No Harm, No Fowl

Chapter one: How Peculiar

It was a bright but cloudy day on the island of Cairnholm, and the group of children hiking towards the unstable land stopped and stared at the muddy mess of ground ahead of them.
"Come now maggots, it's only a bit of mud." Agatha Trunchbull, a towering beast of a woman, taunted them. "It can't hurt you." She proceeded to lift her skirt above her shins and walk forward easily. The children, albeit reluctantly, followed suit.
Following up the rear was a nice looking woman who seemed very unhappy to be there. The Trunchbull (not so lovingly named so by the children), truthfully, was the woman's aunt. Her name was Jenny Honey. They had a long running hatred of each other, and Jenny had only just recently gotten courage to stand up against her aunt. A little girl named Matilda Wormwood walked alongside Jenny, holding her hand. She had adopted Matilda when her parents had to leave the country due to... some issues what won't be named now.
"Agatha, you aren't the headmistress anymore. You're just the phys-ed teacher." Jenny spoke, addressing the former headmistress of Crunchem Hall. "And you will not call the children maggots. You know the rules." Of course, Jenny couldn't bear to leave the headmistress jobless and homeless, so although she (with a lot of help from Matilda) had taken over as headmistress, she had allowed Agatha to continue working at the school for her. Under strict rules.
"Yes, my apologies... Headmistress Honey." Trunchbull muttered, a clear bitterness in her voice and sourness on her face. The children around her snickered and she opened her mouth to snap at them, but Jenny held up a finger and the woman fell silent.
"Now children, just a little bit further to the Cairn tunnel. It's what Cairnholm is named for, and though it may not look like much it's very important to the history of the island." Jenny said gently, and though the subject may not be too interesting all the children loved listening to her. Everyone (except Agatha) loved her dearly, especially Matilda.
"I've read a lot about the Cairn tunnel. The history of it really is quite interesting, especially taking into consideration-" Matilda was saying.
Suddenly, a high pitched shriek came from the front of the group, cutting her off, and then laughter erupted among the students who saw what had happened. Agatha had found a newt, and not two seconds later was rushing back to the village to "watch over everyone's belongings". Jenny had approved, glad to be rid of the woman. Cheers sounded when Agatha was out of earshot, though no one much cared if she had heard.
Soon, the group had come up upon a cave, which Jenny explained was the Cairn tunnel they had come here to see. Matilda went forward to touch the mouth of the cave admiringly, then one of the students, Bruce, shot forward past Matilda into the cave on a dare from a friend. Jenny pursued him quickly, not wanting to lose one of her precious children. Bruce's footsteps pounded further and further into the tunnel, as Jenny's brown combat boots thudded after him. Soon a third set of smaller footsteps followed- Matilda.
"Bruce, please come back! I don't want you getting hurt. I could never forgive myself." Jenny called after him. Matilda caught up to her and they ran side by side through the dark cave.
Then, suddenly, a horrible pressure erupted inside both Jenny and Matilda's heads. Their ears popped, and Jenny tried to take another step but collapsed from the shock, knocking her forehead on the stone floor. The little girl shrieked and knelt down beside her, shaking her shoulder.
"Mom? Please wake up! Please." When she didn't, Matilda ran back out of the cave for help. When she reached the entrance, bright sunlight hit her face, and she quickly noticed that none of her friends were still there. However, she didn't notice that there wasn't a cloud in the sky, and it was warmer. She assumed that her friends had gone back to the Trunchbull to get some help. She kept running, though she couldn't quite remember which way they had come.
"Help! Someone, please come help!" She screamed as loudly as she could, tears beginning to stream down her face. Matilda was never like this, but she loved Jenny so much and she was so worried for her safety.
As she was running, she was careless with where she placed her feet, and she landed wrong in a mud hole and twisted her ankle. When she managed to get up again, she was limping and her clothes were covered in mud but she kept going as fast as she could, still screaming for help. She looked over to her left and noticed a beautiful mansion. She hobbled towards it, and she saw a blonde girl and a black haired- no, wait, was it blue? Her hair seemed almost iridescent in the sunlight. But that was beside the point. She was a fully grown woman, probably a year older than Miss Honey. And they were both racing towards her.
"Are you alright?" The blonde girl asked her, kneeling down to her height. She looked like a teenager, about sixteen or seventeen, Matilda guessed.
"I'm fine- just a twisted ankle- I'll be alright, but- my mom- Cairn tunnel-" She panted, out of breath and crying.
"Dear, you look frightful. We'll get you cleaned up and better very quickly." The older woman spoke, kneeling next to Matilda and examining her ankle. Her voice was professional and calming, which allowed Matilda to catch her breath.
"Good news, Miss P. She's not a wight." The girl said gently, touching her face and bringing her eyes to the sunlight.
"Please, my mom. She fell in Cairn tunnel, I think she's badly hurt. She won't wake up."
