A/N: Hi! I know I'm writing several stories, but I'm ahead with all of them, so enjoy this. This storyline just came into my head recently. It's a Hey Arnold-ified version of the movie Hairspray. Here's a run-up of the main characters and who they represent:

Helga Pataki: Tracy Turnblad

Arnold: Link Larkin

Phoebe Heyerdahl: Penny Pingleton

Gerald Johanssen: Seaweed Stubbs

Brooke Wellington-Lloyd: Velma Von Tussle

Rhonda Wellington-Lloyd: Amber Von Tussle

Timberly Johanssen: "Li'l" Inez Stubbs

And so on. But I know a lot of people will be asking why I put Rhonda as Amber, rather than Lila. Simple: We need a character to be Amber's mom, and since Lila doesn't seem to have a mom... Also, Lila is far too nice to be Amber. Plus, I sometimes thought Rhonda had a little crush on Arnold.

Main storyline: It's spring of 1962. Black Civil Rights and integration are fighting against the old ways. Meanwhile, Helga Pataki, a girl with a dream, gets her chance to shine, and she shows that she doesn't have to be pretty to both change the world and snag the boy who stole her heart. All it takes is love, determination...and a little bit of hairspray!

Disclaimer: I own nothing from "Hairspray" or "Hey Arnold".

It was a Monday morning in the spring of 1962 in Hillwood, and everything started off the way it always did. Sixteen-year-old Helga Geraldine Pataki woke up at the alarm, wishing she could've slept through it as usual, dragged herself out of bed, got dressed, put her hair in pigtails (using plenty of hairspray to secure them) added her pink bow, then grabbed an apple to eat on the way to school. Hillwood High was the only high school in the catchment area, and in her opinion, it wasn't exactly the best school, but she didn't really care.

Yet again, she missed the school bus and had to run most of the way to school. The bell rang just as she got to her locker, where her best friend, Phoebe Heyerdahl, was waiting.

"Come on, we'll be late for class!" Phoebe exclaimed, and they both ran to geography class.

However, halfway through class, a boy sitting near Helga at the back raised his hand to complain. "I can't see the board."

The teacher immediately saw the cause, and called the girl to order. "Helga Pataki, how many times do I have to tell you that if you keep wearing your hair inappropriately, I will have no choice but to give you a detention."

"What's inappropriate about them, Ms Slovak?" Helga demanded. "They're just pigtails."

"They are inappropriate because they are obscuring the sight of the other students." Ms Slovak said. "If there is one more complaint about your hair, it'll be detention for you."

Helga didn't really care about detention, or anything in school. There was only one thing she cared about, one person she cared about above all others. It was all she thought about most of the time, and as the day wore on, she couldn't stand it. She stared at the clock, willing it to be three o'clock. When the bell finally rang, she shot out of her seat, found Phoebe, and ran to the school bus, and after getting to the stop, she and Phoebe continued running, right up to the doorstep of her house, although she did poke her head into her dad's phone store around the corner to say hi. Not that Bob ever acknowledged it, but he noticed when she didn't.

"Come on, Pheebs, we're running late!" Helga yelled as she ran to the living room and switched the TV on. Her favourite show was on, all right.

"Hey there, teenage Hillwood!" the host announced. "Don't change that channel, because it's time for the show with all the hottest new moves! Brought to you by Ultraclutch Hairspray!" The show was only local, and the main dancers were in it were from the same school as the girls, but they still watched the show religiously.

The theme song began, and the two girls watched, Helga occasionally humming a bit of the tune. It was a show to promote the new dances, with a council of twenty teens. But she didn't really care about dance, as such. There was one reason she watched it. Phoebe liked the show, but she only really watched it because Helga did. The only time she really watched of her own choice was the monthly Negro Day show. The usual group of kids were all white, due to segregation, but they gave one day a month to give the black teenagers a chance to shine.

Helga did laugh a bit at times. The female lead dancer kept losing step, and she even fell over at one point and pushed another girl out of the way at another time.

"Roll call!" announced the host and dancers.

The usual line-up began with the lead female dancer first. "I'm Rhonda!"

"Sid!" He had to shove Rhonda out of the way.

"Nadine!"

"Curly!:"...The role call went on like this.

Then.. "Lulu!"

"Hilda!"

Helga immediately paid full attention as the lead male dancer sauntered forward. "And I'm...Arnold."

Helga sighed dreamily. Phoebe glanced, but didn't comment. She knew well about her friend's secret crush on the teenage heartthrob, and she wasn't alone with that crush. Everyone at school seemed to be in love with him. Phoebe could still remember the time a few of the freshman girls mobbed him in the halls.

But Helga's feelings went deeper. She'd never spoken to Arnold, but she tried to get his attention in other ways. She often talked about him scornfully to other people. "Thinks he's so great just because he's on a tacky little show. How did he manage to get on there with that football head, anyway? I mean, he's not really the best looking guy ever, is he?" She also took every opportunity she had to push past him in the hallways. He would always just ignore her.

Everyone knew that version of Helga, the tough mean girl who didn't care about anyone or anything. Most people thought that she hated Arnold for no real reason. But when she was alone, Helga turned into a different person. Only Phoebe occasionally saw her friend's vulnerable side, but usually kept quiet about it.

Helga was obsessed with Arnold, completely. She'd written poetry about him all the time, with lines like "Why must I hold you only whilst I dream?" and "Wandering the dismal depths of my tormented soul." She'd also built a shrine resembling Arnold which she kept in her closet. She'd even been able to get ahold of a picture of Arnold, which she kept in a heart-shaped locket. Not that it wasn't typical fangirl behaviour, but Helga felt that her feelings went deeper, that she actually loved Arnold. She longed to know him properly, speak to him, let him know how she felt. She also learned all the dances of the show, feeling as if she was on the show, dancing alongside him.

The theme ended, and Helga jumped up, ready to start learning the new dance. At that moment, her mom walked in.

"Oh, hi, Helga." she said with a weak smile. "Hi, uh...Phoebe. How was school?" She was, as usual, looking disorientated.

"It was as usual, Miriam." Helga said, not taking her eyes off the screen. "A waste of time."
"Oh, right, that's good." Miriam murmured, not taking anything in as usual. "Just make sure you finish watching TV at seven, honey."

"I know, I know." Helga muttered. "Bob's got his commercial on, then he's got his favourite game show to watch." she explained to Phoebe. Bob was completely wrapped up in his successful shop. The only person in his family he ever paid real attention to was Olga, Helga's successful talented twenty-seven-year-old sister who had been living across town for the last three years and came over often.

At that moment, there was a knock on the door. Helga sighed and went to answer it. She put on a smile when she saw who was there. "Oh, hi, Mr Heyerdahl."

Kyo Heyerdahl didn't smile. "Hello, Helga." he said. "Is Phoebe over here? She's meant to be at her fencing session at home after school."

There was no point in lying, as Phoebe had come into the hallway. Kyo glared at his daughter. "Phoebe, you know you are meant to come straight home. Your fencing teacher comes to a lot of trouble to come to our house to teach you. Why are you here?"

"I'm sorry, Dad." Phoebe said meekly. "I know I'm meant to be fencing with Sensei after school. I will come straight home in future."

"Bye, Pheebs." Helga called as her best friend was led away, leaving Helga to gaze at the TV screen that showed the one person she loved more than anyone else.

So, what do you think so far? Please review!