A/N Hi, everyone. I come back!

I'm so sorry that it takes me some time before I can finish each chapter. I just want everything to be as perfect as any extent my poor skills are capable of. So you might have to wait but I promise I'm not gonna disappear forever, or if I want to, I will at least tell you first, of course!

Thank you very much for every review. I've never realized before that I've got so many comments. I mean I read everything but I've never counted them. I just WOW when I saw how many reviews I have got! Thank you so much!

For 'Miss P', one of the guests, thank you for your suggestion. I don't want to spoil you so all I can say is please hang in there!

Again, please, please and pretty please, leave something. Some reviews can boost me up every time I'm down. It can be short, long, what you like, what you hate, suggestions, anything! I just want to know what you feel.

I know it sounds like a cliché to say I never could have come this far without all of you, but it's so true. Readers are authors' life. You have no idea how important all of you are to me. That's why I'm so grateful for every review, follow, or favorite.

Thank you very much again, and sorry in advance because my final exam is coming and it might take me longer to come up with the next chapter. But I'll be back soon I promise and I'll finish this story as beautifully as I can.

Now, enjoy!

Chapter V

There are several reasons Alma Lefay Peregrine cannot just faint now. The most important one is, of course, Little Claire needs her. She needs her hug, needs her love, and more importantly, her strength. The ymbryne can't just leave her little girl to face this misery alone. No matter what.

Miss Peregrine kisses the little girl's head and holds her princess close, stroking her back gently. She takes a very deep breath and gives Enoch a nod. Whatever happens, she's ready, or at least, she thinks she is. Her sharp eyes look at her boy when he crouches down and gently blots some blood on the girl's right leg. It's so hard to breathe when she sees how many shards there are, and how big one of it is. She can feel tiny hands gripping her suit more tightly each time the flannel touches the wounds. It will be alright, my dear. Everything will be alright.

Enoch gets another clean flannel after finishing cleaning those small cuts. He, too, tries so hard to calm himself. His hand has to be steady for this work, and he has to do it as gently as he can. Just one mistake can lead to a disaster and judging from his headmistress's face, which is as pale as the injured one, he's quite sure that this disaster's going to kill her, and after that, she will kill him for sure.

The boy looks at his ymbryne again to tell her he's about to do it. She blinks her eyes slowly in agreement, so Enoch breathes in deeply and begins his unpleasant task.

When the tweezers touch the first shard, Little Claire winces. Alma takes the girl's hand in hers and she's so shocked that it is so cold like her Claire has just dipped it in the snow. She squeezes it lightly to make it warmer and keeps kissing her baby. The tighter that tiny hand clenches, the more Alma's heart twists. And there's still that big shard left, for bird's sake, how can she survive this?

When the last small shard's been removed, Alma's heart might have stopped beating already. She stares at the left one, the biggest one, and swallows the lump in her throat. My little princess is so strong. She tells herself. She can do this! The Bird bites her lips till they have no color left.

A great pain stings Little Claire's leg and she gives a quiet shriek. It extremely hurts that tears come out from her eyes automatically. She buries her face in Miss P's chest, listening to her ymbryne's heartbeat which is getting faster and faster. Thump thump. It doesn't hurt. Thump thump. It doesn't hurt. In these arms, Claire knows she'll be alright and that's why she doesn't want to leave them. She knows she has failed her and even brings her headmistress more burden, but please every bird, don't let her give me away. She is all I have. That is all Claire asks for.

Although she cannot see it, Claire can feel when that thing is being removed. Its sharp edge slithers through her skin and the little girl thinks it's even more painful than when she first got cut. She buries herself deeper in Miss Peregrine's hug, letting the ymbryne warmth soothe her. Thump thump. She is here with me. Thump thump. Miss P is here.

Enoch has to hold his breath when he pulls that piece of glass out. It's even bigger than he thought and when he catches a glimpse of Miss P's face, the boy has to pretend to cough so that he can hold his laugh. He cleans the wounds until there's no blood left on Claire's leg and then, looks up at his ymbryne. She has no idea how funny she looks now, right?

'Do you think we have to s-,' he asks but Miss Peregrine cuts in before that word comes out of his mouth.

'No, I don't think so. Just a bandage would do, Enoch,' Miss P gives her boy a frightful smile. If her little girl heard the word 'stitch', the entire house would certainly fall apart in a minute.

Enoch nods and begins to dress the wounds, using a bandage from the first aid kit. He can't help grinning while wrapping the bandage around a little leg since Miss P freaking out is quite amusing. Who would believe that this is the same woman who slays the Hollow in one shot every day?

'And...done!' The boy announces. 'You can look now, Claire.'

Little Claire slowly pulls back from Miss P. She looks at her ymbryne first, still hesitating whether to look at her leg or not. Miss P gives her a soft smile and nods, so the girl sniffs and turns to see her injured leg.

Suddenly, the little girl's eyes widen, her mouth opens in shock. It's not because of her wounds, but because those red spots on Miss P's apron. She starts crying again and that makes Miss P go crazy.

'What, my dear, what happened?'

Even Enoch doesn't understand why she cried. So do Emma, Olive and Millard.

