Chapter 2 - Dumbledore's Visit
"Don't you dare do it! I'm warning you! I don't care if you think Captain Napalm looks better with a beard! They're my comics, and... Hey! Stop that! Come back here!"
Calvin's dad sunk deeper into his chair, brought his newspaper closer to his face, and tried to ignore the yelling. However, it was soon followed by loud stomping and crashing noises, and he could do so no longer.
He threw down his paper, stood up, and marched up the staircase. He was quite angry. He worked all week, with barely any time to himself, and felt that he should at least be able to spend the weekend in relative peace, but this kid seemed to make it a personal mission to ruin it for him. Even though Calvin was grounded, he still managed to cause havoc throughout the house. And then there was his talking to a stuffed tiger as if it were an actual, living person, even after several years of therapy!
Dad grabbed the doorknob, turned it, and threw open the door. He saw that Calvin was in the midst of an attempt to strangle the tiger. "What the heck are you doing?" he shouted at the boy. "Can't you be silent for one hour? I'm trying to relax, and you're tearing apart your room!"
"It's not my fault!" Calvin yelled back. "It's Hobbes' fault! He keeps trying to draw on my comics! No matter how many times I tell him to stop, he won't listen!"
"Then maybe you have an inkling of an idea how I feel!" Dad's eyes were bulging. "I keep telling you to be quiet, but you insist on making as much noise as you can!"
"Don't yell at me!" the boy argued. "Yell at Hobbes!"
"Hobbes is an inanimate object! A stuffed toy! Get that through your head! If you insist on continuing this nonsense, I'll ground you for the rest of your life!"
"What do you mean, Hobbes isn't real?" Calvin had marched up to his father, and was screaming in his face. "He's just as real as I am! Just because you refuse to see it, doesn't mean that it's not true!"
"That is it! You are-"
At that moment, they both heard someone knock at the door. They were both rather surprised by this, as the only person who ever came to visit unexpectedly was Susie. Her knock, however, was rather quiet, while this one was firm and loud.
This had better not be a neighber concerned about this shouting match, Dad thought. It had happened in the past, though only two or three times, and it was highly embarrasing. "This isn't over," he told Calvin, and went to answer the door.
Dad found the visitor to be quite unusual. He was a tall, old man, wearing a strange, plumb-colored suit, with long silver hair, and a magnificent beard. He would have thought that the old man was selling something, but he carried nothing with him, and heheld himself with an air that seemed to indicate he was someone far more important. "Err... Can I help you?" he asked the man.
"Yes, you indeed can, " the old man answered. "I have come to discuss your son, Calvin. Incidentally, I think it would be a good idea to invite me inside, before the neighbors ask awkward questions."
"Um, Ok..." Dad was a bit bewildered. "You can come in."
Dad made the old man comfortable, inviting him to sit on the couch, and offering him a glass of water. He sat down, and waited for the stranger to explain why he had come. He said he was here because of Calvin, he thought. Is he some sort of psychiatrist? Does he think he can help Calvin? Or is this about his abysmal record at school?
The old man took a sip of water, placed the glass back on the table, and then spoke. "I told you my visit was to discuss your son. To be specific, I am here about his future education."
Great, just was I was afraid of... This was obviously an offer from some school for children with "special needs," probably on request of the local public school. A school like that would cost a large amount of money, which the family just did not have. He told the visitor just as much. "I'm sorry, but we don't have to money to send Calvin to a private school. I can't accept your offer."
The stranger was surprised, but it wasn't easy to tell. "I see you already have guessed why I am here, but you do not know everything about it. When you have heard me out, I assure you that you will not be disagreeable to sending Calvin to Hogwarts. However, I think it would be best if Calvin was here as well."
I might as well hear him out, Dad thought. He turned to the staircase. "Calvin! Get down here!"
As soon as Dad had left to see who was knocking, Calvin ran over to the window and looked down. Like his father, Calvin found the stranger's appearance to be strange and unusual. Eager to hear what they were talking about, Calvin took the screen out of the window and leaned out. Unfortunately, there was a strong gust of wind at that moment, and he couldn't hear what was spoken, although he thought heheard his own name. This made him much more interested in the conversation, but he didn't have a chance to hear any more, as the old man had went inside.
He went over to Hobbes. "What do you think that guy's here about?" he inquired. "He doesn't look like anyone who works at the school, and I don't think a salesman would know my name. Do you have any idea what this is about."
Hobbes thought for a few moments, then answered slowly, "Could he be one of the psychiatrists you've been to? That would make sense."
"No, I don't think I've ever seen him before," Calvin replied. "Wait... You don't think he's come to take me off to the crazy farm, do you? Everyone seems to think I'm not right in the head."
