Hey all you Hey Arnold authors and readers (and fans too). I'm sorry that I didn't get this out sooner. You have no idea what things I've been going through. And there's still so much more to come. Like how I have to be a director in a one-act play festival. Then there's homework, working on other fanfics, tests, etc. But I know I already explained all of this in my note from the beginning of this fic right? I've explained that I won't be able to post to frequently like I'd like to but I promise I will try.

This fic is dedicated to CoSmIc DrEaMeR because she wanted this fic out sooooo badly and I felt sorry for not posting it up. I'm glad she was patient.

Well, go ahead and read and I hope you enjoy the revised version of Episode 1!

"Come to me, my love…I'll protect you forever…I promise…"

The Adventure of a Lifetime

"Those children will suffer in the same way the other children suffered…"

By Inuyasha-loves-Kagome (You can call me Inu-chan ^^)

Guide:

"…" = Dialogue

[…] = Thoughts

(…) = Notes by me

Italics = Dream conversations

{…} = Sound effects (though they don't happen very often)

Any others will be added later when I have to make up new conversation methods for the characters…

Disclaimer: In Inu-chan's dreams, she owned Hey Arnold…*sigh* but sadly this is the REAL world and all characters belong to Craig Bartlett. "Hey Craig, I'll buy Hey Arnold off you!" I also don't own Chocobo's. They belong to Squaresoft.

~500 years ago~

There was a time when all the nations of Rorome were at war. It was considered as "The Unstoppable War". People in that time completely lost hope that the war would ever end…that is, until a man named Trinidad bargained with the nations, making peace for the world of Rorome and its inhabitants. Unfortunately, all Trinidad wanted was for the nations to trust him, giving him power all over Rorome. Fortunately, two heroes rose up against him, going on a quest to find the Angel Crystal, which was the only thing that could stop Trinidad's Devil Crystal. They succeeded and Trinidad was stopped. However, what the people of the present day Rorome were most inquisitive about was what transpired exactly. No one kept records of the incidents that led to the salvation of Rorome. All they knew was that the two heroes sealed him away inside the Devil Crystal. Not keeping records was their greatest mistake. Now, because they didn't keep records, two more children might go through the same events that the two children of before went through…

^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~

~Prologue~

It had been the same dream for days now. It just wouldn't stop. Every night she would dream, and every time she dreamt it, it made her more afraid, although she asked herself why. Why did a dream make her so afraid? There was nothing scary about the dream. It was merely something that was probably caused by eating before bed. Nothing more, nothing less.

In her dream she had been standing in funny clothes with fog, or mist, or whatever you called it surrounding her. There had been nothing else there. Only her, in funny clothes, standing in mist.

That's when she began to hear it. A voice calling out to her, repeating the same phrase over and over again. She would also see a dark figure walking towards her, his or her arms extended outward. She couldn't make a definite shape out of the person but whoever it was, they repeated the same phrase to her. And when she woke up, she always heard the voice in her head saying that same phrase repeatedly.

"Come to me, my love…I'll protect you forever…I promise…"

Everytime she heard this phrase, it always confused her. She didn't know whether to be creeped out or feel safe by the words. Part of her was afraid, as if this were so foreshadowing of some future event, and the other part of her felt safe, as if the person who uttered these words were truly going to protect her. She didn't know which side to believe.

'Why choose sides?' she thought as she got ready for school on a warm, sunny Friday. She grabbed her backpack and headed out the door, ready to start another day of teasing. 'It's just a stupid dream.'

Yet for some reason, she doubted herself…

^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~

Episode 1: The adventure begins…

Arnold walked to school, for the first time alone. Gerald had caught the bug that was going around and he wasn't the only one. Half of Arnold's class had caught it, one by one. Stinky, who had been the first to catch it, was barely recovering and coming back to school tomorrow, while the rest were still bedridden.

Arnold walked inside the school building and headed for his locker. He would need to hurry. Gerald had asked him to get his homework that way he wouldn't miss any work and be left behind when he got better.

{Slam!}

Arnold didn't even have to look to know that it was Helga G. Pataki knocking down poor, helpless kid into his or her locker. Arnold closed his own and for once, didn't bother to mix himself with the angry girl who raised her fist when you tried to talk to her about something small. He didn't understand fully why Helga was the way she was. He knew there was a nice girl hidden behind the one she showed to everyone, but Arnold was puzzled as to how he would make that side show for everyone to see.

