From The Mind Of Jemma Winchester

The Things We Lost In the Fire Part 1

Guys I am so sorry in advance for this chapter. You're going to hate me by the end. Part 2 will go up a week from today.

Synopsis: Things go horribly wrong for Sam, Dean, and Jemma on a simple demon hunt.

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"Can I please come?" I beg. "It's just a demon hunt."

"All right! You can come. Go pack, we're leaving in five," Dean says.

"Yes!" I pump my fists in the air and run off to pack a bag.

There's a group of demons holding a family hostage in their house, which is a pretty sickening reason to be excited, but this is the first hunt I've been on in months. I practically skip to the Impala, happily setting my bag beside me.

"Settle down there, skippy," Dean says as I try to mask the grin forming on my face.

"It feels so good being out on a hunt again. I can't wait."

He glances at me worriedly.

"I'll be all right," I assure him.

The only light illuminating from the two-story house is a lamp in the front window. Which is strange, considering it's cloudy and the sky is dark, and it's also three p.m. on a Tuesday. The house stands alone, surrounded by fields. It's unusually quiet for a house with two children.

"My guess is they have the family upstairs, with demons patrolling the downstairs," Sam says.

"You guys ready?" Dean asks, surely trying to make me back out of the hunt.

"Let's do this," I say confidently.

"We're going in guns blazing."

"I'm ready," I insist.

Dean kicks down the door and shoots the first demon he sees. The mother and father are bound and gagged in the middle of the living room. Sam makes his way toward them, stabbing demons as he goes.

Dean and I take the left of the stairs, clearing out the demons in the kitchen and dining room.

"What do they want with these people?" I ask over the noise.

"Less questioning, more saving!" Dean shouts back.

"Got it."

The last demon stands on the other side of the kitchen. I throw my angel blade, and it pierces him in between the eyes.

"Nice throw," Dean remarks.

We finally kill all the demons in the west side of the house. I almost slip on a liquid on the floor. Dean catches my arm. I kneel down and wipe my hand through the clear liquid, bringing it to my nose.

"Gasoline," I confirm. "They're going to light this place up."

"It's everywhere," he observes.

Sam runs out from the living room with the mother and father, his eyes wild. "We got to get out of here. They've started a fire. This whole place is covered in-"

"Gasoline. Yeah, we got that," I say.

I can already see the fire making its way toward us, cloaking everything in flames.

"Let's go," Dean says and shoves us toward the door. We sprint onto the front lawn.

"The kids!" I realize. We left them in there. I know what I have to do, and I'm damn sure I won't make it back out. I sprint back into the house.

"Jemma, no!" Dean shouts at me.

I burst through the front door, greeted by blazing heat. Twenty feet in front of me, two little girls about the ages of six and three, stand at the top of the stairs, trapped by the flames at the bottom.

"Help us!" The six-year-old screams.

I take a few steps back, then make a running leap to the stairs, the fire nipping my ankles.

"What are your names?" I know this is a really inappropriate time to be making small talk, but I want them to know I'm there to save them.

"Payton," the six-year-old says.

"Payton? What a pretty name. What about your sister?"

"Addy."

Her eyes are puffy and red from crying, and Addy is still screeching and wailing.

I try to think of a way to get us out from the upstairs, but it's at least a forty foot drop. Damn mansions.

"Okay, Payton, I want you to grab ahold of Addy, and then you're going to jump over the fire."

"Are you crazy? We're gonna get burned!" Payton protests.

It's getting increasingly harder to breathe by the minute. The smoke is burning my lungs and throat.

"No, you won't. I won't let that happen, okay? When you reach the bottom, run outside as fast as you can. Do you understand?"

They nod.

"Okay, try not to get hurt."

The flames have already made it halfway up the stairs. Payton grabs ahold of Addy, and they jump, screaming. They land with a thud at the bottom of the stairs, and run outside, hopefully.

All of a sudden, the stairs creak. I stumble up to the landing as they crack and collapse, leaving me stranded with the fire quickly racing toward me.

I cough. My head spins and I feel nauseous. I run into a room to the left. Addy's room. I look at the drawings on the wall, the framed pictures of her and her family, the coloring books strewn on the bed, and I feel guilty for knowing all of it will be lost. I throw open the window to look for a way down. None.

Another wave of nausea hits me, and I cough harder than before. I stumble down the hall into Payton's room. Again, no way out. My vision starts to blur. My lungs burn like I just downed liquid fire. My knees buckle, and I fall to the floor. I cough so hard, I feel like I might throw up. The smoke makes everything look gray and hazy.

I take a deep breath and shout with all my might: "Cas!" Hoping he can hear my prayer. "I need help!" My voice cracks. I don't have enough strength to heave myself upright.

I start to sob, because I know I'm not going to make it. Even crying takes too much effort, and I force myself to stop. I roll onto my back, staring at the ceiling. My eyelids grow heavy. The smoke in my lungs feels like a weight on my chest, and I am struggling to breathe.

I see nothing, then darkness.

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I'm so sorry. (Not really) ~R