I do not own Hey Arnold.

Chapter 1-My Name is Isabella

Johanssen Residence

Helga Pataki hadn't seen Phoebe in six months, though they talked almost daily. Helga spent the last six months in Nevada setting up a new electronics emporium. When Bob died of a heart attack when she was 22, she and Olga took control of the beeper empire. They changed the name to "Electronics Unlimited", and started selling all electronics. Olga handled matters from their headquarters in Hillwood. Helga traveled, scouting new locations, and went to electronics conventions to keep up on the latest technology. That was her job for the company. A position she created. She hardly spent anytime at home. She still wrote, and her travels around country gave her new sources of motivation.

Las Vegas was her latest project. She cut the ceremonial ribbon for a new store two days ago. Construction and store setup were completed early, so she held the grand opening and came home. She wasn't supposed to be back in Hillwood for another week. Since she was early, she decided to pay a surprise visit to her best friend and nieces. She was currently standing at their front door.

She knocked thee times and waited. The door opened. "Hold on girls, I will be back there to help you in a….Helga?" Phoebe said. "What are you doing here?" She looked surprised and nervous at the same time. Phoebe look over her shoulder, then back at Helga. "I thought you weren't due back until next week."

"I got back early and decided to surprise you." Helga said. She pulled Phoebe into a hug. "Plus, I figured you could use an extra hand planning the girl's birthday party." Helga walked into the apartment and sat down on the couch. "Where are the girls?

"Aunt Phoebe?" A girl's voice called from the twin's room.

Helga looked at the back of the apartment then to Phoebe. "Who is that?" She asked. She didn't recognize the voice.

"I am babysitting for a friend." Phoebe said. She turned and called out. "Girls, you have a visitor." Phoebe was a mother of twin girls, Asami and Sakura. They would be celebrating their sixth birthday the following weekend. They were identical twins, and played the part fairly well. They would speak at the same time and finish each other's sentences. They would wear the same outfit or go by each other's name to confuse people. A trick they constantly played on their father.

Three young girls walked into the living room. Seeing who their guest was they shouted out. "Auntie Helga!" They ran and jumped into her arms. Helga hugged the girls tightly then let them go. She took a good at them, trying to figure out which was which. They were the perfect mixture of their parents. They were mini versions of Phoebe with Gerald's complexion and hair. Helga loved the two girls like they were her own.

"Aunt Phoebe?" A slightly accented voice called from behind Phoebe. "The twins and I wanted to watch another movie, but the disk isn't in the case.

"It's ok sweetie. I will look for it." Phoebe said to the girl. She saw Helga looking at the girl with interest. "Today of all days." She thought to herself. She introduced the girl to Helga. "Izzy, this is my friend, Helga Pataki." Phoebe knew that it wouldn't take long for Helga to figure out who the girl's father was.

"Hello Ms. Pataki." the girl said, walking up to Helga with her hand extended. "My name is Isabella, Isabella Shortman, everyone calls me Izzy."

Helga looked back at the girl, noticing her resemblance to a certain person. Helga looked at Phoebe, her eyes full of surprise. The shaped of the girls head was the same shape as his, only not as oblong. Her eyes were exact duplicates of his. "Those damn eyes." Helga thought to herself. They were the same shade of greens as his, and just as beautiful, especially against her caramel skin. She was a very pretty girl. Helga figured she was older than the twins by one or two years. She was dressed in a pair of baggy blue jeans, a purple plaid shirt that was a little too big for her with purple converses. "Criminey, she even dresses like he used to." Her long jet black hair was in a single thick braid. The little girl's slight accent gave the impression of Latin decent. Helga realized that she was still shaking the girl's hand. "Sorry about that, spaced out for the moment." She said.

"Izzy? Here is the movie." Phoebe said, handing the girl a disc. "Do you guys need anything else?"

"No, Aunt Phoebe." She said. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Pataki. Come on girls, let's go watch the movie.

"Bye, Auntie Helga." The twins said in perfect unison. Helga loved it when they did that. The girls followed Izzy back to their room.

