Number 6, Jay B: Here are all the answers, why Arnold seemed to be out of character lately.
As I told, this chapter is a little longer that the others, but I felt like I must put back Arnold's character into focus. (Helga, Lila and Phoebe stole too much "screen time" :)) So, I've cut the story into two pieces, it's easier to read (and review :)).
CHAPTER 11
CONVERSATIONS WITH THE UNREAL 1/II
I WANT MEDICINE
"Wake up short man." - Grandpa asked Arnold - "C'mon, you can't sleep all day." - Arnold's eyes popped out. It was grandpa sitting on the edge of his bed. It was really him. His grandfather, Phil, who died seven years ago, was here, waking him up.
"It... It's you... How..." - Arnold asked. He realized where he is - in his old room at Sunset arms. But it was strange - the furniture, was a weird mixture from his pre-teen and teen years. He had the weird "Hey Arnold!" alarm clock with the potato battery on the shelf from when he was nine, but there was a picture of the Babewatch chicks on the wall from a lot later.
"No... unfortunately I'm not him." - Phil said with a sad expression. "Nobody gets a second chance like that, not even me. I'm only here because you're in you're own mind right now."
"Brainy... he injected something to me." - he realized - "Probably some drug."
"Yeah, looks like it." - grandpa said.
"Grandpa... am I dying?" - Arnold asked. He was thinking about Helga. She must be sitting next to him at the hospital, and loosing him right now.
"Do I look like a doctor to you?" - grandpa asked. - "I have no idea."
"So... why are you here?"
"Because you've seen too many movies about inner journeys, and you think you must have a guide for that. This is not a too creative dream Arnold"
"I will have an inner journey?" - he asked.
"Of course. That's why you're here, in the Boardinghouse of Memories." - Phil said.
"Boardinghouse of Memories? Seriously?" - he asked, as he stood up - "This is really lame."
"Hey, it was your mind that came up with that." - Grandpa said.
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The Patakis were all looking on the small creepy woman and the tall, creepy man. The girl - Phoebe - came in to wait for Helga, who is on her way - as she said. A few minutes later the man arrived too, so they both get their guns, and took them as hostages. They tied them up, to three chairs at the kitchen, where the man - Phoebe called him Brainy - was guarding them, while he was feasting on food he stole from the Patakis fridge.
"So... Big Bob. What kind of name is that?" - the woman asked.
"What do you want?" - Olga asked. It was a pretty bad time for her to visit the Patakis.
"The same what all the girls. Do a little dance, make a little love... get down tonight. I really missed that from my life until now."
"I meant what do you want from us."
"Well... I've got tired of Helga bitching' about you all the time. You were a horrible, horrible family for her. So I think I'll do her a favor and cut you all into pieces." - Helga said. Olga's skin seemed to turn white - "No, not yet. I bet she's going to show up sooner or later, so I can do it in front of her eyes.. If not, I'll send Miriam's head in a box to her. I bet she will get the massage."
"You're a freak." - Big Bob said - "I knew it since I first seen you. You're in love with my daughter you sick whore, and..."
"Brainy, please." - Paige said. The man hit Bob on the face in the exact moment Paige gave the order. Bob just shut up.
"Bad manners. It's running' in the family, huh?" - Paige asked.
"You're not making any sense." - a voice said behind her. She turned around, there was Phoebe sitting at the kitchen table. - "Why would you hurt the Patakis? You claim to hate Helga, and she obviously hates this family. So why do you care about them, while you should hurt the ones Helga really likes."
"Shut your face." - Paige said. Brainy and the Patakis looked at her in disbelief. She must be completely nuts if she's talking to herself.
"It's my anger isn't it. My anger I felt against these people, for making an emotional cripple from my best friend." - Phoebe said.
"No! It will hurt Helga more than anything! She will feel guilty, and...!"
"You're loosing it Paige. You've run out of Salvazin. And since you're little secret is out, I bet you won't be able to make more anytime soon. And now, I' know you exist, so I can make the necessary precautions. So, next time you will go back to the darkness, you will stay there forever." - Phoebe said - "All these months of planning and hiding was for nothing, simply because you underestimated Lila. Just like you underestimated all of us."
"No! Arnold! Brainy..."
"Yeah, Brainy shot him with a huge dose of Salvazin. That means, there's less left for you."
"But he probably won't survive it!" - Paige screamed at her.
"Whatever you want to believe Paige. Don't forget it: a few days and I'll be back in charge. And there's nothing you can do about it."
"You're right Pheebs." - Paige said as she opened her bag with a huge smile on her face - "I don't have much time left. So I shall make some necessary precautions too." - she started to put huge sticks to the table from the bag.
"Eeh... Excuse me Paige... What are those?" - Brainy asked. He was pretty worried about Paige's state of mind. He may be a danger to herself and Brainy too.
"What does it look like? Birthday candles of course." - she answered.
"They look like explosives from here." - Bob whispered to Miriam - "Lots of it." - Paige still saw Phoebe sitting at the table.
