A Peculiar Time in 1944 - A Millard Fanfic (Miss Peregrine's Home) #wattys2020

Chapter 89

"When you've got twelve hollows you don't need surprise." {Jacob Portman, pg 340 book 3}

"First I want to know who's unaccounted for." Miss Peregrine said drawing everyone's attention. "Things will get out of hand when we open that door, so if there are peculiars elsewhere in this compound who need rescuing, I want to keep them in mind as we go into battle."

They began with a roll call, all of Miss Peregrine's wards were accounted for – minus Fiona, then they did a head count of the people who had been snatched from Miss Wren's. The clown had been thrown into the chasm outside the wall for refusing to take orders from the wights, the folding man had been shot and killed at the train station. Melina and the brothers were in an upstairs compound unconscious and being drained while the plain looking boy from the circus and the snake charmer had been led off to another part of the prison where no doubt more peculiars were being held. Lastly they counted the ymbrynes, there was Miss Peregrine, Miss Wren, Miss Glassbill, Miss Avocet who, after the hollow had pulled her from the house and attacked the children, had been able to crawl away to the shore only to be captured by the wights submarine. Miss Bunting, Miss Treecreeper and another six ymbrynes were all there fussing over each other and checking for serious damage. There was one more person who had yet to be named, the small bearded man who had been rescued with Addison, he stood silently by the ymbrynes watching through dark glasses.

"I am heem." He said with a thick Italian accent as he pointed to a large leather bound book on the table next to him as if that should explain his identity.

"Oh Birds." Millard cursed under his breath drawing Aurora's attention as she scratched Mira's head. He was up on his feet again, though those feet and up to his knees was now invisible again.

"Millard, you know who that is?" she asked.

"Darling, that is history's foremost temporal cartographer."

"You mean?"

"Mm-hmm. Perplexus Anomalous."

"Buongiorno." Perplexus greeted, "How do you do?"

"It's an honor to meet you." Millard said as Perplexus offered his hand and Millard shook it hesitantly, "I'm your biggest fan. I have all your maps. . . "

Aurora couldn't help but try and hide a giggle behind her hand and she heard Jake whisper something about fangirling which she didn't quite understand. Perplexus only smiled and said, "Grazie."

"What's he doing here?" Jake asked, "And how is he still alive?"

"Caul found him living in some fourteenth century loop in Venice that no one knew existed." Addison explained, "He's been here two days though, which means he could age forward very soon."

"But none of that explains what he's doing here." Emma said.

"Perplexus wrote about finding the Library of Souls in his journals." Millard said before Addison jumped in again.

"Caul tracked him down, kidnapped him and made him tell where it was."

"I made oath of blood to never say anything!" Perplexus said miserably, "Now I am cursed forever!"

"We should get Perplexus back to his loop before he ages." Millard said approaching Miss Peregrine, "I won't be responsible for the loss of peculiardom's greatest living treasure!"

"We'll do our best dear." The Bird assured him, then from outside the door there was a terrible boom and the room trembled and pebbly bits of rock rained from the ceiling again, "But we've got other things to see about first."

oOo oOo oOo

The escape plan was simple, they threw open the door and let Jake and his hollows clear the way. They did a good job and they were expendable, better lose one of them then one of their own. As they fought it seemed Jacob's connection with the beasts had grown stronger which was good if they were going to make it out of the compound alive. Many of the others wanted to hunt down Caul and make him pay for what he'd done - and if they ran into him he would have hell to pay - but the priority was escaping with their lives.