no audio on any of the screens he watched, hence the classical music, but actions speak louder than words. It was the teenager who stopped using their car and rode their bike more often, and then advocated for bikes on Facebook starting an energy saving movement. It was the businessman who decided to stop building energy plants and switched to building parks instead, a campaign many others picked up that saved the lives of tired mothers everywhere. It was a mother who previously bought her children fast food sitting down at the dinner table and eating a home cooked meal together.
It was the group of kids that put down their video games to play hide and go seek in those parks, given a ride there by their older siblings who rode bikes, to come home and have a home cooked meal, tired but satisfied from a fun filled day outside.
So Artemis spent his days watching small events like that happen around the world, occasionally intervening when he saw something fishy pop up. Like bikes that traveled faster than cars. Very ingenious, Artemis admitted, especially since so many people wanted bikes, but the pixie had to have known that making them glow strange colors and use small fairy made engines was bound to be noticed sooner or later.
And while the world was changing and becoming more hopeful, it was not ready for fairies yet. The fairy technology would be abused in a situation like this, hindering the regular process of human development of their own inventions. And, well, Artemis needed some humans to rise to his level of intellect eventually, or at least attempt it. How was he supposed to be a true genius when everyone else was at the level of a toad?
Artemis' fingers stopped tapping as he noted that someone arrived in his room. She hadn't visited in a while; the least she could do was make it harder to know she was coming. It was almost too easy like this.
"Holly, you can't keep popping up like this," Artemis said as he turned off Beethoven and swiveled around to meet nothing but air.
"Your whole family already knows about me, it's not exactly a secret anymore," Holly replied coming into view. A few years had done little to her appearance, still the same height and bright eyes, one hazel and one blue. Her auburn hair had grown longer, brushing against her shoulders now and she ruffled it to give back the volume the helmet she wore had taken away. She almost looked younger now, no longer a soldier in LEP but part of a different military division created specifically for dealing with surface crises. Her military attitude was still there, present in the way she carried herself and stood with her shoulders back, but a light smile danced on her face. Some things never change.
"Yes, which is why they'd like to see you walk in so they can greet you. My mother's been on my case about that for a long time now. She wants to greet you like any other guest."
"Okay, I'll come in through the front door next time. Want me to ring the doorbell and bring in cookies, too?"
"Hm, that would be nice…"
"What? You're not-"
"It was a joke, Holly. As I grow older, I find that making jokes creates a more pleasant atmosphere for talking. I thought I was getting better at it. You came here for a reason?"
Artemis watched Holly hold back a laugh, probably at the thought of him making jokes at all, before she just shook her head and put her helmet on a nearby table.
"No, this is a long overdue social call. How're your parents?"
"They're starting a new project in Africa about getting clean water to remote places. You should see Butler. Now that he's retired, he's not as active as he once was. I know he couldn't be a bodyguard anymore since he's older, but I think he misses the thrill of it all. He would love it if you paid him a visit."
"I will soon. I saw him watching some war movie between Mud Men in one of the rooms downstairs; I'll have to introduce him to some of our war videos, now those are what I'd call action. Hundreds of years of warfare packed into a three hour film, nothing beats it. I mean, there's this one film that reenacted the scene when dwarves were riding trolls, man, and the awards that film won-"
"You're babbling."
Holly opened her mouth in protest before closing it without saying a word. Then she stared at him, lost in her own thoughts as her eyes gazed past him. Artemis concentrated on her, wondering what she was so lost in thought about before she came to her senses and looked away sharply. The moment had passed, but Artemis filed the memory away to be brought up later and analyzed in detail.
"How are your brothers?" Holly asked in an attempt to get back on track.
Artemis groaned at the thought of his brothers as he turned back to his screens, determined to push the thoughts out of his head. He could hear Holly snickering behind him and he did his best to try and busy himself or at least look the part.
"Apart, they're not so bad, but when the two of them are together… they can be quite a handful."
"I thought you liked them?"
