I knew there was something I was forgetting. No, I didn't really
forget about this; I've been working on it night and day. Aside from
difficulties like a death in the family, trying to train a new puppy, a
graduation at the school where I work, and just plain old writers block;
this piece of writing did something with which I should be familiar by now:
it grew on me. That piece with the montage I mentioned? Next time; it just
didn't seem to go together with this. I figured it had better be released
separately. Hopefully, I've justified your continued enthusiasm and support
with this and succeeding chapters. I'm still working on the montage and at
least I know exactly what I want. Almost. And it's that 'almost' that
guarantees delay, delay, delay. I'll try to keep that to a minimum.
Speaking of reviews, as Goofy would say, gawrsh! I continue to be flattered and humbled. Thank y'all for the kind words, and I'll keep trying to deserve them.
Thanks, Ms. Prongs. Yeah, I'm liking that too, obviously; and I'm building on it. This will continue to develop in diverse ways; you'll see. I liked that line, too. Yes, Brainy should be happy; this IS the Brainy Saga after all. And I meant what I said about your fics. As to reviewing, we'll see; obviously I'm a bit slow at getting anything done.
Thank you, JESS. I'll just say I agree with you.
Thanks, Ivory. I think we're thinking along the same lines. And the complexity will continue.
Thank you, Roxy, for that awesome review and the awesome IM. The planning will continue.
Thanks, Sleather. They do seem mature for 12, 13 year olds. Is it just me, or do the characters on the show seem mature for fourth-graders? shrug I didn't think Phoebe was out of line; her conduct was well explained by Lila. Brainy should've known better; even he's not perfect. ;)
Thank you, Cosmosfan, if you're still there. I'm floored. Really.
Thanks, SSBM. I hoped you liked it; I've been working on it night and day. I look forward to Three Months.
Thank you, Paradoxical Reality (is there a way to shorten that?:) ) ; I think you get it. Phoebe's motivation I mean. I'm glad my intentions continue to bear fruit like they apparently do. Trust me; when the time comes, Olga will come on like gangbusters, and if there's anyone who doesn't like her after that, I give up. I'd better stop before I give away the plot.
Nory, mmmmmmm, COULD be. Thanks.
And thank you, Houkanno Yuuhou. You're right about just about everything you mentioned. You continue to flatter me. As to making someone cry, it's not like he's never done it before. I've seen proof in Arnold's Halloween and Arnold's Thanksgiving. Then there was Quantity Time. I believe that no one is beyond hope; not Lila, not Olga, and not even Big Bob Pataki. I can't speak to the similarities, but I'll try to keep it as realistic as possible.
Thank you, Ryoko-onee. Even the end of this will only be the end of the beginning. Here's more.
Thanks, zali. Hmm, wondering if you're from Hawaii. I liked those parts too. I'm still trying to keep them in character, and to keep it up. Here's the latest.
Hey Arnold! is created, owned, and / or copyrighted by Craig Bartlett, Snee-Oosh, and / or Nickelodeon, which in turn is owned by Viacom. "How Can We Be Lovers" is from the Michael Bolton album Soul Provider on Columbia records, a unit of Sony.
"...and that's why I can't tell him."
"I see."
"Phoebe, tell me again why we're going over stuff you already know?"
"I just thought that if we talked out the whole situation I'd see an option I hadn't before."
"And?"
"I might see something, but it would require a significant amount of patience."
"Well, what is it? I'm desperate enough to try almost anything."
"Anything short of telling him."
"Well, yes. So?"
"You might need to spend more time with him."
"Phoebe--"
"Hear me out. There have been times when he could barely stand you. True?"
"True."
"Those were times you were especially harsh, toward him in particular. True?"
"True."
"But now you've dared to let your guard down around him, somewhat. True?"
"True."
"And how has he been acting since then?"
"pause I dunno, okkay I guess."
"Just, okkay?"
"He's been real nice, all right? Criminey, why are you being so nosy all of a sudden?"
"Because I want my best friend to be happy. Is there anything wrong with that?"
"sigh No. But Phoebe... look, would you like it if I tried to hook you up with Geraldo?"
"...um..."
"'T'swhat I thought."
"Would you like to hear my reasons for your spending time with Arnold or not?"
"sigh all right, go ahead Pheebs."
"I think this would be the best way to get Arnold to like you, if he doesn't like you already."
"WHAT!?!"
"You heard me."
long pause
"All right Phoebe, start over from the beginning."
"From the dawn of time, or farther back than that?"
"You know what I mean! What's going on, Phoebe, or have you finally snapped?"
"Snapped?"
"This project you're doing; I saw what it did to you the first day! And all this time having to work with Brainy and Liii-la, it's finally driven you over the edge hasn't it?"
"Helga, I assure you I am as sane now as I ever was. I'm simply trying to tell you--"
"That Arnold might like me? Whatever gave you that idea?"
"You might not have noticed, but he has looked at you. Even when you were being a bully I saw him looking, like he was trying to figure you out."
"So I'm a lab experiment to him?"
"More like a mystery, an object of fascination to him. He wonders about you."
"pfft, yeah, right."
"Really."
"Next you'll be saying he's been flirting with me."
"Well..."
"You're kidding."
"Do you remember when we went to the wrong restaurant? We wound up doing k.p. to work off the bill."
"Yeah."
"Do you want to tell me what happened, or shall I tell you?"
"I, I don't know what you're talking about."
"Helga, it's me, Phoebe. Remember, right after he told you he thought what you did was sophisticated?"
"Uhhhhhh..."
"He then squirted you and then he--"
"How? There is no way you could possibly know that! Your back was to us; you couldn't have seen the squirt OR the wink."
"So he did wink at you."
"You mean you DIDN'T know?"
"I had an idea, but I wasn't certain."
"I still don't see how you could have figured out that much."
"I have ears, Helga. I heard what he said, I heard a squirt--"
"But you couldn't have SEEN anything! Like I said, your back was to us. You were in front of us, facing the same direction we were."
"Those restaurant kitchens are full of highly reflective surfaces. I only had to look up. I wasn't certain it was a wink, but otherwise..."
"You made your point. So, sigh you actually think that there could be something there?"
"There are few things of which I am more certain."
"sigh I just don't know..."
"Helga, I know what I'm talking about. I consider myself an astute observer of people. You knew that when you decided to tell me the identity of your obsession; you knew that I had already figured it out--"
"All right, Pheebs, you've made your point, criminey!"
"So you'll do it?"
"I'll think about it."
"Helga..."
