Author's Note: I'm back! So I got about halfway through this chapter when I decided to take a break for about a week. During this break I started work on something new: a prequel! I had some flashbacks I wanted to include at some point, but couldn't figure when I could naturally fit them in. I decided to expand them into a big one-shot. I'll be working on it alongside the main story, so chapters might be coming a little slower.
Also, if you ever want to know what I'm up to, I've started regularly updating my profile. It'll let you know the progress on the current chapter.
Review Responses:
The J.A.M. a.k.a. Numbah i: Thanks for the compliment on the dream sequence. It was easily my favorite part of last chapter.
Well, Phil gives him advice often enough. It just isn't always good advice.
Yeah, some stories are a little... uh... different.
Potatofields &VYTA2000: Well, here's the next chapter. Sorry for the delay. Hope you both enjoy it.
Previously: Arnold has a dream in which he realizes that the Cecile he had a date with a year and a half ago was actually Helga in disguise. As he talks with Gerald, trying to figure out what he should do about this information, he also realizes that he has a crush on Helga. Confronting her, she panics and hides in her room. Realizing that Arnold isn't mad at her, and is actually interested in her, she agrees to start dating him (after almost blowing the opportunity.)
Previous Married... with Children Reference: Oskar complains that "all women are size sevens." Al Bundy once said the same thing. "They are a size seven. The box just says size nine, because... lady, you're a nine! I can accept it, why can't you!"
Chapter Twelve: Strike
Saturday, August 23, 1997
Two Days Before the Start of Fifth Grade
Gerald Johanssen woke up to a still dark room. Grumbling at that fact, he out of bed. Truth be told he hadn't been sleeping well. For one thing, he was worried about his main man Arnold. The boy was getting too close to that witch with a capital B named Helga G. Pataki. His best friend had already been hurt by quite a few girls over the last couple of years. Ruth, Lila, and especially that Summer girl had caused quite a bit of stress and sadness for the blond kid.
The fact that Phoebe had grown distant towards Gerald in the last few months just added to his worries. The biracial girl disapproved of the suspicions he held regarding her best friend, even though said friend had been awful to everyone for years, Phoebe included. He didn't know why a kind, intelligent girl like her would be friends with a brute like Helga and he hated that it was driving a wedge between him and the dark-haired girl he wished was his girlfriend.
Going downstairs, Gerald saw sitting at the table the other source of his stress: his older brother Jamie O. The soon-to-be-senior had been moody, irritable, and downright hostile as of late. Well, more so than usual, anyway. Gerald knew something was up, and that it involved this girl Heather Jamie O was always either on the phone with or out visiting.
Jamie O had his head propped up by his arm, and was staring down into a bowl of soggy corn flakes. Gerald may have felt like he wasn't getting enough sleep, but Jamie O looked it with how slow he was eating and with how bloodshot his eyes were. He didn't even notice his younger brother had poured himself a bowl of cereal for himself until a couple minutes had passed. "Gerald?! When did you get here?"
"A little over ten years ago." Gerald snarked.
Jamie O frowned. "Now listen here, you little pest. I need you to stay the hell off the phone until the afternoon. I'm expecting another important call today."
Gerald decided to push his luck. "Would this call happen to be from this oh-so-mysterious Heather?"
Jamie O snarled. "Who it is isn't any of your damn business! Just stay off the phone!"
Gerald was about to drop the subject when a little girl's voice called out. "JAMIE O SAID A BAD WORD!" It was their seven-year-old sister Timberly, who was going through a tattletale phase. Again.
Their mother also walked into the room, having obviously just got up, and who wasn't happy at what her little girl had just shouted. "Jamie O Johanssen! What have I said about using those kinds of words!"
Jamie O grumbled. "I know, I know. Not in front of Timberly."
"'Not in front of Timberly?' Jamie O. I don't want you using them – period. Why can't you be more like your brother Gerald. You never hear him using filthy language."
This scolding caused the older son to glare at the younger one. Gerald kept his head down and started eating faster. Both boys knew perfectly well that Gerald's vocabulary wasn't exactly clean, just that he was more careful about who was around when he used sentence enhancers.
Shari Johanssen shook her head. "Jamie O, what if you have your own little girl or boy one day? You aren't going to want to hear them speak like that, would you?"
This caused the half asleep teen to nearly jump up, a look of panic in his eyes. "What?! How did-" He cut himself off, obviously processing all of what this mother had said. "I, uh, guess you're right, mom. Sorry."
Finishing his breakfast, Gerald ignored his brother's odd behavior. It was easy to do, as it was par for the course with how Jamie O had been acting these last few months.
