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Spring • 6 • 2 It wasn't me
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Josie woke up to two very unfamiliar sensations.
For some reason, her bed seemed to vibrate with a reverberating, droning buzz - and also, someone continued to poke needles into the back of her thighs. Jerking wide awake with a particularly nasty and sharp jab, reminding her at once of the previous evening’s events. Feeling Glubsch’s weight on top of her blanket, Josie rolled onto her back, causing the small cat to shuffle a bit to the side. When she had settled down for the night, her mind still reeling, but her body so tired she couldn't stay awake, she had created a nest for Glubsch at the foot of her bed using her reading nook blanket. Now, it lay forgotten and deserted - while the cat sat beside her legs and was kneading with his front paws. The little fingers spread wide and the claws burrowed into and even through the fabric - now sinking the pointy tips into the side and front of her leg. Gasping at the unfamiliar pain, Josie sat up and tucked her legs in to protect them from the attention of Glubsch’s love. He was purring like a maniac, which Josie could feel resonate throughout the entire bed. Despite her mistreated legs, she had to smile.
Glubsch tilted his head a few times from one angle to another and blinked at her. “Määäh,” he said out loud in a very raspy voice and kneaded some more. Josie frowned at him. Weren’t cats supposed to say ‘meow’? A glance towards the beautiful, multi-paned star window opposite her bed told her that dawn had just set in. Just as Josie began to wonder if she had dreamt up the strangeness of the previous evening, Glubsch spoke to her again.
“Give,” she heard and saw a picture of the saucer filled with heavy cream.
After her subconscious tension regarding the reality of her memories, or if she maybe had just dreamt it all up, her relief was almost tangible. She laughed.
“No,” Josie answered. “You can't have cream, that was an exception. But we'll get you something proper to eat.”
“Kibb?” A picture of the kibbles flashed through her mind for a moment, accompanied by the crunching sound Glubsch would make while eating them.
“Yes, I can check - but I left most of the kibbles in the park. I didn't know you would come here.”
Glubsch grunted, stopped kneading, and walked up to her. Josie scratched his compact head right between the ears, which made him purr. His tail was up high, and it swished gently, curling at the tip from side to side.
“I have to go to the store and get more food, now that you are here,” she told him and stroked his back, running her hand along his tail, and he flicked it once more after she released it.
Glubsch yawned at her, showing a very rosy, very cute, and very rough tongue; then he stood up and walked in circles a few times while fixing her with a stare.
“Yes, I know. I'm getting up.”
While Josie put on some clothes, Glubsch walked around the room and sniffed at everything. The curious little animal seemed intent on inspecting the whole room and everything in it, wandering around and even scrambling to get under the furniture. Because she was so focused on watching her new companion, Josie didn't realize it at first, but her surroundings felt a bit off. She shook her head and wondered if her sight was still hazy from sleeping, but somehow her attic seemed different. Before she could delve deeper into her thoughts, though, Nan interrupted the girl's musings.
“Josie, come down here, please - and be quick about it, will you?” Josie heard her call up to her and forgot what she had been thinking about. The tone of voice hadn't been stern, but curiosity spurred the girl on.
“On my way, Nan! Just getting dressed,” Josie called back and hurried to put on the rest of her clothes.
She slid into her slippers and marched towards the steps. Glubsch needed no summons and ran in front of her. It was all she could do to not trip over or kick him by accident.
Josie went down two flights of stairs while trying to tame her straight, but rebellious hair out of the way and into a high ponytail. She stumbled a few times and missed her steps, and Josie scolded herself for being clumsy - but this morning, everything felt off, and even the stairs were different from what she was used to. When she reached the third and last flight, Josie rubbed her eyes. She suspected to just not be fully awake yet and thus, didn't notice the surrounding changes at first glance. Her mind focused on getting to Nan, she then all of a sudden became aware that her surroundings had indeed changed. Josie stopped dead in her tracks - her mouth agape.
“Nan…?” she called, hesitant and anxious about what else to expect.
She looked around in wonder, not knowing where to settle her gaze first.
It was her home, it was Veilwood, alright, but everything was different. How had she not noticed anything while she was going down the stairs? Changes like this couldn't just be confined to the ground floor… Nan came through the library and waved her closer.
“There,” the woman said curtly and motioned her cane towards something Josie couldn't yet see.
