Disclaimer: I do not own Hey Arnold or any of the characters. Hey Arnold is the property of Nickelodeon and Craig Bartlett.
Andy's Tournament
Chapter 2: Training Part 2
The Next Day
Andy Shortman soon arrived to PS. 118 after his mother dropped him and his sister off. Once there, he and his sister went their separate ways and met up with their friends.
"Hey Andy..."Kiara greeted.
"Hey Kiara..."Andy said to his best friend.
The two then walked to their lockers together and talked the whole way.
"So, how was your violin classes yesterday?..."Andy asked.
"Same as always, a little boring but nothing I couldn't handle.. Miss Svetlana says that I'm making improvements in class..."Kiara said. "How was your karate lesson yesterday?..."She asked.
"Master Chan says that my readying stance is a lot better than last time and G.G says that my punches and kicks hit harder than ever but that I should never escalate the fight..."Andy said as he recalled yesterday.
Kiara smiled at that.
"Well, your G.G. is right about using your strength when it's needed. Besides, if you avoid trouble, you'll be able to use your strength in tournament coming up..."Kiara said to her best friend. "And when you're done, I will take you out for some celebratory ice cream?..."She said.
"Isn't it a little early for celebrating? The actual competition isn't for a few days..."Andy pointed out.
"Oh, don't be so worried, Andy. You're a total shoe-in for victory..."Kiara said with the utmost confidence in her best friend's skills.
"Thanks..."He said, smiling.
"Oh, I wouldn't be too sure about that, Shorty Shortman..."A rude voice was heard.
Andy and Kiara turned around and saw who the person with obnoxious voice was.
"What is it now, W.J?..."Andy said as he narrowed his eyes at the bully.
Wolfgang Jr or W.J as he prefers to be called, is the biggest bully at school and has been a thorn in Andy's side ever since Andy was in first grade and W.J was in second grade. He is a total jerk and a pain
The big jerk sent him a nasty look as he started to be rude.
"I see you two are still together, you lovebirds..."W.J said mockingly.
"We're not lovebirds!..."Andy and Kiara both said at the same time, annoyed by him.
"What do you want, W.J? Don't you have someone to bug somewhere else?..."Andy said as he narrowed his eyes at them.
It's then that he noticed that W.J is wearing a karate gi.
"W.J, what's with the martial arts gi?..."Andy asked.
"And the black belt?..."Kiara said suspiciously, she knew that this had to be some kinda joke.
She doubted that it's real, since Andy has been training since he was six and only recently earned his black belt.
She knew that W.J isn't very patient or smart enough to know what a black belt symbolizes. That was obvious, that and that he isn't likely to care for the spiritual side of martial arts or have the patience needed to get a black belt. However, the tall fifth grader started to show off.
"Oh this, I'm just showing off my dojo's gi to everyone in town, signaling my dojo's soon to be victory in the upcoming tournament..."W.J bragged and Andy raised a brow at that.
"So, you're entering the tournament too?..."Andy asked. "That's a little surprising...since when are you into martial arts?..."He demanded.
"I am not into all that "tranquil of the mind and soul" malarkey. I am into winning and more importantly, I am into beating you Shorty Shortman, and showing everyone who's the toughest kid in Hillwood..."W.J said in a mocking tone as he pointed to the younger boy.
Andy frowned before Kiara stepped in.
"Oh please, W.J. Andy has been the undefeated karate champion for the last two years!..."Kiara said in her friends defense.
"That's because he's been fighting with nothing but wimpy pushovers in those past tournaments. I'm the top dog in Hillwood and I'm gonna prove it. In fact, I am positive that none of the contestants will even leave a scratch on me..."He said arrogantly.
"You sure about that?..."Andy said, his temper slightly rising as W.J kept taunting him.
"Look at how tough my biceps are, Shorty. You stand no chance, with me and my giant muscles. I'm sure to make sure that I win the tournament trophy hands down..."W.J said as he flexed his muscles to show off how strong he is, while he's taunting them at the same time. "So good luck, Shorty...you're gonna need it..."W.J said before laughing off.