Gerald showered and got dressed, and after listening to some songs by Outkast, he started out for Sunset Arms. He was excited for their last baseball practice before school started, after which they had only a few more meet ups before they played Wolfgang and the other sixth graders on the first Saturday in September.
As he approached the boarding house, he saw his friend Arnold already waiting for him. He frowned when he saw that Pataki was also there and was discussing something with his main man. Of course, she's there. She lives there now.
The African American boy jogged up to the blond, and the two friends did their secret handshake. "Hey, man." Gerald looked back at Pataki. "You, uh, get everything sorted out yesterday?"
Arnold also looked back at the girl. "Please, Helga?" He pleaded.
The girl, wearing her usual bow and pigtails, alongside jeans and a Nirvana T-Shirt featuring a smiley face with xed-out eyes, groaned. "Fine. But only because he will eventually find out anyway."
Arnold walked to Helga, and, blushing red, took her hand, causing Gerald's eyes to widen in shock. "Gerald, Helga and I have decided to, uh, start going out."
While Helga was squealing with delight on the inside, Gerald had different feelings on the topic. Oh no. OH GOD NO. This must be some freaky ass nightmare.
"Gerald, is everything alright?" His best friend asked.
Seeing the look of happiness on his best friend's face, Gerald couldn't bring himself to say anything negative. "Uh, glad to hear it, man."
Arnold smiled. "Thanks. Uh... could you keep the fact that we're dating quiet? We want to keep it on the down low for now." They were even keeping it quiet from Arnold's grandparents and the other boarders for a few days, mostly because Arnold didn't want to put up with their teasing.
Gerald forced out a "sure."
"Well, let's get going. I want to talk with Nadine for a minute before we start." Helga spoke, and with that they started off toward Gerald Field, the blonds still hand-in-hand.
Unlike last Wednesday, there wasn't as much conversation on the way there. Arnold and Helga shared some small talk here and there, mostly discussing the books they were reading. Gerald kept watching the blonde girl, trying to figure out what her motive in all this was.
As they got close to Gerald Field, Helga let go of Arnold's hand. Even though he knew why she had done it, it still caused a small frown to come to his face.
As they reached the field and saw the rest of the kids standing together and chatting (Eugene was actually there on time today), they walked over. As everyone greeted the trio, Stinky Peterson brought attention to something. "Hey, Ah have to ask, Helga. Why have yew been walkin' with Arnold and Gerald these past few days? Isn't yore house in a different direction?"
Helga gritted her teeth. She had expected someone to notice, but she hadn't expected it to be Stinky, of all people. Should I tell them? I mean, they're bound to find out when Arnold or I inevitably do a group project and they want to come over to our place. "Alright, I'll tell you all the truth..."
This got Arnold's attention. I thought she wanted to keep everything about Olga being her mother and me being her new boyfriend under wraps?
"I've moved in with Olga... and Olga moved into the boarding house owned by Football Head's grandparents. I'm living with him now."
Arnold mentally facepalmed. Oh, she meant that. Duh.
Sid came up to her. "Man, I wish I lived somewhere as cool as Arnold's place. I'm jealous."
Helga wasn't really sure how to respond. The boarding house was okay, but some rooms were real fixer-uppers. "Uh... yeah, Sid. It's a real... hip joint."
After that, Helga pulled aside Nadine so that the others wouldn't overhear them. "What's up, Helga?" the biracial girl asked.
"It's, uh, about what we discussed yesterday." A small smile came on Helga's face. "I talked with Arnold."
A wide grin came on the other blonde's face. "You asked him out and he said yes? I'm so happy for you, Helga!"
Helga rubbed the back of her head. "Actually, I'm the one who said yes... he came to me."
Nadine put her hands up to her cheeks. "That is so sweet." She then frowned. "Since you two didn't announce it to everyone, I'm guessing you too are keeping it quiet, though?"
Helga nodded. "Yeah. So even if it would stop her from bugging Arnold, I have to ask you not to tell Rhonda."
The bug girl nodded. "Okay. Just be prepared for her asking out Arnold. As her best friend I do have to request that you don't try to shove your fist down her throat." Nadine's playful smirk made it clear to Helga that she didn't actually expect any violence from the pigtailed girl.
Meanwhile, as Arnold was chatting with Eugene and Sheena, he felt a tap on his back. Turning around, he saw Brainy standing there. He thought the boy had been speaking with Iggy and Curly, who were still talking about who knows what. "Uh... hi. Can we... talk? Over... there." He pointed to a spot where they could talk without being overheard.
"Uh, sure, Brainy." Though Arnold would admit the glasses wearing boy creeped even him out sometimes, that didn't stop him from being friendly. After walking over to the spot, Arnold asked him what was up.
