Bending Light

25~The Teleporting Tabby Becomes a Lot More Interesting

Giving up their hiding place, (Y/N) and Millard ran to hear the awful news. When they reached the other four peculiars, Hugh had already finished explaining the problem.

    "Come," he motioned to them, running into the forest and towards the house. Emma and Jake looked at each other before sprinting after him, and (Y/N) and Millard began sprinting as well.

    After a minute or two of running in the forest, Fiona and Hugh stopped for a break, allowing (Y/N) and Millard to finally approach them for questioning.

    "What's happened?" Millard and (Y/N) asked together. If the situation wasn't so dire, everyone would've laughed.

    "It's one of the Bird's ymbryne friends. She winged in an hour ago I'm a terrible state, yelling blue murder and rousing everyone from their beds. Before we could understand what she was getting at she fainted dead off."

He wrung his hands and everyone look at each other fearfully. What could've frightened her so? (Y/N) wondered.

"Oh, I just know something wicked's happened," he added anxiously.

"I hope you're wrong," Emma replied before taking off again.

    They ran a few minutes longer until they could see the mansion's lights shining through the trees. They quickly reached the front doorstep and burst inside to see the others crouched in the hall around a kerosene lamp as if it was a bonfire. They traded rumors as Mrs. Peregrine and their visitor had yet to emerge from the sitting room, and all attempts to eavesdrop had failed.

    The stories get less and less realistic, and (Y/N) soon zoned out. If it's the hollowgast again, she thought to herself. I'm either going to feel extremely guilty about not mentioning that shadow yesterday, or extremely angry at Millard for downplaying it. Probably both.

    "What's going on out there?" Mrs. Peregrine shouted sternly, still not exiting the sitting room. (Y/N) jolted and shook herself, knowing that worrying only makes one suffer twice.

    "Is that Mr. Apiston I hear? Where are Miss Bloom and Mr. Portman?"

    Emma and Jacob looked nervously at Hugh. "She knows?"

    "When she found out you were gone, she just about went off her chump. Thought you'd been abducted by wights or some barminess. Sorry, Em. I had to tell her."

    Emma shook her head, and Fiona saluted her and Jake as they opened the doors and walked into the room. Just a second later, the twins nodded at one another. One of them tapped (Y/N)'s shoulder, and the other pointed for her to go in. After a quick glance at Millard, she followed behind her cousin into the sitting room, which was silent but for the crackling of the fire in the hearth.

    Both Ms. Peregrine and Bronwyn seemed to be nursing a frail old woman, and—after looking at her for a moment—(Y/N) saw Emma whisper something to Jake. After taking a few spoonfuls of medicine from Ms. Peregrine, the woman seemed to wake up for just a second, only for her expression to fade back into a depressed, faraway look.

    "Miss Bruntly, go and make up the fainting couch for Miss Avocet and then fetch a bottle of cocoa wine and another flask of brandy," Ms. P. commanded.

    Bronwyn scurried out and (Y/N) slowly realized who the old lady in the chair was. She's one of the women in my grandfather's photographs. Another ymbryne, even! What could she possibly be doing here?

    Ms. Peregrine answered that thought for her. "Miss Avocet would never have left her wards to come here unless something dire had taken place."