Honeybee [Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children FF]

Chapter Twelve

Hugh

She didn’t come back.

She said she might not, but I hadn’t thought she meant it. Now she’s just- she’s gone. She may never come back. Emma still figures on her reappearing, and Olive won’t shut up about her. Olive asked about thirty times when she’d return- I didn’t have the heart tell her Iris likely wouldn’t return to our loop. Even Millard is upset, though he won’t admit to it. Another heavy sigh escaped, and Millard shifted in his bed.

“Hugh, would you like to talk about what’s bothering you?”

“No,” I snapped, my tone9 more curt than I intended. Millard exhaled slowly.

“Well, I would,” he began, “because Iris actually acknowledged me. She was a learner, like I am- eager to find out what she could about everything, especially peculiardom. She was never afraid to ask a question. She was brave, too- not fearless, but what fears she did have, she faced. Like bees.”

I huffed. “I know she did, but she’s gone now, and I’m not dwelling on it.”

“Hugh.”

What?!”

“You’ve been moping all day. You’re dwelling on it.”

“Whatever; look, Mill, it’s almost ten, and we might need our energy tomorrow. Just go to sleep.”

But as soon as the words were out, the door opened and Emma stepped in, a grin and a gleam in her eye revealed by a flaming orb.

“Get dressed, Hugh- Millard and I are dragging you to the present. You’re at least getting a proper goodbye.”

~*~

Half an hour later we were on the other side of the cairn. Millard had gone without clothes and now, as we traipsed through the February-cold swamp waters, owls hooted back to the chattering of Millard’s teeth. My bees stayed inside, buzzing around to keep warm, and Emma made her orb a bit hotter for warmth and more light. We reached the other side of the swamp and I removed my pea-coat, wrapping it around Mill.

We started down the path- but were intercepted by a grizzly and two wolves. Panic flooded me and Emma’s eyes widened. The pea-coat hit the ground, likely a desperate attempt for Millard to go unnoticed, but the second it was down a wolf attached to his leg. He hit the ground with a thump and Emma nearly screamed, but he shouted first: “Hugh, Emma, do something!”

Both of us thought fast, but not fast enough- before any action could be taken, the grizzly floored us with a swipe of his massive paw. Dazed, Emma and I lay limply on the ground, too shocked to try and regain our bearings to fight. Gentle jaws locked around my calf and began to drag me and the daze was snapped away as the wolf pulled Emma and the bear pulled me.

“Wait! Let us go! We’ll follow you- are you with Iris?!” Millard said suddenly, and just as suddenly the animals paused, glancing at each other. Millard’s leg hit the ground and I saw Emma leap to her feet. I was dropped, and stood on shaking legs. The larger of the wolves nodded at Millard, and the bear stepped forward. Millard and Emma clustered closer to me and I watched the wolves take position behind us, the grizzly in front. A triangle of wild, untamed nature, the three began to move simultaneously, and Emma, Millard and I stepped in rhythm with them to retain our position in the centroid.

We walked for a while by the light of a bright full moon shading the world in silver and black. Leaves crunched beneath us and night birds cooed, joined by the occasional shadowy rustle or an owl’s hoot. The chill slowly seeped further under my skin and I couldn’t imagine how Millard must be faring. It was all Emma could do for him to keep a ball of flame lit and keep up the brisk pace.

It seemed it had been an eternity before we reached the clearing. It was nothing more than a dip in the land that made way for a spring and an aspen tree; to here the bear and wolves led us. Iris appeared, making my heart beat unevenly, and she thanked the bear and wolf personally. The bear simply dipped his heavy head for a moment and lumbered off, but the wolves growled something and then started off around the clearing and sat atop a rocky ledge that peeked out over the water. I barely noticed this, however- I couldn’t take my eyes off of her. I didn’t even notice the cold or my now-dropped jaw.

“Everyone,” she called, her voice ringing clear through the hollow, “These are a few friends- Hugh, Emma, and Millard. I don’t quite know why they’re here, but they won’t hurt any of you.”

She paused and a fox barked something. She answered easily, “He’s invisible.” A wolf- the largest of them- growled something from atop a rock, and Iris’s eyes widened. “I couldn’t ask them to.”

Uproar filled the hollow, animal sounds of all sorts. Then another fellow appeared- bare but for shorts made of leaves, brown hair and odd brown eyes. Deer horns, broad shoulders, excessive body hair, and claws. When he spoke, it was English.

“Iris, we’re going to need all the help we can get, especially from syndrigasti,” said the wild man.

Iris looked back at us and desperation filled her pale green eyes as they locked with mine. She turned away quickly. “No, Landon. It isn’t their battle to fight.”

The wild man- Landon- sighed and scratched the trunk of a tree with his clawed fingers in frustration. “You’re being selfish, Iris. Don’t let emotions so strongly cloud your vision.”

Emma courageously stepped forward. “What’s the problem?”

Helpless, Iris turned away, and Landon looked directly into Emma’s eyes. “The wight has been identified. At midnight, the two peculiars kill the wight’s hollow, and we take care of the wight.”

“We can help,” I offered quickly. Iris faced me just as fast.

“No, Hugh! It’s- I don’t want you out there!”

My eyebrows creased. “I want to help. Stop pushing me away.”

She threw her hands up in exasperation. “I’m not ‘pushing you away,’ I just can’t risk your lives.”

I crossed my arms, determined to win this. “You say ‘lives,’ yet I didn’t see you tell them not to.”

Flabbergasted, Iris swallowed heavily and hid her face in her hands, thinking. Landon then stepped forward and placed a hand on her shoulder. He said something softly and she lowered her hands, revealing distress in her eyes. She rested her head on his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around her. A twinge of fiery envy burned in my stomach and I had to turn away, until Iris’s voice recaptured my attention.

“If,” she paused, clearing her throat and gathering her voice, “If you three want to fight, you may. If the bird gets angry at me, so be it. Please take care of yourselves, though.”

Emma nodded. I glared at Iris in stony silence. Millard then spoke. “We’ll do what we can. If things get ugly, I’ll get these two out of here and make sure Miss P knows they chose to try and fight.”

She managed a weak smile. “Thanks, Mill.”

“Mhm.”

She then took a deep breath and turned back to the animals.

~*~

Several pep talks and much deliberation later, she was about to head out. The plan was to get the wight and lure him back here, say she found the peculiars and they didn’t know he was coming. Emma was having the time of her life with a wolf named Fenrir, and Millard was quietly observing a fox family, who had been introduced as Daley, Cherry, and their kits, Eli, Ella, and Estelle. I, however, was hunched against a tree, grumpy as all get out, and refusing to speak to her.

If she wanted to talk to me so badly, she could come over here herself.

As it was, I was fighting on her behalf.