Johanna Spyri - Heidi

‘Would you like one?’ asked the keeper, smiling at her pleasure.

‘To keep for myself?’ gasped Heidi, hardly able to believe her ears.

‘Yes, of course. You can have more than one if you like, or indeed all of them if you’ve somewhere to keep them,’ said the old man, welcoming the opportunity of getting rid of them. Heidi was thrilled. There was plenty of room in the big house and she was sure Clara would love to have them.

‘How can I carry them?’ she asked, and stooped to pick one up, but the mother cat flew at her so fiercely that she drew back in alarm.

‘I’ll bring them to you, if you’ll tell me where,’ said the old man as he stroked the cat soothingly. It had lived alone with him in the tower for many years and they were great friends.

‘To Mr Sesemann’s house,’ Heidi told him, ‘where there’s a gold dog’s head with a ring in its mouth on the front door.’

He recognized the house immediately from that description for he had lived in the one spot so long that he knew all the houses round about, and besides, Sebastian was a friend of his.

‘I know the house,’ he said, ‘but for whom shall I ask? You don’t belong to that family I’m sure.’

‘No, I don’t, but I know Clara will be pleased to have the kittens.’

The keeper was ready to go down the rest of the way but Heidi couldn’t tear herself away. ‘Can’t I take just two kittens with me now,’ she begged, ‘one for me and one for Clara?’

‘Wait a minute then,’ he said, and he picked up the mother cat and carried her into his room where he put her down in front of her food bowl. Then he shut the door and came back to the basket. ‘Now you can take them,’ he said.

Heidi’s eyes were shining. She picked out a white kitten, and a tabby, and put one in each pocket. Then they went on down together and found the boy still sitting on the step, waiting for her.

‘Now, which is the way back to Mr Sesemann’s house?’ Heidi asked him as soon as the keeper had shut the big door behind her.

‘Don’t know.’

Heidi described the house as well as she could, but the boy only shook his head.

‘Well, opposite us, there’s a grey house with a roof like this,’ she said, drawing gables in the air with one finger. He thought he recognized that, and ran off at once, with Heidi on his heels. Soon they reached the familiar door with the dog’s head knocker. Heidi pulled the bell and almost at once Sebastian answered it. ‘Come in quickly,’ he cried as soon as he saw her, and he slammed the door without even noticing the boy, who was left outside feeling quite bewildered.

‘Hurry, Miss,’ urged Sebastian. ‘They’re already at table and Miss Rottenmeier looks fit to explode. Whatever made you run away like that?’

She went into the dining‐room where there was an awful silence. Miss Rottenmeier did not look up as Sebastian pushed Heidi’s chair up to the table, and even Clara did not speak. Then, looking very cross and speaking very severely, Miss Rottenmeier said:

‘I will speak to you later, Adelheid. Now I will only say that it was extremely naughty of you to leave the house without asking permission or saying a word to anyone, and then to go roaming about until this late hour. I’ve never heard of such a thing.’

‘Miaou,’ came the reply, which seemed to be Heidi’s, and that was the last straw.

‘How dare you mock me in such a fashion, and after such disgraceful behaviour,’ said Miss Rottenmeier, her temper rising.

‘I didn’t,’ began Heidi, but got no further before there was another ‘Miaou, Miaou!’ Sebastian almost threw what he was holding on to the table, and rushed from the room.

‘That will do,’ Miss Rottenmeier tried to speak firmly, but she was almost choking with anger and could only whisper. ‘Leave the room.’

Heidi got up, feeling quite frightened. She tried again to explain, but the kittens mewed again, ‘Miaou, miaou, miaou.’

‘Heidi, why do you keep on mewing like that?’ asked Clara. ‘Can’t you see how angry you’re making Miss Rottenmeier?’

‘But it’s not me, it’s the kittens ,’ Heidi managed to get out at last.

‘What! Kittens! Here?’ screamed Miss Rottenmeier. ‘Sebastian! Tinette! Come and look for the horrible creatures and get rid of them.’ And she rushed off into the study and bolted the door, for she disliked cats so much, she was actually terrified of them!

Sebastian was laughing so much, he had to wait outside the door to compose himself before he could come in. He had seen one of the kittens peeping out of Heidi’s pocket as he was handing a plate, and knew there was bound to be trouble. When it started, he could not control his laughter and that was why he had rushed away. When he was in a fit state to come in again, everything had quietened down and Clara had the kittens on her lap. Heidi was kneeling beside her and they were both admiring the pretty little things.

‘Sebastian, you must help us,’ said Clara. ‘Find a corner for the kittens where Miss Rottenmeier won’t see them. She’s scared of them and will certainly get rid of them if she finds them, but we want to have them to play with when we’re alone. Where can we put them?’

‘I’ll see to that for you, Miss Clara,’ he said obligingly. ‘I’ll make a cosy bed for them in a basket and put it where the old lady is not likely to look. You can rely on me.’ He went off to do as he had promised, chuckling to himself. He could foresee more excitements in the near future and always rather enjoyed watching Miss Rottenmeier in a rage. It was some time before that lady dared to open the study door. Then she called through a mere crack, ‘Are those dreadful creatures out of the way?’

‘Yes, Ma’am,’ replied Sebastian, who was hanging about in the dining‐room, expecting that question. Then at once he snatched up the kittens and took them away.

The scolding which Miss Rottenmeier had intended to give Heidi had to be put off until next day, for she felt quite worn out with all she had been through of anxiety and annoyance, anger and fright. Consequently she withdrew very soon to her room, and Clara and Heidi went happily to bed, knowing that the kittens were safe.

Next morning, just after Sebastian had opened the door to Mr Usher and shown him into the study, the front door bell rang again, this time so loudly that Sebastian dashed downstairs thinking it must be Mr Sesemann himself, come home unexpectedly. He flung open the door, and found there only a ragged boy with a hurdy‐gurdy on his back.

‘What’s the meaning of this?’ snapped Sebastian. ‘What do you want? I’ll teach you to ring bells like that.’

‘I want to see Clara,’ said the boy.

‘You dirty little brat, don’t you even know enough to say “ Miss Clara”? And what can the likes of you want with her, anyway?’

‘She owes me fourpence,’ was the reply.

‘Rubbish! How do you even know that there is a Miss Clara in this house?’

‘I showed her the way yesterday, for twopence, and then the way back for another twopence.’

‘You’re telling lies,’ said Sebastian. ‘Miss Clara never goes out. She can’t walk. Be off with you now, before I make you!’

The boy stood his ground, not in the least frightened by this threat. ‘I saw her in the street and I can tell you what she looks like,’ he said. ‘She’s got short, curly black hair, black eyes, and she was wearing a brown dress and she doesn’t talk like us.’

‘Oho,’ thought Sebastian with a grin. ‘The little miss again! What’s she been up to this time? All right,’ he said aloud to the boy, ‘come with me,’ and he led the way to the study door. ‘Now wait here until I come back, then, when I let you in, you play a tune. Miss Clara will like that.’ He knocked and went in.