The Season For Forgiving

by Bigmac1989

On Easter Sunday, the thoughts of Carrie and her friends turn towards the impeding anniversary of the Columbine shooting and the example of one of the departed in particular, Rachel Scott. However, a supernatural encounter between Carrie, her friends Olivia and Danielle, and Rachel causes them to ponder forgiveness. Dedicated to those who lost their lives, 22 years on.

This one shot is by special request from several guest reviewers, who wanted me to do a story where Carrie and her friends explore the Columbine tragedy, and spend some time in a dream with Rachel Scott, the first victim of the shooting and one of the most talked about, to the point of having a bio-pic made. Now, one of the headaches I had was debating which category to use as a crossover. I have ultimately decided to go with Carrie x Misc. Movies. My description of Rachel is based on the version of her that appeared in her 2016 biopic I'm Not Ashamed. Accordingly, several facts about Rachel's life have been taken from that biopic or her Wikipedia page. I mean no disrespect to her memory with this story, especially around the anniversary. In fact, I can only hope I can manage to do her justice. I make no profit from this story, and do not own any of the characters depicted, except my OC's.

A sensitive content warning for discussions of the Columbine Massacre, as well as references to homophobic remarks and to abortion.

"For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins." Matthew 6:14-15

"Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times should I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?" Jesus answered: "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times." Matthew 18:21-22

The alarm clock sitting next to Carrie's bed began to blare loudly. Grizzling and grumbling, the blonde telekinetic rolled over in her bed and slammed her hand down on the device, silencing the alarm. A small, contented smile then crossed her face. Whilst she would put in a public show of being discomforted by this rude awakening, there was nothing that could shatter her inner joy. For, you see, today was Easter Sunday. One of the holiest days on the Christian calendar, Easter marked the day that Jesus Christ rose from the dead, conquering the grave and offering eternal life to all who would believe in His name.

And never was that message more relevant than over the last year. Carrie's heart had been stung with sadness as she watched the impact that COVID-19 had had on her city and nation. Recently, America had passed the grim landmark of 500,000 dead – a figure that boggled the mind. Many of her friends had suffered bereavement during the pandemic, and there was every chance by the time all was said and done, that the Spanish influenza's death toll of 675,000 would be surpassed. She vowed to hold an appropriate memorial service when the opportunity came.

But there was reason for hope. The situation with the coronavirus in New York had improved to the point where sports teams and health authorities began to allow limited numbers of fans to attend sporting events. This greatly pleased Carrie and her brother Peter, who were both ardent sports fans and baseball rivals – Carrie was a Yankees fan, while Peter cheered for the Mets. In fact, the super powered siblings had each received a unique opportunity – to throw out a socially-distanced ceremonial first pitch from the grandstand in support of their preferred team. Since the actual Opening Day honours were given over to New York's essential workers, and rightly so, their turn would come during their team's second home series. Carrie's chance to do the honours would come in a couple of days against the Baltimore Orioles, whilst Peter would follow suit the following week against the Philadelphia Phillies. This development, coupled with the continuing success of vaccines and the ability to deploy them into the next spike of cases, served to provide some hope that the worst was behind them.

As the telekinetic got dressed and emerged from her bedroom, she saw Peter doing likewise, whilst rubbing the sleep dust from his eyes.

"Morning, Carrie. Sleep well?" Peter yawned.

"Yeah. I'm so looking forward to watching you throw out the first pitch next week – and to doing it myself, of course." Carrie nodded.

"And, of course, you get to go to church for Easter this time. I knew you couldn't get to do that last year, and I know how much your faith means to you." Her brother added.

Carrie began to get glassy-eyed at the thought of returning to Mass in person. Last Easter, all of New York's churches were closed to the public at the height of the pandemic. As the churches reopened , strict health and safety processes were put in place in order to protect worshippers, such as a capped capacity and mask wearing. The Archdiocese Of New York wisely suspended the obligation to attend Sunday Mass, leaving it up to the individual to decide which level of risk was acceptable to them. Carrie had used the lack of crowds at public events in New York as a personal rule of thumb – if it wasn't safe to have a capped crowd at a sporting event, then it probably wasn't safe to attend Mass. However, the successful hosting of a limited crowd for a Buffalo Bills playoff game, combined with the lack of any significant outbreaks linked to her church, the telekinetic made the decision to start attending Mass in person again.

As they entered the dining room, the siblings noticed a large purple basket stationed on the dining room table. It was filled to the brim with Easter eggs. A small note was attached to the basket, which read: This is your Easter treat. Pace yourselves. Love, T & P. Grins stretching across their faces, Carrie and Peter grabbed as many of the brightly wrapped eggs as they could carry before retiring to their bedrooms.

About an hour later, Carrie began to get dressed for church. She slipped into a respectable looking blouse, accompanied by a smart dress shirt and jacket. She then grabbed her white and purple face mask, placing the loops over her ears before making sure her nose was covered then covering her mouth. She then opened her closet and pulled out a white hat from her collection of church hats, which symbolised the new life offered in the Easter season. Once she had placed the hat on her head, she turned to leave.

"Bye, Peter! Bye, Mum and Dad! I'm off to Mass!" The telekinetic called out.

"Make sure you have Ruby 2 turned on!" Tony responded.

"I always do!" Carrie replied, as she looked at the red bracelet on her right wrist. A successor to the original Ruby, the bracelet acted as an inhibitor to Carrie's powers. It transmitted a signal that blocked commands from the part of Carrie's brain responsible for her telekinesis. This was used as a form of training wheels while she got used to her powers, and to make her feel like a normal girl. However, Ruby 2 had an additional function. It acted as a GPS tracker, keeping tracks of her whereabouts and logging them for a period of up to 14 days. This enabled it to act as a contract tracing tool, which would be needed if she, God forbid, ever contracted COVID.

It was a mild Easter morning, if a bit nippy, as Carrie made the hour long walk to St. Mary Of The Angels, her home church, located in Lower Manhattan near the Wall Street Station. As she got closer, she saw a sight that had become familiar to her ever since she had returned to Mass – a masked woman acting as a supervisor, holding a clipboard.

"Hello. Name?" The volunteer asked, politely.

"Carrie Stark, here for the 11am." The blonde confirmed. The parish's contact tracing process involved registering online for a particular service.

The volunteer then flipped over the piece of paper on the clipboard and began to trace a line through the air with the pen she was holding. She made a noise of recognition as she tapped the paper.

"Yes. I have you here. One moment, please." She requested as she walked to the church entrance and spoke briefly to a Filipino man wearing a blue mask. After some back and forth talk, the woman with the clipboard returned.

"You can go in – you'll be shown to an appropriate seat. Thank you for your patience." The volunteer nodded, repeating words that Carrie had heard many times before.

"Thank you, ma'am. God bless you." Carrie nodded, as she walked past the volunteer. The blonde made it a point to say "God bless you" to anybody she saw doing these thankless, yet essential tasks. As she entered the church, she was met by the Filipino usher and escorted inside. She had noticed a couple of pews were already occupied by mask-wearing parishioners. Orange signs with the words "Do Not Sit" populated the areas around these people, in an effort to promote physical distancing. The usher showed the blonde into an empty pew, at least two rows ahead of the nearest occupant. As she closed her eyes and prayed, she remembered the feeling of warmth that had filled her heart when she first stepped inside this particular church two years ago. She knew right away that this place would be her spiritual home and refuge. Now, after some time away, she had returned to the house of the Lord once again. Despite being required to wear a mask, Carrie's soul was filled with joy.

Mass was different than how she remembered it. There was no singing. The priest, Father Sean, entered from the side of the church rather than from the back, and wore a mask. There were no handshakes at the Sign Of Peace. The communion line was physically distanced by foot markings in the aisle, only the bread was offered and only hand reception was permitted. The news bulletins were put online instead of being distributed physically, and the exit from the church was carefully coordinated by the ushers, with the occupants of one pew being cleared to leave only when the occupants of the previous pew had completely left church property.

That did not matter to Carrie, though. She felt at peace for the first time in a long time.

Once she returned to the tower and had Tony and Bruce examine the data from Ruby 2 in order to get a complete picture of her movements, she was given the freedom to do what she liked for the rest of the day. About an hour after she got back, she received an email inviting her to a Zoom meeting. The blonde smiled broadly – this was her favourite time of the week. Logging on, she saw the faces of her friends Alexis, Cat, Brianna, Olivia, Danielle, Renee, Ashley, Rebecca and Sarah. greeting her. For all of them, a welcome respite.

"Hey, girls! Happy Easter! Are you eating well?" Carrie smiled.

"Bloody oath, Carrie. I need it as well – especially after what City put me through on the weekend. They made that win look like pulling teeth." Sarah grouched.

"Serenity now, serenity now!" Rebecca joked, as she twirled her dyed-green hair.

"Just got started on my second chocolate bunny!" Alexis responded, as the platinum blonde bit slowly and deliberately into the tasty treat.

"Mmm…do that again, Lexie…" Cat half-purred, half-moaned. In response, Alexis slowly bit into the chocolate rabbit again and fixed her lover with a sly look through the computer screen.

"Oh God…" The Latina whimpered, biting her lip and moving her hands over her shorts.

"If you're thinking of doing what I think you're thinking of doing, don't. This is a smut free zone, young lady!" Carrie giggled, in a coquettish voice.

"Ew! I'm not some animal!" Cat playfully huffed, taking her friend's good-natured teasing for what it was. "I'll do it after this call ends. Alone. Like I've done every night. For a year." The frustration she felt at not being able to satisfy herself with her girlfriend was starting to wear on her

"Well, at least we know what the two of you are going to be doing as soon as you get the jab." Renee chuckled, flipping her dirty blonde hair. "Bow-chicka-wow-wow…"

"How did we get from chocolate to this?" Brianna laughed.

"Because that's what we do!" The virtual gathering chorused. The close-knit nature of the group, as well as their slightly warped sense of humour, meant that no topic was off limits. After a brief discussion regarding what treats the group were eating during the Easter weekend (with Olivia bemoaning the extra pounds she would have to lose before heading to Italy for a Juventus training camp), Danielle spoke up to introduce the topic of their next discussion. Always willing to speak her mind, the deeply religious rocker always had something profound to say.

"So, girls. There's something that's been on my mind for the last few days. I want to talk about Columbine." She introduced.

An awkward, uncomfortable silence settled over the group at the mere mention of the word. The Columbine High School shooting tragedy had cast a long, gloomy shadow over all of their childhoods. The security measures that were deemed necessary as a result had become part and parcel of their school days.

"Why, thank you, Dani. This was exactly how I wanted to spend Easter Sunday – discussing blood and guts." Cat remarked, sarcastically.

"Yeah. Suddenly, discussing Calexis' sex life seems way less awkward." Olivia agreed.

"I'm not glorifying what happened. In fact, I want to discuss one specific person that was involved: Rachel Scott, the shooting's first victim. The anniversary is coming up in a couple of weeks, and since she died a couple of weeks after Easter 1999, I thought this might spark a good conversation." Danielle explained.

"That sounds like a good idea. God only knows switching from Canadian to American high school was a jarring experience for me, and I think the increased tension in schools post-Columbine may have been a reason." Ashley noted, drumming her fingers on her desk. "But why do you bring this up, Dani?"

"Okay. Weil, as you know, I've been studying virtually at LSU from my house." The punk girl began. "The university's Christian society has been doing a great job integrating distance learners like myself into their activities. One of the activities we did was watch this movie called I'm Not Ashamed, which was the story of Rachel Scott and her life leading up to the shooting." Her voice then grew heavy with feeling. "Whilst the production itself was somewhat flawed, I found Rachel's story to be greatly inspiring. So, that's the basis for the discussion today."

"Tell us more, Dani. She sounds really interesting." Carrie requested, as she scratched her chin.

"Well, first of all, Rachel Scott was a student at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado." Danielle exposited. "She was the daughter of an Evangelical Protestant pastor and the middle child of five, born in August 1981. She gave her life over to Jesus when she was eleven years old. There were occasions where she would pray so intensely she would cry, and she lost a large amount of friends due to the public witness of her faith. In some ways, she was just like you, Carrie. In other ways, she was completely different. Whilst you two have being thought of as weird for your faith in common, Rachel's family never abused her – which forms a big part of that difference. What I found most inspiring about Rachel's life was her kindness towards other students at Columbine, especially her outreach to those who were seen as outcasts. She was also heavily active in her church youth group, and greatly effective at evangelisation. Quite frankly, I think she's someone we can learn a lot from, and somebody we should emulate."

"She sounded like a wonderful person. It's sad that she had to die that way. That shooting sounds like a horrible thing to live through." Carrie sympathised.

"Yeah, sad for her…and the others as well. And their families." Renee chipped in, as she leant back in her computer chair.

