Preserve (An Enoch O'Connor story)

The Stories are Real

Ren felt someone shaking her arm. "Psst. Ren! Wake up!" The 17 year old girl grumbled and swatted at the annoyance that was her cousin. "Ren, I mean it! Get up!" Jake was pleading in a hushed tone. Ren cracked open one green eye and said, "No. Go away." Ever since Abe had died, she had kept mostly to herself until her mother insisted she go with Jake to Wales. Even so, she rarely left their room at the inn.

The blankets were yanked off her and Ren shot up. She glared at Jake as her long red tresses fell in front of her eyes, blocking her vision. Pushing her hair back, Ren glanced over at her uncle. She looked back at Jake and hissed, "What is so damn important it couldn't wait?" Jake walked over to Ren's suitcase, dug around, and threw a change of clothes at her. "Get dressed and meet me downstairs. Quick!"

"Jacob Portman, I am not going anywhere until you tell me what's going on," Ren said, stubbornly crossing her arms over her chest. Jake groaned and sat down. "Please, Ren. You won't believe me if I tell you. I have to show you. Please?" He gave her the puppy dog pout he knew she couldn't resist. Groaning lowly and throwing her head back in defeat, Ren agreed and shooed Jake out.

As much as she wanted to curl back up under the covers, Ren now needed to use the bathroom. "Curse you, Jake," she muttered under her breath. She got up and made her way into the bathroom to change. Once she had brushed her hair and teeth, she pulled on the tunic shirt and leggings Jake had thrown at her. She left the bathroom, slipped on her tall boots, and quietly left the room to meet Jake downstairs.

When Jake saw her, he smiled before grabbing her hand and pulling her from the inn. "Jaaaaaaaaake," she whined, "You could have at least let me have breakfast before dragging me from the nice, warm inn." Jake just rolled his eyes and continued running. Ren tried to keep up despite how tired she still was. She would have killed for a cup of coffee.

Jake finally stopped outside a cave and turned toward his cousin. "Are you finally going to tell me what we're doing out here?" Ren asked, stifling a yawn. "Do you remember Grandpa's stories?" Ren rubbed her eyes. "The ones about the girl lighter than air, the invisible boy, and the girl with the strength of ten men? Of course I do. What does that have to do with anything?" Jake grinned at her. "They're real, Ren. They're all real."

Ren stared openly at him for a second before she scoffed. "Get real, Jake. They were alive in the 40s. Even if they had been real, they'd all be dead now. "Well, we would have been," a male voice came from behind Ren. The teenage girl jumped and whipped her head around. Her brows furrowed in confusion. "What the f-" Jake cleared his throat, halting Ren's swearing.

"Millard, why are you naked?" Ren's eyes widened. "Well, I wanted to follow you, but I knew Miss Peregrine wouldn't let me." Jake rolled his eyes. "Come on, we have to go." Jake and, Ren assumed, Millard walked into the cave. "HOLD UP! Where are you going, Jake?" Ren asked. "Come on. Don't you trust me?" Ren narrowed her eyes. She hated when he did that to her. "Alright, fine." Sucking in a breath, Ren followed after Jake.