Chapter 32
Two weeks had now gone by since Aion was defeated and things had been very busy since then. Rosette, Joshua, Azmaria and Maria along with everyone else from the Magdalene Order headed back to New York City so they could help the civilians who survived the flood as well as to help put the city back on its feet. The five remaining Apostles however, were relocated to other Magdalene Order branches across the country, one to the San Francisco branch, one to the Seattle branch, two to the Chicago branch, and one to the Boston branch. Shortly after the final battle, all of the seven Apostles had lost both their powers and their wings since they used up all of their Astral powers which meant they now could live as ordinary people. Fortunately, New York City had been slowly recovering from the devastating flood thanks to the extensive help from the Magdalene Order. Christmas time was also just around the corner. On the night before Christmas Eve, Maria was in her room praying quietly to God while kneeling on her bed. "Dear Lord, please make sure that my family is alright and that they had survived the flood that has happened recently. Amen!" Maria finished praying. She then got off of her bed and walked towards the window. She began to gaze out the window while snow was falling down onto the ground. "Now that Aion is finally gone, I hope I will soon be able to reunite with my family." Maria hoped since reuniting with her family meant everything to her. After gazing at the night sky for a while, Maria walked back to her bed and tried to get some sleep. The next morning, Rosette, Joshua and Azmaria were at the dining room eating breakfast which consisted of toast and pancakes along with coffee and hot chocolate. "So Joshua, is it true that you will soon be the Elder's apprentice?" Rosette asked while Joshua was sipping his coffee. "That's right Rosette. Considering that Elder Hamilton will eventually need someone to replace him some day, I volunteered to be his apprentice so I can be of use to the Order. Besides, the Order did so much to help you find me, so why not repay the favor." Joshua explained. "Yeah, I guess you do have a point." Rosette commented. "It appears that Christmas this year will be quite a cheerful yet somber one." Azmaria remarked. "What do you mean by that Azmaria?" Joshua asked while stuffing a pancake into his mouth. "What I mean is that even though we will be celebrating Christmas as our victory over the Sinners, Chrono however will not be there with us. Not to mention Satella." Azmaria explained in a dismayed tone. "I see what you mean Azmaria. The fact that Chrono will not be with us, this Christmas will be quite different, that's for sure." Rosette said in a disappointed tone while clearing missing Chrono's presence. "By the way, has anyone seen Maria around?" Joshua curiously asked which immediately brought Rosette's attention. "Now that I think of it, I could've sworn that I saw her with Father Remington earlier this morning. It looks like they are spending a lot of time together lately!" Rosette revealed. "Well, shall we go and see how are they doing?" Azmaria excitedly asked. "Sure, why not? I would really love to see how their relationship is progressing! And since it is Christmas Eve today, I would like to take Maria out for some gift shopping!" Rosette agreed with Azmaria's suggestion and she promptly stood up from her chair. "What about the Christmas gift wrapping for the children at the orphanage?" Joshua asked. "You will help Azmaria finish wrapping the presents for me while I will do Christmas shopping with Maria around the city!" Rosette explained to her brother. "So if you're planning on taking Maria Christmas shopping, then how are we going to meet up with each other when it's time to deliver the presents to the orphanage?" Azmaria asked confused. "Well, the Magdalene Order had just rented a horse sleigh carriage for this particular task. This means that you and Joshua catching up with us in the city won't be a problem." Rosette revealed to Azmaria as she was trying to reassure her. "Alright, I'll go to Maria right now and ask her to spend some time gift shopping with me. See you later!" Rosette excitedly said and raced her way out of the room. "Boy, she sure is as feisty as ever, isn't she?" Joshua commented while cringing. "Well, she does look up to Maria as if she is her older sister. The same way I looked up to Rosette and Satella." Azmaria fondly explained to Joshua while having a somewhat long look on her face. Meanwhile, Maria and Father Remington were sitting on one of the benches in the middle of the church. It was there that Maria told the minister of her desire to return to her family after Christmas. "So, I see that you really wish to be with your family as soon as possible. Don't you Maria?" Father Remington asked. "Yes Ewan, of course I do! That's all what I have been praying for ever since the night Aion kidnapped me." Maria said in an extremely calm yet strong tone. "Before that night, my family was