You should know that I'm in my bunker. I finished building it yesterday. I might be in here for a while.


'Keep up!' Andrew's deep voice rung out through the familiar village with excitement.

'We are, we are!' Lily giggled loudly, out of breath.

The Guardians watched a thirteen year old Jack and seven year old Lily trail tiredly behind their father. He was running up ahead, laughing as he peeked over his shoulder to tease his children. They left the village and ran through the forest that surrounded the settlement, tangling their clothes and limbs as they hit the branches that splayed out across their way. Jack was sprinting just behind Lily, laughing hysterically yet silently due to his shortness of breath. She was wheezing and they were quickly falling behind their roaring father.

'Come on, come on!' Andrew shouted and bellowed a hearty laugh. 'You two are useless at racing! It's no fun when I win every time!'

'Fun, eh?' Jack smirked. He saw Lily slow to an almost standstill she was so tired, but she wanted so desperately to win. 'Come on, Lily, let's show him!' Jack quickly scooped her panting form and slung her over his back, where she held on for dear life as Jack started to run at full speed.

The forest blurred past as the Guardians followed the human boy that carried his sister deeper and deeper into the forest, following the flicking of branches and movement in the ground that gave away where their father was. Jack puffed air in and out and stretched his back out from the weight of his sister, slowing slightly in the process as he got more and more tired.

Finally, there was an abrupt halt and an instant plunge into darkness as Jack broke out through some branches. A thud could be heard from behind and a complaining squeal from the girl that fell off her brother's shoulders to the floor. The Guardians briefly panicked, but it was alright when they realised Jack had only shut his eyes for a few seconds, causing the blackout. He'd managed to run into his still father and let go of the weight on his shoulders as he lost his balance, and Lily was currently pulling an irritated expression as she wiped herself down.

'Dad!' Jack moaned, rubbing his head where he had collided with his bulky father. 'What the-'

'Look!' Andrew didn't even let his son finish before he stepped out of the way to reveal what it was he was staring at.

In front of the man stood a tree. On the tree were big, purple-red fruits that looked so very alien amongst the pines of this forest- Jack and Lily both straightened themselves out and stared at it in wonder.

'What are they, dad?' Lily asked quietly.

'Plums!' Andrew exclaimed out loud, his hands on his hips. 'Ha! I haven't seen any in years!'

'Plums!' Jack laughed too, the simple joy shining out of his face.

'Come on- they're in season, too!' Andrew jogged towards the sloping tree, reaching out and grabbing a few off the branches. It was true- it was summer here, and the sun was shining hot and magnificent today. That was one of the reasons they'd gone out. He handed a fruit each to his two kids, and gestured for them to wait before eating it.

'Shut your eyes.' Andrew instructed gently.

'Dad-' Jack started, but was promptly interrupted.

'No, shut your eyes!' Andrew chuckled to himself as he watched his son reluctantly close his eyes and hold the fruit in his palm. 'Alright… on three! One… two…' they all lifted the plums to their mouths. 'Three!'

Everyone took a juicy bite and chewed happily before exclaiming. 'Oh my God!' Jack said excitedly over the food in his mouth, and his family chuckled. Andrew probably should have told his son off for saying that, but neither he nor Emma had ever been particularly strict on how to speak.

'Good, right?' Andrew grinned and wiped some juice from his fuzzy chin. 'It's been years, old friend.' He looked fondly down at the fruit in his palms, eyes glistening.

'Dad, you are so weird sometimes. Please stop.' Jack barely held in a laugh. Lily giggled by his side, watching as her father took another greedy bite.

'We'll come back here another day with some baskets and collect some- that is, if we can find our way here again.' Andrew glanced up at the bright light trickling through the trees. It must have been at least thirty five degrees Celsius out here. 'Maybe we'll be lost out here all night!' he jokingly threatened. 'I don't remember which way home is, and I've definitely never been here before.'