"What do you think you're doing? You want to blow up the whole block?" - she asked in shock. Paige still smiled.
"You and I will go out with a BANG honey!" - she said. Phoebe just stood there and watched. Paige was too strong. She couldn't do a thing about it... not yet.
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The Boardinghouse of Memories was pretty chaotic. It's angles was strange - like they were, when he was looking on the house as a kid. He and Grandpa just left Arnold's room, and they were walking on the first floor.
"So short man, where do you want to start?" - Phil asked.
"I still don't get what are we doing here." - Arnold said.
"We will explore your subconscious of course." - he said - "Here's this room for example."
"This is where Mr. Kokoska and Suzie used to live." - Arnold said.
"Yes. Open it." - so he did. He was pretty surprised when he seen the five girls sitting there around a strange, football shaped table. Ruth McDonald, Arnold's first crush opened the line, who became the queen bitch of the high school when she became a teenager. And there was Arnold's substitute teacher too. Arnold used to have a crush on her, but now, he didn't even remembered her name. Lila was there of course, but she didn't looked into his eyes, just looked at her shoes. Next to her Janet was sitting with a charming smile. She was a girl in collage she liked pretty much, but nothing happened mainly because of Lila. And for the last, there was Helga of course, but for some strange reason she was dressed up like Arnold's childhood pen pal, Cecile. It was a long story.
"Hey Arnold!" - she said, with a ridiculous fake French accent.
"What are you girls doing here?"
"We're waiting for you of course." - Lila said. - "We've always been waiting here."
"There's not much to do around here by the way." - Helga said. They were the only ones, who returned Arnold's feeling, that was the reason they were able to talk. The other girls were only... shadow puppets. Arnold decided that's enough and he closed the door.
"Okay that was... weird." - he said. - "It was the room of the women of my life?"
"Yes." - Phil said - "It's a very small room you know. You only had... well two girls in your life for real. Most guys your age have a lot bigger room of women in their head. You're pal Gerald actually having a whole Parking Lot of Women."
"Yeah... I have Helga. I don't need anyone else." - Arnold said.
"Oh, yes Helga. Later, we shall go and visit the First Church of the Meanest One. It's in the wardrobe." - Phil said.
"It's a church for Helga?" - Arnold asked.
"Yes."
"In the wardrobe?"
"Yes."
"I'm a pretty sick dude, huh Grandpa?"
"I've seen worst." - Grandpa said. Suddenly, Arnold noticed a pretty quiet voice. He was able to recognize it anywhere. It was a child's crying.
"Where the hell is that coming from?" - Arnold asked.
"You're daydreaming short man." - Phil said. Arnold was pretty surprised - even if he addressed him Grandpa when he talked to him, inside he called him Phil. He didn't know when did Grandpa turned into Phil. But it was pretty depressing.
"But I'm pretty sure I heard... crying."
"Don't even care about it. There are pretty dangerous places in your mind Arnold." - he said. - "Believe me, you don't want to know what's making that noise."
"But I think he needs help..."
"This is your head. Nobody needs your help here... except you of course. Here we are: the Chamber of fears." - Phil said, as they reached the room number 8. At the age of five Arnold locked himself inside for almost a whole day. That time in that room, alone, in the dark was one of the worst experiences of his life.
"Listen grandpa, I'm really not getting it. Why are we doing this. There's no point."
"Trust me. You will love this." - Phil said, as he opened the door. They didn't called it chamber for nothing. It was huge.
"Oh my god." - he said
"That's nothing really. You shall see your Hall of guilt." - Phil said. - "It's even bigger." - There were all kind of dark, shadowy, blurry creatures and objects all over - probably his passed fears. A huge spider. A monster from a movie. His current boss at the Hillwood Journal. A little girl with a huge pink bow and one eyebrow. A stork (Arnold feared from stokes since he could remember) The Sewer King. A teenage girl, with hardly separated eyebrows and a pretty huge hand knife. Wolfgang. Scheck, the mad businessman, who tried to tear the neighborhood down. He was able to hear the shadows whispering.
"Hey, It's that strange headed kid again! Maybe this time I will take everything he has." - Sheck said to the others.
"I will be back for my watch again one day!" - the Sewer King answered.
"What a stupid dwarf." - Little Helga said.
"I will cut him into pieces." - Teenage Helga replied, as she was playing with her blade. Arnold had a pretty scary encounter with that knife when he was thirteen. They never talked about it since then, but the incident burned itself into Arnold's memory.
"I think there are enough pieces for all of us, Helga darling." - a voice said. It was Lila. Not the child, not the teen, the current Lila. And unlike the others, she had her colors. She was actually pretty real. There was Phoebe standing next to her... well, not Phoebe... that thing he encountered earlier. Helga called her... Paige. And of course, there was Brainy standing there too. He looked a lot taller, then in reality and he had a gulf club in his hand. They were his current fears, while the others... they represented Arnold's basic fears.
