Disclaimer: I do not own Hey Arnold or any of the characters. Hey Arnold is the property of Nickelodeon and Craig Bartlett.


A Scary Movie

Chapter 3: Evil Twin

Helga G. Shortman (maiden name: Pataiki) was enjoying a nice, warm bubble bath.

With her youngest finally asleep, her husband busy in his study and her two oldest kids watching a movie, she decided to enjoy a nice, hot bath to relax, along with some soft music and she even lit one of her scented candles to try and relax herself after a long, hard day of writing stories, chores, cooking and general motherhood.

However, she can't seem to be able to relax.

"Wait...something's wrong..."Helga thought as she removed the cucumbers from her eyes, feeling suspicious.

She's been getting a weird feeling all of a sudden, like something was amiss.

Being the mother of three children and with over a decade of experience in that field, she's somewhat developed a feminine intuition that comes with parenthood, and it's almost always accurate.

She began to ponder.

"Arnold is working in his study, Andy and Megan are watching their movie and Henry is asleep...why do I feel like something isn't right here?..."She wondered.

She then noticed some of her bath salts, the lavender kind and realized that she forgot to add it.

"Oh, of course. Can't forget this..."She said as she added them.

Once done, she then gave a relaxed sigh as she tried to enjoy the rest of her bath, though a part of her still can't help but wonder if something else is up. Her feeling from earlier didn't go away and she wondered why she was feeling that way.

"Eh...I'm sure it's nothing that can't wait..."She thought as she continued to enjoy the rare moment of peace and quiet for herself.


Downstairs

Andy, Megan and Henry were all watching the Evil Twin movie. Just like all the previous installments, it was a pretty gruesome PG horror film about the titular twins.

The blonde siblings all sat on the couch, watching the horror film and saw the evil twins commit numerous awful acts to their victims.

"This movie isn't THAT scary..."Andy commented as he saw a scene where the twins broke into some house.

"But it's got a lot of fight in it..."Megan said and grinned when the twins began fighting the films so called "hero" who didn't seem to have the odds in his favor.

"Look out! Behind you!..."Megan shouted to the characters in an energetic way as she watched a fight scene.

Then they witness the end of the fight and she grinned, watching as the evil twins grabbed their victim's weapons and began to retaliate tenfold.

"Ha! I knew it! You can't use a fire poker to fight against pure evil..."She said in a knowing way, loving the scary movie.

She and her brother began snacking on the popcorn, enthralled with the scary movie.

"So, what do you think about the movie Henry?..."Andy asked, but received no answer.

"Henry?..."He asked again but saw that his little brother wasn't here.

"Where'd he go?..."He asked his sister.

"I don't know..."Megan said with a shrug.

They both paused the movie for a bit and then her a strange, almost chattering sort of sound.

"What's that?..."Megan asked, curious.

The two blonde kids looked and saw that their baby brother was hiding under the couch, his blanket covering him as he was shaking, his eyes were wide and his teeth was chattering too, likely due to fear.

"Henry? Are you okay?..."Andy asked, concerned.

"I...I'm fine...I...uh...dropped my blankie..."Henry said, still shaking.

"Well, come on, you're missing the best part..."Megan said, as the movie was still on. "Though, you're free to go back to your room if you want..."She said, wondering if it's too much for him.

Henry heard this and despise his fear, pouted and refused to leave.

"I...I'm not going to my room...I can handle this..."He said, being stubborn.

"You sure, little bro? You don't have to stay and watch the whole movie if you don't want to..."Andy said, understanding if this was too much.

To Henry, he felt that his siblings thought he was being a baby for not handling the movie and he got defensive.

"I said that I can handle this! I'm not a baby and this isn't THAT scary. Besides, this is nothing compared to mommy's angry face. I got this..."He said, being stubborn as he crawled out of his hiding spot and stared at the screen, a stubborn look on his face.

Andy and Megan both shared a look and they both shrugged. It was Henry's choice, and they wouldn't bother him about it.

"Whatever you say, little bro..."Andy said as he and his sister went back to their seats and munched on popcorn.

The blonde siblings continued the watch the film, and little Henry shivered as he barely kept his facade together.


Later

The movie had ended and the older siblings seemed to still be in high spirits.

"Man, that movie was epic..."Megan said, having enjoyed it.

"Eh, personally I find Evil Twin Triplet Terror to be even gorier...especially with the scene at the barn..."Andy said as he turned off the TV.

"What did you think about your first official scary movie, Henry?..."The older brother asked.