'You're bleeding, too. I hurt you, aren't I?' Little Claire says.

Everyone is stunned for a very brief moment and then, breathes a sigh of relief. Miss Peregrine's holding her girl closer, rocking her little baby back and forth, a bright smile on her face.

'No. Not at all. That's not my blood, sweetie. I'm still fine.'

Little Claire leans back, tears stain her pretty face.

'Really?'

'Yes, dear.'

The girl turns to see Miss P's apron again and then, looks at her ymbryne's face, searching for some traces of pain which she can't find one. When the girl is certain that her Miss P is safe and sound, she falls back into Miss P's arms again, relieved that her ymbryne is still okay.

Alma gives her girl a hug. She wants to hold her like this a little bit longer but she knows there are still a lot more to be done like cleaning those dangerous shards in the kitchen. She doesn't want to go through this again-seeing another child in this much pain. It kills her. Just once is enough.

'Claire,' Miss P pats her little baby girl's back. 'I think I have to clean up the kitchen now, honey. Otherwise, someone else might get hurt. Can you stay here for a moment with...Emma and Miss Maggie?'

Enoch is walking out with the bowls and Millard and Olive are nowhere to be seen, so there's just Emma left. But the Bird is totally fine with it for Emma alone is more than capable of looking after the little ones.

Claire seems hesitant at first, but the little girl doesn't want anyone to get hurt like her so she just gives her Miss P a nod.

'Good girl,' Miss Peregrine kisses her little girl's forehead and gently moves her to the couch, making sure Miss Maggie is with her Claire. Emma moves to sit beside the girl and gives her headmistress an assuring smile.

'We will be fine. Don't worry.'

Miss Peregrine frowns a bit but the longer she lingers here, the more chances her wards could get hurt by those scary pieces of glass. So the Bird turns her back and leaves the conservatory.

When she walks through the corridor, the Bird can hear Millard reporting other children what has just happened to their little mate. She hears her children asking the invisible boy a lot of questions, and it sounds like he's so proud to be the one who knows everything. She moves silently pass them, avoiding to be noticed. Otherwise, she may have to spend an hour or more to answer tons of questions and that is not what she wants to do now.

When she steps into the kitchen, the first thing that gets her attention isn't the shards on the floor, or Enoch at the sink, but Olive! The fire girl is dealing with those dangerous things, trying to pick them up one by one. And even though the girl's wearing leather gloves, the Bird's face just turns red and hot as her blood rushes through her whole body. Her voice trembles when she calls her girl's name in such a very dreadful tone,

'Olive!'

Olive almost jumps up when she heard it. The girl feels like she's frozen from head to toe when her eyes lock on Miss P's. She just wants to finish cleaning these shards before Miss Peregrine comes, but it appears that her plan doesn't work well at all. Miss P has never been angry with her before and Olive can't even remember the last time the Bird reprimanded her. But now, she is in such a big trouble and, well, has been caught red-handed, perhaps.

The girl can't move at all when Miss Peregrine quickly paces into the room. Her steps are sharp as always, but louder than usual. The Bird seems to be so mad that her sharp face becomes redder in just a few seconds, her lips turn into a very thin line.

'I thought I told you not t-Ouch!' Miss Peregrine exclaims all of a sudden. When she raises her hand up, blood is dripping from a very large cut.

'Miss P!' Olive cries and rushes to her headmistress.

The Bird frowns in pain and looks at the big shard on the kitchen table that has just cut her. She pounded the table in anger without noticing that piece of glass, and here she is, standing like an idiot in front of two children with her hand bleeding.

'Oh my bird, it's bleeding. You should sit first,' Olive turns around to find a chair. She is too panicky to see that there is one just beside her.

'Olive, I'm perfectly fine. Don't freak out,' Miss Peregrine says, although she's not quite certain, looking at her wound.

'But you should at least sit first. Where's the chair? I've just..oh! It's here. Please, sit,' Olive tries to help Miss P to the chair, but the Bird just stands still at the same spot.

'I'm fine, Olive. I cut my hand, not my legs.'

Enoch, who is looking from another side of the room, rolls his eyes for the second time in just an hour before deciding to do something about his headstrong ymbryne, He steps closer and addresses her as calmly as he can,

'Please, sit before I have to force you to do so and believe me, you are not going to like that.'

Enoch answers Miss Peregrine's death glare with the most polite smile he can come up with. Of course, she seems to be so intimidating, but all the boy cares now is the bleeding cut on her hand, not her dreadful aura. And if that means he has to challenge her to get her to sit, he will.

For a brief moment, the boy thinks she's going to go berserk, but then, she just moves slowly to the chair and sits properly, her eyes still staring at him.

Enoch finds another chair and sits in front of her, doesn't take his eyes off her as well, even when giving Olive an order,

'Bring me two bowls of warm water and some flannels. Don't forget to put some soap in the first bowl.'

'Excuse me, what are you doing?' Miss Peregrine asks, can't believe her ears.

'Isn't it quite obvious?' Enoch smirks. 'I'm about to clean your wound.'