It took the wheezing boy a while to speak but speak he did. "I just... wanted... to say... treat Helga... right..." A frown appeared on his face and he held up a fist. "...Or else." And with that, he walked off.
Arnold shivered. How does he already know about us being together? I better treat Helga right... Not that the kindhearted boy would ever treat any girl poorly, but something in Brainy's tone and expression scared Arnold, even if there would be no way the asthmatic kid would ever win in a fight.
While Helga was confiding in Nadine and Brainy was threatening Arnold, Gerald was complaining to Sid, Stinky, and Harold. "You guys got to agree with me about Helga, right? You can't believe she's actually changed, can you?"
Harold shook his head. "Gerald, you've asked us this before. She's been a really good friend to me these last few months. Patty and I actually plan to invite her along with us to watch the next Slam Jam. I don't get what you have against her."
Stinky agreed with Harold. "Ah agree with Harold. Helga's a pretty swell gal nowadays. Are yew sure that yore not just afraid of Helga supplanting yew as Arnold's best friend?"
The other three boys looked at Stinky with raised brows. "'Supplanting?'" Sid repeated.
"Whut? Mah uncle got me a word-a-day calendar several months ago. It's been helping me improve mah vocabulary." Stinky defended.
Gerald shook his head. "I'm not worried about Helga replacing me as Arnold's best friend." He wants her to fill a different role. "I'm worried about her hurting him." He looked at Sid. "Surely you're suspicious of her, right, Sid?" The stringy-haired boy was always suspicious of others.
Sid shook his head. "No, Gerald. I've had no problems with her since probably last year. In fact, these days I'm happy she's around, because between her and Arnold we're going to kick Wolfgang's butt when we play him and the other sixth graders. I think you're just being paranoid."
Gerald huffed at the audacity of Sid to call someone else paranoid. The kid had thought Stinky was a vampire for God's sake. "Whatever. You guys will see. She has to slip up sometime."
Just then, Helga called out to everyone. "All right, you bozos, let's play! We need to be ready to beat the snot out of the sixth graders when we play them early next month!"
And with that they started to practice. Everything went well until several innings in. Arnold was up to bat, with Helga being both catcher and umpire, as was usual for their practices. Harold was on the pitcher's mound, and as Arnold got up to plate, and, as he was wont to do, started shaking his rear back and forth as he waited for Harold to throw the ball.
Watching her new boyfriend, Helga could no longer resist making the comment she had wanted to make for over a year now. "Nice tush, Arnold."
This comment made the boy freeze up even as the ball whooshed by him. "Strike!" Helga called it on reflex, and immediately felt bad. "Sorry, Arnold." Curse my dirty thoughts!
He looked at her, his cheeks bright red. "It's, uh, it's fine Helga. I'll hit this next one." Sure enough, on the next good pitch (Harold's second throw was a ball), Arnold hit it.
Helga smiled as her beloved ran to first base. She didn't notice that Gerald, next in line to bat, had watched the whole interaction.
As Gerald stalked up to the plate, he turned to Helga, his eyes narrowing and a scowl on his face. "I don't know what you said to my man Arnold to make him whiff like that, but I'm onto you Pataki, and if you hurt Arnold I'll make sure everyone knows what a horrible person you still are."
Helga felt her temper start to rear its head at Gerald's threat as the dark-skinned boy hit the ball, sending him to first.
I need to hit something... Helga thought. Nadine was up next, but Helga walked over to meet her. "Hey, uh, Nadine. If it wasn't too much trouble could you switch with me? I need to get some batting practice in."
Despite the fact that the bases were loaded (Gerald on first, Arnold on second, Eugene on third), Nadine nodded her head. "Sure, Helga."
Giving Nadine the catcher's mask and mitt, Helga took the bat. As Harold prepared his next pitch, Helga got ready to smack it as hard as she could. Stupid Gerald. Why can't he get it through his stupid head that I'm a new freakin' person. As the ball came at her, she swung.
Time seemed to slow down as the bat connected with the ball. Helga knew as soon as she hit it that it was a bad angle, but the ball still sailed off... right into Eugene's head.
KLONK!
The red-headed, accident-prone boy went down. As she, along with everyone else, rushed over, Helga felt a sense of guilt and dread. Oh my god. Is he okay? He must be, right?
Sure enough, as Sheena kneeled to look at her downed friend/crush, his eyes fluttered open. "I'm okay." His hand went to the red spot on the middle of his forehead, where there was most definitely going to be a bruise.
