Calvin opened his eyes, awoken by the golden rays of sunshine streaming through the window, and sat up from his bed, eyes wide and with a look of pure glee on his face.
"It's Saturday," he muttered. "Hobbes, it's Saturday!"
He gave the sleeping tiger next to him a good hard shove.
Hobbes opened his eyes and glared at Calvin.
"Why can't they have classes on weekends as well?" Hobbes grumbled, sliding out of bed and stretching his arms.
"You're no fun," Calvin said teasingly. "Come on, let's go find something to do."
The two made their way down to the great hall, which was filled with even more chatter than usual, and made their way to the Gryffindor table
"Greetings!" Calvin exclaimed as he and Hobbes slid into a seat next to Ginny and across from the Weasley twins. "What's the plan for today?"
"Quidditch of course," said Ginny as she cut up a piece of sausage. "It's Gryffindor vs. Slytherin today!"
Calvin gave her a weird look.
"The competitive sweeping game?" Hobbes asked as he tore into a piece of lamb.
Now it was Ginny's turn to make a weird look.
"Sorry?" She asked, confused.
"Blimey Calvin," said Fred from across the table. "Don't tell me you've never heard of Quidditch!"
Calvin shrugged and grinned sheepishly.
"You poor poor soul," said George with a lopsided grin. "Not to worry, we'll explain it!"
"You see, Quidditch is an amazing game," Said Fred.
"The best, really," added George.
"It's played on broomsticks!"
"And you have to score as many points as possible!"
"But the game only ends when the seeker catches the snitch!"
"Woah woah woah, back up," Calvin said, shaking his head. "Snitch?"
"Ah yes we should probably explain the positions first," said George, stroking his chin.
"Of course, how could we forget!" Added Fred, shoving a piece of egg into his mouth. "First you have the keeper, their job is to prevent the chasers from scoring goals!"
"The chaser's job is to take this big leather ball called the quaffle, and try to throw it through the other team's goal!"
"And then there's us!"
"We're the beaters!"
"Now to understand the beaters, you have to understand why we're needed."
"You see, there's these big iron balls that fly around the pitch and try to knock players off their brooms!"
"They're called bludgers!"
"The beaters job is to protect their team from the bludgers and whack them at the other team!"
"And then finally we have the seeker."
"The position that holds the most glory!"
"Their job is to catch the snitch!"
"It's a little golden ball with wings that zooms around the pitch at high speeds!"
"It's near impossible to see!"
"Not to mention even harder to catch!"
"When the seeker catches the snitch, their team receives 150 points!"
"And the game ends!"
"Woah," Calvin muttered under his breath, dumbfounded. "That sounds way cooler than any muggle sports!"
"Except Calvinball of course," Hobbes added, gnawing at the bone of the piece of lamb he had just finished.
"Of course, nothing can top Calvinball."
"What's Calvinball?" Asked Ginny curiously, turning to look at Calvin.
"I'll explain it later," Calvin responded. "Who's the Gryffindor seeker?"
Fred and George exchanged an identical smile.
"Harry Potter of course!" They said synchronously.
"He became the youngest seeker in a century when he made the team last year!" George exclaimed.
"And he's bloody good!" Added Fred.
Calvin looked over at Harry, who seemed to be in an intense conversation with Ron and Hermione.
"How has Harry literally done everything?" Asked Calvin, dumbfounded. "It's like he's done as much as someone twice his age!"
"He's brilliant," said Ginny, glancing at Harry with an almost dreamy look on her face, Causing Fred and George to exchange silent chuckles. Calvin however, felt something odd. Almost jealousy.
Get a hold of yourself! Calvin thought to himself, closing his eyes. You have feelings for Susie, remember?
However he couldn't help but feel like he didn't actually mean that.
"You okay?" Hobbes whispered, nudging Calvin lightly with his elbow.
Calvin's eyes shot open and he blinked a few times.
"Yeah I'm fine," he whispered back, nodding at Hobbes, trying his best to put on a smile.