"Well, whadda ya want, for me to call him up and make a date with him?"
"Not if you really have a problem with that. Of course, in these times when gender roles are falling by the way, it is becoming accepted that the girl is as able to initiate making a date as the boy is."
"That's not the point, Phoebe, and you know it."
"Yes, I do. Helga, it wouldn't even have to be a date. You could just ask to talk with him. You told me about the same thing happening last week but even if you hadn't I would've known you'd been unburdening yourself; you looked more peaceful last week than I'd seen you in some time."
"And you think that more of the same could do me good, could even get me closer to him?"
"Helga, after that Ronnie Matthews debacle, I never thought that I would hear myself quoting another pop prima donna; but Michael Bolton was right, how CAN you be lovers if you can't be friends?"
"Lovers? Phoebe!"
"You know what I mean."
long pause
"What do you have to lose?"
"Everything. My self-respect."
"Is it worth that much to you? And Arnold already knows almost everything there is to know. I stress the word 'almost'."
more silence
"It is only logical that the closer you get to him, the more comfortable you will be with the idea of telling him."
even more silence, then... "I'll tell you what. If he asks for us to get together I'll agree. Fair enough?"
"Yes."
"But that's a big 'if', mind you. I mean, what're the odds that he'd call me and ask to get together-- BEEP "
"What's that?"
"The call waiting. Could I call you back?"
"Certainly. Talk to you later then?"
"Right. Bye, Pheebs."
"Ja mata."
"Right."
click
click
So the ended the conversation. Phoebe was at her house; specifically, she was in her room, as were the others in the trio. An unofficial group planning session was, well, in session.
"Nice improvisation, Phoebe." Brainy said, immediately after the hang- up.
"Thank you."
"Not to mention unexpected. I didn't know that."
"There's actually something about Helga you didn't know?"
"I didn't know the specifics of that; I can't be by her all the time. Was it the time she won that restaurant coupon?"
"Yes."
knock knock knock
"Come in."
Through the door stepped Reba Heyerdahl, bearing a tray laden with food and drink. "I thought you and your friends would be ready for a snack about now, Phoebe."
"Thank you, Mother."
"Thank you, Mrs. Heyerdahl." Brainy and Lila chorused.
As the door closed behind her mother, Phoebe adopted an expression that said, "Huh?" Her face cleared, however, as she remembered that as Brainy had already talked with her mother nothing was to be gained or lost from wheezing around her.
Phoebe tried to take the lead in planning. "So now that I've laid the groundwork for tomorrow--"
But was derailed again by Brainy. "You mean now that WE'VE laid the groundwork. You worked on Helga while I've been working on Arnold."
"But you've been here the whole time."
"Another note?" Lila broke her silence.
"Exactly. They'll keep her in his mind. In fact I wouldn't be surprised if he was the other call Helga got that caused her to hang up on you, Phoebe."
"Oh don't be ridiculous; something like that would be too contrived to be believable."
"Truth is stranger than fiction, Phoebe."
How right he was.
click "Hello?"
"Helga?"
"ARNOLD! I mean, what do YOU want?!"
"Helga, it's just me. Remember? You don't have to pretend to hate me anymore when it's just the two of us?"
"Oh, yeah, right. Sorry Arnold; force of habit."
"It's all right."
"So why did you call?"
"Umm..."
"'Umm...' would be nice, or might be if I knew what it meant. Now make sense, Hair Boy."
"All right. Do you have any plans for tomorrow afternoon?"
"No, why?"
"Maybe we could get together and talk."
"Talk?"
"Yeah, like we did last Saturday."
"You mean...?"
"You don't have to tell me any secrets if you don't want to, and I'm not asking you to cry either because I know how upsetting that can be, although if you decide it's necessary, I'd be right there to, to hold your hand or whatever."
"What?!?" She couldn't believe it. Arnold, her Arnold, the boy --- now a young man --- whom she had been worshipping for most of her misbegotten youth, was practically asking her out on a date, not two minutes after Phoebe had talked her into accepting if he asked? This was too much of a coincidence. "Arnold, have you been talking with anyone about what we've been talking about?"
"No! I told you I wouldn't tell."
"You haven't heard from anyone to cause you to do this?"
"Heard from anyone?" Arnold was now a bit nervous. And understandably so; he had found from bitter experience how hard it was for him to keep a secret once it was found out that he even had one. And while he hadn't really heard from anyone, he was at this moment holding in his hot little hand the latest mysterious missive from his cryptic correspondent. This one read, "Weren't those caves cozy?" Which had taken his mind back to exploring for the treasure of Wheezin' Ed. He'd remembered Helga jumping into his arms. Which wasn't the only time that had ever happened, now that he thought about it. That time she'd helped them save Mighty Pete...
"HEY ARNOLD!!"
"Wha-?"
"You zoned out on me there. Have you been daydreaming?"
"Uh, yeah."
"tsk , you are such a football-head, you know that?"
"Every time I look in a mirror. What does that mean anyway, other than the shape of my head?"
"Don't change the subject!"
"I'm sorry. What was it?"
"I was asking if you'd been talking to someone. Have you heard from Phoebe lately?"
"Phoebe?"
"Yeah, Phoebe. My best friend? Dark hair, Oriental features, studious to say the least, one of the nicest people either one of us know?"
"I know who she is, Helga. Um, no, not since the game last week. We're having one tonight, right?"
"You're doing it again, Arnold."
"Sorry."
"So you haven't heard from Phoebe lately. Has she mentioned anything to you?"
"Well, we've been discussing bonsai lately, but that's about it."
"Bonsai?"
"Yeah. Remember that night I found you two taking a walk on my fire escape?"
"Um, yeah."
"I guess Phoebe saw me tending my bonsai because she's been sharing advice on bonsai care with me since then. She does have one herself, right?"
"Uh, yeah, in her room, next to her bed. She had to replace it a couple years back, some kind of accident... So she hasn't mentioned anything to you, about anyone?"
"No, just bonsai. Why?"
"Uh, no reason. It's just--" Her voice was interrupted by other voices from elsewhere in the house, raised voices which penetrated even through her closed and locked door. One of those voices she was still getting used to hearing at that level.
It was a level loud enough to be overheard.
"Sorry about that, Arnold."
"It's not your fault."
"I'm not sure; this past week it's like all the arguments have been about me, and I haven't even done anything!"
"Who's been arguing?"
"Bob and Olga. I don't understand it; it's like she's been defending me, every time I've been dissed, all week!"
"Maybe Olga's trying to be a better sister."
