Disclaimer: I don't own Calvin or Hobbes, but I do have the Magical Toys
factory and store, as well as Lucinda.
Hobbes hopped out of the box and sat on a package, thinking. Why would anyone try to make all of these stuffed animals the same, yet I am, so far, the only speaking, thinking, moving one? He thought sadly. I would've been better off like them than this lonely.
The tiger surveyed the room from his small vantage point. All of the stuffed ones' barren eyes seemed to gleam back at him. He shivered.
All of a sudden, a thing hit him in the back. It was very big, and traveling at a very high velocity. Surprised, the tiger let out a yelp as the other thing bowled him over. They did a couple of flips, then settled down in a pile of white stuffing.
Hobbes leapt out of the pile of 'insides', and rubbed his head. Another head popped out of the insides, panting and smiling. "Sorry about that, mate, but I just had to." The other cat's voice was higher, and unlike anything the tiger had heard. The tiger looked over at her, ruffled. "Sorry for what? Nearly knocking my head off?" The tigress waded out of the stuffing to sit by the tiger. "It's called pouncing. Besides, I had to make sure that you were moving and not the wind." Hobbes remembered a bit. Another moving tiger! So he wasn't alone after all.
The tigress held out a paw. "My name's Lucinda. Pleased to meet ya." The tiger shook her hand. "My name is.well, I don't know, but I'm very glad to meet you." Lucinda frowned. "Of course you have a name! It says so on a tag on your back." Lucinda spun the nameless tiger around to face his back. "Here it is! It says.." Lucinda gradually sounded out his name. ("Hoddes? That doesn't make any sense!") Finally, she told him, "Your name is Hobbes."
Hobbes, thought Hobbes. That sounds like a nice name.
"So, Lucinda," said Hobbes after a while. "There are other moving animals, after all."
Lucinda began to bat at the head of a motionless tiger. "Oh yeah," she said over her shoulder, "There are lots of them! But we aren't exactly real animals. Real animals live in cages and are expected to move a lot. Sometimes humans (that's the name of those pink things) don't treat them that well."
Hobbes shivered. "I don't like humans very much. They give me the creeps."
Lucinda abandoned the automaton in favor of a fly zooming about her head. "But wait! It gets better. We are what humans call stuffed animals. We are supposed to be still while human cubs abuse us and throw us around. But Stuffed Animals aren't supposed to mind that." Lucinda gestured to the shelves full of Stuffed Animals. "These guys are the norm. I suppose they might have a thought in their heads," she wondered aloud, "But they haven't expressed anything to me." The tigress turned back to Hobbes. "But you and me, Hobbes. We're different. We were actually supposed to be like them"- she jabbed a digit at the normal ones -"But when we were made, something.went wrong. We are anomalies. We are stuffed animals with human qualities. A human would have a heart attack if they knew we were having this conversation, let alone walk around and talk." Lucinda sighed. "This gift or curse, depending upon your persuasion, is special. I think others have it too. One stuffed frog down the hall has it. (You'll meet him some day) The bunnies seem pretty dead to me, and so do the fishes and giraffes, though I could be wrong."
Hobbes contemplated her long speech for a while. Then, thoughtfully, he said, "I think it's a gift. Maybe we're supposed to watch over the non- moving ones or something like that." "Perhaps," replied Lucinda, "But I'm not finished quite yet."
"This place that were are in is called a store. It's called 'The Magic Toy Store', and they sell us here to humans." "What do you mean, to humans?" Hobbes nearly yelled. He just didn't like those humans very much. "Shut up! They might hear you!" Lucinda padded over to the door and put her ear against it. When the danger passed, she continued. "They exchange green pieces of paper and just sell us to them. Like slaves. There's not much that we can do about it, except hope for a good home."
Hobbes thought to himself, I hope I find a nice place to live. With a little girl, perhaps.
Hobbes hopped out of the box and sat on a package, thinking. Why would anyone try to make all of these stuffed animals the same, yet I am, so far, the only speaking, thinking, moving one? He thought sadly. I would've been better off like them than this lonely.
The tiger surveyed the room from his small vantage point. All of the stuffed ones' barren eyes seemed to gleam back at him. He shivered.
All of a sudden, a thing hit him in the back. It was very big, and traveling at a very high velocity. Surprised, the tiger let out a yelp as the other thing bowled him over. They did a couple of flips, then settled down in a pile of white stuffing.
Hobbes leapt out of the pile of 'insides', and rubbed his head. Another head popped out of the insides, panting and smiling. "Sorry about that, mate, but I just had to." The other cat's voice was higher, and unlike anything the tiger had heard. The tiger looked over at her, ruffled. "Sorry for what? Nearly knocking my head off?" The tigress waded out of the stuffing to sit by the tiger. "It's called pouncing. Besides, I had to make sure that you were moving and not the wind." Hobbes remembered a bit. Another moving tiger! So he wasn't alone after all.
The tigress held out a paw. "My name's Lucinda. Pleased to meet ya." The tiger shook her hand. "My name is.well, I don't know, but I'm very glad to meet you." Lucinda frowned. "Of course you have a name! It says so on a tag on your back." Lucinda spun the nameless tiger around to face his back. "Here it is! It says.." Lucinda gradually sounded out his name. ("Hoddes? That doesn't make any sense!") Finally, she told him, "Your name is Hobbes."
Hobbes, thought Hobbes. That sounds like a nice name.
"So, Lucinda," said Hobbes after a while. "There are other moving animals, after all."
Lucinda began to bat at the head of a motionless tiger. "Oh yeah," she said over her shoulder, "There are lots of them! But we aren't exactly real animals. Real animals live in cages and are expected to move a lot. Sometimes humans (that's the name of those pink things) don't treat them that well."
Hobbes shivered. "I don't like humans very much. They give me the creeps."
Lucinda abandoned the automaton in favor of a fly zooming about her head. "But wait! It gets better. We are what humans call stuffed animals. We are supposed to be still while human cubs abuse us and throw us around. But Stuffed Animals aren't supposed to mind that." Lucinda gestured to the shelves full of Stuffed Animals. "These guys are the norm. I suppose they might have a thought in their heads," she wondered aloud, "But they haven't expressed anything to me." The tigress turned back to Hobbes. "But you and me, Hobbes. We're different. We were actually supposed to be like them"- she jabbed a digit at the normal ones -"But when we were made, something.went wrong. We are anomalies. We are stuffed animals with human qualities. A human would have a heart attack if they knew we were having this conversation, let alone walk around and talk." Lucinda sighed. "This gift or curse, depending upon your persuasion, is special. I think others have it too. One stuffed frog down the hall has it. (You'll meet him some day) The bunnies seem pretty dead to me, and so do the fishes and giraffes, though I could be wrong."
Hobbes contemplated her long speech for a while. Then, thoughtfully, he said, "I think it's a gift. Maybe we're supposed to watch over the non- moving ones or something like that." "Perhaps," replied Lucinda, "But I'm not finished quite yet."
"This place that were are in is called a store. It's called 'The Magic Toy Store', and they sell us here to humans." "What do you mean, to humans?" Hobbes nearly yelled. He just didn't like those humans very much. "Shut up! They might hear you!" Lucinda padded over to the door and put her ear against it. When the danger passed, she continued. "They exchange green pieces of paper and just sell us to them. Like slaves. There's not much that we can do about it, except hope for a good home."
Hobbes thought to himself, I hope I find a nice place to live. With a little girl, perhaps.