Hobbes raised an eyebrow at him but went back to his food.
"Time to go," said George, glancing at his watch.
"See you in the stands, Calvin!" Said Fred as he and George waved goodbye and left the hall.
"Should we get going then?" Ginny asked, turning her head back to Calvin.
"What?" Calvin asked stupidly.
"To the quidditch match, dummy!"
"Oh right," said Calvin, snapping out of his thoughts. "Yeah, let's go."
Ginny shook her head and smirked, getting up from her seat.
"Come on then!" She exclaimed, grabbing the hood of Calvin's robes and pulling him up.
Calvin made a choking noise.
"All right all right I'm coming!" Calvin yelled, standing up and rubbing his neck.
"Follow me!" Ginny shouted with a grin, and she began to run towards the door of the great hall.
Calvin watched her get to the end of the hall and grinned.
"Come on, Hobbes!" He exclaimed, beginning to chase after Ginny, a warm feeling forming in his chest.
Hobbes simply rolled his eyes, got up from his seat, and followed Calvin out of the hall.
"I still can't believe you've never heard of quidditch!" Said Ginny as Calvin and Hobbes caught up to her. "I thought you liked flying class, Madam Hooch talks about it all the time!"
Calvin shrugged.
"I like the flying part," he said with an awkward grin. "I don't actually listen to what she says."
"Why am I not surprised," Hobbes muttered.
The three walked through the grounds until they reached the quidditch stadium. They entered one of the Gryffindor towers and climbed the stairs until they reached the top.
"There's some seats!" Said Ginny, pointing at an open section of the many filled benches that covered the tower.
"When does the match start?" Asked Calvin as He, Hobbes, and Ginny slipped into the open seats.
"Should be any minute now," said Ginny, eyeing the quidditch pitch below.
As if on cue, as soon as Ginny finished speaking, Madam Hooch stepped out into the field with a large trunk, setting it in the center of the pitch. Soon after, both teams made their way onto the field from their respective changing rooms, causing the crowd to erupt with cheers.
"Yeah Harry!" Calvin shouted as he spotted him in the group of Gryffindor players.
Hobbes whistled loudly and wagged his tail.
However, Calvin's joy slowly left him as he saw the Slytherin team, and he groaned.
"Is that Malfoy?" Calvin exclaimed angrily.
Ginny grimaced.
"Who put that git on the team?" she asked, disgusted.
Malfoy stood on the quidditch pitch with a smug smile, looking incredibly pleased with himself.
"Captains, shake hands!" Madam Hooch shouted.
Calvin watched as a tall Gryffindor boy with brown hair, and a big hulking Slytherin with crooked teeth stepped towards each other. They shook hands, but the looks on their faces gave the impression that they would rather be doing anything else.
After the two captains shook hands, the teams made their way to opposite sides of the field, standing below what looked like three golden hoops raised in the air, which Calvin assumed were the goals.
Madam hooch kneeled down to the trunk she had set on the field, unlocked it, and opened it up. She fidgeted with something Calvin could not see, and a moment later two large brown balls shot up in the air and began to fly around the pitch. Calvin assumed they must be the bludgers. Next, Madam Hooch pulled a tiny object out of the trunk and tossed it skyward. Calvin could just barely see a flash of gold before the thing zoomed away at great speed. This was obviously the snitch. Finally, Madam Hooch grabbed a large red ball from the trunk, the quaffle, and then closed the trunk, locking it. She blew her whistle, and threw the ball up into the air. Immediately a Gryffindor girl with dark skin flew forward and snatched the ball out of the air. The game had begun.
Calvin was in awe as the teams zoomed around the field, effortlessly performing their tasks. The chasers launched the quaffle into the goals, Fred and George were going after the bludgers, and Harry was slowly moving around, concentrating on his surroundings.
The game progressed until the score was 90-30 in Slytherin's favor
"Come on, come on," Calvin muttered nervously, desperately hoping that Gryffindor would bounce back.
Ginny looked just as tense, glancing around the pitch, trying to find some sign that Gryffindor would earn some points.