He turned in order to head to class and saw that it wasn't even Helga who had shoved anyone. It was Wolfgang. He stood near a locker, laughing his head off as kids looked to see what was going on. Helga, meanwhile, walked through the hall as if she had the whole world on her shoulders. She seemed to be deep in thought and didn't even notice anything that was happening around her. She was barely even clinging onto her books for gosh sakes! They looked like they were ready to fall.

Phoebe walked up to Helga and began talking to her, but Helga merely passed by, ignoring her and continuing her route to who-knows-where. Phoebe looked at Arnold with a questionable gaze and he shrugged his shoulders, not knowing what was wrong.

He followed Phoebe towards class and told himself that one way or another, he was going to find out.

^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~

Throughout the whole day it seemed like one weird time-zone thing. Helga didn't even once speak a word throughout the day. She continued to gaze at her desk as if it were the most interesting thing in the world. And her face didn't change expression. She looked like she was deep in thought and didn't want anyone to bother her. Phoebe tried to get her to talk but she was ignored. No one else seemed to notice the change in Helga since they were too busy paying attention to Mr. Simmons for once.

Once school was out, the day had turned dark and dreary. It looked like it was going to rain. Helga headed towards the bus and Arnold told Phoebe that he would try to figure out what was wrong; that she should leave it up to him. Phoebe had given him a knowing smile that he didn't understand but he shrugged it off. Helga was more important right now.

He followed her onto the bus and looked around for her. She was seated near the back, with her head resting on her palm as she looked out the window. She looked like a small child (smaller than she actually is) who was deprived of her afternoon outside.

Arnold went over and sat down next to her. He rested his books on his lap and turned to look at her. Either she knew he was there and she was ignoring him, or she was so lost in her own world that she didn't know he was there. Either way, Arnold took a deep breath and asked, "Are you okay Helga?"

She didn't answer. She looked so deeply lost in her thoughts that Arnold thought her soul had separated from her body.

"Helga?"

Still no response.

Arnold turned to look at the front of the bus and sighed. If Helga didn't want to talk, then that was okay. He would respect her privacy…for now. He was still determined to find out what was wrong.

^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~

When they reached Helga's stop, Helga got off and Arnold followed her.

Arnold didn't notice the frown that was forming on her face…

By the time the bus pulled away, the rain had begun and at first it poured lightly, before pouring in heavy, fat drops that drenched their clothes. Arnold cursed and got angry for not bringing his umbrella. Of course, how was he supposed to know about the sudden change in weather?

"Helga," Arnold said softly, hoping to get her attention. A lightning bolt ripped the sky and Arnold jumped. He noticed, however, that Helga didn't even flinch. Her hands were clenched at her sides and they were even shaking lightly. Arnold prepared himself for it. He knew it was coming.

Helga burst. She turned around, her once pensive face turned into one of anger and annoyance. She waved her arms through the air as her hair became plastered to her face. "What do you want football head?!" she yelled. "Didn't you get the message? Didn't you see that I wanted to be left alone? Can't you take a hint?" People who were nearby stopped and saw the argument. Some thought it was a lover's quarrel so they didn't bother to interfere.

Arnold's own faced took on a look of hurt. "I was just wondering what was wrong. I was worried about you," he said softly, trying to stay composed and not look like he was hurt and scared.

Helga's face softened and turned into one of puzzlement. "Y-You were worried about me?" She crossed her arms over her chest and looked away, her face still soft, though she tried to make it look angry. Why did he have to care so much? Why couldn't he distance himself from people the way Helga did? She hated it when he did that. Why did he have to worry about everyone? She knew that's what was going on here. She had a quick thought run through her mind that he was worried about HER, but the truth was that he worried about everyone, because that's who he was.

"Yes I was worried about you," Arnold replied, his face taking on one of relief. He had expected more from her as a reply. Something more angry and hateful. He was glad that wasn't the case. Perhaps he was getting through her barrier.

Before he got a chance to replay again, something on the floor glittered. He looked at it and saw that it was a rather small crystal on a chain. Arnold bent down to pick it up and saw that it was a silver heart with golden wings on a golden chain. [This looks expensive] Arnold thought as he fingered the jewel. [I'd better take it to the police]

Before he even got to take one step in any direction, the crystal glowed silver and both Arnold and Helga were engulfed in the silvery light. The same people who had stopped to watch the argument gasped as they saw the pillar drag the two towards the heavens.

The children knew no more…

^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~

It felt strange for the both of them. It's actually hard to explain what it is they felt but I guess you could say they felt like they were going down an invisible slide while all these green and silvery lights swirled around them.

