A Peculiar Time in 1944 - A Millard Fanfic (Miss Peregrine's Home) #wattys2020

Chapter 75

"We're not leaving anyone else behind, ever again. You have our word as peculiars." {Emma Bloom, pg 35 book 3}

Seven Stages of Grief: Stage One – Shock, initial paralysis at hearing bad news.

"More wights will be coming." Addison said, "Will the beast let us pass?" he asked and Aurora noticed Jake still staring at the destroyed phone booth. She knew he must be seeing more than they saw, a nightmarish creature that could only come from people as dark and twisted as the wights.

"Talk to it again." Emma encouraged, her arms still around Aurora in comfort. She didn't feel sad anymore, she just felt. . . empty. Like her reason for living had been ripped away from her. She and Millard had been together for decades, even when they'd been apart she knew he'd always be back for supper, but this time, this time she didn't know if he was even still breathing. Did they shoot him? She wondered, is his body shoved under the seats on the underground train where no one would even see him? Where he'd be forgotten like he'd always feared he'd be because of his peculiarity?

"Tell it to sod off." Emma said to Jake.

"I don't know how." He replied still staring at the hollow.

"You did a minute ago." Addison piped up, "It sounded like there was a demon inside you."

There was a pause while Jacob tried, "Nope, still there."

"Never mind, hollows aren't meant to be reasoned with anyway." Emma told him, "What matters is we find the others before it's too late."

Aurora didn't need the reminder, she saw it every time she blinked. Horace's fine clothes a mess, Bronwyn's strength useless against so many guns, Millard unseen enough to push her away in the chaos but still being watched enough to be pulled back to the train where the others were weeping in terror. When she looked to Jake she could see exactly what he was thinking in his eyes, his thoughts mirroring hers, It's already too late. It had been too late when they'd 'saved' Miss Peregrine in the sea, foolishly taking her evil brother instead, foolishly thinking a bunch of children had been able to outsmart the wights, foolishly thinking they'd had a chance.

MILLARD POV

It was a good thing he was invisible, otherwise the wights might shoot him just for smiling. But he couldn't help it, she'd gotten away, she was safe – well, safer than they were. Hugh was beside him on the floor of the train car and to his other side was a wight, aiming a machine gun at what he assumed was Millard's head. They were keeping an extra close eye on him due to his peculiarity and the wight had his finger on the trigger ready to pull at the first sign of trouble. Miss Wren was the only one they'd allowed to sit in an actual seat and she was fanning herself with her hand, looking like she was trying to keep from passing out. The wights kept cracking insulting jokes loudly in front of her but she just kept fanning herself.

"Aw, have the old bird's wings been clipped?"

"More foolish than a flock of hens, all of them."

But Miss Wren's only reply was, "Can't we open a window?"

This banter went on for quite some time until the leader snapped, "Will someone open a damn window and shut the pigeon woman up!"

It could have been a trick of the light, or perhaps it was because the ymbryne had so many wrinkles, but Millard swore he saw the smallest hint of a smile.

AURORA POV

Jake led them through the underground until they found a set of stairs that led to daylight. He'd said they had to go after them – but how?