The Peregrines

Chapter 7.

{ Edited - 9th June, 2020 }
{ Edited - 8th April, 2024 }

I turned around to see Alfie standing 10 feet away from me. "Go home," I said.

"Not without you, no!"

"You'd really think I'd let you put me in a state of shock? Cause I won't!!"

"If you cooperate then it wouldn't have to be this way,"

Wing it. I'm gonna wing it.

I spun around and leapt off the cliff without a moment's hesitation, not considering the repercussions. How do I turn into a bird exactly? And how do I swim?! Damn it, Kira, you really stuff this one up.

Instead of casting my eyes downwards, I chose to direct my gaze upwards, intentionally averting my sight from the impending watery grave. I had no wish to confront the depths of the abyss that awaited me. As I glanced over, I noticed someone taking a leap off the cliff, but to my dismay, I couldn't recognize the individual before I dived into the frigid water and started to sink to the bottom. 

I started clawing at everything around me, desperately searching for anything to grab onto and gasp for air in my moment of desperation. I felt a sudden tug around my waist, lifting me up. I feared it was a sea creature that was gonna pull me into its jaws once we surfaced to the top. 

 I started splashing around, trying to either swim away as I intended, or scare off the creature, but instead of heading out to sea, I found myself drifting backwards, towards the shore. I began to resist whatever force was pulling me back. "It's okay, it's okay. I got you, Kira,"

As I was struggling and feeling utterly worn out, a voice called out, causing me to immediately cease my frantic movements. Despite my fatigue, I realized it wasn't a wild animal and that my life wasn't at risk.

A kind soul yanked me out of the water, ensuring my safety. Slowly and gently, I was lowered onto the sandy shore. The grip around my waist loosened, and I collapsed onto the ground, panting heavily. Overwhelmed with fatigue, I felt completely drained. I glanced up and noticed it was Miss Raven, who seemed out of breath as she sat down beside me. 

"'m here for you. Can you explain what was going on in your mind at that particular time??" she said in a breathy voice.

"I was thinking of swimming away or-" Just as I was about to let it slip, I caught myself in the nick of time before as I was on the verge of revealing my secret.

"Or?" She inquired, causing me to fall silent as I searched for a different explanation, yet all roads led back to my hidden truth. "Kira . . . It seems like there might be something you're keeping from myself and Miss Crow. . . Is there something that we should know about?"

"I don't have anything to hide from you Ymbrynes," I said.

"I want to clarify that I never accused you of hiding anything. But now that you've mentioned it, are you actually hiding something?" Miss Raven asked.

"What! No! I'm serious! I have nothing to hide!" As I lifted myself up on my elbows, I felt a rush of adrenaline coursing through my veins.

"It seems like there might be something you're keeping to yourself. Could you secretly be a Ymbryne?" She joked and cracked a smile, trying to keep the mood light.

"Miss Raven, I'm not like you, it's impossible for an ymbryne to give birth to another Ymbryne! And having a peculiar child from a peculiar parent themselves is already rare enough,"

"I want you to feel comfortable sharing anything with me, Miss Kira." She boop my nose She picked me up by my waist and carefully settled me on her lap, holding me close to keep me cozy.

"No,"

"You can trust me to keep your secret, I won't breathe a word to anyone,"

"I can't,"

"I understand your concern about keeping this information confidential from the children and Miss Crow... I completely understand your concerns, and I promise you that I won't involve your mother. It's important for me to know what's happening so that I can better understand your situation and help you, especially when it comes to dealing with Miss Crow. Please feel free to share with me what's going on,"

"I swear it's nothing!"

"I can see that cliff jumping is something you find exciting. Will you be continuing this adventurous activity?" Miss Raven raised an eyebrow.

"It was a one-time thing!"

Suddenly, the floor beneath us started to shake violently. I turned to look at Miss Raven, noticing her skin had paled and her eyes had widened in fear, "Don't get your tail feathers in a twist, it's just an earthquake," I said. 

Miss Raven stood up, prompting me to do the same as I was sitting on her lap. I brushed the sand off of me and turned to gaze at the sea, only to find the water receding and fish floundering on the exposed sand. What the heck?

"Oh no," I caught a faint whisper from Miss Raven as she muttered quietly. "Kira, we must go," Holding hands, we sprinted towards the village while the earth trembled beneath us and a deafening roar filled the air from the ocean. As I looked into the distance, I noticed a huge wave of water approaching, and that's when I recognized it as a tsunami.

"TSUNAMI!" A villager shouted in distress.

The tsunami was approaching faster than Miss Raven and I could run. "Make sure to find a high vantage point! It's crucial that I alert the rest of the group!" Miss Raven releases my hand, leaps into the air, transforms into her Raven bird form, and swiftly flies towards the direction the house is in.

Feeling completely panicked and isolated, I found myself lost and unable to come up with a plan. I couldn't remember where to seek safety or where to find high ground. With a deep breath, I turned around to see the tsunami rapidly approaching.

As soon as I spun back, in that brief moment, I made the choice to sprint towards the house. A powerful gust of wind brushed against the back of my neck, and as I glanced back, all I could see was blue. In an instant, I realized that the tsunami was right in front of me.

I couldn't remember what happened next, it was all blank