Out of the corner of his eye, Calvin saw something strange. He turned his head and saw Harry speeding away from a bludger. This wasn't strange in itself, but the bludger kept following him no matter what kind of maneuver Harry made. Calvin couldn't help being reminded of the heat seeking missiles he had put on his christmas list back when he was six.
"Uh Ginny?" Calvin asked nervously, nudging her in the shoulder and pointing at Harry. "Are bludgers supposed to do that?"
Ginny glanced up to where Calvin was pointing and her eyes widened.
"No they're not," said Ginny nervously. "They're supposed to gravitate towards the nearest player, not chase after a specific one like that!"
"Well then I'd say Harry is in pretty big trouble," said Hobbes, who was looking at Harry in deep concentration.
Despite the fact that he was being chased by a speeding metal ball, Harry didn't stop playing his position. Calvin watched as something caught his eye and he dove, looking determined to catch whatever he had his eyes set on.
Calvin saw that Draco Malfoy was flying towards Harry, his eyes set on the same thing. As Draco reached his side, Harry dove down near the ground, not taking his eyes off what he was chasing. Draco followed him and began to shove his shoulder into Harry, trying to knock him off his broom.
"That little piece of-" Calvin was cut off by a loud gasp from the crowd. Harry had swerved to dodge the bludger, and as Draco tried to follow, the bludger hit the top of his broomstick, sending him spinning out. He lost his grip and fell 10 feet to the ground, rolling and tumbling for another 20 feet until he finally came to a stop.
Calvin couldn't help but cheer, and some of the adults near him gave him a shocked look.
Calvin watched as Harry reached his arm out to grab what he was looking at, but the bludger came at him from the side and hit his wrist, causing him to almost lose control.
"Ouch!" Hobbes exclaimed, wincing.
Harry regained his composure, though he still had a look of great pain on his face, and reached out his left hand instead. His hand grasped around something and he lost control, falling from his broom, and landing in the sand pit that sat beneath the goals.
Another gasp erupted from the crowd, and then the stadium went silent. Then suddenly Harry lifted his hand, glanced at what he was holding, and grinned.
"HARRY POTTER HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH!" The announcer exclaimed. "GRYFFINDOR WINS!"
Calvin stood up and pumped his fists, cheering. Hobbes joined him and they began to dance like they did on their parents bed so many years ago. Ginny watched them, laughing.
Something then dawned on Calvin, and he stopped dancing. He glanced towards the pitch and saw the bludger flying towards Harry, who had seemed to forget the danger he was in due to the rush of excitement from catching the snitch. He knew what he had to do, and he broke away from Hobbes, sprinting towards the stairs.
"Hey, where are you going?" Hobbes asked, suddenly sounding concerned.
Calvin ignored him and began to zoom down the stairs at a speed he didn't even know he could go. As he reached the field, he began to sprint towards Harry, who now had a bewildered look on his face as the bludger smashed down on the ground six inches from his head, and bounced back up into the air. Calvin knew it would not miss next time, and when he got in range, he raised his wand and pointed it at the bludger, which was now rearing itself back to strike again.
"BOMBARDA!" He shouted, shooting a bright orange bolt out of his wand towards the bludger.
As the bolt made contact with said bludger, it exploded into thousands of tiny flecks of ash, and Harry gave Calvin a look of thanks.
At that moment, more people arrived on the field. Calvin recognized Ron, Hermione, Hagrid, and Lockhart among them.
"Quick thinkin' Calvin!" Hagrid exclaimed, making his way to Harry and standing over him with a worried expression on his face.
Hermione looked slightly annoyed at Calvin's presence and Ron just gave him a little wave.
"Fantastic game, dear boy!" Lockhart exclaimed as he strode up to Harry and kneeled next to him, his signature smile not faltering. "Let's just fix that arm, shall we?"
"No!" Harry said quickly, looking nervous. "Not you!"
Lockhart's smile dropped for a split second but he quickly recovered it.