Sheena shook her head. "Oh, thank goodness you're alright, Eugene." She looked to her friends as she helped the jinx up. She turned to the rest of the kids. "He might have a concussion, so I'll take him to the hospital. If my parents come by to pick me up tell them where I am."
Helga walked up to the boy, visibly apologetic. "Eugene, I am so, so sorry. I didn't mean to bean you. I shouldn't have hit the ball so hard, and-"
"It's okay, Helga. I believe you. Accidents happen." Eugene replied, still somewhat dazed.
"We know it was a freak accident. Don't worry about it." Sheena reassured the guilty girl.
The group watched as the two slowly made their way towards the hospital, which was practically Eugene's second home. As Helga watched, her feelings of guilt still eating at her, she suddenly found herself being pushed.
She grit her teeth as she stopped herself from falling with her hands. She might not have hit her head against the ground, but her hands felt like they would be sore for the next day or two. Sure enough, as she stood back up she saw that she was missing some skin off her hands.
"What the heck, man?! Why'd you push Helga?!" It was Harold who spoke. Helga turned to look, and she saw who he was talking to: Gerald.
"You know perfectly well why I did it. She beaned Eugene on purpose." As he spoke he pointed an accusatory finger straight at Helga. Any feelings of guilt disappeared as her blood started to boil.
Stalking over to him, Helga poked him in the chest. "I didn't mean to hit him Geraldo! If I was going to bean anyone on purpose it would have been you!"
"You'd like to see me get hit, wouldn't you, Helga the horrible?"
Arnold tried to intervene. "Gerald, Helga, maybe you two should-"
"Stay out of it!" They both growled.
Helga got right in Gerald's face "I! Don't! Want! To! Hurt! ANYBODY!" Despite the pain, she punctuated each word by hitting her open palm with her fist. "Why can't you get it through your thick skull and into your small brain!? I'VE CHANGED! WHY IS THAT SO HARD TO BELIEVE!"
"Yeah right, Helga! I'd believe it with anyone else. I believe, for example, that Harold and Rhonda have both improved." Harold flinched at the reference to his past as a bully. "But you... You've been mean, horrible, and nasty for years, and I know the truth: you will never change." Gerald finished his rant by pointing right at Helga's face. "You will always be a bitch."
Helga saw red.
WHACK!
As the haze cleared, she saw Gerald on the ground, hand covering his right eye, his left glaring up at her. She realized she had just punched him in the face. Looking around, she saw the other kids staring in shock and horror.
The girl felt her heart start to race. I-I didn't mean too. I couldn't help it! As nobody said anything, she felt tears start to come to her eyes. They're scared of me! T-They're going to hate me again! "I-I'm sor-"
"See, you can't hide who you truly are, Helga!" Gerald sneered from his spot on the ground.
She then turned to look at Arnold, who was looking at the two of them, mouth agape. Despite his shock, he managed to mumble out. "H-How could you..."
Feeling a crushing weight settle over her heart, Helga pushed her way through the kids and started running for the boarding house and the safety of her room, tears running down her face.
As she got further and further away from the group, Arnold snapped out of it, and glared at his best friend. "How the hell could you talk about her that way, Gerald?!" He then turned towards where Helga had gone and called out to her. "Helga, wait!" When it became obvious that she wasn't coming back, he went after the upset girl, leaving the rest of the kids behind.
After he disappeared from sight, the rest of the kids turned back to Gerald, who had finally stood up. They were not happy with him.
"You were a real jerk towards Helga. She said it was an accident."
"Yeah, man. Why couldn't you have just left her alone?"
"I can't believe yew would push a girl like that!"
"And I thought I was the psycho!"
"I thought you were cool, dude."
"You're... mean."
Gerald was about to defend himself when Nadine stepped forward. She hated taking charge in group settings, but, as Helga had just recently become her friend (and considering the immaturity of most of the boys still present), she felt she had to. "Gerald, I think the team and I need to discuss things for a moment. Can you go and sit on the bleachers in the meantime?"
Gerald, feeling a sense of dread start to build in his chest, opened his mouth to object, when Harold spoke. "Uhhhhh... what do we need to talk about? Shouldn't we deal with Gerald first?"
Nadine pinched the bridge of her nose. "Harold, for the love of God..." She then looked at the boy whose fate the team had to decide. "Gerald, please go sit down."
Gerald went and did so. He put his head in his hands, as he didn't need to watch them point and gesture in his direction as they decided their verdict. Great. I bet Helga will have a great laugh when she learns she turned everyone against me. With me out of the way it'll be a lot easier for her to stab Arnold in the back...