the only one I could trust and rely on. Due to our ethnicity, we were discriminated against in this society, outside of our enclave. As a result, my family and I didn't have a lot of contact with people outside of our community. Because of that, Letizia and I were always told by our parents to stay amongst our own kind, since our people were the only ones who truly accepted us." Maria explained more to the minister about her past before Aion abducted her. "I see, so the area where you grew up in was quite a tightly knit community." Father Remington remarked. "Yes, I guess you can say that my upbringing was something like that." Maria admitted. "I hope that you do meet up with your family again soon Maria, I really do!" Father Remington said passionately to Maria as he looked at her with affection. Just then, the door opened. Once they turned around, they saw Rosette walking straight towards them. "Good morning Rosette! What brings you here if I may ask?" Father Remington asked in a surprised tone while he and Maria stood up from the benches. "Sorry if I was interrupting anything but since today is Christmas Eve, I was thinking of taking Maria down to the city. That is if she wants to." Rosette explained her plans to the minister. "Considering that today is a special day, I see no reason why wouldn't she want to! Well Maria, what do you say?" Minister Remington asked Maria. "Sure, I would be delighted to spend some time in the city for a while!" Maria accepted Rosette's offer. "Thank you Minister! Alright Maria, shall we get going?!" Rosette excitedly asked once she thanked the minister. "Yes, we can!" Maria calmly answered. "Well then, follow me to the car!" Rosette told Maria to follow her as she then made her way out of the church building. "You might as well Maria. Rosette can be quite the impatient young lady." Father Remington told her. "What about your duties for today Ewan? Don't you need my help with any of them?" Maria curiously asked the minister. "Don't worry about it for today! In fact, it would be better if you just take the time today to relax. I know how preoccupied your mind is right now in regards to your family." Father Remington said to Maria in an understanding tone. "Come on Maria, are you coming with me or not?" Rosette shouted out at Maria as she realized that Maria hadn't left the church building yet. "I'm sorry Ewan, I have to go now!" Maria bided the minister farewell as she quickly walked out of the church building. "See you later Maria! I hope you'll have fun with Rosette!" Father Remington waved goodbye to Maria and found the whole situation to be quite amusing. Once they left the Order by car, Rosette drove to Manhattan to find some gift shops for them to shop at. After searching for a while, Rosette had finally found a gift shop that was to her liking and she parked the car by the sidewalk. "Well Maria, What do you think? Doesn't this shop look festive?" Rosette asked while getting out of the car along with Maria. "It sure looks very well stocked. Do you think they have what we're looking for?" Maria commented on the shops item selection. "I'm sure they do. After all, Christmas is the busiest time of the year, so why wouldn't they?" Rosette reassured Maria. "Yeah, I guess you're right!" Maria said out of amusement with what Rosette just asked.
Rosette and Maria walked in the gift shop where they saw plenty of Christmas themed items to choose from. The store was filled with hundreds of glass and crystal like items that glittered under the light. "Wow, this shop sure has a huge selection to choose from. I don't even know what to buy." Rosette commented on the merchandise selection out of amazement while they were walking their way around. Just then, a snow globe had caught Maria's attention and she stopped to look at it. The snow globe was very pretty as it had a Nativity scene in it. "I can see that you have found something Maria! My, that snow globe sure looks pretty!" Rosette remarked as she was fascinated by the snow globe's look. "I am just wondering if it's the right present for Ewan or not. That's all." Maria said in an unsure tone. "I don't see how Father Remington or anyone could not like it. It looks so captivating! Besides, it's not about what present you give to the person but the thought of it is what counts." Rosette explained. "The thought?" Maria asked curiously. "That's right. I can tell that you deeply love Father Remington, yet you don't know how to tell him your feelings for him." Rosette pointed out. "How do you know?" Maria asked in a deeply surprised tone. "Don't act so surprised. Besides, I've known you for a few months now and I could tell that from the amount of time you were with the minister, your feelings for him had sure turned into genuine love." Rosette explained to Maria. "I see. Well, one thing is for certain, I do love Ewan and I hope that I can always be with him. But at the same time, I want to return back to my family. Considering who I am in this society, I'm not sure if I can have it both