Hide and Snake/Transcript

(The episode opens in a space environment as a spaceship door opens revealing Arthur in a Star Trek - like outfit walking down a corridor. He then places his hand on a handprint door lock opening another door, walking into a room where a chest with a special chest with a protective plexiglass around it. Brain is also there, wearing a scientist's coat. Arthur puts a key in that automatically lifts the plexiglass up. Brain briefly opens and closes the chest, which reveals a bright, shining light inside)

Arthur: Everyone loves a good secret. Something only you and your friends know. That can be cool. But you have to be careful. It can be hard to keep a secret.

(Arthur locks the chest up and he and Brain begin to exit the room. Binky Barnes, who's in a trenchcoat, hat and sunglasses, quickly and quietly grabs the key from Arthur's pocket using a small grabber, without Arthur or Brain noticing. Binky gives a quiet, evil laugh. Arthur and Brain walk up to a set of lasers that need to be unlocked using the key, which was taken by Binky)

Brain: Okay. Give me the key.

Arthur: (checks his pockets) Uh-oh. I can't find it.

(Binky unlocks the protective plexiglass getting to the chest. Arthur and Brain are looking for the key, that they think slipped out while they were walking.)

Arthur: It must be here. I just had it!

(Arthur sees Binky about to open the chest, with evil laughter)

Arthur: NO! BARNES, DON'T DO IT!

(Binky doesn't listen and opens the chest, revealing the bright light that causes Binky to run down the hall and through the laser-wall, screaming)

Arthur: Oh, no! Our secret is out!

(Intertitle)

Arthur: Yeah!

Francine Frensky: (V.O.) Hide and Snake!

(Back to the story. Jane Read walks into Arthur's room carrying a mop and a bucket with a sponge inside.)

Jane: Arthur, I'm gonna do those windows as you're finishing cleaning your...

(But Jane sees that Arthur's room is still a mess)

Jane: ...Arthur?

(Cut to Arthur having just run out of the house and up the sidewalk. Jane leans out of the window and calls down to Arthur)

Jane: Arthur! I asked you to clean your room before you went out to play!

Arthur: I'll do it later, I promise.

Jane: And did you give Pal his bath?

(Pal, who's also leaning out the window, sniffs himself and makes disgusted barks)

Arthur: I'll do that later, too! I've got to go! Binky's counting on me!

(Fade to the park where Binky is leaning against a tree, covering his eyes with his arms, counting down to zero. While he's counting the others find their hiding spots: Sue Ellen, behind a bush next to the river; Buster in another bush; Arthur behind a rock. While Arthur's hiding, a snake with red, black and yellow stripes creeps up behind him)

Binky: ...18, 17, 16, 15, 14, 13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Okay, ready or not.

(Binky stands by his counting place and continues standing for some time. After several minutes pass, Arthur, Buster, Brain and Sue Ellen come walking up to him.)

Buster: What's going on, Binky? We've been hiding for 20 minutes. You didn't even try to find us.

Binky: Oh, I thought you were supposed to hide and then seek me.

Sue Ellen: (surprised) I don't believe it! Binky, how could not know how to play hide and seek.

Binky: Fooled ya! (Binky tags everybody around him, laughing.) They don't call me hide and seek for nothing.

(Everyone (apart from Binky) groans in disappointment. Arthur suddenly starts giggling.)

Arthur: Hey! Stop tickling!

Sue Ellen: Nobody's tickling you.

Arthur: Somebody's touching my back.

(Arthur grabs something from around his back. It's the snake from before! Arthur yelps and falls to ground, with the snake on his lap.)

Sue Ellen: Hey, a snake! Cool.

(Fade to the snake in a small shoebox)

Brain: Interesting specimen.

Sue Ellen: He seems lost.

Buster: Maybe he's just hungry. (wraps the snake around his arm) Let's take him to the Sugar Bowl then we could all eat.

Brain: I don't think cheeseburgers are a part of his diet, Buster.

(Thunder suddenly starts to rumble. Everyone looks up at the sky, which is starting to form dark clouds.)

Arthur: If he's lost, he'll be stuck out in the rain. Someone should take him home.

Buster: Umm... I don't think so.

(Binky shakes his head.)

Sue Ellen: Not me. My mom and dad said they saw enough snakes in the amazon to last a lifetime.

Brain: After that porcupine incident, I can't bring pets in the house without bringing permission.

Arthur: (picks up the box with the snake inside) Then... I guess I'll take him.

Buster: Are you sure your mom and dad will let you keep a snake?

Arthur: Well... they never said I couldn't. Besides, look at him. He wouldn't hurt a fly.

(Arthur enters the house quietly with the box containing the snake. He starts running quietly up the stairs and is just about to enter his room when...)

D.W. Read: (notices the box Arthur's holding) What's that?

Arthur: Ah, oh. It's just a toy... for Pal.

D.W.: (reaches her hand out for a peek) Let me see.

Arthur: (yanks the box away from her) No! I mean... uh... it's a surprise.

(Arthur enters his room and closes the door. D.W. thinks and gives a suspicious glare. Fade to Arthur and his family having dinner, which are spaghetti and meatballs. Kate Read has red sauce on her cheeks and is putting two meatballs over her eyes, giggling. Arthur finishes his dinner and gets down.)

Arthur: All done! Can I go --

Jane: (interrupts) You cannot go anywhere until you've cleaned your room and given Pal his bath.

Arthur: I was just gonna ask if I could go up to my room.

David Read: Good boy. Keep that work done.

(Kate puts her bowl of spaghetti and meatballs over her head. Arthur's almost out of the room, until he comes back in sight)

Arthur: Speaking of pet care, what would happen if a small animal, like say (lowers his voice briefly) a snake, just so happens to follow me home? Could I keep it?

Jane: (appalled) A snake? Of course, not.

Arthur: What if it were lost?

David: (as he takes Kate's bowl off her head) Arthur! Stop stalling! You've got a room to clean.

(The doorbell rings.)

Arthur: I'll get it.

(At the door appear Buster, Brain, Binky and Sue Ellen)

Sue Ellen: Can we come in? It's important.

Arthur: (waves in his direction to say "yes") Just for a minute, I have to clean my room. (whispers) And you have to take the snake out of here.

Sue Ellen: We know. It may be dangerous.

Arthur: Dangerous?!

(Arthur claps his hands to his mouth in horror as the four guest enter the house. Brain is carrying a reptile book.)

Brain: According to my reptile guide, we may have found a poisonous coral snake.

Sue Ellen: Remember that rhyme? (recites) "Red band near Black, Venom Black / Red band near Yellow, Bite a fellow."

Buster: I say the red bands were near black.

Binky: (as he puts a finger on Buster, trying to prove him wrong) I say yellow.

Arthur: (frightened) Wow. We'd better go check.