"So, down to business…where do we go from here, in terms of the discussion?" Rebecca inquired.

"Well, I've got a number of topics in mind. The first one is her attempts to foster an atmosphere of kindness amongst the Columbine student population." The brunette rocker explained. "As I explained, I found the film based on Rachel's life a tad idealised and biased. However, there was one scene that I found deeply moving. As part of a montage showing the impact she had on the student body, they show a mentally-disabled student being teased. Suddenly, the head jock stood up to the bully and invited this student to come and sit with him. Earlier in the movie, this jock was a bully himself. Now, he was standing up for the weak and vulnerable. The pair are then shown mourning Rachel's death at the end. It made me think of Michael, and the man I hope he'll grow up to become." Danielle then flashed the barest hint of a smile as she thought of Michael, her football playing twin brother. Being part of the football program at LSU, he was set to make his mark to any number of NFL scouts. She prayed for his success, and missed him every day.

"I think I actually had a Rachel's Challenge thing at my old school here in Philly." Renee declared.

"Rachel's Challenge?" Carrie asked, in an inquisitive voice.

"It was a presentation about how to eliminate teen bullying and suicide through kindness. It had a major effect on me. One thing that I'll always remember was being given a task to tell the people closest to me how much they meant to me. It was a very stressful period in my life. I had basically cocooned myself from my friends due to Mum's drinking and my pregnancy. I was very anxious and fearful, trying to control what little I could. It was then I realised that life's too short to shut yourself off from the people that care about you. Rachel's Challenge was really important in getting my friendships back on track." The former cheerleader responded.

"Yeah, we had a Rachel's Challenge assembly at St. John's as well." Cat noted.

"If only I had a Rachel's Challenge at my school…" Carrie sighed.

"For some reason, I don't think it would have helped." Alexis replied, glibly.

"Okay, my turn to ask a question!" Olivia interjected. "During my Confirmation classes, I learned all about the lives of the Saints and martyrs. The devotion they showed in the face of persecution was amazing. Given what's been put out there about what allegedly occurred between Rachel and the shooters, could she be considered a modern martyr?"

"No." Danielle responded, in a blunt tone. Seeing the looks of surprise this declaration had produced, she began to clarify. "I'm just using the Church's definition of a martyr. For someone to be considered a martyr in the eyes of the Catholic Church, they either need to die during a church service, protecting a church building from attack, or be killed due to the murderer's hatred of the faith. Now, while it's true that the shooters were filled with hatred, it wasn't specifically anti-Christian hate. They were nihilists who hated everyone and everything. There's only circumstantial evidence to say that Rachel was killed due to targeted hatred of the faith, which to me, isn't enough. Was Rachel a faithful Christian? Yes. A good role model? Definitely. But a martyr? Sorry, but she's not – but I'm open to being proved wrong."

"Speaking of the shooters." Ashley interrupted, taking a deep breath. "I know we're not supposed to think like this, but…is it really wrong to hope that those two bastards are in hell?"

A stony silence filled the chat. The group all glanced downward, specifically trying to not think about the final destination of all damned souls. An outsider might dismiss this as superstitious fearmongering or misplaced Catholic guilt. However, Hell was a very real place to all of them, even to the most worldly and relaxed of them. The idea of eternal punishment did not bear thinking about. They supposed that was one reason why they were so good at holding each other to account – they deeply cared for one another, body and soul. Eventually, Danielle began to answer.

"Thank you for your question, Ashley. Let me ask you something: if you feel that the shooters deserve eternal hell for what they did, then what do you think I deserve as my eternal reward?" The rocker questioned, in a sharp tone. Receiving no answer, she pressed on. "No, seriously, what do I, Danielle Bethany Horton, a sinner, deserve to have happen to me after my death? After all, I've said and done a lot of hateful things to people over the years. I vandalised a sacred house of worship, in an attempt to drive my new mother away. So, I'll tell you what I deserve. I deserve the exact same thing you wish had happened to those two shooters. I deserve to spend eternity in Hell. It's only by the grace of Jesus that I have any hope. This is the message of the Easter season – that Jesus died and rose for all of us! For me, for Carrie, for Livy, for Lex and Cat, for Brianna, for Renee, for Ashley, and for Rebecca and Sarah. He endured unspeakable torment and conquered death, so that we might all be saved from death. Long answer short, Ash? Yes, it's wrong to think such things. We should pray for people that do great evil, that they repent and ask forgiveness. We are people of grace, not karma."

"Well, you may as well put my family down for the big hot box right now – we all cheered when that cow Thatcher died, and we're not sorry." Sarah retorted, her English accent taking on a bit of bite. "So if you're trying to shame us for being glad bad people get what's coming to them…"

"Did I say that? No. What I'm saying – well, not me but the Word – is, don't judge the hearts of others. Or else you may just be judged yourself one day. Take your Thatcher example, Sarah – it is one thing to say she was a divisive leader – for that is what she was, and that was shown through her actions. It is another thing entirely to judge the heart of someone by calling them an evil cow. That's a sin – trying to insert ourselves on God's throne." Danielle pointed out.

"Whatever." Sarah shrugged. "Another thing I wanted to ask you is this. You're a big metal girl, Dani. I recall reading about how all the Mary Whitehouse wannabes were trying to pin it on heavy metal and Satanism. What've you got to say about that?"

"Where do I start?" The brunette chuckled, shaking her head. "First of all, I believe that if anybody has something important or thoughtful to say, we should hear it, regardless of the source. That's the reason why I like bands like Marilyn Manson and Slayer – they both have deep, profound points to make about society and the world, even though they use confronting imagery. As you can imagine, I resent it greatly when someone tells me I can't be a true Christian if I consume certain types of media. Secondly, this wasn't the first such controversy involving so-called violent music. Pressure groups had been going after Marilyn Manson in particular for years before Columbine. For roughly seven years between 1996 and 2003, he was the scapegoat for virtually every social problem in America. To tie this back to Rachel Scott: her mother actually tried to get Marilyn Manson kicked off a Scottish music festival's lineup in 2001, during their first post-Columbine tour. She probably thought she was honouring Rachel's memory by doing what she would have wanted. Without wishing to be insensitive, I will say that it's awfully convenient that she is not here to tell us that herself. Also, the Colorado of 1999 was very different from the Colorado of 2021. In the two presidential elections either side of Columbine – 1996 and 2000 – Colorado went to the Republicans. If, God forbid, the shooting were to happen today, you would see a lot more focus on gun control and mental health from the Democratic majority. Lastly, the media made this huge song and dance about how the shooters were supposedly these huge Marilyn Manson fans, but they were actually ambivalent at best toward him. Their minds were so warped with nihilism that they could see death and violence in anything. As someone who went through a similar phase – a phase where I was unable to see any beauty or goodness in the world – I can relate to that."

"I mean, we can't exactly let this discussion end without mentioning the huge impact that Columbine had on us, as kids growing up and coming of age in this culture? Especially given the recent spate of school shootings?" Brianna inquired. "I remember when Livy and I first experienced an active shooter drill – it was terrifying."

"I just remember this siren going off and the teacher telling us to get under a desk. I was so scared." Olivia recalled, biting her lip. "When the teacher said that this was a drill to protect us against bad guys with guns, I couldn't stop having nightmares. Maria was the same way, when she learned about the "mean gun people". We shouldn't be having this conversation with eight year olds!"

"I remember there being a shooting threat against my old school." Renee recalled. "It turned out to be nothing, but I still had to stay home for the day. When I got the all-clear, the only thought in my mind was: what if it was real?"

"I certainly can't remember having a shooting drill at my school. It's not like I would have noticed anyway." Carrie admitted. "I was so caught up in my own home life."

"I guess in some ways, we're all children of Columbine. It defined our high school experiences, even 20 years ago." Rebecca pondered.

"Not just of Columbine, but of every other mass shooting. Parkland, Vegas, Orlando, Boulder…it's very overwhelming to think about." Danielle agreed.

From there, the conversation turned to happier topics, such as the beginning of the baseball season and Carrie's impeding day out at Yankee Stadium, the process of receiving a COVID vaccine (Olivia's parents Antonio and Francesca would each receive their first jab later that month, whilst Danielle had recently learned she would be eligible to be vaccinated later in the spring. Carrie, of course, had already received her first shot of two along with the rest of her superhero family. The telekinetic, however, was initially conflicted about this, not wanting to jump the queue. However, she was eventually persuaded to do so, in order to set a positive example. From there, more discussions of chocolate ensued. Once the chat was over, Carrie would spend the rest of the day watching Peter play his Xbox. As she turned in for the night, her mind was preoccupied with thoughts about the girl Danielle had talked about, Rachel Scott. She sounded like a wonderful human being, and Carrie felt she could strongly identify with her as a young Christian trying to make her way in the world. She felt extreme sadness at the thought of her death, and wished she could meet her.

Little did she know, as she drifted off to sleep, was that she was going to do just that.

*** TSFF ***

Carrie blinked her eyes softly and yawned as she began to awake from her slumber. A look of surprise crossed her face as she felt something brush against her cheek. She looked down to see that she wasn't sleeping in her bed anymore. She had been lying on lush, green grass. The telekinetic continued to blink as she adjusted her sight. A brilliant blue sky hung over her, with the pleasant rays of the sun filtering down. Astounded, she began to walk.

What is this place? Carrie thought, as she began to walk.

This place was certainly very beautiful. As she walked, Carrie noticed that there were all sorts of flora and fauna populating this space. The blonde picked up a dandelion and began to blow on it, sending its petals scattering into dust. Her eyes were wide with wonder as she saw a sparrow fly over her head and nestle on a tree branch. Carrie then laughed with joy, as she saw a herd of sheep grazing and letting out baas of contentment. The telekinetic felt an absolute sense of serenity in this beautiful place. It was a far cry from the humdrum, monotonous lifestyle she had been forced to live for the past year.

No Covid. No masks. No paranoia. No death. No tears. No anger.

Just pure and utter bliss.

All of a sudden, she heard a familiar voice pierce the air.

"Carrie! Is that you?"

Olivia then wandered into frame. She was wearing a navy Yankees T-shirt and a pair of white shorts. As she walked, a butterfly landed and perched on her head.

"Look at this place! It's gorgeous!" The Italian-American beamed as her eyes twinkled.

"I know!" Carrie shouted across to her.

Just then a third voice began to call out. "Wait! You guys are here too?!" Danielle began to approach the other two girls. She was wearing a grey T-shirt with a galloping white horse – a Deftones T-shirt promoting their 2000 album White Pony. "Where are we?"

"Well, wherever we are, it's beautiful." Carrie declared. Making noises of agreement, the trio made their way over to a small pond. The water was blue, pure and uncontaminated. A mallard duck, its brown plumage on proud display, plodded by the watching girls. Upon seeing them, it let out a loud quack and took to the water, paddling away. Carrie, Olivia and Danielle were enraptured and enchanted. As city girls, they had rarely seen nature in all its unspoilt beauty, with all the flora and fauna it had to offer. For a brief moment, they were like small children in their wonder.

Just then, a voice caused them to look up.

"Ah! You've arrived!"

The trio then saw a fourth girl enter the picture. This girl had long, wavy black hair. She wore a simple white dress, and wore a fedora slightly askew on her head. In her right hand was a red rose. She looked slightly younger than the three college-aged girls. Yet, the three friends were immediately drawn to what was not visible. This new girl had a heavenly aura around her. It was almost as if she was an angel.

"Excuse me. Where are we?" Carrie questioned.

"All in good time." The new girl replied, as she took off her fedora and spun it in her hands. Looking up at the group, she let out a gasp. "Oh! Where are my manners? My name is Rachel, and you're all here for a very important reason."

"Which is?" Olivia questioned.

"Something which will put your immortal souls at stake." The brunette in the white dress warned.

"Who are you, anyway? We don't know you!" Olivia challenged.

"You're right. You don't know me." Rachel admitted. "At least, not in your earthly lives. But you do know me from history – very recent history, in your cases. Later this month, I will have been dead for 22 years. But you knew that already, didn't you? All about the halls of tragedy in a little school in Colorado?"

The trio's eyebrows shot straight up. Their mouths dropped open in shock as they digested the words Rachel spoke. Their minds were thrown back to the deep and emotional discussion they were having a matter of hours earlier. Surely, she couldn't be who they thought she was! Danielle was the first to make the connection.

"You…you're…" The rocker stammered in shock.

The eyes of the girl in the white dress began to twinkle as she smiled warmly at the three girls. "Yes. I am Rachel Scott. And none of you need to worry – you're not dead. You're all in a dream. Carrie's dream, to be specific."

"You know my name?" Carrie replied, still reeling from the revelations.

