Scorched Earth: The Prequel to Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children (editing)

Chapter Twenty Two

"What do you mean if one of us dies, then part of the other dies as well?" I asked the Ymbryne.

"See, I knew that one would astonish you. It's not how you imagine. Let me ask you this: If something happens to her physically, do you feel it?" Miss Avocet asked.

"One time she was asleep on one of the chairs in the kitchen and rolled right off and hit the floor in the middle of the night. I woke up instantly, so yeah I felt it. But more so in the sense of feelings than actual physical pain. I didn't feel when she hit the ground but I could feel that something 'appened to her. Another time is when we went looking for that big loop in the lake I could feel that she was in trouble and that's 'ow I knew to go in, but if she were to get shot right now I wouldn't feel the bullet, I'd just feel the energy," I answered.

"Okay, same type of concept but on a bigger scale. If she were to die, you'd feel emotionally drained because you are actually connected with her in terms of your second souls, in which you share. So with her dead, you're missing a part of yourself. Same goes the other way around. It sounds rather poetic in a way, don't you think?"

I didn't respond to her, but sat down on the couch and tried to comprehend everything I had just learned, although I still had trouble believing in the idea of actually sharing a second soul with another person. On top of that, Ymbryne's were incredibly powerful, and I wasn't stupid enough to think I wasn't powerful either. What if Caul were to find out that I could potentially manipulate time and control matter? The entire thought terrified me.

"I have something else I need to tell you that I haven't told Miss Peregrine. I won't tell her because she is too attached and will try to protect me, but that will get everyone under her care killed," I elucidated.

"Now you have me worried," Miss Avocet stated and raised her eyebrows.

I walked over to where she was leaning against the desk and rolled up my sleeve to show her the bird scar on my wrist, just beneath my thumb on my left hand. She held it under the lamp light to observe it more closely before asking, "What is this?"

"A gift from Caul Bentham," I replied. She gasped lightly and clutched her chest with one hand.

"You've seen him?" she probed.

"I fought him and won. But I was left with this marker for the hollows to come and kill me. I had to leave Cairnholm, I was keeping them all in danger by staying. I had no choice," I elaborated.

"And you haven't told Alma?" she asked.

"No."

She shook her head and quickly began pacing back and forth. Her avocet like qualities were beginning to come more apparent under this new stressful information.

"If you're being chased by the hollows, you should stay here in the Academy!" she urged.

"I left Cairnholm to protect the others, I won't stay here and endanger everyone in this loop either! I need to get away."

"It's against the Ymbryne code to aid a child in running away, I hope you know that."

"I am not a child. I 'aven't been a child since I ran away from my abusive father, and I'm not running away. I know your job is to protect me, but I will do this with or without your help. Although, without will be much harder."

Miss Avocet finally stopped pacing and moved to stand in front of me, a little too close for comfort, but eye level with me.

"Alright," she croaked lowly.

"What should I do?" I begged.

"If you really want to protect them; run. Run far away and go someplace where not even Caul Bentham can find you, and then retire your Peculiarity. Invent a past. Do anything you can to normalize yourself as much as possible, and never look back," she finished.