A few things about the episode. I don't know if anyone noticed Helga and Phoebe weren't at the school when they tied Arnold up. The only time they're shown in this episode is in a tiny corner of the classroom at the beginning of the week. I suppose it's because Helga's heart couldn't handle the sight anymore than Phoebe's conscience could the idea of it.
Also, the only reason the eccentric lady found Arnold was because she had his bus pass. I could be COMPLETELY wrong, but from what I've read, bus passes have your name, the expiration date, and the name of the company that gave it to you...but not the school you attend.
Like I said, I could be COMPLETELY wrong. Who knows, maybe she took it to the police, they looked him up somehow, and had some information on him. If not, I guess they had to make the episode work somehow.
Whether or not that's true, I noticed on the episode his pass had his name, expiration date, bus company, but not the school.
Anyway, hope you enjoy the chapter. Thanks for reading and reviewing!
Chapter 3: The Choice Is Yours To Make
Helga's House
Olga was in the kitchen preparing her famous homemade waffles when she heard a knock at the door.
KNOCK KNOCK
"Coming!" the giddy girl shouted.
The college graduate opened the door to see a familiar face waiting there.
"Hello Phoebe! Did you come to eat with us?" Olga asked eagerly.
The small girl stood patiently waiting to be let in as she replied "Thank you for the offer. However, I merely came to check on Helga."
"Check on her? Why?" Olga asked worriedly.
"My classmates and I were simply curious to know why she wasn't interested in attending the meeting Arnold put together at his home last night."
Helga's Room
The poetic girl laid on her bed with her book, writing her feelings for the one she so desperately longed to be with…
Oh Arnold! My soul. You light up my life's dark tunnel, yet you can never know. You are the ray of hope in my life's pointless existence. One day I will…
KNOCK! KNOCK!
Helga sighed as she closed her book, assuming one of her parents was about to interrupt her with meaningless news.
"What?!"
"It's me Helga; Phoebe."
The blonde girl stood up to let her friend in and said "Hey Pheebs, how's it going?"
After coming to take a seat on the bed, Phoebe replied "Quite well. I simply came to ask why you weren't at Arnold's last night?"
Helga cocked her brow at what seemed to be an absurd question and asked "What the heck are you talking about?"
Walk
The kids were making their first stop with the money. After meeting in front of the boarding house, they began discussing what the first place was to take it.
"Let's stop at the bookstore and pick up my new health food book I've told you all about." Sheena suggest.
"That's stupid! Besides, we need to get to the pet store before all the good kittens are taken!" Harold shouted.
"No offense Harold, but you sound an awful lot like a girl." Stinky felt the need to point out.
The group began to argue about the best place to go, until Arnold at last felt the need to put his problem solving skills to good use. "Since we'll never get it all done in one day anyway, how about we do two things every day. That way, everyone gets a chance to do what they want before the week is over."
The kids stared at each other, knowing they would all have to give in to one another at some point. No one was going to have all the money to keep for themselves.
"Sounds good Arnold." Nadine agreed.
"Except for one thing." Rhonda sneered.
"What's that?" Gerald lifted an eyebrow suspiciously, knowing she was just trying to cause trouble.
"How are we supposed to decide who goes first?"
Silence took over the group until Arnold once again spoke up. "I've got an idea!"
Helga's House
"It's not MY fault Miriam can't remember to go shopping! Criminy!" Helga snapped after hearing the story.
"I suppose not. The class is preparing to exploit their exciting ideas for how to spend the money if you'd like to join us today?"
Helga sighed as she turned to cross her arms and said "No thanks Pheebs."
"I can't help but feel there's something you're not sharing with me?" the intelligent girl couldn't help but pry.
The Boarding House
After inviting his friends over, Arnold brought everyone upstairs to sit, while he grabbed a sheet of paper from his desk.
"I don't reckon there's much to spend the money on back here?" Stinky assumed.
The group rolled it's eyes as Sid turned to say, "Stinky, you're an idiot."
The blonde boy wrote numbers 1 - 12 on the paper, then ripped it up to throw into a bowl.
"Okay, everyone pick a number. Whoever picks the first two will go today. We'll go in order for the rest of the week."
The group reached into the bowl until everyone had a number, and the pairs were made...
Eugene and Sheena
Nadine and Sid
Harold and Rhonda
Stinky and Lila
Gerald and Arnold
Phoebe and Helga
Helga's House
"So you already knew who the money belonged to?" Phoebe asked curiously, after listening to her friend's story…
Flashback
91 Days Ago
A hard week had gone by for Arnold. Sid was accusing his friend so often, it had reached the point where even his best friend could no longer trust him.