After a few more minutes, Nadine approached, the six boys trailing behind her. She took no pride in having to do this, but she felt it was necessary. "Gerald, we've talked it over and made a decision. We don't like to do this, but we decided that, at least until you put this grudge you have against Helga behind you, you won't be playing on the team with us."
Even though he knew it was coming, Gerald was defiant. "You can't be serious! She hit me! Or didn't you notice?!" He pointed to his right eye, which was on its way to becoming a shiner. "Are you going to suspend her too?"
"No, we aren't, Gerald."
"Why the hell not?!"
Nadine pointed a finger at him. "For one thing, you pushed her down before she hit you. And also, unlike you, she hasn't been antagonizing someone for months until they finally snapped."
"She harassed Arnold for years! The only difference is that my man, saint that he is, never hauled off and laid a haymaker on her."
Nadine's resolve faltered a little. "Her picking on him... that was different, Gerald."
"Yeah? How?"
Nadine knew why Helga picked on Arnold for so many years, but she couldn't say it. "It... It doesn't matter. She doesn't act like that anymore. If she did, she might be the one getting suspended right now."
Gerald threw his arms up in frustration. "You can't kick me off the team! You'll be a player short! Plus, the field is named Gerald field. You can't ban its namesake from playing on it."
Nadine crossed her arms. "You're welcome to play on it anytime we're not here, Gerald. Plus, we decided on the name by drawing straws. The fact you won is irrelevant."
"We should rename it 'Gammelthorpe Stadium,' and build a statue in my honor." Curly interjected, earning him an elbow from Iggy ("not the time, dude.")
Nadine ignored the crazy boy's antics to give Gerald an out. "Once you get over your grudge and apologize to Helga, you're welcome to come back. Until then, we're sorry we had to do this, but it's our final decision."
Gerald got up, angry at the whole group. "Fine. I'll leave. And I will be back. But I won't be the one apologizing. You all will be saying sorry to me after Helga shows that she's still the same piece of crap she's always been." And with that, he stormed off.
Reaching home, he headed in. At least I won't have to put up with Timberly or my parents. If I remember correctly they were taking her out somewhere this morning. That means it's just me and... Jamie O. Ugh. He could hear his brother talking in the kitchen, where one of the phones was located. Maybe I could at least get some dirt on him, that way I could make him stop treating me like crap.
Sidling up next to one of the doorways leading to the kitchen, he got in a position where he could hear his brother but his brother couldn't see him. It was only then that he realized how upset his brother sounded. "...I know you can't stay at Sarah's forever, it's just, if you were to come here we... we would have to tell my parents."
Gerald was smirking. He was about to find out what was going on with his brother, hopefully something that he could hang over Jamie O's head for a while.
"I know we have to, it's just, it went so poorly with your parents... I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up. Maybe... maybe there's someone we could tell that could help us break it to my parents... I know we have less than five months before the baby comes..." His voice dropped to a whisper. "I'm just so scared..."
Baby!? Gerald fell down in surprise, bumping into a cabinet as he went. Hearing the noise, his brother rushed through the doorway. The teen's face twisted in anger at the sight of his sibling. Gerald looked up at his brother, still in shock at what he had heard. "J-Jamie O? W-what's going on?!"
Jamie O picked him up by the shirt. "Why were you eavesdropping on me, you little sneak?!"
Gerald couldn't think of an excuse. He certainly couldn't tell him he wanted blackmail material. "Jamie O, I-"
Jamie O snarled, contrasting with the tears beading in his eyes. "You cannot tell mom and dad what you heard, okay! If you do, I don't know what I'll do to you, but I'll start by giving you a black eye to match that one you already have! Got it!?"
Gerald nodded. Jamie O dropped him, and he slinked off to his room, tears starting to come to his own eyes. He had got punched in the face, kicked off the baseball team, probably damaged his relationship with his best friend, and found out he was going to be an uncle (and was threatened due to his discovery). The worst part was that the day wasn't even half over yet.
Arnold rushed down the sidewalk, trying to catch up to his new girlfriend, but the girl was too fast and had too much of a head start. She doesn't even run this fast while we're playing baseball!
He could see her, still a good way away, dash up the steps of the boarding house and into the building. Reaching and entering his home, he was just in time to hear a door slam upstairs. Going up the stairs as fast as he could, he saw her mother outside door six, wide eyed in confusion.
Seeing Arnold, Olga turned to him for answers, worry on her face. "Arnold, what... what's going on? Helga just ran past me and into her room, and she seemed upset! What happened?"
"She accidentally beaned Eugene, and Gerald blamed her and pushed her. She... uh, she retaliated..."