Andy growled at that as he watched the bully walk away, acting like he has already won the tournament.
"If he thinks I am going to let him take home the win, then he's got another thing coming!..."Andy said in anger.
"Relax, Andy. Save it for the tournament, okay?..."Kiara asked in a patient tone to her friend.
Andy tried to calm down by taking a deep breath, before turning to his friend.
"Alright, I'm fine. I'm going to beat him at the tournament...by training really hard..."Andy said in determination.
"That's the spirit, Andy..."Kiara said.
Soon the bell rang and the kids realized that they had to get to class and fast. Andy was still agitated with what W.J bragged about earlier and wanted to do everything in his power to wipe his smug look off his face.
Later
Arnold Shortman and his wife and children were visiting the boarding house. Despite the fact that Andy wasn't suppose to have a karate lesson today, he asked to train more with his old karate sensei and Helga decided that it be nice to go visit her husband's parents and grandparents and Arnold agreed to it.
So now, the man was currently having coffee with his mother and father, while his wife is tending to Henry and grandfather was watching TV with his daughter. His older son was being trained by his grandmother outside.
"So, Arnold...we've heard that Andy is entering this year's tournament..."Miles said.
"Do you think he'll take home the gold again this year?..."Stella asked as she poured some coffee and handed it to her son.
"I have no doubt in my mind that he'll do his very best in the tournament and that's all that matters..."Arnold said as he took a sip.
"Let's just hope he doesn't get carried away in the moment like I once did..."He thought as memories of when he took karate as a boy came to him before he shook it off.
He remembered the feared looks on everyone's faces as he attacked random students in the hallway and pushed people in lockers. Those memories haunted Arnold for a long time and the thought that his son might do the same worried him but he knew that his son is a good egg and was an intelligent enough not do what he did.
Although, maybe he should check on his son...just to be sure.
"I'm just gonna go check on them for a minute..."Arnold said as he went to go see how they were doing.
Outside
Andy and Gertie were in the backyard of the boarding house, both were in their gi's as they stood across from each other.
"Are you ready, Iko-Kun..."Gertie said as her great-grandson/karate protege responded.
"Yes I am, G.G. Sensei..."Andy said as he did the traditional bow.
Once that was done, he concentrated as he looked at the board in the old woman's hands. With a quick palm strike, Andy managed to break it in half.
After that, they went on to continue with training.
After practicing with more boards and cinder-blocks, now came the time to test his reflexes. Gertie now stood with a fly in a jar in her hands. Andy knew the drill as she opened the jar, releasing the fly into the wild.
Andy closed his eyes and, with his left hand, softly flicked his wrist and caught the fly in stunning fashion. He was well experienced in catching the flies by now, so he didn't kill the fly.
"Got it, I'm getting faster. Now let's try something a little more advanced..."He thought as he opened his eyes.
Andy observed the small creature curiously, before finally releasing it into the air. Once that was done, he closed his eyes once more before flicking his wrist again while moving on his toes, catching the fly once more.
"Not bad, but I know I can better..."He thought, trying to stay focused on his training.
"Iko-Kun!..."His great-grandmother called out, breaking his focus.
"What is it, G.G.?..."Andy asked.
"Come here, my child..."She said to him.
Andy walked over to his great-grandma to see a can on top of her head. He remained still as she began to speak again.
"Iko-kun, keep your mind on the can..."The old woman said and the child nodded.
Andy closed his eyes and breathed before opening them and looking at the can, which was the only thing he cared about at that very moment. He lept into the air and kicked the can off of Gertie's head at such incredible speed!
"Well done, little tadpole..."Gertie said proudly at the boy.
Andy smiled and felt really proud of his improvements before he heard his father approach them.
"Looks like you're coming along great, champ..."Arnold said as he walked into the yard.
"Thanks, dad but there's still plenty of room for some improvement..."Andy said as he kept practicing.
"Just don't push yourself too hard, son..."Arnold said in a fatherly way.