The dark haired woman perked up in an almost birdlike manner and looked toward the tunnel. "Miss Bloom, go back to the house and take this girl with you. I'll find her mother." And with that she was off. Matilda noticed that she pulled out a stopwatch and checked it quickly as she went.
Miss Bloom asked Matilda if she could pick her up, and she quickly agreed. "What's your name?" She asked her once she had picked her up and started walking.
"Matilda Worm- Honey. Matilda Honey."
"Well, Matilda Honey, it's very nice to meet you. I'm Emma Bloom. What's your peculiarity?" She spoke softly.
"My... what?"
"Oh, I see. Don't mind me, just a bit of nonsense. My friends and I have a little game, is all. Would you like to meet some of them?"
"I'd love to. But right now I'm rather worried about my mother. Will she be here soon? Will that woman bring her?"
"Yes, she should be here quite quickly. The woman's name is Alma Peregrine, by the way. She goes by Miss Peregrine though, so just call her that. She runs this place."
"So is she your mom then?"
Emma laughed, "Well no, not exactly. But she might as well be. You can think of her as our protector. Our guardian. She's our Ymbryne." Matilda looked puzzled.
"I know a lot of words, but that's new. Is it a special word?" She asked.
"Something like that." But before Matilda could ask any more questions, they arrived at the doors of the mansion and Emma had set her down to open it. She went to pick Matilda up again but she insisted on walking, even though her right foot still was in pain. Emma led her to a washroom to get her cleaned up a bit, and they both sat down and talked while Emma gently scrubbed mud off of Matilda and they waited for Miss Peregrine.
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Alma Peregrine was making her way carefully (But quickly, despite her heels, for she knew her loop better than she knew the back of her own hand) and she made it to the mouth of the tunnel very soon after. She raced inside and found a woman lying on the ground, unconscious. The woman was beautiful, and Alma knelt by her and turned her onto her back, then checked for a pulse. She found a very strong one, and smiled. She'd be perfectly fine. The crossover must have just been rough on her, rougher than on the little girl. When she went to lift her though, she noticed a thin trickle of blood coming from a cut on her forehead. She brushed her hair away and pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed it away, checked her stopwatch again, and lifted the woman with ease. Miss Peregrine was much stronger than her thin frame led you to believe. She rushed back to the house with her and when she arrived, Emma was watching from the window and rushed to open the door. She rushed in and carried the woman to a bedroom, where she carefully laid her on the bed to begin treatment. First she treated the cut, which wasn't bad. It was more of a scratch really. Then she sat down on the bed next to her, then pulled out a strange plant and crushed a leaf from it, dabbing it under the woman's nose, then wiping the excess off. Her face scrunched, as the plant didn't smell very good. She was becoming conscious now.
"Matilda." She whispered, though she hadn't yet opened her eyes. She reached out and touched Miss Peregrine's face, her thumb stroking her cheek. Alma reached up to touch the woman's hand and smiled, gently lowering it to rest on her stomach.
"I'm not Matilda. Though, if she is who I think she is, she's here. And if I understand her well- which I'm certain I do- she'll be in here very, very soon." She spoke softly, like a mother would. She pulled her watch out again, checked it, then tucked it back into her pocket.
Then the woman opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was Miss Peregrine's striking green eyes, followed by her dark, shining hair which was pinned in a perfect updo. She took in her high cheekbones and barely pink cheeks. She looked perfect. Jenny tried to sit up but Alma put a hand on her shoulder and pressed her down gently but firmly.
"You're still hurt. You need to rest." Her voice was gentle, like honey, Jenny thought.
"You're so- Wait, who are you?" Jenny asked, finally registering that she wasn't familiar with her. "And where am I? And where's Matilda? Is she alright?" She looked around, growing slightly alarmed.
"I am Miss Peregrine. You're in my home. Matilda- I gather that's the name of your daughter- went to get help for you. She's here as well with one of my wards, Emma. She's alright, she twisted her ankle running here but it's not too bad at all. It will heal by the end of the day. And what, if I may ask, is your name?"
"Miss Honey- but I- Jennifer- Er, you can just call me Jenny." She stammered out quickly.
"Jenny. That's a lovely name." Jenny smiled at this and a bit of red began creeping up her neck and appeared on the tips of her ears, but Alma pretended not to notice.
Just then, there was a soft knock on the door. Alma responded, and it was opened by Emma. Matilda limped in and saw that Jenny was awake, and Miss Peregrine stood up. Jenny immediately sat up and hugged her, though she felt a hand land on her shoulder as soon as she rose.
"Mom! I was so worried about you. Did Miss Peregrine help?" Matilda looked her up and down, then looked over at Alma, who's hand was on Jenny's shoulder.
"She did. I feel much better now."
"Are you concussed? Let me see your eyes." Matilda gently grabbed at her mom's face and inspected her eyes. Jenny reached up and held both of her hands.