"Yes. I know your name, Carrie White – or should that be Carrie Stark now?" Rachel nodded as she acknowledged the telekinetic. She then turned her attention to Olivia and Danielle. "Nice to meet you as well, Olivia De Rossi and Danielle Horton." She greeted, as she offered her hand. Tentatively, each of the three girls grabbed a hold of her hand and lightly shook it.

"Now, I'm sure you're wondering why you three are here." Rachel continued, as she placed her fedora back on her head. "There's a lot to unpack here, so we should probably sit down."

Just then, a plain white blanket appeared on the ground, along with a large picnic basket. Carrie opened the basket and felt her stomach rumble as she saw the contents thereof. There was fresh fruit, bread, cool meats, lettuce and cold drinks – everything one needed to have to enjoy a sumptuous lunch, and still have some left over. "Check this out! There's a whole lunch in here!" Carrie called to her friends. As she, along with Danielle and Olivia, reached into the basket and began pulling food out, Rachel cleared her throat.

"Um…aren't we forgetting something?" She asked, gently and politely.

A lightbulb instantly formed over the three girl's heads. "Oh, right! Grace! I forgot!" Carrie blushed, realising her faux pas. "Would you do the honours, Dani?"

"Certainly, Carrie." Danielle replied. After she had said this, she, Carrie and Olivia crossed themselves and bowed their heads in prayer. As Rachel followed suit, the brunette rocker began to pray. "Heavenly Father, I ask that you bless this food. May it nourish our bodies and serve as a reminder of Your unending mercy. In the name of Jesus the Lord, Amen."

"Amen. That was a lovely prayer, Danielle. Thank you." Rachel smiled, as she stepped forward to join the gathered trio. "Now, what are we waiting for? Let's eat!" They then seated themselves on the blanket, and started pulling out various food items from the picnic basket. Rachel made herself a turkey sandwich, Carrie began to pour herself a sparkling lemonade, Olivia bit into an apple and Danielle made herself a BLT sandwich.

"Okay. I'm in my friend's dream, and I'm having a picnic with a dead girl. This is normal. Completely, totally normal!" Olivia quipped, sarcastically.

"It's the most normal thing that's happened to any of us in a year. I'll take it." Danielle decreed, matter of factly.

After a short period of eating and drinking, Rachel waited until she had swallowed her food to ask a question.

"So. Carrie, Olivia, Danielle – what have you done to proclaim the Kingdom?" The pastor's daughter asked, as she bit into her sandwich.

"A bit soon for that, don't you think?" Danielle questioned, raising her eyebrows.

"Tell you what: we'll answer your question if you tell us how you know our names." Olivia stated.

"Fair enough." Rachel nodded, as she set her food down. "The work of building the Kingdom Of God doesn't stop once you're no longer on this earth. Every believer has their own special role to play, even the ones in heaven. My job is to look after the young people in heaven and watch over the young Christians on Earth. Jesus told me your names, and showed me a vision of you in one of your meetings. That is how I know your names. Now that I've answered that, do you want to answer my question?"

"My dad always says trust but verify. Tell us something that only the real Rachel Scott would know." Carrie challenged.

"I was once helped out of an embarrassing predicament by Dylan Klebold. One of the boys that…well, you know what they did." Rachel let out a small sniffle as she said these words. This made Carrie feel bad – making their guest upset was the last thing she wanted.

"I'm sorry, Rachel. I didn't mean to make you upset." The telekinetic apologised.

"No, you don't have to apologise. You wanted me to prove who I am, and I did that. Besides, the Lord wipes away every tear. Have I proved myself to you?" The pastor's daughter inquired.

"I think you have." Danielle nodded, simply.

"Then perhaps you all could tell me a little bit about yourselves, and how you proclaim the Gospel in your lives." Rachel wondered.

"Well, I grew up in Maine. Chamberlin, to be specific. It's a small town not that far from Bangor." Carrie explained. "It's a long way from Colorado, to say the least. Anyway, it was just me and my mama growing up. I don't think she liked my dad that much. I was homeschooled pretty much until high school, when the State Board Of Education stepped in and made mama send me to an actual school. I knew nothing of the world – you can guess how that went."

"I know. I can imagine it, and I'm sorry. One of my greatest wishes was that everybody be kind to one another." Rachel comforted, putting a relaxing hand on the blonde's leg.

"To make things worse, Mama was also abusive." Carrie continued. "She would call me immodest for wearing shorts or a T-shirt. She'd quote verses that weren't even in the Bible to justify calling me a sinner for getting my period. She would beat me – sometimes with a Bible. She tried to stop me from going to my prom. But that was the night when my life turned around for the better."

"How?" The pastor's daughter inquired, intrigue lacing her voice.

"Let me show you something." The blonde superhero explained. She grabbed an empty plastic cup and set it upright. Flattening out her right hand into a palm, she focused a small amount of telekinetic energy on it. Slowly but surely, the cup began to float into the air. Olivia and Danielle both shrugged it off – they had both seen Carrie's power in action before, and in much more impressive scenarios. Rachel, on the other hand, was transfixed. Her mouth was hanging open in shock and awe. She had never seen anything like this before. To the dead girl, it seemed like something out of the many science-fiction movies she had dreamed of starring in when she was alive. As the cup was lowered to the ground, a bright smile lit up her face.

"That was amazing, Carrie! That was wonderful!" Rachel praised.

"Mama didn't think so – she thought I was a witch." Carrie muttered, sullenly.

"Do not call anything impure that God has made clean. Acts 10:13 – Peter's vision of food that was ritually impure to the ancient Israelites and being told that it was made clean. This leads to Peter going to Cornelius' house, which marks the first time Peter proclaims the Gospel to the Gentiles. God's word says that nothing should be called impure or unclean. You are not a witch – you are a beloved daughter of the Most High, and he is pleased with you, Carrie." Rachel declared with a dramatic flourish. Carrie couldn't help but crack a smile and feel touched by the enthusiasm of the preacher's daughter.

"I know, Rachel. I understand that now." The telekinetic explained. "Anyway, prom was a game changer for me. I was dating this boy named Tommy, who was the boyfriend of one of my former bullies. I had her permission. It was an apology of sorts for the way she treated me. Don't worry, I didn't go there with him. I didn't even get the chance. Because our prom king and queen parade got rained on by a homicidal maniac. A prison escapee, he had acquired Stark weaponry and had gone on a rampage across much of the northeast. The Avengers came – men and women of great power and courage. I used my powers to help them beat back the attacker, but had to go to hospital. I opened up to them about my abuse, and was able to get my mama the help she needed. I think it was schizophrenia, the doctor said. Obviously, I had nowhere else to go, so Tony Stark, the founder of the Avengers known as Iron Man, graciously took me into his house and allowed me to finish my studies. He identified the potential my power had, and helped me control my powers so I could become a force for good – the Avenger and superhero Psystorm." Carrie then paused for a moment. "Um…could you all step back for a minute, please? It's just, I've never tried this in a different dimension before."

Once the other three girls had stepped back, Carrie let out a call. "Friday? Get my suit."

Out of nowhere, a white metallic shell began to wrap itself around the telekinetic's body. This shell, which acted as a suit of armour, bore a purple eye with a lightning bolt running through the middle. This was the symbol of Psystorm, combining the eye, a symbol of psychic energy and lightning, heralding the coming storm of justice that was due to all evildoers. A gold visor rested on Carrie's face, making her look like an angel come to provide deliverance and salvation.

"I am Psystorm! Friend of the weak, sword of the downtrodden, shield of the innocent and the bane of all evil!" The most pure of heart of the Avengers proclaimed, in a loud voice.

Rachel let out a gasp of shock and covered her mouth in wonder. Inwardly, she praised the Lord Jesus for giving her the opportunity to be a witness to these three young people. And there was an angel of the future amongst them! This was a testament to the wonder of God's creation as expressed through the sciences. Olivia and Danielle, on the other hand, were somewhat more blasé about the appearance of Carrie's suit. Whilst the fact that she could now summon the suit in alternate dimensions was of some mild interest, it was something they had seen before. Multiple times in fact.

"Why aren't you more excited? This is incredible! Carrie has somehow become a warrior of light, and all you can do is sit there?!" Rachel exclaimed, still deep in awe.

"Seen it all before. When your city gets attacked by aliens, these things tend to become part of the furniture." Olivia noted, drumming her fingers on her chin.

"The world you grew up in is long gone." Danielle explained, a note of sage wisdom in her voice. "The planet Earth still spins on its axis, but you would not recognise the world today. Heck, you won't even recognise Colorado."

"That's the impression I've got." Rachel confirmed. "So, Carrie, you've been commissioned to proclaim the Gospel – how do you do it?"

"A friend of mine named Kurt told me this great quote by Saint Francis of Assisi – "Preach the gospel, and use words if necessary." The way I proclaim the Gospel is through my actions, mostly in regards to my adopted brother, Peter. I try to set the best example I can of moral living as a Christian and as a Catholic. I dearly hope that one day, he will come and follow Jesus with me – I'm praying hard for him. I don't live with religious people – apart from one other, I'm the only Christian in the Avengers. I see it as my responsibility to defend my beliefs if anybody asks about them. I actually volunteered to be a lector at my church – some weeks, I'll do a Bible reading. And of course, I give generously to the church as well." Carrie told the gathered group.

"God bless you, sister. Thank you for your witness." Rachel praised, as she gave Carrie a big hug. The blonde telekinetic instantly felt a gentle breeze envelop her, along with a sense of indescribable peace. Once Carrie was released from the hug, the pastor's daughter then turned to the other two girls. "So, who's next to tell their story?" She asked Danielle and Olivia.

"Livy should go next – she's been a Catholic for longer than I have." The rocker deflected.

"No, you should go next, Dani – your story's more compelling." The jock retorted, shaking her head.

"I agree with Livy – you're the most devout and spiritual person I've ever met. I love discussing faith, religion and morality with you. Your testimony and story of transformation is inspiring, and I'm sure Rachel would like to hear it as well." Carrie interjected in agreement.

"Thank you, Carrie. That's the nicest thing anybody's ever said to me." Danielle replied, a flicker of a smile crossing her face.

"Well, that makes three of us, Danielle. What I loved the most about the church and youth group I was a part of was when people shared their testimonies. It was an opportunity to praise God for working wonders in a person's life. I can already tell Jesus has written a wonderful new story for you!" Rachel gushed.

After spending a couple of moments in silent prayer, Danielle began to tell her story.

"I grew up in the Bronx, born into a working class family. I'm twins with my jock of a brother, Michael – he's three minutes older than me. He was always Dad's favourite. Conversely, I was drawn closer to my birth mother, Bethany. She was the one who fed me, tucked me in and made sure my lunch was packed. I remember that she would take me to the park to play on the swings, then we would get ice-cream…those were some of the happiest memories of my childhood." The brunette allowed a fond smile to cross her face as she reflected.

Her countenance grew somber as she continued. "That all changed when I turned eight. Bethany had battled lung cancer before Michael and I were born, and managed to get it into remission. However, it came back with a vengeance. There was nothing they could do. It really tore Dad up." Tears began to roll down the rocker's cheeks. "You know, Dad says that at the service, I approached the coffin and asked Bethany why she was sleeping. Dad and Michael tried to sanitise things for me, but deep down, I knew she was gone." Danielle then brushed the tears away with her hands.

"I'm really sorry, Danielle. That must have been awful." Rachel offered her sympathies. Carrie and Olivia both had a melancholy air about them. While they had heard Danielle's story before and knew all about her chequered past, it was never any easier hearing the sad, disappointing but ultimately redemptive details.

"It was." Danielle concurred with Rachel. "For the longest time, I just felt this great sadness. I really needed Dad around, to tell me it would be okay. He only seemed to be interested in Michael's football career though. For the longest time, it was almost like I didn't exist."

"No offence, Dani, but your dad really needs to work on the whole parenting thing." Olivia stated, bluntly. "There's having favourites, and there's whatever the heck his love affair with Michael is."

"I tend to agree. While it's clear that your relationship with Thomas has improved ever since that low point, there were times during that fortnight I spent with you that it seemed like he was putting up with you for the sake of Amira and Michael." Carrie agreed. A genuine smile crossed the telekinetic's face. "Your mother and brother really care about you though."

"Don't be too harsh on Danielle's dad. I'm sure he tried his best. It's not easy being a parent in those circumstances – especially raising two children by himself." Rachel pointed out.

"I know it was tough on him. It wasn't until much later that I realised he was grieving as well. Just trying to throw himself into anything to keep his mind off what happened. But by that stage, the damage was done. As I grew older, sadness turned to resentment, and resentment turned to anger. I would do anything to get Dad's attention, usually negative. I once joked they were going to name the detention room in my honour. And it worked – Dad actually started to acknowledge my existence. Then came the tipping point – the point when I brought my behaviour down to new lows. This set off a chain of events that ultimately led to me deciding I needed to change and letting the Lord come into my life."