ways." Maria said in a calm yet uncertain tone. "I know how you feel Maria. However, that shouldn't prevent you from telling Father Remington your feelings for him. If you don't tell him now, then you might regret it later on when you don't have a chance to tell him anymore." Rosette advised as she suddenly took the snow globe from the window sill and looked at it. "Well, aren't you going to buy this or not? If you want, we can go to other shops and see what they have to offer." Rosette suggested. Maria took the snow globe from Rosette's hands and looked at it. "Let's buy this snow globe. It has a very modest yet beautiful touch to it. Not to mention it contains the Nativity scene in it. Such a gift like this will be perfect for Ewan!" Maria explained in a decisive tone as she liked the snow globe for its Christian symbolism as well for its beautiful simplicity. After Maria had bought the snow globe, the two walked out of the gift shop. "Rosette." Maria called out Rosette's name. "Yes Maria, what is it?" Rosette asked while turning around facing Maria. "Why did you go out of your way to help me buy a present for Ewan?" Maria asked curiously. "Because that's what friends do. They help each other out." Rosette answered and walked towards Maria. "Since you are going through quite an emotional time right now, I want you to have the most wonderful Christmas you'll ever have! So please, do try to cheer up a bit." Rosette pleaded while Maria had an astounded look on her face. "You're right Rosette. Since Christmas is the most joyous time of the year, let's have as much fun as we can for the time being!" Maria said optimistically. "That's great to hear Maria! In that case, shall we go and buy Azmaria and Joshua their presents, and perhaps to munch on some hot dogs?!" Rosette excitedly asked. "Sure, be my guest!" Maria answered Rosette and they both walked back to the car. Once Rosette started the car, she decided to drive around the Manhattan borough to visit some other gift shops. Rosette and Maria had visited ten more gift shops across Manhattan to look for some more gifts. They took their sweet time with shopping as most of the shops they visited either had gifts that were too expensive or just simply not what they had in mind. Maria and Rosette however did not mind the slow pacing since they knew they still had plenty of time on their hands. This also included Rosette buying hot dogs from the street vendors whenever they past by them which amused Maria. While they were shopping, Maria felt a strong sense of hope that she never had felt before. She was now more optimistic than ever of the possibility of finally seeing her family again, even if it meant not seeing Father Remington again. After five hours had past, Maria and Rosette finally finished buying Azmaria and Joshua's presents. While walking out of the last shop they visited, Rosette said with a relieved tone "Finally, we've actually managed to buy all the gifts we needed! The Manhattan borough sure isn't cheap, that's for sure." "No kidding, some of the shops we visited had prices that only the wealthy could afford." Maria pointed out astounded at Manhattan's expensive prices. "At any rate, we should be heading back to the Order now. Joshua and Azmaria must be waiting for us." Rosette suggested. They walked back to the car and Rosette started to drive their way back to the Magdalene Order. By the time they got back, they saw that the Order was lavishly decorated from the outside while the open red sleigh was standing by the fountain. Much to their surprise, they didn't see Joshua and Azmaria waiting for them outside. "That's strange. Azmaria and Joshua should be waiting for us by now. Could it be that they're still not done wrapping the presents?" Rosette wondered. "That might very well be the case. Shall we check inside the Order to see?" Maria suggested. "Yes, we shall!" Rosette immediately agreed on her suggestion but just then, Joshua and Azmaria walked out of the building. Joshua was dressed in a Santa suit and was carrying a bag full of wrapped presents. "Azmaria, do you think this Santa outfit looks good on me?" Joshua asked in doubt. "Yes it does, I think that outfit suits you really well!" Azmaria praised his Santa outfit with much optimism. "But why did Rosette made me wear a Santa costume of all things?" Joshua cringed as the two continued walking towards Rosette and Maria. "Is that Joshua in a Santa costume?" Maria asked surprised. "Azmaria, Joshua. Over here!" Rosette shouted at them and simultaneously waved her hand at them. "Hey look, Rosette is waving at us!" Azmaria pointed out to Joshua. Rosette began to run towards them while Maria followed her, albeit slower. "I can see that you two are back! So, how did the Christmas gift shopping turn out? Did you two have fun?" Joshua asked. "You bet we did, but that was nothing compared to the fun we'll have tonight!" Rosette enthusiastically answered. "Tonight?" Maria asked confused. "Don't mind what I just said." Rosette nervously told Maria, trying