Once they had all finished eating, they took a few moments to look around. Lily started to climb a tree, Andrew helping her scale the limbs of the trunk of the evergreen. Jack wandered around a little and explored the clearing they had managed to find themselves in. He peered in and out of the trees, exploring his home woodland with all the love and attention he usually did. He kept walking, until he stopped abruptly and backtracked a few steps, staring constantly to his left.

There, exactly where he was staring, was a path. The thick branches of trees had purposefully been cut back to make a way through, although judging by the state of the stumps, it had been many years ago. A few vines and new, thinner branches spread across the break, but there were definitely flat stones placed in the ground to serve as a walkway. 'Hey!' Jack called out back where he came from. 'Pa! Lily! Come see!'

Barely a minute later they were at his side, looking at what he was stood in front of, too. 'What do you think it is?' Lily asked gently, slipping her hand into her father's.

'Why don't we find out?' Andrew beamed a curious smile at his children and stepped forwards to swipe away the vegetation in the way. Sometimes he was a bigger kid than his own two put together. Jack and Lily followed eagerly, walking along a thin straight path that ran for another fifty metres or so. When they finally came clear of the trees, it was another clearing just like the one they'd been in before.

One thing, though, was vastly different.

In the middle of this break of trees stood a house. A wide area of open space with no plants or trees surrounded the building, just overgrown grass. It looked like something out of a fairy tale. The house was made of wood, a bit like a log cabin, except every single window had been smashed out. It extended for two floors, which was unusual for a wooden house, and the exterior was tarnished and damaged. It looked as if it hadn't been lived in for a very long time, abandoned and left for the wild to overrun- which only added to the eeriness of it. Inside the broken windows was darkness- nothing could be seen in there, not at this angle anyway, and all three of their curiosities were piqued. None quite so much as Andrew's, however.

'Want to explore?' the father asked with one eyebrow curled upwards, grabbing for his daughter's hand.

'Looks scary, pa.' Lily said nervously, gripping his large palm and clutching her own little skirt.

'Scared?' Jack grinned at her, rocking back and forth on his heels in a mocking manner. 'Well, looks like me and dad will just have to go in without you… and who knows what could happen to you out here while we're in there?' he started to walk towards the house, not particularly liking the look of it, but he never had been one to ignore his call for adventure.

Andrew started off towards the building, too, and Lily seemed to fret with herself internally before sighing loudly and running to catch up. The three of them all walked into the eerie house together, forcing their eyes to adjust to the dimness of the place. As soon as they could see, Lily grabbed her father's hand. They tentatively looked around- there were cobwebs everywhere, and the whole place was surprisingly dry. Damp seemed to have crept along the outer walls, but inside it was like a trick- everything in here was creaking and splintering it was so dried out. A thin staircase led upstairs, but there were a couple of rooms to the sides of this hallway they decided to look around in before venturing up.

To the left, the room was extremely empty. It seemed to have once been the living room- pieces of a broken chair lay rotting on the floor, and a fireplace set in stone lay against the far wall. A square patch just above it was a different colour to the rest of the wall, what the family presumed used to be covered by a mirror or painting. A few black coals still lay in the grate, but other than the dirt and the grime, this room was empty. A log pile was situated in the corner, stacked all the way up to the ceiling.

They left this room and went into the room on the right, that one similarly empty. A few pots and pans lay about alongside another fireplace, a single table stood right in the centre. On it sat an oil lamp, which Andrew took no hesitation to go and fetch, glad to find there was a flask with lighting oil still in it next to the lamp. Knowing how dark the upstairs had looked, he pulled out his pieces of flint and sparked them over the lamp, lighting it instantly. He smiled at his slightly spooked kids, before walking back to the door and out into the hallway. There was another door they hadn't noticed before- one just under the staircase. He went over to investigate, the children watching timidly from behind.

Andrew opened the stiff door wide, coughing as a cloud of dust exploded in his face. After spluttering for a few seconds more, he peered in and held the light out. Steps led downwards, and he followed them carefully, warning his children to mind the tender wood beneath their feet. When they reached the bottom, they noticed this used to only be a pantry of sorts. A few bottles of spirits lay in a covering of dirt in a wooden rack, and the ceiling was low and claustrophobic. It was stuffy, and deciding there was nothing interesting here, they went back up.

