Wal*Mart RP

((No problems Freddie ))

Helga:

She was thankful when Arnold didn't mention anything about their hands in each others pockets. She decided that she might have to rethink her tactics when it came to teasing Arnold. Sure, they held a special bond and yes she felt that too. She felt blessed by it even, that once she forced herself to be so distant from him and now they were casual friends. . .teetering on possibly more. She wasnt ashamed of it, she had no reason to be by now. . but she was afraid of it. She honestly felt guilty every time Arnold smiled at her and her only reaction was to (as always) scowl. . .but the scowl was usually directed at herself, not at him.

She hated herself on the inside and she honestly felt she didnt deserve to get what she wanted. She had chased Arnold for so long. . . it was like a dog chasing cars to quote a famous dead guy. She didnt know what to do with it now that she caught it. So she ran from him. Every now and then she'd turn around and chase the dream but now that the dream was awake and conscious. . .well. . .she hid from it.

She was snapped out of her inner thoughts when Arnold started running from her. "HEY! Wait up!" She growled and ran after him, stopped by Gerald and placed the peas on his head. "Now what!?"

Gerald
Gerald didn't speak for a while after Phoebe finished his rather awkward sentence, saying that she wanted Helga to be back with the cold pack of peas...in order to help his own bruises feel better. He was too focused on the massive brick of disappointment being lifted from his heart by her words...and the fact that she was looking into his eyes again, smiling that sweet smile. And there it was again: the spark. He felt just a little bit foolish that he had doubted the quiet flirtation that must have been going on between them for years. He was thinking how he really shouldn't worry so much...reminding himself that he needed to relax...go with the flow. Gerald decided right then that if they ever get out of this Walmart, he was going to ask her out. Finally. He wanted to take her to a very nice restaurant, perhaps one of those french restaurants that all the ladies seemed to like so much and be a complete gentleman. Opening doors, pulling out chairs, making her laugh...all of those things. It made him wish they could get out of the Walmart all the sooner...because he was starting to look forward to the future date.

All Gerald showed on the outside after she spoke, he hoped anyway, was a smile of his own.

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted when he heard Phoebe suck in a rapid, frightened breath, and in a flash, she was in front of him, taking one of his arms. Her touch felt electric and under normal circumstances, he would have felt tingles and wouldn't be able to stop the blush from coming to his cheeks. But these were not normal circumstances and he couldn't pay attention, for the moment, to the feelings that Phoebe evoked. His ears caught the sounds of the unfamilar voices, the heavy footsteps...even a wheezing sound of "help" pretty far away from them. Wait. Gerald knew that wheeze...that wheeze was far too distinct. Hadn't Brainy been with them this whole time? Where was he now?

Gerald let most of his thoughts leave him just then and let instincts take over. The few thoughts that he let remain was that there was someone not within their group that wasn't extremely far away. His instincts told him that that someone was dangerous...very dangerous. Another thought that he had, once more, was Phoebe, but not in the same sappy, mushy thoughts that he had before. This thought was different: he had to protect the one girl he cared about from whatever dangerous monster that was going to be upon them. He barely noticed both of his hands clench into fists, or that the one arm that she wasn't holding was wrapping around her small body, holding her against him.

Helga's voice yelling at Arnold broke through his consciousness but it sounded like a growling echo in his head and he saw the couple running in his direction. But this image was strange as well to his eyes...a fuzzy, distorted blur. He barely noticed when Helga quickly placed the cold peas on his head, covering and soothing the lump. As weird as it would probably be, he would have to thank her for helping him later.

All Gerald could think was that if danger did come, he had to find a way to get Phoebe either behind him or better yet, away from there all together. He would not let her get hurt.

Gerald was indeed ready for a fight.

Wolfgang

"Looks like they've noticed us." Wolfgang laughed. "No worries though. Operation: Scare the snot out of the freshmen dweebs, catch it all on camera and then show it to the rest of the school - effectively ruining their chances of ever becoming a respectable class - is finally ready." He threw a small box up in the air and caught it in his right hand.

"Huh huh, Good one Wolfgang, but uh... don't you think the name's a little long." Edmund asked his leader.

"Whatever." Wolfgang smirked. "We'll nail down those details later. For now let's just get started with Stage One." He raised the small box up and a small button on the top of it finally became noticeable. He grinned. "Time to split up the gang."

He pushed his finger down firmly. The button let out a small click.

Four distinctly loud booming noises echoed from different corners of the store. Wolfgang laughed as a chorus of screams from the Freshmen kids rang out following the commotion.

"It's begun." He turned. "Go get into position." He ordered Edmund, who nodded immediately.

They separated.