"snort Part of me actually wants to believe that but... Maybe you're right. Maybe we should meet tomorrow."
"All right. Same time and place?"
"Yeah yeah, sure, whatever floats your boat, football-head."
"See you in a few hours, then?"
"What?"
"The game? You never did say if we had one today, come to think of it."
"Oh, um, yeah, we do."
"All right then."
"Right, like you said, in a few hours."
"Goodbye, Helga."
"Goodbye, Arnold."
click
Within one second of hanging up on one of her two closest confidants, Helga's finger impaled a certain speed dial button which would connect her with the other one.
"Someone has some explaining to do."
Meanwhile, at the Heyerdahls, the ringing phone interrupted the latest round of conspiring.
"Hold on, you two."
"Holding." the other two chorused.
Phoebe grimaced. "Stop it."
"Stopping."
Choosing to ignore that one, Phoebe lifted the receiver. And was immediately assaulted over the air.
"Hello? -- Helga? -- What? -- What do you mean-? -- Did I what? -- Wait, Helga, -- "
Brainy was quick to catch on. "Come on," he said to Lila as he moved to help her up, "we'd better give her some privacy."
Lila silently acquiesced, reaching her hands out toward Brainy's. Both of them now on their feet, they left the room, Phoebe still attempting to decipher her friend's expostulations.
They hadn't taken half a dozen steps each before they met Phoebe's mother.
"Taking a break?"
"In a way, Mrs. Heyerdahl." Lila responded. "Helga called and we figured the two of them might appreciate being able to talk without us eavesdropping, accidentally or not."
"Yes, they would appreciate that, knowing Helga. So what are the two of you going to do while you're waiting for Phoebe to finish?"
Lila was about to respond, but was surprised when Brainy spoke up. "I was thinking we could have a word with each other. I wonder if you could direct us to a place where we won't be in the way of you or your husband?"
"Now isn't that considerate of you. You could use the deck. It's on up at that end of the hall; do you see that door?"
"Yes ma'am."
"It opens out onto the deck. Y'all will be able to find your way out there all right?"
"Yes ma'am."
"Okkay. Now you two behave yourselves and I'll try to hurry Phoebe along."
"Yes ma'am, and she needn't hurry on our account. Thank you, Mrs. Heyerdahl."
"You're welcome."
Brainy turned, intending to wave Lila on ahead of him, only to find her with a strange look on her face. Like it was her turn to question him. Pondering this caused his face to resemble hers, but he kept his questions in check; rather, he extended an elbow, which she took. Then, arm in arm, they strolled down the hall toward the door which would open onto the second floor deck. Leaving a bemused matron of the house looking on.
"Such a cute couple", she found herself thinking, before she changed direction and started walking, her destination being the door to her daughter's room.
Said daughter was already having her hands full over the phone line.
"Helga, not fifteen minutes ago we were just like this, talking to each other over the phone. You told me then that I wasn't making sense; now it seems the roles have reversed. Perhaps you should be the one to start from the beginning. What's going on?"
"Maybe you should tell me, Belle Boyd."
"Belle Boyd? The Confederate spy?"
"Congratulations; you get an A in American history."
"And you get an A in confusion, not to mention blathering. If there's something you have against me --- as I deduce from what sense I could make of what you've been saying --- then just make it clear, accuse me, ask a question, something!"
"What have you told Arnold?"
"Finally. What have I told Arnold about what?"
"What do you think?"
"You?"
"Me."
"Helga, I can keep a secret. I haven't said a word about you to him."
"Have you mentioned anything?"
"Helga, wait a minute, could you at least tell me what brought this on?"
"I just got off the phone with him--"
"Was that the other call?"
"Yes, and don't interrupt."
"Sorry."
"He asked me to get together with him tomorrow, like we did last week."
"That's wonderful, Helga!"
"It's suspicious is what it is. How do you explain that he was asking me to do the exact same thing that you had just talked me into doing?"
"Coincidence?"
"I don't believe in coincidence, and I thought you didn't either."
"I don't, but someone told me a while ago that truth is stranger than fiction; and the more of these things I see and hear about, the more inclined I am to believe it."
"Phoebe--"
"Besides, you said he was the other call that caused you to hang up on me; when would I have had the opportunity to suggest such a thing to him?"
"Um, well, you got me there... Wait! You could have done that in advance."
"I suppose I could have, but I didn't."
"Phoebe--"
knock knock knock "Phoebe, you might want to keep it short. Your friends are out on the deck waiting for you to finish."
Phoebe almost jumped. "Yes, mother."
She then turned back to the phone. "Helga, the only thing I've been discussing with Arnold lately is bonsai."
"Bonsai?"
"Bonsai. You know, those miniature trees, as you call them? Like the one by my bed?"
"So he does have a bonsai?"
"You mean you haven't noticed, as many times as you must have been in his room?"
"I, I hadn't really thought to look, it hadn't exactly been uppermost in my thoughts."
"Not even this past couple weeks when you didn't have to keep a low profile in there?"
"I, I can't talk about that, that's about the project."
"You're evading."
"When did you start talking bonsai with him anyway?"
And the evasions continue went through Phoebe's mind. "Remember that sleepwalking incident? We mistook his bonsai for him, shadow-wise? You must have noticed he had it then!"
Exactly what he said Helga thought, before catching herself for the umpteenth and... oh, who's keeping track? "Uh, guess I forgot... look, can we just forget I brought it up?"
"Forgetting."
"Good."
"Except,"
"What?"
"Are you going to accept his invitation?"
Helga allowed herself to smile. "I already have."
"Good. I'm so happy for you, Helga."
"Hey, it's not like he asked me to m..., m..., m...,"
"Marry him?"
"Uh....."
"One step at a time, Helga." Now Phoebe was smiling.
"Phoebe!"
And laughing. She was thoroughly enjoying this new openness she had with her best friend since the sham of the "ice cream" secret had been laid bare to both of them and swept aside. Good-natured ribbing; one of the fringe benefits of being able to be honest with your best friend.
Meanwhile, out on the deck, Brainy was taking in the view. And enjoying it.
While he was at it, he admired the Heyerdahl house.
"Three stories, an outdoor deck on the second floor, a fencing room, and I'm sure there's even more we don't know about. This is the best- looking house I've ever seen. If Phoebe's family isn't rich, they're close enough." He slowly turned around to face Lila, his gaze scanning around the deck. "Heh, ever notice how that umbrella looks like a satellite dish from a distance?"
He stopped as he noticed, by sight and by hearing, that Lila wasn't into it that day.
"What?"
