Twisting Paths

Part 1 in a multi-year saga

Arnold turned around to see his grandparents one last time before boarding the airplane with the rest of his fifth grade class.

"Remember Kimba!" his grandma shouted, using her pet name for him whenever she hunted flies with a flyswatter, "There are nasty predators out there! Be safe!"

"And stay away from the berries! They may look tasty, but you'll have the runs for a week!" his grandpa yelled, waving as his grandson walked down the jetway.

Arnold tried not to smile too much as he boarded the plane that would take him and his classmates to the one place he had dreamed of visiting ever since finding his dad's diary almost two years ago.

"Can you believe it man?" his best friend Gerald asked, "We're on our WAY! Man, I've been counting down the days ever since we heard the news from Wartz…"

Yeah…" Arnold replied, looking out the window at the last rays of sunlight as they disappeared over the city skyline. Soon, his plan would be put into action, and he'd finally have the one thing he'd always wanted… his parents back with him. He pictured their reunion and their return home and slowly drifted off to sleep with nothing but hopeful thoughts and dreams awaiting him in his mind.

Three weeks earlier

"Attention Students!" The PA system announced early Monday morning, Principal Wartz's voice actually sounding happy for once, "In light of recent events in the community, the state has given PS 118 the opportunity to send 30 students on a once in a lifetime trip outside the country. The destination and those allowed to go will be decided by an essay contest. Each classroom will select one young writer to submit their essay to me by noon on Friday, and the winner's class will be allowed to choose any destination in the world to travel to for two weeks time. Please see your teacher if you have any questions… that is all."

Gerald poked his friend awake with the sharp end of his pencil, "Dude! Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?" Arnold asked, shaking off the remnants of a dream where he was on top of a building, the very same rooftop he had been on not three months ago with the girl who had tormented him for years.

"Wartz just said that if one of us can write a good enough essay, we can get a trip to anywhere in the world!" Gerald exclaimed, almost being drowned out by the rest of the class talking about where they would go.

"He did?" Arnold asked, suddenly wide awake, "what did he say we had to write about?"

"We'll have to ask Simmons that…" Gerald said, smiling and raising his hand while their teacher tried to get a grip on his class's sudden outburst.

"Settle down everyone settle down… I know you're all really excited about the contest, but we still have a week to pick a very special entrant from this wonderful group… now if you could all please, quiet down and I'll tell you what you'll have to write about."

When news filtered through the students that he would tell them more, everyone suddenly became mute, practically falling out of their seats with barely contained euphoria.

"Thank you… now, the rules Principal Wartz handed to the teachers this morning said that our class can choose one participant by way of a vote, you cannot vote for yourself, and the topic is where you would take the class and why. Fairly straightforward, and now that you're all in the fifth grade, I expect an even better caliber of writing than you were already handing in. Now, if nobody minds, I'll give you all today and tomorrow to write your essays and we'll vote on them on Wednesday… is that alright with everyone?"

The entire class shouted their consent, and with that, pencils and pens practically materialized in their hands, paper was shuffled out in a hurry, and almost everyone's head was down as they wrote about their dream trip to exotic destinations and adventure in a foreign land. One student in particular was blazing along at an incredible speed, her pen flying over the paper, each stroke flowing smoothly into the next with no breaks, as if she had memorized where she wanted to go.

Helga sighed and put her pen down after having filled up three pages of paper front and back in a matter of twenty minutes. She looked just in front of her and to the left at the back of the boy she had loved since she was three years old. Her eyes misted over and she imagined the two of them in Paris France, on top of the Eiffel Tower, overlooking the architecture and the people below, a city of lovers and dreamers, walking below unaware of the fiery passion that burned high above their heads. She would get Arnold alone, and this time, instead of blowing her feelings off as a moment of weakness or something that happened in the heat of the moment, she would show him how she really felt… and he would tell her that he had always felt the same way about her… it would be perfect…

"Helga…" her friend Phoebe said, dragging her out of her daydream.

"What is it Pheebs?" Helga hissed back, a little miffed at having been shaken out of her favorite fantasy.

"I was just curious as to where you suggested we go for the trip… I chose Kyoto Japan…"

"Oh… I said Paris." She replied bluntly

"Really? Wow… but would you like it very much Helga? I mean… there's a lot of culture in France… and a lot of art all around the cityscape… would you enjoy it?"

"Hey! Are you trying to say that I can't appreciate the finer things in life?" Helga asked, rolling up a spitwad and blowing it squarely into the back of Arnolds head, just below his signature hat.

