A War Within Two Worlds

Don't be seen

3rd Person POV

On a normal day, you wouldn't take a second glance at the children's home up on the hill in Carinholm Wales. But today, the shades were drawn before the sun set and you could see frantic shadows move across the house in the orange light. In the home, a quiet girl leaned against the shoulder of a buzzing man. The two young children were aged by years with grief. The strong, fiery, tenacious, Emma was ready to give up. And of course there was the naked invisible boy, his fancy dressed friend, and the raccoon eyed necromancer. But alas, there were two left. The strongest boy in the world— who was about to crumble, and the girl holding his hand through it.

Yasmini's POV
I helped Millard and Horace pack the necessities while Victor said goodbye to Bronwyn. I ended up packing for Emma too as she was still downstairs with Miss Peregrine. Jake was down there with her to make sure nothing bad happened; I thought I've seen how distraught she can get, but this is new.

I made everyone turn off the lights to make it look like we weren't home by the time the sun set. Barron killed Miss Peregrine, and he'd most likely be here in no time. But the question still arose; why isn't he here now with his army?

Fiona and Hugh were buttoning up the little ones jackets as Millard dressed head to toe in black, as it was a bit cold out. Enoch and Victor were packing snacks in the kitchen and Emma was still downstairs while Horace helped a dark blob of Millard collect various maps in Miss Peregrine's study. It's strange, I was here for a lifetime, but I feel numb about her being... gone. Why? It's not like I never loved her, I did, but she was never a mother to me really, but maybe a teacher or an aunt you'd only see ever couple months. Was I in shock? Or completely broken to the point where I can't feel emotions anymore?

I bit my nails as I paced in front of basement door. I wanted to let Emma stay down as long as she needed to, but I knew we couldn't wait much longer.
"Emma?" I opened the door and walked down into the dark basement. I could see the small flame Emma lit flicker in the corner. 
"We have to go."
"I know."
But neither of us moved.
"Do you even miss her?" Her eyes shined into mine, but their usual flair was gone. There was no edge to her voice either, just pain.
"I don't know." Which was the truth, Emma was Miss Peregrine's favorite, but to me she was distant and cold.
"That's ok." She sighed, and pushed herself up and patted the dust from her dress.
"Is Jake ready?" She asked regaining some of her strength. Just then, I heard a knock on the door. I felt my heart sink but I smiled reassuringly as I ran up the basement stairs two at a time. Everyone else was hiding in the foyer, but I could barley see them.
"Go upstairs."
I heard feet shuffling and Emma's sniffling grow distant as another knock tapped on the door. Lightning and rain crash against the house.
Shit, 20 minutes until reset.
I opened the door after a third more aggressive knock and saw Jake being strong armed by... oh my bird, Barron?
His white eyes were covered by brown contacts that matched his wiry hair.
"Hello, could I come in? It's terribly rainy." I glanced behind him and saw a strange shadow, he had a hollow with him. Jake whimpered as Barron held tighter. He stepped in and flipped on our light switch.
"Where is everyone?" He smiled sickly. Two large footsteps thudded beside me. A familiar rotten stench filled my nostrils and I fought the urge to gag.
"They left, but I couldn't just...go." I lied. Tears brimmed my eyes, whether they were real or fake is unknown.
"I'm so sorry Mini, I just wanted to say goodbye to my dad, and he," Jake glanced at Barron, "was waiting for me by the loop entrance."
I shook my head and grinded my teeth.
"Boys, come in."
Two pupil-less men stepped inside.
"I'm sorry about you friend, but where is Miss Peregrine?" He called our her name, but not a sound came out.
Friend? What friend?
"You killed her!" I yelled. Barron turned around enraged to the wight as his left.
"You idiot! We needed her!" Barron took his pistol and shot the wight 3 times.
I screamed and Jake ran to me. Before I knew what was happening, I threw Barron, his wight, the body, and the hollow against the wall. I took Jake's arm and ran into the first room I could see— Miss Peregrine's study. I locked the door and flew the desk in front of it. The lights were still on in the windowless room.  It's clock showed we had 12 minutes before our house exploded, then we'd turn into the same ash we saw in the present. The hollow pounded at the door as Barron yelled incoherently. Jake grabbed a crossbow from the mantle.
"Open the door."
"Are you crazy?"
"I can see them."
"The hollows?"
"Open it!"
I shook my head in a frustrated surrender and demanded the desk  to move and the door to open. The hollow's shadow wrapped it's limbs around the desk, but Jake took a shot.
"Did you hit it?"
"Dead."
The thunder roared outside.
"Where's Barron?"
"I don't know."
"What do you know?" I snapped.
"That I was the one who killed it."
"Yeah..."
"Can you throw them?"
I shook my head, "I can't, I need to see them."
Jake nodded. Suddenly a hand tapped my shoulder. I slammed the doors shut and turned around.
"Millard!" I whisper- hissed, he must have stripped.
"I'll go see where they are, open the door again."
"No!"
"We'll be killed if I don't!"
I didn't want him to be, but he was right. I opened the door and Millard walked through, I think. A moment later, the same tap hit my shoulder and I closed the door again.
"Next to the staircase, go check."
I nodded and strode forward. Jake followed meekly behind me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Barron with his loaded gun. I spun to face him and he shot out, but missed. I screamed as I threw him against the wall, snapping his neck.
"Holy shit." Jake smiled.
"I'm not with them." We turned around to see the last wight with his hands in surrender, and I recognized his accent.
"¿Voče fala Portuguêse?"
"Sim."
"Why are you here?" I asked back in English.
He dug his hands in his eyeball and two white lenses fell out.
"I'm prisoner."
"Fine, come with us, but we need to go now."
I saw a puddle of blood on the ground and my knees went wobbly.
"Millard?"
"I got fucking shot!"
"Is that a ghost?"
"No you idiot, it's Millard."
"Who?"
"He's invisible." Jake said in a very obvious tone.
"Helloooo I've been shot!"
"I see that." I said shakily.
The prisoner grabbed at Millard, but couldn't see him.
"Right here, mate."
"Oh, got it."
"Let's go."
"Go where?" I asked as my heels dug into the floor.
"The shoreline, that's where everyone is." Millard said between clenched gasps.

