Because of the Fire by 13BlueBananas

Prologue

Disclaimer: I do NOT own Rise of the Guardians or its characters. I only own the plot. All rights to respective owners.

It was because of the fire that Jack lost his home.

He'd been away at a sleep-over his parents had set up between him and Hugh Baldwin, a kid who lived down the street. "You need to play with kids your age, Jack. It's not right for an 11-year-old to be so reclusive," They'd said when he asked why he had to go. He didn't even like Hugh, all big (it wasn't total muscle, but wasn't total fat either. Somewhere between the two) and intimidating. He easily towered over most of the other kids at school and even a few teachers. Jack once asked him where he got the steroids. That was when he got his very first black eye. Jack never saw a smile on his face; all it seemed Hugh was capable of doing was frowning and baring his teeth. But he was the only other 5th grader in the entire neighborhood.

Jack and his parents fought about it the night before, after Emma, his sister, had fallen asleep.

"I don't want to go! I don't like Hugh!"

"Hone it's for the best. You never hang out with kids your age anymore."

"What does age have to do with anything?!"

"Nothing," His father said quickly. "But wouldn't having friends in your grade be funner?"

"Funner isn't even a word, Dad."

"Jack..." His mother rubbed her forehead in exasperation. "You'll need at least one friend later in life."

Jack groaned, expecting another lecture about the future, but all she said was, "Just this one time? If you don't like it, we'll never make you go again. Deal?" He glanced into his mother's brown eyes, then his father's blue, then glared at his feet. Without looking up he growled,

"I hate you! Both of you!" Then stormed off to his room without waiting for a response.

The morning after the fight, Jack didn't say another word to them. He ate his breakfast (the eggs were delicious but he wasn't going to say that out loud in his current mood) in silence while his father read the newspaper and his mother cooked some bacon. She placed a few pieces in front of him and his dad, who thanked her while he said nothing. That didn't mean he wasn't going to eat it. He would never turn down bacon.

Jack returned to his room and passed the hours by playing video games with his headphones on full volume. He'd almost forgotten about the entire thing until his mother walked into his bedroom with the car keys in her hand and a gentle smile on her face. Jack made a big show of getting ready. His mom just rolled her eyes at his antics and shooed him out the door after giving Emma a goodbye hug, completely ignoring his father. It was a short and quiet drive.

"Mrs. Overland! Welcome to my humble home," Mrs. Baldwin said with a welcoming smile on her face. She turned towards the open door and yelled, "HUGH GET DOWN HERE!" Both Jack and his mom winced at the volume of her voice. They heard the sound of thunderous footsteps in the background, and a moment later Hugh appeared behind his mom. He looked generally unhappy with the entire arrangement, and Jack didn't blame him.

"What time do you want me to pick him up?" His mother asked.

"Oh, any time 'll do. Just make sure it's before three. I have a hair appointment. These glorious locks don't stay this way forever," Mrs. Baldwin gestured to her mess of dark brown curls. Hugh walked back into the house. Jack's mother gave him a pointed look, and with a final glare he picked up his duffle bag and followed him. Jack didn't see her mouth the words 'I love you' before she returned to Mrs. Baldwin's rant.

Jack hovered awkwardly near Hugh's bedroom door. Hugh was standing near his TV, going through a disk case with a scowl. "Get in here," He said, not looking up. Jack did so hastily, setting his bag against the wall. Hugh's room had a sports theme, with football posters and baseball sheets. Not that Jack noticed. He was too busy trying not to make a fool of himself by tripping over air (again). "Do you play video games?" Jack looked up from the floor and nodded. "Great. I'm player one." Hugh stated, popping in Call of Duty: Black Ops II. Jack cautiously sat down on the edge of the bed and grabbed a remote.

They played the Zombies map for hours on end. Their ears were filled with the groans and screams of the undead and the firing of machine guns. "BOOM! They're all gonna die!" Jack shouted with glee as he took down another one.

"Not if I kill them all first!" Hugh challenged. Jack gladly accepted. Maybe his parents were right. Having friends his age -and gender for that matter- was nice. A loud scream came from one of the zombies. "Geeze! That was loud. Was that even a zombie?" The sound of shattering plates reached their ears from the kitchen, answering their question.

"JACK! CALL 911! I THINK YOUR HOUSE IS ON FIRE!"

Hugh paused the game and they both rushed outside. "WHAT?!" Jack exclaimed, peeking outside of the living room window. Sure enough, there was a giant blaze coming from several houses down. It illuminated the rest of the neighborhood, drawing people out of their homes to see what was going on. "You call! I need to see if they made it out!" It didn't take a genius to figure out who 'they' were. Jack rushed out the front door and ran down the street, only to be stopped by arriving policemen.

"Stay back, kid! We'll take it from here," One of them said.

"My family! You have to get them out! You have to save them!" He cried. The fire had eaten away at most of the house by now. He thought he saw a figure at the window, but after he blinked it was gone. "You have to help them!" He shouted. People were everywhere, crowing around the inferno with grim faces. Jack was panicking and surrounded by chaos. "GET THEM OUT!"

But it was too late. By the time the firefighters managed to extinguish the fire, all that remained of Jack's loved ones was three burned bodies, mangled and twisted beyond recognition. Jack took one look and threw up. Darkness ate at the corners of his eyes and he collapsed into unconsciousness.

It was because of the fire that Jack lost his family.

A/N: I've had this idea in mind for a while now. Just to be clear, Jack is 11 and in 5th grade. Emma was 8, in case you were wondering. Hugh and his mom probably won't make another appearance. I don't know yet. Please leave a review and tell me how I did! The cause of the fire will be revealed later in the story (next chapter).

Date written: 3/2/15

Date published: ^^^