to dodge a surprise that will happen later on Christmas Eve. "So, considering that we've wrapped all the presents, isn't it time for us now to be heading off to the orphanage?" Azmaria asked. "Oh yes, now that you have mentioned it, I have to get my red Christmas dress on right now!" Rosette said in an alarmed tone and rushed to her sleeping room. Ten minutes later, she ran outside towards them wearing a short red dress along with a Santa hat. "Well, what do you all think? Doesn't this dress look festive?" Rosette asked while Joshua, Azmaria and Maria looked at her dress speechless. "Well, it's something else, that's for sure!" Joshua answered nervously. "What do you mean by something else?" Rosette asked defensively. "Nothing at all Rosette!" Joshua answered in an intimidated tone. "Rosette." Maria called out her name. "Yes Maria." Rosette answered her. "Does the Magdalene Order really do this sort of thing every year?" Maria asked while seeing the huge red sack filled with presents that Joshua was carrying on his back. "Yes we do! Every year, Chrono and I were given the task of delivering presents to the orphanage, to kids who have been good, which is pretty much every kid in there!" Rosette explained. "Would you mind if I joined you in your present delivery? Perhaps you could use my help." Maria suggested. "Not at all, we would love you to come with us!" Rosette said cheerfully. "Are we going with the car?" Maria asked. "No need to, we have a rented carriage sleigh that we will use to take us there!" Rosette explained as she pointed out the red sleigh equipped with a horse. "Alright, we still have a few hours left to spare so we better be heading to the orphanage before night falls!" Rosette announced. "Right!" Azmaria and Joshua said at the same time. They then made their way to the sleigh carriage and sat down. Rosette commanded the horse to start walking while the sound of bells had roamed the streets wherever they went. Thirty minutes later, they arrived at the orphanage. "Merry Christmas children, have you all been good this year?" Rosette shouted towards the children that were gathered in a play room. "Yes!" The children shouted back with a huge smile on their faces. "Then come and receive your presents from Santa right here!" Rosette shouted back as she and Joshua started giving the presents out. Afterwards, Maria told the children a Christmas story since she always had a huge soft spot for children. After Maria was done storytelling, Azmaria sung the Star of Bethlehem song for them and everyone was enchanted with her beautiful voice. Everyone was very happy and it seemed like that the time stood still. Once they were done, Rosette decided to give Azmaria and Joshua their presents. "Joshua, Azmaria. Please accept these little gifts from me and Maria. I hope you like them." Rosette presented the two gifts. Azmaria and Joshua opened their presents and were really surprised with what they got. One was a Holy Night song lyric book for Azmaria and the other one was a Bible for Joshua. "So, do you two like your gifts?" Rosette asked in suspense. "This song would be perfect for the midnight mass tonight! I will try to sing it." Azmaria said enthusiastically as she was enchanted by her present. "This Bible sure looks very elaborate. I don't recall ever seeing one like this one! Thank you Rosette and Maria!" Joshua said gratefully. "I am glad you all like your gifts!" Rosette said in a cheerful tone as she smiled. It was now time to leave the orphanage and go back to the Order of Magdalene.
Once they came back to the Order, Rosette and Joshua rushed to their rooms through a side door to change back into their regular clothing. Not long after, they went back outside and met with Azmaria and Maria by the front door. "Okay everyone, we should be heading in right now. The dinner will start soon!" Rosette reminded them. "What dinner are you talking about?" Maria curiously asked. "It's a surprise, you'll see!" Joshua assured her and they all headed towards the main entrance. Once they opened the door, everyone in the entry hall greeted them with a loud "Merry Christmas!" Maria was deeply surprised and looked at her friends with a puzzled expression. "What's this all about?" Maria asked confused. "We were told that after Christmas, you will be returning to your family, so we all decided to throw you a surprise Christmas party!" Rosette explained obviously enjoying Maria's reaction. They all walked to the banquet room, which had the tables placed around the room with plenty of food and desserts for everyone. In the middle of the room, there was a huge Christmas tree, beautifully decorated with handmade ornaments. In front of the tree, Sister Kate and Father Remington waited for everyone to come in. Maria walked towards the tree while the minister walked toward her as he knelt down and prepared a speech. "My dear Maria, since you are returning to your family after Christmas, I would like to wish for your happiness, safety, and your well being. I hope that any path