Disclaimer: I do not own Across the Universe... But I did steal Maxie.

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The flames licked the roof, the house smoked furiously, black smoke billowed to the skies like dark clouds.

"Its OK Emily. Everything's going to be alright."

A tiny girl wrapped in a ratty blue blanket sat on the curb, her head in her arms. She was curled into a tight ball. Her hair was astonishingly red, and it fell in waves to the middle of her back. She lifted her head, and it was clear that she was not as young as she looked. Her eyes were aged beyond her twelve years. Her eyes were a sharp green, staring at the older boy standing in front of her.

"Who's going to take care of me Jude?" Emily asked, fresh tears formed in her eyes and died on her cheeks, falling to the ends of her face and vanishing in wet spots on the blue blanket.

Jude looked at her, pain evident in his brown eyes. He shook his dark hair from his eyes with a flick of his head.

"I will." he said, wiping the tears from Emily's pink, frost-bitten cheeks with his thumbs. "I will." he repeated softly.

"You're only 13, a year older than I am." she replied. Her hands were shaking violently with cold.

Jude sat on the curb beside her and wrapped his arms tightly around her. "Come on Em. They didn't do anything for you anyway. You're parents didn't matter..." he reasoned in his thick British accent. His words hurt Emily, but they were true. He kissed her temple lightly, "You'll be like my little sister. I'll never let anything happen to you."

Emily let her head rest on Jude's shoulder, and from that moment she knew that she had someone to trust, someone she could always trust. Forever.

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"Come on Jude!"

"I'm a little busy Em."

The tiny brunette he was with wrapped her arms tightly around his waist. "Get out of here Emily, its obvious that he doesn't want you."

"You're pretty brave when he's around, eh Molly?" the fiery redhead replied.

"Em, calm down. Lets just go." Jude said, sounding tired, "I'll see you around Molly." he added, kissing the disgruntled girl's cheek.

"Hey, would you look at that? I guess its you he doesn't want. So you can take your cute little lace set and shove it up your--" Emily began, advancing towards Molly. Jude grabbed her around the waist and pulled her, thrashing, from the club.

"What's the matter with you Emily?" Jude asked, half laughing. "Do you have to start a fight with every girl you meet?"

"Just the ones I don't like." Emily replied cheekily, stepping in front of Jude a bit to hide her smile. "Your little girlfriend included."

"Yeah, pretty much every girl you meet." Jude replied, catching her around the waist. "You're jealous!" he added accusingly, speaking into her ear in a low voice.

"Jealous of what? Molly's flat chest or her big nose?" Emily rebutted, rolling her eyes.

"Harsh Em." Jude said, laughing. "Come on, lets have fun somewhere... Its our last day in Liverpool."

"I can't wait to get out of here." Emily replied, a smile spreading across her face, "In face, I need to get out of here... Its becoming bad for my health."

Jude laughed, slinging an arm around her shoulders. "Well, you won't be here much longer Em."

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A/N: Didja like it?

Also, contact me if you're interested in roleplaying this. I'd play Jude and Emily, and I'd start a forum... so yeah... let me know.