"I don't think so. If he was, I think there would be more of them, and they would be in white uniforms. And they would probably have brought tranquilizers, straightjackets, and the like."
"Arrgh... I wish I knew what this was about!" Calvin complained. He was pacing about the room. "I'm going down there to eavesdrop on them!"
"You're in enought trouble already!" warned Hobbes. He was sitting on the bed, and didn't seem to be as worried about the visitor as Calvin. "You should just wait. You'll find out what this is about eventually."
"I can't wait! I'm going, whatever you say!" He walked over to the door and opened it. Convieniently, Dad called for him right then.
"Well, looks like you got lucky." Hobbes said. "I think I'll wait up here, though. I'd rather not know what this is about."
"Fine, fine," Calvin said, and then climbed down the staircase. He found Dad and the stranger sitting in the living room, waiting for him. He sat down in a chair, and then looked at the old man, waiting to be told what the purpose of his visit was.
"Ah, there you are, Calvin." said the old man, his eyes twinkling. "Now, I think I can tell you about about myself, and why I am here. I am Professor Dumbledore, Headmaster of the school of Hogwarts. I have come because you have been chose to attend this school. You should find all the information you need in this letter." Dumbledore handed Calvin a large envelope, with a picture of a large H surrounded by a lion, a badger, an eagle, and a snake on the back. On the front, Calvin found his own address:
Mr. Calvin ---------
Calvin's Bedroom
# Road
Calvin opened the letter, took out the letter from inside, and read it.
HOGWARTS SCHOOL
of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY
---------------------------------------------------------
Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)
Dear Mr. ---------
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.
Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall,
Deputy Headmistress
Calvin stared at the letter for a few minutes, then looked at Dumbledore. "Wait..." he said. "By Witchcraft and Wizardry, does this mean... magic?"
"Yes, it indeed does," said Dumbledore in reply. "You have been gifted with the ability to do magic, and that ability must be trained. Thus, the reason Hogwarts was founded."
"But magic isn't real, is it?" said Calvin uncertainly.
"It is real, actually," said Dumbledore, smiling. "It is everywhere around you. In fact, you have done magic before. I believe I am choosing a good example, when I say that you have transfigured an object to come alive? To become a tiger, perhaps?"
"Well, maybe..." said Calvin, unsure of himself.
"And you have traveled back in time on occasion?"
"Yeah..."
"Then, I think it is settled!" said Dumbledore happily. "You are able to do magic."
"Just a minute," Dad interrupted. "That stuffed tiger is definitely not alive in any way, except in Calvin's mind. And I've never seen anything that would indicate that he's been traveling in time! This all sounds like a bunch of nonsense."
"It is not nonsense," explained Dumbledore, "just because you have never seen him do any of it. It seems that he has... unusual... control over his magic. He seems to subconciously reverse his magic when someone else comes near. If you need further proof, however, I shall demonstrate." With that, he waved his wand in the direction of a floor lamp, and turned it into an ostritch.
Both Dad and Calvin were quite amazed, but neither one appeared to doubt Dumbledore's words any further. "I guess you are telling the truth," Dad said, "but I don't think we can send him there. We don't have enough money to afford private schooling."
"There will be no problem with that. Education at Hogwarts is free. All you will need to pay for are your books and equipment, which I believe you can afford."
"Well," replied Dad, "I don't see any problem with Calvin going, then, though I still think this is all very strange. Where is Hogwarts, by the way?"
"Ah, I almost forgot!" exclaimed Dumbledore. "Hogwarts School is located in England. I am assuming that you will have difficulty traveling there, so we shall provide you with a portkey on the day Calvin will depart. You shall also be given a portkey tomorrow, so that you will be able to reach Diagon Alley, where you will be able to purchase all the supplies needed at Hogwarts."
"Why must Calvin go to school in England? Isn't there a place he could go in America?"
"There actually is," answered Dumbledore, "The Franklin University of Magic. However, I would like to personally keep an eye on Calvin, as he does have an unusual amount of control for one so young."
Dumbledore turned back to the boy. "There has been enough discussion, I think. What do you say, Calvin? Do you want to attend Hogwarts?"
Calvin did not have to consider the proposal for long. Or at all, in fact. Once he had seen with his own eyes that magic was real, he became very excited, and wanted nothing more that to learn how to use it. "Yes!" he answered, exuberantly. A look of doubt crossed his face. "I will be able to bring Hobbes with me, won't I?"
"Yes, I can see now problem with that," replied Dumbledore, "Providing, of course, that he doesn't eat anybody." He laughed a little at what he apparently considered a joke. "I should inform you, however, that you must address me, and all the teachers, as "Professor" or "sir," as long as you are a student."
"Yes, of course!" said Calvin.
"Then, with that, I'm off,"said Dumbledore. He stood up, twirled in a tiny circle, and vanished.