you choose in your life will be with God's blessing!" The minister led a confused Maria towards Sister Kate who stepped forward and placed a cross necklace around Maria's neck. "May God bless you and watch over you, Maria! Let this cross necklace remind you that we will always be praying for you and that you will never be alone!" Sister Kate said with a motherly tone. Maria was touched with all the attention and well meaning wishes. She was left speechless as she couldn't believe that they were all concerned about her well being. Once she turned around, facing everyone, she said with a thankful yet bittersweet tone "Thank you all for doing this for me. I really don't know what to say except that I will really miss you all once Christmas is over. I wish all of you the same happiness that you have wished for me. Thank you for accepting me as one of your own!" At that moment, the Elder came in with some kind of a switch in his hand. "For your amusement, there is something I have made exclusively for this occasion!" The Elder announced. "Here's my new invention, the automated Christmas lights." He pressed the switch and the Christmas tree became lit with hundreds of colorful lights. The lights on the Christmas tree were so spectacular that they dazzled like the stars in the heavens, much to everyone's amazement. "You know, you made something really amazing, for once." Rosette said to him. "What do you mean for once? Aren't I the best scientist you know?" The Elder asked Rosette. "You are, but you're also the only pervert I know!" Rosette whispered in his ear and went to join the others at the buffet. While everyone was eating, Rosette approached Maria and asked "Maria, how do you like this surprise party?" "I am enjoying it! But you didn't have to go out of your way for me to feel welcomed." Maria modestly explained. "I know, but we wanted to do something special, that's all." Rosette said. "However, once I return to my family, there is a possibility that I might not see Ewan again." Maria revealed. "What do you mean?" Rosette curiously asked. "Due to the fact that I am an Italian, my parents would never approve of me being with a minister like Ewan." Maria explained while Rosette looked at her with great sympathy. "But I want to be with him by his side forever, and if I can't see him again then I want to at least tell him my feelings for him!" Maria said in an emotional tone as Rosette placed Father Remington's gift into her hands. "Then go ahead and confess your love to Father Remington by giving him this snow globe!" Rosette encouraged her. "Thank you Rosette, for supporting me in this!" Maria gratefully said and walked her way towards the blond haired minister. "Ewan." Maria called out the minister's name once she approached him. "So Maria, are you enjoying yourself this evening?" Father Remington asked as he turned his attention at Maria. "Ewan, can I spend some time with you outside?" She asked. "Of course you can! In fact, I was hoping that we would be having some alone time on Christmas Eve! So let's be on our way, shall we?" Father Remington agreed on Maria's suggestion and they both made their way outside. While they were sitting on the fountain ledge, Maria was looking up at the sky as snow was falling down gracefully onto the ground. Maria surely seemed to enjoy looking at it. "Well, I can see that the snow has caught your attention." The minister said astutely. "Yeah, it's so beautiful tonight with all the snow, isn't it Ewan?" Maria said in an amazed tone. "Indeed it is! I guess this must be one of the reasons why people consider Christmas to be one of the most magical times of the year." Father Remington commented. "Ewan." Maria called out the minister's name. "Yes Maria, what is it?" Father Remington asked. "Before I return to my family tomorrow, I just want to tell you something really important." Maria began to explain. "What would that be?" The minister curiously asked. "Ever since I have started working for you at the Magdalene Order, I had begun to feel some kind of warm feeling that I never have felt before. It was a feeling that had relieved me of my loneliness and anxiety. It was all thanks to one person that I finally began to have some happiness and hope after all those years." Maria explained. "What do you mean?" Father Remington asked. "I love you Ewan!" Maria finally revealed which took the minister by surprise. "I want to be with you forever! It was thanks to you that I could finally find some hope and happiness again! I cherish every moment that I have spent with you and I will never forget how great of a man you truly are!" Maria emotionally said as she placed her hands on Father Remington's face. The minister had a warm smile on his face. He knew that Maria had genuinely loved him and he also felt the exact same way about her as well. "Maria. I love you too!" Father Remington sentimentally said and stood up from the fountain ledge along with Maria. The two stood towards each other and for the first time, Father Remington and Maria