Disclaimer: I do not own Artemis. But if I did, man would I be happy...
Replies to reviews: (since I found that the 'reply' thing just.doesn't.work. Blargh.)
yoursovain: My first reviewer ever! Cool! Thanks for the compliment. I'm glad you like OCs, because there are at least two main ones in this story. XD
Dark Wolf Goddess etc.: Sorry I couldn't put your long beautiful name. I'm happy that people like OCs. I really didn't think anyone would. At all. lol.
Ponee: I shall continue!
luvvcaptainjack: Thanks! Sorry I didn't make it clearer. In this fanfic, Artemis is 17 going on 18, and Reece is 16 going on 17.
Reece
"I've lost the recipe again!"
"It's on the counter."
"Knew that." Reece quickly scanned the recipe before turning away. The recipe was titled 'Chocolate Cheesecake'. Simple and to the point. Easy to follow. But that was for the general population. This was Reece Stuart and Artemis Fowl.
She was in the castle's kitchen, where she and Artemis had had their midnight snack a few nights ago. After taking a general cooking class and then a dessert one for Reece, Reece had decided that she wanted to make a cake by herself. She was determined to accomplish her goal. So far she was failing.
Her short blonde hair was up in a messy ponytail. It didn't hold all of her hair. Blonde strands hung at the nape of her neck and around her flushed face. She had dug up an apron from somewhere. It was a faded blue and currently covered with chocolate, sugar, and cream cheese.
"Okay, so it says next I mix the cream cheese and chocolate together. Easy enough." She smiled encouragingly at the pale teen leaning against the island. He did not meet her eyes. She followed his gaze and saw the mess she had made. Sugar and chocolate was everywhere. Even flour, which wasn't even on the list of ingredients.
She got the medium sized mixing bowl and added in the cream cheese and chocolate. She rummaged in a drawer for a whisk. With an 'Aha!' she put it into the bowl and began to beat the cream cheese and chocolate together. It was tough. She pushed the bowl into Artemis's hands.
"Artemis, help!"
Artemis rolled his eyes and used the whisk deftly, mixing until it was smooth. It was a thick, sticky light golden brown substance and clung to the whisk.
"Ah… Reece. I don't think it's supposed to look like that."
"How would you know?" She turned from setting the oven and looked at it. "It looks fine to me! It's not even done yet; of course it won't look perfect. She took the whisk from him and tried to mix it once more, but the whisk wouldn't budge. She stared at it, then slowly took her hand away. It stuck straight upward, held in place by the mixture. She gaped.
"Uhm, I think it's supposed to do that…" She brought out another bowl and tried to pour the mixture into that one, to see what would happen. Nothing came out. She stared at it, perplexed.
Artemis grabbed the chocolate-streaked recipe, reading it. "Reece, you mixed twenty-four ounces of cream cheese and twelve ounces of melted chocolate, correct?"
"Yeah, that's right."
"You read the recipe wrong."
"What! I did not. Give me that." She snatched it from him and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. Her fingers left a chocolate streak on her cheek. "Gather ingredients… Medium sized bowl… Mix cream cheese and-" She paused, and looked to Artemis with very round eyes. "Sugar." Her gaze slowly shifted to the whisk, still suspended in the mixture. "Shit!"
"Reece-?" Kelvin called from the next room. He and Butler were talking about whatever bodyguards talked about.
"Nothing!"
Kelvin entered the room. Butler poked his head in as well. They saw the mixture… with the whisk… and turned green. They were the test subjects, and were going to have to eat whatever Reece and Artemis made. Kelvin mumbled something incoherent and staggered back into the next room along with Butler. Normal conversation started a long moment later.
"You're very profane," Artemis commented.
"Shut up!"
"And rude."
She swiped a finger into the mixture and wiped it on his cheek. He scrubbed his hand at it, trying to get it off. Reece smiled. His attempts were in vain. The mixture was extremely sticky.
"Stop criticizing me and help me get rid of this crap!"
"Wash the bowl."
"No duh Sherlock!" She brought the bowl over to she sink and turned on the faucet. It barely made a dent in the stuff. She yanked at the whisk, frustrated. It moved. Filled with renewed vigor, she yanked harder and it popped free, whacking her in the cheek. "Ow!" She chucked the whisk behind her, into the sink, and rubbed her cheek.
Artemis rolled his eyes and took the bowl to the sink, dumping it in as well.
"Now what?" Reece asked.
"You're the one who's making this… cheesecake," Artemis replied. "I'm just an observer."
"You have to help me as well," Reece growled. She grabbed another medium sized bowl, prepared to start all over. "Okay so the cream cheese and sugar mix together… Then the eggs… Sour cream and vanilla… melted chocolate…" She painstakingly measured, added, and mixed the ingredients, the tip of her tongue sticking out of the corner of her mouth in concentration.
Artemis
Artemis felt the communicator in his pocket vibrate. Holly had mandated that he keep it on him at all times, should she come up with new information. He held the communicator in his pocket and made for the hallway.