Helga sat in her closet thinking about the terrible way her beloved had been treated recently by their classmates.
Staring at the watermelon shrine with banana hair she made of him, she began to pour her troubled heart out…
Oh Arnold! You poor tortured creature! Suffering the accusations of our idiot classmates who are in no way worthy of your friendship! Alas my love! I won't waste another minute! I'll find the money and restore to you, your normal life!
90 Days Ago
After deciding to skip school, Helga was walking the streets of Hillwood, unsure of where to start. "Okay, so I have to find some freak with pink hair, a peg leg, and one eyebrow. Guess I can rule out Princess' house."
P.S.118
Arnold was sitting, reading quietly on the bench, while Sid was stirring up the rest of their classmates.
"I say we teach him a lesson! I say we make him pay! I say we tie him up to the tetherball pole!"
Walk
"Criminy! I've searched half the freaking city!"
Library
The Corner Store
The Arcade
The Park
The Aquarium
Chez Paris
The Roller Rink
The Bowling Alley
Helga was staring angrily at her list, not knowing where to search next. Just as she was rounding the corner of the street, she bumped into somebody...THUMP!
After shaking her head vigorously, she stood up and snapped "Hey! Watch where you're going you pink haired freak!"
The angry girl's eyes widened after taking a moment to view who she had just bumped into…
Pink hair, peg leg, one eyebrow!
"I'm terribly sorry young lady. I was in a hurry to find someone."
"Pttss...yeah. Who might that be?" Helga scoffed with her hands on her hips.
The eccentric lady pulled out a bus pass from her pocket to show to the girl and asked "Do you know this boy?"
Helga's eyes widened at the sight of her beloved's picture. Despite the day circling the city, things turned out easier than she expected.
"Uhh yeah. I know him." she stuttered.
"Do you know where I might find him?"
After hearing from the pigtailed girl Arnold was currently at P.S.118, the peg legged lady made her way towards the police station, where she had taken the money earlier that week.
P.S.118
Arnold hung tight as could be by the tetherball pole, knowing there was nothing more he could say to convince his friends he was innocent. As he watched the angry mob wave their fists at him, everyone turned to see a police car pulling up.
"Who's that?" Sid wondered.
"I reckon it's an old lady with pink hair, a peg leg and one eyebrow." Stinky replied.
"Is there a boy named Arnold here?" the eccentric lady hoped.
Gerald happily pointed to his free friend and said "He's right here."
"I've been looking for you! I found all that money and turned it into the police station. It wasn't until yesterday that I found your bus pass."
End of Flashback
Phoebe smiled at her friend's story and said "That was quite a lovely gesture you performed on Arnold's behalf. I'm sure he would be happy to have you join us this week."
Helga stood thinking for a moment. While she and Arnold were friends, they hadn't reached the point of a relationship (or for all she knew ever would).
Whether or not she joined them, he was bound to wonder how the lady found him.
Real Riders
The gang made its first stop at the bike store Eugene's red bike came from. The anxious redhead entered the shop, hoping to find one just like his old bike.
"Oh look at all the lovely bikes!" Sheena exclaimed.
"I'm ever so curious to know what your old bike looked like Eugene?" Lila asked, never having seen it before.
"It was great! Big thick tires so I could run over glass. Gears to switch, so I could easily pedal up hills. Breaks on the handle bars! It was my dream bike!"
While the kids were looking around, Gerald turned to his best friend and said "That anxious look you're wearing implies you'll be the one getting the bike."
"Huh? Oh I'm just excited for him is all." Arnold insisted.
Thinking back to the day Eugene rode his bike to school, Arnold accidently wrecked it moments after Eugene walked away from it. It was one incident after another as he tried to pay his friend back for the trouble. Now he didn't have to worry about lifting a finger. All he had to do was watch his friend pick out what he wanted, then give him the money for it.
"Look at this you guys!"
The group looked across the store to see the perky redhead standing beside a red bike, that appeared to be similar to his previous one.
"It's lovely Eugene!" Sheena exclaimed.
The service clerk saw the group of kids gathered around, implying a sale was about to be made. He made his way over to them and asked "May I help you?"
Eugene held onto the bike as if it was his already and replied "I'm thinking about buying this bike. Is it a good one?"