Stage Two was beginning.

((Wolfgang's goal isn't really to hurt them or get them in serious trouble. He just wants to humiliate them. Arnold most of all - I imagine Arnold has always sort of gotten in his way. So uh, payback time?))

((Great plan, Squirreltamer! It's been quiet here.. Come on people, we need more posts ^^ ))

Phoebe

Gerald was holding her, trying to protect her from the person which seemed to be getting closer. At the sudden explosions they heard from different sides of the store, she heard her classmates screaming and starting to run in all different directions. She wanted to yell at them to stay together, but was too shocked by the explosions. Gerald, Arnold and Helga jumped closer together, fortunately kept their cool, even though their hearts skipped a few beats.. She felt Gerald shocking at the explosion, holding her even tighter. They all turned their heads fast, from left to right and back.. trying to find out where the noise came from, but couldn't see anything. But they heard the footsteps coming closer. "I think we should get out of here..", her voice was shaky, just like her hands and knees. She realized Gerald wanted to fight, he wouldn't run from the evil ahead, but she also knew he probably couldn't win this fight..

Eugene

At the explosions, his instincts took over control and he started screaming and ran into a random direction, away from the footsteps, but he had no idea where he was going exactly. He heard a few of his friends running after him. He could just barely avoid crashing, and jumped over a few things which were lying on the ground, he could only see their shadows, but after landing on the ground again, he noticed it was totally greasy, and he slipped and fell on some sort of trap it seemed. First a bucket of water fell on his head, and then a bag with some powder.. it tasted like flower. Because of the shock he tried taking a deep breath, to tell his friends that he was okay, but he breathed in some flower and started coughing. When he looked behind him, he noticed everyone had disappeared. He got back on his feet , still being quite scared. He looked around, trying to see or hear some movement. When he finally heard some footsteps, he decided to stay quiet, he hid behind a billboard, and waited to find out if the footsteps belonged to the good guys or the bad guys.

Stinky:

There was an explosion and some harmless yet terrifying smoke lingering near the food court. He yelped and stepped closer to Rhonda. "What the wilikers was that!? Harold was that you!?" No way, Harold's gas was loud but nothing like this. "What happenin' in here the whole place is gonna come down on our noggins!"


Helga:

She had retained her cool pretty well up until the point of the smoke bombs or firecrackers or whatever else they were. She instinctively grabbed onto Arnold's shoulders and screamed at the sound. Probably right into his ear. Poor guy. "WE'RE BEING SHOT AT!" All the explosions happening so close together did kind of sound like that. She inwardly wondered if Curly had found the gun department.


Lila:

She gasped loudly when someone had tripped over her behind the billboard. She had ran under it too when the explosions happened. When she figured out it was Eugene she put her arms around him and covered his mouth with her hands to keep him from screaming. She waited quietly for any other noises. Everything was silence after the screams. "Oh dear. . whats happening?"

(( I'm so glad the roleplay has come back to life! It seemed to be dead for a couple of days. I agree about keeping it going. It's still very fun! ))

Gerald
As the loud sound of the explosions and the screams of his classmates echoed across the store, the feeling of wanting to fight still raced through Gerald's body...especially since the enemy seemed to be more than just a few unfamilar voices. Everyone was threatened and scared out of their minds. But despite this rush of adrenaline, his feet were frozen in place and his arm was still locked around Phoebe in shock. Why was it that when he was ready to take some people out, he suddenly couldn't move his legs? He didn't understand this in the slightest at first...until he really thought it through. Maybe he wasn't as ready to fight as he thought he was. Maybe he wasn't ready because most likely whatever rival lurked in the shadows was alot bigger than he was and would beat him to a bloody pulp. That was a pretty good reason not to fight.

When Helga let out her own scream of terror and spoke a phrase that sounded to him like a drive-by shooting, Gerald was finally able to move his neck willingly. He vaguely remembered moving his head the second the explosions happened but those movements felt involuntary and instinctual. He turned his head towards her to say something...and caught a whiff of the worst smell he had ever smelled in his entire life. It was absolutely awful. It smelled like a combination of rotten eggs, vomit, dog-droppings and very cheap perfume. Before Gerald was able to nail down the scents in his head he almost asked "hey, who cut one?" but realized before he said it that only one thing made a smell like that. It certaintly wasn't anything the human body could come up with.

"Helga, we're not being shot at!" Gerald gasped, yelling just as the screaming of the others came to an end. "I think someone set off...a stink bomb..." The horrible smell tightened his stomach and made a wave of nausea slowly climb up his throat. He also felt extremely light-headed and was struggling to keep himself from passing out. He had to get out of there. He knew he was going to be sick if he didn't...but he still couldn't move his legs...

