Chapter 12

The Rescue

"Okay, someone take a turn at bat," Helga called.

"Helga, I think everyone's already gone."

"What are you talking about? There's still plenty of people!"

"Most of them got scared when Lila got knocked down and ran away."

"Boy, she seems to have a knack for wrecking stuff. There's got to be someone left!"

"Doesn't look like it."

"Hey, football face! Bring someone up to bat!" Wolfgang shouted.

"There's no one left, Wolfgang."

"Well, then…use her! In the pink dress!"

"What?! I'm not batting! I'm the catcher!" Helga exclaimed.

"Fine then! You wanna end the game right now and just say that we beat you losers?"

"No…"

"Then bat!"

"You can go, Helga," Arnold said. "I'll be catcher."

"I'm catcher!"

"It'll just be for one round."

"But…I don't know how to bat."

"What do you mean 'you don't know how to bat'?"

"I'm just not good at it. I've grown so used to being catcher that I forgot how."

"That's not true. I've seen you bat once. You hit it too!"

"That was a fluke. I didn't even swing! The ball just kind of hit the bat."

"Come on, Helga, you can do it!"

"Copier. I just told you to hit the ball, and now you're telling me."

"It worked, didn't it?" he said, staring into her eyes.

"Well…okay. I'll do it. Gimme your bat."

"Good luck," he said, as she stepped up to the plate.

"Oh, brother. This'll be a cinch. All I have to do is strike out a stupid little girl in a pink dress and bow! What are you doing here anyway? Shouldn't you be at home playing with your dolls?"

"Throw the stupid ball," she muttered, clenching the bat.

"You can do it, Helga," Arnold said from behind her. "Just concentrate."

"If Arnold thinks I can do it, then I can probably do it," Helga thought to herself.

"Here you go, girl!" Wolfgang exclaimed, as he shot the ball right at her head.

"Oh, man, this isn't good," she thought. Then, without realizing what she was doing, she swung the bat with all her might and sent the ball back, sailing towards Wolfgang.

It gave a sickening CRACK as it smashed into Wolfgang's head. He fell back with a groan. Everyone was still.

"Wow," Sid gasped, breaking the silence.

"That was…weird," Nadine said.

"I think I'm gonna be sick," Sheena moaned, since she hated violence of any kind.

"Helga's gonna get it so bad," Rhonda spoke up.

"He'll pound her!" Harold exclaimed.

"Wow. Did I just do that?" Helga gasped, staring down at the bat, surprised at her own strength.

"Maybe you have dangerous lumber."

"Huh?" Helga said, turning around.

"Dangerous lumber," Arnold repeated. "You know, when you hit a person every time you hit a ball. I had it for awhile, but I think I'm over it by now."

"Oh, sure, and that's why you gave me amnesia by knocking me on the head with a baseball a few weeks ago."

"Oh, yeah. Sorry. I forgot about that."

"Maybe I gave Wolfgang amnesia too, and he won't kill me."

"I'm sure he won't kill you. It was an accident. He can't hurt you for that."

"Arnold, this is Wolfgang we're talking about! He'll hurt people for doing nothing! He'll pulverize me! He'll tear me limb from limb! I'm gonna be dead!"

"Maybe you could just, you know, talk to him."

"Arnold, that is the worst idea I've ever heard. You always say that, and it never works! People never want to talk! It's a lot easier to just punch someone's face in. Believe me, I've done it."

"Well, maybe-"

"No, Arnold, it won't work. Face it; I'm as good as gone. Well, anyway…thanks for…um…you know…"

"What?"

"For…just being there when no one else was. You seem to have a knack for that."

"You're welcome…I think."

"Uh…what happened?" Wolfgang groaned.

"You got beaned, big time."

"By who?"

"That girl with the bow."

"WHAT?" he roared, jumping to his feet.

"What a speedy recovery," Stinky said.

"That true?" Wolfgang said, walking over to home plate.

Helga just stared at him, too scared to move.

"Hey, I asked you a question!"

"Um…sorry?"

"Sorry's not good enough, princess."

"I-it's not my fault! I'm not a very good batter. And besides, you're the one who told me to bat in the first place!"

"Watch your mouth, girl. It doesn't matter who's fault it is, the fact is that you beaned me, and you're gonna pay."

"Okay, great. I owe you ten bucks. You know what? Make it twenty."

"I don't think you get what kind of pay I mean," he said, slamming his fist into his hand.

"Thirty?"

"Not good enough," he said, as he picked her up by the collar of her shirt and slammed her into a brick wall.

"Please stop," she whispered, almost to herself, tears forming in her eyes.

Wolfgang, not at all touched by her words, drew his fist back and prepared to punch Helga all the way to next year. She closed her eyes and waited for the pain.

"Fight, fight, fight, fight!" all the kids chanted.

Arnold stood a couple feet behind them, stunned. He couldn't believe Wolfgang was gonna do something like that to a girl! It had been an accident after all. And she said that she was sorry.

Suddenly, Arnold felt really mad. Madder than he had ever felt in his whole life. Without realizing what he was doing, or why, he ran up to Wolfgang, grabbed him by the arm, and spun him around.

"LEAVE HER ALONE!" he shouted in his face.

"Oooh," all the kids said, wondering why on earth Arnold was trying to protect Helga.

"Oh, are you sticking up for your little girlfriend?" Wolfgang taunted, still poised to strike Helga.

Helga peered around Wolfgang to see how Arnold would react to these words. Arnold met her stare and saw in her eyes a fear he had never known, but also a glimpse of…hope?

"I SAID LEAVE HER ALONE!"

"Why should I?" Wolfgang asked, throwing Helga to the ground.

She laid there motionless in the rain, her head throbbing with pain but still watching the fight.

"I'll give you five good reasons why," Arnold yelled, and, balling each of his fingers into a fist, calmly said, "One, two, three, four, five. Get the picture?"

"Oh, I'm so scared! I'm gonna get beaten up by a fourth grader! Oh, help, someone help!" Wolfgang said sarcastically.

"How could you do that to a girl?"

"Who cares? She's just a stupid girl."

"No one talks that way about Helga and gets away with it," he said through clenched teeth, as he slammed his fist right at Wolfgang's nose. It made contact with its target and then did again. Blood gushed from Wolfgang's nose as he fell backwards into the mud.