⏱ ~4 min reading
Vlad's family moved to the village to stay with his great-grandfather for the whole summer. The house had blue shutters, a garden, and a high attic, which was accessed by a narrow wooden staircase from the corner of the corridor.
Vlad was given a small room just below the attic. The ceiling in the room was made of thick beams, and when he lay on his back, he counted them until he fell asleep.
The first night everything was quiet.
The second night, too.
But on the third night, as soon as Vlad wrapped himself in the blanket and turned his cheek to the pillow, something soft—a thud—fell over him.
Vlad opened his eyes.
Stupid The noise Thump-thump.
Someone was walking in the attic. Right above his head. The steps were not large, but distinct—as if someone in soft slippers was treading carefully from corner to corner.
The boy froze. His heart beat loudly, like a drum.
Stupid Shur-shur. Stupid.
He reached for the nightlight and turned it on. Yellow light filled the room. The footsteps in the attic fell silent.
«"Maybe it was just a dream," Vlad thought. He lay there for five minutes with the light on, heard nothing, and turned it off again.
In two minutes — thud. Thud. Thud-thud.
That night, Vlad fell asleep with a nightlight.
In the morning he told his mother. Mother smiled and said that it was probably a draft or an old beam. Vlad remained silent, but he knew: drafts don't move back and forth, and beams don't rustle.
He spent the fourth night with his head under the covers. The fifth night too. On the sixth day he realized he couldn't go on like this. And he went to his great-grandfather.
Great-grandfather was sitting on a bench in the garden, weaving a willow basket. He was already 87 years old, he had a white mustache, warm palms, and very nice wrinkles around his eyes.
"Great-grandfather," Vlad said seriously. "Someone walks in our attic. Every night. I'm not making this up.".
The great-grandfather placed the willow on his knees. He looked at his great-grandson carefully.
"I know," he said calmly. "It's okay.".
Everything inside Vlad has cooled down.
— Who?!
Great-grandfather adjusted his glasses.
— Let's go and introduce ourselves.
They went into the house. They walked down the hallway. Great-grandfather took the kerosene lamp off the nail and lit it. The light spread out, soft and honey-like.
"Climb in first. Just quietly.".
Vlad climbed the stairs to the attic. His heart was pounding, but his great-grandfather was nearby, and that gave him courage.
The attic greeted him with the smell of old hay, dried apples, and a little dust. Thick beams stretched under the roof. In the corner lay chests, great-grandfather's books, and a large wicker basket. The moon peered through a small round window—a perfectly round silver eye.
And there, on one of the beams, something was sitting.
Vlad froze.
It was an owl. Big, gray-red, round as a bun. Its eyes were two golden lanterns. It turned its head towards Vlad very smoothly, like a clock hand, and looked at him so calmly that the boy immediately felt at ease.
"Huh," said the owl softly.
"Meet me," whispered my great-grandfather. "This is Ugusya. She's been living in our attic for... oh, about twenty years, I guess. I put her here when she was a baby, when she fell out of the nest.".
"Why does she walk at night?"
"Because owls are nocturnal birds. They sleep during the day, and as soon as the sun sets, they wake up and get to work.".
— What kind of work?
Great-grandfather smiled.
— She protects us. She walks up and down the attic, looks out the window, listens to what's going on in the garden. If a mouse or a cat rustles somewhere, Ugusya knows. If a hedgehog runs by, she knows too. She guards the whole house. Thanks to her, we all sleep peacefully.
Ugusya blinked slowly—first with her left flashlight, then with her right. It looked like she was saying a polite hello.
Vlad took a step closer. The owl was not frightened. Its feathers looked soft, like dandelion fluff.
— Can I pet her?
— You can, but very, very lightly.
Vlad reached out his finger and barely touched the feathers on his chest. They were indeed soft, warm, and tickled a little.
"Thank you," Vlad whispered. "For protecting us.".
"Ugh," Ugusya replied gently.
When they went downstairs, great-grandfather turned off the lamp. The corridor became dark and quiet again. Only upstairs there was a soft thumping sound again: thump. Shuffling. Thump-thump.
Now Vlad listened to these sounds in a completely different way.
“Great-grandfather,” he said, already on the threshold of his room. “So when I hear footsteps, is that Ugusya starting to go on duty?”
"That's right, little one. When her footsteps are heard, it means we can sleep peacefully. As long as she walks, nothing bad will happen to us.".
Vlad crawled under the covers. The nightlight didn't turn off.
Upstairs, Ugusya was softly, softly stomping—back and forth, from corner to corner. Swish-swish. Swish-swish. It sounded now like the very calm, very reliable steps of a good sentry.
"Good night, Ugus," Vlad whispered.
And he fell asleep immediately—a deep, even, guarded sleep.
✨ Someone is always awake so we can sleep peacefully ✨