"N-no Helga…it's just that it's not something that I would expect from you is all…" Phoebe squeaked out, blushing slightly at the unintended insult

"People can surprise you, you know?" Helga replied, going back to work perfecting her already impressive piece of literary work.

Two rows up, Gerald and Arnold were scribbling away, lost in their own thoughts. Gerald was picturing himself standing at the base of the pyramids in Egypt. Maybe he would discover a tomb no one had ever thought existed? He'd be famous… and the treasure!

Arnold sat next to his daydreaming friend and tried to find a way to figure out how he could get his essay chosen. This could very well be the one time in his life that he would be able to look for his parents… but if he wrote that he wanted to go to San Lorenzo just to look for them, he was certain that it would get shot down in a heartbeat. He had to think of something that would appeal to the kids, and that would get Wartz's approval. He stared at the paper in front of him thinking of possible reasons for his seemingly random choice, then it hit him… in his dad's diary, he had mentioned that few outsiders had ever set foot in the jungles of San Lorenzo, and that there were still secrets in the dense jungle… if he could just phrase it all perfectly, he was sure that everyone would agree and he would get chosen by Wartz…

The next day, the same silence fell over the class as people continued writing, rereading, and crumpling up their work. Arnold had stayed up all night, but he had finally figured out what to write…

The ancient land of San Lorenzo is home to one of the world's best kept secrets… few have seen it's native inhabitants, and fewer have returned to tell about it. The mighty forest, which goes on for what can feel like eternity, is the dwelling place of some of the most ancient and unknown temples, some still yet to be found… But the most incredible facet of this seemingly random spot on the globe, is that it is home to a people who almost died out not even a decade ago. My parents, doctors of medicine and anthropology, met these elusive Green Eyed people in their hour of need, rescued their sacred icon, La Corazon, and healed them of the deadly sleeping sickness. As a reward, the Green Eyes welcomed them as members of their tribe, and they saw things that no other person in recorded history has yet to see.

They found a temple, deep in the jungle, at the base of a volcano, and it was there that I was born. According to the only record my dad left, his old journal, I was born during a volcanic eruption, and my first cry silenced all of nature, even stopping the lava from devouring the temple that they had taken refuge in… To me, San Lorenzo is not just another spot on the map, it is so much more than a name and a mystery. It holds secrets that I believe can be uncovered if those brave enough will venture into it, and it holds very personal meaning to me as well… I was born there, and I wish just for once in my life, that I could see it again. I have no doubt that if we go, we will not only uncover another piece of history, like my parents before me, but that in the process, we will set a new path where others have only dared to dream of. That is where I think we should go, and I believe that you will see it the same way as I do, as the adventure of a lifetime…

When Arnold finished reading his essay to the class on Wednesday, every jaw was open and every eye was trained on Arnold as if he were a ghost.

"D-did that really happen when you were born?" Harold asked from the back, "the volcano and everything?"

"Class… It's none of our business whether or not anything is actually true, the point is, do we think that Arnolds writing is good enough to get us that trip…" Mr. Simmons asked, looking around at the still stunned faces of his fifth grade class.

Helga stood up from her seat, and shocked the class when she spoke, "I think that Arnold's essay is the best in the whole class… better than mine, and better than anything anyone else could come up with in this school. There will be tons of kids saying they want to go to Europe, or Asia, or even the North Pole, but I seriously doubt that anyone could give as good a reason as what he wrote…" when she was finished speaking, she sat down in her desk and started tearing up small pieces of paper as if nothing odd had happened at all.

"Well then… if no one has any objections, I think we should make Arnold our representative…" Simmons suggested, smiling and putting a hand on Arnolds shoulder, his student looking up at him and beaming.

The following Monday, The intercom buzzed to life again, but this time, everyone was quiet, waiting to see who would win the trip…

Attention students… this is Principal Wartz here, I will now announce the winner of the essay contest, but before I do, there are a few announcements…

"Get on with it!" Helga yelled, everyone in the room anxious and annoyed by Wartz's stupid sense of timing. They muttered and yelled at the P.A. system for a good five minutes before he finally got to the good part.

I am happy to announce, that the winner and his class will be leaving in one month's time, and that the essay I selected was an especially well written one with lots of emotion. So without further ado… give a big hand for the winner… WOLFGANG!

You could hear a pin drop in the classroom… everyone was upset about the outcome, but none more so than Arnold… his last chance for who knew how long to find his family… gone…

The rest of the day, Mr. Simmons tried to keep class going like normal, but the mood in the room was too much for even his constantly cheery attitude. Finally, recess came and everyone left except for Arnold, who hadn't moved since the announcement.

