Accidents Happen

A Calvin and Hobbes fan fiction by June "KaraOhki" Geraci. August 9, 2018.

Calvin, Hobbes and company are the property of Bill Watterson. I am borrowing them, with thanks.

"Catch!"

"Right foot only on that spot! Right foot!"

"You can't do that, we did that last Tuesday!

Calvin's mother glanced out the window where Calvin was running all over the back yard. He was wearing a mask, Hobbes was too, and the lawn was littered with balls, flags, pieces of paper, tennis rackets, and the remains of several water balloons. He had been at it for at least an hour, and showed no signs of slowing down. She wondered where he got his stamina from.

It was nearing time to prepare dinner, so she took some vegetables out of the refrigerator, rinsed them, and reached for a knife to slice them up. A blood-curdling scream interrupted her.

"Hobbes! Hobbes!"

Calvin's mother turned to the window in time to see Calvin rip his mask off and scoop Hobbes up, running to the house for all he was worth.

"MOOOOOOOOM! Help!"

Hobbes' left paw was almost completely severed, batting spilling out of the hole. Calvin was pale in a way his mother had never seen before, cradling the toy tiger as if it was the most precious thing on the planet. She knelt down and gently touched the batting. Calvin shuddered.

"Too much blood, Mom. Hobbes needs help!"

Calvin's mom stood up, took a clean dishtowel out of a drawer and gently wrapped the paw. Then she picked up her weeping son (when was the last time she'd seen him cry?) and carried him and Hobbes upstairs. She lowered him to the bed, and guided his hands to the towel.

"Hold him here, but be gentle. I have to go downstairs and get what I need to make Hobbes better. Okay? Do you understand?"

Calvin tore his gaze away from Hobbes and fixed it on his mother. "You can fix him? Promise?"

"I promise. Take good care of Hobbes until I get back."

Downstairs, Calvin's mother put the vegetables back into the refrigerator. There were more important things to do than to cook tonight. Then she filled the teakettle and took some calming herbal tea out of a cabinet. She went into the hallway and opened a little-used closet. Rummaging around in the back, Calvin's mother pulled out a carton that had been there since the day the family moved in. She dusted it off and carried it into the kitchen.

Calvin's mother removed the tape from the carton and opened it. She removed a Raggedy Ann doll, smiled at it, and set it aside. Next came pieces of a child's tea set, a set of jacks and a ball, and various other trinkets. Finally, she found what she was looking for.

It was a medium-sized box that had been carefully taped shut. She opened it and poured the contents onto the table. The spool of orange thread was still as bright as it had been when she put it away, which surprised her a great deal. She also found a set of sewing needles and a partial bag of batting. There were a couple of button eyes, too, and some kind of an instruction sheet.

After thinking for a moment, Calvin's mother put everything but the needles, thread and batting back into the box and set it aside. It might not be a good idea to let him see everything else. The kettle was whistling, so she brewed the tea and poured out two cups, one regular cup and one cappuccino-sized. Then she put everything on a tray and carried it upstairs.

Calvin was where she had left him. He was no longer crying, and he looked at her with such trust in his eyes it made her tear up for a moment. She put the tray down and handed her son the smaller cup.

"See if you can get Hobbes to drink this. It will make him sleepy, and then I can fix him up."

Calvin sat Hobbes up and held the cup to his mouth. After a few moments he nodded in satisfaction. "It worked, Mom. What next?"

"Now you need to drink your tea while I fix Hobbes."

When Calvin saw the needle, he decided that it would be easier to turn his back while his mother did the work. He sipped his tea, one hand behind him holding Hobbes' other paw. By the time his mother was finished, Calvin had finished the tea and was yawning.

"All done, Calvin."

Calvin turned around cautiously. His friend looked good as new. He carefully picked him up and held him, avoiding the newly-repaired paw.

"Thanks, Mom. Hobbes looks wonderful. How long is he going to sleep?"

"I'm not sure, honey. Maybe you should lay down too?"

Calvin yawned again and nodded. "Okay."

A few minutes later the pair were tucked in. Calvin's mother sat beside him, gently stroking his spiky hair until he fell asleep. Then she cupped Hobbes' furry cheek, smiling as she felt the gentle purring.

"I'll just let you two rest. Pizza for supper. Do you want tuna on yours, Hobbes?"

The tiger opened his eyes and smiled at her. "You always know what I like."

"Of course, old friend. Get some sleep."

Downstairs, Calvin's mother re-packed the carton. Maybe someday she would have a daughter to pass the stored toys to. She put the thread, needles and batting back into the small box and closed it up. Then she read the outside, remembering the day her mother had brought her the tiger kit. "Make your own friend!" the box proclaimed. She had just begun learning to sew, and making Hobbes was so much fun. What she had never expected was that this construction of fabric and batting had indeed become a friend. Her mother never believed it, her husband certainly did not, but Calvin's mother knew better.