kissed each other passionately. It was at that point where it was clear that they truly did love each other. Once they were done kissing, they both looked at each other with a relieved, satisfied grin. "Before we go back inside, I wanted to give a little present that I have bought for you." Maria said and picked up the gift that she had left on the ledge and handed it to the minister. "You and Rosette spent half of the day in the city buying a gift for me?" The minister asked in disbelief. "Well, not exactly, but we did take our time, I'll tell you that." Maria answered. Father Remington opened his gift and saw that it was a snow globe that contained a Nativity scene inside it. He could not take his eyes off of the snow globe as it was so simple yet beautiful. "What's wrong? Do you like it?" Maria asked. "Yes Maria, I do! You couldn't have gotten me a better present! Not that I was actually asking for one, but it is a really beautiful gift." Father Remington gratefully said since he really liked his present. The minister then reached into his cassock and took out the little wrapped box and gave it to Maria. She was surprised as she did not expect a gift from him. Maria opened her present and saw a pair of long silver earrings that had the exact same shape as her orange earrings she was wearing when she first came to the Order. "Ewan, I don't know what to say." Maria could barely say something from the surprise. "Do you like it?" The minister asked. "Yes, of course I do. Who wouldn't? I don't know how to thank you. You didn't have to do this for me." Maria said overwhelmed with joy as she put on her new earrings. "I'm glad you like it Maria, and you don't have to thank me. I did it because a beautiful young lady like you deserves to have some nice jewelry!" The minister complimented her looks. "It's getting a little chilly outside. Shall we make our way back inside?" Maria asked while feeling a little cold. "Sure, we might as well!" Father Remington agreed and they both went back inside to enjoy the rest of the party.
The next morning, Father Remington volunteered to take Maria back to her original home which was located in Manhattan's Little Italy where a large number of Italians lived. It took about thirty minutes for them to drive to that area in which Maria told him the directions. Once they arrived at the ethnic neighborhood, they looked around for the town house where Maria lived in which was located at Madison Avenue in East Harlem. While driving through Madison Avenue, Maria finally spotted the house where her family lived and it was then that the minister had stopped the car. As soon as they both walked out of the car, Maria looked at her family's place and with an astounded tone, said "I can't believe that I finally made it back! Soon I will be able to see my family again after all these years! Do you have any idea how much this means to me?" "Yes, I know that this means a whole lot to you." Father Remington answered. "Thank you so much for bringing me here Ewan! It is all thanks to you and the Order that it was even possible for me to be here at this very place again!" Maria thanked the minister while hugging him affectionately. "Would it be alright if I come with you inside?" Father Remington asked. "I think it would be better if you stay here. My family would not approve of me bringing in a man they don't know." Maria advised him. "I understand. In that case, I'll be waiting in the car." Minister Remington said and went back into the car. Maria took a big deep breath and walked towards the door of her family's home. She knocked on the door but found that no one was answering. "That's strange. Neither Mamma nor Papa bothered to open the door. Not even Letizia. I do hope that this isn't what I think it is." Maria worriedly said as she rushed back to the car. "What's the matter Maria? Did something happen?" The minister curiously asked. "For some reason, none of my family members have answered the door." Maria revealed. "Did not answered the door? That is indeed very strange. You don't suppose something has happened to them?" Father Remington wondered. "That's what I'm afraid of. Come with me to the door at once Ewan." Maria pleaded the minister and they both rushed towards the door. Father Remington tried to open the door knob and to their surprise, the door was unlocked. "The door is unlocked?" The minister suspiciously remarked as they both looked inside. "How can this be? We always made sure that the door was locked all the time." Maria explained in a confused tone. They walked inside the house through the hallway and they haven't seen a single person. The whole situation became very suspicious since everyone would have surely been inside their home on Christmas day. Maria went upstairs to her parent's room as well as her younger sister's to see if they were there, but to no avail. This made Maria extremely worried and she went back downstairs to meet up with the minister. "So, did you have any luck finding them?" Father Remington gently asked. "I'm