((I'm Back!!))

Rhonda clutched at her nose, fumbling for her purse and the tissues that resided within. Extracting one with a single hand (since the other was still clamped in a death grip to her nostrils) she pressed it daintily to her streaming eyes, then held it over her mouth and nose to ward off the vile scent rolling towards her.

"What is that STENCH?!" she shrieked, clutching for Stinky.

((huh, Stench and Stinky... lulz))

I know I promised an incredible new post. With pizazz, action, and possibly even air guitar. Unfortunately, I just can't think of anything. I've decided to stop RPing. It was fun while it lasted but I think it'll be better if you have someone more reliable.













































April Fools! MWa-hahahaha! I love RPing with you. Why would I ever leave? Even if I am kind of lazy with the posts.

Annemiek wrote:...he wouldn't run from the evil ahead...

That's a little dramatic, don't you think? It's only Wolfgang. The closest thing to genuine evil about him is most likely his B.O.

(Anyway... I really did have trouble with my idea for a post. Did you ever get an idea that sounds really great in your head, but on paper you realize that it was only the fevered dream of a madman? That was the case with my original post. I had to rewrite the whole thing. Sorry about being two days later than promised. I get distracted easily.)

Arnold:

Arnold arrived on the scene just in time to catch a glimpse of two ominous figures melting away at the far end of the aisle. One hulking outline identified Wolfgang. The other probably belonged to his stringy henchman, Edmund. No wonder everyone was so thoroughly spooked. Wolfgang was prowling around in the darkness nearby! He's taking his prank further than I thought. There was no reason to alarm the others with his worries. Arnold guessed that had enough of their own. “Looks like Wolfgang knew he wouldn't last another round with you, Gerald. He ran away.”
It would take more than a friendly jibe to relieve the tension in their little group, though. Gerald looked ready to kill. What had him so worked up? Both of them had been beat up plenty of times by Wolfgang. It was then that Arnold noticed exactly how close Phoebe was squeezed up against his friend. Arnold's eye brows went up, and he almost had time to smile a second time... of course, almost. A succession of shelf-quaking POP's and BANG's went off that caused him to instinctively drop low to the ground and glance around wildly for the source.
Nowhere near us, at least. Arnold reflected as he stood upright. Then Helga screamed in his ear. Her overpowering shriek reverberating through his brain caused Arnold to stagger backwards, cross-eyed with deafening sensory overload. His crazy blond hair burst into disheveled split ends, and the only thing that kept him from falling flat on his butt was Helga clutching his sleeves in a death grip.

Sid:

It wouldn't be dignified to say it out loud, but Sid was glad to be rid of Curly. That guy was thirty-eight assorted flavors of freak. Whatever Curly was up to, it was best to stay out of it. Sid pulled his leather jacket tighter around him in a futile attempt to warm himself up. The store seemed colder than it had before. While everyone else was occupied, Sid thought he'd try his luck at the front doors again. The trouble with automated doors is that the “lock” on them couldn't be broken by conventional means. If only he could forcibly disrupt the light sensor somehow, he could get them open. “It's a good thing I know these kinds of things” Sid said to himself out loud. “If I get us out of here, I'll be a hero. Yeah.”
Upon arriving at the doors, he realized that no one was going anywhere. The ice storm outside was in full fury, and snow already piled knee deep in the parking lot. “Oh no! We're all going to be buried alive and have to eat each other!” It was then Sid remembered he was alone. He cleared his throat and turned on the heel of his boot, walking towards the distant flashlight beams. He needed to get back to the others. So that he could panic properly. What was the point of doing it all by himself?

((FREDDIE! You totally had me going for a minute there. I was like "nooo...he can't leave!" But then I noticed the large amount of space you left in your post and had to scroll down. Nice one. Props to you. And if you're not online on your birthday, Happy Early Birthday! I definitely know what it's like to have Writer's Block. You're not alone there.

And welcome back, Beth! It's good to have our Rhonda back, hehe.))

Gerald
Gerald realized, as wave after wave of the nausea washed over him, that he was still clutching Phoebe unbelievably tight. There were a couple of different things concerning her that he was now worried about. First of all, he was worried about whether or not that horrific smell would make him pass out, literally bringing her down with him. Or make him completely throw up on her. That definitely wouldn't be the best thing to do to a girl that he wanted to ask out on a date. No way. He would never live it down.

It was then that he also started to worry about if, by holding her so damn tight, that he was cutting off her air supply. He found himself loosening his grip around Phoebe slight enough to where he was still protecting her gently if need be but not overprotecting her. He had definitely learned the hard way that women really didn't appreciate that.