Olga sighed. During her time as a student teacher, she had seen the affection for Arnold her daughter had tried her best to conceal, so she had of course seen the disdain the African-American boy very obviously had for her little girl. She couldn't fully blame the boy for having those feelings in the first place, as she knew that her daughter's behavior used to be... not great, to put it lightly, but she still was disappointed that he was not willing to allow that maybe, just maybe, Helga was trying to be better.
However, Gerald's feelings were irrelevant right now. It was her little girl's that concerned her. Walking over to her daughter's door, Olga knocked. "Helga, sweetie, is it alright if I come in?"
She and Arnold frowned as Helga's upset voice reached them. "GO AWAY!"
The mother wasn't going to give up so easily. Her little girl needed support. "Please, Helga, don't shut me out. I can help with whatever is wrong."
"NO, YOU CAN'T! I've ruined everything! Everyone hates me now! JUST GO AWAY!" Olga heart broke at the despair in her little girl's voice.
Arnold called out. "That's not true, Helga! I could never hate you, and I'm sure the others don't either! Please come out!"
There was silence on the other side for several seconds, then they heard the door open just a little. Through the crack, Helga peeked out. She could see the worried looks on their faces, and they could see her red, puffy eyes. Within seconds of her opening the door all the way, Olga had pulled her into a hug, which her daughter returned.
After they separated, Arnold took a chance: he pulled her into a hug too. Helga at first stiffened, before returning this one too. I can't believe it! He doesn't hate me!? I socked his best friend in the face after accidentally injuring our teammate!
After they separated, she looked at him, a blush on her face. "Thanks Arnold." She whispered. She then looked down and put a voice to her thoughts. "But why? I proved Gerald right. I still am a bully, even after I've tried so hard to be different."
Arnold shook his head. "You are not a bully, Helga! Sure, you shouldn't have punched him, but he provoked you! He pushed you down, after all. I mean, look at your hands!" All three of them looked at the girl's palms as she held both up to check on the damage done to them. They were red, and there was a little bleeding, but it wasn't as bad as she had thought they were. Olga quietly growled at the sight, though, and Arnold wasn't done reassuring his new girlfriend. "Not only that, but then he said all those things about you and called you that horrible name."
Olga's eyes narrowed. "What name did he call her, Arnold?" She hissed.
Arnold hesitated, and Helga decided to intervene. She really disliked Gerald right now, but she didn't think Olga going mama bear on the kid would help things all that much. "Nothing too bad, Mom. That Seven kid called me much worse."
Arnold raised an eyebrow and frowned. "Who?" There's someone named 'Seven'? What did he call her?
"I'll tell you later." Helga promised. Despite everything, she smiled, glad that Arnold would be offended at the idea of some stranger insulting her.
"Helga." The girl turned back towards her mom. "Do you still feel up for that surprise activity I mentioned taking you to? I know you've had a long morning, and I don't know if your hands feel okay enough for it."
Helga pressed the palms of her hands with her fingers. It hurt... but not too much. Plus, whatever Olga wanted to do might be a good distraction from everything. "Uh... sure."
Olga clapped her hands together in happiness. "Great! We'll get going after lunch!"
Arnold looked at Helga. "Well, I hope this afternoon is better than the morning was." He frowned. "I guess I'll... go find something to do..."
Helga rubbed the back of her neck, suddenly feeling bad. That's right. He mentioned he was going to hang out with Gerald after practice. That's not going to happen now... She looked at Olga. "Is it alright if Arnold comes with us?" She looked at Arnold. "If it's something that interests him, that is."
Olga mulled it over in her mind. It was a family tradition, so she thought she'd be keeping it between her and Helga, but then again, best case scenario, Arnold might one day be family. "Sure. If it interests him and it's alright with his grandparents."
Olga went and whispered the activity in Arnold's ear (she still wanted to keep it a surprise for her daughter, after all), Arnold nodded. "I've never done that before. Sounds like fun. I'm sure I'll get permission." Any distraction from what happened with Gerald was appreciated.
Helga's curiosity was piqued as she and Olga went inside room seven to have lunch, and Arnold went downstairs to eat with Gertie and Phil. What is this mysterious activity? It isn't laser tag or paintball, is it? It would have to be something Olga hadn't ever competed in, as the last few days her mother had expressed distaste for doing anything Bob had pushed her to do in the past. Arnold had expressed interest in learning to play some simple songs on the piano, and for a teacher and former concert pianist, Olga had been really reluctant to give any advice or demonstrations.
The young adult had even remained silent a couple nights ago when she had watched Jeopardy with her daughter, Arnold, and Phil; the two preteens got a surprisingly large amount of the questions correct, and the old man got a surprisingly large amount of them hilariously wrong ("The winner of the 1945 Nobel Peace Prize." "Who is Hedy Lamarr!" "Who is Cordell Hull." "Dagnabbit!")