Danielle then took a deep breath and ran her hands over her face, praying for strength. "You're not going to like what you hear next, Rachel. Carrie and Livy already know what I'm going to talk about. But I'm giving you fair warning."

"Whatever mess you've made of your life, Jesus has paid the price. You don't have to hide anything." The preacher's daughter reassured the brunette.

"One day, I came home to find this woman I had never seen before." Danielle began to explain. "When I asked Dad who it was, he told me her name was Amira, and that they were seeing each other."

"Now I know the significance – Carrie mentioned her name earlier." Rachel deduced, as she fiddled with her fedora.

"Anyway, I was so angry. I was like: why does Dad get to be happy when I was so miserable? It made me sick! So, I made a decision. I was going to force this interloper out of my family. That way, Dad would feel just a sliver of the emptiness and misery with which I had to live for seven years. For the next year, I took on the role of edgelord – someone who says provocative and inflammatory things to get a reaction. I told her it was a shame Hitler didn't finish the job on her relatives, that we needed to get more pork-"

"Amira's Jewish." Carrie helpfully informed Rachel.

"I scrawled a swastika on a piece of paper and hung it up in my room. I didn't mean it, of course. I didn't mean any of it. I just wanted this strange woman to go away and get out of my mum's bed. But I embraced hate in order to do it, albeit not with full sincerity. And for that, a part of me will always be ashamed, even though it's in the past now." The rocker finished.

"Yes, it is. I'm glad you're able to see your sins for what they were." Rachel's voice filled the silence. "You know none of us can condone that behaviour."

"I'm not asking you to – I'm just telling the truth." Danielle agreed, as she ran her right hand through her hair. "Anyway, this went on for about a year. It had got to the point where I couldn't stand even being around my parents, so I would sneak out at night. I just needed space to breathe. I was walking in Saint James' Park when I heard a couple of girls call out to me. They were much older than I was – I was 14, and they would have to have been about 17/18. They told me that I should come hang with them – no girl should be out alone. So, I started to hang out with them. They let me drink some of the booze they had with them, and gave me a knife to protect myself with. The Bronx can be a dangerous place after dark. And that led to me getting arrested for the first time."

"First time?" Rachel inquired.

"I bought the knife onto school property. I had forgotten to take it out of my pockets after a night out. It got picked up by the metal detectors. Your death didn't just change your own community, Rachel. It changed schools all across the nation." Danielle observed. "Anyway, I got expelled. As far as the powers that be at my school were concerned, that was the last straw. Not that it mattered much to me anyway – I didn't like school all that much. Once the cops found out I wasn't actually going to hurt anybody with the knife, I got let off with a warning. I continued to sneak out, against my Dad's wishes. One night, while I was smoking weed with these other girls, they asked me why I kept coming back to hang out with them. I told them I wanted to get away from my dad and his new Jewish whore. And that was when the real trouble started."

"What sort of trouble?" Rachel wondered.

"The kind that led to my second arrest – and thankfully my last arrest." The brunette gave an honest answer. "Their eyes just lit up. One of the girls pulled up their sleeves to reveal a white supremacist tattoo. I had unwittingly made friends with some very bad people. Neo-Nazis. Whatever rationality I had left was telling me to get away from these people – that they were scum and I couldn't trust them. But my warped impulses told me if I was really committed to getting rid of Amira, this was the way to do it. So I said yes to their offer – that I could join their gang if I came and tagged a nearby synagogue with them." The punk then shook her head back and forth. "Why did I have to do that? Why?!" She groaned in regret, holding her head in her hands.

"It's okay – we all do things we shouldn't do when we're angry." Rachel offered, as she placed her hand on Danielle's leg.

"I know. But I think part of me will always curse my stupidity. Maybe that's a good thing?" Danielle shrugged. "Anyway, long story short, I got caught – they didn't. I'll never forget the moment when my lawyer told me they were going to charge me with a hate crime, both because of the target and my animosity towards Amira. At first I was in denial – I wasn't a hateful person by nature. I just wanted this one person to leave my family. Eventually, I had to face up to the fact that I had let my anger blind me to the hurt that I had caused not only Amira and my family, but also the Jewish community. Standing in front of the judge and taking responsibility for my actions was the hardest thing I ever had to do. The prosecution were trying to get me put away in juvie until I was 21, in order to send a message. Luckily, the judge had leniency on a remorseful first time offender. My sentence was one year in juvenile detention, followed by two years of probation. So, in theory, I served three years under the supervision of the Department Of Youth And Family Services."

"A prison for children. How inhumane." Rachel pondered, as she shook her head.

"It was rather professional and humane, actually." Danielle stated. "Of course, there were those unique prison features, like the strip search, but it was done quickly and calmly. And speaking as a former delinquent, some kids need this. I know I did."

"What was it like there?" Rachel questioned.

"Jarring was my first impression of the juvie experience. There's that moment that I assume most prisoners have when they see themselves in the uniform and locked in a cell where they think: Where did I go wrong? I know I had that moment. A pair or orange scrubs isn't quite sackcloth and ashes, but it was a visible symbol of the lowest point of my life." The rocker informed her audience.

"But that ultimately led to your encounter with God, and getting saved." Rachel prompted, hope rising in her voice.

"That's right." Danielle confirmed, nodding. "It all started when I had a restorative justice meeting with the rabbi of the synagogue I had tagged. I apologised for what I had done and asked forgiveness. The rabbi graciously accepted my apology, and shared a few words about how deeply anti-Semitic hatred affects the Jewish community. He told me that a Bar Mitzvah that was planned to be held there had to be postponed until after my court date, because the young boy who it was meant for was terrified the Nazis were coming to get him." She shook her head sadly. "It's a hell of a thing, to be the monster of a child's nightmares. I certainly felt like a monster. That provided the impetus for me to want to change, to leave my old self behind. My counsellor suggested that I read The Diary Of Anne Frank to try and gain empathy with the Jewish people. Anne wasn't a superhero – she was an ordinary girl, just like me. That's what made it so moving and powerful. However, it caused me to feel guilty and heartbroken over the things I had done. And that's when I felt the grace of Jesus Christ reaching out to me.

There was this girl, Edie. She was the leader of the Christian girls. I saw her holding prayer circles in the pod each morning. She saw that I was feeling down and asked me what was wrong. I told her that I was a monster for doing what I did. Edie sat with me and told me I wasn't a monster – I was a wandering child of God. She invited me to come to the juvie facility's worship service that evening. It was so joyous and uplifting. I got a Bible and began to read each day. My favourite verse is Psalm 40, verse 2: "He drew me up from the desolate pit, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure." That verse summed up my life to a T. I was just stuck in this pit of anger and resentment, and I was drowning in it. I was desperate to get out of it. So one night, I knelt down to pray to Jesus and I asked Him to save me from myself. That was the night I first became a Christian. I got baptised by the facility's chaplain, and eventually found my home in the Catholic Church. But that's a story for another time. The point is, my life has improved exponentially ever since I made the decision to get right with God."

"Alleluia! Praise the Lord, who delivered you from your wicked ways!" Rachel cheered, letting out a loud whoop. "So, how do you know these two?" She questioned, indicating Carrie and Olivia.

"One of my friends from my new Catholic school, Monica, insisted I go to youth group with her. It's a fellowship group for youth and young adults run by two NYU students called Eternal Pentecost. I got to know Livy, and eventually Carrie when she came as well." The brunette gave their spiritual guest the rundown.

"I love that name! How wonderful must it be, to always be filled with the Holy Spirit!" Rachel laughed, as she adjusted her fedora so it sat sideways on her head.

"If you could only hear Livy bragging about the Yankees, or our friend Alexis writing arias to chocolate, you wouldn't think it's so wonderful." Danielle deadpanned, a humorous note in her voice. "We tend to go all over the place – not that that's a bad thing. Recently, it's been up to me and maybe Carrie to pull the group back to a more Biblical focus. But we are all followers of Jesus, in our own ways."

"I don't doubt that you are." Rachel agreed, as she tried to get her train of thought together. "So, how do you proclaim the Gospel, Danielle?"

"I guess a large part of it involves defending the faith when challenged." Danielle mused, scratching her chin. "I'm the only Christian in a largely secular family. As you can imagine, this places me at odds with them on a number of issues. I often receive questions from my family or my band mates about why the Church believes as it does on any number of issues, and I do my best to argue the Catholic perspective. That's not to say that I am enthusiastic about every moral stance taken by the Vatican. However, I do my best to live by Jesus' teachings, and explain why when asked. My parish has groups that work with pregnant women and single mothers, as well as the elderly. I've spent time working for all three, because I believe in the God-given dignity of all human beings, from conception to natural death. Being pro-life is way more than just being against abortion. It's ultimately about providing conditions for people to flourish – allowing the unborn child in the womb the opportunity to be born, giving reassurance and stability for the struggling families trying to make ends meet and offering comfort and companionship to those at the end of their lives, who deserve to relax. I've been to both anti-abortion prayer vigils and union marches calling for an increase in maternity/paternity payments. The best way to fully live out the Christian lifestyle is to make Democrats think you're a Republican, and for Republicans to think you're a Democrat – you prick the egos of both sides of the political spectrum, letting them know where they need improvement. I'm an independent – I can't be anything else, really."

"Anything specific? Those all sound wonderful." Rachel inquired.

"There hasn't been a lot of good times for me over the past year or so. But one of the good things that's come out of the present situation is the ability for me to share the faith with my band mates. Plagues do strange things to people." The rocker explained.

"I know. It's so sad what's happened to the world the past year. I'm glad you three are healthy and safe." Rachel remarked, sombrely.

"If only you could say the same about my grandma or Livy's grandpa. They didn't survive their brush with the disease." Danielle morosely mumbled in reply. "But that's not the point. Petra, Dylan and Jessica, my three band mates, contacted me and asked me to teach them about the Catholic faith. Call it a quarantine hobby if you like. I got this sense that they were looking for something that had meaning. So, I spent a lot of days talking with them and answering their questions. However, I knew that nothing would be as meaningful as actively showing them the light, grace and love of Jesus when they needed it the most. And boy, did they need it. Petra was the first of my band mates who needed spiritual comfort. One of her best friends caught the pandemic virus."

"Oh no! That must have been terrible for her." Rachel gasped in sympathy.

"It was. She was distraught in a way I had never seen before." Danielle reflected. "Erica was her first childhood friend, and also a cancer survivor. The chemo did a number on her immune system, and this virus is particularly nasty on people with compromised immune systems. Her lungs were damaged to the point where she had to be put on oxygen and a ventilator in order to breathe. It really was a touch and go situation. There was nothing I could do but sit and cry with her. I had just lost Grandma a couple of weeks ago, so there was still some raw pain there. Then she asked me to teach her how to pray. At the end of every conversation I had with her and the others about faith, I would issue a standing invitation to pray with me about anything, but they had yet to take me up on it. Until then."

"What did you do?" Rachel wondered, her eyebrows curling upwards.

"The same thing that Jesus did in the New Testament – taught her the Lord's Prayer. We prayed it together, line by line." The brunette revealed. "Truth be told, I don't know if she believed in any of the words she was saying. But I think it helped calm her down. Petra and I would pray together every night, until Erica recovered and was released from hospital. She was so relieved when Erica pulled through. That was a cause for celebration by all four of us." A fond smile crossed Danielle's face as she remembered the virtual party the band threw to celebrate Erica getting out of hospital.

"I remember seeing something about that." Carrie recalled. "I'm happy for Petra that her friend didn't die – I've still got that photo of us from Riotfest."

"And, of course, there's Jessica, Dylan and their baby." Danielle continued. "They've been seeing each other for a while. Personally, I think they're soulmates. I think it's something to do with how the bass and drums relate to one another in a band, and how the drummer has to follow the bass line. It's like their two hearts beat as one. Anyway, one night in the fall just gone, Jessica snuck over to Dylan's house. I don't think you need me to spell out what happened next." This pronouncement was met with a series of blushes from the other three girls.

"Long story short, Jess ends up pregnant." The vocalist pushed on. "Leaving aside my own thoughts on premarital sex, sneaking over to one's house when you're being told to stay apart is a very foolish thing to do, especially during this time of the coronavirus. I had to resist the urge to yell at them for being reckless when they contacted me, because I knew I had to be gentle and gracious with them. They wanted to know my thoughts on abortion. I told them they could find the religious position on abortion on any number of websites. However, they wanted to hear it from me."

"How did you handle that?" Olivia inquired.

"I just spoke honestly with them." Danielle declared, honestly. "I made the argument that if human life ends when the heart and brain cease to function, logically human life must begin when those organs are formed, which can be as early as six weeks. I informed them of my belief that the unborn child is a member of the species Homo sapiens, with it's own distinctive DNA, setting it apart from the mother's body. There are plenty of non-religious arguments that could be made against abortion. But ultimately, all I could do is promise to be there for them, no matter what they chose. They got themselves into this situation, and it was ultimately up to them to decide how to handle it."