The room fell silent once the girls were gone. Phoebe figured that the next conversation was going to be an awkward one. The two women hadn't had a conversation about Arnold in over 15 years, and their first conversation would be about his eight year old daughter. Few people knew that Arnold moved back to Hillwood a year ago. Even less knew about his daughter. Arnold had a tendency to shelter the girl. She had to beg Arnold to let her attend twin's birthday party. Phoebe figured that she could make new friends at there. Phoebe purposely invited a few of her friends that had kids Izzy's age, for that very reason. The girl didn't have any friends aside from Asami and Sakura, but they were younger than her. She needed friend her own age. Arnold could be too overprotective at times. As for Arnold, she didn't know if he had any friends outside herself, Gerald, Susie and Derrick. Even after living in Hillwood a year, he was still a mystery wrapped in an enigma. A cough brought her out of her thoughts.

"So…Aunt Phoebe, huh?" Helga smiled at her. "I don't have to ask who her father is. She seems a little old to be hanging with five year olds.

"She is eight. The twins look at her like an older sister." Phoebe said. "She is an amazing little girl. She was keeping an eye on them for me, while I plan the party. She is just like him…before…you know…."

She knew all too well what she was talking about. Arnold changed from a helpful, optimistic goody two shoes, to a quiet, cold, loner with serious anger issues. She thought about what happened to his parents, and grandparent. Without thinking, Helga asked. "Where is her mom?" Phoebe's facial expression changed at the question. Helga already knew the answer.

"She died when Izzy was a baby. Arnold doesn't talk about her much." Phoebe said with a somber look on her face. She thought of Arnold's account of the events that caused her death and the aftermath that ensued. Phoebe could sleep for a week after that story. "Her mom's death was a tragedy that led to a series catastrophic events." She said to Helga.

"Was it really that bad?" Helga asked nervously. She wanted to ask what happened, but she knew that Phoebe wouldn't say. Tragedy followed Arnold like it was his shadow.

"You have no idea." Phoebe said hoping to change the subject. "So, are you going to help me with this party or not."

Shortman Residence

"Do you think she will like it?" Arnold asked.

"They did exactly what she wanted." Gerald said. "I can't believe she went with blue and purple."

"Her favorite colors. It's hard to believe, two weeks ago this was my old room." Arnold said. "The end of era." Arnold looked around at what used to be the room every boy in his class coveted. The carpet was no longer the orange and yellow pattern he grew up with. The carpet now plush and blue. The steps and bed that were once parallel to his book shelf were gone. The bookshelf was still there, but modified to fit the headboard of full size bed. The bed was perpendicular to the bookshelf. The walls, once blue and green, now a dark purple with white trim. The red couch that folded out of the wall had been replaced. It still remotely folded out, but the couch was now purple with armrest. There was new desk, computer, and a flat screen TV that was mounted to wall above the desk.

Arnold wouldn't normally spoil his daughter like this, but this was her first real room. Arnold and Izzy moved around after her mother's death. The past year being first time they were stationary for more than a year. Arnold wasn't the same man after that incident. If it wasn't for Isabella, Arnold wouldn't have gotten himself back on track. She was his guide back to the world of the sane. This was his way of showing appreciation.

Arnold was currently giving Gerald a tour of the finished product. "The whole house looks good man. It's been a long year but everything is finally finished." They left Izzy's room, closing the door so that he could surprise her later. "How many rooms does it have now?" Gerald asked.

"Izzy'r room makes four bedrooms plus my office. Five bathrooms if you count the half bath in the basement." Arnold said. "Izzy's private bathroom looks just like her room. Purple and blue everywhere."

Arnold spent the last year having the boarding house restored from the bottom up. Any and all flaws in the buildings structure were found and repaired. The plumbing and electrical were replaced. He showed Gerald each of the remaining bedrooms and his office. The layouts of the rooms changed. Instead of several small rooms, there were three large suites, each with its own bathroom. Since his bedroom, bathroom and office were connected, the last bathroom became Izzy's. Her room and bathroom were the last projects. The whole process had been long and expensive, but it was finally complete.

There were no borders. Ernie married Lola. They moved to California to further her modeling career. Mr. Hyunh and Mai moved to Miami. Mr. Hyunh wanted to retire somewhere warm. After Susie and Derrick got married, they moved to a quiet neighborhood on the outskirts of the city. The boarding house remained empty until Arnold finally decided to come back to it.