After lunch, during which Arnold easily got Phil's permission, the two kids and the adult started off in Olga's car.
"Will you tell me now where we are going?" Helga asked her mother, her patience running thin (it had been a long day after all.)
"You'll find out soon enough, Helga. I will tell you why we're going where we're going: it's a family tradition. Your grandpa first took me when I was about your age, and his father did the same with him, and so on and so forth" Her voice took on a more solemn tone. "Dad once told me it was the only good memory he had of his father."
This new information intrigued Helga. So, it can't be paintball or laser tag... what could it be? Bob rarely mentions his father. Most of what I've heard about János Pataki over the years has been negative.
Arnold looked at her and smiled. "I think you will enjoy it, Helga." Suddenly, something occurred to him, and his cheeks reddened. "Uh, by the way... why did you say that earlier?"
"When I said... what?"
Arnold tried to be discreet. "Y'know, when I was batting."
Helga turned as red as a tomato. Why the hell is he asking this now?! "I, uh, don't know why I said it! Don't think too much about it!"
Arnold looked at her through half-lidded eyes, not fully believing her. "Whatever you say, Helga."
"What'd she say, Arnold?" Olga asked.
"NOTHING!" Both kids said at the same time, neither wanting to explain what happened to the still slightly overprotective mother.
Leaving the city, Olga drove through Hillwood's wooded outskirts. Eventually they came to a fake castle building. Jutting out from the building was a canopy roof held up by wooden pillars, all behind a fence. The sign marked it as "Robin Hood's Archery Range." A smaller sign by the door read "help wanted."
"Archery?" Helga asked, surprised. I never did notice Olga having any trophies for archery...
"You're not interested?" Olga said, disappointed.
Daughter quickly reassured mother. "Oh, no, I think I'll enjoy it, it's just... I never knew both you and Bob used the bow and arrow. He didn't make you compete in it?"
Olga shook her head. "No, he actually allowed me to keep it as a hobby. Apparently, hundreds of years ago, the Patakis mostly acted as hunters, using the bow and arrow to bring down prey. Your grandpa doesn't have the patience or stealth for hunting, or I the stomach for it, so we instead went to the archery range."
Helga didn't care for hunting, either. Besides your occasional bugs like flies and mosquitoes, the only animals she could think of hurting were rats and a certain, already-deceased parrot. Arnold had similar sentiments.
Getting out of the car, the preteens followed Olga to the trunk. Opening it, she got Helga a bow and a quiver full of arrows, as well as pair of gloves. She also got her own set out. "I'll have to rent you some equipment, Arnold. Maybe if you enjoy it I'll get you your own set as a gift."
Going inside the "castle," the three were met with wooden decor that matched the medieval motif. There were numerous, cheaply made suits of armor standing around. On one wall was a large fireplace, which was not currently lit, it being summer and all. A tapestry hung above it depicting the sun and various mythological creatures. Another wall had a bunch of bows and arrows on display. In front of this display was a red-haired teenage girl sitting at a desk. Her attire was similar to what you would expect Robin Hood to wear, but red instead of green, with a yellow hat and gloves. She was reading A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain.
As the three approached her, she set aside her book and looked at them with a smile. "Hi, Miss Pataki! Who you got with you today?"
"Well, this is my daughter Helga, and her boy-"
"My friend Arnold." Helga interrupted. If she wasn't going to tell most of the people she knew that they were dating, she wasn't going to let her mother tell an utter stranger.
Olga frowned for a moment, then went back to smiling as she continued. "Helga, Arnold, this is Sarah Havilland."
Sarah smiled. "Actually, I'm supposed to go by Little Jane when I'm in costume." She then leaned in and whispered conspiratorially. "It's actually a Speedy outfit, but we couldn't afford the license."
Olga snickered, while Arnold and Helga were confused. Who the heck is Speedy? Both thought.
"Well, Jane, we need to rent Arnold some equipment. Him coming along was kind of last minute, and I only had two sets."
"Well, Arnold, what are you looking for? Would you prefer a recurve bow, longbow, compound bow, or crossbow?"
Arnold didn't know the difference among any of them, except that the crossbow was one that handled similar to a gun (he had seen it in some old movies), and that the longbow probably had better range – why else would it be called a longbow?
Olga quickly caught on to his confusion. "Just a simple recurve bow, Jane. He's never used one before, and we're not going hunting or anything."
