A/N : *crawls out of her hiding place* Hello, anybody there? Anybody that doesn't wanna kill me? Sorry about the amount of angst in the last chapter, but like I said, it's important for the rest of Jack's development and another chapter I have in mind.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed, favourited and follows this story!


Many weeks had gone by. The mood at the Overlands' house hadn't improved during that time at all. Since the death of their beloved husband and father no one of the family had smiled, each of them was caught in a seemingly endless spiral of grief and sadness.

Becky had become increasingly quiet and refused to play with the other children of the village. Instead, she mainly followed her mother around everywhere, as if she was afraid of losing her as well and wanted to make sure she was alright. When they were both at home she mainly sat at the window, played half-heartedly with her scarce toys or tried to help her mother with the household.

Being still young and not nearly as experienced and strong as his father, Jack couldn't fully undertake all of his chores and duties, but he did everything in his might to get at least a part of them done. In general he kept himself busy with work to distract his mind from the mental pain the loss of his parent had caused.

Fortunately the people in the village stuck together. Mr. Overland was admired and liked by everyone, he was always there when someone needed help, was a great hunter and above that he was a pleasant fellow to be around. His death had been a shock for the whole community and they promised to do everything conceivable to help the family. When there had been a particularly successful hunt, a part of the meat was given to them. When something was broken around the house, something Jack wasn't able to fix, they lend a helping hand. In exchange, and mainly because she wasn't willing to accept anything for free, Mrs. Overland offered to sew clothes and fix clothing. Now and then adults approached Jack and asked him if he could carve a toy for their children, may it be for an upcoming birthday or just because they didn't have enough to play with. That's how everyone adapted to the situation, as difficult as it was. Life had to go on.

And still, late at night Jack could hear the suppressed crying of his mother, when she was convinced he and Becky were already fast asleep. Since her husband's funeral she hadn't cried anymore, at least not in anyone's presence. She tried to be strong for her children, didn't want to burden them with her own grief because she was aware of them having a hard time coping with the loss themselves.

Right now, Jack had been chopping wood behind his home for hours. After he was done, he walked back into the cottage, sweaty and exhausted, to see his mother standing at the stove and his sister setting the table. Their expressions were void of any emotion and while guessing he didn't look much different himself the 14-year old inwardly cringed at the regrettably familiar sight.

Rebecca stood on her toes and stretched out her hand to get a hold of the mugs which were kept on a shelf above the kitchen counter. Just when her fingers reached a particular one, Mrs. Overland's attention was drawn to her youngest and all of a sudden her mood switched from blank to almost shocked.

"Becky, no! Not that one!"

At that very moment the mug slipped from the girl's grasp and shattered on the counter, a few shards also landing on the floor.

"I'm sorry!" she apologized anxiously, not wanting her mother to be mad at her.

While not showing a sign of being angry, the brunette woman stared down at the shards, her body trembling as she attempted to pick up the pieces. She had barely touched them when an unsuccessfully suppressed sob left her mouth and she sank down to her knees, her face buried in her hands to hide the tears from her children, even if it was a useless endeavor.

"Please don't be sad, I'm so sorry!" Becky repeated and sat next to the still upset grown-up, clearly being at a loss at what do do now.

"Mother, what's wrong?" she asked in confusion.

Jack knew what this was all about. It had been his father's mug. His mother hadn't dared to use or even touch it ever since his death. To Becky they all looked the same, so she most likely hadn't noticed what was so special about this one. A desperate look was shot in his direction and he snapped out of his state of shock. Hurrying to his mother he knelt down by her side, his sister sitting on the other one, and laid his arms around her. She tried to push him away, claiming that everything was alright but he had enough of her suffering and grieving in silence. Not allowing her to break free of his embrace, he let her struggle for some short moments before she finally gave in and leaned against him, allowing the tears to fall freely.

"I-I miss him so much..." she sobbed and her son responded by holding her tighter.