"I do. It's just… last week I was trying to teach them about circuits and how electricity flowed. Myles seemed interested, kept asking me questions about the circuit I had displayed on the table, an old computer of mine, and I was enjoying teaching them. But then, when I turned away to draw a diagram on the board, Beckett must have sawed the legs from the table because as I turn around to explain the diagram, the back right leg of the table collapsed and the circuit board fell to the floor, wires disconnecting and sending sparks flying as it fell, and I barely had enough time to grab my phone from the table before the whole electric mess collapsed on it. It was a nightmare, Holly."
"Would you expect anything less from your brothers?"
"Hm, no. They are my brothers after all. They have to be clever enough to confuse me, even if it is annoying. I think they'll be just fine."
Angeline Fowl had just finished her breakfast of toast and orange juice when she looked at her Cartier watch, a birthday present from Artemis a few years ago. He told her that she never seemed to remember to arrive at events on time. She gently reminded him that she liked to show up fashionably late to events. That was when someone else was holding the party. Which reminded her, she had guests arriving in an hour and should be getting ready soon; it was very impolite to keep a guest waiting.
She made her way to her bedroom, languidly gliding up the long staircase in no hurry because she knew hurrying and worrying only made her age faster. The room was currently unoccupied as Artemis Senior was already out meeting with a prospective sponsor for their Africa campaign. They had hit a rut as of late, not having enough backing to pursue the next part of their plan, but that could wait for now. Angeline had more important things to do, like get dressed for the day. Picking through her closets, she selected a light blue sundress to match the summer air outside, tying the white bow in the back with the expertise of a noble lady.
Next was her hair and makeup, but she let out a small sigh as she approached the mirror. There were signs of aging all over her face. The wrinkles on her forehead that no anti-aging cream ever managed to get rid of. Her brown hair no longer had the color it did when she was younger, gray hairs peeking at the base over the brown dye, but she stubbornly fixed the part and succeeded in covering them for now. She'd have to visit Linda later this week for a new dye. The small bags under her eyes could be masked with a little foundation and cover-up, but it was moments like these in the morning when she felt the full weight of them under her eyes.
But even as she lost things, she gained so much more with age. Her muscles grew weaker, but she became more graceful and learned to be more patient, a necessary skill for her younger boys. And she was determined to be the mother she never got to be for Artemis, learning from all her past mistakes. She regretted it sometimes, how she missed out on years of his life wrought with grief over her husband. But she put that behind her now and used it to strengthen her resolve to be better this time around. She had little time to dwell on the past with two rambunctious boys that had a knack for getting into trouble.
Angeline nearly poked her eye out with her eyeliner pencil when she heard a loud crash coming from the twins' room. Deciding eyeliner was too much for her anyway, she put all her tools back into her makeup box and left her room to investigate the noise down the hall.
"Myles, Beckett! What was that noise?" she called down the hall as a warning to them that she was on her way.
"It's nothing, mum. I'm fine," Myles yelled back.
"What about your brother?"
"He's out collecting mold samples, no wait, don't open the door!"
Angeline reacted to his cry a second too late and as the door swung open she was hit with a horrid stench similar to that of rotten eggs, dirty socks, sour milk, and a dozen other unnamable things all mixed together. She quickly brought her arm up to her face in an attempt to cover up the smell, but it just seemed to cling to her like a cotton dress in summer. Her eyes stung and she could not understand how Myles and Becket lived in this environment until she looked up and saw that he was wearing a gas mask. Figures.
"Myles, come out here right now."
"Yes, mum."
Angeline retreated down the hall and attempted to wave the smell away. It didn't work. Myles walked out a moment later and shut the door behind him, sealing the smell in the room. It was a mystery how the room held the odor in, but Angeline was thankful for it; she did not want her house smelling like that when her guests arrived.
"What are you doing in there?"
"Trying to find ways to neutralize odors."
Removing the gas mask, Angeline bent down to get a good look at her son. He resembled his father more, the dark brown almost black hair and the bright blue eyes, as well as the impossibly pale skin only accentuated by his tendency to remain in his lab. He had a nose like hers, though, a trait she liked to think was good pass on. She reached out to fix the part in his hair so it wasn't straight down the middle, but Myles protested by leaning away from her hand.
"I like it the way it is."
"Oh, but it's not very stylish, dear," Angeline complained wanting him to look his best. God knows she could never get Beckett still enough to run a comb through his hair, let alone enough time to make a part in it.