To his shock, his little brother's eyes were wide and he was even pale for some reason. He wasn't movie or saying anything.

"Uh, Henry?..."He asked as Megan waved her hand in front of his face.

Still no reaction.

"Uh...I think he's broken..."Megan said, trying to snap her fingers but he still wasn't blinking.

After a moment, their little brother did blink and snapped around like a creepy puppet, scaring his siblings.

"Uh...that wasn't so bad..."Henry said, still holding his blanket and keeping it out of his face.

However, he was still shivering as he got up, which his siblings noticed.

"Are you okay?..."Megan asked, raising a brow and maybe a little concerned about him.

N-Never b-better..."Henry stammered while his older siblings wondered if they should get mom.

They began regretting how they put their little brother through the movie, granted it was his doing. Scary movies were not for everyone, after all.

However, they suddenly heard a tapping sound and the little boy flinched, getting spooked.

"AH! IT'S THE EVIL TWINS!..."Henry yelped and jumped up and landed in Andy's arms.

"Bro..."Andy said as he held his brother in his arms, not wanting to startle him more.

They heard the tapping sound again and the little boy was scared once more.

"What was that?!..."Henry asked, sounding scared.

Megan went to the find out, she opened the curtain and they saw a tree branch that was hitting against the glass due to the wind.

"It's just a tree branch. Relax. It was just a movie. The evil twins aren't real. It's just an over-budged film with guys in expensive costumes being paid to enact gruesome scenes from some writer's imagination. It's nothing to freak out about..."Megan said.

"Megan's right, there's nothing to be afraid of, Little bro..."Andy said as he placed his little brother down.

"I...I know..."Henry said, still looking shaken.

However, then a creaking sound was heard and the little boy panicked again.

"AHHH!..."Henry screamed as he clung to his older brother.

His siblings panicked.

"Henry, keep it down!..."Andy warned, but the damage was done.

"Kids? What was that noise?..."Was heard and the blonde siblings panicked.

"Oh no, it's mom!..."Andy said in a panic as they turned to Henry.

"You gotta get back to your room and make sure that Mom doesn't see you or we're in for something REALLY scary!..."He said, worried about getting scolded by their loving but SUPER overprotective mother.

"O-Okay..."Henry said as he quickly hid behind the couch.

"We'll distract her and you make a break for your room...and be quiet..."Megan said and her little brother nodded.

Henry nodded and then hid behind the couch just enough to cover him, just in time as their mother had walked down the stairs. Helga scanned the room with a hawk's eye, scaring the visible siblings more than the movie.

Now wearing her pink robe and a towel on her head, Helga went to her children to see what was the matter or if anything had gone under her radar.

"Hey mom..."Andy said, trying to act normal.

"Hey mom..."Megan said.

"Hey you two, how was the movie? And what was that noise?..."Helga asked, as she looked around.

"Oh, it was the best Evil Twin movie yet. Totally epic, the end was especially shocking. Sorry if we were too loud, though..."Megan said, getting the attention on her.

The reason was to give her little brother an opening. As they talked to their mother, Henry quickly snuck away and quickly and quietly went upstairs while her mother was distracted.

"Yeah, even if this is the second time I've seen it, it's still one of the most screamiest ones yet..."Andy said.

"I see, well, I'm glad you two had fun. Now I think it's time for the two of you to clean this spot up, brush up and get ready for bed. It's getting late..."Helga said.

Andy, who discreetly looked up and saw that his little brother successfully made it upstairs and quickly ran to his room, smiled.

"Okay, mom. Whatever you say..."Andy said.

"Yeah, thanks mom...It is getting late .."Megan said, faking a yawn. "There's something about horror films that just seems to tire you out..."She said.

Helga raised a brow at the comment but decided it was just something about her daughter she may never know. She raised a brow as she looked around the living room, feeling like something is out of place here.

"Strange. Why do I feel like something is still wrong?..."She thought.

"Uh...you looking for something Mom?..."Andy asked, while his mother shook her head and then sent him and his sister a serious look.

"It's nothing...Now clean this place up and get ready for bed. End of discussion..."She said before going upstairs.

Andy and Megan both let out sighs of relief. However, they turned to each other and Megan frowned.

"I told you that it wasn't a good idea to let him see that movie..."She said but her brother brushed it off.

"Oh come on, it was just one movie and it wasn't even that scary compared to the other Evil twin movies. I'm sure Henry will be fine..."Andy said, but deep down, he was having doubts.

"I hope..."He mentally added, worried that they might have made a mistake.


Upstairs

Helga had gone upstairs, feeling that something is off.

