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

Chapter 49

"And just like that, we'd entered a loop – abandoned a mild morning in 1940 for a hot afternoon in some other, older year." {Jacob Portman, pg 64 book 2}

They had made it a good ways up the mountain on a thin path, their clothes had dried in the heat and they were making steady progress. When the path became too thin they hugged the rocky cliff side behind them as they shuffled their feet, walking like crabs. Aurora kept her eyes shut and letting Millard's grip on her hand guide her. She didn't like heights, not unless there was a clear way down, like a staircase or a ladder; but the idea of nothing but a drop-off made her stomach clench in knots and sweat bead down her forehead.

She only opened her eyes when the others started asking Jake if he was okay. He seemed pale but insisted that he'd never had a fear of heights before so he didn't know what was wrong. Then a curious look appeared in his eyes and he looked over the edge of the trail. He looked side to side squinting his eyes as he searched for something. Then an ear piercing shriek echoed against the mountainside and they knew what it was Jake was looking for.

"Hollow!" someone shouted.

"Run!" Jake shouted as they all scrambled back from the ledge and took off as quick as they could down the path. They followed the trail around a corner and almost slammed faces first into a solid wall. It was at least fifty feet high and smooth with no handholds to grasp and some of the peculiars started patting the stone looking for a secret door while others started panicking. Claire started to cry as Miss Peregrine screeched, Fiona searched the rocky walls for any pinch of soil so that she might be able to grow a vine for them to climb as Hugh guarded her, his entire hive crawling on his skin waiting for their master to be provoked into attacking. Enoch pulled a scapel from his pocket, better than nothing. The twins stood at the front lines, their hands on the ends of their masks ready to pull them back at a moments notice. Aurora clung to Millard memorizing how he felt, how he smelt, the sound of his heartbeat, everything.

Emma then pushed her way though the crowd, careful not to shove anyone over the cliff. She began to unbuckle her shoes again as she gave instructions, "I'll take Claire and Miss Peregrine to the top, then come back down to take the rest of you in shifts." She said unlatching the final buckle and soaring above the wall. She held one boot in her hand to slow her floating to a speed which she had better control of. When she reached the top Olive threw the other shoe to her.

"I thought hollows couldn't enter loops. How the hell did it get in here?" Enoch asked his scapal still ready.

"It would seem they have evolved." Millard said as his arms wrapped tightly around Aurora both of them rather dying in the others embrace than to go out fighting.

"Who gives a chuck how it happened! It's here and it's hungry!" Hugh shouted.

"Look out below!" they heard from above and suddenly a net on a rope fell from the top of the wall, Emma's face peering over the edge. "Hurry! There's a lever up here, everyone grab hold and I'll pull it!"

As they piled into it Aurora saw a photograph attached to it with a man huddled inside hanging just above the ground, the inscription on the back read "only access to menagerie: climb inside! weight limit: one rider, strictly enforced" There was no time to use it as intended and many of their arms and legs stuck out as they piled inside.

"Take us up!" Jake shouted. There was a metallic squeak and the rope pulled taut and they were pulled into the air. Jake was still watching for the hollow, it must have been right on their heels because halfway up the wall he shouted, "It's going to jump! Pull your legs into the net!"

Then Olive screamed and started kicking as the net stopped, the hollow must have grabbed her ankle with one of it's tongues and now the elevator was too heavy for the lift to pull.

"Get it off me! Get it off, get it off, get it off!"

"Give me your gloves!" Enoch shouted and Olive moved as fast as she could removing her rubber gloves, her thoughts now the same as Enoch's. She reached down and grabbed the unseen tongue and the hollow shrieked. Black smoke curled from its tongue and there was the reeking stench of rotten meat burning. There was a thud as the hollow fell and hit the ground and the net lurched up toward Emma again. They all landed in a heap atop the wall and scrambled away from the edge as they detangled their limbs from the net.

"I can't believe you touched it." Horace said revolted.

"I just hope this smell comes off soon." Olive replied smelling her hands then wiping them on her dress, "That beast stank like a landfill!"

"How's your ankle?" Enoch asked with concern, "Does it hurt?"

She knelt and pushed down her sock to reveal a fat red welt ringing it. "Not too bad." She said touching the skin gingerly. But when she stood up and tried to put weight on it she winced.

"A lot of help you were!" Enoch growled at Jake, noticing Olive's pain, "'Run away!' says the hollow-slayers grandson."

"If my grandfather had run from the hollow that killed him he wouldn't have died in the first place. It's good advice!" Jake said defending himself.

"Oh, here." Aurora intervened pushing the quarreling boys apart and kneeling next to Olive. She wrapped her hand around the girl's ankle and in only a moment she was walking fine again. Aurora, on the other hand, swayed a bit and Millard crouched next to her.

"Darling are you alright?" he asked as the dizzy feeling grew and Aurora swore the sky and ground had melted into one.

"I'm fine." She slurred, "I – I'm –fuh-fine—" then everything went black and the last thing she felt was Millard supporting her weight.

MILLARD P.O.V.

"Aurora!" Millard cried in shock as she passed out and fell into his chest. She was out cold and to make matters worse Jake was now looking over the edge like he was about to be sick.

"Bad news. The fall didn't kill it."

"What's it doing?" Emma asked standing by his side.

"It's trying to climb the wall."

"We have to stop it!" Fiona yelled.

"Sure, but how?" Emma asked.

"Will this do?" Bronwyn asked holding a boulder over her head.

"It might." Jake said looking back down at the hollow, "How's your aim? Can you drop it where I tell you?"

"I'll certainly try." Bronwyn replied tottering toward the edge. Jake gave her the directions 'Farther this way.' and 'More to the left.' Finally he pointed and gave a shout, "Drop it there!" and Bronwyn dropped the massive rock. There was a crash like thunder and Jacob shouted, "Direct hit!"

While the others congratulated him Millard looked back down to Aurora, she appeared to be alright, unconsciousness aside, but that didn't stop his worrying. This had never happened to her before and he had no idea how long it would take for her to recover.