"Please tell me they chose life for their baby!" Rachel begged.

"They did, praise God. As for why they made the choice they did? That's their story to tell. But I like to think my prayers made a little difference." Danielle confirmed. "My whole rosary group was praying for them. I think what it came down to was that they had family and friends that believed in them – that trusted them to be good parents."

"You mean they're going to raise the baby together? They must be so brave. I think it's wonderful that you prayed for them." Rachel praised.

"It didn't stop with me praying. I promised them I'd be there for them, and I am." The rocker vowed. "I run a music vlog, so I started a GoFundMe to help raise money for the necessities – formula, food, healthcare and the like. I drive Dylan and Jess to and from their prenatal appointments on days when their parents can't do it. I got members of my youth group to donate some of their used toys and held a socially distant baby shower."

"How does that work? I figure you can't meet in large groups due to the virus." Rachel mused.

"It's largely virtual. We got a whole lot of their friends together on Zoom-" Danelle began.

"Zoom? What's that?" The pastor's daughter wondered.

"It's like telephone with pictures. You use it on your computer." Danielle replied, providing a helpful answer.

"Oh! Like The Jetsons! That must be wonderful!" Rachel enthused.

"It's been a godsend. Anyway, once we've got the call connected, one of us was nominated as the "stork" to drop off the presents outside Jessica's house so they could pick them up safely. Dylan's moved in with her. The stork was me." The brunette explained.

"Yeah, plus you look like a stork in that fancy mask of yours." Olivia teased in a playful voice.

"You're lucky I don't have my earrings with me right now." Danielle quipped, making as if to punch Olivia in the arm.

"You guys are funny!" Rachel giggled, as she watched the banter between the two girls.

"We try." Carrie shrugged, reminding the others she was still there.

"Anyway, you wanted to know how I live my faith? That's how. That, as well as the efforts I'm making to make sure I never fall back into my old ways. I'm seeing a therapist, attending Life After Hate meetings and working with the Jewish community to repair the damage I caused." Danielle got back on track.

"I'm glad to hear that. So, what are your dreams, Danielle?" Rachel inquired.

"I'm kind of like you. I've read that you were trying to decide between being an actress and a missionary. Likewise, I've got two options on the table for me - becoming a nun, or a music journalist as backup." The punk answered, honestly.

"This is my surprised face." Olivia deadpanned, not looking surprised at all. "I mean, if you were trying to keep the whole nun thing a secret, you failed. It's the worst-kept secret since The Decision."

"A nun! That's splendid! I love all the nuns I've met in heaven. They're so fascinating. I don't think I'd be cut out for that kind of life." Rachel pondered.

"I feel drawn to the Carmelite order." Danielle nodded. "I always feel most at peace whenever I'm at Mass or praying silently. The Carmelite charism places a strong emphasis on silent prayer and meditation, both of which keep me calm. Plus, there was this uncanny knack of certain important events in my life happening on days connected to the Carmelites. Michael and I were born on Saint Teresa Of Avila's birthday – March 28. I don't believe in coincidences – I truly believe I'm being called by Jesus to consecrate myself to him through my vocation as a nun."

"That sounds beautiful." Carrie smiled, fondly.

"I can do nothing less for the One who died to save me from hell. I love Jesus, and I want to serve Him and give my whole being to Him." Danielle declared, passionately.

Just then, Rachel began to cry. This reaction took Carrie, Olivia and Danielle entirely by surprise. None of them knew how to respond as tears streamed down the face of the pastor's daughter. After a few moments, she stopped. Remarkably, and perhaps miraculously, her face was suddenly free of any evidence of tears.

"Sorry. It's just…Danielle reminds me so much of Eric and Dylan. And after seeing her beautiful, faith-filled soul and the new creature she is, I can't help but think about how things could have been so different. I prayed for Dylan. Every day. Maybe if I had tried to be his friend, if I had shown him there was a better way…" Rachel babbled in sadness.

"There was nothing you could've done. Based on everything I've read about those two, they were too far gone to be helped." Danielle sighed, commiserating with their spiritual host.

"Maybe you're right." Rachel sighed. She then grabbed Danielle tightly and locked her in a hug. "Thank you, Danielle. Thank you for your witness. You're going to be a wonderful servant. I know it." She whispered in her ear.

"I hope to only be as holy as I need to be." Danielle responded, as she returned the hug. Once the pair broke away from one another, Rachel took several deep breaths. In a blink of an eye, her usually sunny countenance had returned.

"Wow! That was intense!" She gasped. "I think we need to all take a moment to relax before we go on." At those words, four glasses of sparkling lemonade appeared before the girls. Carrie, Olivia, Danielle and Rachel all picked up their glass and began to drink. The cool liquid swirled down their throats, providing a pleasant sensation as they basked in the eternal sunshine of Carrie's spotless mind. Once they had finished, the quartet were ready to turn back to their conversation.

"So, Olivia. You're lucky number three. Tell me a little bit about yourself." Rachel requested.

"I'm the middle of three children – born in Turin, Italy in June 2002. My folks immigrated to America on a work visa, ultimately becoming citizens." The Italian-American began to narrate. "Dad's a dentist, and Mum was a journalist – before some fucker sexually harassed her out of her workplace. I have an older brother, Marco, who's 23. He lives in Las Vegas and he's trying to make it as an MMA fighter."

"MMA?" Rachel inquired, not familiar with this term.

"Mixed Martial Arts. Kickboxing, jiu-jitsu, wrestling – he's proficient in all of them." Olivia clarified. "Anyway, Marco was the one who got me interested in sports. He introduced me to soccer and football, and I was just besotted with the idea of becoming a sports star. I was vice-captain of my high school soccer team, and I've received an opportunity to train with Italian soccer team Juventus later this year. They're my club, and getting to train - and potentially play – with them is a dream come true. All those early mornings are starting to pay off." She had a giddy note in her voice, as though she still couldn't believe it.

"You must be really good, to get the chance to play professionally." Rachel observed.

"I'm not that great." Olivia dismissed, waving her hand.

"Only a top 10 NCAA prospect, and you got a student section giving you the Seven Nation Army treatment. Nothing special or anything like that." Danielle quipped, sarcastically.

"I keep telling you, Livy. You underestimate yourself." Carrie added, sticking up for her friend.

"You're embarrassing me!" Olivia laughed, as she reluctantly accepted the compliments. "Anyway, I'm tight with my bestie Brianna. We've been through so much together – good times and bad. She's the one that filled me with passion for activism and social justice."

"She sounds like an amazing person." Rachel pondered.

"Yeah, she is. She's the only one in our group to get into an Ivy League college." The Italian-American nodded.

"Don't think you're getting off that easily, Olivia! How do you live her faith out there in the world?" The pastor's daughter probed.

"Mostly by being an example to my sister, Maria." Olivia pointed out. "With Marco gone, I'm the big girl in the house. Accordingly, it's up to me to be a role model for her, to demonstrate how a Christian ought to live. She's going to have her First Communion this year. It's kind of a big deal, so I'm showing her what to expect and what it means to us as Catholics. Also, as I've grown older, I've learned how to love and serve Jesus in those who are needy, underprivileged or voiceless. Brianna inspired me to begin volunteering at our parish's soup kitchen and play my part in the fight against racism and prejudice."

"Thank you for your story and your example. It's great to see faith in God and His promises alive and well in young people today. I'm deeply grateful to you, Carrie, Olivia and Danielle. I'm not ashamed of the Gospel, and neither should any of you." Rachel offered her gratitude. The four girls then gathered for a group hug. After they had released their grip, the fedora wearing girl fixed the trio with a look of utter seriousness. "Which brings me to the reason you three are here." #he announced. At these words, the hairs on the necks of Carrie, Danielle and Olivia stood bolt upright. At last, they were going to learn the purpose of this dream-like rendezvous with this young woman who was taken too soon.

Taking a deep breath, Rachel began to address them thusly.

"When I was alive, I had a preconceived notion of what a Christian looked like, dressed like, and acted like. I'm not afraid to admit I had some prejudices as well. I generally expected people who followed Jesus to be filled with the light of Christ, always be happy and act impeccably. However, one of the benefits of being in heaven is that I see everything clearly. Jesus isn't just for the perfect people. He's for the broken and messy people as well. I've seen some pretty surprising people in heaven. People I never would've expected to be Christians while on Earth. But there are plenty of surprising people in The Other Place as well. People that I thought always did what was pleasing to the Lord. Jesus loves all his children, and hates to lose them to the darkness. It was He that sent me there. He knows you three by name, and He loves you so much. However, there is something blocking you from being the best people you can be, and He sent me here to help you fix it."

"Fix what?" Carrie asked, in a quizzical tone.

"Carrie, Olivia, Danielle – we need to have a big talk about forgiveness." Rachel intoned, in a serious voice.

"For…forgiveness?" The telekinetic spluttered. She hadn't expected this!

"Yes. Forgiveness. Specifically, your lack of forgiveness of other people." Rachel clarified. "All three of you know to repent and ask for forgiveness when you fall short of God's glory. And it's good to seek forgiveness. However, you three haven't exactly done a good job extending that same forgiveness to others. And, honestly? It's damaging your souls, little by little. Not forgiving others is a serious barrier to having your own sins forgiven. That's why I'm here. Think of me as your spiritual dentist, and I'm extracting a rotten tooth before it causes too much pain. I'm going to help you three learn to forgive."

"What do you have to teach us?" Olivia questioned, somewhat harshly.

"My last day bought me face to face with two boys who committed a great evil. They killed me, and many others. Yet, I forgave them in my heart. If I can do that for those who would do such a monstrous thing, you can forgive others for your own personal conflicts." The pastor's daughter noted, sagely.

"You said Jesus sent you to us?" Danielle probed.

"Indeed, He did." Rachel replied, nodding slightly.

"Then, surely you can just tell us what we need to work on." The rocker reasoned.

"Jesus told me you were hurting. He didn't say what caused it." Rachel answered, truthfully. As nervous looks were exchanged, the pastor's daughter continued to speak. "Look, you don't have to tell me. But I thought it might help if I shared my own story of unforgiveness. There was this boy at my school named Alex. I had feelings for him, and I thought he had feelings for me. However, he cheated on me with this girl named Madison. I was able to forgive her, but I didn't accept his apology when it was offered to me. The next day, I was dead. Seeing that sin of refusing forgiveness being placed onto the judgement scales was terrifying. I genuinely thought I was going to be shut out of heaven. However, God's mercy prevailed over His justice. Let me ask you something. Do you trust me? More importantly, do you trust the One that sent me?"

"You know we do." Carrie declared, in a bold voice.

"Then what say you help a sister in Christ out? After all…" Rachel then struck a pose, tilting her fedora to the right side of her head. "I'm on a mission from God!"

The trio let out a series of smiles at Rachel's Blues Brothers reference. The 1980 classic had been shown during one of their meetings as an example of Catholicism in popular culture. It had been one of the group's last in person gatherings before they were forced to socially distance. Suffice it to say it was Peter's favourite out of the handful of meetings he had attended. Evidently, Rachel had appreciated the movie as well. Sharing a look with each other, the trio nodded.

"Okay. We'll tell you." Carrie consented.

"Thank you, Carrie. You won't regret this." Rachel answered in a grateful voice. "So, I guess you just volunteered to go first."

"Every time somebody asks me if I've put my past and mama's abuse behind me, I tell them I have." Carrie began, in a low voice. "That's a lie. I haven't – not really. Because while I've forgiven her for her abuse, I still haven't forgiven her for depriving me of a normal childhood. Every time I experience a first – whether it's a meal with friends or a sports game or a concert or a road trip or just talking to someone my age about my faith – I feel angry that mama didn't let me experience any of those things sooner. It's like a piece of me was missing for all those years." She shook her head as Olivia and Danielle squeezed her hands in support.

"I'm so sorry. Nobody deserves to feel that way." Rachel comforted as she knelt in front of the telekinetic. After a few moments, Olivia took up the opportunity to speak.

"For me, it's my Dad. I had a major crisis of faith a couple of years ago, and I blame him for that. Mum miscarried when she was carrying who would've been my baby brother, Stefano. It would've been her last child, and we were all devastated. Dad, being the old school Catholic that he was, decided that the Church would be a magic cure, so he began to get really strict about Mass attendance and the like. I mean, really strict. Like, I'd be grounded if he thought I wasn't paying attention. He also said really hateful things about one of my team mates after she came out – he called her a sinful pervert, threatened to pull me off my school soccer team and threw my rainbow heart pin in the trash. We had a huge fight about it. He thought he was making me faithful and orthodox. However, it had the opposite effect. I started to resent the Church, then I started to resent God. For about a year or so, I lived in open rebellion against the teachings of the Catholic Church. I stood for nothing greater than my own abilities. However, my moral standards began to slip. I became a bully. I laughed at Carrie and belittled her when I saw her in a cruel video. I didn't know who she was at the time, of course. I also rebelled against my dad by sneaking out to parties. It was there that I…lost my virginity. A boy from the JV team was my first time. I also ran the bases with a whole bunch of people as I experimented. I was the spokesperson for the phrase "If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything." I still feel shame and regret over those things I did. No bully can claim to follow God, and I had squandered my first time having sex on some dumb jock. Yet, I know I would've never done those things if Dad didn't try to force the Church on me."