"I-I...I don't know h-how to do this alone..."

"You don't have to do this alone." Jack stated with a firm yet gentle tone which resembled that of his father so painfully much.

"I miss him, too, but what matters is that we still have each other. We have to stick together now and I'll do everything I can to support our family."

Mrs. Overland looked up at her son with watery eyes. He didn't talk like a child anymore, he had grown up, faster than she had noticed. Becky, who had watched the interaction worriedly, felt a little left out. It didn't go past the teenager so he gave her a soft smile and reached his hand out towards her, silently inviting her to join the hug. The brown-haired girl didn't waste a second and flung her small arms around her mother's waist.

"Thank you. I love you two." Mrs. Overland sniveled quietly at her children as she forced a weak smile and tried to regain her composure.

"Now, let's clean up this mess and have dinner, shall we?" she suggested and got back on her feet, acting like the strong woman she was.

But Jack knew that she was still far from being alright again.


Seasons changed, summer had ended and fall began. Months had passed and while the Overlands were moving on and making the best of the situation, life was far away from how it had been when their beloved husband and father had been alive. The nightly fits of crying had ended but Mrs. Overland hadn't laughed for a long, a very long time.

Jack had enough of it. He couldn't stand to see his family in such a depressed mood anymore. Of course he missed his father more than he could ever show but he also was aware of his new role and his responsibilities. It was his job to take care of his mother and sister, which also involved ensuring that they were happy. Acting mature obviously didn't have the desired effect so he had pondered for a while what else he could try until he finally got an idea he deemed worth trying. It wasn't anything dramatic, just a small gesture that would hopefully cheer them up.

When they left the cottage to collect mushrooms together with several other women of the village, Jack knew he had a few hours to put his plan into action. Up to this day he had collected all kinds of colourful leaves in various shades of yellow, orange, red and brown. Without anyone noticing he had put them on strings and hid the natural garlands under his bed. He made sure to only work on them when he was alone so the surprise wouldn't be ruined. By now it was all finished and he only had to hang them up on the ceiling and soon the humble room was decorated with brightly coloured leaves which shone even more in the warm light coming from the sun through the windows. Similar garlands, smaller and made with chestnuts were added in a few empty spots as well.

Once he was happy with the re-design of his home he pulled his sleeves up to tend to the hardest part of his undertaking. Baking. His mother's favourite dish was blueberry pie and his sister loved it a lot as well, so he had decided to make one for them. It was his first try but he had watched the process so often that he assumed he would be able to accomplish it as well. At least he really hoped he would. Shortly after the two women had left a boy from the village knocked on the door and brought him a bowl of blueberries in exchange for a small wooden bird figurine. Jack had planned this out in detail.

So now all he had to do was turn the berries into a delicious pie. Couldn't be that difficult, could it? To his disadvantage he couldn't recall every single step and had to improvise here and there but on the whole it was going fine. While the sweet meal was baking in the oven he cleaned up the mess he had caused. Blueberries weren't exactly easy to work with, he had realized pretty quickly. Judging from the scent that filled the room he had succeeded and dearly wished it tasted as good as it smelled.

After the pie was ready and placed on the laid table to cool down, Jack could already hear familiar voices from outside slowly coming nearer. Perfect timing. Quickly he grabbed a towel, hurried to the door and brushed his hair back with his free hand, only to have it immediately falling back into its usual wild position. Just when Mrs. Overland reached for the handle of the door it was opened from the inside and she was faced with her son, who was standing there straight as a pole and having a towel draped over his left lower arm.

"Miladies, I awaited your arrival." he spoke with a faked British accent and tried to act as dignified as possible.

The women's eyes widened in surprise and wonder as they took in the sight in front of them, with all those leaf- and chestnut-garlands hanging from the ceiling. It was beautiful.

"Wow..." Becky breathed while she was staring at the colourful decoration.