Victor's POV
"Where are they?" I asked agitatedly. We were on the shoreline, we snuck out of the back window and down the drain pipe.
"I know as much as you do." Enoch sighed.
I heard something like a broomstick snapping, was that a gun shot?
"What was that?" Hugh asked with his arm around Fiona.
Two more pop sounds rang out and the little ones started to cry.
"It's ok, it's ok." Emma cooed, but her voice seemed empty and void of emotion.
Enoch put his hand on my shoulder, "Mini's smart, and Millard will keep her safe."
I nodded, but I wasn't really thinking about  them. Bronwyn was upstairs resting in peace, but soon she'd be blown into bits. I tried to shake the thought from my head, but I couldn't.
"Where are we going to go?" Claire asked, her lower lip trembled.
"England, we're going to stay with Miss Bobolink." Emma said softly.

We leaned against the boats when we heard the familiar sound of planes flying above.
"Oh my bird, they should be back by now!" Hugh yelled. Fiona dashed into the forest in a flash.
"What is she doing!" Olive yelled. I looked back into the dark sky and saw the bomber plane fly above us and towards our house. Hugh came back from the edge of the woods, "if they see us on the beach they'll bomb us, too!"
We ran into the forest and left our luggage behind, Horace was more reluctant than most.
Fiona was sitting under the dark canopy of trees focusing on the ground.
"She's growing more coverage."
I nodded. Emma tried more actively to shush the younger ones crying, but then Horace started as well. I heard a loud crash and the ground shook.

By the time we came out from hiding, the sun was starting to rise.
"Do you think they...."
Emma shrugged, "I don't know."
She sat down next to the boat and looked at the sand, "all I know, is that we've lost everything."
5/18/21