"Welcome to Cairnholm, Penny," Abe said brightly as he docked the life boat.

"Five more minutes darling, your bride to be needs her beauty sleep," Penelope joked groggily.

"I think after this journey your going to need a stop at the Priest Hole, rather than sleep," Abe replied honestly, "no offense, dearest, but you're resembling a drowned rat at present."

"Ever the flatterer," she yawned in response as she stretched.

He helped her with her bag and they ambled down the dock and to the Priest Hole. "They have a public restroom where you can change and -"

"Drain the half an ocean that's in my hair," Penelope laughed, "fair warning, you may be waiting hours."

Abe would soon find she wasn't exaggerating. After meticulously brushing her, finally!, dry hair, she carefully picked out her favorite maroon dress. It fit her like a glove and was very comfortable. She paired it with one black and one white stocking, and gave herself a once over before exiting the facilities.

"My, my you were right, she was certainly worth the wait," the bartender commented.

"Hey now, that's my future bride you speak of," Abe reminded him.

"Tell me again why you brought her here," he asked incredulously.

"She wanted to see where I grew up before we tied the knot," he said simply.

"You can tell a lot about a man by where he came from," Penelope added, "so I just wanted to be sure what I was getting myself into."

"Well, be safe out there, it's still not safe," he said as he bid them both goodnight.

Penelope thanked him as she looped her arm through Abe's. Once they were on their own again she asked, "What day is it today?"

"Friday," he answered cocking and eyebrow at her, "why do you ask?"

"I have a routine to keep, let's just leave it at that," Penelope said cryptically as she smiled brightly.

They walked in companionable silence for a while. After a few miles Abe stayed rooted to the spot. "What's going -"

"This is as far as I go," Abe smiled sadly, "to be perfectly honest, I wrote to Miss Peregrine the moment I heard about you. She's expecting you - they all are. I just don't know who she's going to send to meet you and bring you through the loop."

Understanding washed over Penelope and she embraced him tenderly. She kissed him lightly on the cheek and said, "Thank you. I'll never forget you, you're the best fake fiancé a girl could hope for!"

Abraham laughed and reassured her, "It's been my pleasure. Now all you have to do is keep going straight. No one goes on this side of the island, so whomever you meet is one of us."

"How are you going to explain coming back through town without me," she turned to ask him.

"By the time I get back, the whole island will be dark. I'll be able to get back to the boat undetected, don't you worry," he said confidently.

"Until we meet again," she bowed deeply, "in this life or the next."

Abraham shook his head at her theatrics, and laughed as he bowed back. "Until we meet again," he returned.

A silly song her mother used to sing her as a child to comfort her popped into her head. To stave off her slight nervousness at meeting her new family she sang the chorus she knew so well.

"Come Josephine in my flying machine Going up she goes! Up she goes! Balance yourself like a bird on a beam In the air she goes! There she goes! Up, up, a little bit higher Oh! My! The moon is on fire Come Josephine in my flying machine Going up, all on, Goodbye," she sang as she walked as carefully as she could in the dying light.

The more she sang, the more confident she became. Pretty soon she was skipping through the land and closing her eyes as she sung out at the top of her lungs. She should have kept her caution about her as the terrain became rougher; perhaps she would've seen the boulder in her path.

Her singing was cut off as her right foot hit the underside of it causing her to lose her balance. She closed her eyes and threw out her arms to try and regain balance as she fell. All this did was cause her to twist and hurtle downwards back first. As she mentally braced for the inevitable fall, she felt a strong pair of arms cradle the back of her neck and waist. Her dark blue eyes shot open and met a pair of dark brown ones. She forced her eyes to focus in the last rays of light that still shone. The face of her rescuer was breath taking.

"You should watch where your going, who goes prancing and singing about in the dark on dangerous terrain," her savior asked gruffly.

The only words she could think of to respond were the words that kept repeating in her head the moment she opened her eyes and saw him. "Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight, for I ne'er saw true beauty till this night," she quoted breathlessly.