"Have you been here before?"
"No, why?"
"You were actually conversant with her."
"I'd spoken with her on the phone last week."
"And didn't see the need to wheeze."
"Over the phone, actually I saw the need to not wheeze."
"Oh?"
Brainy smiled. "Lila, if you answered the phone and heard heavy breathing, what would you say?"
"Hello, Brainy."
"Fair enough. But what if you didn't know it was me? Or what if your father had answered the phone?"
Lila nodded. "I see." Then she fell silent.
Brainy could see that whatever was troubling her, it hadn't been resolved. "Problem?"
She was preoccupied to the extent that he had to repeat himself. "What?"
"You seem out of it today."
"I talked with Olga before I came over."
"Bad news?"
"She's been better. This past week she's been standing up for Helga, out of sight of Helga mostly. And it's been an uphill battle."
Brainy sat down in a deck chair next to the one in which Lila was seated. Now he too was in a moody mood, as it were. "I'm not surprised to hear that. You used the right word, Lila; it is and will continue to be a battle. It's going to get worse before it gets better. And when the confrontation happens --- and it will happen, there's no way around that --- it will be ugly."
A sad Lila closed her eyes and shook her head. "I don't know if Olga will be able to handle it."
Brainy nodded. "That's why you have to toughen her up."
Her head shot up in shock. "Me?!?"
"You are her only confidant on this matter. There's no one else to whom she can turn."
"But I can't toughen anyone up! I'm almost as emotionally weak as she is!"
"So we'll have to work on you first, then you can work on her."
Lila was reeling; her head was in her hands, tears about to come again. "Oh, Brainy, Brainy,... I just don't know if I can."
Brainy was at her side in a trice, trying his best to console her. "Lila?"
Her head lifted.
"I'm sorry about what this is doing to you, and will continue to do. All of us are suffering, you know that. Helga, Phoebe, me."
Lila nodded.
"If there was another way to do this we'd take it. You also know that."
"Yes." she whispered.
"And we haven't figured anything out. I haven't, neither has Phoebe. What about you? You're no slouch in the brains department, you still buzz in ahead of Phoebe at times. Can you think of another way to achieve our goal?"
A disconsolate Lila mutely shook her head. Accepting her answer as though he knew what it would be but had still been holding out hope, Brainy nodded acknowledgment.
"Then we have no choice; we have to go with this. Which means a rough ride, and you're in the driver's seat.
She was now officially crying, a little. "I'm scared, Brainy."
Tissues at the ready, he did what he could. "I know; so am I. But hey, we'll get through this."
"You really think so?"
"Always thinking positive works for Arnold, right?"
"Not always."
"Much of the time then. Enough for me to try it."
A sad smile found its way onto Lila's face. "He is the role model for us, isn't he?"
Brainy's face now sported the smile's twin. "Isn't he though. If anyone was ever worthy of Helga--"
"Other than you."
He now accented the sad smile with closed eyes and a shaking head. "I wasn't going to say that. But I'm glad you did." he added, looking Lila in the eyes again.
Lila's face now threatened to revert to a crying phase. "It's going to take a miracle to pull this off."
The sad smile returned to Brainy's face. "We'll just have to see to it that that happens, then, won't we?"
"Just like that?"
"Arnold works miracles all the time; how hard can it be?"
Now it was hard to tell whether Lila was laughing or crying; maybe both.
The tender moment was stopped when four young ears heard the door to the deck open. The owners thereof composed themselves just in time to face the lady of the house.
"I hope I'm not interrupting anything."
"Oh, no, Mrs. Heyerdahl." Lila said. "I was upset about something, and Brainy was trying to help me through it."
"Anything I can help with?"
"No, I'm fine now."
"All right. Oh, Phoebe's almost finished with her call. Y'all might want to head in."
"Yes ma'am."
"Thank you, Mrs. Heyerdahl." Brainy added as they passed her.
Once out of earshot, the planning continued.
"I might need to keep an eye on Phoebe and Gerald on their dates. After you, Lila." Brainy added as he opened the door into the house.
Lila entered, followed by him.
"Thank you. Why?"
"To make sure they don't accidentally run into Arnold and Helga. It wouldn't do for Gerald to find out, not at all."
"True." Lila agreed.
But as the two of them approached the door to the room of their co- conspirator, something was nagging at her, something to which she had to give voice. "Is it Phoebe?"
Brainy was utterly sandbagged. He blinked in incomprehension. "What?"
"Is Phoebe the girl you're interested in?"
Brainy had to think about that one, really think. His face showed it. While he was arriving at a course of action, he silently conveyed to Lila his opinion of her opinion, bewilderment mixed in with incredulity. Finally...
"No, it's not Phoebe. Why would you think that?"
"You seem ever so familiar with her actions, ever so interested in what she does, where she goes..."
"Of course I'm interested in her doings; she's the best friend of my former obsession who is the subject of our project. Following the same line of logic, Helga is in this house a lot so it would follow that I would be familiar with it. But that's it."
"Oh."
"Besides, she's not my type."
That brought Lila to attention. "Oh? What is your type?"
A sidelong smirk came. "The type without a mutual attraction to one of the coolest, most popular people either of us know."
"Gerald."
"Of course."
Now Lila was smiling, finally. Brainy smiled his approval; apparently he'd done her some good.
"So do you believe me?"
"Yes."
By now they'd approached Phoebe's room. Also by now, Brainy was thinking out loud, a hazardous activity in which to engage.
"I'll admit you're close, but--"
"Oh? So who is the girl?"
"Now Lila, we've kind of been through this before. I can't get interested in her while we're doing this. And that's all I have to say about that."
"Brainy--"
"Lila, please, don't ask me again."
She saw past his glasses, to the conflict in his eyes mirroring the pain in his soul. And this time it wasn't about Helga. Knowing this, she let the matter drop as his hand rose to the door.
knock knock
"Come in."
A minute after Brainy and Lila rejoined their colleague, Mrs. Heyerdahl came in from the deck. Had she paid closer attention while passing her daughter's door, she might have been able to overhear planning going on.
"So did you make your next date with Gerald too?"
"Lila!"
"They're not really dates, Lila. They just happen to meet there and she keeps him out of our hair for as long as we'll need."
"We're not dating! We're not really even interested in each other."
"Is that why you give him your bread crusts?"
"He likes the crusts; I don't. It'd be a shame to waste them."
"Let's get back to the planning. So Phoebe, what else might I need to know about how Helga's impressed Arnold?"
It was probably just as well that she didn't hear.