The position of the door frame had changed, and it was now double the size with two sliding doors, Josie noticed. What in the world was going on here?
She followed Nan into the room and was once more amazed.
The library had now its own connection to the hearth, and the opening revealed a partial view of the kitchen. But not enough - when Josie lent down to get a better look, she could see the living room and the entrance hall to the other sides. She turned on her heel, went back beneath the staircase into the entrance hall and through to the living room - double-checking to see that all the doors were sliding twins now. Sure enough, the living room also had a new opening, she had not seen wrong. Josie headed to the adjourning kitchen and wondered about the astounding restructure. The fire was not only in the centre of the house, like it had - kind of - already been before, but was accessible from every room, and the merry flames crackled while spreading their warmth throughout the entire ground floor.
Nan entered the kitchen and looked at her with obvious expectation.
“Have you seen this, yet?” The woman pointed to something near the girl's feet.
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Josie looked and realized that the now perfectly circular foundation of the hearth was made of unfamiliar, dark stone tiles. To her surprise, they looked to be very old. The border, seamlessly encasing the circumference of the hearth, appeared to be meticulously crafted from a solid bronze ring. Intricately adorned into a scaly body, the edging trim was designed to resemble a serpent-like dragon that coiled around the entire hearth, crossing through all four rooms. Small gemstones of various colours were set into its body at regular intervals. A magnificent red gem had been used to form the eye, reflecting the firelight with such intensity it almost seemed alive - and the dragon seemed to be eating its own tail, for some reason. Josie ran through all four ground-floor rooms multiple times to inspect everything. When she returned to the kitchen, Glubsch was cleaning himself on the floor beside Nan, who had settled down at the table. Josie wasn't finished with her examination, as there was still more to be seen. Bronze coins were set into the dark tiles of the kitchen's part of the hearth, and each one was engraved with a simple symbol. Josie went down on her knees to study them.
There were four. One had a very simple and stylized snowdrop, the shape so unmistakable it couldn’t have been anything else, and the next showed the number eight, but it was lying on its side. On the third coin was the engraving of a straight line, the top part of it bent round towards the side, and Josie felt herself reminded of sweets, of sugar canes. The fourth and last one, though, seemed a bit faded somehow - and Josie could only guess. It could be a bird, maybe, but the lines were too undefined to be sure. When she had spent a good few moments pondering their meaning, she stood up and found herself facing yet another bronze element. An oval plaque was fixed to the mantle. A pattern of the coin symbols repeated into an intricate border adornment, and Sütterlin lettering graced the center.
image [https://i.imgur.com/rBrkrXJ.png]
Josie ran her finger along the cool surface and traced the engraving, slowly spelling it out to herself. Her eyes were filled with wonder. “What does 'Vagabond's Hearth' mean?” She turned around to Nan, her face still puzzled.
The astonishment she felt could also be seen on the old woman's face, albeit a bit more subdued, seeing as the woman had already had more time to process her findings. Josie walked over to the table and let herself flop down. Glubsch jumped onto the bench beside her. He grunted, and his tail flicked.
“I do not know, to be honest. A Vagabond is someone who travels around much and might not even have a place with a “hearth” to call home. The word is rather contradictory in this context - and carries quite a bit of history.” Nan started to explain with a thoughtful expression. “The word itself refers to the area in front of or in the fireplace. Traditionally, it is the part of a home where a fire is built for heating and cooking. So it fits well there. But a hearth is more than just a convenience for warmth or cooking. In the old times, it was the heart of the home - a place of safety, gathering, and storytelling. Families would come together around it, share tales and meals, build a sense of belonging. The hearth was where life happened. But I do not know what the combination with 'Vagabond' is supposed to mean.”
Josie still stared at the beautiful plaque, the mysterious name remaining a riddle to be solved another time.
“Well, judging by your surprised face, you don't have anything to do with this,” Nan said to Josie and made a vague gesture with her hand.
“Me!? I was asleep - and how could I have ever done - all this!?” exclaimed the girl.
“I told you, Josie. I think you have magic, and the events of yesterday evening are proof. Just think about the sugar pot. When I came down here, everything was already as you see it now - and I thought that maybe…” She trailed off.
Josie shook her head in disbelief.