Arnold's words about Wolfgang snapped Gerald out of his thoughts. So the mystery of the "dangerous" people lurking in the shadows was solved. He hadn't known when they had heard the footsteps, the voices, and the explosions that it was all connected to Wolfgang. His instincts had just said "danger, danger Gerald Johanssen" and since he had been beaten pretty badly earlier in the day, he had made sure that he was ready for anything. Being physically bullied, no matter how many times it happened, was enough to put him on edge especially when people he cared about such as Phoebe, Arnold... and even Helga...were involved. He should've known that Wolfgang would be behind everything. He wished that he knew what the bully's plans were next.

Something else also dawned on Gerald and it had to do with the stench still in the air. As much as it smelled like one, he decided that it wasn't a stink bomb like he originally thought only a moment ago. He knew, from how often he had been under Wolfgang's armpit, that he indeed smelled like a stink bomb. The man seriously needed to take a shower.

"I take that back," Gerald finally spoke to whoever happened to be listening. "That's no stink bomb, man. That's Wolfgang's B.O. Damn. The guy smells like he hasn't had a shower for about a week. I think I'm going to be sick."

((That last bit was inspired by Freddie's line about Wofgang's B.O. being the only thing geniunely evil about him. XD))

((Shit Freddie you scaaarreeddd the crap out of me!! XDD OMG. ))

Stinky:

He didnt say anything as Rhonda stepped closer to him but he did pinch his own nose and try to wave the air away in front of him. "Harold, wuz that you!?" Surely it wasnt but he had to ask. "Ugh an' where done Sid taken off too?" His best friend had been missing too long for his comfort and he knew how jumpy Sid got in situations like these he was a little worried and getting a headache from the stink bomb.


Helga:

"Wolfgang? Are you serious!?" She stood up from the ground where she and Arnold were crouched. How dare he. "Crimeny he's the one who locked us in here!!. . Which means he can unlock us out!!" She punched her own palm and cracked her knuckles. "We out number him! I say we find the lug and force him to open the door and put an end to this little slumber party!" Truth be told she had somewhere enjoyed being locked in the dark with Arnold but it would have been much more beneficial had they been alone. They clearly were not alone and any attempts to get that way always came up short with some catastrophe or other happening through out the store. Yes, Helga was indeed done with the charade and she was right a long Gerald's train of thought. Wolfgang needed a fist in his face, preferably hers.

Phoebe

She felt Geralds grip around her loosening a bit. He had been holding her pretty tight, she couldn't remember him being that strong ever before. It was a bit scary actually, she was glad he started to relax a bit now. When Arnold mentioned that it was 'only' Wolfgang, she calmed down a bit too. Wolfgang was strong, but not very dangerous, and most of all, he wasn't very smart, so they could probably out think him, if only they could keep their cool and watch their steps.
The smell was horrible. She pulled her shirt over her nose, it didn't help much, but was better than nothing.
"Now what..?"

Eugene

He had been shocked by the hand which covered his mouth when he tried to hide behind the billboard, he struggled for a minute, but when he heard Lila's voice he calmed down. "I don't know.. It's scaring me."

Sid:

It wasn't too difficult to locate the other kids, what with all the griping and yelling they did. The whole lot of them had about the same level of tact as godzilla. Do *I* sound like that? Sid considered for a moment. Nah. Impossible. He raised a palm in greeting towards Stinky as he walked up, and surveyed the situation. Helga was starting into a rant full of threats with a look on her face that promised doom upon someone and all of their descendants-- nothing out of the ordinary really. Arnold, as it happened, just then staggered upright and was clutching his head in a daze. Sid went over to engage in a dignified conference of their current situation. “Arnold, we're in big BIG trouble! The snow is really coming down and now we can't leave the store even if we had a way out!” Sid grabbed Arnold by the shoulders and shook him. “What are we gonna do!? You're the idea guy! You've got to think of something!” Arnold blinked at him and turned his football head left to right, wincing before he said: “Ugh. What did you say?”

Sid courteously repeated himself, taking note that Arnold wasn't his usual self. “We're all going to freeze to death in here and have to eat each other!”

((Are we all back together, now? Good. ))

"I vote we eat him first." Rhonda stated, jerking thumb back over her shoulder as she joined the group, indicating the general direction in which Harold was last seen. "He'll last longer."

((Now excuse me while I go find Curly. I think he's lost somewhere in the women's lingerie...))

