A Motherly Love - MPHFPC

|Chapter 7|

Miss Peregrine took Willow's suitcase and bag that were still in the lobby and she put them in a bedroom that wasn't used by anyone. To know that the young woman would finally live with them filled the headmistress' heart with happiness. She felt wretched when Willow left, they had a good relationship and Miss Peregrine was scared that their connection might've fade over the years.

But now, she was relieved to see that they were still as close as when Willow left. Even if they were separated for a long period of time, their bond was still strong. Alma could see the little Willow running in the corridors with the rest of her children. It felt like it was yesterday... The ymbryne sat on the bed and she sighed. Life happened so fast, it had already been ten years since she and the children first met Willow.

While Miss Peregrine was remembering some memories, all the children, including Willow, had finished to make the cookies. They only had to wait until they were baked to be able to eat them. The smell of chocolate was filling the first floor and it was harder at every minute to not take the cookies out the oven before they were ready. The children, especially the younger ones, were impatient so to pass the time, Willow offered to play hide-and-seek.

Everyone accepted and they discussed what would be the rules. The ones hiding could go outside the house, but they had to stay in the loop. Also, once they chose a place to hide, they couldn't move from there. For the first round, it was Willow who had to search the others since she offered to play. She started to count in the middle of the lobby, her eyes closed and her hands blocking the sound of entering her ears.

Miss Peregrine walked down the stairs at the same moment and she wondered what Willow was doing here, alone and mumbling to herself. The young woman had not heard or seen the headmistress arrive in the room so when she finished counting, she almost smashed into the ymbryne. Alma stopped her at the last moment, a second later and the two women would probably have been smushed up together on the wall.

Willow was speechless in front of the older woman, Alma holding firmly Willow's wrists. The young woman stuttered, not being able to get a single word out of her mouth. The ymbryne chuckled and smiled softly at her little protege. Willow stopped trying and she looked down, shook her head before she penetrated her piercing gaze into Alma's crystal eyes. They stayed like that for a couple of seconds, both hypnotized by the other's eyes.

"So, Willow, tell me, where were you going like that?" Alma asked finally out of her trance.

"We're playing hide-and-seek with the children and I'm the one who searches."

"I see... Well, I'll leave you to it. It smells really good by the way, I think I'll stay in the kitchen while you guys play." Alma winked at Willow who smiled and looked down again.

Before she turned around, the young woman quickly kissed the ymbryne's cheek. They were both surprised by what Willow did and regretting it, she left the house to search her friends. Miss Peregrine stayed in the lobby for a couple of seconds, her eyes wide open and her hands sweaty. The touch of Willow's lips on Alma's cheek was soft like a feather and Miss Peregrine was an expert in this domain.

On the other hand, the young woman was ashamed of herself, why had she kissed Alma, where did it come from? Yes, Willow was excited to see the ymbryne again, but they weren't that close before she left, they never had this kind of behaviour towards each other. But even though, it felt good and normal, like if their relationship had always been like that.