The Bird glares at him like he's just insulted her. Enoch feels like she can eat his head off now, judging from her look. It's quite strange but he has to admit that he loves his ymbryne at this moment so much.

'I don't understand why you have to make a mountain out of a molehill. I can take care of myself very well.'

'Yes, I believe you can take care of yourself perfectly well,' Enoch nods, 'If you don't run around, trying to clean up this mess, making sure Claire is alright, coming back here to prepare dinner, making sure Claire is alright again, washing the dishes, preparing us hot cocoa with marshmallow, resetting the loop, and probably making sure everyone is okay first before you're taking care of yourself.'

Olive has never seen Miss P smiles as creepily as this before. Goosebumps rise up her arms while the hair on the back of her neck stands. Her Enoch might lose his head momentarily unless he lets sleeping dog, or in this case, sleeping Bird lies, although the girl is quite sure the Bird has been woken up already.

'Olive!'

The boy's voice pulls the girl back. She ignores the silent war in front of her for a while and prepares what Enoch has told her to. She makes sure the water isn't too cold or too warm and gets some clean flannels from the wall cabinet. The first aid kit is here, so she brings out a bandage and then, arranges every equipment on the counter near Enoch's hands, trying so hard not to look at the angry Bird. She feels like she has just conspired with a rebel against the queen or something.

Enoch gets the soap bowl and places it on his lap. He looks at his headmistress, waiting for her to give him her hand, but it seems like that will never happen, so the boy reaches his hand out.

'What?' Miss Peregrine asks. Her voice can surely make some little girl cry.

'Your hand, of course.' Enoch answers like this is the most ordinary thing that could happen every day.

'I still insist that-'

'Your hand, please, Miss,' he cuts in, doesn't give her a chance to refuse this. He tries to look emotionless as always but inside, he almost breaks his ribs, holding his laugh.

The Bird looks like she will explode in a minute. When she slowly places her wounded hand on his, she can see the sense of some satisfaction on that poker face, and although she loves every child of hers including this mischievous boy so much, she thinks she's ready to kill him now.

Enoch bites his lips to hold his smile. He grabs a flannel, wets it in the bowl, and looks at his ymbryne again.

'It's gonna hurt, I warn you,' he tells her. 'Just hold on for a second. I'll try to do it as gently as I can.'

'I'm not a five-year-old child, Enoch, thank you.' Miss Peregrine barks back coldly, but Enoch, who can't hold his smile back any longer, chuckles and says,

'Yes, I know, Miss, that you are exactly one hundred and eight years old this year. I think I can tell the difference between a five-year-old girl and a one-hundred-and-eight-year-old lady, thank you.'

He knows she's glaring at him, so he pretends to focus on her cut, and when he feels she's about to snap at him, the boy just places the wet flannel on her wound.

'Ow!'

'Well, to be honest, Miss, now I think a one-hundred-and-eight-year-old lady might not be that different from a five-year-old girl at all.'

Alma heard that, of course, but she's just going to let it go for now. This bloody cut hurts than she thought. She absolutely has no idea how on earth her little girl could get through this? And when the blood is all gone, she gasps as she sees how long her cut is.

'Hmm, it's quite deep. Do we need to stitch i-'

'No, I'm afraid not,' Alma speaks up. She tries not to sound too alarmed, but Enoch can see through her tumbling armor. Who could believe the Bird is afraid of a needle? Today, he has learned a lot about his guardian.

'As your wish, then.'

The boy cleans her wound again with another bowl of water, before drying it with a flannel. He grabs a bandage and is about to wrap it around Miss P's hand when she pulls it back.

'That is not necessary, I guess.'

'Why not?'

Miss Peregrine raises her eyebrow in wonder.

'I have to prepare dinner, of course. My hands are going to get wet anyway. I can do that by myself after I've finished washing dishes.'

Although Enoch doesn't say it out loud, his face reads 'seriously?'. He has no idea how stubborn the lady in front of him is until now. Did she seriously think she can cook with a hand like that? Is this a joke?

'No, Miss, you are not going to cook today,' the boy announces clearly, 'nor washing any dishes. I'm sure Emma, Olive, and I can handle it.'

'I'm sorry.' Miss Peregrine looks dazed.

'And no buts, please, if you still want to be in this room, watching us cooking.'

'I will not tole-'

'And I will clean up these shards by myself.' Enoch pulls her hand back and begins to dress her wound quickly before she realizes what's happening here.

'I'm afraid I -'

'The only thing I allow you to do is resetting the loop.' Enoch gives her a very cunning smile. 'Otherwise, Miss, I'm afraid I have to tie you to this chair. So do we have a deal?'

Olive has no idea how Enoch can still manage to grin. She looks at both of them in amazement, the boy who dares challenge the Bird, and the Bird who seems like she's about to turn into a fury. But Miss Peregrine has been cornered and even it sounds exaggerated, Olive is quite certain that the boy will do exactly as he said. Miss P seems to see that as well, so after what feels like an eternity, the ymbryne hisses,

'Fine.'

And Enoch just bows to her before telling Olive to fetch Emma here.

Okay! Please, tell me how was it? Do you like it? I'll look forward to your answer!