Israelcraft

Chapter 1 Johannes Vermeer’s Point of View of Stubbytail in Utrecht

As you may recall, later on the night of the book signing, there was a storm and flooding and Stubbytail disappeared for a couple of hours along with Stonewall’s backpack.  As it turns out Stubbytail had gone time traveling and materialized on the modeling platform of Johannes Vermeer’s apprenticeship drawing workshop in 17th century Utrecht. A drawing workshop was in progress.

Stubbytail immediately found the ideal spot to get a proper look at his “tail”, and positioned himself there and concentrated on getting a look until he could no longer hold his pose. He righted himself. The apprentices finished their drawings. Stubbytail was the last model of the day.

When he was dismissed, Johannes went into the courtyard, but immediately sensed he had left something behind. He sat down on the stone bench in the center of the courtyard, to check his leather shoulder bag. His sketchbook wasn’t inside. There were a few blank folio pages there that had fallen from his sketchbook, a drawing board and some charcoal, his lunch of bread and cheese, and a chunk of bread he used to erase occasionally; but no sketchbook.

His sketchbook was one of his most prized possessions, a gift from his father. It also contained Johannes’ best sketches to date; the best being the one he had just drawn of the cat without a tail. When Johannes had finished drawing it, he had had a great feeling of accomplishment. It was perfect. The instructor and the other young artists had noticed it as well.

Johannes went back into the studio, but, to his surprise, his sketchbook wasn’t there; not by his easel, or anywhere else in the room. He checked in every corner; behind the platform and easels, under every chair and behind the drawings stored upright to one side. But it was not to be found. There were servants cleaning up and moving things; but in answer to his inquiries, none of them had seen a sketchbook.
Something was definitely out of sync here.

Johannes exited the studio back into the courtyard. The sun was glaring, in comparison to the studio where the only light was coming in through narrow high windows.
As his eyes were adjusting, he saw cat without a tail disappear from the stone bench; along with the backpack that was beside her.

Johannes thought it possible that his sketchbook was in the backpack; though he didn’t take cat without a tail for a sketchbook thief. If it was there, Johannes intended to find it.

Though Johannes was only a young man, he was already familiar with time travel from personal experience. The stone bench in the courtyard must to be a portal, he thought. Perhaps the stone from which it was made, was originally from of a larger portal; which would explain its ability to transport. Johannes sat down on the bench with the intention of traveling through time; focusing on his sketchbook and Stubbytail, though he didn’t know at the time that that was her name.

Chapter 2 Johannes Vermeer‘s Point of View of the Book Signing

A note to my readers: The public hall where the book signing was to take place, was a portal; with its threshold directly in front of the room where Johannes Vermeer would draw Stubbytail at the book signing.

There is a secondary portal at the street corner where Stubbytail was first seen by Stonewall and his brother before the book signing.

This is where Johannes surfaced. He saw people heading for the entrance of the building opposite, where a placard announced that the book signing was about to begin. Johannes followed the crowd up a marble staircase into the hall. He saw the refreshment table first, and headed in that direction, as time travel, as I have already mentioned, inspires the appetite. He piled savories onto a paper plate; helped himself to tea, and sat down inconspicuously in a corner, to appease his appetite and survey the scene. 

It wasn’t long before Stubbytail arrived inside of Stonewall’s hoodie pouch. He jumped down, and headed straight for the refreshment table. The backpack Johannes had seen Stubbytail vanish with, was on Stonewall’s back; but looked close to empty.

A moment after, the hall was in chaos. Stubbytail had chased a mouse from under the refreshments table through the crowd, and someone had panicked. Things only calmed down after the hall was cleared out.

Johannes was amazed. This young cat was born to be the center of attention. He decided then that he would draw her again if the opportunity arose. Maybe this was his true reason for coming, he thought, though he badly needed his sketchbook.
People were waiting to fill out a questionnaire. Johannes got in line to wait his turn.

A few minutes later Johannes learnt Stubbytail’s name during his conversation with Stonewall and his twin brother. He also learnt that Stonewall and his brother thought that Stubbytail was a “he”. Johannes had DRAWN Stubbytail. He knew that she was a she. It was pretty obvious, he thought; and should also be obvious to anyone looking at her. Johannes started wondering when and where he had landed, and who these people were who didn’t know a feline when they saw one, and panicked at the sight of a mouse. But he kept his thoughts to himself.

Johannes drew Stubbytail shortly after in a room by the hall, and then vanished through the portal at the doorway. 

Chapter 3 Johannes Vermeer in Stubbytail’s Dream and Then in the Public Garden

Johannes emerged looking down on a pool that was part of an ancient irrigation system. Above it was the opening of an irrigation tunnel. He saw Stubbytail being flushed out of the irrigation tunnel followed by another cat; this one with a tail, who landed on top of her.

The pool drained of water shortly after, leaving Stubbytail at the bottom with the other cat. Stubbytail vanished a moment later.

The other cat was standing, astonished. Johannes took out a folio page and got in a quick sketch before it jumped out of the empty pool and headed toward the faint sound of music in the distance. Johannes followed. The cat reached a cave. Johannes was crossing the cave entrance when he felt the familiar swish movement that the air makes approaching a portal. And, just like that, Johannes was gone.

He had already learnt to just relax and take the ride. He knew time travelers sometimes landed in dreams; but these landings never lasted long before a correction was made.

Next thing he was in a lovely public garden; sitting above Stubbytail who looked very comfortable; asleep and dreaming, on her back, in the midday sun. He had been inside the dream Stubbytail was having right now.
What a perfect opportunity, he thought; got ready his tools, and began sketching.