((We kind of all run away and then come back and then run away again XD ))

(( LOL indeed.. like it's getting a bit confusing >< ... I think we need a good idea on how to go next ^^ Brainy's still tied up.. awww poor Brainy XD So maybe they should help him first.. and then try to think of a plan to beat Wolfgang?? Of course he'll have some more traps set up..
Well.. I'll try to bring some new life into the story, but I can't do an awful lot with a quiet 'background' character as Phoebe..))

Eugene

It had been quiet for a few minutes now, and the stench began to fade away. So he crawled up from behind the billboard and stuck out his hand to help Lila get up on her feet. They heard some noise in the distance, friendly but slightly panicking voices. That had to be their group. The followed the sounds, watching their steps to avoid ending up in another trap again, and joined the group.

Phoebe

It was getting colder and colder inside. She was so glad to be wearing Gerald's jacket, but her hands were ice cold now. She rubbed them together. Sid mentioned the snow storm.. "O my.." she put her hand in front of her mouth, watching Sid telling the whole story, with her eyes widely opened. This was terrible. They were not only being chased by Wolfgang now, but would also be stuck for the whole night in this place, maybe longer, until someone would find them and rescue them.

She watched Arnold when Sid told him to think of an idea, but Arnold didn't seem to have heard. He had a dazed look on his face. It scared her.. It scared her so much.. that even the brightest and smartest guy, who always had the best ideas, was just standing there, not even trying to calm down the group.

Phoebe usually tried to stay cool in situations like this, tried not to loose control. But this was getting too much, even for her. She finally snapped.
"NO!" She pulled herself away from Gerald and swung her arms into the air. "We're not going to eat each other! There's enough food to survive for days, even weeks! We just have to stick together, work together as a group, and we can out think Wolfgang! And tomorrow, they WILL come to rescue us!" She stepped a little closer to the group.. "Now, we need a plan to beat Wolfgang.. Who's with me?" She stuck out her hand into the group, hoping that everyone would place their hands on hers, to form a symbol of unity, as she always had wanted to do one day. She hoped this would calm most people down a bit, so they could try to find the last few members of their group who were still lost in the store, and then work together as a group to survive this night. That would probably be the smartest thing to do in this situation.

(( Yeah...with Brainy being tied-up, I'm kinda limited on what I can do with him, hence why I've left him alone. But, I have had an idea for Brainy for a while now but it's the kind of thing that will either be completely stupid or completely hillarious. Before I get to that, first things first... ))

Gerald
Gerald's first reaction when Sid joined the group was a heavy sigh of irritation and an eye roll. He knew very well that Sid was prone to rant and rave during tough situations but this was getting ridiculous. Eating each other? What was he going to say next? That they would all make spears out of hockey sticks and chase each other around with them?

"Sid, calm down, man," Gerald said slowly and quietly. "No one is eating anyone." He shot a glare at Rhonda when he heard her mutter about eating Harold first. He knew there was no need for crap like that to be said. If Harold happened to overhear her say something like that then there was no doubt he would run off screaming and yelling like a little kid. Gerald didn't think there needed to be any more stupidity and childishness from their group. This was most likely what Wolfgang wanted.

He realized, though, that he did like Helga's idea from before about finding Wolfgang and forcing him to open the door. It was definitely a rare occurance when he and Helga agreed. What was with them being on the same wave-length all of a sudden? They must have all been trapped inside the damn Walmart for far too long...

Gerald was actually about to do another rare thing, tell Helga he agreed with HER plan, when he was suddenly distracted by Phoebe pulling away from his arms and standing in the middle of the group to deliver her monologe. While she was speaking, he felt both a sense of surprise and admiration. He knew that she wasn't usually the type to take charge but he loved the fact that she was. As brilliant a girl as she was...she must have an even more brilliant plan. He had complete faith in that.

When she placed her hand into the group, Gerald was the first one to place his hand on top of hers. "I'm with you, Phoebe. I'm with you to the very end..." He was surprised at himself for letting that part slip out...because he meant it in more ways than one.

(( I'll write my Brainy idea later tonight...I promise! But for now, I'm posting this bit for Gerald. ))

(( Darn real-life getting in the way of RP goodness, haha. This is definitely meanwhile, lol. ))

Brainy
Brainy didn't know how long he had been on the ground, alone, tied up in belts. For all he knew, it could have been just a few minutes or a few hours. He had no doubt in his mind that Wolfgang and Edmund had forgotten all about their hostage because neither of them had come to check on him. Not that they would anyway...atleast not to see if the belts were hurting him, which they were. He thought that one of them would've come back to taunt him but they didn't even do that.

Brainy had given up trying to call out for help. His yelling, even at its loudest, was still too quiet and no one seemed to have heard him. He decided that no one was going to help him. He would have to try and get out of this all by himself.