"Jack, what-"

"Dinner is already prepared, I surely hope you brought some appetite with you." he continued but then noticed the basket full of mushrooms in his mother's hands.

"Oh, allow me to carry that for you."

Mrs. Overland and her daughter watched in mild amusement how the 14-year old was grabbing the basket, putting it down in the kitchen corner and running back to them where he immediately fell back into his role as Jack the butler.

"This way, if you please."

His arm was extended and pointed at the table which was only several feet away from them, so it wasn't as if they could get lost in the depths of the room, but hey, it was part of the show. Becky giggled slightly at her brother's weird behaviour as she followed her mother and sat down on the chair next to her.

"Did you bake this?" Mrs. Overland asked, not sure if she should be shocked or impressed as she laid eyes on the dish in front of her.

"Why, yes. Blueberry pie, just for my two favourite ladies. Made with an extra portion of loooove."

The smiles on the brunette woman's and the little girl's faces grew bigger and they both had to snort at the exaggerated but undoubtedly charming attitude of the teen. After pouring water from a jug into their mugs he cut the pie and put a slice on each of their plates.

"Enjoy your meal." he finally said and bowed down gracefully.

"Thank you, my dear." Mrs. Overland smiled and nodded her head at him, equally noble.

"You're funny, Jack!" Becky stated before taking a spoonful of the fruity dish, just like her mother.

Jack deeply hoped that it would taste fine. However, his bubble burst as he saw the expressions on both their faces suddenly changing into pure disgust only a moment after they had chewed the food. While his mother was composed enough to spit the mouthful of pie into a napkin, Becky simply spit it back onto her plate. Several coughs rang through the air before they hastily grabbed their mugs and urgently gulped down the water.

Well, apparently his baking had failed.

"Not good?" the brown-eyed boy asked lamely and a little crestfallen.

"It's gross!" Becky blurted out and was immediately reprimanded by her mother.

"Becky!"

"But it's true!"

"That bad?" Jack inquired, his expression turning into something that resembled a beaten puppy.

"Uhm, honey, could it be you confused sugar with salt?"

Yeah, that was possible, and very embarassing, and he was far too proud to admit it.

"No, I'm sure I used sugar. Come on, it can't taste that horrible, I bet you're just exaggerating."

Wanting to prove a point he grabbed the spoon from his sister and took a big bite of the blueberry pie. And almost choked on it. All he tasted was salt and he was convinced that the colour in his face must have gotten a greenish tint. But he was too stubborn to admit his failure just yet, so he forced himself so swallow the pie, even though his mouth and throat felt like burning.

"See, not nearly as bad as-" he spoke with a hoarse voice before falling into a coughing fit.

Alright, time to admit his more than unsuccessful attempt to bake something, it had no use to deny it anymore. Still coughing he lunged at the jug of water and emptied the whole thing in one go, ending the show with a loud sigh after the very last drop had landed on his tongue.

"Damnit." he stated matter-of-factly.

For about two seconds there was silence. Everyone stared at each other before all of a sudden, they bursted out laughing simultaneously. Finally hearing the bright and happy laughter of his sister and mother again was like music to Jack's ears. It felt like eternity since the last time he had seen them in such a good mood. Mrs. Overland held her stomach and Becky almost fell off her chair as they allowed themselves to bathe in cheeriness after all the months of grief and sadness.

Even if his scheme hadn't gone according to plan, it still accomplished its purpose.

"We'll have to work on your baking skills for sure." the brunette woman giggled and took a few deep breaths to calm herself down again.

"Might be a decent idea." Jack smiled at her sheepishly and nodded, watching her as she stood up and walked closer towards him.

"Thank you." she whispered gratefully, knowing very well what his intentions had been, and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Now, let's make something to eat that's, well, edible. Before we starve." she winked at her children and grinned at the slight pout of her eldest.


A/N : Is he a sweetheart or is he a sweetheart? :3

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