He didn't want his son to wear himself too hard or possibly repeat his mistakes just for a competition. Andy sighed at that. He knows that his dad is just looking out for him but he just needs to keep training. He can't let W.J win.
"I know dad, I know that winning isn't everything but I don't want W.J to win the tournament either. He's the biggest jerk in Hillwood!..."Andy said in anger and Arnold sighed.
W.J is the son of Wolfgang and he and Andy despised each other and just like his father Wolfgang, W.J is a bully who picks on the younger kids and Andy, who also happens to be as tough as his mother and and doesn't take too kindly to bullies or back down from a challenge.
Anyway, the father had an idea what is going on.
"I take it that he has entered tournament just to get a chance to fight you in front of a huge audience..."Arnold said and Andy nodded.
"Yeah, today he came to school in his gi and seemed eager to face me in the tournament. During lunch, he even proclaimed that the trophy will be his..."Andy said in an annoyed tone as he recalled.
Arnold sighed at that as he tried to talk to his boy.
"Andy, I get how you feel, but don't let your temper get better of you. Losing your temper and knocking out someone's teeth just because you believe they deserve it is not why you train to get strong in the first place. Remember, that karate is a fighting style for defense, so you can protect yourself and those who you care for. Do you get what I'm trying to say to you?..."Arnold said calmly to his boy and Gertie nodded.
"Kimba is right, Iko-Kun. Remember, you must be as the frog in the pond..."Gertie said wisely to her great-grandson.
Andy heard this and signed, but from exhaustion and believing that his father didn't understand.
"You just don't get it, Dad. I have to beat him! W.J hasn't just been bugging me today. He has been pushing everyone even remotely younger or weaker than him around for too long and I am the only one with any hope of deflating that jerk's ego..."The young boy said with his arms in anger while G.G. and Arnold sighed at that.
Arnold knew that his son is a good kid, he has a good heart and good intentions but he has a temper on him and can be pretty impulsive. Thankfully, Arnold knows how to deal with this issue, since plenty of experience since he grew up with Helga, who was the queen of having a temper.
"Oh, I know a little more than you might think I do..."Arnold said.
"Sure you do, dad..."Andy said with an eye-roll, clearly not buying it.
Arnold sighed again as he knew that he needed to speak to his son before turning to Gertie.
"Grandma, could you please give us a moment alone?..."The father said and Gertie nodded.
"Alright you two, I'll go get some freshly squeezed lemon juice for everyone..."The old woman said.
"But G.G... I mean, sensei. What about our training?..."Andy said, expecting a lecture coming along.
"No complaints, little tadpole..."Gertie said. "Now, go and have your father-son bonding moment. I've got some lemons to karate chop and juice..."The old woman said.
Leaving Andy alone with his father, who was preparing for the "father-son bonding" moment.
Meanwhile
In another part of town
W.J, still dressed in his gi, was training the art of karate. However, he wasn't alone. He was accompanied by his father, Wolfgang Sr., as they were preparing for the upcoming karate tournament. W.J was aggressively brutalizing a heavy punching bag, much to his father's delight.
"STRONGER! FASTER!..." Wolfgang Sr. hollered at his child, making W.J punch harder on the poor bag.
The tall fifth grader then managed to tear a hole through the bag with a straight right punch and smirked.
"Aww yeah, who's the man!..."W.J shouted smugly as he continued.
"Perfect...you've got this tournament in the bag, Junior..."Wolfgang said proudly while his son kept thrashing the bag.
"I know, Dad..."W.J said as he kept punching the bag and thinking about his rival.
"You're mine, Shortman..."The bully said smugly as he thought about the upcoming tournament and the opportunity to defeat his rival.
One thing that is certain, this Year's Hillwood Karate Tournament is going to be one to remember.
-To be continued-
Next time on Andy's Tournament
A Father and Son Moment
A/N(1): I would like to thank Jay The Average Fanboy, NeoMark and JohnathanDoe12329 for their assistance. You guys rock :)
A/N(2): This is dedicated to my family, my friends and my love for God! Enjoy :)
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