Oh my God, it's been a while since I posted anything here ._. But yes, hello! I'm back! I've been bit by the writing bug again, and I'm so happy I have, after not writing fanfiction anything for the past few years! I RP frequently on tumblr, but it feels good to be writing stories again. :) I have a few more projects I'm working on, all pertaining to Rise of the Brave Tangled Dragons/Jackunzel, so I'm excited to work on those. c:

Okay, I've rambled on enough.

So this story literally took me about 20 minutes to write (and about five minutes of crying), but it's inspired by "Hey Lucy" by Skillet. It's a little short, more of a drabble, but I'm still trying to get back in the swing of things. ^^;

wow how do author's note -falls over-

So yes, I hope you guys enjoy~! c:

Disclaimer: I do not own Rise of the Guardians/The Guardians of Childhood or the characters within. They belong solely to Dreamworks and William Joyce.

Hey Emma

The small bouquet of white roses and the suddenly felt heavy in Jack's hands as he made his way deep into the forests of Burgess. If he could, he was certain that his palms would be sweating profusely, and he could feel his heart beating erratically within his frozen chest.

Things had finally begun to settle down after the battle of Burgess. Pitch had been defeated, the children were safe, and for a while, Jack was satisfied with everything in his life.

It didn't take long for the realization to finally hit him with the impact of a speeding semi.

He hadn't had time to reflect on his freshly retrieved memories back in Antarctica, since there were far more important things to take care of at the time. But now that he had time to dwell on, the realization was enough to almost cripple him. He had spent quite a few days locking himself away deep within North's Palace, no doubt worrying the other Guardians, but he simply couldn't face them. Tooth had convinced him to talk to her the third day, if only for a moment, eventually leading to him sobbing into her shoulder. After that, Jack needed to be alone to reflect on the many things he had been so foolish to have forgotten.

Logically, Jack knew it wasn't his fault. It couldn't have been helped, there was no way he could possibly have retrieved them any other way. But still, the overwhelming guilt sent him in a downward spiral that he believed he would almost never return from.

Almost.

It took a week of solitude and treacherous snowstorms all across the north, but Jack had silently pulled himself out of the room and made his way back to Burgess, refusing to tell the others where he was headed. Although, Tooth had a somewhat knowing and sympathetic sheen in her wet and worried eyes as rocketed into the sky.

It had taken him a lot of thinking and courage to finally get to where he stood, but Jack knew in his heavy heart that it needed to be faced if anything were ever to be reconciled within himself.

He glanced across the pond he known for much longer than he had realized, and up at the small cliff, before hoping across the water and onto the rock. It took another few yards before he found it. A small handful of crumbling round headstones and crosses littered the ground, and memories came flooding Jack's mind. He took a deep breath as he clutched the alabaster flowers tighter in his fist.

The writing and carvings in the headstones were almost illegible, but as Jack walked through the graves, he seemed to be able to know who was buried beneath each and every stone. His small six-home village three centuries ago had certainly expanded into the growing city of Burgess, but it still amazed him that this small cemetery still stood quietly in the woods, just as it had been all those years ago.

He suddenly felt his breath hitch in his throat when he found what he was looking for. He felt tears well up his eyes, but he quickly fought them off for the time being. Swallowing harshly, he took a deep sigh before walking up to the small, round stone. The engravings were barely legible, but Jack's teeth grit when he saw the date clearly marked five years after his own.

"Thirteen… Damn it."

He didn't want to think about how this could have happened for now, so instead, he bit his lip and knelt in the grass, placing his staff to the side and the bouquet in front of the stone. He was silent for a few minutes, unsure of what to say. It had been so many years. Could she forgive him? Could she even hear him? He felt his emotions bubble in his chest and felt a stray, icy tear he had been fighting so hard to hold in slip down his cheek and onto his thigh.

Eventually, keeping his eyes focused on his lap, he sighed deeply when finally found his voice.

"Hey, Emma."