"I've never heard that story before, Livy. That's disturbing." Carrie remarked, feeling slightly ill at the actions of her friend's father.

"I have to agree with Carrie. Even though I believe marriage is between a man and a woman, what your father said was over the line." Rachel added.

"It didn't make any sense to me or Mum. I mean, sure, he's a conservative. But I've never heard him sound so hateful before. It was like he was a whole different person." The Italian-American confided. "Eventually, he came to his senses. It turned out that he had sought comfort in an online group of Catholic fathers. At first it seemed harmless – an opportunity for some companionship. However, they slowly began to feed him more fundamentalist ideas. That's where the strictness on church and homophobic rhetoric came from. He sensed something was wrong when he started getting told to get rid of the TV and other devices. That's when he got away from them – that just wouldn't be practical for his business. He dialled back the rhetoric, though I get the distinct feeling he still holds antiquated views about a lot of things. And here I go, making it all about me."

"Isn't it ironic that a group of reactionaries used technology in order to decry it?" Carrie questioned.

"A little too ironic? Yeah, I really do think!" Danielle quipped, her music radar pinging.

"Actually, I was thinking more Sideshow Bob ironic than Alanis ironic. Blasted helium!" Olivia joked, making her voice sound squeaky.

"Sideshow Bob's so great!" Carrie reminisced. "The Duff Blimp!"

"The HMS Ponafore!" Danielle chipped in.

"THE RAKES!" The trio chorused, as they took in the opportunity to make jokes about their favourite cartoon villain.

"I love you guys! You're so funny and adorable!" Rachel smiled, as she took in their laughter.

Danielle was last, but certainly not least, speaking up once the banter had subsided. "It's my father for me as well. Our relationship's just nosedived over the past year or so. We've had at least three big league fights. The first was over the Black Lives Matter protests against police brutality. When I called him out for racially profiling shoppers at the mall where he works, he went on this rant where he basically called me weak and pathetic. The second time we clashed was over abortion. He found out that I was making plans to have Jess and Dylan come and stay with me in case their parents kicked them out. When he found out I advised them against abortion and that I believed that abortion was murder, he called me a self righteous know-it-all and my friends idiots who should've just got an abortion. As you can guess, that didn't go over well. I challenged him to answer if he would've had Michael and I aborted if our circumstances were different. The fact he didn't speak up immediately says it all. This leads into the third argument - over the election. He acted like I had defecated on the carpet when I told him I was voting independent. He basically accused me of voting Republican by stealth. Our last election was kind of….crazy. 2020 was basically nothing but arguments for Dad and I. I don't have much time left living with him, and I don't want to lose him."

Rachel sat there and listened to the other girls get their complaints off their chest. After they had finished talking, she took a few minutes to ponder what she had heard. When Jesus had given her this mission – to teach these three girls about forgiveness – she had accepted it with the utmost seriousness. She wanted everyone to be saved and to be in heaven with her. However, the resentment that these three girls were feeling threatened to harden their hearts if it was not stopped now. But she knew she could not give the right words to say to Carrie, Olivia or Danielle – that would be up to them. But she could give them a push in the right direction.

"I know this is probably going to sound so inadequate, but I have some advice that I want to give to you before you go." The pastor's daughter began. "Carrie, I know you're trying to act as an example for your brother. You may want to think about whether holding on to a grudge is a good example to set. Olivia, I'm not going to try and defend how your father acted. However, just remember that anything can be forgiven if there's true remorse and repentance. If he's forsaken that rhetoric, there's no reason not to forgive. Besides, you haven't exactly been perfect yourself, and you asked forgiveness. As for you, Danielle, be patient with your dad. He's following the ways of the world, and so the ways of God seem almost alien to him. I wish I could tell you exactly what to say. But that has to come from you. Have I helped you in any way?"

"Yeah, I think you did. It was good to get some things off our chests. One last thing. What was it like to be involved in that tragedy? You're famous back on earth because of it. Some people even think you're a martyr. There was even a movie made about you." Danielle inquired.

"Quick, but terrible. One minute I was standing in front of them, the next I was at the gates of heaven." Rachel answered. "I had actually interacted with Dylan a few weeks before the shooting. I was doing a mime act for drama class. However, the tape jammed. Dylan was in the AV club, and came out and fixed the tape, saving me from looking stupid. I thought he was so sweet, and so I started praying for him. It was so sad to me in those last few moments to see the choice he made. As for being a martyr: is it not bad enough they were killers, without the idea of hating Christians? And you say there's a movie about me…why does nobody talk about Cassie or Isaiah or Lauren or Kyle? I'm not more special then they were. I even feel sorry for Eric and Dylan's families. I don't want what happened to us to happen to anybody else."

"We wish we could tell you that." Carrie responded, a downbeat note in her voice.

After the four girls reflected for a moment, they began to say their goodbyes.

"So long, Carrie, Olivia and Danielle. I look forward to seeing you all again – but hopefully not for a very long time." Rachel farewelled as she waved.

"Thank you, Rachel. Thank you for helping us to understand that Easter is the season for forgiving." Olivia reciprocated.

"I'll pray for an end to all massacres tonight." Danielle vowed.

The four girls drew in for a group hug. After a few moments, there was a extremely bright flash of light. Before they knew it, the dreaming trio were back in their beds. Carrie shot bolt upright out of her Avengers Tower bed. Olivia grumbled and rubbed the sleep from her eyes in her sports-themed bedroom. Danielle lay awake in her suburban cloister as she contemplated the meaning of what she had seen. While they each had different reactions, they had the same task in common – to begin to forgive.

*** TSFF ***

Danielle was the first to try and start the conversation with her father. It was at breakfast the following morning. The punk had just finished brushing her teeth after having a shower. Thomas, her father, was seated at the table, drinking his morning coffee whilst perusing the TV listings. Her mother Amira was finishing up a bowl of Captain Crunch. Both of them raised their heads as their daughter entered the kitchen.

"Morning, Danielle. Sleep well?" Thomas inquired.

"Yes, I did. Hey, Dad…can we talk?" Danielle asked, nervously.

"Well, you'd best eat first…something tells me that this isn't the sort of talk to have on an empty stomach." Amira advised, wisely. Nodding, Danielle grabbed two pieces of bread and put them in the toaster. Once they had popped, she buttered the two toasted pieces and tucked into them. Approximately an hour later, both father and daughter were ready for one of the most important conversations of their lives. This conversation would help put the past behind them, as well as look to the future.

"I'll give you two some privacy." Amira nodded, as she retired to her bedroom. Thomas and Danielle eased onto the couch, where they sat together side by side. There was an awkward atmosphere around them, as they each waited for the other one to make the first move. Eventually, Danielle began to speak, slowly and carefully.

"Look, just hear me out, okay? I know it hasn't been easy raising me. I regret that more than you will ever know. I also understand that I haven't changed in exactly the way you envisioned. You didn't raise me to be meek and humble. And yet, following Jesus, joining the Catholic Church and submitting myself to His will was the best thing that ever happened to me. The therapy, the community service, the Life After Hate meetings, helping Dylan and Jessica? None of that happens if I don't have the Lord in my life. I just wish you would try to engage with my faith, instead of belittling it or insulting it. You know that rant last summer? The one where you called me a gullible little girl, a little shit and a sheep, amongst many other insults? That really hurt me, and caused me to resent you. You engaged with Mum's Judaism- why not my Catholicism? At least Michael tried to understand where I was coming from. It would be easy to let this resentment carry over into my adulthood. But it would be wrong. I don't have much time left under this roof, and I don't want to lose you. So, I just wanted to say that I forgive you, Dad. I forgive you for your stubbornness."

"Was that really how I made you feel?" Thomas inquired, a sinking feeling in his chest.

"Yeah. That was how you made me feel." The brunette nodded.

"Oh, sweetheart…I'm so sorry." Her father sighed, rubbing his hands through his hair. "Everything's been getting to me. I've had to bury my mother without saying goodbye. I don't know when I'm going to go back to work. And, of course, there was that situation with Michael and the COVID protocols. It's been nothing but stress after stress for me. And then I see you handling things so calmly and maturely…I guess I got jealous of your piece of mind. The various controversies surrounding the Church didn't help, either. But my own concerns aren't an excuse for going off on you. And for that, I'm sorry."

Instinctively, both father and daughter embraced each other tightly.

"Love you, Dad." Danielle whispered, tears pooling in her eyes.

"Oh, Danielle. I love you too." Thomas responded, a lump forming in his throat.

"I miss Mum. And I miss Grandma." Danielle choked out, as a sob escaped her mouth.

"I know. Shh. I know." Thomas comforted, as he rubbed his daughter's back tenderly. Unbeknownst to him, he was engaging in an action that would serve to heal his daughter's broken heart. Danielle couldn't help but wonder if a lot of heartache could have been spared if Thomas had simply acknowledged Danielle's grief at the first opportunity, instead of ignoring her. However, that would mean that she would never have found God, joined a band, or meet her youth group friends. The brunette silently praised her Heavenly Father for writing a beautiful story with her crooked lines.

Once they had dried their tears, Danielle introduced a new topic of conversation.

"Do you remember how you once facetiously told me I should give away all my possessions? The funny thing is, I might end up doing just that." She began.

"What do you mean?" Thomas wondered.

"I believe the Lord is calling me to become a nun. To devote my entire life to Him through prayer." Danielle explained. Upon seeing Thomas' confused face, the brunette set about outlining her attraction to Carmelite spirituality and the links between important dates in her life and the Carmelite order. For example, she and Michael were born on March 28 – Saint Teresa Of Avila's birthday. Thomas and Amira got married on December 14 – the feast day of Saint John Of The Cross. After a few moments, her father responded: "wow. You've been thinking about this for a while, haven't you?"

"For the last 18 months." The rocker nodded.

"Do you have a plan? I mean, this is the rest of your life we're talking about here. I just hope you know what you're doing." Thomas replied.

"Trust me, Dad. I know what I'm doing. I've been looking into several Carmelite convents, particularly in the northeast and southwest. I actually attended a virtual retreat hosted by a convent in Louisiana last summer, and I'm set to attend another virtual retreat hosted by a group of nuns from Buffalo next month. I hope these retreats will move back to an in person format as vaccine distribution continues. Right now, I'm what's known as an aspirant or a candidate, speaking to various orders and my vocation director. Should I be fortunate enough to be accepted into an order, I'll spend a year or so living as a postulant in a convent, following the daily routine. After that, I'll move on to the novitiate, where I'll become a novice – effectively a nun in training. This is where I'll receive the habit, get my religious name and go deeper into spiritual study. After two years, I'll make a request to make my First Profession of vows. If God wills it, I'll make the three vows of chastity, poverty and obedience. I will then renew those vows annually for six years, during a period known as temporary vows. If I am fortunate, I'll make my Perpetual Profession when those six years are over. At that point, I will be a fully professed sister of the Carmelite Order, a bride of Jesus Christ. And I will remain so until my death." Danielle laid out the process of religious formation thusly.

"You've really thought all this out…" Thomas praised, still trying to digest the information.

"This is a long way away. I won't even begin to think about entering the convent until after college. They insist on making sure all debts are settled before entering the religious life. For all I know, I may discover I'm not called to religious life after all. In which case, I'll act in obedience to God's will. " Danielle pointed out.

"Hmmm. You've clearly got a deep sense of the spiritual. I think I'd like to learn more about your faith. I can't believe that I haven't learned about something that makes my daughter so special." Thomas requested.

"Sure, Dad. How much time do you have? " Danielle questioned.

"How much time do you have, darling?" Thomas questioned.

"All day! It's Easter Monday!" Danielle flashed a bright smile as her eyes twinkled in delight. "I don't have any classes for a couple of days. Come on into my room, and I'll teach you all there is to know about the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church."

"Darling? Clear my schedule – our daughter is going to teach me about being a Catholic!" Thomas called to Amira, as he allowed himself to be escorted by the religious teen.

"Mazel tov! Wait until you see her en-suite – it's like a shrine." Amira responded, calling from her bedroom.

