Eventually, they reached a certain spot in the woods. "Are you sure this is the place?" asked Calvin.
"Yes, this is it."
"I'm not sure this is the place."
"It's the place, okay?"
"If you're sure...but I think you're wrong."
Hobbes lost it. "Look! I'm about to..."
A huge bear stepped out. He was the same bear that trained Hobbes in an earlier story. "I wouldn't make that guy mad, kid," he advised
"It's you!" smiled Hobbes.
"And I remember what you just put me through," growled the bear.
"What did I do?"
"Well, I trained you to be a huge scary monster...but then you went back to normal. No one I train goes back to normal, you hear?"
Hobbes looked guilty. "Sorry, but I like being myself. I just wanted to prove something to this kid here. He sort of wants you to train him to be a hero."
"Well, now I'm the laughingstock of the woods thanks to you! I'm not about to train your creepy little HUMAN friend!"
(Sung to the tune of "One Last Hope")
Bear: So, ya wanna be a hero, kid?
Well, whoop-de-do!
I have been around the block before
With blockheads just like you
Your tiger friend was a disappointment
Pain for which there ain't no ointment
Don't care about complaining
I do no more training
I bet you wanna jump into some fray
My answer is two words...
"But maybe training him will get you your dignity back," suggested Hobbes. "You just need to tone it down a little."
"Never thought of that...fine, I'll do it on one condition."
"What?"
"We get a training montage!" A montage indeed began as Calvin was trained to be a hero.
Bear: I'd given up hope that someone would come along
A fellow who'd ring the bell for once
Not the gong
The kind who wins trophies
Won't settle for low fees
At least semi-pro fees
But no...
I get the greenhorn
You've made me the laughingstock of these whole woods
People thing that my kind of training is not so good
But you need an advisor
A grizzly, but wiser
A good merchandiser
And oohh!
We've got a long way to go...
I'm down to one last hope
And I hope it's you
Though, kid, you're not exactly
A dream come true
I've trained enough turkeys (literally)
Who never came through
You're my one last hope
So you'll have to do
Little runts I like to punt
But being weak can be the pits
Maybe I can buff you up
But that may be the dream of twits
To be a true hero, kid, is a dying art
Like painting a masterpiece, it's a work of heart (Aww...)
It takes more than sinew
Comes down to what's in you
You have to continue to grow
Now that's more like it!
I've trained some real weird guys
And some much stranger
I'm feeling mighty old
Like I'm endangered
My dreams are on you, kid
Go make 'em come true
Climb that uphill slope
Keep pushing that envelope
You're my one last hope
And, kid, it's up to you
Yeah!
The training montage was finally done...but Calvin didn't look any different. "Thanks, huge bear!" he said. "The lesson here is that you should always trust talking animals in the woods!"
"Everyone knows that," said Hobbes.
"Good luck, guys!" the bear called as they left. "Maybe I will get my dignity back..."
As they walked, Calvin tripped over a tree root. Hobbes looked nervous. "I hope he didn't tone it down too much..."
Ah, the bear from "Hobbes of the Wild" shows up again. By the way, "One Last Hope" is my favorite Hercules song.