That's all, folks. And I am working on the next, montage chapter as we speak. Or as you read this. Wait, how do I know when you'll be reading this; I can't be working on it all day, much as I'd like to. I'm working on it, though. Please review, y'all. I'm still Nftnat, on IM I'm still Nftnat, and on e-mail I'm still nftnataol.com . Good night everybody.
Speaking of reviews, as Goofy would say, gawrsh! I continue to be flattered and humbled. Thank y'all for the kind words, and I'll keep trying to deserve them.
Thanks, Ms. Prongs. Yeah, I'm liking that too, obviously; and I'm building on it. This will continue to develop in diverse ways; you'll see. I liked that line, too. Yes, Brainy should be happy; this IS the Brainy Saga after all. And I meant what I said about your fics. As to reviewing, we'll see; obviously I'm a bit slow at getting anything done.
Thank you, JESS. I'll just say I agree with you.
Thanks, Ivory. I think we're thinking along the same lines. And the complexity will continue.
Thank you, Roxy, for that awesome review and the awesome IM. The planning will continue.
Thanks, Sleather. They do seem mature for 12, 13 year olds. Is it just me, or do the characters on the show seem mature for fourth-graders? shrug I didn't think Phoebe was out of line; her conduct was well explained by Lila. Brainy should've known better; even he's not perfect. ;)
Thank you, Cosmosfan, if you're still there. I'm floored. Really.
Thanks, SSBM. I hoped you liked it; I've been working on it night and day. I look forward to Three Months.
Thank you, Paradoxical Reality (is there a way to shorten that?:) ) ; I think you get it. Phoebe's motivation I mean. I'm glad my intentions continue to bear fruit like they apparently do. Trust me; when the time comes, Olga will come on like gangbusters, and if there's anyone who doesn't like her after that, I give up. I'd better stop before I give away the plot.
Nory, mmmmmmm, COULD be. Thanks.
And thank you, Houkanno Yuuhou. You're right about just about everything you mentioned. You continue to flatter me. As to making someone cry, it's not like he's never done it before. I've seen proof in Arnold's Halloween and Arnold's Thanksgiving. Then there was Quantity Time. I believe that no one is beyond hope; not Lila, not Olga, and not even Big Bob Pataki. I can't speak to the similarities, but I'll try to keep it as realistic as possible.
Thank you, Ryoko-onee. Even the end of this will only be the end of the beginning. Here's more.
Thanks, zali. Hmm, wondering if you're from Hawaii. I liked those parts too. I'm still trying to keep them in character, and to keep it up. Here's the latest.
Hey Arnold! is created, owned, and / or copyrighted by Craig Bartlett, Snee-Oosh, and / or Nickelodeon, which in turn is owned by Viacom. "How Can We Be Lovers" is from the Michael Bolton album Soul Provider on Columbia records, a unit of Sony.
"...and that's why I can't tell him."
"I see."
"Phoebe, tell me again why we're going over stuff you already know?"
"I just thought that if we talked out the whole situation I'd see an option I hadn't before."
"And?"
"I might see something, but it would require a significant amount of patience."
"Well, what is it? I'm desperate enough to try almost anything."
"Anything short of telling him."
"Well, yes. So?"
"You might need to spend more time with him."
"Phoebe--"
"Hear me out. There have been times when he could barely stand you. True?"
"True."
"Those were times you were especially harsh, toward him in particular. True?"
"True."
"But now you've dared to let your guard down around him, somewhat. True?"
"True."
"And how has he been acting since then?"
"pause I dunno, okkay I guess."
"Just, okkay?"
"He's been real nice, all right? Criminey, why are you being so nosy all of a sudden?"
"Because I want my best friend to be happy. Is there anything wrong with that?"
"sigh No. But Phoebe... look, would you like it if I tried to hook you up with Geraldo?"
"...um..."
"'T'swhat I thought."
"Would you like to hear my reasons for your spending time with Arnold or not?"
"sigh all right, go ahead Pheebs."
"I think this would be the best way to get Arnold to like you, if he doesn't like you already."
"WHAT!?!"
"You heard me."
long pause
"All right Phoebe, start over from the beginning."
"From the dawn of time, or farther back than that?"
"You know what I mean! What's going on, Phoebe, or have you finally snapped?"
"Snapped?"
"This project you're doing; I saw what it did to you the first day! And all this time having to work with Brainy and Liii-la, it's finally driven you over the edge hasn't it?"
"Helga, I assure you I am as sane now as I ever was. I'm simply trying to tell you--"
"That Arnold might like me? Whatever gave you that idea?"
"You might not have noticed, but he has looked at you. Even when you were being a bully I saw him looking, like he was trying to figure you out."
"So I'm a lab experiment to him?"
"More like a mystery, an object of fascination to him. He wonders about you."
"pfft, yeah, right."
"Really."
"Next you'll be saying he's been flirting with me."
"Well..."
"You're kidding."
"Do you remember when we went to the wrong restaurant? We wound up doing k.p. to work off the bill."
"Yeah."
"Do you want to tell me what happened, or shall I tell you?"
"I, I don't know what you're talking about."
"Helga, it's me, Phoebe. Remember, right after he told you he thought what you did was sophisticated?"
"Uhhhhhh..."
"He then squirted you and then he--"
"How? There is no way you could possibly know that! Your back was to us; you couldn't have seen the squirt OR the wink."
"So he did wink at you."
"You mean you DIDN'T know?"
"I had an idea, but I wasn't certain."
"I still don't see how you could have figured out that much."
"I have ears, Helga. I heard what he said, I heard a squirt--"
"But you couldn't have SEEN anything! Like I said, your back was to us. You were in front of us, facing the same direction we were."
"Those restaurant kitchens are full of highly reflective surfaces. I only had to look up. I wasn't certain it was a wink, but otherwise..."
"You made your point. So, sigh you actually think that there could be something there?"
"There are few things of which I am more certain."
"sigh I just don't know..."
"Helga, I know what I'm talking about. I consider myself an astute observer of people. You knew that when you decided to tell me the identity of your obsession; you knew that I had already figured it out--"
"All right, Pheebs, you've made your point, criminey!"
"So you'll do it?"
"I'll think about it."
"Helga..."
"Well, whadda ya want, for me to call him up and make a date with him?"
"Not if you really have a problem with that. Of course, in these times when gender roles are falling by the way, it is becoming accepted that the girl is as able to initiate making a date as the boy is."
"That's not the point, Phoebe, and you know it."