“It wasn’t me, I wouldn't even know how to begin. The sugar pot was an accident, I really didn’t mean to do that. I mean, just because yesterday happened, I can't suddenly wave my hand around and cast spells or conjure stuff up,” she said, frowning.
“I know, I told you not to worry about it. Alright, so you think you did not do this, then. But who else?”
“Well, what about you, Nan? You seem to know more than you told me yesterday. And you promised that we'd continue today - so, tell me. Please,” Josie blurted out.
Now the old woman shook her head.
“Yes, I know, and I promise, we will. But not right now. I need a bit more time to sort my thoughts,” she told Josie, and the girl's face fell.
“You mean, you want more time to decide what to tell me and what not to,” Josie mumbled and eyed Nan sideways.
“Josie!” the old woman scolded. “You know very well that I would never do that. Now, we will talk today, as promised, but I would appreciate a bit of patience. And please refrain from assuming that I have all the answers. Obviously I do not, otherwise, we would know how and why the house changed.”
“Yes, of course, I'm sorry, Nan” the girl apologized. “I didn't mean to be rude, it's just all - a bit much…”
The woman nodded at this, but her face was still serious.
“Wait - what do you mean, the house changed? It's not just the fireplace?”
The woman had to laugh out loud at this.
“Look around, Josie.”
The girl complied and forced herself to not let her gaze linger on the sensational hearth. All of a sudden, it clicked - she had noticed the changes before, but hadn't really registered them. She stood up and began to move around once more. The rooms were bigger, it hadn't been in her imagination when she had thought her attic seemed more spacious. The house also appeared airier and brighter, and when Josie looked around, she saw that the windows had grown in size, too.
The most important changes were sizable new window bays in every room, though. The bays all had generous, comfortable seating space, and several small platforms were fixed to the lattice work of the windows. While Josie wondered about their function, Glubsch entered the living room to see what she was doing. He jumped onto the bay seat and looked up. Then he proceeded to traverse the entire height of the bay window by jumping higher and higher from platform to platform. When he had reached the top, he sat down and looked at her, flicked his front paw in an impatient manner, and licked his back a few times. It looked like aggressive cleaning, Josie thought. Now aware of the platforms' purpose, she waved the cat down and went back to the kitchen, shaking her head in disbelief all the while.
“You were right, Nan,” she said, and went to open a can of food for Glubsch while trying to sort her thoughts.
Josie forked a portion onto a small plate and set it down on the floor. Then, she also filled a bowl with fresh water and put it beside the food, which was now noisily gobbled up by the ravenous cat. Through their connection, she could feel that he was content with and thankful for the food, but images of chicken kibble kept flashing before her eyes.
“Okay, okay. I'll get you some, soon. But you'll stay here where it's warm. I won't take long,” Josie soothed him and went to join Nan at the table.
“Well?” Nan asked and looked at Josie. “Now you have seen for yourself. If what you say is true - and I am not accusing you of anything, the house itself must have made these changes. It has never done anything like that before. I just don't know…”
“Do you think I could have done this without meaning to? While I was sleeping?” Josie asked with doubt in her voice.
“Right now, I think everything is possible. Just take a look around… Yet we can not be sure, we have no way to prove anything. At least not right now. But I think we would both rather avoid another Sugar-Pot incident, so please do not get too worked up.”
They sat in silence for a while, marvelling at the novelty of their old home. None of them could do anything about it - and they wouldn't have wanted to. Veilwood seemed even more welcoming to them now, but both would have liked to know how the changes had come about. After a little while, Nan stood up and began to prepare breakfast, which Glubsch took as a chance to beg her for more cream. He must have mistaken her as an easy target, because she had been the one to give it to him the previous evening. To Josie’s and Nan’s surprise, he was able to put quite a lot of volume and force into his voice, the sounds a bit grating to their nerves. When the cat tried to jump onto the table, Nan had had enough. Josie sighed. It was obvious that she would have to teach Glubsch about Veilwood’s rules. When his bothering Nan proved to be unsuccessful, he returned to Josie and began kneading the floor, while sitting on the spot and flicking his tail.
“ *✻‡✸Œ❉* ?” he said, and Josie blushed, as he had communicated a rather intimate need.
“I think we have to buy a litter box, Nan,” she said and hurried to let Glubsch out the backdoor.
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