He surveyed his surrounding but mostly surveyed his own body in the belts. He was amazed by how much his other senses were intensified because his sight was so weak...he remembered that his glasses had completely broken and fallen off his face. He could smell the food in the food court. He could hear the voices of the others from so far away and could recognize who was speaking when, though he wasn't good enough to understand exactly what was being said. His eyes could barely pick up extremely fuzzy images of the flashlight beams. Both his hands could feel a tiny gap Edmund had accidently left by not tying a couple of belts close enough together...

Wait! A gap! Edmund hadn't covered everything! If Brainy could only get his arms through the gap, maybe he could untie the belts himself! It was brilliant and so obvious! Why didn't he notice it before?

He struggled with the gap for a long time, slowly managing to get his arms through it up to his elbows. He felt like his efforts were completely worthless because he couldn't get his arms out all the way. Plus, they were at a weird, frontal angle. He decided that he was indeed going to need more help with this than he thought. But who was going to help him if he was all alone? How would he get to someone who could untie him?

Brainy knew what he had to do. He had to find some way to lift himself off the ground, even by his elbows and get to his feet. After that, he had to find some way to locate the fuzzy flashlight beams, even if it meant hopping while in the belts, his arms oddly sticking out like an alien pod-person. It took almost the rest of his effort to push and bend himself up with what little part of his arms that he was able to release, wheezing the entire time. But he did it! Brainy was standing!

That, unfortunately, was when Brainy's bladder decided it wanted to release. He was suddenly aware that his pants were completely soaked but he didn't care. He was standing! Now he just had to follow the rest of his plan.

His eyes located the fuzzy beams once more and he began to hop, accidently hopping on his glasses. No matter. They were useless anyway. His hopping feet got closer and he wheezed louder with anticipation. Finally! He was going to be free! If only he could get close enough where they could discover him...

(( Wow, dang! I didn't think it would be this long! I might've went a bit overboard, lol. ))

Helga:

She agreed with Sid. Arnold was the idea guy and there wasnt a doubt in Helga's mind that Arnold would figure a way out of this. But there also wasnt a doubt in her mind that he'd want to do it the round about- correct way and honestly she felt they didnt have time for that. She was hungry and there was a shelf full of cookies at isle over. She was cold, there were sleeping bags and sweatshirts. The only explanation seemed rather logical to her.

"Alright listen up you yahoos! No offense, Stinky. Look we're trapped here all night and who knows how long till the plows can dig us out! Wolfgang is.. quite possibly in the store somewhere, though we're not completely positive and he's going to make our lives a living hell unless we do something first. I say the store is fair game. We're trapped here! I say we take everything we can and build a fort, a shelter. We're gonna need it. Besides its technically not stealing if it never leaves the store." She grinned. Her plan made perfect sense to her.

She stopped then, her ears picking up an all too familiar sound. The weezing. Her eyes half lidded and she balled her hand into a fist and turned to punch... nothing. Air. Where was Brainy? She heard him. She didnt see him. Curiously she wandered into the darkness and collided right into him, knocking him belly first on the ground and she fell over him. "Oof! God Brainy! You DOLT! Watch where you're-" She then noticed he was tied up. "You're helpless and pathetic!" She untied the belt buckle and freed him before she stood up and swung the belt over her shoulder. "Dont get lost again!"

[Man. Has it been over two weeks already? I am ashamed. I have brought dishonor upon my house. From this day forward, with this pair of ceramic weasels on the book shelf as my witnesses-- I will update the RP thread at least two times a week. Look for another around Friday.]

Why don't we do some brain storming as a group and figure out a general guideline for the story? Nothing concrete, just something to reference so that we reach a definitive conclusion.]

Arnold face palmed, and held his hand in place, wincing as the ringing in his ears finally began to recede. Helga sure had some nice pipes, he thought, absurdly.
Perhaps, if given time to think, Arnold might have worked out a plan that everyone could get behind. One where his friends, even Wolfgang and Edmund, all got out of the store. Ideally, with minimal damage to the any property. Besides what they've already wrecked, that is. Unfortunately, decisions needed to be made right away. This awkward array of teenagers were looking to him for strength. They relied on Arnold to always be calm and collected. A point of stability. He was aware of this, but he didn't consider himself a leader. To his mind, he was just a person who sometimes said what needed to be said. He'd never told anyone anything they didn't already know. How could he lead his friends out of this? He didn't know. Fortunately... he knew someone else who might be able to. Arnold overheard Helga shouting commands and managed a smile despite his lingering headache.

