A Motherly Love - MPHFPC

|Chapter 4|

Every day, Willow was always following Miss Peregrine everywhere, if she was somewhere, the little girl wasn't so far from her. They both liked each other a lot and Willow was the only one that Miss Peregrine let call by her first name, Alma. The other children weren't jealous, they all liked Willow too, even the grumpy Enoch.

They wanted her to live with them forever, but Miss Peregrine had already had this conversation with them, Willow had a family and maybe she didn't want to spend the rest of her life in a loop. After some time, the ymbryne decided that Willow's task of the day would be to supervise her when she had to kill the hollow. It was only an excuse, of course, Alma never missed her shot once, she only wanted to have the little girl close to her.

If Willow wouldn't be following Miss Peregrine everywhere, she would probably follow Willow all day. Alma loved her children, every single one of them, but Willow, a little bit more. The headmistress couldn't explain why, it was just like that and it had always been.

So, when her little protege entered in the loop one day at the end of the summer with tears flowing down her cheeks, Miss Peregrine's heart sank, she didn't know what put Willow in that state, but she was furious. Furious about who, about what, she didn't know, but she was furious. She would do everything to protect her little girl, she loved her so much, she didn't want anything bad happening to her.

Miss Peregrine was always waiting for Willow at the entrance of the cave, at seven o'clock on the dot. So, when she saw the little girl cry, she brought her inside the house and offered her a tissue. Willow explained to everyone that she was moving out of the island, it was her parents' choice and she couldn't change their mind. Everyone was sad, especially Miss Peregrine, they didn't want Willow to leave, she was so funny and caring...

Who would climb the dinosaur topiary to get Hugh and Millard their ball? And who would watch Enoch's dolls fight? No, Willow had to stay, they needed her here as much as she needed them. They were her family after all. After Willow hugged every child, it was now Alma's turn to say goodbye. She didn't want to and she couldn't let Willow go, but it wasn't her choice, she had to.

Miss Peregrine asked her children to go in their rooms with a commanding tone and when it was only the two of them in the living room, Alma pulled Willow into a big, loving hug. The little girl was shocked, never did Miss Peregrine show any sign of affection, even after the first hug they shared at the beginning of the summer. But this time was different.

Willow felt like she was leaving her mother, with time, they had created an eternal, unbreakable bond that would stay forever. After a couple of seconds in the embrace, Willow pulled away, she had to go. Before she left, she could see tears forming themselves in Alma's eyes. The ymbryne put her hand on Willow's arm and took a deep breath. It was hard to think that she wouldn't see her every day anymore.

''Will you come back?'' Alma's voice cracked; she couldn't keep her emotions inside.

Willow's bottom lip was shaking and she couldn't answer with words, so she shook her head up and down. Miss Peregrine tried to give the girl one last smile before they had to leave each other.

''I'll never forget you.'' And that's how Willow left the island of Cairnholm, sad and unhappy, ready for when she'd have the age to live on her own.