Some Strange Type of Peculiar Love

The Meeting

Hugh's POV

Fiona put her dress back on and I zipped the back up for her. Her skin looked golden from our small lit kerosene lamp. My shirt was wrinkled from being on the floor, but I couldn't care less.
"Come on, we need to get going." She giggled.
I kissed her again and soon our clothes were back on the floor.

"Finally! It's been over an hour! What were you guys doing?" Jake prodded. Fiona and I blushed and he snickered.
"Come on," he smiled, "we have—"
Suddenly I siren went off. Fiona dove under a table. Everyone around us was running out of the pub. Jake ran back to our friends but I couldn't see him in the scuffle.

"This is an important announcement. All peculiars must meet in the dome for news regarding our loop status."

I recognized that voice, it was Miss Wren. Fiona was still hiding under the table and the pub was empty. The once lively atmosphere was now dark and depressing.
"What was that all about?" Noor asked.
My friends were approaching. Bronwyn was carrying Claire and Jake Olive.
"Fee, come on, it's ok."
She crawled out from the popcorn littered floor sheepishly.
"If I was a betting man, I'd say we should go to the dome." I said. Everyone else nodded.

The dome was crowded and hot with the heat of everyone's breath. The seats were like stairs and made of a light grey plaster. I sat next to Fiona and Olive. Miss Peregrine walked onto the stage ahead with Miss Avocet, Miss Bobolink, Miss Wren and Miss Nightjar.
"Thank you for gathering at this later hour." Miss Peregrine was speaking into a long black object that made her voice sound like she was yelling. Fiona turned to Noor, who was next to her and turned her head sideways and pointed to the object in Miss Peregrine's hand.
"Oh, you don't know what that is?"
Fiona shook her head.
"It's called a microphone, it makes small things sound loud."
Fiona nodded her head.
I turned back to face Miss Peregrine, but she no longer had the.... microphone? But she no longer had it, Miss Avocet did. Her long silver hair made her look centuries older than she did the first time I met her in the kitchen back on our old island. She wheeled her self forward in her wooden chair as she spoke.
"It appears the desolations we have been seeing are not from loop abnormalities."
People shouted amongst each other.
"QUIET!" Sharon yelled. His black hood was covering his face per usual. Melina liked to make fun of him time to time, but I was always afraid he'd hear us.

"He looks like der shtn." Melina laughed.
"Who?"
"I forgot, you don't speak Yiddish." She laughed again, "it means the devil."
"He's not that bad!" But I was laughing too.
We were walking home after getting back from France. Melina spent most nights with Miss Wren and Simren, who were still looking for the clown, who went missing during the subway ride.
"Oh come on! He's creepy!"
"Shh! They're going to hear us!"
Sharron was scary enough, Melina was right about that, but so were his cousins.
"And what would they do? Haunt us to death?"

I laughed at the memory, I missed Melina. Sure I was happy to have Fiona back, I missed her with every ounce of me, but I also missed the laughing and conversations Melina and I could have without being in private. Suddenly everyone was screaming and yelling. I looked up and saw, wait, no, Caul?
"GET OUT! GET OUUUUTTTT!" He roared. Everyone started to scream and run. A few American people Jake was arguing with earlier took their guns and shot at it, but the bullets went through it like a mist.
"It's just a projection!" Screamed Noor. She was holding Fiona tight as she was trying to run.
"It's not real!" I screamed at Fiona. I turned to my left to Olive but she was already with Bronwyn. My foot suddenly exploded with pain. I looked down and saw my right ankle hanging at an odd angle, the same one I hurt on the island. Damn. I screamed and Jake grabbed me.
"I'm born again!" Caul thundered. By now half of the people were epithet gone or running, the more brave peculiars were staying back to fight. Another guard shot at him but once again the bullet whizzed past his ear.
"Silly man, I'm not really here! But I will be! I am inexorable. I am inevitable!"
The whole dome was shaking with every syllable.
"I have harnessed all the powers of the ancient souls, and I will use it against anyone who turns against me!"
My ankle throbbed with every second but I was almost too stunned to feel it anymore. Suddenly Caul's voice got high and whiny like a child's.
"Jeepers creepers papa, the bad mans going to get us, what are we going to do?" He mocked.
"Well it's simple Johnny boy," he sounded like my dad, "you must surrender to Caul."
"Gosh really? That's all?" He said as the kid again.
"Yes Johnny boy, all you must do is surrender to Caul and accept him as your new God."
"Wow!"
"And one more thing, KILL THE BOY!" A picture of Jake appeared in the projection. I could see my shoulder in the corner.
"KILL THE GIRL!" Then a picture of Noor flashed. She tried not to look afraid but her face was crumbling.
"THEN KILL THEM ALL!" Now all of the ymbrynes were projected ahead. Everyone was back to screaming now. Miss Peregrine and the other ymbrynes were trying to keep the calm, but they were losing their grip. Noor screamed and let go of Fiona, who ran to my side. Jake jumped from behind me, I turned but Fiona put my head into her chest, which would have been great in any other situation. Horace and Millard were dragging a blank eyed boy who looked no more than 12 who had a knife in his hand.
Caul was turning us against each other—fast.

3/27/21

I know this was kind of a shitty chapter but it's finals week so I'm very sorry! Also I'm going on a trip soon so I'll try to write a new story everyday but if I don't my apologies!