"He doesn't know what he's saying!" He said, ignoring the concerned looks on everyone else's faces.
Calvin and Hagrid exchanged a nervous glance and then turned back to Lockhart, who was now pointing his wand at a scared looking Harry's wrist.
"Brackium Emendo!" Lockhart exclaimed, and with a flash of light he pulled his wand away and examined Harry's arm, which now looked like it had the consistency of jello.
Harry's eyes widened and raised his arm. His arm below the elbow flopped limply like rubber.
"Ah yes," said Lockhart, his smile leaving. "That sometimes can happen. But on the bright side, the bones are no longer broken!"
"Broken?" Calvin exclaimed, giving Lockhart a nasty look. "You made them disappear, you nincompoop!"
Ron snickered and Hermione looked sullen.
Lockhart looked flustered and opened his mouth to say something, but decided against it and chose to leave Harry's side and walk off the field.
"Moron," Calvin muttered under his breath. He waved at Harry, Ron, and Hermione, grinned at Hagrid, and then began to make his way off the pitch.
As he exited the stadium, he found Hobbes and Ginny waiting for him by the path back up to the castle.
"Good thinking using the exploding charm," Said Ginny as Calvin reached them. "I was wondering what uses that could have."
"I wouldn't consider blowing up a homicidal bludger to be a normal use of the spell," said Hobbes, chuckling.
"Fair enough," Ginny said with an awkward grin.
"Lockhart is such an idiot!" Calvin exclaimed as they began to walk up the pathway.
"What did he do this time?" Asked Hobbes, rolling his eyes.
"He somehow managed to remove all the bones from Harry's lower arm!" Calvin shouted, raising his arms in frustration. "How do you even do that?"
"He removed his bones?" Ginny asked, dumbfounded.
"Somehow!" Calvin exclaimed. "Harry's arm was left flopping around like a wet noodle!"
"Speaking of noodles…" Hobbes began, a smile spreading across his face.
"I WAS FRAMED!" Shouted Calvin, crossing his arms with a grumpy look on his face, which made Ginny giggle.
The rest of the day was fairly normal. Calvin and Hobbes visited Harry in the hospital wing, who was happy to have visitors and greeted them warmly.
"Hey Calvin!" Harry exclaimed from his bed with a smile as Calvin and Hobbes approached him. "Hello Hobbes!"
"Hey homie!" Calvin exclaimed with a lopsided grin.
"How's the arm?" Hobbes asked, pointing to Harry's arm, which Calvin noticed was in a sling.
"Painful," said Harry, wincing. "Magically regrowing bones isn't a pleasant experience."
"Doesn't sound like it," said Calvin sympathetically. "Has anyone figured out what happened with that bludger?"
Harry shook his head sadly.
"No," he said with a sigh. "I talked to Ron and Hermione about it and the only thing we can agree on is that it was jinxed."
"Jinxed?" Said Hobbes, raising his eyebrows. "You think someone here is out to get you?"
Harry shrugged.
"Over the summer, I was told by a-" he paused. "Well it's complicated, but essentially I was told over the summer that there was a 'plot' at Hogwarts and that I was in danger."
"Danger? What kind of danger?" Calvin asked curiously. "Also what 'plot?'"
"Sadly we don't know too much about that either," Harry said disappointedly. "We think it has something to do with the chamber of secrets and the heir of Slytherin."
Calvin shuddered.
"Right, almost forgot about that," Calvin said nervously.
"That would mean that the heir of Slytherin would have to be somewhere in the castle though, wouldn't it?" Asked Hobbes scratching his chin.
"Exactly," Harry said. "Now Hermione would probably discourage me from telling you guys this, but since you were there with us when we found Mrs. Norris, I feel like you have a right to know," and he lowered his voice to a whisper. "We think Malfoy is the heir."
"Mal-" Calvin began to shout, but was cut off by Hobbes slapping a paw over his mouth.
"Lower your voice!" Hobbes hissed, slowly removing his paw from Calvin's face.