"Arnold? Can I ask you something? Gerald asked. "I wanted to ask about the room in the basement. It was the first modification you made and after it was built you locked it up tight. Today, I noticed that it had a keypad on it. What is it?"

It's just my workshop." Arnold said. "I'll show it to you.

Gerald understood what Arnold meant by the term workshop. "Is "Persephone" in there?" Gerald asked. Arnold smiled but didn't reply. The two men walked down to the basement.

Arnold converted the basement into a gym/laundry room/workshop. The entered the basement and walked towards the one of the two doors in the space. Arnold pressed a code onto the keypad on the wall beside the door. The door lock clicked. Arnold and Gerald walked inside. A waist high metal workbench traced three walls of the rectangular room. The items hanging on the walls caught Gerald's attention. He knew that Arnold had weapons, but it surprised him how many different types he had. One wall had guns of different sizes, types and calibers. The opposite wall held knives, arrows, swords and other assorted tools that would be useful in combat. Below the workbench were several drawers that held actual tools. The space wasn't just an armory, it was also an actual space for Arnold to fix things.

"Do you need so many?" Gerald asked, looking around the room until he found what he was looking for. On the smaller of the walls sat "Persephone," Arnold's sniper rifle. Arnold usually had it with him in the pictures that he would send Gerald. He had never seen it in real life. He wasn't a gun nut, nor did he own one. He respected that fact that Arnold was proficient enough to handle a rifle of that size. He told him it can hit a target a mile away and kicks like a mule. It was presented to Arnold as a going away present when he left his unit. Gerald couldn't lie, he always wanted to fire it.

"Not really. It's more of a collection now. I don't even keep ammunition in the house. They are all registered. Even the big one." Arnold said as they exited the room.

"And you're sure she could never get in there? Gerald ask. The two men left the basement and walked out the front door. They got into Arnold's truck and headed towards the Johanssen residence.

"The code is a random 8 digit number that only I know. The lock cannot be opened for 24 hours if the wrong code is typed in. Arnold said. "And because of the weights and equipment, she will not be allowed in the basement without my supervision. Tonight would be Izzy's first night in the refurbished house. She had been at Gerald and Phoebes while her room was being worked on. It was Phoebe's idea.

"Ok I gotta admit. Sometimes you do scare me." Gerald laughed. When it came to his daughter's safety, Arnold went above and beyond. He pulled out his phone and texted his wife. "We are on our way. Let Izzy know that her room is ready."

Johanssen Residence.

Phoebe looked at her phone. "Helga." She said. "That was from Gerald. Arnold is on his way to pick up Izzy."

Helga immediately knew what she meant by that. "You think things are going to be awkward?" Helga said.

"Kinda." Phoebe said back to her.

"You have nothing to worry about. I will never set a bad example in front of the twins. Plus we haven't seen each other in over 15 years, there is no reason for hostility." Helga was adamant about being viewed as the good aunt. "I hold no grudge with the football head." Their last encounter hadn't been a good one.

"Izzy sweetie, your father is on the way. Phoebe called out. Your uncle said that your room is finished."

The girl bolted out of the twin's room, stopping in from of her aunt." Did he say anything about how it looks? Did they do it the way I wanted? Did they get the right shade purple?" The young girl asked excitedly.

"They didn't say." Phoebe said. She put her hand on the girl's shoulder to calm her down. "Your uncle Gerald just said that it was finished. They should be here in a few minutes. "Go get your things together."

The girl ran off to gather her belongings "Sakura! Asami! It's finished!"

"What was that about?" Helga asked.

"For the past year Arnold has been renovating the boarding house. Phoebe said. "Well, I guess you could just call it a house now. He practically rebuilt the whole thing. Arnold's old room is now hers, and he gave her complete creative oversight. From what she has told the twins, she overhauled the whole room.

A few minutes later Asami, Sakura and Izzy walked into the living room and sat down with the older women. Izzy was rolling a purple suitcase and had her blue backpack on her shoulder. They chatted excitedly amongst themselves, planning their first sleepover.