"Alright." After Olga paid the entrance and rental fees, and they got Arnold all set up, the three bid Sarah goodbye and started for the door that led to the range. As she watched them go, the teen girl looked closer at the young woman. Isn't Miss Pataki going to be the new English teacher? She seems mighty young to be a mother to a girl that old. Maybe Heather and her boyfriend could talk to her...
Going through a door, they were greeted in by a man who must have been the Green Arrow to Sarah's Speedy. He looked to be about Miriam's age and had dark hair and a good sized nose. "Howdy, folks! I'm Robin Hood, and this is my archery range!" Seeing who it was, he grinned. "Good to see you again, Miss Pataki."
"Hi, Steve." Olga greeted. "Steve, this is my daughter Helga and her friend Arnold. Kids, this is Steve Rhoades."
"Good to meet you two. Olga, do you want me to show them the ropes?"
"I'm going to do teach them, Steve. Thanks for offering, though."
They started walking off, when Steve stopped her. "Oh, Olga, by the way... is that your Firebird in the parking lot?"
Olga nodded.
"Alright! So, you got the car! Man, I need to get a cool car again. I remember one time, my former neighbor and I bought an old '65 Mustang from this punk kid. We spent the next few weeks turning that hunk of junk into a real beauty. Too bad it turned out to have been stolen. Never saw it again after its maiden voyage. Besides at the trial."
"That stinks!"
Steve chuckled. "Yeah, but at least I got a Mercedes soon afterward. The guy I restored it with had this old piece of crud Dodge. Last time I saw him he was still driving that hunk of junk, and he probably still is to this day."
"You told me about him before. Didn't he work at the Chicago branch of Gary's Shoes? One of the tenants of the boarding house I'm staying in recently got a job at the new Hillwood branch."
"That poor sucker. Couldn't do worse than Al, though. They get paid commission, and since he was so hostile to the-"
Helga was just about to ask Olga if they could hurry up and shoot already, when a lady came up to him.
"Excuse me, Mr. Hood? My son Davey needs some help with his bow. Could you give him some more pointers if it's not too much trouble?"
Steve nodded. "No problem, ma'am. Be right over. Talk to you later, Olga."
After Steve left, Olga led the two ten-year-olds to an open spot with three targets, two relatively close and one farther back. "Sorry. I got to know Steve when he moved here a few years ago and bought the range. He has some interesting stories to tell."
Drawing her bow, she readied it. "Okay, I'm going to demonstrate the technique you should use." She showed how to nock an arrow and aim it, pointing it toward the target that was farther back. "You want to concentrate. Take a deep breath and focus. All that exists is you, your bow, your arrow, and the target... and the wind, if it's a gusty day."
She loosed the arrow, sending it sailing right into the bullseye.
"Whoa, good shot." Arnold was amazed at how the woman hit dead center with her very first shot of the day, having figured she'd need to warm up.
Helga wasn't. After all, her mother had always excelled at everything she did. "Bet you can't do that again."
As Olga nocked and loosed another arrow, Helga expected the second to bury itself in the target right next to the first one. Instead, it split the first arrow down the middle, making Helga's mouth drop open.
Her mother smirked. "Your turn, dear." That was so worth ruining an arrow.
Regaining her composure, Helga readied her bow, much as Olga had done. Aiming at one of the nearer targets, she took a deep breath. Ignoring the slight pain in her palms, she adjusted her aim, and loosed the arrow.
It didn't hit the bullseye, but it was much closer to the center than the rim. Although she wished she had hit the middle, it was more than satisfactory for a first try.
"Good job, honey!" Olga cheered. "Your turn, Arnold."
Arnold copied what he'd seen the mother and daughter do. Taking a deep breath, he nocked the arrow, and pulled back. Geez, it takes a little more strength than I thought. He took aim, fired the arrow... and watched it travel maybe a yard before it buried itself in the ground.
Helga giggled as Arnold frowned. "What did I do wrong?"
Olga offered advice. "You didn't pull back far enough. I did the same thing my first few times. Just give it another try, and really pull back before you fire."
Arnold did so, and the arrow traveled far enough to hit the target. Farther, actually, as it missed the target completely, causing Arnold to groan.
As her mother continued to help the football-headed boy, Helga took aim at her own target again, and managed to get even closer to the bullseye, causing her to grin. Y'know, maybe life isn't too bad...
And that's a wrap!
Steve is yet another character from Married... with Children, having been the Bundy's neighbor for the first three and a half seasons. He made a few guest appearances after he divorced his wife and left. He could very well have moved away from the Chicago area after the last one, so here he is. As you can see, not every character from that show is a horrible person, unlike Luke or Seven. Steve may make sporadic appearances, as I have plans for that "help wanted" sign.
Next: Best Friends