Chapter Text
Ever since you were a little girl, you knew you were different. If it was raining, and you wished it was sunny instead, strangely the weather would suddenly change for your liking. You've always felt different, and not just because of your sexuality, which was something that you knew since you were quite young.
Though you basically have always known there was something different, almost like a superpower (but those don't exist, do they?), you went on with your life. At least until... until you are going back home at night, after losing track of time in a bookshop, and you are thrown a few meters away by something invisible. What the fuck?
You hold your right arm, which is probably bruised, perhaps even broken from the impact of you falling on it. You hesitantly stand up, not knowing what could have possibly attacked you. Your heart starts racing in your chest just as an old man shows up out of nowhere and stands between you and... whatever it is he's facing. And then... he points a fucking gun at nowhere and simply shoots! What the hell? You stay still while you listen to the body of whatever it is that tried to attack you fall on the ground.
He then turns to you, his face showing a concerned expression as he looks at your arm. "Are you okay, kid?"
Kid? You're not a kid... you're an adult, definitely quite a few decades younger than him but still... You nod to him, still a bit shocked by the fact that something attacked you out of nowhere.
"What... what was that?" you ask incredulously.
The man studies you intently before he answers.
"That... was a hollowgast." he replies as if it was the most normal thing in the world.
A what? You're sure he is making that up, you've never heard of a creature like that, and how could something so big remain invisible?
"Wait a minute, who are you?" your eyes are still somewhat wide from shock, but you manage to voice your question.
"My name is Abe Portman," the old man replies and holds out his hand. You hesitate a little but shake his hand.
There's a silence in the air as Abe looks at you as if he is studying you. You are getting kinda uncomfortable, so you clear your throat, hoping he will start speaking again. "What's a hollowga... that thing?"
Abe gives you a knowing look before replying, "It's a very dangerous creature, and you seem pretty shaken up by it, rightfully so. Can you show me where you live? I can explain things to you on the way."
You look at him incredulously because you can't believe that he just asked to accompany you home, but somehow he feels as if he means no harm, so you don't protest.
"Fine," you say. "It's like two streets from here..."
You start leading the way.
As you walk along the desolate street, Abe looks at you occasionally, sometimes seemingly to check if you are doing well after the attack, and sometimes you feel his grey eyes studying you intently.
"Where to even start," he says more to himself than to you. "Well, first of all, do you know what a peculiar is?" he suddenly asks you.
You give him a questioning look, and you're starting to wonder if he's crazy. Does he really expect you to know what a peculiar is?
"No," you reply, almost reluctantly. "What's a peculiar?"
"A peculiar is someone who has special gifts, who's... different from ordinary people."
He looks at you again, and you wonder if he expects anything, like, does he think you are some kind of peculiar? You study his face, trying to read his expression, but his face is rather stoic. You almost feel like laughing because Abe's words sound absolutely ridiculous and impossible, but you don't because you think that he is serious.
"What... what kind of gifts?" you ask, still not even remotely believing what he is saying.
"All kinds. Some have super strength, some can manipulate time... My peculiarity, for example, is that I can see the hollowgasts."
A skeptical look is still on your face, and you can't help but raise your eyebrows. What kind of bullshit is Abe trying to make you believe? But somehow the man looks so serious that you start to have lingering doubts, maybe they're not all bullshit.
"You can see those things? Those... hollowgaste... whatever, you can see them?"
"I can," Abe replies, nodding. He smiles faintly, seemingly amused by your skepticism. "I know it's difficult to believe... but it's the truth."
A feeling of dread washes over you, and you stop walking for a moment.
"But... why did it attack me?" you ask as fear starts to take over.
Abe looks at you intently again, his eyes studying you intently, as if to confirm something for himself.
"Judging by how it was acting... it was after you. I suppose that means you are, in fact, a peculiar." he says, his voice low.
You are silent for a moment as his words slowly register in your mind. A peculiar? The thought is ridiculous. It can't be true... then again, what happened earlier was pretty ridiculous as well, and that was real.
"What does that mean... that I'm... a peculiar?" you almost hate to even say the word because it sounds so absurd.
Abe glances at you again before replying. "It means that you have a special gift like the other peculiars have. Have you ever done, or felt, anything that you couldn't exactly explain? You know, something that might not be quite normal?"
Something you couldn't exactly explain? The sentence echoes in your head, and suddenly you remember something.
"I... I have, actually. Several times," you reply, and you feel a bit nervous and embarrassed for some reason. "Sometimes when I wish the weather would change, it does." you try to say it casually, but it ends up sounding like a confession.
There is an expression of understanding on Abe's face, as if him hearing your words confirmed what he already guessed.
"I see," he says, his voice calm but somewhat serious. He looks at you with a look of warning. "Listen, kid, you aren't safe here. More hollowgasts will keep coming after you."
You are still trying to process the fact that you might actually be what Abe called a 'peculiar.' The thought of it, the absurdity of it, is almost making you feel panicky, but you don't show it.
"Wait, more hollowgasts?" you can't help but ask, hoping you misunderstood. "Why? Why would they keep coming after me?"
"There's no time to explain right now," Abe answers, looking around as if he's checking if the street around you is safe. "First we'll need to get you somewhere safe. Can you guide me to your house?" his voice is firm, but not unkind.
You nod even though it's hard to think straight - everything feels so surreal that you almost feel like running in the other direction. But some part of you knows that you can't. You look at Abe again, taking in his weathered face and the slight wrinkles around his eyes.
