The area Vicky found herself in was cold and sterile, with only the most rudimentary of lighting to give it any warmth.

She could hear lights turn on behind her, one at a time. They seemed to reveal cloaked figures standing at podiums.

"Victoria Josephine Flanagan!"

The woman winced at hearing her full name. It had been used by her parents on more than one occasion.

She glanced around and could make out Angela, now wearing a pinstriped suit. Vicky hugged her and stood behind her. "What's going on?"

"You're being put on trial."

"Trial? What's my crime?"

Angela managed to stop herself from rolling her eyes. "That's what we're about to find out."

One of the figures stood up. "This council is gathered to pass judgment on your life and see if you are at all fit to return to life on Earth." The figure's voice echoed through the room.

Vicky bit her lip. She couldn't kid herself that her life wasn't very rosy.

A view screen slowly lowered from some unseen ceiling, its every creak making Vicky seem more and more nervous. A projector started from behind the council.

Every single atrocity that Vicky had committed to her charges - the threats, the blackmail, the parental gladhanding and the rare moments of physical abuse - played out before her eyes. Her tear-filled eyes. "I…I was a monster." Vicky was a woman who typically acted in the moment and gave little thought - if any - to the repercussions.

"Oh, it's not that bad, Vicky. This is just the most prevalent stuff; not even the whole of your life."

After another hour of raw footage of her babysitting days, the redhead was inconsolable.

The sound of a cooing baby was what made her notice what was occurring on the screen.

The image came flooding back to her: a little red-haired girl rocking a baby. The girl's off-key singing managed to lull the baby to sleep.

A smile formed on Vicky's face. She watched as the baby gurgled. The girl gave her a kiss on the cheek. "G'night, Virginia."

More and more scenes appeared: the girl reading to the baby, the baby walking (albeit unsteadily) toward the girl, the girl hugging the baby…

Angela leaned over to Vicky. "You really loved your sister, didn't you?"

A wistful smile formed on the redhead's face. "I still do."

The scene changed to that of a school. Vicky watched as her on-screen form, now a teenager, ran toward a girl with pigtails. "We need to get home, Vir--" The pigtailed girl stared dreamily at a boy with messy brown hair and a pink hat. "Virginia?" "Coming, Vicky." The younger girl went with her sister.

The scene changed again. The room to Virginia's door was opened a crack, allowing Vicky to peek inside. The dark-haired girl hung pictures of the mystery boy around her room. She sighed deeply as she looked at one of them. "Oh, Timmy." Vicky closed the door.

Another change. "Virginia, you wanna hang out? We can go to the mall." Vicky looked hopefully at her sister, who looked completely love-struck. "I don't know, Vicky. We can do that all the time. Besides, I want to catch Timmy before he leaves." Vicky shrugged her shoulders. "Okay."

"I'm just worried that we might be growing apart, you know? I don't want to lose you." Vicky looked up, only to find that Virginia was already gone. She looked at a picture of Timmy hanging on the wall. Her eyes narrowed, she punched the picture, leaving a big dent in the wall.

"That is enough." The screen retracted into the ceiling. "Please rise." Vicky obeyed the booming voice. "Victoria Josephine Flanagan. We have seen your life. It is the decision of the council that you…will return to life on Earth."

The woman dropped to her hands and knees. "Oh, thank you so much. Thank you, thank you, thank you…" She started to cry as Angela brought her to her feet.

Vicky looked up and saw that the cloaked figures were gone. She turned to Angela. "Where did they go?"

"To deliberate your sentence, I would guess."

"What will happen to me?"

"I'm not sure, but I just know it will be for the best."

"What do I do now?"

"The only thing you can do…wait."

XxXxXxXxX

Tim stepped into the bathroom, the door bumping into a foot. "Are you all right?"

Virginia looked up from the toilet and wiped the green substance from her mouth. "That better be a joke."

"Sorry. Stupid question." He reached his hands down to her and picked her up.

"This has been a rough time for me."

"Don't worry, sweetie." Tim wrapped his arms around the woman's waist. "We'll get through this. After all, you can't feel like this forever." He planted a gentle kiss on her neck.