"Yes, I do. Helga, it wouldn't even have to be a date. You could just ask to talk with him. You told me about the same thing happening last week but even if you hadn't I would've known you'd been unburdening yourself; you looked more peaceful last week than I'd seen you in some time."
"And you think that more of the same could do me good, could even get me closer to him?"
"Helga, after that Ronnie Matthews debacle, I never thought that I would hear myself quoting another pop prima donna; but Michael Bolton was right, how CAN you be lovers if you can't be friends?"
"Lovers? Phoebe!"
"You know what I mean."
long pause
"What do you have to lose?"
"Everything. My self-respect."
"Is it worth that much to you? And Arnold already knows almost everything there is to know. I stress the word 'almost'."
more silence
"It is only logical that the closer you get to him, the more comfortable you will be with the idea of telling him."
even more silence, then... "I'll tell you what. If he asks for us to get together I'll agree. Fair enough?"
"Yes."
"But that's a big 'if', mind you. I mean, what're the odds that he'd call me and ask to get together-- BEEP "
"What's that?"
"The call waiting. Could I call you back?"
"Certainly. Talk to you later then?"
"Right. Bye, Pheebs."
"Ja mata."
"Right."
click
click
So the ended the conversation. Phoebe was at her house; specifically, she was in her room, as were the others in the trio. An unofficial group planning session was, well, in session.
"Nice improvisation, Phoebe." Brainy said, immediately after the hang- up.
"Thank you."
"Not to mention unexpected. I didn't know that."
"There's actually something about Helga you didn't know?"
"I didn't know the specifics of that; I can't be by her all the time. Was it the time she won that restaurant coupon?"
"Yes."
knock knock knock
"Come in."
Through the door stepped Reba Heyerdahl, bearing a tray laden with food and drink. "I thought you and your friends would be ready for a snack about now, Phoebe."
"Thank you, Mother."
"Thank you, Mrs. Heyerdahl." Brainy and Lila chorused.
As the door closed behind her mother, Phoebe adopted an expression that said, "Huh?" Her face cleared, however, as she remembered that as Brainy had already talked with her mother nothing was to be gained or lost from wheezing around her.
Phoebe tried to take the lead in planning. "So now that I've laid the groundwork for tomorrow--"
But was derailed again by Brainy. "You mean now that WE'VE laid the groundwork. You worked on Helga while I've been working on Arnold."
"But you've been here the whole time."
"Another note?" Lila broke her silence.
"Exactly. They'll keep her in his mind. In fact I wouldn't be surprised if he was the other call Helga got that caused her to hang up on you, Phoebe."
"Oh don't be ridiculous; something like that would be too contrived to be believable."
"Truth is stranger than fiction, Phoebe."
How right he was.
click "Hello?"
"Helga?"
"ARNOLD! I mean, what do YOU want?!"
"Helga, it's just me. Remember? You don't have to pretend to hate me anymore when it's just the two of us?"
"Oh, yeah, right. Sorry Arnold; force of habit."
"It's all right."
"So why did you call?"
"Umm..."
"'Umm...' would be nice, or might be if I knew what it meant. Now make sense, Hair Boy."
"All right. Do you have any plans for tomorrow afternoon?"
"No, why?"
"Maybe we could get together and talk."
"Talk?"
"Yeah, like we did last Saturday."
"You mean...?"
"You don't have to tell me any secrets if you don't want to, and I'm not asking you to cry either because I know how upsetting that can be, although if you decide it's necessary, I'd be right there to, to hold your hand or whatever."
"What?!?" She couldn't believe it. Arnold, her Arnold, the boy --- now a young man --- whom she had been worshipping for most of her misbegotten youth, was practically asking her out on a date, not two minutes after Phoebe had talked her into accepting if he asked? This was too much of a coincidence. "Arnold, have you been talking with anyone about what we've been talking about?"
"No! I told you I wouldn't tell."
"You haven't heard from anyone to cause you to do this?"
"Heard from anyone?" Arnold was now a bit nervous. And understandably so; he had found from bitter experience how hard it was for him to keep a secret once it was found out that he even had one. And while he hadn't really heard from anyone, he was at this moment holding in his hot little hand the latest mysterious missive from his cryptic correspondent. This one read, "Weren't those caves cozy?" Which had taken his mind back to exploring for the treasure of Wheezin' Ed. He'd remembered Helga jumping into his arms. Which wasn't the only time that had ever happened, now that he thought about it. That time she'd helped them save Mighty Pete...
"HEY ARNOLD!!"
"Wha-?"
"You zoned out on me there. Have you been daydreaming?"
"Uh, yeah."
"tsk , you are such a football-head, you know that?"
"Every time I look in a mirror. What does that mean anyway, other than the shape of my head?"
"Don't change the subject!"
"I'm sorry. What was it?"
"I was asking if you'd been talking to someone. Have you heard from Phoebe lately?"
"Phoebe?"
"Yeah, Phoebe. My best friend? Dark hair, Oriental features, studious to say the least, one of the nicest people either one of us know?"
"I know who she is, Helga. Um, no, not since the game last week. We're having one tonight, right?"
"You're doing it again, Arnold."
"Sorry."
"So you haven't heard from Phoebe lately. Has she mentioned anything to you?"
"Well, we've been discussing bonsai lately, but that's about it."
"Bonsai?"
"Yeah. Remember that night I found you two taking a walk on my fire escape?"
"Um, yeah."
"I guess Phoebe saw me tending my bonsai because she's been sharing advice on bonsai care with me since then. She does have one herself, right?"
"Uh, yeah, in her room, next to her bed. She had to replace it a couple years back, some kind of accident... So she hasn't mentioned anything to you, about anyone?"
"No, just bonsai. Why?"
"Uh, no reason. It's just--" Her voice was interrupted by other voices from elsewhere in the house, raised voices which penetrated even through her closed and locked door. One of those voices she was still getting used to hearing at that level.
It was a level loud enough to be overheard.
"Sorry about that, Arnold."
"It's not your fault."
"I'm not sure; this past week it's like all the arguments have been about me, and I haven't even done anything!"
"Who's been arguing?"
"Bob and Olga. I don't understand it; it's like she's been defending me, every time I've been dissed, all week!"
"Maybe Olga's trying to be a better sister."
"snort Part of me actually wants to believe that but... Maybe you're right. Maybe we should meet tomorrow."
"All right. Same time and place?"
"Yeah yeah, sure, whatever floats your boat, football-head."
"See you in a few hours, then?"
"What?"
"The game? You never did say if we had one today, come to think of it."
"Oh, um, yeah, we do."
"All right then."