afraid I didn't." Maria revealed in an extremely disappointed tone with the minister looking at her sympathetically. "I don't understand. What could have happened to them? Where they kidnapped by the mafia? Or even worse, could they have been killed by someone?" Maria asked herself in a confused, broken tone as she had a feeling that something bad has happened to her family. Suddenly, Mary Magdalene's spirit appeared in the hallway right before them in a glowing light which took them by surprise. "Mary Magdalene?" Father Remington said in disbelief with who he was seeing. "Hello Ewan Remington. It's been quite a long time now, hasn't it?" Mary Magdalene remarked. "What have you come here for if I may ask?" The minister asked perplexed. "I have come to this very place to tell you both something very important in regards to my successor's family." Mary Magdalene revealed. "Mary Magdalene, please tell me what happened to my dear family. Are they okay? Where are their whereabouts?" Maria emotionally pleaded and the former Holy Woman's spirit began to have a small frown on her face. "The unfortunate truth in regards to your family Maria is that on the night Aion kidnapped you while you were sleeping, he ordered the rest of the Sinners to kill both your parents and your younger sister." Mary Magdalene explained. The news had both shocked and devastated Maria. "No, this can't be true. Are you saying that my family has been murdered by the Sinners?" Maria asked in a broken tone. "I'm afraid that's sadly the case." Mary Magdalene answered with great empathy. Maria fell straight down on her knees, crushed. "Ewan, please take good care of Maria. After all what she had to go through, she needs you now more than ever." Mary Magdalene instructed Father Remington. "Yes Mary Magdalene." The minister agreed and the former Holy Woman's spirit then ascended back into heaven as she bid the two a farewell. Father Remington looked at Maria and saw that she was still on the floor severely heart-broken. "All this time, I was looking forward to the day in which I can finally be with my family again. However, considering they have been dead ever since I was kidnapped, all of that hope was nothing but a dream." Maria said in a broken voice as she slowly stood up from the floor. "Because of those bastards, I have nowhere left to go. It's all Aion's fault. He is the reason why my family is dead! He was the one who ordered their execution." Maria aggressively raised her voice as the minister looked at her with great sympathy. Maria than ran into her family's kitchen, opened a cupboard and promptly took many white plates and threw them onto the floor. She did this while continuously yelling out Aion's name out of both anger and sorrow. Her rage became so violent and loud that Father Remington felt compelled to intervene but before he could do so, Maria all of a sudden stopped throwing the plates onto the floor. She slowly walked out of the kitchen and into the living room. She took a picture from the table of her in a Confirmation dress standing by her family and began to sob profoundly as she kneeled down. "There is no hope left for me anymore. If only I never received those Stigmata wounds on my body and became the next Holy Woman, none of this would have happened. I still would have been with my family to this very day! To think that he made me believe that my family was still alive! I've lost everything!" Maria said in a voice so broken, sorrowful and distraught that the minister walked towards her and patted her back while looking at her with huge sympathy. "Ewan?" Maria said his name sadly while looking at him with a teary look on her face. "There is still hope for you Maria! You haven't completely lost everything and you are not alone. You have me, Rosette and the rest of the Magdalene Order to turn to and rely on! Don't you ever forget that Maria!" Father Remington told Maria in such a gentle tone as he was trying to console her. Maria abruptly hugged the minister and pleaded in a desperate voice "Please help me Ewan! I don't want to be alone anymore! You and the Order are the only ones I can turn to now! So please, never leave me alone!" Father Remington continued hugging Maria as he became quite sentimental with the situation. After half an hour, they both stood up and looked at each other. "Well then, shall we be heading back to the Order now?" The minister asked. "Yes Ewan. We shall!" Maria agreed and they both started to make their way out of the house while Maria was still holding her Confirmation picture. Just then, Maria abruptly stopped and Father Remington turned around and curiously asked "Is something wrong Maria?" "Ewan, can I be with you forever?" Maria asked emotionally and the minister took her hand and looked at her affectionately. "Of course Maria! You don't even have to ask for that!" Father Remington gladly accepted and they both continued walking across the hallway right to the front door and out of the house. This was now the beginning of Maria's new life.