Finally, after much time in that "slide", Arnold sat up and put a hand to his head, trying to stop the dizziness he felt. A cool breeze blowed through his hair and Arnold felt soft grass tickle his skin as he sat on the floor. All he remembered was being out in the rain, arguing with Helga.

Helga!

Arnold scanned all around for her, seeing that he was on a hill with a tree at the top center. Where was he? Why was he out in the country, instead of in the city? He continued to look around until his gaze fell on a pink lump. Knowing she always wore pink, Arnold stood up and went over to her. She was face down, with her arms under her head. He shook her lightly. "Helga," he whispered.

His heart was pounding the whole time but it was lighted when he heard her groan after a while. Her eyes fluttered open before closing. The sun was strong but with the breeze, she felt cold. She remembered why. The rain. She was soaked thoroughly. She looked up at Arnold's concerned face and smiled inwardly. She was happy Arnold was worried about her, but she didn't want to show it.

Arnold backed up, letting her stand up for herself, though when she showed signs of falling, he was there to help her steady herself.

Helga looked at their surroundings. "Where are we?"

"I don't know," Arnold answered, just as confused as she was. This certainly didn't look familiar. Well, to tell the truth, Arnold hadn't really been outside of Seattle but he would still know when he wasn't there anymore (although I don't know if that's the city they live in. I always thought it was New York and then hey-arnold.com said it was some town that started with a W.)

{Crunch, crunch, crunch}

They heard the noise and their senses became alert. They looked all around and spotted the source of the noise. Over the horizon came a girl around their age with long, waist length red hair and silver eyes, something that amazed both Arnold and Helga. They'd never seen silver eyes before. She was wearing a white shirt with jean overalls, and she was carrying a bucket in her hand, filled with some sort of liquid.

When she saw them, she seemed to forget all about her bucket. She dropped it on the floor, then ran to them, noticing their wet clothes. "Oh my!" she cried when she reached them. "Are the two of you all right?"

Arnold smiled kindly at her, despite the fact that he was cold. By the looks of it though, he wasn't the only one. Helga was also shivering next to him and flapping her hands on her arms to keep warm. "We're fine," he answered kindly.

"No you're not," the girl responded firmly, shaking her head, sending her long red hair flying around her. "Both of you are soaked to the bone." [How had they gotten wet?] she wondered to herself. [It hasn't rained in days] An idea hit her. "Why don't the two of you come with me to my farm so you can dry off? I have a warm fire and I could lend you some clothes."

Arnold quickly agreed with a nod, saying that it was a good idea, while Helga was unsure. She just stood there and watched as Arnold followed the girl. [Why does he have to be so trusting?] Helga wondered. [How does he know she isn't just some weirdo who like to take people home to do who-knows-what to them]

Arnold stopped when he noticed that Helga wasn't following. "Aren't you coming Helga?"

Helga humphed and turned away, crossing her arms over her chest. "Why should I follow Nancy Jane over there?" she asked with a cold tone, refusing to meet their gazes. She hated to act like this but she didn't want to trust someone she didn't even know.

The girl frowned at her in annoyance. [Who does this girl think she is?] "Excuse me but my name isn't Nancy Jane. It's Ardine," she responded with her hands at her hips. This girl seemed rude, but Ardine was still determined to help them.

Helga burst out laughing and clutched her stomach. "Ardine? What kind of stupid name is that?"

Ardine only frowned. Then she turned around and started walking. "Follow me towards my farm so you two can get dry."

Helga stopped laughing and looked at the girl in shock. [Why is she being so nice to me still? Here I am, laughing about her name, yet she still decides to help us…me included. Not just Arnold] Her gaze softened as she looked at the both of their retreating forms. [I guess I found another Arnold…]

Helga decided to be nice to Ardine from now on and ran to catch up to the two.

^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~

The walk towards Ardine's farm had been a short trip since it wasn't too far away from the hill and the tree. Arnold and Helga hadn't expected the farm to be so small. It was just a small house in the middle, with the barn on the left side and a fence on the right side. The only strange thing about the farm is that confined inside the fence were large chicks that were the size of horses. Helga gaped at them and pointed. "What in criminey's name are THOSE?" she asked as if they were some disgusting thing under her shoe. She may never have seen anything like it, but she had to admit that they were sort of cute…not that she would admit that out loud.

Ardine followed her pointing finger and smiled, though she hadn't understood the word 'criminey'. She didn't even seem bothered by the tone Helga used. "Those are called chocobo's. This is a chocobo breeding farm."