"Right, like you said, in a few hours."
"Goodbye, Helga."
"Goodbye, Arnold."
click
Within one second of hanging up on one of her two closest confidants, Helga's finger impaled a certain speed dial button which would connect her with the other one.
"Someone has some explaining to do."
Meanwhile, at the Heyerdahls, the ringing phone interrupted the latest round of conspiring.
"Hold on, you two."
"Holding." the other two chorused.
Phoebe grimaced. "Stop it."
"Stopping."
Choosing to ignore that one, Phoebe lifted the receiver. And was immediately assaulted over the air.
"Hello? -- Helga? -- What? -- What do you mean-? -- Did I what? -- Wait, Helga, -- "
Brainy was quick to catch on. "Come on," he said to Lila as he moved to help her up, "we'd better give her some privacy."
Lila silently acquiesced, reaching her hands out toward Brainy's. Both of them now on their feet, they left the room, Phoebe still attempting to decipher her friend's expostulations.
They hadn't taken half a dozen steps each before they met Phoebe's mother.
"Taking a break?"
"In a way, Mrs. Heyerdahl." Lila responded. "Helga called and we figured the two of them might appreciate being able to talk without us eavesdropping, accidentally or not."
"Yes, they would appreciate that, knowing Helga. So what are the two of you going to do while you're waiting for Phoebe to finish?"
Lila was about to respond, but was surprised when Brainy spoke up. "I was thinking we could have a word with each other. I wonder if you could direct us to a place where we won't be in the way of you or your husband?"
"Now isn't that considerate of you. You could use the deck. It's on up at that end of the hall; do you see that door?"
"Yes ma'am."
"It opens out onto the deck. Y'all will be able to find your way out there all right?"
"Yes ma'am."
"Okkay. Now you two behave yourselves and I'll try to hurry Phoebe along."
"Yes ma'am, and she needn't hurry on our account. Thank you, Mrs. Heyerdahl."
"You're welcome."
Brainy turned, intending to wave Lila on ahead of him, only to find her with a strange look on her face. Like it was her turn to question him. Pondering this caused his face to resemble hers, but he kept his questions in check; rather, he extended an elbow, which she took. Then, arm in arm, they strolled down the hall toward the door which would open onto the second floor deck. Leaving a bemused matron of the house looking on.
"Such a cute couple", she found herself thinking, before she changed direction and started walking, her destination being the door to her daughter's room.
Said daughter was already having her hands full over the phone line.
"Helga, not fifteen minutes ago we were just like this, talking to each other over the phone. You told me then that I wasn't making sense; now it seems the roles have reversed. Perhaps you should be the one to start from the beginning. What's going on?"
"Maybe you should tell me, Belle Boyd."
"Belle Boyd? The Confederate spy?"
"Congratulations; you get an A in American history."
"And you get an A in confusion, not to mention blathering. If there's something you have against me --- as I deduce from what sense I could make of what you've been saying --- then just make it clear, accuse me, ask a question, something!"
"What have you told Arnold?"
"Finally. What have I told Arnold about what?"
"What do you think?"
"You?"
"Me."
"Helga, I can keep a secret. I haven't said a word about you to him."
"Have you mentioned anything?"
"Helga, wait a minute, could you at least tell me what brought this on?"
"I just got off the phone with him--"
"Was that the other call?"
"Yes, and don't interrupt."
"Sorry."
"He asked me to get together with him tomorrow, like we did last week."
"That's wonderful, Helga!"
"It's suspicious is what it is. How do you explain that he was asking me to do the exact same thing that you had just talked me into doing?"
"Coincidence?"
"I don't believe in coincidence, and I thought you didn't either."
"I don't, but someone told me a while ago that truth is stranger than fiction; and the more of these things I see and hear about, the more inclined I am to believe it."
"Phoebe--"
"Besides, you said he was the other call that caused you to hang up on me; when would I have had the opportunity to suggest such a thing to him?"
"Um, well, you got me there... Wait! You could have done that in advance."
"I suppose I could have, but I didn't."
"Phoebe--"
knock knock knock "Phoebe, you might want to keep it short. Your friends are out on the deck waiting for you to finish."
Phoebe almost jumped. "Yes, mother."
She then turned back to the phone. "Helga, the only thing I've been discussing with Arnold lately is bonsai."
"Bonsai?"
"Bonsai. You know, those miniature trees, as you call them? Like the one by my bed?"
"So he does have a bonsai?"
"You mean you haven't noticed, as many times as you must have been in his room?"
"I, I hadn't really thought to look, it hadn't exactly been uppermost in my thoughts."
"Not even this past couple weeks when you didn't have to keep a low profile in there?"
"I, I can't talk about that, that's about the project."
"You're evading."
"When did you start talking bonsai with him anyway?"
And the evasions continue went through Phoebe's mind. "Remember that sleepwalking incident? We mistook his bonsai for him, shadow-wise? You must have noticed he had it then!"
Exactly what he said Helga thought, before catching herself for the umpteenth and... oh, who's keeping track? "Uh, guess I forgot... look, can we just forget I brought it up?"
"Forgetting."
"Good."
"Except,"
"What?"
"Are you going to accept his invitation?"
Helga allowed herself to smile. "I already have."
"Good. I'm so happy for you, Helga."
"Hey, it's not like he asked me to m..., m..., m...,"
"Marry him?"
"Uh....."
"One step at a time, Helga." Now Phoebe was smiling.
"Phoebe!"
And laughing. She was thoroughly enjoying this new openness she had with her best friend since the sham of the "ice cream" secret had been laid bare to both of them and swept aside. Good-natured ribbing; one of the fringe benefits of being able to be honest with your best friend.
Meanwhile, out on the deck, Brainy was taking in the view. And enjoying it.
While he was at it, he admired the Heyerdahl house.
"Three stories, an outdoor deck on the second floor, a fencing room, and I'm sure there's even more we don't know about. This is the best- looking house I've ever seen. If Phoebe's family isn't rich, they're close enough." He slowly turned around to face Lila, his gaze scanning around the deck. "Heh, ever notice how that umbrella looks like a satellite dish from a distance?"
He stopped as he noticed, by sight and by hearing, that Lila wasn't into it that day.
"What?"
"Have you been here before?"
"No, why?"
"You were actually conversant with her."
"I'd spoken with her on the phone last week."
"And didn't see the need to wheeze."
"Over the phone, actually I saw the need to not wheeze."
"Oh?"
Brainy smiled. "Lila, if you answered the phone and heard heavy breathing, what would you say?"