The family came back out into the hallway, looking up at the stairs. 'Ready to have a look around the bedrooms?' Andrew asked with a smirk, holding the fire under his chin to shine eerie light on his face.

'As we'll ever be!' Jack replied excitedly, though he wasn't feeling quite as confident as he let on.

'Right!' Andrew puffed up his shoulders comically and turned towards the stairs. The two siblings did the same, filing behind their father. The stairs creaked and groaned disturbingly beneath their feet as they clambered up, and neither of the children could escape a couple of worried gasps escaping their lips. Andrew simply turned back and grinned, seeing that they had only made it up about two or three steps. He decided having petrified kids in a dark, abandoned house wasn't the best thing to have to deal with, so turned the situation on its head. He walked back down to where they were stood, and they stopped to look at him in the half light.

'Race you.' Andrew said firmly, challenging his children to have some fun. Jack and Lily's faces lifted instantly, and they clasped each other's hands and prepared themselves to run. 'Ready?' they nodded and the light flickered in their eyes with determination. 'Three… two…' but before he could ever reach one, Jack and Lily were already off. They laughed as they went, and Andrew quickly followed after.

The brother and sister realised with horror all of their mistakes. The wooden steps creaked beneath their feet and complained loudly with every thud that was made on them, and when Jack felt the horrible shattering of wood give way beneath him he only travelled ever faster. Aware of his sister feeling the same panic by his side, he pulled on her hand to keep her going and didn't dare look back. Rusty nails stuck out jaggedly at awkward angles from the edges of the planks.

'Run, Jack, Lily, faster!' Andrew shouted, his voice suddenly panicked, and the children picked up on the terrified tone of their father. They felt hands on their backs as he pushed them up ahead of him, briefly halting himself. 'Come on, quickly now! That's it!' he encouraged.

Knowing he was nearly there only encouraged Jack more, so he started to run. He crashed on the chapped steps as he sprinted and felt the deathly crack of wood under his feet. Before he knew it, Jack was flinging himself and his sister onto the next step before he fell through the cracks. Not waiting any longer, he started to scramble up the remaining few stairs, nearly every single one soft and weak under his weight. Panting aggressively and forcing himself to keep moving without looking back for even a second, Jack and Lily eventually reached the top. The last couple of steps had been made of stone, so they didn't crack and break, despite the vines and foliage growing all along them and wrapping them in their spindly arms.

He held his sister to him and turned, and that's when he saw something he'd never wanted to experience in his life.

Andrew was tearing up the stairs- running as fast as his legs could take him to make it to his children. The steps broke beneath him, and he didn't dare let go of the lamp he held on to. He was so close- so close to getting to them- just a few steps, Jack said to himself, eyes wide. But as Andrew neared the top, a horrifying snap echoed around the silent house, and he jumped. He jumped to reach those stone stairs near the top, knowing that the middle area of the stairway was giving out beneath him. His eyes grew huge and fear shone through them, the amber in them giving off waves of colour from the shuddering flame he held, and he met his son's eyes. Andrew reached out a hand at the same time as Jack, and their fingers met in the middle.

Jack gasped loudly at the contact as he leaned dangerously over the collapsing staircase, trying to grip his father's skin. The gentle brush of contact was suddenly and horribly lost, and before they could do anything, another snap seemed to deafen all of them. Lily and Jack both screamed as loudly as they could, but all they could do was watch.

Andrew, the husband of Emma and father of Jack and Lily, disappeared in a flurry of splinters and eruption of dust.

'DAD!' Jack shouted as loudly as his lungs would let him, but no sound seemed to come out.

Crash.

Piercing amber eyes.

Crash.

A forgiving and loving smile.

Thud.

Nothing.

Everything was deathly still after that. He stared down at the rubble beneath him, coughing while he waited for the debris to settle down.