As she went upstairs, she noticed her youngest child's room and instinctively went there. She carefully opened the room and saw that little Henry was tucked in his little race car bed, holding his blankie as he appeared to be fast asleep.

Helga calmed down and closed the door, being careful not to disturb him.

"Hmmm...Henry's asleep and the others are going to bed...yeah, something's up. It's too perfect. Criminy, what's going on?..."She thought, still thinking something is amiss but she wasn't sure why.

She then yawned and felt tired herself. The blonde woman then retreated to her room to get ready for the night, still wondering what was happening under her very own roof.

Unknown to her, while Henry was indeed in his bed, he wasn't asleep.

The little blonde boy's eyes were wide, his mind still on the terrifying movie that he had just witness.

"It's just a movie...that's all...big brother and big sister said so...nothing to be afraid of..."Henry repeated himself, but he was still shaking and shivering under the covers as his thoughts raced in fear.

He heard a hooting sound and gasped. He turned to his window and saw an owl on the tree branch, the culprit of that noise.

Henry let out a sigh of relief but noticed how scary his room seemed to be in the dark. He held his blankie tighter and shook in his bed.

"It's just a movie...It's just a movie...It's JUST a MOVIE!..."He repeated himself as he held his blankie and his Wally Junior dolly, trying to comfort himself and calm down...with little success.


Meanwhile

In Arnold and Helga's room

After Andy and Megan went to bed, the Shortman parents did the same. Arnold, who managed to finish his business call awhile back, was now showered and wearing his blue striped pajamas.

His wife had already used the hair dryer and was now brushing her blonde locks as she sat in front of the mirror in their room.

"What a day..."Arnold said, while his wife was in the middle of brushing her hair before bed.

However, he noticed an uneasy frown on his wife's face as she brushed her hair. He wondered what was up.

"Is something wrong, Honey?..."He asked.

"The kids are up to something..."She said flatly as she kept brushing her hair.

"What do you mean? Did something happen?..."Arnold asked.

"I don't know, but I've been getting a strange feeling lately...the same one I got that time Megan broke Sheena's vase the last time we went to her house and tried to hide it...and the same one I got when Andy tried to stay up late and watch that Pop Daddy Jr movie that was airing WAY after his bed time..."Helga said.

"I can't shake the feeling that something is up..."She said, still having that gut feeling.

"Honey...what could they do? We've been home all day and nothing's missing or broken. Maybe you're just overthinking things and feeling tired due to all the extra writing you had to do this week..."Arnold said, since her boss requested some more short stories and the deadline was a couple of weeks away.

"Maybe...but I can't shake the feeling that they are hiding something..."She said, as she finished brushing her hair.

"If they are, we'll find out, but I still don't see what they could do in two hours without us noticing. I'm sure it's nothing..."Arnold said.

"Fine, but if I'm right, get ready for an 'I told you so'..."She said as she pulled out some of her new night cream.

"Are you seriously going to wear that again?..."He asked, almost looking amused for some reason.

"Hey, beauty isn't pretty. Besides, you weren't complaining when it made by face smoother than usual..."Helga pointed out.

"I know...but it's just that every time you put that on. I find it ironic...remember the time Rhonda threw that slumber party in fourth grade and you fought tooth and nail to avoid putting stuff like that on your face..."Arnold said with a chuckle.

"Hey, I was a nine year old girl and we were too young to worry about stuff like wrinkles. Right now, I'm almost forty and don't have the luxury of youth, so I gotta depend on this stuff..."Helga said as she began applying it.

"Whatever you say, Dear..."Arnold said, chuckling.

"Darn right, whatever I said..."His wife said matter-o-factly as she applied the night cream on her face.

Once done, the blonde couple went to bed, eager for a good night's rest but not before they shared a quick goodnight kiss.

However, even as she laid in bed, the blonde mother still got a feeling that something was up with her children.

"If they did do something, I'll find out..."She thought, unaware of the details of what happened, but still getting a feeling that her kids did something.

Oh boy.

-To be continued-

Next time on A Scary Movie

An Unpleasant Night


A/N(1): I dedicated this chapter to my family, my friends and my love for God :)


A/N(2): Special thanks to BeConfuzzled Writer for helping out with this chapter. You rock :)


REPLIES to my loyal and totally awesome reviewer:

The J.A.M. a.k.a. Numbuh i: Looks like it.

RonaldM40196867:I don't really have any favorite horror villains.

Invader Johnny: You were right about that.


:) Till next time beautiful people, remember to read and review :)