"Oh, Matilda. I'm perfectly fine. Not even a headache. Whatever Miss Peregrine did was almost like magic."
Matilda leaned closer and whispered, "You know, it could have been. Remember my trick?"
"A trick?" Miss Peregrine had heard, despite the whispers. "May I ask, what kind of trick?"
She looked to Jenny for approval, and when she nodded, Matilda turned her attention to a flower vase sitting on a nightstand next to the bed. Alma and Emma watched as Matilda focused, then the vase lifted into the air and then sat gently back down. Alma smiled thoughtfully and Emma clapped quietly.
"Well, Matilda, it seems that you're just like us. I suppose I should properly introduce myself. I'm Alma LeFay Peregrine, headmistress of Miss Peregrine's home for peculiar children. This is a sort of sanctuary for people like us. People who can do special things. And," with the next part she cast a meaningful glance at Jenny, "only people like us can enter here."
"So you can lift things with your mind too? I'm not the only one?" Matilda asked hopefully.
"Well, no. Each peculiar- That's what we're called- has a different peculiarity. There are different kinds. We have several here. You'll meet them all at dinner." With that, Alma checked the time. Again.
"Here's mine." Emma spoke, holding out a hand. A flame grew in her palm, then she passed it to the other. Matilda grinned and went over to inspect the burning flame.
"Miss Peregrine." A soft, unsure voice- Jenny's- spoke.
"Yes?" Alma looked up from her watch, snapping it shut and tucking it into her pocket.
"Did you say only peculiars can come here?"
"That's correct. Only peculiars can enter a time loop, which we're in. I'll explain what a loop is later this evening."
"But I'm not- I've never even heard of anything like this, besides Matilda of course. And I'm certainly not one. I mean, I'm just a school teacher for heavens sake, I've never had any sort of abilities. I'm just ordinary."
"And that, my dear, is where you're wrong." Miss Peregrine pulled a pipe out of her jacket and held it out to Emma who lit it, then the woman brought it to her perfectly lined lips and puffed out a ring of smoke. "I do believe that you are like me."
Emma grinned, and got really excited. "You mean she's an ymbryne too?"
"I am fairly certain she is. I can tell. And Horace spoke to me this morning privately, about one of his dreams. Jenny, you mentioned you're a teacher. Do all of your students love you, no matter what?"
"Well, yes, but that's because their former headmistress was so terrible. She locked them in a-"
"Mom, we love you because you're you. You're patient, and kind, and loving, and such a wonderful teacher. And so good with children." Matilda spoke up. Jenny smiled at her daughter and then looked up at the woman beside her, who had raised a knowing eyebrow at Matilda's last remark.
"How would I know if I was?"
"I will work with you. We currently only have," she pulled out and checked her watch, "Five minutes and fifty-three seconds until dinner. So it should have to wait. Emma, please take Matilda and gather the other children." Emma nodded and held out a cooled hand, which Matilda took after seeing it wasn't hot anymore. The two women watched them go, Alma noting with a quiet, satisfied sound that Matilda's limp was already fading.
"Miss Jenny, can you walk? I'll help you, of course. I need to see how you're faring." She held out a hand, which Jenny took. She moved her legs to the side of the bed and, with the help of the strong hand she was now holding, stood. She took an experimental small step towards the headmistress, but she stumbled and fell into her arms instead. She caught her, and held her for maybe a second longer than expected. But only a second. Jenny's face turned red as she righted herself and she started to apologize as the headmistress cleared her throat slightly.
"It's quite alright, Jenny. I understand you're still weak. Food will help." Alma smiled warmly (Were her cheeks slightly pinker than before, or was Jenny imagining things? She dismissed it anyhow.) and put out her pipe, tucking it back into her jacket. She pulled out her stopwatch- Jenny was beginning to notice that she did this a lot- and muttered something about two minutes and twenty-seven seconds.
Alma put a supportive arm around her shoulders, pulling her to her side closely, and began walking out of the room. Jenny looked at the woman helping her, but she was looking straight ahead. She couldn't help but notice that Miss Peregrine was slightly taller than her, but just barely. As they left the room, Jenny looked around for the first time. It was well decorated, with a few portraits of who were presumably Alma's children lining the walls. She noticed a grumpy looking boy next to a face she recognized- Emma, was it?- and a floating hat on the other side of him. Miss Peregrine was in the picture as well, in the middle.
"Are those the children who live here?" Jenny looked back at the woman holding her.
"Yes." She stopped to look at the picture briefly, before checking her watch again and continuing on. She led Jenny to the dining room, where dinner was already set out and a group of children was at the table, including Matilda who was seated next to Emma. "Right on time." Alma said as she checked her stopwatch, seemingly satisfied, and sat Jenny down in a seat next to the end of the table, then seated herself in the chair at the end of the table beside her.
Matilda examined her mom and Alma, as did Emma. Then they shared a look, and giggled. Matilda- And Jenny- were beginning to really like this place.