Forbidden

Alone

TW:THIS FIC CONTAINTS DEATH AND SUCIDE ATTEMPTS THE CHAPTERS IN WHICH IT TAKES PLACE HAS THE RESPECTIVE TRIGGER WARNINGS

Alma Peregrine has looked after her wards on her own happily for the last 70 years, she never once complained she has her schedule and her children for a long time she thought she needed nothing more until recently. The nights and mornings have begun to be her least favourite time of day because usually, one would spend this time with a lover. The mornings are a bit more bearable than night as she has more to focus on rather than a night where it's a battle in her mind and currently she is losing. 5 a.m Alma wakes up and goes into the bathroom to wash and dress and she then usually goes to do her hair pinning it up in her usual 1940s updo and then going downstairs to prepare breakfast. At this time she often wonder whether she would be happier and less emotionally dulled if she had a husband, rather than be all alone maybe she would read in her study for longer in the evening or if they would be a fellow ymbryne.

She wakes up the children and they all go downstairs to eat Emma usually talks to jake and Olive who both are usually speaking to Enoch and Hugh or well in the case of Jake and Enoch bickering ideally is a much better way to describe it, Fiona, Horce, Claire and the twins are all talking and Sometimes Alma is involved within the conversation often to remind the children not to yell. Often while cleaning up she would notice Jake and Emma being a couple and doing stuff boyfriend and girlfriend would do every time she would smile ungodly happy for her two wards. She would usually re-read old love stories she had and imagined herself in those situations but even that wouldn't help her chronic loneliness. After reading she would go for a walk overseeing her children do their daily chores and Ask Fiona to grow some vegetables for lunch before Olive would come and help her prepare it, Same for dinner.

Then during Horce's dream projection she often would lean against the door frame half heardtly pretending it's her husband's shoulder/arm it did give her little relief some days. During reset that was her favourite time as she solely focused on stopping time correctly, once the children were off to bed Alma was alone with her thoughts. Often she would helplessly daydream of her true love but she knew even if she 𝗵𝗮𝗱 a soulmate they were long gone by now, sadly today was one of her worse days for how she was feeling and at times where she felt so fragile and alone she would pray,
"Dear Lord Almighty,
I pray to you tonight in need of strength to get through the night once again alone, I pray that you are keeping my soulmate safe in the kingdom of heaven and that you are watching over and protecting the children and me.
Armen" she mumbled with her eyes shut and forehead resting on her hands as she prays.

At this time Alma would go upstairs and into her bedroom and undo her hair and get into her navy blue nightgown and lay down on her bed under the covers she turns to sleep with a sigh.

The next day is the same as usual until they all go for a walk Claire comes back with an injured cat. Naturally being a ymbryne meaning she could turn into a bird she had a slight dislike to the fact there was a cat within the house but she knew claire would find some way to help the poor thing. So Alma being Alma helped the cat bandage up the poor thing's paw and once the cat was healed enough to walk although, with a limp, she instructed Jake and Emma to go down into the village and find its owner,
"You only go to find its owner I do not want the police at the door once again," Alma instructs her tone stern enough Jake shifts from one foot to another but they both nod and set off into town.

"Where should we look at the first Em?" Emma looks at jake and thinks for a moment and says,
"Let's try the priest hole first I'll go in and ask the manager if anyone he knows has a missing cat." Jake nods and they carry on walking in Emma tells jake to wait outside and Emma walks in "Excuse me, sir?" The manager looks up and sighs already annoyed as in his eyes the peregrine children cause nothing but trouble "Has anyone you know had a cat go missing recently?" the owner thinks for a second and shakes his head before bellowing out across his pub "Has anyone had a cat go missing?" The pub fills with murmurs of no and shaking heads. Emma sighs and walks out tells Jake the results and with a heavy sigh, they continue to ask around either met with shaking heads or eye rolls and then a shaking head.

It gets closer to 5:30 so they begin to walk back still with the cat who Jake named Tabby with a sarcastic comment of how original from Emma, they come back to the house. Miss Peregrine opens the door raising an eyebrow at the tabby cat still in Emma's arm and Jake's sheepish look, "So we couldn't find the owner and also Jake named the cat tabby!" Emma said quickly handing Jake the cat and getting in quickly leaving Jake standing there.  With a reluctant sigh, Alma says "So I guess we have a pet cat then." The children erupted into small cheers. So now with the joint household member of Tabby, the days had something extra something fresh and for Alma that can cause the smallest amount of happiness and hell even makes her feel less lonely. She allows the cat to sleep in her room sometimes even on the bed with her.

                      One month later

For Alma, this has got to be one of her worse evenings yet. She hasn't broken down crying about her loneliness in over 27 years, but this evening she can't keep it in not even so when she feels the telltale wheeze and lump in her throat. She takes a deep breath trying to compose herself a choked sob breaks past she begins to sob quietly yet freely, Tabby walks in and turns her head towards Alma and paws at her skirt until she moves within her chair allowing Tabby to jump up on her lap and nuzzle into her chest witch sadly brought her no comfort. The poor woman was shaking and eventually, she had her crying under control she walked upstairs still shaking slightly she walks into her room and gets out of her jacket and shirt and into her nightgown and sits in front of her mirror and undoes her hair and as Tabby walks out she's alone once again...

A/n I'll post the next part tomorrow