locusta (enoch o'connor)

five

     A/N: the picture on the left is a bit like what i imagine aurelie wearing in this chapter.

     aurelie awoke to the sound of the younger children outside of her room. she could just make out fiona's voice calling "stop, hugh," and "give it back!" as they ran past her door. aurelie smiled with a sigh of relief, almost finding it hard to believe that she actually lived here, in this fairytale. her bliss was interrupted moments later by a soft knock at her door. she stood quickly, flinching lightly at the cold ground beneath her bare feet. opening the door, aurelie was greeted by olive.
     "good morning, aurelie," the red-head spoke softly, "miss peregrine knows that you're still adjusting to your new situation, but it is almost noon." while olive didn't seem to be bothered by this fact, aurelie was shocked.
     not only had she missed breakfast, but she was making herself out to be some lazy french girl who didn't wake up until the day was half over. aurelie cringed back at olive, who gave her an understanding smile in return, placing her gloved-hand gently on aurelie's shoulder.
     "it's okay," olive reminded, "none of us think worse of you. we've all been in your shoes before, don't worry about it."
     "thank you, olive," aurelie muttered gratefully, yet still embarrassed, "i should be down within the hour."
     the girls smiled at each other once more and olive turned to go downstairs as aurelie closed her door to get ready. after taking care of her daily hygiene, aurelie brushed her hair, deciding to tie the top half up with a dark red ribbon. she then reached into her closet and pulled out a similarly colored pair of shoes. aurelie chose to wear a short-sleeved, cream combinaison that cut off at her mid-calf and cinched in at her waist. aurelie gave herself a once-over in the mirror before nodding confidently.
when aurelie got downstairs, she was met with a plate of fresh fruit and toast sitting at the empty dining room table. from the other room, miss peregrine shouted that the meal was, indeed, intended for aurelie. she shouted back a 'thank you' before sitting down to eat. within a few moments, horace was pulling out the chair across from her and sitting down.
"i simply can't waste away for eternity judging whether or not hugh was playing fair," he spoke with exasperation, earning a muffled laugh from a full-mouthed aurelie.
"what would you rather waste away doing?" aurelie asked once she'd finished eating.
"hard to say," horace began, clearly lost in thought, "obviously something with clothes. perhaps open a haberdashery in london, acquire a large fan base, and eventually dress the king." the pair grinned, each knowing that horace was only half joking.
"today, however," he continued, "i say that we should all go for a walk along the beach. it's a super view - you'd like it." aurelie agreed hastily, and it wasn't long before the entire house was gathered on the porch.
the group began their walk, and aurelie fell in line with emma towards the back of the pack, with only enoch trailing behind them. emma asked about aurelie's life, and aurelie shared what she could. the more she went into detail, the more emma pouted, a concerned expression appearing across her pale features. aurelie brushed it off and changed the subject. they chatted happily for a little while, but emma was soon called off by olive and so aurelie decided to walk alone.
as she stared at the ocean gloom, aurelie was racked with homesickness. she longed for the beach she knew so well, the waters that her grandfather had fished, she ached for her past and a life that she would never live. the nostalgia consumed her, and aurelie hadn't even realized that she'd stopped dead in her tracks.
"hey," enoch barked as he approached where she was standing, "did you forget how to move?"
aurelie broke from her trance and looked at the boy. his eyebrows were furrowed, as they usually were, and his lips formed an angry pout. his permanent frown was meant to be intimidating, but for some reason, aurelie found it rather endearing; like a challenge to break the tough boy into giggles. he stared down at her expectantly before scoffing and turning to follow the rest of the group once more.
aurelie smiled, jogging a few steps to catch enoch again. when she did, she gave a slight victory hop, like a bunny or a child might. enoch looked at her perplexed, but a ghost of a smile crossed his features for a moment, and aurelie knew that she was already beginning to win.
"enoch," she exclaimed, nearly boastful, "why are you such a grump?"
at this, enoch's lips curled from a pout and his face contorted into an offended scowl.
"i am not a... grump," he spat, sounding as if the word tasted sour against his tongue. aurelie's grin only grew at his response.
"why, of course you are," the small girl exclaimed matter-of-factly, "but that's not a bad thing, some the the best people are grumps."
enoch maintained his gaze on the pathway ahead of him, but aurelie could tell that he was listening, so she kept going.
"i once knew this boy in my old town, he was like 19, and he was rude to everybody, but one day, he gave this old woman - a shopkeep - a flower that he'd found, and he helped her stack heavy boxes whenever she needed him to. he was a real teddy bear, that boy-" aurelie dragged her story on, waving her hands more than normal, desperately trying to get enoch to crack.
"-alright, alright," he interrupted, "i get it, grumps are secretly good people, can you leave me alone now?" enoch glared down at aurelie, but his scowl was more so from his general demeanor than actual annoyance, so she viewed it as another point for her.
without another word, aurelie skipped ahead of enoch and began walking amongst olive and emma, leaving the brooding boy feeling slightly bored for the remainder of the walk.