The service clerk smiled and began explaining the benefits of the bike to the anxious boy…
"Well kid, this bike's got some of the best features you could ask for
Durable high tensile strength steel frame and fork
Tough forged chromoly one piece cranks can take a beating
Comfortable padded seat
Mechanical disc brakes that stop faster than the average brake system
Sealed bearing front hub requires little to no maintenance
Arnold smiled at the description, knowing it would be perfect for his friend. Eugene's eyes lit with anticipation as he asked "How much does it cost?"
Helga's House
Phoebe sat watching her discouraged friend and said "Helga, if Arnold begins to grow suspicious of your whereabouts that day, you could simply explain you were willing to give her directions to the school. There's no need to inform him of your reasons for missing that day."
Helga placed her hands on her hips, feeling as though her friend still wasn't understanding the problem. "Criminy Pheebs! That won't stop him from asking why I wasn't at school to begin with."
The small girl stood from the bed, feeling her friend was once again over-reacting. While she understood Helga's reasons for keeping her love a secret, there was no harm in letting him know she did something nice for him; like any good friend would do.
"The choice is yours to make Helga."
Real Riders
"Okay kid. That'll be $325."
Eugene watched Arnold eagerly hand the money over to the cashier as he said "Gee Arnold. You're a pal!"
"Now you just need to go home and get your favorite baseball card to make it perfect." the blonde boy smiled.
"I'm going to go try it out right now! I'll see you guys later! Thanks again Arnold!"
The group watched the happy boy ride off down the street. While Arnold stood smiling, Gerald placed his hands on his hips and asked "So how far you think he'll make it before he crashes?"
Helga's House
Helga and Phoebe were leaving the house when they saw Eugene riding his bike down the street.
"Wee! I'm a bird! I'm a plane!"
Phoebe waved at their friend who was approaching them and said "Hello Eugene!"
The excited boy put his new brakes to the test and said "Gosh! These work great!"
The girls walked over to see their classmate waiting for them. "Hey guys, what's up?"
"I was speaking with Helga about the meeting that was held at Arnold's last night. Is the group still spending the day sharing ideas on how to spend the money?" Phoebe asked curiously.
"Yeah! We just went to the bike shop. Arnold got me this great new bike!" Eugene exclaimed.
While Phoebe acknowledged the impressiveness of it, Helga glared, thinking to herself…
Oh brother. Let's see him make it home without crashing.
"Would you happen to know the next stop on their list of activities?" Phoebe asked hopefully.
The Book Store
"Aww what are we doing at a stupid book store! This is supposed to be a fun week!" Harold pouted.
"You'll get your turn on Tuesday Harold. Right now, we're doing what Sheena wants to do." Arnold reminded his uninterested friend.
While Sheena was off looking for her book, Sid stood looking around and said "I kind of have to agree with Harold. I mean, if this is supposed to be exciting, why not just stay at school?"
"Well I'm looking just ever so forward to learning about the new, healthy dishes she promised to teach us about!" Lila exclaimed.
"Teach? Healthy? This is some stupid class!" Harold whined until the group heard…
"Ahh shut your mouth you big tub of lard!"
While Harold frowned at the insult, Arnold smiled to see the two missing people from their group. "Hey guys. How'd you know we were here?"
"Eugene was kind enough to inform us of where you'd be starting your exciting list of activities." Phoebe explained.
"Guess that means he hasn't crashed yet." Gerald said wittily.
"Don't hold your breath hairboy." Helga warned him, having as little faith as everyone else that their clumsy classmate would last long without wrecking his new bike.
Moments later, the group saw Sheena returning with her long desired book. "I've found it everyone! Let's go pay!"
As Helga was beginning to follow the healthy girl to the register, she felt someone grab her wrist.
"Hey! Who said you could touch me?"
Normally Arnold would apologize for getting his classmate so worked up. He knew her attitude would change when she saw what he was about to show her however.
"Come over here while they pay. I have something for you."
Cocking her brow at the request, Helga stuttered "Okay…."
The pigtailed girl stood with her hands on her hips as she watched her beloved fish into his pockets for something.
Her eyes widened as her hands fell to her sides when she saw him holding out the money to give to her.
"Here."
"What's this for?"
"We all divided the money to spend however we want this week. We each get $328."
After sensing the dazed state she had fallen into, Helga shook her head and scoffed "I'm guessing Klutzilla wasted his share on that soon to be thrashed bike of his."
Arnold began to rub his neck, knowing how likely it was. At least this time, it wouldn't be his fault. "Yeah, he picked it out this morning."
"Pttss...figures. So who's fun day is it tomorrow?"