'Jack…' Tooth threw her hands over her mouth and shut her eyes tight. None of the Guardians could take this. How much more could the boy go through? Oh Manny, why hadn't they been able to do anything?

'DAD!?' Jack screamed again, tears starting to stream down his face. Finally, a light appeared from below. In the silence, Jack realised all too late how big that light was. It was too big and too bright to be coming from that tiny little lamp, and in that light, through the dust, he saw his father.

Andrew was lying still, not one floor beneath them, but two, in the basement. He was on his back, staring up with his destructive amber eyes, dust and bits of wood and flooring covering him from head to toe. 'Jack…' he managed to just whisper out.

'DAD!' Jack screamed again, searching all around him for anything he could use to do something. 'I'M COMING! STAY STILL!'

'No!' Andrew started but coughed violently, groaning at the pain it caused him and soon found he was unable to move. 'Jackson, listen to me…' he wheezed in a shaky breath and waited for his son to meet his stare. 'Take Lily… get outside… now, Jackson…'

'NO! I'M NOT LEAVING YOU!' Jack panted in the darkness- there had to be something. 'WE'RE TRAPPED!' he stared at the steps that had been completely destroyed beneath him, and glanced at his sister who was shaking uncontrollably.

'Jump.' Andrew instructed, coughing again weakly. 'You have… to jump. Take Lily… jump, Jackson. The fire…' he glanced to all around him, as the oil from his lamp had spread out all over the wooden floor and walls, and it was spreading fast. He only knew what would happen when the bottles of spirits next to him were lit, and he had to make sure his children were out before that happened.

'No…' Jack couldn't protest more than that, suddenly unable to think straight or even move.

'Yes.' Andrew said gruffly, his voice growing weaker. 'Jump. Explode… if you don't… please, Jackson…'

Jack paused, then nodded once, his face curling in on itself as he started to cry.

'I love you.' Andrew whispered, and he wasn't certain whether or not his son had heard him when he disappeared from his sight. He appeared back a few seconds later, holding Lily in his arms. She didn't seem to be struggling at all, and he stood on the last step, staring out at the jump he had to make with his sister in his hold. 'You… can do it…'

Jack was frozen. He couldn't move. He couldn't do this. He couldn't make that jump- it had to be at least three metres long. His father… his father was below. Dying. He wasn't going to survive. He looked down one more time, swallowing and taking deep breaths as he made eye contact with his father one last time. He smiled shakily, and Andrew smirked back. Maybe he should just throw Lily down and jump down to his dad… Maybe he could save him… Maybe he could at least die with him.

But it was all just maybe.

He knew that his father was going to die today because they had stupidly decided to explore an abandoned house. If he'd just said no to going in… none of this would have happened.

That was when Jack became aware of the fire that licked up at his arms and legs. It was spreading fast in the dehydrated house, crackling and breaking rafters and walls everywhere. He had to jump- now or never- but he just couldn't. Lily was crying in his hold. He held her head in his palm to his shoulder.

Come on, Jack, you can do it… Andrew's words rung out through his head when they had been practicing shooting. Just aim at that little point… take a deep breath, and fire. It's as simple as that.

Andrew looked absently on from below, feeling the blackness creep up on him, which he was almost glad for as he felt the heat around him. The flames were only seconds away from the spirits now, and Jack had to jump.

'Go…' Andrew managed to wheeze out, before another part of the house collapsed and fell on him, and he closed his eyes for the final time. He was proud of his son. And his daughter. And his wife. And he loved them. And he hoped they'd never forget that.

Jack breathed in and watched as his dad was covered in more debris, his face finally hidden from view. Taking in a shaking and rattling breath, he lowered his legs and suddenly noticed the fire. It was everywhere. Everywhere.

So he jumped.

Jack and Lily came down with an almighty crash at the end of the whole flight of stairs, and Jack cried out in pain as he took the brunt of the fall. They collided brutally with the wall at the end of the stairs, then crumpled to the floor together, sobbing and dirty all over. The hissing of wood was deafening all around them and so was the crackling of the whole house lighting up like hay that had been left out in the sun for years. Everything lit instantly.

