The children and I began wandering aimlessly around the forest as we thought of a proper plan. Nothing of the sort was making itself known in any of our minds, must be, because all we did was tread along in silence. The only two- beside me- who were doing any planning, were Jacob and Emma. They took up the back of our traveling formation and were bickering about something I was too busy thinking to care about. I caught a few words here-and-there though.
"This forest is huge, we'll never find Miss Peregrine if we stick together," said Hugh.
"I know, but we mustn't separate. That's just asking for danger," I replied assuredly.
As I trudged along, Horace came to my side. "I believe that I have predicted this event," he said coolly. "Only the outcome of the confrontation between Headmistress and the Wight was much more complex."
"Oh?" I asked, questioning Horace's abilities. "How so?" It was rather boring walking and I wanted to keep my interest peaked on something.
He pulled at his tie. "It involved Miss Peregrine, a cage, and a gun."
I swallowed. "Horace, I beg you, do not continue." A cage I could deal with, a gun I couldn't.
Miss Peregrine came to my mind as I walked. I saw her on the day of my arrival, how she had picked up my camera admiringly, how she had smiled at me on many occasions. I even saw an image of the flacon that had been in my windowsill. I had actually found someplace I felt I had belonged, with an adult who didn't judge me whatsoever- well, only on my mannerisms- and it was all slipping away from me. But whatever happened, I vowed to myself to never regret traveling to Cairnholm. I ran my hands down over the material of my dress, the same dress that Miss Peregrine once wandered about in. I was just making a guess, but I would say that since the dress I reside in now is too short for her, and by her current height, I would guess that this was one of the dresses she wore during ymbryne training. I felt even more honored to wear it.
I owed it to the Peculiar children to try my hardest to get their ymbryne back. Well, she claimed to be my ymbryne, too, but these days I am starting to conclude that I am just not peculiar, no matter how much I wanted to be. Just pondering of how my family would feel that after all those years of verbal abuse, I ended up having some spectacular power. I could almost see their surprised faces.
But wait.
Perhaps this is what Miss Peregrine meant when she had said that I did not accept being a peculiar enough for my power to emerge. Perhaps I was using the thought too much based on getting revenge on my family. I was being selfish when I should have been thinking about Miss Peregrine and all the rest of her wonderful children. I was being utterly selfish,
"Miss Peregrine could be anywhere out here," reported Claire. "This Island is very large."
"Well, she is a bird, she can fly," said Emma. "She'll probably find us before we find her."
"Maybe we could call her?" Jacob asked. "Anyone know what a peregrine falcon sound like?"
"I do, I think," I replied after a few moments. I halted. I cupped my hands over my mouth and began to make a noise that sounded somewhat like a flacon's scream.
Enoch laughed. "That was pretty good!"
I turned to face the group. They were all looking at me, surprise twinkling in their eyes. Had my impression really been that realistic?
"Wow," remarked Jacob.
"Perhaps you can talk to animals?" offered Emma. "Maybe that's what makes you peculiar"
I pondered on that thought for a bit. I remembered the horse from earlier; I had not heard any voices. Again, when Miss Peregrine had been propped up in my windowsill, I still had not heard a voice. I had been around animals my whole life and none of them had ever spoken to me. Finally I replied, "I do not think so."
"Do it again!" Claire urged happily.
Surrendering to Claire's young ambition, I cupped my hands around my mouth once more and repeated the noise. I listened to myself thoroughly this time round. As my screech echoed through the forest, bouncing off the tree trunks, I placed my hands on my hips. The children were right, it did sound realistic. We waited silent for a few moments but the forest remained quiet. Was it really the best idea to be calling a falcon scream when a falcon was being chased by hollows? Truly, I didn't think so.
Come to find out, my efforts for were not for naught. A few moments following my impersonation, I heard a similar noise ring back to me from the west. It was quiet but I heard it off in the distance.
"I guess she can't hear us," said Emma.
The noise rang back again.
"Listen!" I hissed.
The call sounded one more.
"I heard it!" cried Hugh.
"The bird, the bird, the bird!" sang Claire and Olive.
"I'll be damned," said Jacob.
Perhaps I could talk to animals.
Through the trees somewhere, Miss Peregrine called again. Only this time, it was closer. The children lit up. "This way!" I shouted happily, picking up my skirts and taking off toward the west.
As we all ran through the forest, weaving through trees, the youngest children laughed and began to make their own falcon noises. Miss Peregrine sounded her call again, in answer to the children this time. I answered her as well as we ran. It was just like we had ran around the terrace that day, only were we in the forest and Miss Peregrine was my camera. Eager to find her, I sped up. I was in my moment of glory so much that I failed to notice a single line of smoke before us.
Miss Peregrine's call changed to a screech of warning, it was a horrible sounded that made my senses go sour. Her squawks and screeches screamed danger to me. I knew then that Miss Peregrine was in trouble, and it was my fault.
"Look, smoke," pointed out Bronwyn. We all slowed to a walk.
The smoke smelled of burning logs. It filled my nostrils and overwhelmed me. I did not appear to affect the others, but it caused me to cough. I suddenly felt too weak to move. I grabbed at my throat and fell to my knees. My heartbeat began to pound within my skull. I wanted to cry for help, but all that seemed to escape my vocal chords was a raspy noise. I felt Bronwyn grab onto my dress.
"What is it, Minnette?" she demanded. "What's wrong?" Everyone huddled around me.
My mind flared images of treetops. Like I was flying above them.
