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When all the animals were assembled, Addison cried, "Three cheers for the hollow-killers!" Deirdre brayed and the goat staround and the owl hooted and the chickens clucked and Grunt grunted his appreciation And while all this was going on, Bronwyn and E down at her coat, where Miss Peregrine was hiding, and then raising her eyebrows at E her head in reply: Not quite yet

Bronwyn laid Claire in a patch of grass beneath a shade tree She eating and shivering, fading in and out of consciousness

"There’s a special elixir I’ve seen Miss Wren prepare for treating fever," Addison said "Foul-tasting but effective"

"My mom used to make me chicken soup," I offered

The chickens squaith alar!" he said "Only joking, such an absurd joke, ha-ha! There’s no such thing as chicken soup!"

With the help of Grunt and his opposable thumbs, Addison and the emu-raffe went to prepare the elixir In a little while they returned with a bowl of what looked like dirty dishwater Once Claire had drunk every drop and fallen back asleep, the animals laid out a modest feast for us: baskets of fresh bread and stewed apples and hard-boiled eggs--of the nonexploding variety--all served straight into our hands, as they had no plates or silverware I didn’t realize how hungry I’d been until I wolfed down three eggs and a loaf of bread in under five minutes

When I was done I belched and wipedback, watching us eagerly, their faces so alive with intelligence that I went a little nu sensation that I was drea next to me, and I turned to him and asked, "Before this, had you ever heard of peculiar anih a e, then, that it was one such story that led us to them"

Only Olive see--or part of her was, anyway--and the distance between stories and real life did not yet seereat "Where are the other animals?" she asked Addison "In Cuthbert’s tale there were stilt-legged grimbears and two-headed lynxes"

And just like that, the ani hands and Deirdre let out a neighing groan "Don’t ask, don’t ask," she said, hanging her long head But it was too late

"These children helped us," Addison said "They deserve to hear our sad story, if they wish"

"If you don’tus," said Emma