This is not really part of the Miracle story line, but I thought I should post this before posting chapter two to avoid the question of "Where's Kole?" later. This story takes place post Crisis, for those of you who wonder what happened to Kole. Enjoy.
It's Christmas morning; the Christmas party at the tower will be starting in a few hours, without her. Jericho walked over to the memorial for fallen Titans and laid a bouquet of poinsettias by her section.
I miss you so much…
He was going to take her to meet his mother for Christmas. Even eight months before Christmas, she was making plans with him. How she loved Christmas and how her bright blue eyes just lit up when she talked about decorating the tree as a kid and how she would bake Santa's cookies herself. He never got a chance to spend Christmas with her; yet, he can't imagine spending Christmas without her. He gently caressed her plaque.
Her body was never found…maybe she's still alive, lost, waiting for someone to find her, waiting for me.
Suddenly, as if reading his mind, a strong male voice called out to him.
"She's gone Joey."
He turned, startled. The man who stood in front of him was very tall, maybe seven foot give or take a few inches. He was a sandy blonde with pale blue eyes, and he was clearly well built, even though he wore modest clothing. He was… perfect… How did he know Joey's name? Standing by him was a shorter woman, same hair, and same eyes, very slender, but not too slender. She was just as perfect as him. He felt like he knew her from somewhere. She started using sign language.
"Don't be afraid, Joseph. We're here to help you." She signed.
"Who are you?"
At that moment, he felt a familiar embrace from behind. It was her, he just knew it! He darted around to see her face, she changed, but she was still just as beautiful as when he last saw her. Her outfit was different; it was mostly white, with a golden W.G. engraved in the right sleeve, just like the outfits of the strangers behind him. Also, her hair was changing from pink to the same sandy blonde hair. "Kole? Is that you?"
Kole nodded. "Joey… I'm sorry, but I'm not coming back. You'll be okay though. I'm fine, I'm happy. Matt here is training me to be a White Guardian!" She quickly covered her mouth, as if she's said too much, then she sheepishly looked over to the tall man, who just nodded at her.
"White Guardian?"
"Yes, well. When a hero dies, he or she becomes a White Guardian. White Guardians are angels assigned to heroes, even before conception. We start out by watching over the relationship between the parents, to make sure that the hero is born, then we help protect the mother during the pregnancy, and after birth, we protect the hero until death. Matt was my guardian and Esther is yours. Anyways, as I was saying, Joey, you have to move on! There is someone out there for you, I've already checked her out and I approve!"
Joey leaned in to kiss her, but she stopped it. "I'm sorry, but we have already shared our last kiss. Joey, believe me. I will always be with you, but please, move on."
He nodded.
"Promise?"
"Promise." He signed as he started to cry.
She gave him a gentle, loving good bye hug. "Good bye. I love you."
"Good bye. I love you too. Always and forever. I'll miss you."
That hug only lasted for a minute, but he felt as if it lasted for hours, and he never wanted to let her go. Sadly, it had to end. She let go and kissed his cheek. With that, the angels disappeared, and Joey forgot everything that just happened. He looked around, wondering where this sudden burst of strength and closure came from. It was like a weight was lifted off of his shoulders, finally, he can move on.