Father and daughter then entered Danielle's bedroom together. Thomas couldn't help but catch sight of the small crucifix that hung above Danielle's bed. It stood in clear contrast and contradiction to the numerous posters of punk and metal bands that decorated his daughter's bedroom. In a way, it seemed to be emblematic of Danielle's attitude to life – resisting pressure to follow the herd and seeking something higher. The brunette then strode over to the small en-suite that sat on the far side of her bedroom and flung it open.

"Here's my prayer space. What do you think?" She announced

Thomas' eyes stretched wide. Amira wasn't kidding when she said it was like a shrine. On a table were two statues, one of a man with long hair comforting a small child, and the other of a woman dressed in all white with stars circling her head. He didn't need to be an expert in theology to know that these were Jesus and his mother Mary. Danielle had filled him in on the basics of the Christmas story when she had recruited him and Amira for her youth group's virtual Christmas pageant. Another Mary statue, this one wearing a blue cloak, stood off to the side. Two pictures of Jesus and Mary were hung on the wall, and another picture hung on the opposite wall. This third picture was of a nun, clad in a black veil and brown habit with a white cape draped over it. She was holding a book and quill, with a studious look on her face. Next to the table where the three statues stood was a small bookcase. The books he could make out included two different copies of the Bible, The Catechism Of The Catholic Church, a book on the lives of the Saints, a book on Carmelite spirituality, and books called The Way Of Perfection and The Dark Night Of The Soul. There were plenty of non-religious texts as well, such as Animal Farm, 1984, The Lord Of The Rings, The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe, To Kill A Mockingbird, Huckleberry Finn and The Screwtape Letters.

"This is my prayer space. I like to think of it as my cell, in the monastic sense. I like to come in here whenever things get too much. As you can guess, I've been doing that a lot lately." Danielle introduced.

"No kidding…" Thomas breathed. His eyes then caught sight of a set of brown beads draped around one of her Mary statues. "Hey, is that your rosary?" He questioned.

"Yep! Sure is!" She smiled, a look of bliss on her face. "One of the teachers at my high school gave it to me."

"I guess this brings me to my first question – what is the story with that? I mean, I know the rosary existed, but I don't actually know the story behind it." Thomas inquired.

"Well, to first understand the Rosary, you have to understand the Gospel." Danielle answered. That statement was the catalyst for a lengthy discussion about the Catholic faith and her devotion. Topics that were covered included the Gospel message, the history of the Rosary and the legend surrounding its' inception, the Church's Marian doctrines and how the Virgin Mary served as an ever present reminder to."do whatever he tells you", why she chose the Catholic Church specifically, the Sacraments and their role in dispensing grace, the Communion Of Saints and their intercession with special emphasis on her spiritual role model Teresa Of Avila, her lace mantilla and the reason for wearing it and the role of women religious such as nuns and teaching sisters, one of her passions.

But it was not only the positive elements of life as a Catholic that were up for discussion. Danielle did not hold back as she cast a critical eye over the Church's skeletons – both visible and not so visible. Special scrutiny was saved for the perpetrators of the sexual abuse scandal, as well as those who, in her view, were willing to prostitute their values for political power, especially those who prioritised abortion over the pandemic and promoted conspiracy theories. This was because the Church was a hospital for sinners, both in the clergy and the laity.

"After all, Jesus never told Peter that his predecessors would be sinless when he gave him the keys to heaven and earth. Of the original twelve bishops, one betrayed Jesus, one denied Him and nine abandoned Him. Only one followed Him to the cross. I'm not a Catholic because Father Sean or Cardinal McMahon or the parish council or the people I sit next to are paragons of virtue. It's because I believe in Jesus Christ, and I believe he meant what he said when he gave his apostles the ability to bind and loose, and I believe that His Kingdom is not of this world. That's why I stay – to celebrate the good, and to help clean up the crap." She passionately declared.

"And that's one more thing I've got to apologise for – for calling you gullible. Someone who has that much knowledge can't be gullible." Thomas apologised.

"I've been called worse things. And I told you before, I forgive you. And I will forgive you Dad. 77 times, the Lord said. If there's a time to forgive, why not Easter?" Danielle assured, as she hugged her father. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the digital clock on her bedside table flash midday.

"Dad. It's lunchtime." She signalled.

"What do you know. Time flies when you're bonding." Thomas chuckled.

*** TSFF ***

Olivia was the second to attempt to reconcile with their father. It was the evening of Easter Monday, and the De Rossi family were settling in to watch Duck Tales. As she laughed at the hijinks of Hewey Dewey and Louie, she couldn't help but feel slightly sad. In just a few short months, she would be leaving Antonio, Francesca and Maria to go to Italy, where she would pursue her childhood dream – to be a professional soccer player. With the world the way it was, there was no telling when she would next see her family. If everything went well, she would not be back in America for a long time. Olivia knew she couldn't go overseas with her lingering resentment hanging over her head. She knew now was the time to act.

"Papa, can I talk to you after this is over?" She requested.

"Yes, you may, tesora." Antonio nodded, as he turned his eyes back to the TV screen. Once the binge-watching session had ended, Francesca, the matriarch turned to their youngest daughter, Maria. "Come on, let's go make your bed." She smiled at the eight-year old. They then left the room, leaving the dentist and his daughter sitting side by side.

"Papa. Do you remember that time a couple of years ago, when I was away from the Church?" Olivia began.

"I think we all try to forget that time." Antonio muttered, still slightly embarrassed at being taken for a ride.

"Well, I never will. Because I've done things that I'm not proud of during that time." The sporty girl then took a deep breath. "Your little girl's not a virgin any more." She whispered, trying not to look at her father. "I tried to look for validation from other people since I wasn't getting it from you . That caused my worst traits to come out. That's why I laughed at Carrie's bullying and pain during that soccer trip. When I saw the person I had become, I was sick to my stomach. And I blamed you for it. I fucking hated you, because you made me hate God. You made me hate him when you made me go to Mass against my will. You made me hate him when you threw out my rainbow pin and called my team-mate a sinner. I hated you for the longest time. Part of me still does, in fact. Because I know I wouldn't have turned away from God if you hadn't pushed me."

"And I have apologised for that, more times than I care to remember. What else do you want from me?" Antonio sighed.

"I'm going away soon. I don't know when I'll be seeing you again. But I know I can't have this festering away inside of me. I guess what I'm trying to say is: I forgive you, Papa." The sporty girl offered.

Antonio folded his hands, shook his head and let out a long and shaking breath. When he looked up at his daughter, he had tears in his eyes. "Thank God. Thank God, thank God, thank God. I thought I had lost you forever. And it hurts me beyond words that I had caused my own daughter to hate me. Can an old fool have a hug?"

"Of course, Papa!" Olivia found herself in the verge of tears as she embraced her father. They held each other close, as they let the negativity of the past go. Such a scene was each of their deepest wishes – Antonio wanted confirmation that his daughter still had some affection towards him, and Olivia wanted to close this final chapter of her childhood before she ventured out into the big, wide world of adulthood. As far as they were concerned, it was mission accomplished.

"I love you, Olivia. More than life itself. Thank you for finding it within yourself to forgive me." Antonio whispered.

"It was nothing. I learned that Easter is the season for forgiving." Olivia answered, as she nuzzled her head in her father's neck.

After a few moments, the patriarch cleared his throat. "Now, then. It appears that you have matured considerably as you have progressed through your adolescence, Olivia. Especially when it comes to sexuality. I thank you for your honesty. Tomorrow, you and I are going to have a conversation that, quite frankly, we should've already had." Upon seeing the look of mortification on Olivia's face, he couldn't help but chuckle as he added: "Yes. THAT conversation."

Olivia's face was red with embarrassment, as she wished she could turn invisible.

*** TSFF ***

Carrie, on the other hand, had no heartwarming reconciliation that day. The reason for that was quite simple – she had nobody to reconcile with. Margaret White was dead, and had been for nearly a year. She had passed away from bronchitis in a secure care facility in Maine during the early surges of the pandemic. To the best of the telekinetic's knowledge, her mother was buried in a family plot, not far from her home town of Chamberlin. It was painful beyond words for Carrie to be unable to say goodbye to the woman who had bought her into this world in person. And that fact lingered with her as she went about her day.

The following night, she found herself back in her beautiful dreamscape. This time, however, she was alone. One thing that stayed the same, however, was the presence of one Rachel Scott.

"We meet again, Carrie. Are you ready to take the next step of forgiveness?" Rachel questioned.

"Where are the others? Why aren't they here?" Carrie questioned.

"Two reasons. One, Olivia and Danielle have already reconciled with their earth-bound parents. Therefore, they have no reason to be here. Secondly, Olivia made a very specific threat as to what she would do if she ever saw your mother. If she tried to carry out that threat, an angel would intervene. And quite frankly, I don't want to see her face melt off when she catches the sight of a seraph in its purest form." Rachel explained, causing Carrie's mind to click into action.

"Are…are you saying that I'm here to see Mama?" She blurted out in shock.

"Yep! You'll even get to speak to her." The dead girl replied, as she spread her hands out in a flourish. "Voila!"

Just then, a small hole appeared in the air above the two girls. An extremely bright light began to shine out of the hole, the brightest light that Carrie had ever seen. She covered her hands with her eyes and scrunched them shut in order to avoid getting blinded. As the light began to soften, the blonde opened her eyes slowly and began to blink. When she was able to open her eyes fully, she saw something that she had longed to see with her own two eyes. It was the sight of her late mother, Margaret White, completely at peace. Gone were the dark, dour clothes and blank eyes that made her seem as if she was possessed. She was wearing a dress of the purest white, with a look of complete serenity on her face. Margaret's hands moved across the strings of a silver harp, as she sang one of the songs of worship that used to emanate from their old transistor radio – Brightly Beams Our Father's Mercy. Carrie was overjoyed, as she witnessed the proof of God's love, right in front of her eyes.

She remembered when she told the members of Danielle's band, The Four Last Things, about how she had been treated. Drummer Jessica's approach was typical of her non-religious associates: "I wish I believed in a hell for that bitch to go to." However, Carrie refused to entertain that idea for a second – she did not believe in a God that would send people to hell for things they had no control over. Deep down, she always believed that her mother would be shown the mercy of God at her judgement. Now she had proof positive that mercy and forgiveness was what her Lord stood for.

"Mama!" She laughed, as she waved her arms. "Over here! It's Carrie, mama! I'm right here! Mama!" However, Margaret took no notice of her, continuing to serenely pluck away at the harp. Non-plussed, the telekinetic turned to Rachel. "Why is she ignoring me?" She wondered.

"She can't hear you. She's in heaven." Came the reply. "There is a gulf between Heaven and this realm of dreams. The Lord has allowed me to appear before you in spirit, whilst physically remaining in heaven. I believe you call it astral projection. You can cross over and have a conversation with her, if you wish. However, once you cross over, there's no going back. You will die. And I already told you that I don't want to see you with me for a long, long time. I'm sorry, but this conversation is going to have to be one-sided."

Carrie let out a sad sigh. Rachel was right – she didn't want to die. In fact, she had only just begun to live. As thrilled that she was that Margaret had found some peace in the afterlife, she was needed back on earth. She had meticulously rehearsed the words that she was going to say to Margaret if she ever saw her again. And now she was faced with the only opportunity she would ever get to use those words. Taking a deep, long breath, Carrie began to speak.

"I hated you for the longest time, Mama. You hurt me, and you neglected me. I wasn't sure if I could ever forgive you. But, now I know that what I hated wasn't the real you. It was what that horrible illness turned you into. Do you know what I regret the most, mama? It's that I never got to see you as you are now. As you should have been. I'm okay, mama. I'm safe now. And I'll see you again one day. Rest In Peace."

Wiping her eyes, Carrie turned to Rachel. "Thank you, Rachel. Thank you for helping me and my friends. May you and your fellow students Rest In Peace as well."

"Don't thank me. Thank the good Lord that bought us together. I wish you and your friends all the best, Carrie. And Psystorm." Rachel farewelled, as she tipped her fedora to the superhero. After she had said these words, another extremely bright light surrounded them both. Jerking out of a sound sleep, Carrie scrambled around and laid eyes on her bedside clock. 4:31am. Despite being shocked awake, she felt like a giant weight had been lifted off her chest. Turning around, she grabbed hold of her pillow and closed her eyes, drifting off to sleep.

*** TSFF ***

TWO WEEKS LATER

The sleepy town of Littleton, Colorado was going about its business. Shops were open, people were walking the streets, having picnics and cheering on their youth sports teams. Of course, they were all masked whilst doing so, but there were some signs that the town was starting to get back on its feet again. The shocks of the COVID pandemic were most keenly felt in towns such as Littleton, with many businesses losing out on projected revenue. To see people out and about again was a good sign for the town's recovery. However, whilst the town may have been healing from the wounds of the pandemic, it still nursed a much deeper wound that it still struggled to recover from, 22 years on. A wound that became known by just one name.

