chapter 3

"ON YOUR MARK!" Yelled Chill.

All the people at Camp pine were having a race.

Whoever won got a gigantic trophy, to bring home.

"GET SET! GO!"

Everyone burst out running.

Calvin, who had a lot of experience running from things like Hobbes, aliens, and his own fantasies, seemed to be faster than Susie, Moe, or any of the other people there.

Each time one of Calvin's feet left the ground, dirt shot upward. His arms pumped furiously, and a look that said "I am so deep in concentration that if you break it, I'll tear you apart!" covered his face.

He could hear his heart beating like a drum, and he felt sweat drip off his face.

Ten feet from the finish line. Nine feet. Seven, six, four... HUH?

Susie tore past him.

Calvin halted in utter confusion.

Big mistake.

Moe ripped by. Then all the other kids did.

Susie ended up being first place, and Calvin, last.

"SHE CHEATED!" Calvin shrieked after the race. "SHE USED SOME KIND OF HIGH TECH RUNNING SHOES!"

Hobbes coughed into his hand, and rolled his eyes.

Calvin didn't notice, he was to busy ranting and raving on Susie cheating.

"SHE'LL PAY FOR THAT!" he yelled.

"How do you plan on getting revenge?" Hobbes asked.

"Simple." Calvin said. "Tonight, I'll blast her with a water balloon!"

"Why wait till tonight?" Hobbes asked.

Calvin stared at him. "Hobbes the good part of the movie happens then. Do you want to RUSH through the movie?"

Hobbes sighed. "No." he said.

"Good." Calvin replied. "Then we'll wait for tonight."

Just then, Chill came up to Calvin.

"Stop talking to your teddy, and get in line!" he yelled. "We're doing canoeing next! NOW! CHOP-CHOP!"

Calvin grabbed Hobbes, and the two raced toward the lake.

The whole camp was by the lake, standing in the soft grass.

In the water, each kid had a canoe.

Calvin watched as everyone unchained their canoes, and learning how to work their paddles.

Calvin turned to HIS canoe.

He fiddled around chains for a few seconds. It wouldn't come un-done.

Calvin jerked, and yanked at the chains, growling in frustration.

Hobbes stood next to him, his hands behind his back, and watching Calvin with a dull look on his face.

Calvin noticed.

"Are you going to help, or just stand there looking simple?"

Hobbes scratched his head, and rolled his eyes skyward.

"Is there a third chose?" he asked.

Calvin glared at him, and shook his head.

Hobbes stood there for a second. "Number two." he said finally.

Calvin's eyes bulged. "Oh-no you aren't! Get down here and help me!"

Hobbes sighed, and bent down to examine the chains.

"Well," he said, staring at the chains. "You apparently are un-doing this wrong. See? The knot is here. You're tugging at this side, Einstein."

Calvin glared at Hobbes. "Hobbes I don't work good under pressure. What do you think I am? Superman?"

"Definitely not." Hobbes replied. "You're the complete opposite of Superman."

Calvin's eyes bulged, and his nostrils took on the shape of a Cobra's heads. He gritted his teeth, and clenched his fists, and all at once, Calvin could see nothing but a large curtain of red.

He jumped onto Hobbes, and the wreck was on.

Just then Chill came running up.

"HEY! What's going on here! Are you fighting with someone!"

Calvin stopped in mid-punch. Then kicked Hobbes away.

"It was HIS fault, Mr Inspector Cold! HE started it!"

Chill ran his eyes to the beat up Stuffed tiger on the ground, then back to the beat up Calvin pointing at the beat up Stuffed tiger.

"Because you were fighting with a stuffed animal, I'll let it slide. But DO NOT fight with anyone else! Now get your canoe ready, and stop acting like an idiot."

Calvin glared at Chill, then at Hobbes, then turned back to the canoe.

Calvin glared at the chains, and began to un-do them.

After he finally un-did it, he took Hobbes and crawled into the boat.

Calvin took the paddle and stared at it.

"How are you supposed to work this thing?" he asked.

Hobbes examined it. "It appears to have a paddle on both ends" he said. "Maybe it's a double paddle, where it takes two people to operate."

Calvin stared paddle.

"This makes NO sense at all." said Calvin.

"Maybe you should call Chill for help." suggested Hobbes.

"Do I look like a sissy?" Calvin said. "I'll just have to learn how to work this thing on my own."