"I'm six years old, old enough to decide how I can wear my hair."
Angeline just smiled and stood back up. It was easy to forget that Myles and Beckett were such young children. They acted older than they were, their words and mannerisms beyond the capacity of a regular six year old, but no matter how many dress shirts and pants, loafers, and nice watches Myles wore, she still bought them all in the kids section at the store.
"Myles, Myles, I found the moss we were looking for! Oh, hello mum."
"Beckett, you're covered in mud!"
"The moss was high up in the tree, and I fell a few times into the mud before I threw a rope over and tied it down to help me climb it."
Angeline never knew what she was going to do with Beckett. The opposite of both his brothers, he would rather be outside exploring everything than cooped up in a lab, as shown by his choice of clothing, namely whatever Angeline buys him. She figured out by what got the dirtiest which ones he liked best, a low collar t-shirt and tough cargo shorts or pants. He even looked different, taking after her tan skin color, but the blond almost curly hair was uniquely his. She suspected it was taken from one of her relatives, her grandmother and an uncle had hair like that, and it snuck into his genes somehow. If only he would sit still long enough for her to get a brush or comb to it.
"Well, we have guests coming in the hour, so you boys need to get cleaned up. Meet me downstairs when you look presentable. We don't want your new friend to think you're ill-mannered."
Both boys, who had moved next to each other to discuss their smell removal scheme and were whispering excitedly about the moss, groaned when she mentioned the word "friend."
"But mum," they protested.
Angeline put her hands on her hips and gave them the parental look. The one that clearly said "I am the parent, and this is how it will be." She often practiced this look in the mirror trying to get it right, not too angry, but just stern enough to get the point across.
"No buts. I have brought over many of my friends with children your age in the hopes of getting you to talk to other kids your age. And what do you do? You dye their skin green, cover them in butter, get their fingers glued together, cause them to vomit, purposefully stick gum in a girl's hair, and one left blithering about a catapult. Please do not do anything like that to my friend's daughter today. She is a very sweet girl and I do not want her running out in terror crying that she will be bald her whole life."
Beckett and Myles nodded slowly as they reflected on their past encounters with friends, neither one looking remorseful. Angeline continued her parental look, but the effect seemed to diminish with time and both boys were antsy to get into that lab and continue their experiment, so she switched tactics.
"Promise me that she won't leave this house any different than when she came in it."
"Mum, we can't control something like that," Myles pointed out. "She could fall down the stairs without us ever doing anything."
"You better be there to catch her then, like a proper gentleman. Now, promise me and you can go back to your lab."
Angeline could see the gears working in both boys' heads as they tried to weasel their way out of this. Myles would most likely be trying to find a loophole whereas Beckett was looking around for some kind of escape route. There was no use, though. No promise meant no lab and at last they looked at each other and came to the same decision.
"We promise, mum."
"Good, now finish up whatever it is you're doing in there and be downstairs at 5 of the hour looking presentable. That means nice clothes and no awful smell!"
Angeline shouted the last part because halfway through her sentence the twins took off for the lab, Beckett waving behind him to show that he heard the last part as Myles ushered him in to show him whatever he had done while Beckett was away.
After dealing with her adorably terrible twins, she felt she deserved a little break and went into the living room where she kept a few magazines. She had a collection of about twenty ranging from fashion to cooking to housekeeping, and she considered them her gospel for being a good mother. She frequently made recipes from EasyFood using her family as guinea pigs, much to their chagrin. Angeline may know a lot about fashion and social skills, but her blackberry pie always had burnt crust and the filling never held together.
She was thinking about her next recipe to try, an Irish omelet because a regular ones did not seem fitting for a family such as hers, when she noticed that the doorway was covered in mud. Tracing it back to Beckett most likely shaking mud off like a dog, she retrieved the mop and bucket from the hallway closet and set to work. Using tips from Good Housekeeping, one of her online magazines, she filled the bucket with equal parts warm water and Windex since she was cleaning tile. She was unsure if she was using the right mop type, a simple rag mop, but she decided that it was better than nothing and a few minutes later the tile was almost spot-free. Satisfied with her work, she gathered up her tools and sat down to wait.