"Yeah."

XxXxXxXxX

"Well, today's the day you get to go back."

"So soon? It's only been a day. I thought trials took several months."

"It has been a day…here. Time passes slower up here. On Earth, it's been something like eight or nine months."

Vicky shrugged her shoulders. "Weird."

"So, are you ready to go back?"

A nod of her head. "I'm ready. You know…I'm going to miss you."

Angela shook her head, blue hair swaying this way and that. "No, you won't."

"Come on. You've done so much for me these past few…day. Of course I'll miss you."

Vicky's body started to dematerialize, as if fading into nothingness. Her guide's voice seemed to echo throughout the universe.

Noooooooo yoooooou wooooooooon't.

XxXxXxXxX

The bright lights shined down on the nursery. The sounds of babies cooing and gurgling hung in the air.

One in particular slept peacefully, seeming to not have a care in the world.

Its tag read '7 lbs., 6 oz.' and, from the softness of its face, it looked to be a girl.

XxXxXxXxX

"Welcome to your new home, darling." The baby still slept as a woman placed her in a crib.

A man standing next to her tucked the girl in. "Oh, she's so cute."

"We should let her sleep." The two adults walked quietly out the door.

The baby turned a little in bed. Her tiny eyes opened. They were a lovely shade of blue.

She looked around. She started to fidget. Worried noises escaped her lips.

Out of nowhere, Angela appeared. She stepped toward the crib and looked inside. "Hello, there, little one."

The baby seemed to want to say something, but couldn't. The spirit noticed this and waved her hand over the newborn.

"What happened? Where am I? Why am I a baby?" It was truly unusual how the tiniest of voices was phrasing the words that came out.

"This was the council's decision. Their word is law."

She tried to stand up, but fell on her bottom. "What about my old body?"

"Vicky, your old body has been buried for months. Can you imagine the trouble that would ensue from putting you back there?"

"Hmmph." She crawled around. "Well, I guess it won't be so bad growing up again. Wait. What are you doing here?"

"I've been assigned to watch over you; keep you out of trouble. That sort of thing."

"I hope that my parents are good people, at least."

Just as Angela disappeared from the room, the two adults walked toward the crib.

"Oh. It looks like she's awake."

"And I was so used to the silence."

The woman playfully hit the man in his arm. The baby's eyes widened as the woman picked her up. If she could speak officially, her first words would certainly have been "No way.". Cradling the child in her arms was Virginia and standing beside her was Tim.

"Oh, my darling little Mira."

Tim kissed the girl on the forehead. Vicky - or should that be Mira? - started to tear up. Within moments, she started to wail.

"I didn't know we weren't past the affection stage", the man shouted over the girl's crying.

"Don't worry, Mira." Virginia gently rocked her daughter. "Mommy and Daddy are here."

This didn't stop the girl. If anything, it encouraged her further.

"Maybe we should leave her alone; let her work it off."

"What, just because of a little crying jag? Besides, we're her parents. We need to be here for her."

Tim picked at his ear. "If you say so."

XxXxXxXxX

The couple spent the better part of twelve hours trying to soothe the baby girl. Their every method of calming her - touching words, peek-a-boo, lullabies - was for naught. The couple shared a dinner of microwave lasagna; by sunset, neither was in a cooking mood.

Tim sat in one of two chairs they brought into the nursery. He barely managed to keep his eyes open as he held Mira in his arms. Her crying had weakened, both in noise and intensity. He couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

He glanced at the woman sitting in the chair next to the crib. His wife. He almost couldn't believe it; that this lovely, patient, sweet-natured creature was someone whom he made it a point to avoid when they were younger. Even stranger was that he didn't recognize these qualities in her sooner.

He sighed again. She looked so beautiful when she slept.

Tim looked down at Mira. Her crying slowed to a mild fuss. He walked over to her crib and gave her a kiss on her forehead before softly laying her down. "Good night, Mira."

He turned to his wife and helped her to her feet. She stirred somewhat. Tim leaned down and carried her in his arms, her legs hanging out. "Good night, Virginia." With a kiss on the lips, he walked them out of the nursery.