blinding; an e. o'connor short story

chapter i; a girl has visions

··Nᴏ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴅʀᴇᴀᴍɪɴɢ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴇᴀᴅ ᴀs ɪғ ᴅᴇᴀᴛʜ ɪᴛsᴇʟғ ᴡᴀs ᴜɴᴅᴏɴᴇ
Nᴏ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄᴀʟʟɪɴɢ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴀ ᴄʀᴏᴡ ғᴏʀ ᴀ ʙᴏʏ﹐ ғᴏʀ ᴀ ʙᴏᴅʏ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ɢᴀʀᴅᴇɴ
Nᴏ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴅʀᴇᴀᴍɪɴɢ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴀ ɢɪʀʟ sᴏ ɪɴ ʟᴏᴠᴇ﹐ sᴏ ɪɴ ʟᴏᴠᴇ
Nᴏ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴅʀᴇᴀᴍɪɴɢ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴀ ɢɪʀʟ sᴏ ɪɴ ʟᴏᴠᴇ﹐ sᴏ ɪɴ ʟᴏᴠᴇ
Nᴏ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴅʀᴇᴀᴍɪɴɢ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴀ ɢɪʀʟ sᴏ ɪɴ ʟᴏᴠᴇ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴛʜᴇ ᴡʀᴏɴɢ ᴡᴏʀʟᴅ··
﹣Bʟɪɴᴅɪɴɢ ʙʏ Fʟᴏʀᴇɴᴄᴇ ﹢ Tʜᴇ Mᴀᴄʜɪɴᴇ

Monday, 2nd December 1963

The wind on the little washed-out green ferry hit my face just right to blow every single piece of my hair into my mouth, eyes or nose, occasionally tangling itself in a mop over my whole face. I was the only passenger on board and I could tell that the island probably didn't attract many visitors. I'm not here for visiting anyway, I reminded myself. 'Safety before comfort. Always remember that,' my mother had always told me as a little girl. After all these years I was still a girl, but my family must all be dead by now; the family I used to know. I knew I had had many nieces and many nephews and that their children's children might still live today but there was no way of just walking up to people I didn't know and tell them I was their ancestor from the 1800s who hadn't aged in the last 150 years. That was also one of the reasons why I had to travel fast, the bit about having been around for a good 160 years, making me older than even the headmistress Peregrine whose loop would be my home from now on. The ship neared the small dock of Cairnholm and I picked up my small leather suitcase from my lap. My attire would be conceived as rather old-fashioned considering it was already the 1960s, however, it would not have been had it still been the 1920s. A young girl dressed like I was today would not have caused a scene back then. Out of all the time periods I had witnessed the 20s had always been my favourite. The ferry docked and I was quick to get off the ship and straight through the town to its small, and fairly new, museum. I feared I would have to ask the curator how to get to Miss Peregrine's house as I had not yet been given any instructions what I was supposed to do or how I was supposed to get there aside from taking the ferry. A huge peregrine falcon sat atop the museum's shop sign, its black and blue feathers shimmering in the dim light of the clouds, and before I could enter the small building it had morphed into a middle-aged woman right in front of my eyes. It was nothing new to me, my previous loops had all been lead by pairs of ymbrynes, but it was still fascinating nonetheless. The woman, shining black hair pulled into a traditional bun and piercing green eyes peeking at me behind their frame, extended a hand out to me and I took it immediately and gave it a quick shake.

„I suppose you are Miss Clark then? You don't seem phased at all by my shifting. Usually it stuns the children very much. I reckon you already know who I am but for the sake of formalities I shall introduce myself," the woman announced, "My name is Alma LeFay Peregrine and I am the headmistress of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. You may call me Miss Peregrine." I gave a slight nod and went on to introduce myself as well.

"I am Robyn Clark, as you probably already know. Robyn will be just fine but call me whatever you prefer, Miss."

She gave an approving nod and took my arm, guiding me away from the town and more and more into endless fields lined with trees, small rivers and cliffs. At some point we must have turned left or right somewhere because all of a sudden we were walking through mud, then we stood amidst a small cave and before I knew it we were back outside again and a warm, sunny day and the front yard of a big, old house greeted us. A few children were playing outside the house, four playing football and two others circling around a tree, while another was tied to a rope, soaring high in the crown of the tree, reaching for something. A boy, physically seeming not much older than me, had a small table set up in front of himself and seemed to stuff small bloody hearts into clay soldiers. Some people's peculiarities are even weirder than mine, I though passing by him until we reached the front porch of the enormous house. The sun had already begun to set and the children were all running to get back into the house with us.