Some Strange Type of Peculiar Love

The Prophecy

Hugh's POV

Miss Peregrine was mad. No, furious.
"Not 24 hours after you come back you run off again! Are you just trying to anger me!"
"We couldn't just leave her with that rotten little girl!"
"No, you couldn't. You could've left it for me! But no, you're always right!" She shouted.
"And you two," she pointed at Bronwyn and I. Noor was lucky to be excused from this, bird knows I wish I was.
"You decide to help them with their suicide mission? Miss Bruntley you are letting me down tremendously lately!" Bronwyn looked down but I could see her bite her cheek to stop from smiling.
"And Hugh! You made Hugh go with you!"
"I went my myself ma'm." Miss Peregrine glared and me and I kept my mouth shut for the rest of her yelling.
"Of all the irresponsible....could have gotten killed....grey hairs.....the others.....fools..."
I drifted off into my own head while she yelled.
"But she's one of the seven!" Jake whined. Miss Peregrine froze and looked at Noor, who was flickering and glowing with light. I heard a commotion outside the big wooden doors.
"You stepped on my foot!"
"Shhh, she'll hear us!"
It was Olive and Enoch.
"Polite persons do not hide in secret!" Miss Peregrine walked over and pulled the doors open. There was Enoch, Olive, Claire, Horace, Emma and Millard.
"Oh, so this wasn't the bathroom after all?" Horace nervously chuckled. Miss Peregrine didn't even crack a smile.

An hour later we were gathered in Miss Avocet's office warming up by the fire.
"I remember you, Noor."
"You—how?"
"You came to us as a baby already showing signs of peculiarity." Miss Avocet laughed at the memory, "you would eat light and then play with it in your hands."
"And my parents?" Noor's voice cracked and my heart softened, Miss Avocet's face did too.
"Killed in India when you were born."
"Well at least they didn't try to abandon me." She tried to joke but her eyes watered.
"There was an elixir," she continued, "I gave it to you to stop your peculiarity from devolving."
"Why didn't you keep me?" Noor sounded hurt and angry.
"They never keep babies, they don't get to have any memories or fun." Enoch explained.
"Oh." Noor still looked upset.
"So we gave you to this woman, we called her V, she was a confidant and helped over thousands of children stay safe." She pulled a metal box out from under her chair and rifled through some pictures. She finally picked a small photo with worn edges and handed it to Noor.
"Mama." She whispered. The dam broke and her tears were freely streaming down her face. Jake had his arm on her shoulder but she shrugged him off.
"You know her?" Horace asked.
"She raised me until I was 5, one night we were attacked, the doctor told me she didn't make it."
"She did." Noor's head shot up, she looked betrayed.
"She did, but it wasn't anyone who attacked you,"
"It was the wights!" Olive shouted.
"Precisely."
"But why would she give me up?"
"She had no choice, she couldn't keep you safe anymore." Miss Avocet stood up and paced the room.
"After that, we lost you. We searched all over, but we couldn't ask the Americans in fear they would try to take you, or worse, sell you."
"So you gave up?"
"No, not never."
"But now I'm here."
"Yes."
I felt bad for Noor, she was going through 15 different emotions at once, not to mention the fact that the only mother she knew wasn't dead, but just abandoned her.
"So what now?"
"There's a prophecy."
Noor laughed.
"Of course there is!"
"Maybe we should give her a minute."
"Jake, I can handle my own life thank you very much." She was laughing so hard she looked drunk.
"Well, there's a prophecy about the 7 who shall save us all."
"And I'm one of them huh?"
"...yes."
"Alright I've had enough of this lunacy. I'm going back to New York, I'll take my chances there."
"I can go with her!" Millard shouted overly eager. I laughed and rolled my eyes.
"Ok invisible man, let's go. I bet Lilly would be glad to see you."
"Well, I, uh,"
"Don't worry, I'm sure the feeling is mutual."
She put her hands on her thighs and stood up.
"Alright, thank you all, but I've had enough. You all seem lovely but I'm done."
"Noor," Jake started. When Noor turned around she wasn't laughing anymore.
"Why should I stay here? You," she pointed to Miss Avocet, "let mama leave me! I was homeless, abused, beaten and left in the system, and now, when I'm finally about to age out you finally find me? No, I'm sorry but no, I'm done!" She shouted. Millard was already up and by the door.
She grabbed for the handle but stopped and sighed.
"It says I'll save you all, right?"
"I believe so."
"So if I leave, you'll die?"
"I doubt it." Millard said cheerfully as he opened the door for Noor. The poor boy was hopelessly in love, and I understood.
"Fine, I'll stay."
Everyone cheered and Millard sighed.
"But then I'm leaving."
Millard seemed right as rain again and was probably beaming.
"Now, please leave. Alma and I have a lot to talk about."

We hit the books immediately. Bentham's library had everything we needed to know about anything. Did you know wombats poop in cubes? No? Well neither did I until I came in this library. Millard handed me a book with every country, it's description, and loops hidden in it. It was 6 inches thick and almost a foot long. I was tasked to find Virginia loops, as Noor grew up there and maybe her mom was in a loop or living close by. I opened the book and flipped to page 36, apparently there are loops in the ocean, too. I flipped again and landed on page 85, Ireland. I looked at the pages and saw the donut shop I walked by the day I met Fiona.

I was new to Ireland. I lived in England my whole life until I was 14. I walked down the street after a whole week of packing. My parents were home with my sister, Evie, and my brother, Grant. My parents loved me, they did, but they never understood me. I took a walk down the shopping center to clear my head. I missed my friend. I had a girlfriend too, her name was Valerie. She was alright, but I missed my old soccer team more than anything. I saw the flower field passed the donut shop. My parents knew about my bees, they accepted it. They honestly didn't really care as long as none of them stung. I stopped in the field when I saw a girl with long, unruly, curly hair.
I never thought about Valerie again.

I didn't notice I was angry until I heard Enoch shouted about finding something.
"Maybe if you tired this bloody hard about finding Fiona she'd be home now!" I yelled.
"W-who's Fiona?" Noor asked. I felt like I had the wind knocked out of me.
"You never told her? Did you just forget about her!" My eyes stung with tears.
"Hugh—"
"Go to hell all of you!"
I left the library thinking about the girl in the flower field with the most unforgettable hair.

3/19/21