There we are guys. The end of a journey.

Co-written the fantabulous Graceonce. Thank you for being my partner on this crazy voyage.

Rated M

Music: Family Jewels by Marina and the Diamonds

Oh, don't you find it strange? / Only thing we share is one last name / Did I beat you at your own game? / Typical of me to put us all to shame

—-

"Call us, e-mail us or just come to New Orleans. There is a home and a family waiting for you."

Her voice reverberated around her study, coming from the television in the corner of her office, as she finished putting little colored pins on her United States map. She'd spent days in front of her computer, fixing her excel files, organizing all the phone calls, all the letters, all the girls that wanted to come to Robichaux's.

Cordelia turned as she heard her adopted mother, Myrtle Snow, come into her office. She smiled brightly and put down her folders.

"I'm so proud of you."

"Oh, Myrtle." The blonde shook her head, grinning despite herself. "We need to discuss the council. We've never had young witches on the Council, and Queenie and Zoe deserve an elevated role here at the school to set them apart. And also," She sighed. "I need to keep an eye on them. I'm still afraid that Queenie will go out and betray us, again. And if Kyle talks, Zoe talks. What do you think?"

"I would start by telling them that being an authority figure requires you to make hard, unpopular decisions for the greater good."

Cordelia turned to frown deeply at her. "They can handle it, if I teach them, mold them to my image."

"I was talking about you."

"Me?"

"You have every chance to be the greatest Supreme this coven has ever seen." Myrtle came over and removed the papers from Cordelia's hands. "Delia, I have something to say, and your tasteful modesty is out of fashion, so knock it off. Thanks to you, we're entering a new 've planted the seeds, but in order to reap their harvest, you have to clear the rot of the past."

"Myrtle, you know I love your metaphors, but I have no idea what you're talking about. Cut to the damn chase, will you?" The headmistress snapped, suddenly annoyed.

"Me. I'm talking about me."

The blonde laughed nervously, her mouth slack. "You want to be burned at the stake? Again?

"Want has nothing to do with it. At the start of your glorious reign, the last thing you need is an ABSCAM or Watergate. I killed, and I must pay for it. Now, before word leaks, and you are tainted by my hubris and actions, however deserved."

"Myrtle, Myrtle I can't. Who will protect me?" Cordelia stammered, taking the redhead's hands in hers.

"You will, darling dove. You're the Supreme now. You can do whatever you want, spit into whoever's drink." The elder shook her head. "I'm just a liability now."

"A, a liability?"

"Oh, you're still so naive." Myrtle laughed lightly, tucking a stray strand of hair behind the headmistress's ear. "Do you think parents will want to send children to a school run by a, a…" A pedophile? "…by you? I could let the secret out. And if the secret is out, you're out."

Cordelia grimaced and wrenched herself away from her elder's grip. "So you get to leave this world behind, and I get to stay? I've done much worse than you, why should I stay, and not you? Don't I deserve some respite too?" Her voice had risen an octave. "You get to surrender and I get to struggle on? In what world is that fair-?!" She yelled.

"Delia-"

"Don't." The Supreme snapped. She turned away, breathing hard.

"I'm only thinking of you." Myrtle tried. "Everything you do or say ripples through the entire coven. You cannot be a hypocrite. I won't stand for it."

"You want to burn?" Cordelia asked, dark eyes black as she faced Myrtle Snow. "Then you'll burn."

OOOOOOoooooooOOOOOO

"In the absence of the Council, as reigning Supreme of this coven, I hereby decree for the murders of our sister witch Cecily Pembroke and our colleague Quentin Fleming, you Myrtle Snow are hereby sentenced to death by fire."

Her own words bounced around in her head as she made her way down her white hallways, the fire in her mind as hot as they'd been in the dump, watching Myrtle Snow go up in flames. She'd forgotten to mention a few things.

For the aid in the murders of four girls. For hiding dead bodies. For hiding me.

She was wrenched out of her reverie by Queenie's voice, as she stood by Zoe at the window. "You got to check this shit out. Line's around the block."

