The Bird and the Bee

Chapter 27

Miss Honey hardly slept that night and when she did, it was just constant nightmares that plagued her mind. Alma fell asleep first but hadn't slept too long when she had to wake the brunette who was crying in her sleep, though it didn't do much as Jenny cried against her shoulder. The older woman whispered sweet nothings and pulled her into her arms as her body shook with sobs, her throat aching from crying and her shoulders shaking horribly. Jenny tried to keep quiet, not wanting the children to overhear if any of them were up, but between the gentle words the older woman sent her and the event of today running through her head, she couldn't help the painful sob that left her. Alma hugged her closer, placing her lips against the top of her head as Jenny cried harder against her shoulder, the sound enough to crack the older woman's demeanor as a few stray tears ran down her cheeks. She shut her eyes as she placed one last gentle kiss on her forehead, testing her chin on top of her head as Jenny sobbed against her. It took about a well hour for the brunettes tears to finally slow, Miss Honey gradually falling back to sleep against the woman as silent tears fell down her cheeks.

She still hadn't let go of the red ribbon.

~~~

Morning soon came and Alma was still awake, looking over the younger woman who let out a few quiet whimpers and cries as she slept. The ravenette was there at all times, being alert anytime the woman even moved and would carefully brush away each stray tear that left while she slept. The older woman didn't have her usual motivation to get out of bed, wanting to stay put but knew she couldn't keep getting off schedule. The ymbryne carefully and slowly sat up, trying not to wake Jenny as she stood up from the bed to go get dressed. She got her usual outfit out from the closet, glancing over at the woman one last time before heading to the bathroom to change. Afterwards she picked out an outfit for Jenny, setting it aside on the edge of the bed and giving her a soft kiss between her eyebrows before heading downstairs.

"Miss Peregrine?"

The woman looked over and seen Emma already downstairs with Millard, the girl seeming very worried.

"What is it?"

"Where's Matilda?"

The name sent a dagger through the older woman's heart, Alma biting her cheek to keep from her voice wavering as she spoke. The silence was enough for both of them to understand, Emma's face falling as she began to cry, Alma knowing she was doing a bad job at hiding her own tears and carefully brought her into her arms. She felt the invisible boys arms wrap around her waist in a hug, the ymbryne not daring to let go until Emma did first.

"She can't be." The girl cried, the headmistress brushing away her tears that fell. "She's not."

"Emma-"

"She's not, she can't be." Her voice wavered extremely as a small sob left her, the girl immediately heading back upstairs, Millard following behind as he tried to keep his tears inside. Alma knew they needed to be alone and gave them space, slowly making her way to the kitchen. She filled up the kettle despite not having much of an appetite for anything and turned on the stove top, staring out the window as she smoked her pipe. She felt that old familiar guilt start to fill her, this time more painful and she set her pipe down, sitting down by the small table in the kitchen and rested her head in her hands. She should be starting breakfast before the others are up, but she couldn't bear the overwhelming feelings any more. Jenny had left her with her daughter, trusting her to watch her and Alma had done the complete opposite. She let her out of her sight and now Matilda is gone and Jenny has to deal with that pain that Alma never wanted her to have. The ymbryne didn't even realize she was crying until she felt someone rest their hand on her shoulder. Miss Peregrine immediately tried hiding her tears, brushing them away when she realized it was Olive.