Chapter 10
What championship?
"Wolfgang, we can't play now!"
"Yeah, it's pouring rain!"
"We'll all drown!"
"What the heck?" Helga thought, as she made her way towards the crowd of people on the sidewalk.
"Hey, Pheebs, what's going on?"
"It seems that Wolfgang still wants to conduct the baseball championship today despite the weather."
"Oh, criminy! The championship! I forgot all about it!"
"You wussy fourth graders aren't gonna chicken out because of a little rain, are you?" the huge fifth grade bully taunted.
"Well, actually-" Sid began.
"We'll play," Arnold cut in. "And we'll win too."
"Oh, sure, that'll be the day."
"What? You're not gonna chicken out now, are you?"
"Course not."
"Then we'll play you. Right now. Over at Gerald Field."
"Fine! Fifth graders against fourth graders. This'll be a piece of cake."
"Arnold, what did you do that for?!" Harold cried, once Wolfgang had walked away.
"They're fifth graders!"
"They'll eat us alive!"
"There's no way we could possibly beat them!"
"Criminy,
football head, what are you trying to do, kill us?"
"Come on,
you guys! We've played Wolfgang lots of times!"
"Yeah, and we lost most of them."
"That's not true! We've won…some."
"Yeah, but not before some of us were beaten up," Helga said, remembering all too well the time that she and Arnold both got black eyes for refusing to play football against them.
"Well…maybe we'll be lucky this time." All the fourth graders stared at him with a disbelieving look. "Come on, guys, we can do it! It's now or never! Who's with me?"
"Actually, I've got a doctor's appointment."
"Yeah, right, Sid."
"O-okay, fine. I'll go."
"Great. What about the rest of you guys?"
"Whatever."
"Sure."
"I guess."
"There's nothing better to do."
"Great! Then let's go!"