"Where are you going!" Reece demanded. She was up to her elbows in goop. Artemis grimaced.
"Phone call," he replied, and closed the door leading to the hallway. He leaned against a wall and took out the communicator.
"What is it, Holly?" He asked the elfin face on the screen.
"Who was that?" She asked suspiciously.
"Someone. What is it?"
"Who was it? The voice sounded female. Was it Juliet? Or your mother?"
"Just a friend," Artemis replied impatiently. "What did you want to tell me?"
Holly raised her brows at his choice of words. Artemis glared.
"What's on your cheek?" Holly persisted, looking at the glob Reece had wiped on him for being criticizing.
"It doesn't matter. Some cake batter." He rubbed his cheek with his palm, getting irritated. "Holly, what is it?"
"'Cake batter?' The genius Artemis Fowl is making a cake?" Holly cackled.
"It must be nothing important you needed to tell me, if you're going on about cake batter," the teenager said dourly.
"No, it's important enough. I'm just in a good mood because I got a great price on getting connections to you. Usually they cost me a fortune… Mulch has proven useful, shockingly enough."
A shouting voice could be heard in the background, "I heard that!" It was muffled, as if the owner of the voice was eating something. Something large, like a sub sandwich.
"Then, for the fifth and final time, what is it you wanted to tell me about?"
"I want to know what type of cake you're making."
"I'm hanging up."
"Fine, fine, Mud Boy. We have determined the continent of the sapphire's location. It is located in North America. Which country, you'll have to find on your own, but that should narrow your search."
"How did you find out that it is in North America?"
"The client had 'forgot to mention' that she had put a GPS tracking dot on the case in which the sapphire was being kept. We got a lock on the GPS, but it was low quality and very fuzzy. We picked up random coordinates in the Northern part of North America, depending on whether we had a good lock on it or not, but at one point the GPS just went out like a light. The thieves must have found out and destroyed the bag."
Artemis nodded. "Thank you Holly. This will certainly help my search. Is there anything else?"
"No. But…"
"Yes?" Artemis pressed, thinking it was a theory Holly had about the location of the sapphire, or of who stole it.
"When I get an aboveground pass, I want a piece of a cake the great genius Fowl –and whoever else- made." The screen went blank.
Artemis glowered, stuffing the communicator into the pocket of his slacks before heading back into the kitchen. He was met by an irritated, shorter than the dark-haired, lanky teen by at least five inches, blonde girl in a faded blue apron that was too big on her.
"Yes?" He stepped around her, into the kitchen. He found his spot and leaned against the counter of the island once again. Reece stomped after him.
"Why are you so angry?" He asked.
She stopped stomping and looked blank for a moment. "I don't know. I didn't like it when you left, and it just grew from there." She went to the oven to check on the cheesecake.
Artemis watched her, feeling confused and yet intrigued, wanting to figure out how her mind worked, that she behaved the way she did.
They leaned against counters across from each other in silence for twenty-five minutes. Then Reece opened the oven to turn it over, just as the instructions said. Afterward, Artemis pointed out that the instructions had said to turn it over when fifteen minutes was up. Reece ignored him and resumed leaning against the counter across from him. Artemis saw that this time she deliberately turned her head ninety degrees to the side so she wouldn't have to look at him. He raised a brow and said nothing.
Reece
About fifty minutes later, the timer sounded. Reece looked up from her position of sitting on the floor, leaning against the cubboards behind her. Artemis looked up as well, from his perch sitting atop of island counter. Reece had to tilt her head far back to see him.
She stood and opened the oven. The cloud of heat flooded the kitchen. She turned it off. She fumbled for oven mitts and carefully took out the cheesecake, kicking the oven door shut with her foot as she turned away. Artemis glanced at the instructions.
"Bake at 400°F. for 15 minutes, turn oven down to 225°F. and bake another 50 minutes, or until set in the center. Turn oven off and let cheesecake set with oven door cracked 1 hour. Chill."
Artemis decided not to tell her she was doing it wrong. He didn't really know why he didn't tell her. Maybe Holly was right; he was changing. He was not usually so considerate of another's feelings. Especially in this circumstance, in which if he did not tell her, the cheesecake could taste awful because of it, and he would still have to eat it to continue to be considerate. Lose-lose situation for him.
But, Reece wouldn't be hurt and unhappy. Did that make it alright? Did that help the lose-lose situation? He still lost, but… maybe because he helped her into a win-win situation, that made it better? It was all very confusing.
"Okay, so how long does it cool?"
Reece's voice shook him out of his ponderings. "An hour," he replied.
"How are we going to kill an hour?" Reece untangled herself from the apron and set it on the counter, unfolded. Artemis shrugged, and made no suggestions.
"Reece?"
Reece furrowed her brow. "Go away Sean…" She mumbled, thinking it was her older brother trying to wake her up. She turned over, blonde hair stuck to her face from the heat of a hot Caribbean morning.