The doorbell rang as Angeline was finishing an article from Stellar. Her mouth formed a scowl because the twins weren't down here yet, but the guests had to be greeted first. Throwing the magazine on a stack, she rushed across the room heading to the door when she remembered that the floor was wet and began to walk more slowly. Breaking an ankle moments before greeting was not something Angeline Fowl would let happen.
"Welcome, Chloe, this must be the darling little Fay I've heard so much about," Angeline said as she swung the door open to welcome in her guests, saying it a little louder than necessary in an attempt to get her boys to listen.
"Ah, yes, this is her. Come on, Fay, say hello."
"Hello."
Mrs. Fowl smiled as the little girl did a quick curtsy as she greeted her. The overall impression was that the girl was a doll. Blonde, cascading curls that trailed down her back with a large ribbon acting as a headband. The eyes were green and framed a round and petite face that displayed a light smile. Her mother had her wearing a pink dress with a tight A-line bodice and flowing one layer skirt, a white ribbon around the middle to match the one in her hair. The shoes were simple Mary Janes with white lace rimmed socks. Angeline could only imagine how fun it would be to get to choose her outfit every day.
"Are the adorable twins I've heard so much about here today?" Chloe asked.
"Yes, they should be here-" Angeline stopped midsentence as Myles and Beckett came flying down the stairs right on cue. She gave them a quick look that clearly said, "you're late," but after seeing them looking so handsome it turned into a smile and she put her hands on their shoulders as they stopped on either side of her, like they had practiced so many times.
"This is Myles and Beckett," she gestured to each of them as she said their names, "and this is Chloe Knight and her daughter Fay. Why don't we say hello?"
"Nice to meet you," the twins echoed in unison before looking to their mother to get her approval on it. She nodded that it was an acceptable greeting and they made a move to try and slip away from more conversation. Unfortunately, she still had her hands on their shoulders and squeezed them as a signal that they weren't done here yet.
"Chloe, why don't I make us some coffee and we can catch up?"
"That sounds lovely. Now, Fay, play nicely with them okay?" Mrs. Knight reached down and gave her a quick kiss on the forehead and whispered something in her ear.
"Boys, you have your orders." They nodded eagerly and Angeline could only wonder if they would actually follow them. While they were both very bright, they had a certain disregard for listening to people, especially their mother and brother; no one else seemed to notice it as much.
The twins were bouncing on their feet, but Myles looked up and saw his mother waiting expectantly for him to do something. Remembering their practicing, Myles extended a cordial hand that Fay accepted with a quiet merci. Beckett picked up cue and led the way upstairs. Angeline watched them go and could only hope that they wouldn't cause too much trouble.
"How was business in Paris?" Angeline asked after settling down in the kitchen with a nice cup of coffee. She felt proud of this one, even if she almost put in the beans ungrounded and had to be saved by Mrs. Knight pointing it out to her before the beans went in. Still, the taste didn't come out as horrid as her previous ones.
"It was slow at first as I had a hard time finding customers at the beginning, but things turned around about the time you bought one of my paintings. I can't thank you enough for buying that first painting."
"Well it was such a nice painting, of course I had to buy it. It's hanging in the parlor room next to a family portrait."
"Speaking of family portraits, where is that elusive husband of yours? Off on another project, I suppose?"
"Yes, this one is for transporting clean water across Africa. He's in the United States at the moment trying to find any willing sponsors. We have a few names in mind there, but it's all about signing papers and such. Speaking of the United States, is your husband still at Julliard?"
"Of course! He wouldn't give up his dream job for anything. I swear, Angeline, I could break my leg and he'd just send me a postcard saying hope you get better soon."
"Oh, Chloe, you know he'd jump on the next plane to wherever you are if you or Fay ever got hurt. Weren't you telling me how you phoned him to tell him it was Fay's birthday, and he immediately canceled his classes and flew over to wish her a happy birthday?"
Angeline watched as her friend's face flushed a little and a smile slowly crept across it. As much as she could complain about her husband, it was evident to anyone who talked with them that they were in love. Chloe swirled her cup of coffee with her spoon while Angeline contented herself with admiring her clean house and the two of them enjoyed their moment of silence. With young children to take care of, it wasn't very often that they got time to think and relax.
