Love, Elsie | Enoch O'Connor

Seven

We didn't stop running until we reached the home and it was only until I did stop, that I realised I seriously needed to exercise more. I felt my lung on the brink of explosion and I was inhaling too much air just to catch a fraction of my breath. Jake looked in a similar state; hands on his knees hunched over just outside the front door. It wasn't a long distance between the fields next to the Priest Hole and the home, however we practically sprinted and thirty minute stroll became a fifteen minute death run.

Jake turned around before knocking on the front door. It was too late to check if the coast was clear now; two teenagers running for their lives to the other side of the island would send any sane person's mind wandering and possibly following us. I mentally slapped myself for not checking if there was anyone behind us before we went into the cairn. It was the one thing, beside manners and not asking about the future, the children had been reminded of numerous times and had anyone been following, I could've put all of their lives at stake. If it was what we had thought about the hollows eating the sheep eyes, we truly were in the worst of dangers.

Snapping me out of my thought, Jake stood upright fast and raised his hand to knock. The door flung open in a matter of seconds and Bronwyn greeted us with the biggest smile stretched across her face.

"Jake! Elsie!" She grabbed both of our hands and I winced. This little girl is strong.

We were pulled through the living room into a massive conservatory where everyone, beside Enoch, was sat around an older lady. I'd never seen anything like it, the walls stretched high like everyone other room in the house but the sun illuminated all the plants through gorgeous patterned glass. It's hard to compare this with the room Jake knocked himself out in, in the remains of the building. Gorgeous yucca plants, Devil's Ivy, African Fig and so many more plants I couldn't name stretched tall and provided shade across the walls and furniture beneath. If Hattie was here, this would be where we would spend all of our time reading.

Emma stood up and walked over to us as soon as everyone's attention diverted from the woman to where we had entered.

"Jake, this is Miss Avocet, another ymbryne, the bird I rescued from the cairn before you left," I was astounded, "Her loop has been raided by wights and hollowgasts."

Jake looked at me nervous and I knew we both had a sickly feeling swirling in our stomachs. I hated to be the bearer of bad news but it didn't look like Jake was going to step forward and tell everyone anytime soon. I also didn't feel like scaring the younger children, Miss Peregrine should be the one to inform them.

"Er.. Miss Peregrine, I actually came back, well Jake and I actually came back because we need to talk to you," I barely managed to stumble out, "maybe over some tea?"

Miss Peregrine was so classy and swift with her actions, she glided over to where we were and took us into a smaller room, possibly her office, where we sat down on massive chairs in front of a dark Victorian style desk. The chairs were a similar colour to the sofas we had sat on merely hours ago as she explained everything wonderful about this second world.

"What is it you need to talk to me about, Elsie?"

"Well, when we were going back to the Priest Hole, 2016 Priest Hole, there had been an incident and all of the sheep had been killed," I was hoping Miss Peregrine would comment something but she remained quiet, urging me to continue, "I don't mean to startle anything but all of their eyes were gone, from like, every single sheep."

"Very well," Miss Peregrine took a moment to ponder, "I think for your safety, and the safety of my children that the two of you should stay here for the foreseeable future. I can't risk a wight entering and replicating what happened to poor Miss Avocet's loop."