Gerald and Phoebe were waiting for him, so he took a deep breath and placed his hand squarely on top of theirs. Green eyes shining with renewed purpose.“You're right, Phoebe. We can get through this together. I don't think we even need to beat Wolfgang. Whatever he has up his sleeve is pointless now. He's trapped in here just like we are.” Arnold then spun to survey the knots of kids who were milling around, talking amongst themselves in worried tones.

Sticking two fingers into his mouth, Arnold unleashed a piercing whistle that silenced everyone instantaneously. Well, he had their attention. He grinned sheepishly and dove right in, gaining confidence as he spoke. “You should all listen to Helga.” He announced. Not that she -needed- his help in buffaloing the other kids into doing what she wanted, but it might make things easier if everyone knew he supported her.“It's obvious now that we're going to be here all night. Maybe longer. We need to gather up food and blankets. Wolfgang is out there waiting to pull some kind of prank on us, but I want you to forget about him for now. He probably has a way to leave the store, but that's not a good idea right now. It's freezing out there and some of us aren't even fully dressed. We'll worry about him later.”

At about that point in his impromptu speech, Arnold realized that he'd lost track of Helga amidst the islands of flashlights separated by darkness. Eventually he spotted her yelling at Brainy, and he trotted over to the two of them. Before he could get a word in, Arnold guessed what had happened to the poor guy. He also noticed that Brainy had soiled his pants. Helga, apparently, hadn't. Knowing full well how Brainy felt about her, Arnold wasn't about to see him humiliated. “Hey, Helga.” He said, stepping in front of Brainy to block him from view. “The others are ready to start working on that... fort. Start assigning jobs to people, I'll be back in a moment. Gerald tells me that Brainy was doing some uh... reconnaissance... on Wolfgang's movements. We need to conference real quick. Alone. You know he doesn't talk much.” He flashed a disarming grin at her and before she could object, Arnold abruptly grabbed Brainy by the shoulders, spun him around, and marched him past several aisles until they reached the men's clothing section. Which, by good fortune, was reasonably close. Arnold undid the clasps on the belts still locking Brainy's wrists together. Having saved Brainy from losing face in front of Helga (and the ridicule of the other kids, had they seen), Arnold nodded to the racks of pants and... not knowing what else to do... turned to leave.

[Yes, I'm posting again because I made an oath in front of the weasels. That's a sacred trust.

I have a refined view of Wolfgang, courtesy of Alyssa's perspective of him. I think she understands the character better than I do. Hopefully I can do honor to 'her' Wolfgang. I'm also hoping Hatterlet doesn't mind me using Curly.]

Wolfgang:

Wolfgang's ears twitched. Without even turning his head, he plunged his huge hand into a rack women's of unmentionables and yanked out the squirming, bespectacled Curly. The smaller boy howled in protest and began spitting and hissing like an angry cat. Curly went from struggling victim to berserk fury in no seconds flat, landing two punches and a kick before Wolfgang even had time to flinch. Wolfgang flung him off with a contemptuous snarl. He'd barely felt the thin-wristed attacks, but was still startled by the ferocity with which Curly defended himself. “Damn. The last little nerd was like a limp noodle. What's YOUR deal?”
As a reply, Curly smiled grimly, glasses flashing against the beam of Wolfgang's hand held pocket light. The hulking blond bully was unimpressed. He lurched forward with surprising speed for someone of his size. Curly was surprised, at least, because he reacted too slow in trying to scramble away. Wolfgang grabbed him by the collar, hauled him up, and shook Curly like a bottle of yahoo soda. “Did you hear what I said, freak boy? Are you following me around?” Curly's eyes swirled dizzily behind his glasses, but he had enough fight left in him to clench his teeth together and say: “I'm not tellin' you nuthin', criminal scum.” Wolfgang considered Curly for a moment, and then punched his lights out. No one was around to hear the sound of glasses crunching beneath a set of wide, unforgiving knuckles.

Curly:

Footsteps.

“You crank the heat up?”

“As far as it would go. Just like you told me to.”

“Awesome. We're almost ready to begin.”

Curly's cracked world faded to black.

Wolfgang:

“...Oh man did you hear those twerps back there? I'm telling you, the end justifies the screams.” Wolfgang guffawed with hearty maliciousness before casually tossing the homemade detonator to his spindly cohort. Edmund yelped mid-laugh and juggled the remote before managing to hold onto it. “Uh, Wolfgang... shouldn't we go check on that wheezy kid?” Edmund remarked, to which Wolfgang psh-awed. “Let the little freak rot. It'll teach him some respect for people with bigger biceps than his.”
Wolfgang's lumbering frame came to halt in front of a door clearly labeled 'Employee's Only' in bold red lettering. His thick fingers deftly punched in the PIN code on the door lock, and it clicked open. “What about the other kid?” Came Edmund's voice from behind. He sounded almost like he felt guilty. Wolfgang let loose a characteristic snort. “He'll be fine, you sissy mary. Crazy little shit actually tried to fight me. He's got some stones for a freshman. Just like Tall Hair. Now come on, stage two time. They have no idea what's about to happen to them.”