"Sorry," Calvin whispered sheepishly. "I mean, Malfoy is a jerk but what makes you think he would want to open the chamber of secrets?"
"Think about it," Harry whispered. "He hates muggle borns more than anyone else I know. He's about as Slytherin as it gets!"
"Be that as it may," whispered Hobbes. "Assuming Malfoy has the guts to kill another person is quite a stretch."
Harry shrugged.
"Just the way I see it," he said grimly.
Calvin glanced down at his watch.
"Well Harry, I think it's time for us to skedaddle!" He exclaimed. "Dinner is in 5 minutes!"
Harry laughed.
"Have fun!" He said. "Thanks for visiting me, guys!"
"Anytime," said Hobbes with a smile.
And with that, Calvin and Hobbes began to exit the hospital wing and make their way to the great hall.
Dinner passed with no hiccups, and Calvin and Hobbes headed back to the common room. Besides a slight scuffle with Peeves the poltergeist, resulting with Calvin gaining a massive bump on his head after having the helmet of a suit of armor dropped on it, causing Hobbes to almost fall over with laughter, they made it back to their common room quite safely. They played wizard chess for a few hours before finally getting too tired to keep their eyes open, and they passed out in their bed in the boys dormitory.
Calvin was awoken in the middle of the night by Hobbes shaking him. His eyes shot open and he looked over at Hobbes with a tired expression on his face.
"Whazgoinon?" He asked groggily, blinking.
"I'm hungry," said Hobbes matter of factly.
"Tough," Calvin muttered, rolling back over and pulling the blankets over his head. "Breakfast is in a few hours."
Hobbes rolled his eyes and began to retract and un-retract his claws.
"You know," he began, examining his claws. "Most people tend to not sleep very well next to a hungry tiger."
Calvin quickly opened his eyes and sat up to glare at Hobbes.
"Threats won't work forever," he grumbled as he slid out of bed in his pajamas, not taking his eyes off the tiger.
"Yes but they work for the time being," said Hobbes with a mock evil grin. "C'mon, let's go find the kitchen."
Within the next five minutes, the dynamic duo were wandering the dark castle, looking for any sign of where the Hogwarts kitchen would be.
"I think we're lost," Calvin groaned as they trudged forward through a dark corridor.
"Only because you continue to refuse to use that stupid wand lighting charm," Hobbes grumbled. "I can't see a thing!"
"Do you want to get caught by Filch?" Calvin asked, glaring in Hobbes's general direction, as he couldn't actually see him. "I heard he keeps chains in his office to hang students from the wall with!"
"You're the student!" Exclaimed Hobbes. "I'm just a tiger! He can't do anything to me!"
Calvin crossed his arms and made a "Hmph" sound.
"Nice to know my best friend cares so much about my safety," he mumbled.
"If I were a kitchen, where would I be?" Hobbes muttered to himself.
"Hobbes it's a room, not a lost child!"
They trudged on for a few more minutes through the twisting and turning halls of the castle, occasionally running into walls.
"You were right," said Hobbes grimly. "We're hopelessly lost."
"You're a wild animal!" Calvin exclaimed, raising his arms in frustration. "Don't you have instincts for this type of thing?"
"Oh sure, because my natural habitat is totally a giant never ending castle!"
"Well I-"
Calvin was cut off as he tripped on something and fell over.
"Ow!" He exclaimed, now lying on the floor. "Who put this thing in the middle of the hallway?"
"What is it?" Hobbes asked as he kneeled down next to Calvin's dark silhouette.
Calvin poked the thing he had just tripped over.
"I don't know, but it's long and squishy."
"What's this, then?" Hobbes asked, picking up an object that sat upon the thing Calvin had tripped over.
"Lemme see!"
Calvin took the thing out of Hobbes's hand. The object felt boxy and metallic.
"Screw it," he mumbled, and he took out his wand. "Lumos!"
The object he held in his hand was a large old fashioned looking camera.
"That's weird!" Calvin exclaimed. "It looks just like the one-" he paused as he looked down at what he had tripped on, and his face drained of all color.