"I want to drink his blood." - Lila said. - "I've drunk it for years, and it's delicious!" - they got closer and closer so Arnold turned around, but he couldn't run. There was the Helgas in the way, with thousands of shadow creatures behind them.
"You really believed we love you?" - Teenage Helga asked with a cruel laughter - "A little snot like you?"
"Don't you get it Football Head?" - Little Helga asked with an evil smile - "This is the final prank! You believed us for all these years! The joke is on you dwarf boy!" - they laughed, just like all the other shadow creatures.
"This..." - Teenage Helga said, as raised her knife - "... is the real me. I just made up that "artistic-sensitive" persona so I can hurt you more!"
Arnold didn't knew what to do, so he had run to the closest wall. Only when he got there, a door appeared in front of him, with the sign:
"WORST CASE SCENARIO"
There was nothing else to do, than enter. For his surprise he got into an office building. The shadow creatures was not able to enter here. He saw himself sitting at the table, talking on the phone. It was him - maybe ten years from now. He had a few grey hair, and his face looked a lot older. It was the face of the man, who lost all of his illusions. Who just sick of his life and everybody in it.
"Yes, honey... I'm sorry, I have to work late. Yeah, don't wait for me. Kiss the children in my name. I love you too Helga. Bye." - he said, as he hung up the phone. For some reason, Arnold knew exactly what's happening, but he couldn't do anything about it. The door opened, and beautiful young girl entered. He seemed to be the fusion of Helga, Lila and - for some strange reason - Rhonda. She was his secretary.
"Everything okay honey?" - she asked. - "Can we go now? The plane will leave in two hours, and I still want to drink a coffee."
"Anything you want." - he said as he kissed her, and put his hands around her waist. A minute later he grabbed her ass too. She giggled.
"So, you're wife will take good care of the kids?" - she asked.
"Yeah. I can get rid of them at last. They were just slowing me down. I'm so happy I decided to start a new life with you! I should have done it years ago."
"You're not having second thoughts, do you? - she asked.
"No! I never had a father either, and I turned out to be just fine too. It will be for the best."
"Stop it you bastard!" - Arnold screamed at his other self, but they didn't hear him. He was just a ghost here.
"I'm so glad I took that offer." - the other Arnold said - "Mr. Sheck said I did a lot for Futuretech, and I have high hopes here. Well, after I arrange to build that Mall, and tear down that dirty old neighborhood in Seattle of course."
"Out with the old, in with the new." - the girl said smiling.
"Exactly. Out with the in old, in with the new." - he said, and kissed his new girl..
"You son of a bitch!" - Arnold screamed. He tried to grab his other self, or hit him, but he couldn't touch him - like he was air. So the other him, and his secretary left the office, let him alone again. He was able to see Helga crying at home, when the all the children went to sleep. He was able to see her begging to Big Bob, to support her family with a little money, so she can by the school books for the kids.
"There's nothing more to see here short-man." - Phil said. He just appeared next to him, with a grim face.
"What was this all about."
"You're fears Arnold. It was your biggest fear ever." - Phil said, as he opened the door. They were back in the boardinghouse again.
"So you tell me I'm afraid the most from myself? That I will leave the ones I love?" - he asked - "But why?"
"It's something you have to know yourself." - Phil said. Arnold heard the crying again, but this time, it was much louder. It was coming from the basement.
"What's in the basement?" - Arnold asked.
"You don't want to know Arnold." - Phil said - "You think you faced the worst. But believe me you didn't. There are monsters here, buried deep down. They're not meant to be faced, even in a journey like this."
"But... it sounds like he needs help."
"He's not buried there for nothing." - Phil said -"Come on, we have places to go."
"No." - Arnold stopped - "We've been fooling around here long enough! I want to know what's going on, and what is down there in the basement!" - somehow Arnold knew, whatever is the reason of being here, is down there.
"But..."
"Sorry Grandpa." - he said, as he walked down the stairs.
"Wait! Arnold you can't!" - the crying got louder and louder as he got closer and closer to the basement door. There was a huge lock on it with metal chains. For a moment it seemed like he can't open it, but he realized this is his mind after all. Grandpa looked pretty terrified when the door opened. There was a little boy sitting in the corner, looking at the wall.
"Are you all right?" - Arnold asked. The kid looked back behind his shoulder. It was him - it was Arnold in the age of 8 or 9. Not like he was a cry baby back then.
"You came back! You came back for me!" - the boy said as he stood up. - "All these years... I knew you will let me out again!"
"What are you talking about?"
"You locked me up in here... you know... when Grandma and Grandpa went away... You said we have to grow up. Don't you remember."
"He's right Arnold." - Phil said. "That's why I didn't wanted you to come down here."
"I have only one question." - Arnold said as he turned back to Phil - "Who the hell are you? Because your not my grandfather or some mysterious inner guide. That's for sure."
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Read the next chapter, "Orphans" where Arnold's inner journey will end. One way or another!
Please review! I NEED REVIEWS. Even if they're critic, that's where one can learn from.