Arnold looked at them also and just looked neutral, though he was still shivering a bit. "Do you live here alone Ardine?" He wasn't sure if asking her such a personal question was going to upset her but he knew he could always say he was sorry.

"Yes," she answered as she looked at Arnold. He turned to look at her too, keeping the calm look on his face. "I never knew my family but I've lived on this farm since before I can remember." Weird thing was, she didn't seem saddened by this. Arnold could tell. She was smiling and it was genuine. It wasn't one to trick anyone.

Ardine continued walking towards the house and they followed. They hoped they would get answers soon.

^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~

The warm fire blazed inside the house, which of course looked like a girl lived there. There were many girl colors like purple, blue, red, pink, etc. All of them vibrant and making you feel light and happy when you looked at them. Even Helga felt warm inside when she looked at the coziness of the house. There was the fireplace, the table near a window (with a white tablecloth on it), flower pots everywhere, and a carpet near the fire that had the said colors.

Helga immediately went over to the fire and sat down Indian-style on the floor. She put her hands out towards the fire and hoped she would dry soon.

Ardine and Arnold went over to sit at the table. Arnold was content with letting the sun dry him as it poured inside through the window and lighting that side of the room.

Ardine cupped her hands together on the table and looked at Arnold. "So, where do the two of you come from?"

"Seattle," he answered simply, hoping that by telling her what city they lived in they would be able to go home. Or maybe she had a phone…

Ardine looked at him like he was a bit crazy. "Se-a-ttle?" she asked slowly, pronouncing all the syllables in order to get used to the word. "There's no Se-a-ttle here."

Helga turned her head immediately and both her and Arnold looked at her with amazement. "What do you mean," Helga began, "no Seattle?"

Ardine looked at her and rolled her eyes. "What I'm saying is that there is no Se-a-ttle here."

Helga felt anger burn inside of her and she stood up, her hitting hand clenched and ready to attack. "How can there be no Seattle when we were just there?" she demanded, wanting to know if this girl was crazy. Perhaps she was just joking with them. And if that was the case, then Helga would make sure that this girl met Old Betsy and the Five Avengers.

Ardine glared at Helga slightly. "As far as I know, this town you speak of doesn't exist. There is no such thing as Se-a-ttle in Rorome."

Both Arnold and Helga face-faulted. "Ro-Rorome?" Arnold questioned, wondering what was going on.

Ardine turned to Arnold and blinked. "You sound as if you've never heard of Rorome."

Helga came over and slammed her hands down on the table, making both Ardine and Arnold jump. "That's because we haven't!" she yelled, looking very angry, like all those times her sister Olga would go visit. "We've only heard of Earth!"

Ardine fell silent for a while, but her eyes still looked like they were going to fall out of her head if she made them bulge any more. "E-Earth?" she asked shakily. Could it be…?

Arnold looked at her with suspicion. "What's wro—" Before he could finish, Ardine had crushed him into the largest hug anyone could be in. In the background, Helga's hand clenched and she looked ready to kill, had it not been for the fact that Ardine talked right before she did anything.

Ardine pulled back and smiled wide. "You're finally here! I can't believe it!"

They both stared at her, confused, but also waiting for her to continue.

"The Legendary Heroes are finally here to stop Trinidad!" she exclaimed happily like a child who had discovered a secret treasure that no one else knew about.

For the thousandth time that day, Arnold and Helga blinked in confusion. "Legendary Heroes?" Helga questioned in disbelief. Had she heard the girl right? Was this all real? Or was she still dreaming?

Ardine smiled at Helga and nodded. "There's a story I heard as a little girl that said that there were going to be two Legendary Heroes who would come to this world and save it. They would travel Rorome for the Angel Crystal and use it to stop his Devil Crystal."

Upon hearing about a crystal, Arnold remembered the one he had found and searched his pocket for it. Miracles seemed to happen when he pulled it out of his pocket. He was just looking at it, but then Ardine looked his way and saw what was in his hands. Her eyes widened and she leapt forward to snatch the jewel out of his hands. That caused Arnold to blink and Helga to give her a skeptical look. "I can't believe you have the Angel Crystal already!" She smiled brightly. "Well, that saves the two of you from having to search for it."

Arnold and Helga didn't say anything. They didn't know what to say. This was all coming to them so fast that a Japanese bullet train seemed slow. Ardine walked over to Helga and hung the necklace around her neck. "You should keep it. And hide it between your shirt. If Trinidad finds out that you have it, then it could mean big trouble for you. He won't stop at trying to kill you."

