You have just died. You are sitting before God in the judgment chair as you watch little scenes from your life go by. What do you end up?

Jack was sitting in a large wing-back chair. It was very comfortable; he only wished that he could enjoy it. He watched the old man that sat behind the desk that was between the two. He pulled on a lock of his brown hair as the older man closed the folder he had been reading and turned his stare to the teen. He smiled kindly, with sadness in his eyes.

"Hello Jackson."

Jack bowed his head respectfully. "Sir."

The man waved away the formality. "Please, call me Mr. R"

"Okay, Mr. R" Jack said as he let go of his hair.

Mr. R watched as Jack looked around nervously. After a moment brown eyes locked onto silver.

"Where are we?"

Mr. R shrugged as he leaned back into his chair. "Where ever you want us to be."

Jack looked down at his lap, deep in thought. "The last thing I remember is my sister yelling my name before I fell through the ice."

"Oh." Was the answer. As if the old man had already known. The younger boy looked back into the pools of silver as a thought occurred to him.

"Am I dead?"

The corners of the man eyes crinkled as he smiled. "Not yet, but it really hasn't been decided."

"What does that even mean?"

"Whatever you want it to. Do you know where we are now?"

"Don't you?"

"Dear child." Mr. R chuckled. "I have no idea where we are. That is completely up to you."

Jack looked around once more. He almost jumped in surprise when he saw that they were in his living room. The fire was roaring and he could smell his mother's stew. The only thing wrong was that there weren't any people. It was missing Jack's deep laughter, Pippa's soft giggles, their mother telling them to wash up for supper. The sight almost brought tears to his eyes, but he learned a long time ago that the man of the house does not cry.

"I'm home." He said. "I'm almost home."

"Almost?"

The teen looked back to Mr. R to see that the desk was now gone. He had a look of pure joy on his face as he talked.

"Pippa isn't here. A house isn't really a home without a little sister. Mother's gone as well." He said as an afterthought. Mr. R nodded.

"Pippa." He said, ignoring the last part of the statement. "She's why you fell through the ice. She couldn't move so you had to save her."

"It wasn't her fault." Jack said without a thought. "She was just learning and I was stupid enough to go out so early in the season. You shouldn't blame her."

Mr. R folded his hands and put them on his belly. "I don't I was making sure that you didn't as well."

"Why?"

"It was a test." He answered honestly.

"Did I pass?"

"You did. You were able to get a third choice. Not many people get that."

"Third choice for what?"

"Your life."

The young man tilted his head at the elder, unsure of how to respond.

"Let me explain." He crossed his legs and motioned Jack to make himself more comfortable. Jack didn't move. "I really rather hate seeing the young die when it is not yet their time. You and your sister should have both made it off that pond, but something happened. I would tell you except that I'm not sure myself. Anyway, many years ago I made a deal with Death."

"You're not Death?" Jack interrupted.

"No child, I am not." He answered kindly. "I made a deal with Death that if a child too young came to me, that I could give them a choice. You will watch scenes from your life, good and bad, then you will get to choose the option you like best. To live on or decide that you time on Earth is over." He uncrossed his legs and leaned forward to finish his little speech. "However as you have passed the test I was told to give to you, you will be given a third. I will tell you what it when the show is over."

As he finished speaking he pointed over to the fire and Jack saw scenes of his life start to play out.

He saw the day his father taught him how to herd the sheep.

The day his mother told him that he would be a big brother.

The day Pippa was born.

He saw himself, teaching his sister how to walk.

He saw Pippa helping Mother with supper.

He saw the day his father died from illness.

He saw his mother grieving and himself trying to hold the family together.

He saw Pippa learning about the sheep as she followed her brother on his rounds.

He saw the two of them dancing in the rain as their mother watched from the doorway.

He saw the three of them walking up a green hill to have a picnic.

He saw himself, almost falling out of a tree, as his sister told him to get down.

He saw all the children of the town around him as he told a story around the fire.

He saw a Christmas morning, his last Christmas morning, with paper lying all over the floor and the three of them laughing at something.

He saw himself sneaking candy to his ill sister, scared that she would leave like Father had.

He saw later that summer with them swimming in the pond then drying on the sun-warmed grass.

The last image was that fateful day on the ice, creaks under them. He saw the whole thing again. He saw the tears in her eyes and the fear in his, which he had tried so hard to hide. He saw her smile and laugh as he pretended to almost fall over. He sees himself pull her onto the thicker ice. With horror and acceptance he sees himself fall onto the thin, cracked ice. Then he watches as he falls through to the water. The last thing he sees is his sister and he hears her call his name. Then everything goes dark.

Jack looked away from the fire, doing his best to hide his wet cheeks. He cleared his throat.

"What now?"

"You have three things to choose from. The first two as you know are to live, you would be able to make it out of the water and go home with little Pippa. Or you can die, officially. Your body will stay in the water to found in the spring and you would wait for the rest of your family with your father."

"What's the third?"

Mr. R smiled kindly at the boy. "The third is to live, but it comes with a price. You will be alone for a long time. If you choose this, when you wake again, you won't remember a thing. Your life, your death, this conversation, your sister, your friends, nothing. Though in this new life you will watch over children. You will protect them and keep them safe. You will protect the values of childhood until the Earth stops spinning."

Jack was silent for a long moment. "So the price of being able to watch kids so they don't end up like me is to forget everything and be alone for years?"

The man nodded solemnly. "That is correct."

"I'll never see Pippa again."

"No, you will see her. She might even see you, but you will not know who she is."

"Okay." Jack sat staring at the now crackling fire. He was pulling his hair again, but other than that he was as still as a rock. It felt like hours before he looked back into the rings of silver.

"Okay, I chose the third one."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah." He answered softly. "I'm sad I won't remember Pippa or Mother or any of my friends, but I'll be able to watch over them. I fell through that ice for a reason and I think this is it."

Mr. R smiled brightly. "And what a wonderful reason it is. Manny will be pleased. It was nice to meet you Jackson. We will meet again, but for now sleep."

The next thing he knew he was under water and looking up at the moon.

A/N This is the longest one ever and I don't think it will be the last. Words cannot say how proud I am of this story. I don't even care what other people think, this one is my favorite. On a different note, let's play a little game. I'm going to tell you little things about myself and I dare you to not ignore them. Don't have to play if you don't want, but I thought that it would be fun for everyone the is.

To start: English is my first and only language, though I'm not the best speller in the world.