I am sorry about this chapter. Love (as in, not me - I'm Courage) says it is sad. Whatever. I will continue it happier, I hope. And I'm sorry if that is incorrect grammar. By the way, I actually decided to keep the OC peculiars in here; there's a great plot idea that I just had. Don't worry! I'm planning on having some of Mrs. Peregrine's peculiar characters come in soon. Enjoy!

Evan cracked open an eye. "Huh?"

The Hollow had left. Evan had been sure it was about to eat Tamara. But it was gone. He had felt its presence leave.

Tamara was lying on the floor. She wasn't moving.

Evan rushed to her side. "Tamara?" he said, leaning over her.

She groaned and shifted, but immediately started shaking. Evan grabbed her arm in alarm, but she didn't stop. "Oh, it killed us! Why did it kill us? I'm dead!" she screamed.

"Tamara!"

She slowly ceased shivering. Opening her eyes, she moaned, "Am I not dead?"

Evan stared at her worriedly. "Are you all right?"

Tamara blinked as if realizing he was there for the first time. She suddenly threw her arms around him and sobbed, "I'm sorry! But it was too terrifying!"

He patted her hair. That was Tamara, always going to pieces in a crisis. But it had been frightening.

"It's okay," he said soothingly. "But I think we should hit the road. They know where we are now."

Tamara nodded, breathing hard, an unfocused look in her eyes. Without warning, she bolted upright with a sudden thought. "How'd you get the Hollow away?" She began scanning the apartment anxiously for any signs of a shadow.

Evan frowned. "I don't know. It was holding you, about to… finish us off, when it just… left." He didn't know how to explain it better.

Tamara tilted her head. "Before, when I sort of lost it, I could feel… its thoughts, in a way," she murmured.

Evan sighed. "Tam, you said it yourself; you 'lost it.' Plus, people don't get two peculiar traits; you already have telekinesis. And Hollowgasts don't even think things anyway."

Tamara shrugged glumly, and Evan felt a bit sorry for her. He smiled and offered to get her some water from the kitchen. She consented, and moments later with a cup of water in her hand, the flush in her cheeks had died down.

After finishing off her drink, she remarked, "I know it was crazy. But I felt as though I could see what the Hollow had been before. Like, you know, before the experiment?"

Evan rolled his eyes. "Okay. Whatever your unbalanced mind says."

Tamara punched him playfully in the arm, and they sat in silence, observing the wreckage of their apartment.

While Evan completely doubted it, though, Tamara still secretly wondered; had she seen glimpses of the Hollow's mind? What had made it leave before devouring them?

Whatever it was, Tamara wanted to find out. She would, somehow. And she would start by contacting other peculiars with Evan's unwitting help.

His POV

I glanced frantically around. I was in the city still. People rushed by, not knowing they were standing inches from a gruesome monster's maw.

I couldn't just run from the leaders. They were monitoring me even though I was far away from the base. But I couldn't possibly attack any more innocent people. Innocent like I had been once.

So I had to get help. Somehow. There were syndrigasti. Surely they could do something.

I hadn't wanted to be a monster. I had had a home before. A family.

I had been a kid. I was not supposed to have lived this long.

These things weren't supposed to be real.

But memories or no, I was still hungry. I wanted to fight myself; now was not the time. But part of me was still primal Hollowgast.

No! I do not want to eat people!

But my feet – clawed and durable – took me in the wrong direction. My brain wanted answers, but I wanted Food.

Stop!

I strained and fought, but the harder I struggled, the more detached I became. I couldn't do anything. I was too powerful.

The home my feet brought me to was nothing out of the ordinary. It had boarded up windows and age-old police tape covering the mossy fence. Just like every other place in the bad side of town.

But the smell of syndrigasti lured me to it. I told myself, No! I need their help! I cannot murder them! But I walked on in.

Nothing. Everything was old and broken, with layers of dust. Only a place for the wrong sort of people now.

A loop. I knew it somehow, in the back of my mind. And I knew that I could not access it.

So don't. Get a grip and save the world from yourself.

But I couldn't. I had to report this to them. One of the things that the ones in charge had us learn.

I knew where I could contact them. There was a place a few miles away. Behind a supermarket. The place had a recorder that we used to communicate to the base. They would want to know about the loop; after all, they already knew I was here.

Against the better part of my judgement, I went to the place. There was the recorder, disguised as a machine. Not a very good disguise.

The Hollow in me didn't care. I found the button to transmit the location.

"Have you found a loop?" A voice from the speaker said.

I grunted, silently screaming, No! Stop it!

"Is this loop in your area?"

Another grunt. Please no.

"We will send a soldier to your location. Please stand by or use this time to continue your activities." Another word for murder. I tasted bile in my throat.

The speaker clicked off. I moved to leave for hunting. I was hungry.

Not this time. I used every last shred of willpower to instead slam my clawed fist into the wall of the supermarket.

Rrrrr… I spun around and left the place. My mind lost the battle. I was a monster from within. But maybe I could still steer this in the right direction.