Sprawled out across the floor of the corridor, was Colin Creevey. Terror etched upon his frozen face.
"It looks just like the one that Colin carries," Hobbes said weakly.
"Oh man," Calvin said, rubbing his eyes as if that would make the scene in front of him disappear.
"We've got to tell a teacher," said Hobbes quietly.
"Are you insane?" Calvin exclaimed. "Getting caught out of bed at this hour could get me detention for a month!"
"Or much worse." Said a voice from behind Calvin, causing his blood to run cold.
He turned around and was met with the imposing figure of Professor Snape, a look of hatred on his face.
Oh man, Calvin thought sarcastically. This night just keeps getting better.
"Explain yourself Watterson," said Snape, venom in his voice.
"I uh…" Calvin trailed off as he saw Snape notice what he and Hobbes were kneeling over.
"Move," said Snape calmly.
"Sir please-"
"Silence!"
Calvin and Hobbes slowly inched away from Colin, and Snape kneeled down, examining the boy's body
"Come with me," Snape growled, grabbing Calvin's wrist and pulling him up.
"WOAH! Hey!" Calvin yelled as he scrambled behind Snape.
"Not another word," Snape hissed, giving Calvin a look that could kill, which quickly shut him up.
Hobbes attempted to follow the two but Snape gave him a vicious glare, and Hobbes decided it would be best if he headed back to the common room.
Snape and Calvin walked in silence for a few minutes before they reached a corridor where there was a small cutout in the wall. Inside this cutout was what looked like a statue of a large golden eagle with its wings spread.
"Lemon drop," said Snape.
For a moment, nothing happened. And then suddenly the eagle began to turn and slowly rise into the air. As it rose, a spiral staircase extended from the floor along with it. As the staircase stopped rising, Snape yanked Calvin roughly onto it and the two made their way up. At the top of the staircase, there was a large wooden door. Snape stepped forward and knocked on the door three times.
"You may enter," said a soft, calm voice from inside the room. Calvin immediately recognized this as the voice of Dumbledore.
The first time getting sent to the principal's office in Hogwarts, Calvin thought to himself. Surprised it didn't happen sooner.
Snape opened the door and shoved Calvin into the room. As Calvin regained his balance, he was able to take in his surroundings. Directly in front of him was a large ornate desk with a matching chair behind it. On the walls of the large round room were portraits of many ancient looking wizards, all asleep. There was what looked to be a sort of loft behind the desk, with two staircases on either side of it that followed the curves of the room. Calvin watched as Dumbledore made himself visible, walking towards the edge of the loft, standing behind the railing, hands behind his back.
"Headmaster," said Snape angrily. "There has been another attack. On a student this time."
A look of concern spread across Dumbledore's face and he began to descend the right staircase.
"This boy," Snape exclaimed, aggressively pointing a finger at Calvin, "Was caught at the scene of the crime!"
"Calm yourself Severus," said Dumbledore softly. "Lead me to the victim."
Snape nodded.
Dumbledore pointed his wand towards the desk and a chair appeared in front of it.
"Wait here," he said, glancing at Calvin.
Calvin nodded nervously and watched as the two professors left the office. He walked towards the chair and sat down, glancing around the room. He wondered what kind of trouble he would be in.
Calvin didn't know how long he had sat there before the office door finally opened and Dumbledore stepped inside. The old wizard stepped towards his desk and sat down on the ornate chair behind the desk.
"Lemon drop?" Dumbledore asked, pushing a bowl of small yellow hard candies towards Calvin.
"Uh, sure," Calvin said nervously, taking one of the candies and unwrapping it, cautiously putting it in his mouth.
"If I may ask," began Dumbledore, popping one of the candies in his mouth himself. "What were you doing in the corridors when you found Mr. Creevey?"
Calvin turned red.
"Hobbes was hungry," he said, embarrassed. "We were looking for the kitchens."
"Ah, Hobbes," said Dumbledore, his eyes twinkling. "Such an interesting creature."