"Reece, it's Artemis."
She sat up, ready to hit Sean. She saw a pale face framed by dark locks instead of her brother's tan face with messy golden blonde hair. Artemis? She wasn't in the Caribbean on a vacation, she was in the kitchen. The heat she had thought was from being near the equator was actually the heat that had come into the room when they had opened the oven. And Sean wasn't waking her up, it was Artemis Fowl.
"Reece, the cheesecake is ready."
She looked past Artemis, to see Kelvin and Butler seated anxiously at the kitchen's small table, set with plates and cutlery. She nodded, shaking her head to clear her head. She had fallen asleep somehow. On the floor. She grimaced. Oh well. She stretched and picked up the cheesecake, bringing it to the table along with a serving knife. She cut Kelvin, Butler, and Artemis slices, then stepped back, beaming. It was traditional for the others in the room to taste the cooking before the chef did. Artemis didn't really count as a chef.
She watched the three men's faces, eager to see any reaction. She crossed her fingers, bouncing on her heels with renewed energy.
Kelvin took the first bite, giving her a strained smile before putting the piece in his mouth. He grimaced, then opened his eyes, one after the other. He blinked, chewed slowly, and swallowed. He set down his fork and pushed the plate away slightly.
Reece looked crestfallen. Butler saw and frowned at Kelvin.
"What's the matter with you?" Reece saw Butler shoot him a look that said, 'She's your charge, lie and say it tastes wonderful if it tastes awful'. Reece rolled her eyes. If Kelvin didn't like it, he shouldn't lie and say it tasted great.
She saw how Kelvin's reaction made Butler more than a little apprehensive to taste the cake, but he made himself take a bite. His brows raised, and he nodded at Reece and Artemis. He took another bite, and another.
Reece beamed. She turned to Artemis, who had yet to take a bite and was looking at the cake as if she had told him to eat haggis. He slowly cut a piece, and put it in his mouth. He chewed carefully, then swallowed. He blinked, and looked at Reece, astonished.
"It tastes fine," he said.
Reece frowned. "Why wouldn't it? Aren't you supposed to say it tasted good or something?"
"Because you made it wrong," Artemis retorted. He saw the horrified expressions of the two bodyguards and amended, "Well, you only made mistakes on a couple of the steps. Nothing serious, if it still came out fine."
At the same time, Reece said, "I did not mess it up!" She cut herself a slice and took a bite. "It tastes like cheesecake! I did it!" She glanced at Artemis, debated whether he deserved any credit after saying she did it wrong, and said, "We did it!"
Artemis looked at her oddly, then nodded.
Kelvin made a face. "It's too damn sweet for me. Too sugary."
Reece remembered that Kelvin hated all sweets, and felt relieved. That was why he had made that face. He disliked any and all sugary desserts. She knew that.
"I think it's great. Good job, you two. You make a good team," Butler said, the last part directed meaningfully at Artemis. Reece didn't catch the exchange. She winked and grinned at Artemis.
"Thanks Butler! And yeah, good job Artemis!" She lowered her voice and said, "Even though you did nothing pretty much…"
Artemis knit his brows, but she hadn't finished.
"…We still made a good cheesecake. We have to make other desserts as well. Unless Master Fowl thinks it too effeminate."
"No, I think it would be fine to observe again. Maybe something easier than cheesecake…?" He suggested gently.
"No way! The only way to go is up!" Reece's eyes shone with a challenge. "More and more harder recipes and more and more complicated dishes! Desserts, of course. I don't want to handle meats or anything like that. Kelvin, make a note that we need to get dessert cookbooks. But now…" She looked rueful, and ruffled her hair. Most of it had come out of her originally-messy ponytail. She had sugar on her nose and a chocolate streak by her ear. "I want to take a shower."
Artemis snorted.
Reece glared.
Kelvin and Butler smiled.
Chocolate Cheesecake: This is an actual recipe for chocolate cheesecake. I got it from a website that FanFiction won't let me post the URL to on here, but the website is called thatsmyhome-dot-com, and you go to "Cheesecake Cafe" and it's just called "Chocolate Cheesecake".
Haggis (n): A Scottish dish consisting of a mixture of the heart, lungs, and liver of a sheep or calf mixed with onions, oatmeal, and seasonings, and boiled in the stomach of the dead sheep or calf.
Author's hype:
Another chapter! I like the ending. And I like the exchange between Holly and Artemis. When I say I like certain parts in a chapter, I'm not trying to brag. I just like to read the stories I write. I write stories I myself would be pleased to read. And it's very fun writing these exchanges. You have no idea. Unless you are an author yourself, in which you probably do. Luv Bekett
BTW: Want to know the best feeling ever? When you expect ZERO reviews (seriously, I NEVER expect reviews), and then you log in one day to see you have three, and that same day you get another. That is the coolest feeling ever. It made me want to thank my reviewers, so I put out another chapter right then and there. XD