((You can take poor Curly for a walk anytime you want to Freddie. ))

Helga:

She rose a brow as Arnold stepped out to back her up. She smiled to herself, her heart skipping a beat. She couldnt believe he actually liked her idea. Normally he always told her she was being too rash and impulsive. Not tonight. She came out of her temporary swoon long enough to be directed back to the group. Arnold wanted to talk to Brainy for some reason but she didnt care. "Nice job." She told Arnold and because she wouldnt dare kiss him, she settled for pinching his cheek with a smirk and then she walked up to the group and stood on a lawn chair.

"OK So You're all listening to ME now!" There were some groans. "CAN IT. You morons have any better ideas? I didnt think so! Okay. I need someone whos not Harold in charge of gathering food! Uhm.. Rhonda. Take a shopping cart and pick out stuff we can eat. Pick up a microwave while you're at it. We'll have hot pockets!" She rubbed her hands together. "Sid! You, Stinky and Curl-...." She looked around. No Curly. "Okay. . Sid, you and Stinky collect boxes. Big ones! maybe the ones that have the TVs in them. We're going to need a wall around our fort. Those TV boxes should be heavy enough and if you need help then you can find Curly."

She tapped her chin in thought and looked around at the others. "Gerald, you and Phoebe go get blankets and pillows and clothes if you have to. We're going to need something to sleep on. Take Lila and Eugene with you and go to the camping section after that and find some bigger lanterns and maybe a tent."

She hopped off the lawn chair and stood back next to Arnold. "That leaves you and me." Surprise surprise. "C'mon. We're going to the sporting goods." She grinned and took his hand and started in the direction of the sports section.

Rhonda wrinkled her nose, but headed off in the direction of the shopping cart corrals. There was no way she was getting hot pockets, but she would find something satisfactory to eat.

(( I'm so glad the RP is starting to get active again. Here's the post I promised a couple of days ago. It's been a little while since I've written a real post so I hope I'm not too rusty. :/ ))

Brainy
As he stood next to the rack of men's pants, wrapped in the leather belts and still wearing his horribly reeking jeans, he felt thankful for Helga in that moment. Granted she had done her usual yelling and screaming at him but she had removed the main belt around his arms, making it possible for him to free himself from the rest of them. He did so as soon as Arnold had left him, tossing all the circulation cut-offs as far as he could. But, right then, he was actually more thankful for Arnold than his beloved Helga for bringing him away before she could discover that he had not only urinated in his pants but fear had left more solid, discusting presents in them. The embarrassment! The humiliation! Brainy's beautiful angel seeing him in such a state! Yes, he was definitely thankful for Arnold. And the football-headed bully-defender even left him with a flashlight, so he could search more effectively for replacement pants, boxers, or whatever else he needed.

Even though Brainy couldn't see very well without his glasses, with the flashlight it didn't take him long to discover a different pair of jeans and, walking another aisle over, a new pair of boxers. He was glad that other items like deodorant, soaps and sprays like Axe were nearby because emptying wastes in one's pants is bound to make someone stink just a little bit. Brainy was also glad to discover the men's dressing-room and one of Walmart's bathrooms. Not only could he wash himself off but he had a private place to change. No one could accidently get a peak of him and have yet another thing to make fun of him for.

While in the men's restroom, Brainy did everything possible to get rid of the pungent scent of waste with soaps, deodorant and Axe body spray as he changed into the new pair of boxers and jeans. They both fit his tiny, skinny frame surprisingly well and were very comfortable. When they were all able to get out of the Walmart, he would definitely have to remember to pay for the items he used. He kept the tags on everything as this reminder. Brainy was as good as new now. He passed by the trashcan on the way out of the bathroom and stuffed the nasty items inside, trying not to touch them for too long.

Using his flashlight and trying to backtrack the path Arnold took him on when he led him to the men's pants, he was able to find the area where the others once were. But Brainy had definitely missed something now. The others seemed to be going off in different directions and he had no idea why or what was going on. Arnold and Helga were the only ones left in the area and even they seemed to be leavng. If he was going to find out anything, he better do so soon and approach them. Plus it was a good excuse to breath in the perfect aroma of Helga.

"Uh..." he wheezed, accidently shining the flashlight to his face. "Uh...what's going on?"