Calvin studied the paddle for a long moment. Then he took hold of the middle, and plunged it into the water, with a loud SPLASH!" the boat drifted sideways.

Hobbes' eyes bulged. As the boat began to drift away from the shore. "Calvin! Turn around!" he yelled.

"I can't!" Calvin yelled slapping the water with his paddle.

Hobbes ducked down into the bottom of the boat, and covered his head.

"CALVIN!" Chill screeched. "GET BACK HERE!"

"HELP!" replied Calvin.

Chill buried his face into his hands. Then turned to Candace (one of Susie's friends.)

"Please let me borrow this canoe." he said. And then, without waiting for an answer, he leaped into the boat, and began to paddle toward Calvin.

"HELP!" Calvin yelled again, totally stunned by fear. "HELP, HELP!"

Chill paddled up to Calvin.

"Relax, Calvin." Chill said. "If you panic, the lake will just take you."

Calvin stared at Chill. "Oh, yeah, NOW I can relax! HELP!"

Chill hooked a rope up to Calvin's boat, then hooked the other end to his. Then, he rowed back to shore.

"Calvin," Chill said. "Do NOT set off without a life jacket. At your size, you'll sink to the bottom, ad no one will ever be able to get you!"

Calvin gulped, and nodded.

"Now get your life jacket on!" Chill said clapping his hands. "Your going to be riding in these, TODAY!"

"Ah ha!" Calvin thought. "Another threat!"

Later that day, Calvin had his life jacket on.

"Hobbes, do you have YOUR life Jacket on?"

Calvin turned to the tiger.

Hobbes stared at him.

"You don't know very much about tigers, do you?" he said. "Tigers, unlike most cats, enjoy the water. They are excellent swimmers, and they don't need life jackets."

Calvin rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, you sound like you swallowed an encyclopedia, now get in the boat." Hobbes yawned, and sharpened his claws against a tree. Then he stretched himself, and began to mosey over to Calvin, taking his sweet time.

Calvin knew this trick. Calvin would start screaming and yelling, and he'd get in trouble. But Hobbes had done this many times. And now he was ready.

Calvin crossed his arms. He didn't say "hurry up, you fur ball!"

nope.

He waited and watched.

At last Hobbes reached him. "what wonderful patience you have, Cal."

"shut up, and get into the boat." Calvin snapped.

Hobbes climbed into the boat.

"start your engines, people." Chill joked.

"I got thing mastered this time." said Calvin.

Hobbes looked up. Calvin had somehow broke the paddle in two, and now, it was two paddles.

"here." said Calvin handing Hobbes one of the ends.

"you row this side, I'll row that side."

Hobbes rolled his eyes and turned the water.

Calvin turned around too. he began to furiously paddle the water. then he noticed, that they were going in circles.

"HOBBES!" Calvin screamed, "PADDLE ON YOUR SIDE!"

"I CAN'T!" Hobbes yelled back.

"your making me sick!" just then Calvin heard a splash.

Hobbes had dropped the paddle.

Calvin stopped rowing. It was then, that he saw a VERY angry John Chill standing over him.

gulp.

"Oh." exclaimed Calvin. "Hi, Mr Inspector Cold! How are ya?"

Chill glared down at him.

"I know this looks bad," said Calvin. "But let me hasten to add that I can explain everything! No kidding!"

"Go ahead, and explain." snarled Chill.

"Right." said Calvin, grinning nervously up at Chill. "You see my tiger here, Hobbes, he was supposed to be rowing on that side while I rowed on that side! And, well, he dropped the paddle, in the water.... and...."

Calvin stopped, struggling to think of what to say next.

"You cut the paddle in two." said Chill, coldly. "You broke very expensive equipment, didn't you? Then, you lost it in the lake, didn't you?"

"IT WASN'T ME!" Calvin insisted. "HOBBES DID IT! LOCK HIM UP AND THROW AWAY THE KEY! HIS FAULT! HIS FAULT! HIS FAULT!"

"Calvin," Chill growled. "Do expect me to believe that your teddy bear threw the paddle into the lake?"

"Yes?" Calvin guessed.

"Well, then," snapped Chill. "Why don't you and your teddy go into your cabin for rest of the day, and discuss it?"

"THE REST OF THE DAY!" cried Calvin. "IT'S TWO O'CLOCK!"