When school was over, he was forced to stand up and walk home by his friend Gerald, but when he got back to the boarding house, he went straight to his room and lay on top of his bed, staring at the ceiling, wondering what could possibly make this day worse…

The next day, after his grandpa calling him in sick, Arnold sat on his couch, staring at the bulletin board covered in any shred of a clue he had as to his parents last trip.

"I'm sorry Mom… sorry Dad… I won't be able to come find you… not yet…" he said to the empty room. Suddenly, his door cracked open and his Grandma poked her head in.

"Say there Tex, why the long face?" she asked, stepping inside and sitting beside him.

"It's nothing Grandma… I just want to be alone…" he replied, closing his eyes and fighting back tears.

"Well that sure is an odd thing to say… especially when you consider that all your ranch hands are here to see you." Grandma said, standing up and opening the door to his room.

"Ranch hands? Grandma.. now really isn't the time…" but before he could finish saying what he thought of his eccentric grandmothers cowboy fantasy, his entire class rushed in shouting and smiling.

"Arnold! Arnold! You'll never believe it man!" Gerald yelled, pushing to the front of the crowd, his smile as wide as his face.

"What?" he asked, trying to figure out what could have happened to make everyone in his class show up at his house while school was still in session.

"Wolfgang… his essay was plagiarized!" Phoebe squealed, hopping up and down, looking like she was about to burst.

"Plagiarized? So who gets the trip now?" he asked, hoping that the answer was what he thought it was.

"We do man! You were the runner up! And there's no WAY anyone could accuse you of copying that story man… WE GET TO GO TO SAN LORENZO!" Gerald practically yelled, the whole class cheering as Arnold processed everything, the words being too good to be true… he would have his chance after all!

The plane jarred Arnold awake, and when he looked out the window, it was pitch black out. The only thing visible was the moon, much larger than he had ever seen. He looked around, and there were only a couple of people still awake besides himself. He got up to go to the bathroom and stretch his legs, but tripped over Gerald's legs and ended up sprawled across the aisle, his torso landing in the lap of none other than Helga G. Pataki.

She jumped and her eyes flew open, looking around in confusion, she finally noticed his chest on top of her legs and she looked at him stunned. "A-Arnold… what are you…" she began to say, her face starting to smile for only a moment before changing to her usual scowl and sneer. "What do you think you're doing Arnoldo? Get the heck off me you creepy little fruitcup!" She practically yelled, pushing him roughly off her and onto the floor, her foot rising slightly to land firmly in his lower ribs.

Arnold got up shakily, still a little numb from his nap, and now sore on his entire left side thanks to Helga, "I was just trying to get out of my seat Helga… sorry about landing on you… go back to sleep." He said, fumbling his hands along the backrests as he worked his way to the back of the plane.

As soon as he was out of sight, she sighed and silently swore at herself for treating Arnold like that. She pulled out her locket and stared at the picture of her football headed Adonis, "Why must I treat you so poorly my love?" she asked, "You who do nothing for yourself without it being for everyone to share in. Your selfless nature is such easy prey to the savage mask I wear to conceal my feelings for you… even now, after already telling you how I feel, I still cannot admit to myself just how much you mean to me… why must we dance this accursed dance of hatred hiding love, your innocence being slowly devoured by my horrible and wicked public face when all I want, in my heart of hearts, is to hold you in my arms and feel your lips on my own?"

"Helga?" Phoebe mumbled half asleep, but still making her friend jump in her seat, "can you please give the self loathing poetry a rest until we land?"

Helga quickly put the locket away and tried to go back to sleep, her mind still processing the image of the boy she loved spread across her lap, as if dropped from the heavens…

When the plane landed roughly five hours later, it was dawn over the land of San Lorenzo, and everyone grabbed their bags in a sleepy daze only to board another plane that would take them to the very spot Arnold had picked on the map… the same spot that was marked in his dad's diary.

Thank you for reading my first piece of work in months… I'm still working the cobwebs out, but I hope I have you interested enough in what comes next to read the next chapter. This was just the prologue really for everything to come. I have no idea how many chapters I will write, or how long it will take, but I will try and finish this story as fast as I can and as well as I can. and if you're smug and think you know what's going to happen next… don't count on it… please leave a review and tell me any points you would like to make, if you have any questions or comments that you feel would not do well on the reviews page, please feel free to PM me whenever you want.

Happy Living,

musicalreader XIII