Helga then stood up ferociously and glared at her. "What do you mean?" she yelled. She looked like she wanted to explode and say so much more but couldn't seem to fin the right words, or even where to being.

"What I mean is that the Angel Crystal is the only thing standing in his way of conquering Rorome again."

Okay, if Arnold thought that nothing else would surprise or confuse him further, then he was wrong. "Again?" he questioned.

Ardine looked towards him and nodded. "There was so much to the story someone told me about when I was younger. Yet the most important part of the story was left out because no one knows the truth."

Seeing that she had both of their attentions, she walked over and sat down at the table. Helga also moved to sit with them, though she placed herself in between Ardine and Arnold.

Once she was sure they were ready to listen, she began to tell her tale the way she had heard it:

500 years ago, a Great War broke out between the 4 major nations of Rorome. To this day it's still considered as The Unstoppable War because at the time no one thought it would stop. But one day a priest named Trinidad came and made peace with the nations. He seemed like such a nice man, and he was very kind by what I heard." She paused and her eyes grew sad at the rest. "But it turned out that the only reason he made peace was so that the nations would trust him. That trust gave him power and the leaders succumbed to him." She paused again and there was joy dancing in her eyes. "Luckily, there were two loyal Rorome people who didn't want to stand around and watch their world taken over by such evil. They went on a journey that no one thought they would survive, and found the Angel Crystal. It was a legendary crystal that was rumored to have been made by the goddess of Rorome. But she had to make the Devil Crystal to balance out the power. But with the Angel Crystal, the two of them were able to stop Trinidad and seal him away." She paused again and her face turned puzzled. "Here's where the left out part comes in. No one knows what happened after. There had been rumors about something big that happened after Trinidad's imprisonment but no one kept records of it. All people knew was that something happened to the Legendary Heroes of the past. Something dark."

She turned to look at them again and saw that they were gaping at her like she had done something extraordinary that they couldn't believe. She giggled. "It seems that the story was quite interesting to you two."

Helga then snapped out of it by shaking her head and turning it away. "Yeah right. It's just some stupid fairy tale that you probably heard."

Ardine frowned at her. [What an exasperating girl!] But she decided to stay peaceful and not start any sort of shouting. Helga wouldn't think this was a fairy tale anyways when she was up close with danger. She decided to change the subject and tell them something very important. "You also need to know that the Angel Crystal won't work against Trinidad unless you haven't beaten his minions and gotten the love for Rorome."

"What do you mean?" Helga questioned, all of a sudden confused.

"What I mean is that the Angel Crystal most likely ran out of power when it brought the two of you here and it needs to power up again. In order to do that, you need to make the people of Rorome believe in what you're doing. The only way to do that is by defeating Trinidad's men. Just telling the people won't work." She paused then. "Anyways, I'm going to have to give you weapons so that you can survive against Trinidad's men when they attack you." She stood up and left before Arnold and Helga could question her further.

Helga turned to look at Arnold. Her eyes were almost pleading. "I don't like this Arnold. She wants us to fight someone and endanger our lives. I say we should just get out of here and go home."

Arnold looked away and bit his lip. "But Helga, we don't even know HOW to get home."

"Well, we'll just find some way," Helga argued, looking as if she wanted to anything in order to just forget any of this ever happened.

Before Arnold could say anymore, Ardine had come back with a long, thin something wrapped in a sheet, and a smaller something in a bag. She handed the long something to Arnold and then went over to hand the smaller something to Helga. "These are your weapons. They may take a little getting used to, but I'm sure you can do it."

She reached into her pocket and took out a small, clear stone that was glowing a faint green color. It reminded Helga of Arnold's eyes and she stared at it dreamily. Ardine walked over to Arnold. "This stone is called The Stone of Knowledge. There are many more out there, but they're quite expensive. I was lucky when I found this a few years back and even luckier that I decided not to use it unless it was absolutely necessary. With this stone you'll learn how to wield a sword and all you'll need to do is practice."

She reached out and placed the stone near Arnold's forehead. Helga watched as it slowly materialized into a light green powder, then it seeped through Arnold's head.

Ardine let it all sink in for Arnold, so she walked over to Helga. "You won't need a stone to help you learn how to use your cards Helga. They are special cards that you can only get in a hidden town. I found them in my house one day when I was cleaning. But these cards are magical cards that control the elements. They are healing cards, fire cards, love cards, hate cards, etc. You just need to learn an enemies weakness so that that can be the card you use."