The Guardians watched on helplessly, numbed and traumatised.

The fire… the rafters… The walls lit up and flickered deep red and yellow, a few items scattered around either charred and black or being tickled by flames.

This was it.

This was why Jack had been in shock.

Smoke drifted scarily low now, and Jack couldn't see above the hole in the staircase the black churning gas was so thick. But neither could he find the willpower to stand up. He stared at the house as it lit up, the cobwebs hissing and then disappearing in seconds, every wall lit up and burning.

Everything burning.

He coughed violently and remembered his sister was still sobbing in his hold. He would have stayed there and died too, if Lily hadn't been there. With an indescribable amount of effort, he hauled himself to his feet with Lily still in his tight grasp, the whole house now like a tinderbox. He took one last look down where his father lay, choked on his own breath as he sobbed, and turned away to the door.

Just as Jack flung it open, nearly the whole of the building shook and trembled. Several thundering booms echoed deafeningly from below- the spirits had been lit and were exploding. Jack flung himself and Lily out of the door and down onto the grass, rolling away as bits of flaming wood rained down on them. He coughed violently and let his sibling go.

Lily clambered to her feet and backed away as Jack hacked air in and out of his painful lungs. He finally collapsed, breathing heavily and not caring about the bits of housing that fell on him, nor the intense heat. Those explosions had been heard for miles around, and he knew it.

He stood up limply and walked over to Lily, pulling her shaking form into himself and just watching as the whole house lit up like a beacon. The flames seemed to reach up into the sky, touching the clouds and turning them black with the harsh smoke. Tears streamed down his soot covered face, leaving behind trails in grey, and he blinked owlishly.

This couldn't be real. No. it wasn't. He hadn't just lost his father. His sister wasn't crying into his chest. He wasn't here. He wasn't. It was a nightmare… just a nightmare.

A nightmare he couldn't wake from.

They stood there for a long time, watching the wooden house collapsing in on itself and absorbing the fierce heat that came off the flames. Only a few rafters were left of the top floor, the roof now having caved in. Another explosion shook the very ground, and the scene blurred with Jack's tears.

'No, Jack…' Bunny accidentally said out loud- not that anyone noticed. 'No…'

Finally, they could hear people breaking through the trees and exclaiming loudly at the flames that reached up impossibly high. Everyone knew it couldn't be stopped. They had to let it die down.

Jack suddenly realised that he was no longer holding his sister, and panicked for a minute until he felt her tugging on his shirt. He didn't turn to look at her. She was crying- wailing, now. Screaming. All he could do was stand there.

No, he couldn't even stand there. His legs gave way beneath him, and several arms caught him and lowered him gently down, and the last echoes of this memory faded away into blissful nothing.


Ouch. I'm sorry.

I felt like it had to be done. For that, I'm sorry. It's just... in the film, I couldn't ignore the absence of a father in Jack's memories- it must have held some significance that there wasn't one. That's why I felt like this was necessary- if there had been parents (plural) in the film, I would've left them as happy family until... you know... Jackson.

I love you guys, really :) I hope you know that, so feel free to go mad in reviews and just all out attack me if you want. If it helps.

So we've nearly reached 70 reviews?! You guys are incredible. 50 followers, and 40 favourites. Seriously, you guys are amazing. I love you all so so so so so much. And you still keep reading even if I do horrible things like this. Which makes you even better people! Keep up the good work, lads! ;)

Your horrible, terrible, evil author,

Emily xxx Early Christmas presents for you all for this feelsy chapter, and for surviving it!

P.S: I didn't write much about the Guardians reactions in this chapter because... well... I didn't really know. It just didn't really seem to fit in anywhere, so I gave them a couple of lines, but other than that I'm happy that I've left it how it is. I suppose it adds to how affected they were by the memory- if they couldn't even do or say anything in my mind, I guess that means they didn't really have anything to say. I don't know- let me know what you think.

*braces myself for the oncoming storm*