Columbine.

A non-descript white car pulled up at the entrance to the town's memorial garden, which stood as an eternal tribute to all those who were killed and injured. The door opened, and Carrie, Olivia and Danielle exited the vehicle. Carrie was dressed in a brown jacket and track pants, with a black beanie and a disposable white mask. She opted not to wear her Psystorm branded mask, not wanting to draw attention to herself. Olivia wore her navy Yankees sports coat and a matching mask, whilst Danielle wore a white PN95 face mask. The "beak" of the mask jutted out as it sat over her nose and mouth, making her look like a bird as Olivia had alluded to.

It was a difficult task to persuade all three sets of parents to let their daughters make the trip. Understandably, Antonio and Thomas were deeply cautious about letting their daughters fly cross-country. However, once informed that this would literally be a flying visit, from the airfield to the memorial and back again, and that rigorous safety protocols would be followed, their blessing was granted. Besides, how many people could say they got to ride in a Quinjet? All three girls had their temperatures checked before boarding, masks were required and they sat in three physically distanced seats. Due to the highly-advanced aircraft's speed, they were in the air for only half an hour before arriving in Littleton.

"Don't take too long." Happy Hogan, who had travelled with them as their chaperone, instructed. Nodding, the trio walked into the garden. A smattering of other people were wandering the spacious garden, rugged up and masked up. Carrie held two bouquets of lillies, whilst Olivia and Danielle held one each. Each bouquet had a note attached to it. They eventually reached the Ring Of Remembrance – a circle of thirteen plaques, one for each life that was gone too soon. As the three girls solemnly regarded the small memorial, they each felt their hearts grow heavy with sadness.

Grabbing one of her bouquets, Carrie stepped forward first. Having found the plaque she was looking for, she laid the lillies she was holding beneath the bronze plaque bearing the name of the girl who had taught them how to forgive by her example – Rachel Scott. The telekinetic couldn't help but notice a statement on the plaque noting how Rachel had lived her faith until the end, when she proclaimed her allegiance to Christ when challenged by her killers. Attached to the card was a small, handwritten note, signed by all three girls. It read:

You inspire us more than you will ever know. We will never let your memory be forgotten.

Carrie then walked across the ring and laid down the second bouquet she had. The slain student this bouquet was paying tribute to was Kelly Fleming. A gifted writer and poet, her headstone was adorned with a poem she had written roughly a year before her death. English being one of Carrie's strong suits, she felt like she could identify with her. There was another note attached to this bouquet, which read as follows:

Your mind and soul is beautiful, Kelly. I wish you could have shared your gifts with the world.

Danielle then stepped forward and placed her bouquet of flowers at the foot of a memorial plaque. This tribute was for Cassie Bernal, who was also a Christian like Rachel. One of the things the brunette found most moving about her story was her excitement to think about what heaven would be like. She had reportedly told one of her friends that she did not fear death, for she would be in a better place. The message that Danielle had written to Cassie reflected both girls deep religious belief and desire for something better than this valley of tears.

God bless you, my dear sister in Christ. May you feel no more pain, and may you partake of the Bread Of Angels at the heavenly feast, as you rejoice in the presence of Jesus.

Olivia was the last one of the trio to give her tribute. She would honour Steven Curnow, the only boy they chose to write a letter to. Whilst they respected the memories of all thirteen souls that lost their lives, each of them chose one student, in addition to Rachel, to write a message to. Olivia had chosen Steven in no small part because he, like her, played soccer. However, the fact that he played on a rec-league team was deeply significant to the Italian-American. With her future hinging on the events of this upcoming summer, it was a reminder to her that at the end of the day, it was just a game. Also of note was his desire, had he lived, to become a naval officer. Having had family who fought in the Italian Resistance. Olivia was deeply proud of her family for standing up for what was right, and she prayed she would have the courage to do the same when the time came. Her note expressed her desire to follow Steven's example.

You inspire me, Steven. I hope that I can keep things in perspective, and that I can be as brave as you when I need to.

The three girls then bowed their heads for a moment of silent prayer. After they had done that, they took a leisurely but respectful stroll around the rest of the memorial. Running around the Ring Of Remembrance was a brick wall. Inserted into the wall were panels, bearing quotes from survivors, first responders and others regarding the tragedy. A solemn air washed over the trio as they took it all in. However, there were three quotes that absolutely broke their hearts.

"A kid my age isn't supposed to go to that many funerals."

"my friend was laughing and then it turned into crying, and I thought: my God, why is this happening to us?"

"It bought the nation to its knees, but now that we've gotten back up, how have things changed, what have we learned?"

Reading these quotes bought the girls to tears. But it was the last quote that really stood out to them. The response of the American public whenever a mass shooting occurred would be horrified prayers and calls for change. However, few of those calls for change had manifested themselves in state or federal law. This was largely due to the outsized influence of the NRA, who would successfully lobby politicians against any meaningful reform. Therefore, it was ridiculously easy for the shooters in places like Boulder and Las Vegas and Parkland to get their hands on rifles or ammunition. And so, again and again and again, laughter would turn to tears.

"Why is it that this country can lead the world in so many ways, but not when it comes to keeping its own people safe?" Carrie whispered, as she wiped her eyes.

"It's because we lack the unifying will – a lot of people just don't want to have any restrictions, and those that want gun control don't press the issue enough." Olivia answered, in a wobbly voice.

"May God forgive us for our inaction and idolatry – we love a metal weapon of destruction created by men more than our brothers and sisters. " Danielle wept as she prayed.

As the group turned to leave, they saw a middle-aged couple standing at the edge of the ring of plaques – a man with thinning brown hair and a tall blonde. They were rubbing each other's backs in a gesture of comfort. That's when the realisation came to them. If the events of that April morning caused them to grieve, how horrible must it be for those who have to live it every day. They were about to head back to their lives in New York, but for many in this town of Littleton, Colorado, life would never feel normal.

"Don't stare. Let's go." Carrie stated simply, as she led the other girls out of the memorial garden and back over to the waiting car.

"You okay?" Happy questioned, as he saw them enter. Taking notice of their tear-stained faces, he then added. "Sorry. Stupid question."

"It's okay. It's so sad to be here. But I think that's what we needed." Olivia replied.

Nodding, Happy turned the engine on and turned the car around. Their next destination was the private airfield just outside the town limits, where the waiting Quinjet would transport them back to Avengers Tower in New York City. Meanwhile, on the radio, there was a spirited talkback debate going on, namely about the subject of gun control, especially the broader context of the Columbine anniversary and recent mass shootings in Indianapolis, Atlanta and Rock Hill, South Carolina.

The caller ranted: "The woke left are politicising this, I tell you! The left are politicising the actions of nihilists, mad men and terrorists in order to take away our guns! Newsflash: there'll still be nihilists, mad men and terrorists WITH gun control, but there'll be nothing to stop them! You think people like those Columbine kids or the Pulse terrorist will obey the law?! Good luck!"

"But surely some effort is better than nothing?" The host persisted.

"I mean, look at that horrible mosque shooting in New Zealand, I think it was. 51 people dead, and no guns to stop him! If the imam of that mosque had been armed, I guarantee the death toll would've been much lower." The caller boasted.

"I take it you're referring to the Sutherland Springs church shooting, where an attendee was able to subdue the shooter. Thing is, there were still 27 people killed. Not much better." The host retorted.

"Why do you insist on criminalising innocent gun owners?" The caller half demanded, half pleaded.

"I'm not criminalising anybody." The host intoned, calmly.

"Yes you are! You-"

Click. Happy switched off the radio, causing silence to reign blissfully in the vehicle. Eventually, Carrie spoke up, gritting her teeth in anger at the caller's ignorance.

"If that's the sort of bullshit we can expect, then may God help us all!" She ground out.

"Remember, Carrie: this is the season for forgiving. Did you learn nothing?" Danielle urged.

"I know. I just get stressed sometimes." Carrie admitted.

"Well, I've got something that will put our minds back where they need to be. Can you pull over, Mr. Hogan?" The brunette requested. Once the chauffeur had done so, Danielle began to fiddle around with her phone. "Does your car radio have Bluetooth compatibility?" She questioned.

"Yeah – it should come up as "SIBT1" on your Bluetooth list." Happy nodded.

The rocker than entered her phone's settings, went to Bluetooth and turned it on. Sure enough, she found SIBT1 on her list of available devices to connect to. Danielle then pressed the listed device, connecting her phone to the car stereo. She then opened up her Spotify app and began to browse the library until she came across the song she had in mind. "Here – I think this song is an appropriate reflection on the events of today." The brunette announced, showing Carrie and Olivia the song she had in mind.

"I really like that song!" Carrie smiled.

"It's not about a school shooting though." Olivia noted.

"No. But it is about young people dying needlessly. Surely we can all relate to that. Besides, anything's preferable to listening to the pompous asses on talk radio. So, here we go." Danielle announced, as she pressed play on the song she had chosen

*** The Green Fields Of France – Dropkick Murphys ***

The song that began to play was a haunting song by Boston punk band Dropkick Murphys. Trading in their loud, boisterous guitars for a simple piano fife combination, the song unfurled as a letter written by the singer to a 19 year old man named Willie McBride, who had been killed in the First World War. The song was a cover version of No Man's Land, a 1973 song by Eric Bogle which decried the futility of war. Whilst the times and settings were different, there were some deeply visible parallels between how the singer viewed warfare and the trio had come to view school shootings. It was the height of obscenity that children should be killed in the place where they gathered to learn in safety. The memorial that they had visited stood as a testament not only to the lives that were lost at Columbine, but the lives lost since then and to the seeming unwillingness of anybody to address the gun issue. And Carrie, Olivia and Danielle each shared the singer's anguish at the continuing slaughter. As the song went: "It happened again. And again and again and again and again." The girls eyes shone with tears as the song ended and the car arrived back at the airfield where the Quinjet was parked.

*** Song ends ***

"Did that song make you cry as well, Happy?" Carrie inquired, noticing tear tracks on the chauffeur's face.

"Huh? Nope, it's the…Uh…it's the altitude. Yeah, the altitude. Stupid Rocky Mountains." Happy blustered, as he wiped the tears from his face. Having stopped the car the three girls, still in their masks, exited the vehicle. Seeing them together gave Happy pause for thought. "I just realised. This is the first time I've seen you together since Carrie's birthday last year, and you've spent it at a memorial for a shooting. That must've been depressing."

"Two things. First, we're just going to ignore the small matter of the Chitauri-armed white nationalists? Secondly, it may have been downbeat, but it was something we had to do. Columbine's been on our minds lately, and we couldn't just ignore it." Danielle replied.

"Given the number of shootings that have happened this year, we felt it was important to remember what happened here. Plus, we found some inspiration in the story of some of the kids at that memorial." Carrie added.

"Wow. That's….cool. Deeply cool." Happy nodded, as he pulled on his own blue mask. "Right. Let's get back on the jet."

The group of four then boarded the jet and strapped themselves in for the journey home. Of course, Carrie, Olivia and Danielle would keep the supernatural aspect of the past few days a secret, known only to themselves. There were several reasons for this. Their otherworldly encounter with Rachel Scott could be seen in some quarters as a private revelation, similar to visions Saints and mystics had of Jesus or the Virgin Mary. Certainly, it bore similarities to some known apparitions, in that Danielle's call to the convent grew stronger as a result. However, Catholics were free to disagree with the contents of such revelations. Which brought them to the first reason for keeping it a secret – they simply would not be believed.

Another reason for keeping quiet was the potential for publicity. If it got out that they were seeing visions of the dead, it would turn their lives into pilgrimage sites, with people coming from all over begging them for visions of their loved ones. It would be an absolute circus, to say absolutely nothing of surviving family members who would almost certainly feel they were exploiting their memories for money. But the most important reason was a simple one – the dream was meant just for them.

It was not some grand exhortation to repentance. It was a small, private vision with relevance only to their lives. And it had worked out for the good. Danielle had learned to forgive her father and had started to improve their relationship. Olivia had gotten her feelings towards Antonio off her chest and learned to stop blaming him for her bad choices. And Carrie had finally learned to let go of the last vestiges of her hatred for Margaret. The three girls encounter with Rachel had provided them with a very simple truth. One that they would hold to for the rest of their days.

That truth was: Easter is the season for forgiving.

THE END

This story is dedicated to the thirteen people who lost their lives in the needless tragedy at Columbine High School.

Rachel Joy Scott

Matthew Kechter

William Dave Sanders

Cassie Rene Bernall

Kyle Albert Velasquez

John Tomlin

Daniel Lee Rohrbaugh

Steven Curnow

Kelly Anne Fleming

Lauren Townsend

Isaiah Ernon Shoels

Daniel Mauser

Corey DePooter

May eternal life and blessed memory be theirs.

.