"That's definitely one way to describe him," Calvin muttered.
Dumbledore smiled at Calvin.
"Professor McGonagall tells me that you are incredibly talented at transfiguration," he said softly. "The best in your year, actually."
Calvin perked up a bit.
"Really?" He asked, intrigued.
"Really," said Dumbledore, still smiling. "Achieving a perfect transformation from a match to a needle on your first attempt is highly impressive."
Calvin grinned sheepishly.
"How could I not?" He asked. "I've been turning stuff into other stuff for almost half my life!"
"Is that so?" Dumbledore asked matter of factly, still smiling. He pointed his wand at the table, where a cup of steaming hot tea appeared. "Would you care to elaborate on that?"
Calvin grinned, excited at the opportunity to talk to an adult who actually seemed interested in what he had to say.
"Well back when I was six years old," he began, his grin growing wider. "I built the first prototype of my transmogrifier machine!"
"Transmogrifier machine?" Dumbledore asked, sipping his tea.
"Yeah!" Calvin exclaimed. "It was a cardboard box that you could use to turn yourself and objects into different things! You had to put what you wanted to change under it and press the button that was on the outside and poof! Whatever you put under there would change into whatever you wanted! I turned myself into a tiger once!"
"Very interesting!" Said Dumbledore, still smiling as he set down his tea.
"Of course now I know it was all magic that I was doing," said Calvin. "What other explanation is there?"
"Of course," said Dumbledore, his smile not faltering. "Very powerful magic."
"Really?" Calvin asked. "I thought everyone with magic would perform it without realizing it at a young age."
"That is correct," said Dumbledore. "But most other children tend to do it unintentionally. A levitating object here, an explosion there. You however, demonstrated an impressive level of control at such a young age, in one of the hardest forms of magic there is."
Calvin was dumbfounded by what he was being told.
"I have one question professor," Calvin said.
"Yes?" Asked Dumbledore, still smiling.
"If I was performing real magic," Calvin asked, "How come no one but Hobbes and I saw it? And on a similar note, why could no muggles see Hobbes?"
"Ah," said Dumbledore, taking another sip of his tea. "Another impressive feat. It seems that you enjoyed being in your own little world, and thus have been subconsciously casting a veil over everything you create that prevents anyone non magical from observing what you can do."
Calvin blinked, and something clicked in his head.
"Professor?" He asked.
Dumbledore nodded, continuing to smile.
"Does that mean that I created Hobbes?" Calvin asked, intrigued.
"Yes and no," Dumbledore responded. "Bringing something to life is one thing, however making that something truly live is another thing altogether."
Calvin sat back in his chair, confused by that cryptic statement, and Dumbledore finished his tea.
"You are free to go, Calvin," Said Dumbledore, his smile not faltering. "You need your sleep."
Calvin was shocked.
"That's it?" He asked. "You're not going to punish me for being out of bed? Or accuse me of playing a role in whatever happened to Colin?"
Dumbledore shook his head.
"I have decided that since you being out of bed helped us find Mr. Creevey, that it would be counterproductive to punish you for the help that you gave us." He said, his eyes still twinkling. "And I find it hard to believe that you could have played any part in what happened to him."
Calvin blinked, wondering if he was dreaming.
"One more thing," said Dumbledore. "For future reference, the kitchens are located under the great hall. When you are in the right place, you will find a portrait with a pear on it. To access the kitchens, give the pear a little tickle."
Calvin tilted his head at Dumbledore, looking confused.
"Now shoo," said Dumbledore. "The sun will begin to rise soon."
Calvin nodded, stood up from his chair, and made his way to the door to the office. He opened it, and made his way down the staircase back into the corridors of the castle. As he wandered through the halls back to his common room, he pondered what Dumbledore had told him about Hobbes. But as he found his way back to the common room, entered the dormitory, and saw the tiger sleeping peacefully in their bed, he decided it would be best if he didn't think too much about it. He laid down on the bed, falling asleep before his head hit the pillow.