Cordelia smiled and nudged past them, her mouth going dry at the sheer amount of girls waiting to come in through their doors. She took in a deep breath. "You two are powerful witches with more skills and confidence at your young age than I had for much of my life. I need both of you to help me fulfill the promise of all this coven can be. A place to protect, develop and celebrate witches. You will not only be my right hands, you will be my Council. What do you say?" Please say yes please say yes I need to keep an eye on you please say yes.

"I got your back."

Good enough. "And you?"

Zoe blushed. "I'd be honored"

"Should we open the doors now?"

Cordelia opened her mouth to answer, but froze. Someone was in the house, someone she wasn't particularly fond of. What the fuck is this, spider sense? I wasn't told about this. "Not yet, stay here. There's one more thing I need to deal with."

The walls seemed to be closing in as she made her way downstairs, as she walked down to her faith, her destiny, her doom.

"I saw you die."

Fiona Goode, mother and Supreme, turned to her daughter. You look like shit. I'm guessing the cocaine, the booze, caught up to you.

The older blonde, they dying blonde, laughed breathlessly. "Look again, now that you have real vision."

Damn.

"I ruined a perfectly good pair of Jimmy Choos. But I knew you'd get rid of him for me, once he served his purpose."

"Whose blood was it?" I walked right into her trap, like I always have.

"A goat's."

She wanted to yell and to scream as her mother gave her some bullshit about immortality, about her being her bringer of death. If only if only if only. She fazed out, and only came back in when her mother stood to tremble in front of her.

"And when we're finally gone you will fulfill your destiny and lead this coven. God knows you'll do a better job of it than I ever did, though you won't look half as good doing it. Come on. For God's sake have mercy on me. Put me out of my misery. I hurt everywhere."

Cordelia laughed, almost coldly. "You're scared, maybe for the first time in your life. No powers, no magic. Just a woman facing the inevitable. A divine being finally having a human experience. No one can help you, Mother." She took a few steps towards Fiona, and took her in her arms gingerly. "You have to do this alone. And the only way out is through. So, feel the fear and the pain."

Fiona's voice was soft in her ear. "The fear and the pain? What are you saying?"

"Do you remember Ashley?"

The dying woman tried to pull away, but Cordelia held her tight to her chest. "Do you remember Ashley? That was me." She repeated. "I have to be honest with you, now that you're breathing your last breath. You gave birth to a monster. You raised a monster. You've given power, to a monster."

She felt Fiona's fingers clawing at her back.

"I had all the girls I wanted and even though you turned your head away, you can't listen to your own lies anymore. Hank was mine. Marie sat in his backpocket. I commanded Myrtle and Madison obeyed me. Nan was afraid, as you should be. Do you feel it mother? Your power dying?" She paused, gritting her teeth. "Truth is, you never had the power. You were never the leader of this Coven." Cordelia backed off, dark eyes boring into Fiona's hazel ones, full of fear and confusion. "Let it all in and then let it all go." She pulled her mother in again, sighing contendenly. "I don't think we've ever hugged."

OOOOOOooooooOOOOOO

"You're here."

Cordelia nodded. "All right, let's open the doors." She took her spot on the stairs and held her head high.

As she watched the new girls file in, she couldn't help but wonder at how many of her new students were homeless, couldn't help but wonder at how many were now shunned by their parents and their friends as witches. How many would now need a strong shoulder to cry on? How many would need her completely? Trust her?

Her council would be no problem. Easily modeled to her own image, Zoe could and would have the wool pulled over her eyes. It wasn't hard. As for Queenie, she noticed nothing, a trait her late friend, the clairvoyant, had not shared. Anyway, she'd be gone soon.

No. There would be no trouble from, or any others. Madison was upstairs and oh so very dead (Cordelia couldn't help but wonder if she was still as pretty in death as she had been in life), Misty was in Hell and there she would stay, Spalding as quiet as before and Kyle had learned to fear her, a lesson well learned. Stepping out of line with Cordelia would only send him back down a path of abuse. He stayed quiet. He stayed vigilant. He stayed on her good side.

"What's a Supreme?"

"You're looking at her."

Cordelia smiled.