Nightly Visits
Nov 08, 2022
I talked to Till. It was not easy. He is clearly uncomfortable with the whole story and I can understand why. Till is one of the most rational and intelligent people I know and has both feet firmly on the ground of science and reason. He has nothing to do with superstition and other hocus-pocus. That makes it all the more troublesome for him. In the beginning, I had to press him gently but persistently, but at some point everything burst out of him. And it was obvious how much relieved he was just to talk about it. I now also have his official permission to tell you all. So here comes the whole story:
It seems that Till is still suffering from the after-effects of his mushroom intoxication. Every night since then he gets a visit from the drude. It happens in a state somewhere between awake and asleep - he is aware of everything around him, but cannot move. He hears the click of the door handle, sees a shadow in the room, silently gliding closer and closer. A leaden cold creeps into his limbs. He is gripped by sheer panic, but still he can' t move. Then the drude sits down on his chest and squeezes the air out of him. Until he loses consciousness in agony. When he wakes up later, he feels exhausted and not a bit recovered. No wonder he looks like the living death. And that he doesn't want to go to bed in the evening.
So the pentagram on his forehead the other day was actually a 'Drudenfuß' (wich is German for 'drude's foot'). Leo had painted it, hoping it would keep the drude away. That night, she had promised Till to stay with him and drive the Drud away. I guess she feels guilty because she encouraged him to try the mushrooms. She had done all the garlic and Drudenfuß stuff without Till knowing. Because she thought he would not agree. For a long time she had kept watch at his side, but at some point she had fallen asleep, and so the drude had been able to do her gruesome work anyway.
When the common antidotes that can be found with a bit of googling had no effect, Leo suggested contacting a woman whose help she had apparently sought now and then in the past. Leo calls her 'the old Ursel'. She claims to be a 'shaman' and a 'spiritual healer'. The fact that Till agreed to this says something about the degree of his desperation.
Anyway, last week there was a meeting with that very same old Ursel. She lives just a few villages away. And had some advice in store. The drude knife in Till's door frame had been borrowed from her. In addition, Till was given the task of collecting lycopodium and weaving wreaths. Which explains his extensive walks. Precautions were also taken in Till's room. His bed no longer simply stands on the floor, but on bricks. And these bricks, in turn, stand in buckets filled with water. A large Drudenfuß is carved on the headboard. Wreaths of lycopodium hang over all four bedposts. And from the ceiling dangle at least two dozen drude stones of various sizes and shapes. I had to hold back a certain amount of amusement when I got to see all of that. At the same time, of course, it's not a bit funny. Till really suffers. And so far, no countermeasure seems to have worked. Every night the drude comes back to squeeze him mercilessly.
Till asked me to accompany him to another appointment with old Ursel on Thursday. Actually Leo wanted to go with him, but now she is no longer here. To be honest, I'm not entirely comfortable with it. Till and I with a 'spiritual healer' - the idea is almost grotesque. But of course I can't turn down his wish.
Do any of you have experience with things like this? Spirits, shamans, amulets and talismans? All that is not really my specialty. What is your opinion about it?