Gerald and Arnold walked in the door. "You said you would let me try it once." Gerald said, before walking over to his wife and kissing her.

Arnold shook his head at his friend. "I will, but we have to find somewhere we….."

"Daddy!" Izzy jumped off the couch and ran into her father's arms. Arnold picked her up and hugged her. He hadn't seen his daughter in two weeks. "How does it look?"

"Two weeks and those are your first words to me." Arnold said, kissing her on the cheek. He looked around the room. "Hello Phoebe. Hi…Helga." His voice had a hint of surprise in it.

"Hello Arnold." both women said.

Helga's curiosity got the best of her. "Did you really let her design her own room?" Helga asked, looking at Arnold.

"You can come by and see it if you want." Izzy said, before her father could say anything. Her comment silenced the room. She looked around the room at each adult. They were all staring at her. She looked back at her father. "Did I say something wrong?" The little girl didn't know that the two adults have a history. A history that was mainly negative and at point, deadly.

Arnold spoke. "No sweetie, I don't know if she would….."

Before he could finish his sentence, Helga interrupted. "Sure squirt, I would love to see your room. Maybe you could give me a few ideas for my place." Helga smiled at the girl. Though his face didn't show it, he was surprised.

A smile beamed on the girls face. "Daddy, since the house is done, maybe we can have everybody over?" Her big green eyes staring deep into his.

Arnold look into her eyes. "Ok." He sighed. She had her mother's charm. "Dinner, tomorrow night ok?" Nods of agreement came from the group. He looked at Izzy again. "There, happy?" He asked. She nodded at him. "Well, I guess we will see you all tomorrow evening." He tossed Izzy over his shoulder, picked up her bags and headed for the door. "Thanks guys, for everything." He looked at Phoebe and Gerald as he spoke.

Helga watched them leave. Izzy waved to everyone from over her father's shoulder. She smiled at the girl and waved back. She had to admit, the bond between the two was too cute. "See that wasn't awkward at all." She said looking back to Gerald and Phoebe. "So…how have things been tall hair boy?"

Shortman Residence

"You have to stay blindfolded until we get up stairs." Arnold said. You have waited a two weeks, you can wait a few more seconds. Arnold was carrying Izzy up the attic stairs so that he wouldn't fall while blindfolded. Once they were inside her room, he put her down and removed the blindfold.

"Daddy, I love it! She walked around her new room. Everything was exactly how she wanted it. She ran over to her father and hugged him. "Thank you daddy. I can't wait to show Sakura and Asami."

Arnold hugged her back. "Anything for you little one. Now let's ready for dinner. Your bathroom is down the steps, first door on the left. Arnold walked down the attic stairs in route to the kitchen so that he could set the table for dinner. The day had been a long one, so he decided they would just have pizza. When he got to the kitchen he heard a loud AWSOME! "I guess she liked her bathroom." He said to himself.

Johanssen Residence

"So tell me the truth, how is he?" Phoebe asked Gerald. They were in their bed talking about the events of the day. "You spent the whole day with him today."

"Babe, he's fine. He was a little stressed as first without Izzy around, but you know how he is when it comes to her. He doesn't like to let her out of his sight." Gerald said. "Both of them are fine."

While the renovation for Izzy's room were in progress, Phoebe and Gerald requested to Arnold that he let her stay with them until it was complete. They said it would add to the surprise if she wasn't there. Though he trusted them both, Arnold never let her out of his sight for more than a few hours. He finally agreed when they got Izzy to side with them. There was ulterior motive to this two week stay. During the two weeks Gerald would get Arnold back out into the world. Arnold put all his energy into being a father, and not much else. His only non-Izzy activities were training and working out. The overall goal was for Arnold and Izzy to be apart for a while. They both needed it.

"So what did you two do today?" Phoebe asked. Gerald mission was to do a "guy things" with Arnold every few days.

"We went fishing. Didn't catch anything, but it was still fun. He had a good time. When the contractors called and said they were finished with Izzy's room, we packed up and went back to his place." Gerald said.