Ardine clapped to get their attention since they were looking at their gifts strangely. She smiled brightly. "Okay. The last thing I need to do for the two of you is give you clothes, then transportation."

Helga's brow burrowed. "Why would we need new clothes?" She was getting mighty suspicious about the whole thing and that perhaps Ardine was just setting them off towards their death.

"You two don't look like you belong in Rorome so you stand out pretty well. But I can give you clothes so that you blend in and look less suspicious."

She then proceeded to grab both of their hands and lead them away towards some rooms.

^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~

[What weird clothes] Arnold thought as he looked at himself in the mirror. Ardine had given him only a green, muscle t-shirt (the kind with no sleeves. Like a tank-top) and a clear jacket that seemed to go quite well with the jeans he always wore.

He stepped out of the bedroom to find Helga already done changing. She was wearing pink (as usual) and it consisted of black, tight shorts, a pink shirt, and over that a pink over-coat type thing that had a tail like it was a tuxedo. (If you've played the Final Fantasy VIII game, or if you've seen the pictures and the characters, then imagine what Rinoa wears. That's what Helga's wearing, only in pink). Her hair was done but some of it was still held back by her bow (think Sailor Venus' hairstyle). The odd thing was that she was looking at her clothes as if she's seen them before.

"What's wrong Helga?" Arnold asked in concern. Why would she act like this with something she's probably never worn?

She looked up at him and shook her head. "No, nothing's wrong." She turned and walked back towards the living room, leaving him feeling like there was something she was hiding. He followed anyway and saw Ardine's face light up. "Wow. The clothes suit the both of you so well!"

Arnold blushed at that. "Thanks."

Ardine smiled, then made her way over to the door. "Well, the last thing left is transportation. I'm going to give you two the best Chocobo I have."

They followed her outside and walked until they reached the barn. Arnold helped her open the large door and when it opened, the smell of hay came out, and quite strongly too. But Helga didn't mind. It was a much better smell than her house, which smelled like beer, alcohol, pork rinds, and Olga's perfume.

The barn had about 50 stalls, many with Chocobo's of all sizes and colors. Helga thought it was weird when they were large chicks but now she was seeing large chicks in colors of blue and green. There was even a black one.

Ardine led them towards a ordinary chocobo with a nameplate that read "Raln". Ardine opened his stall and took him out, petting him as she went. "Meet Raln. He's the fastest one I have and the strongest. He surpassed the tests I put my chocobo's through each month to ensure their good health. He seems a little proud though so you have to be careful. He'll be the one to take you to Trinidad's castle."

Helga came over to pet him since she had been so curious over these large birds ever since she had seen them. When he saw her, he made a cute little noise, then nuzzled her and continued to make the sound. Ardine chuckled. "It appears that he likes you Helga."

But when Arnold went over to pet him, he took his head back and even tried to bite him. This shocked Arnold.

"Strange," Ardine mused softly. "He doesn't seem to like you Arnold. I wonder why…"

Helga laughed and Arnold realized for the first time since they had gotten their, Helga had been different up until now. But now the old Helga was back. "He doesn't like Arnold because he's a football head."

Arnold frowned at her. [What happened to the girl that had been nice up until now? Where did she go?]

Ardine shoved something in Arnold's face, getting him out of his thoughts. "Take this map. It's a magical map that shows where you have to go. Follow it no matter where it tells you to go. It's supposed to be a map of destiny."

Helga was finally able to voice a question that had been bothering her for some time now. "Where ARE you getting all these "magical" items from?"

Ardine shook her head. "I don't know. I felt like I've always had them and that I need to keep them for this day. They were just there in my house."

Helga could tell that she was telling the truth, so she just went ahead and mounted Raln. Arnold also made a move to mount him, but the proud chocobo just moved away from him and even tried to bite him again. Arnold sighed deeply.

"Looks like you'll have to walk Arnoldo," Helga mocked.

They began to move away from Ardine's ranch and waved goodbye to her before leaving into their first adventure…

^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~^_~

All right! Done with episode 1! FINALLY!! It was absolute torture writing this because I had re-done it a billion times. Everytime I did it, I wasn't satisfied with the way it came out and then I had to re-do it. But now I don't care that I'm not satisfied with it. I can't disappoint readers who were waiting.

Alright, and as a sorry to CoSmIc DrEaMeR, I have episode 2 out also. Yay! So go ahead and read that then review it!! Please????

Go ahead and enjoy episode 2!!!!