"That's to bad." said Chill. "Make the best of it."

Calvin grumbled, grabbed the stuffed tiger, and slouched over to the boy's cabin. Complaining the whole way.

"THIS IS AN OUTRAGE! I DEMAND A LAWYER! THEY CAN'T DO THIS TO ME! THIS IS TYRANNY! INSANITY! A TOTAL INSULT TO CALVIN NAME!"

"Calvin?" Hobbes said.

"WHAT!" Calvin yelled.

"Your heading for the girl's cabin. The boy's cabin is here."

"Oh." said a very embarrassed Calvin.

"I knew that." Calvin walked into the boy's cabin.

"I can't believe I was sent here for the rest of the day!" Calvin complained.

"Well," said Hobbes sticking out his tongue at Calvin. "Because of you, and your 'Hobbes did it!' routine, I got sent here too. I hope your happy."

Calvin glared at him. "HEY! You DID drop the paddle!"

"Only 'cause you were making me sick!" replied Hobbes in a calm voice. "Besides, you were the one you snapped the paddle in half!"

"Hey!" yelled Calvin. "I thought that was what I was supposed to do! You can't blame me for not knowing how to work one of those things!"

"You should have asked Chill for help." insisted Hobbes.

Calvin grumbled, and slumped into a chair.

"I'm sick of it, here." Calvin said. "Why did mom have to sign me up to this!"

Hobbes didn't answer. He turned his head to the window, and looked out.

His eyes widened, as he looked outside.

"Calvin, c'mere!" he said, motioning for Calvin to come.

Calvin jumped off the chair, and walked over to where Hobbes was.

Calvin looked out into the vast territories of where they now stood.

Calvin looked out over the beautiful snow capped mountains, and huge forests that surrounded it. The lake seemed like a sparkling wonderland and just increased the beauty of the wonderful scenery that Calvin and Hobbes now feasted their eyes.

"I'll bet we're missing some great shows on TV right now." Calvin whined.

Hobbes rolled his eyes, and continued to look out at the wonderful scene before him.

That night, Calvin and Hobbes snuck out of their cabin.

Calvin's pockets were stuffed with water balloons.

"To the lake." Calvin whispered.

The two slid down the hill to lake, Calvin filled up the water balloons,

"ok," Calvin murmured. "To the girl's cabin!"

Calvin and Hobbes tiptoed up to the girl's cabin.

"What are you going to do?" Hobbes whispered. "Burst in there and start throwing water balloons in every direction?"

Calvin ignored him. "Come on, Hobbes, give me a boost."

"Why?"

"we're gonna wait on the roof for Susie to come out, of corse!!"

Hobbes shrugged, and started to pick Calvin up at the feet.

"OOOF!" Grunted Hobbes. "What did you eat for breakfast? Bricks?"

With great effort, Hobbes pushed Calvin on top of the roof.

Then Calvin pulled Hobbes up.

For a long time, the two sat there, and nothing happened.

Then Calvin heard something.

"Get ready!" Calvin exclaimed, and he held the water balloon over the side of the cabin.

But no girl came out.

Then Hobbes heard it.

A rustle. Maybe a bush in the wind? No. there was no wind. This was very calm night.

"Calvin are you sure that's Susie?" he asked.

Calvin turned his head to Hobbes. "No, but I'm not taking a chance of missing her!"

The rustling happened again, and this time Hobbes was sure it didn't happen in the cabin. So was Calvin.

Very slowly, Calvin and Hobbes turned their heads to the forest next to them.

There sat a lone bush. Something was rustling in side it.

"Hobbes?" Calvin asked. "Yes?" Hobbes replied.

"Is that bush moving?"

"Yes."

There was a moment of silence.

"You know, Hobbes," Calvin said finally. "I'm awfully tired, what do say we turn in?"

"Couldn't agree more." Hobbes replied.

The two jumped off the girl's cabin, leaving the water balloons, and ran for the boy's cabin. Screaming the whole way, and waking up the whole summer camp.

Just before the two dove into the boy's cabin, Hobbes looked back at the girl's cabin.

A single, grey, tentacle was reaching over the roof of the girl's cabin, and pulling the last water balloon off.

Hobbes screamed harder, and slammed the door of the cabin.

The whole place shook, and everyone in the area, woke with a start.