The contentment lasted about eleven seconds. That was when they heard a shrill scream from upstairs and both mothers bolted into action. Angeline was already preparing her speech and how she had deliberately told them not to do anything to that young girl, how she was never going to let them on their own again, how the lab was going away, and a million other things. Rounding the corner too fast, she neglected to remember that she had just wiped the floor and went crashing down onto the ground. Chloe, who was following behind her, saw this happen but had too much momentum and thus landed on top of her in front of the door.
Trying to ignore the headache that would soon follow, Angeline picked herself up and helped Chloe to her feet just in time to see her own son come flying down the stairs towards her. Myles was hopping down the steps with the angriest look he could manage; Angeline could only think of it as adorable, but understood that he was very angry.
"Mother! Mother, I hate this girl! I want her out of the house!" He stormed down the stairs and declared this at the very bottom, ignoring the fact that Fay's mother was right next to her. Angeline gave a quick look towards Chloe, but she had already taken off up the stairs to look for her daughter.
"Myles! I will not have you speak about our guests like that. Look how upset you've made Mrs. Knight."
"But she dunked my watch in rotten eggs! She said I didn't have enough incentive to get rid of odors."
"She… what?"
Angeline looked at Myles trying to see if he was making things up, but his little eyes that were about to tear up and his missing watch were pretty convincing evidence. Myles was one of the least likely people to cry and every time she tried to get him to wear a different watch he always protested against it. He claimed that the one he had on was fine and that no other watch would do.
"I'm so sorry, Angeline," Mrs. Knight apologized as she dragged her daughter by the wrist across the upstairs hallway. Angeline could see through the banisters as Fay pouted and tugged away from her mother.
"He just didn't want to give extra effort into his project. He treated it as a little experiment. Of course you won't get anywhere like that! You need, what is it, mother? Motorvition?"
"It's motivation, Fay, and you need self-control. I'm really very sorry. I thought that if your boys were as… rambunctious as you said that maybe they would keep her in line."
"No, it seems she was the one keeping them in line."
Mrs. Knight led Fay down the stairs and made her stand in front of Myles who was sulking by his mother's side. She stood there perfectly still with her lips in a straight line, unwilling to admit defeat in this. After a few moments, her mother prompted her with a little nudge to apologize.
"Je suis désolée."
"In English, Fay, so he can-"
"Non, je comprends," Myles responded moving away from his mother's side. Angeline recognized that her little man was growing up, but gave him a little push forward anyway so he was standing eye to eye with Fay. His mouth opened for a moment as if he was going to protest more, but Fay gave him a little smirk and he pressed his lips into a think line and stared her down. They held that for a few moments before Myles decided to be the gentleman and give in. That and he had a suspicion Beckett was going to ruin his lab or the experiment if he didn't get back there in time.
"Eh, ce temps est passé."
"Well, isn't that lovely? They've become good friends again," Angeline remarked trying to restore her friendly atmosphere.
"Yes, I think so. Just in case, maybe we should call it a day, and come back-"
"Myles, Fay! I think I've got something!" Beckett yelled as he slammed their bedroom door against the wall. Immediately, Myles and Fay broke into wide grins and took off clambering up the stairs.
"I told you all you needed was motlication!" Fay shouted as she raced past Myles and into the lab.
"That's motivation, dear!" Chloe corrected, but, from the excitement those two showed, it was doubtful they heard anything else.
"We've made a terrible mistake, haven't we?" Angeline commented as she led the way into the dining room where their coffee was getting cold.
"Yes, I would have to agree with you. Putting the three of them together like this can only lead to disaster."
Both mothers took their original seats and sipped from their coffee, too deep in thought to notice the temperature. Mrs. Fowl reflected on how her boys were actually getting along with another person for once, and Mrs. Knight was happy that her daughter was putting her energy into something other than pranking any person she came into contact with, one of her unfortunate pastimes. Angeline put her coffee down and saw a small smile on her friend's face; the same one she must have on her own.
"Same time next week, then?"
"Yes, I think I could stay in Ireland for a while."
Reaching Through the Veil
The first time I wrote this, I got much farther in the first chapter, but I am not at all disappointed with how it turned out. Next chapter will be more development of Fay, tragedy, and a lot of digging…
