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Authors: Tove Jansson
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simply could not take responsibility for such a thing. Madame Nygård proposed Katri Kling as a temporary protector and added that it would be a good idea to have the dog by the door for a time. Madame Nygård was regarded as very old and experienced; even the constable agreed that she was right. When coffee had been served, he went back to town to write a report and the villagers went about their business and finally only Anna and Katri were left in the parlour.
“Well, well,” said Anna, “what a circus this turned out to be. But I can’t understand why he didn’t take fingerprints . They usually do. And no one can explain why the burglar threw the bag in the ditch. Who could have frightened him..? There’s not a soul out at night around here. Maybe a dog? Because it couldn’t have been his conscience… Do you think some dog might have been out last night?”
“That’s what I think,” Katri said.
Anna sat and thought for a while and then suddenly asked if Katri read detective stories.
“No, I don’t.”
“Neither do we… I sit here thinking about what Madame Nygård said… that it’s not hard to be cocky in the morning but it feels different in the twilight. It was nice of you to promise to come with your dog. But only for a couple of nights. Then I’ll probably have forgotten the whole thing. I forget so easily…”
Chapter Eleven
K ATRI MOVED INTO THE RABBIT HOUSE , and the dog got his place in the hall by the kitchen door. Katri was in such a state of nerves the first day that the simplest tasks seemed too much for her. She was sure of just one thing: she needed to move very quietly and be as invisible as possible, a shadow in no way encroaching on Anna’s long pampered and protected life. And time was short, every hour counted. Katri had only a few days to take possession of the house and convince Anna that independence was possible even if you weren’t alone. But Anna just sat by the fire and froze. She felt the cold more than ever and wondered why her house had never before seemed so absolutely empty and forsaken.
Katri came in to say good night. “I don’t think,” she said cautiously, “I don’t think the lock matters so much…”
“What?” said Anna, leaping to her feet. “What lock?”
“I mean, there’s no decent lock on the door. But if you start shutting yourself in now, then it’s one more thing to attend to. I mean, a new worry…”
Anna was irritated. “What are you talking about?” she said. “Why would I shut myself in? This place is shut in enough already! Calm down and go to bed.”
* * *
In the morning, an invisible Katri had put a breakfast tray beside Anna’s bed. Fires in the tile stoves, a bowl of periwinkles, the hem of her dressing gown mended. The right book opened to the bookmark beside Anna’s plate. A lot of small things, everywhere, all day. But Katri continued to be invisible. Anna grew more and more uneasy, it was like having a spirit in the house, one of those magically enslaved and obedient pixies that frequent the castles in fairy tales, diligent creatures, ever-present but always just vanishing. You catch a glimpse of movement and turn around – but there’s nothing there, a door closing silently.
For the first time in her solitary life, Anna noticed the silence of the house, and it made her flesh crawl. By evening, she was beside herself and went out to the kitchen – making a careful detour around the dog. The kitchen was empty. So she ran up the stairs and shouted outside her door, “Miss Kling! Are you in there, or where in the world are you?”
Katri opened the door. “What is it?” she said. “What’s happened..?”
“Nothing,” Anna said. “That’s just it – nothing. You sneak around and I never know where you are. It’s like having mice in the walls!”
* * *
Katri changed her tactics. Her quick steps were heard everywhere, she rattled the dishes, she started beating rugs in the yard, and she
“Well, well,” said Anna, “what a circus this turned out to be. But I can’t understand why he didn’t take fingerprints . They usually do. And no one can explain why the burglar threw the bag in the ditch. Who could have frightened him..? There’s not a soul out at night around here. Maybe a dog? Because it couldn’t have been his conscience… Do you think some dog might have been out last night?”
“That’s what I think,” Katri said.
Anna sat and thought for a while and then suddenly asked if Katri read detective stories.
“No, I don’t.”
“Neither do we… I sit here thinking about what Madame Nygård said… that it’s not hard to be cocky in the morning but it feels different in the twilight. It was nice of you to promise to come with your dog. But only for a couple of nights. Then I’ll probably have forgotten the whole thing. I forget so easily…”
Chapter Eleven
K ATRI MOVED INTO THE RABBIT HOUSE , and the dog got his place in the hall by the kitchen door. Katri was in such a state of nerves the first day that the simplest tasks seemed too much for her. She was sure of just one thing: she needed to move very quietly and be as invisible as possible, a shadow in no way encroaching on Anna’s long pampered and protected life. And time was short, every hour counted. Katri had only a few days to take possession of the house and convince Anna that independence was possible even if you weren’t alone. But Anna just sat by the fire and froze. She felt the cold more than ever and wondered why her house had never before seemed so absolutely empty and forsaken.
Katri came in to say good night. “I don’t think,” she said cautiously, “I don’t think the lock matters so much…”
“What?” said Anna, leaping to her feet. “What lock?”
“I mean, there’s no decent lock on the door. But if you start shutting yourself in now, then it’s one more thing to attend to. I mean, a new worry…”
Anna was irritated. “What are you talking about?” she said. “Why would I shut myself in? This place is shut in enough already! Calm down and go to bed.”
* * *
In the morning, an invisible Katri had put a breakfast tray beside Anna’s bed. Fires in the tile stoves, a bowl of periwinkles, the hem of her dressing gown mended. The right book opened to the bookmark beside Anna’s plate. A lot of small things, everywhere, all day. But Katri continued to be invisible. Anna grew more and more uneasy, it was like having a spirit in the house, one of those magically enslaved and obedient pixies that frequent the castles in fairy tales, diligent creatures, ever-present but always just vanishing. You catch a glimpse of movement and turn around – but there’s nothing there, a door closing silently.
For the first time in her solitary life, Anna noticed the silence of the house, and it made her flesh crawl. By evening, she was beside herself and went out to the kitchen – making a careful detour around the dog. The kitchen was empty. So she ran up the stairs and shouted outside her door, “Miss Kling! Are you in there, or where in the world are you?”
Katri opened the door. “What is it?” she said. “What’s happened..?”
“Nothing,” Anna said. “That’s just it – nothing. You sneak around and I never know where you are. It’s like having mice in the walls!”
* * *
Katri changed her tactics. Her quick steps were heard everywhere, she rattled the dishes, she started beating rugs in the yard, and she
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