"Hello, Brainy."
"Fair enough. But what if you didn't know it was me? Or what if your father had answered the phone?"
Lila nodded. "I see." Then she fell silent.
Brainy could see that whatever was troubling her, it hadn't been resolved. "Problem?"
She was preoccupied to the extent that he had to repeat himself. "What?"
"You seem out of it today."
"I talked with Olga before I came over."
"Bad news?"
"She's been better. This past week she's been standing up for Helga, out of sight of Helga mostly. And it's been an uphill battle."
Brainy sat down in a deck chair next to the one in which Lila was seated. Now he too was in a moody mood, as it were. "I'm not surprised to hear that. You used the right word, Lila; it is and will continue to be a battle. It's going to get worse before it gets better. And when the confrontation happens --- and it will happen, there's no way around that --- it will be ugly."
A sad Lila closed her eyes and shook her head. "I don't know if Olga will be able to handle it."
Brainy nodded. "That's why you have to toughen her up."
Her head shot up in shock. "Me?!?"
"You are her only confidant on this matter. There's no one else to whom she can turn."
"But I can't toughen anyone up! I'm almost as emotionally weak as she is!"
"So we'll have to work on you first, then you can work on her."
Lila was reeling; her head was in her hands, tears about to come again. "Oh, Brainy, Brainy,... I just don't know if I can."
Brainy was at her side in a trice, trying his best to console her. "Lila?"
Her head lifted.
"I'm sorry about what this is doing to you, and will continue to do. All of us are suffering, you know that. Helga, Phoebe, me."
Lila nodded.
"If there was another way to do this we'd take it. You also know that."
"Yes." she whispered.
"And we haven't figured anything out. I haven't, neither has Phoebe. What about you? You're no slouch in the brains department, you still buzz in ahead of Phoebe at times. Can you think of another way to achieve our goal?"
A disconsolate Lila mutely shook her head. Accepting her answer as though he knew what it would be but had still been holding out hope, Brainy nodded acknowledgment.
"Then we have no choice; we have to go with this. Which means a rough ride, and you're in the driver's seat.
She was now officially crying, a little. "I'm scared, Brainy."
Tissues at the ready, he did what he could. "I know; so am I. But hey, we'll get through this."
"You really think so?"
"Always thinking positive works for Arnold, right?"
"Not always."
"Much of the time then. Enough for me to try it."
A sad smile found its way onto Lila's face. "He is the role model for us, isn't he?"
Brainy's face now sported the smile's twin. "Isn't he though. If anyone was ever worthy of Helga--"
"Other than you."
He now accented the sad smile with closed eyes and a shaking head. "I wasn't going to say that. But I'm glad you did." he added, looking Lila in the eyes again.
Lila's face now threatened to revert to a crying phase. "It's going to take a miracle to pull this off."
The sad smile returned to Brainy's face. "We'll just have to see to it that that happens, then, won't we?"
"Just like that?"
"Arnold works miracles all the time; how hard can it be?"
Now it was hard to tell whether Lila was laughing or crying; maybe both.
The tender moment was stopped when four young ears heard the door to the deck open. The owners thereof composed themselves just in time to face the lady of the house.
"I hope I'm not interrupting anything."
"Oh, no, Mrs. Heyerdahl." Lila said. "I was upset about something, and Brainy was trying to help me through it."
"Anything I can help with?"
"No, I'm fine now."
"All right. Oh, Phoebe's almost finished with her call. Y'all might want to head in."
"Yes ma'am."
"Thank you, Mrs. Heyerdahl." Brainy added as they passed her.
Once out of earshot, the planning continued.
"I might need to keep an eye on Phoebe and Gerald on their dates. After you, Lila." Brainy added as he opened the door into the house.
Lila entered, followed by him.
"Thank you. Why?"
"To make sure they don't accidentally run into Arnold and Helga. It wouldn't do for Gerald to find out, not at all."
"True." Lila agreed.
But as the two of them approached the door to the room of their co- conspirator, something was nagging at her, something to which she had to give voice. "Is it Phoebe?"
Brainy was utterly sandbagged. He blinked in incomprehension. "What?"
"Is Phoebe the girl you're interested in?"
Brainy had to think about that one, really think. His face showed it. While he was arriving at a course of action, he silently conveyed to Lila his opinion of her opinion, bewilderment mixed in with incredulity. Finally...
"No, it's not Phoebe. Why would you think that?"
"You seem ever so familiar with her actions, ever so interested in what she does, where she goes..."
"Of course I'm interested in her doings; she's the best friend of my former obsession who is the subject of our project. Following the same line of logic, Helga is in this house a lot so it would follow that I would be familiar with it. But that's it."
"Oh."
"Besides, she's not my type."
That brought Lila to attention. "Oh? What is your type?"
A sidelong smirk came. "The type without a mutual attraction to one of the coolest, most popular people either of us know."
"Gerald."
"Of course."
Now Lila was smiling, finally. Brainy smiled his approval; apparently he'd done her some good.
"So do you believe me?"
"Yes."
By now they'd approached Phoebe's room. Also by now, Brainy was thinking out loud, a hazardous activity in which to engage.
"I'll admit you're close, but--"
"Oh? So who is the girl?"
"Now Lila, we've kind of been through this before. I can't get interested in her while we're doing this. And that's all I have to say about that."
"Brainy--"
"Lila, please, don't ask me again."
She saw past his glasses, to the conflict in his eyes mirroring the pain in his soul. And this time it wasn't about Helga. Knowing this, she let the matter drop as his hand rose to the door.
knock knock
"Come in."
A minute after Brainy and Lila rejoined their colleague, Mrs. Heyerdahl came in from the deck. Had she paid closer attention while passing her daughter's door, she might have been able to overhear planning going on.
"So did you make your next date with Gerald too?"
"Lila!"
"They're not really dates, Lila. They just happen to meet there and she keeps him out of our hair for as long as we'll need."
"We're not dating! We're not really even interested in each other."
"Is that why you give him your bread crusts?"
"He likes the crusts; I don't. It'd be a shame to waste them."
"Let's get back to the planning. So Phoebe, what else might I need to know about how Helga's impressed Arnold?"
It was probably just as well that she didn't hear.
That's all, folks. And I am working on the next, montage chapter as we speak. Or as you read this. Wait, how do I know when you'll be reading this; I can't be working on it all day, much as I'd like to. I'm working on it, though. Please review, y'all. I'm still Nftnat, on IM I'm still Nftnat, and on e-mail I'm still nftnataol.com . Good night everybody.