Then SMACK someone hand ripped across my face. My wits regained themselves quickly and I was stable again. Bronwyn helped me to my feet.
"What happened?" asked Horace worriedly.
"I don't know," I replied between pants. I huffed a few times. "Something's not right with me."
An unfamiliar laugh rang out a few feet away from us. "You're damned right something's wrong with you."
It was the Wight! He and two hollows marched from where the smoke drew into the forest.
Immediately I straightened my posture. I became angry quick at what I saw.
He had Miss Peregrine in a cage. She screeched in terror.
He shook the cage. "Shut up, you damn water fowl!" he teased.
"She's not a water fowl," Horace replied haughtily.
The Wight laughed again. "I don't care what she is! She's property of us, now!"
I stood silent to myself as the other children began to mock his ignorance when it came to birds. I remained cool and collected on the exterior, but, on the interior I felt strange. I looked straight into Miss Peregrine's black eyes. I was staring into a sea of worry in those black eyes. I could feel Miss Peregrine's fright. They had us, now, and she couldn't protect us, or us her. Instantly I began to feel light. My head gave me one big pulse, and then, all of a sudden, everything seemed indecisive in the background.
"Miss Stonington!" screeched the bird.
My jaw fell agape. Did Miss Peregrine really just talk? Prior to my knowledge, ymbrynes couldn't talk in their alternate forms.
"Miss Peregrine?" I asked back.
She squawked and began to flutter her wings. "You can understand me? But how?!"
"I do not know, Headmistress."
Just then, while I was busy with my attention on Miss Peregrine, someone hit me in the back.
"Minnette, why are you squawking?" demanded the voice of Emma.
I turned my attention to her. I glanced at the Wight, who looked at me with utter curiosity. "I was squawking?" I asked.
Miss Peregrine crowed in her cage, she didn't sound human at all.
The Wight became impatient with our muttering. "I do not have time for this nonsense. I have ymbrynes to find. Boys, kill them!" he commanded the hollows.
The hollows both lurched forward, their tongues like snakes in their mouths. The children stood at-the-ready. Emma drew fire. Jacob raised his fists. Bronwyn looked for something she could throw. Horace raised a stick he had found. And me, being the most useless out of all of us, I stood, staring directly into the eyes of the Wight. He stared back, and, without taking his eyes from me, began to shake the cage violently. With all her might, Miss Peregrine wrapped her talons on the side of the cage, and pecked at his hands. She nailed him a few times.
I heard Emma cry out and it began.
A hollow advanced on Bronwyn. She swung a punch, and sent it flying back a few feet. The creature hissed and its tongues went mad.
Emma presumed to throw fireballs at the other hollow, as Horace began beating it from behind. Enoch and Olive moved toward the Wight. Enoch held tightly to Olive's ankles, and when they were close enough, he tossed her in the Wights direction. Olive got her hands on Miss Peregrine's cage. But before she could float of with it, the Wight grabbed her arm, she screamed. She began to float upward, holding strongly to the cage, so that her feet were above her head.
"Help!" Olive cried.
It was up to little Claire. Bronwyn scooped Claire up and held her at arm's length. She drew back and tossed Claire as hard as she could. As Claire flung through the air, she removed her curls with her fingers, only to have her back mouth clench deeply into the Wight's thigh.
The Wight cried out stridently, and, trying to keep a hold on the cage, went to swat at Claire. Olive's hold must have been too tight, for when the Wight let go of the cage, it flew from Olive's grasp, and went hurling skyward. Miss Peregrine began to screech in terror again. The Wight still had a grip on Olive.
The nearest one was me, for Enoch, Horace, Jacob and Hugh had their hands beating into a hollow. Emma and Bronwyn were working on disposing the other.
"Catch her, Minnette!" cried Claire, her back mouth still holding to the Wight. "Catch Miss Peregrine!"
With all of my might, I sprinted a few steps, and I leaped. The cage landed straight into my hands and I smiled.
"Are you all right, Miss Peregrine?" I asked her.
"I feel just dandy knowing my children have come to my rescue!" she replied happily.
I paused, Miss Peregrine was talking. I wondered if anyone else could understand her. My arms encircled the cage tightly; no one would be taking it away from me. I cooed at Miss Peregrine. By the time I could turn around to see the children, The Wight grabbed me.
"Bronwyn!" I shouted.
She looked my way. I threw the cage to her. The Wight's hand came over my mouth. Bronwyn broke open the cage and Miss Peregrine took flight. The Wight's hand smelled of pure sweat and my stomach heaved.
Miss Peregrine must have been extremely irritated, for she performed a falcon-dive and dug her talons right into the Wight's face.
"How DARE you lay your filthy hands on MY ward!" Miss Peregrine hissed.
She withdrew her talons and flew to me. She landed on my shoulder, and began to rub the top of her head into the nape of my neck. It was a way of saying thank you.
"Thank you, Miss Peregrine," I said.
"I was simply returning the favor you showed me," she replied.
The Wight fell upon the ground, gasping for breath. To my left, the boys had finished off their hollow, and Emma gave hers one last mighty blast. This whole time I had been traveling with experienced hollow-killing peculiars.
"Miss Peregrine!" they all cheered as they gathered around me.
She squawked at them, but to me, it sounded like: "Hello children!"
Miss Peregrine fluffed her feathers. "Miss Stonington, I wish you to carry back to the homestead. I require some clothing if I am to change back."
I squawked at her. And even though they were all tired, hungry, and filth-encrusted, the children laughed at me.