So far Gerald had gotten Arnold to go to a baseball game, a car show, a gun show, a jazz club and even a dance club. He was surprised when Arnold got approached to dance, and he instantly took the girl out to the dance floor. The craziest part was that the man had moves. He spent most of the night out on the dance floor with different women. After they left the club, they went back to the boarding house, and drank until sunrise. They had a half drunken heart to heart. Arnold admitted to Gerald that he knew he was over doing things when it came to his daughter. He thanked Gerald for helping him out of his shell, he really needed it. Phoebe's jaw hit the floor when he told her about the events of that night. Afterward, Arnold seemed like a whole different person. Gerald was proud, his wife was still worried. She did have her reasons though.

"Are you sure he is not manipulating you? He was trained to do you that too you know." Phoebe said.

"Phoebe, look at me." He gently pulled his wife's chin towards him. He looked straight into her beautiful brown eyes and spoke. "Over the course of two weeks, I have seen something I haven't seen in years. I've seen the old Arnold. Trust me when I say….he is doing great. Gerald kissed his wife passionately to make sure his point hit home.

"Are you trying to manipulate me?" Phoebe said, breaking the kiss.

"Yes, yes I am. Gerald said, kissing her again.

Pataki Residence

Helga walked into her condo, threw her keys on the kitchen counter and walked straight to her bathroom to take a shower. She didn't know how it happened, but the whole evening, her and Phoebe talked about Arnold and Isabella.

(Flashback)

Seriously, Football head the life of the party?

From what Gerald told me, he nearly danced with every girl in the club. He really let loose.

Was he drunk?

Actually no, they didn't drink until after they arrived back at Arnold's.

A father and he can dance. Its mind blowing. You wouldn't expect that from the Arnold we used to know. And Izzy is just adorable.

Smart a whip too. Arnold homeschool her and we both know how smart he is. I finally convinced him to let her go to public school in the fall. He is also teaching her martial arts.

Wait! What? He knows martial arts too.

Black belts in four different four different styles. That was back in high school though. I am sure there are probably more now. He was special forces in the military.

More!? Wait. What do you mean special forces?

I can't go into details but Arnold has had a VERY interesting life since left. I do have pictures though. Hold on, I"ll be right back.

(End Flashback)

When Phoebe came back in the living room she had two large photo albums. The first was all pictures of Arnold. He was in different locations but he was always in tactical equipment. Some were from the dessert, some in the jungle, and some in snow. There were a few pictures of Arnold and a group of men. Helga didn't know that much about the military. Phoebe explained that the men in the pictures were Arnold's team or squad. One thing she did notice was the long oversized rifle that Arnold had in his hand in almost every picture. It didn't take a genius to know what he did in the military. He was a sniper. Phoebe didn't give many details, she let the pictures speak for themselves.

The second book was more ornate than the first. She opened it and the first picture was of a black haired, green eyed woman holding a baby. Even Helga had to admit the woman was beautiful. Phoebe told her that woman's name was Maria and the baby was Isabella. The picture was taken in the jungle. She was part of a tribe that lived in deep in the jungles of a place called San Lorenzo. So remote that unless you knew how to get to them, you wouldn't be able to find them. Most of the pictures were of her, Arnold, and the baby. Arnold had real smiles on his face in the pictures. Halfway through the book the pictures with the woman stopped. The pictures we just of Izzy as she aged. Arnold wasn't in any of the pictures. She guessed he made it a point to stay behind the camera. Helga went through the pictures watching the little girl grow. The last picture was of eight year old Izzy blowing out her birthday candles with the Sakura and Asami beside her. Phoebe told her that Izzy's birthday was last month. She understood how why Arnold was so protective of his daughter. She was all he had.

Feeling the water becoming cold, Helga came to her senses. She tied the towel around herself then walked to her closet. She was going to pick out clothes to sleep in, but found herself reaching up to one of the shelves and pulling out a small box. She opened it and looked at the contents inside. There was a small red shoe, a pink book, a piece of white paper and a locket. She grabbed the locket and opened it. There was picture of the boy that she loved in the sixth grade. She was never able to upgrade it because he stopped taking pictures after he learned the fate of his parents. He did the same when he lost Maria. She put the box up and picked out clothing to sleep in. Once dressed, she walked over to her bed and got in it. She swore to never let herself feel anything for him again after the incident following graduation. But, the man that she learned about tonight intrigued her.