o:
Gasp and whoa.
Good story.

It sounds as though Arnold has finally figured out his feelings for Helga, and is searching for a perfect Valentine's Day gift for her. And that necklace with the quill pen is perfect, because it illustrates her talent as a poet.

Helga's departure is a mystery, and yes, I'd bet that Arnold and Phoebe would be the only ones who would feel a sense of loss at that happening. :(

But at least Arnold and Helga are reunited years later...and she's wearing the very necklace Arnold was going to give to her!

This is another bittersweet story, but still very well written. Nice work!

Nice job.

Sad...in a way, but good. I'm glad you had Helga in there at the end. :)

You should write a sequel. :)

You forced me to read this a few times, darn you. D

Spectacular! I have never read anything like this before. I loved all of it, but my favorite parts were when Arnold was imagining how Helga would react to his gift, and we've all had it perfectly made out in our minds how a romantic gesture is going to turn out, to simply have it do a complete 360 and wind up being the converse.

But with Helga there's always a surprise, I can very well see Miss Pataki finding a sneaking way to get back to Hillwood City, skulk around the boarding house for old times sake, and the birthplace of her misery, her home, and find that beautiful necklace on the ground next to the broken down remains of the yurt.

We all know that Helga would never let go of her love for Arnold, and even though she probably doesn't know who bought the necklace for her, she has her love of writing, and it sustains her love of Arnold.

As per the part in the museum, another favorite, I know from experience *no one* gives a damn about the work, or discoveries of archaeologists, nor finds any of it noteworthy unless they have weight of gold, or the sparkle of gems, or the archaeologist is caught faking antiquities/discoveries.

Since this is your party as they say, only you know, but *I* like to think that it was Helga everyone recognized in the gallery because she's a famous author, and it took her in atypical fashion the stretch of forever to work enough courage, the intestinal fortitude *ahem* to walk over to Arnold and say hello.

Then again, what do I know?

Anyhoo...

It's good to see them meeting later in life and one of the forst things he saw was the neclace he gifted her with years ago. I like how you left it openso that we could draw our conclusions about what happened later.

I smelled coffee, catch up, and warm flirts over the words "Football Head".

Anyhoo, needless to say, I loved this monkey, it was a wonderful read, and a beautiful gift

'Roar

Beautiful. Excellent one-shot.

Keep the good writing.

Very poignant! I liked this story a lot, particularly for the timing, and the concept that things don't always happen precisely as we want them to. I like that losing Helga was a hard blow, but that Arnold didn't cave completely - he went on with his life without forgetting. And I loved the hint, at the end, of the way they're Destined-To-Be.

Oh, how sentimental you are, my friend. What a sweet little V-day short, and one to add on my list of favorites. Keep up the great work.

-Jae-

Wow. I have no words. Okay, that's a lie. I always have words. But, this was amazing! I really mean it; I don't want to read anything else today! That's all I need to read for the reaminder of the day. It was so..complete.

Your progression from Arnold's youth; his trepedation about giving Helga a gift, and even his feelings for her to his advanced age, and nostalgia was perfection. It was. Don't say it wasn't, because I have a feeling you're thinking, "Oh, it wasn't that great," or "I could have fixed it". No. Be quiet. it was my favorite thing about this story. I loved it.

I seriously don't need to read anything else tonight. I don't want to see any more words! This is enough to satiate my hunger for reading. Wonderful job.

What a beautiful piece of work! I really loved this oneshot of yours, because not only is it a more unconventional Hey Arnold! fic, but this fic is pretty unconventional, considering that its a Valentine's Day one; but its a beautiful fic all the same. :)

Your imagery is captivating and you do such a great job at describing even the tiniest details. Your description of the necklace Arnold got for Helga was simply beautiful! I also enjoyed the intrigue you presented in your story - the fact that its unknown why Helga and her family left Hillwood and what she ended up doing with her life presents a mystery and great sense of wonder to the reader - I couldn't help but wonder why Helga and her family left Hillwood, and obviously what could've been had Arnold been able to give Helga the necklace before she left.

Lastly, the fact that their reunion doesn't occur until several years later - when they're both middle aged and have some gray hairs to them, gives your fic a sense of bittersweetness and it made me wonder what Helga's been up to during those years and what her current life is like. Also, the fact that she was wearing the necklace and obviously found it before she left, that's very bittersweet, too, and very curious, because it made me wonder why Helga didn't chase after Arnold when it seemed that she knew that he got her the necklace.

This fic was lovely. The descriptions were amazing, the plot was intriguing, and it has that bittersweet essence to it that really makes the story as a whole very beautiful. Well done for a captivating, emotional, wonderful oneshot! :)