"Yeah, it's not far from here. I'm... I'll show you," you finally say and start leading the way.
The two of you arrive at your house, and you glance at Abe, still feeling slightly stunned by the entire situation. You have so many questions, so many thoughts running through your head, but you don't ask any of them.
Instead, you dig your keys out from your bag, open the front door and walk through it, signaling for Abe to come in as well. He follows you inside, looking around as he does so.
"You should gather your things," Abe says as he closes the door behind him. "We don't have time to grab everything, so just pack clothes and, I dunno, stuff that's really important to you."
There is a certain urgency to his tone that makes you feel nervous again, but you just nod and head for your room. You start taking clothes and other important items, putting them in a backpack, still not completely believing that this is happening. Everything is just so crazy and impossible. It just can't be real, can it?
In the midst of packing, it hits you then just how surreal the whole thing is. What are you even doing? Can you really trust an old man who says he can see invisible monsters that just attacked you? The doubts and confusion are making your head spin, and you stop packing for a moment, sitting on your bed and covering your face with your hands.
At the same time, something very deep inside you tells you to trust this man, it tells you that everything makes sense, that you will probably have an opportunity to meet other people like you, to finally feel like you belong.
Before you can even think about what to do next, Abe appears at your bedroom door.
"How's it going here?" he asks, a hint of anxiousness in his voice.
Looking up at him, the words get stuck in your throat. How can you even say how things are going when it's all so damn weird? So you just nod and mutter, "Fine, I'm almost done."
There is something about the look on Abe's face that tells you that he doesn't really buy your answer, but he doesn't push the matter.
"Right," he says. "Finish up here, we have to get going soon."
You quickly finish packing what you think are the most important things and sling the backpack on your back. Then you come out to the hallway where he is waiting, and it seems like he's constantly looking out the windows to check if you're still safe.
"Where are we going?" you finally ask, breaking the silence that was starting to get too much to take.
"I'm taking you to a loop," Abe replies, his voice a hint strained by the tension of the situation. "There's a place where the peculiars live, where you will be safe."
—
After traveling for several hours, you finally arrive at Cairnholm island, Wales. Abe takes you to a kind of tunnel, where is located the entrance of a loop. Just as you step out of said tunnel, the old man turns to you.
"This is the place," Abe says, gesturing at everything around you. "I only came to drop you here safely."
His face becomes solemn as he looks at you, like he's hesitating about something, but he seems to decide to speak nonetheless.
"I have to go back to the outside world to... to keep hunting the hollows," he states, and there's a hint of regret in his voice.
You look around, feeling a bit lost since you are now in an unfamiliar place, and you have no idea what you should do. The reality of the situation is finally starting to sink in, and there's a feeling of anxiety in your chest.
"Okay... but what exactly do I do now?" you ask Abe, hoping he can give you some direction.
A faint smile crosses Abe's face, although it looks somewhat strained.
"Well, there's a house not far from here, outside this tunnel," he tells you. "It's the house where Miss Peregrine resides, she's... in charge of the peculiars in this loop, you could say, she's the one who takes care of them. You can stay there. Tell her I was the one who found you and sent you."
"Miss... Peregrine?" you say, testing out the name. "Okay..." you reply, trying to sound more confident than you really are. "I'll... tell her that. Thank you... for everything."
Abe nods and gives you a slight smile. He looks like he's about to say something else, but he doesn't.
"Good luck, kid," he finally says. "You'll be safe here." He takes one long look at you before turning away and walking through the tunnel.
You stay still for a moment, watching him leave, before walking outside the tunnel yourself, in the opposite direction from where you entered and he left. In a stark contrast to the rain that was falling when you walked in the tunnel, the sun is shining now, as well as the sky is blue.
The sight catches you off-guard, and you pause for a moment, looking around. A vast open field lies in front of you, and in the distance, you can see the house Abe was referring to. As you stand there, almost dumbfounded by the weather, you suddenly hear a voice from your left.
"Hello. Who are you?"
You turn to the direction the voice came from, and you see a girl there, she looks about sixteen years old, with blonde hair and green eyes. You also immediately notice the odd shoes she's wearing, some kind of metal boots.
The girl studies you with her big, green eyes, a curious but nonetheless friendly look on her face. You realize that she's expecting you to reply, so you quickly get your thoughts together and answer her.
"Umm, my name is Y/N... I'm - Abe sent me here, saying Miss Peregrine should take me in?" you're stumbling a bit on your words, your nerves getting the best of you.
The girl's expression changes, her eyes growing wide and her mouth parting in surprise.
"Abe?" she repeats, her voice slightly higher due to her surprise. "Abe sent you here?" She looks at you intently then, like she's trying to figure out something, before she suddenly says, "Come with me."
You nod and follow her as she starts heading towards the house. You're a bit bewildered by her reaction, what was it that made her look so surprised?
You follow the girl to the front door of the house and watch as she knocks on it. A pause, and then she knocks again, more impatient.
A moment goes by after the impatient knock, and you both stand there, waiting for the door to open. Then, suddenly, it does, and the person that appears in the doorway steals your breath away.
The most beautiful woman you've ever seen stands in the doorway, looking at you and the girl with an elegant, yet somewhat stern demeanor. Her slender, delicate yet striking face and her dark teal hair. You almost gasp, but you can't.
"Emma, what is it?" comes a soft, melodious voice.