Chapter 27

                                    

                                          
A/N: Just a heads up, this is going to be the last chapter! I made the executive decision to avoid a great deal of angst that while interesting, would realistically not have worked out for Marcel and Andra.
_
Marcel nearly broke her back.
"I think there is such a thing as too tight of a hug," she gasped, barely able to breathe as he held the back of her head. "It's okay, I'm okay."
"You are freaking crazy sometimes," said Marcel, drawing back to cup her face. "You know that, Andra? You scare me."
She grinned. "Do I? You like it though, don't you?"
"Sometimes," he said, kissing the top of her head, then her cheek, then her lips. "Don't ever do something like that again, I mean it."
"Oh, you mean, don't defeat The Strix?" she cooed, brushing her shoulders dramatically. "Well, I just did. I'm sure there are still more members out there but the order has fallen. Either it collapses completely because there's no leader and not enough followers, or you take up the mantle. We win both ways."
He took her hand, twirling her and pulling her closer. "Well, if you're intending to make me The Strix King, I think I'll need a Queen to rule by my side."
"Would you look at that," said Andra. "I went from hunting them down to taking over. Sounds like we went full circle. Unfortunately... there are still some things we have left to do."
They met at the Compound to discuss next steps.
"Ryan is with Aurora now," said Andra, pointing at the map of New Orleans to show the Mikaelsons where the dead Strix were. "I didn't intend for Tristan to die, genuinely, because I anticipated striking a deal to get him to leave. I didn't mean to rob Aurora of her brother. Obviously, she's never going to want anything to do with me again. Ryan's going to try and explain everything, and he knows what he risks... she might never like him again."
She pointed at another part of the map. "We still have some lingering problems. Namely, Lucien, who none of us trust and who could also have had an ulterior motive just like Tristan. Now, Tristan did tell me about some other prophecy from one of The Strix witches detailing the real weapon. My recommendation is that we take advantage of their freedom. Last I knew, The Strix forced those poor girls to do awful things then made it so the Coven was the only place they felt could be home. They're now free. They may be willing to strike a deal: the prophecy in exchange for some resources they could need to start over."
"To that end, I believe Kol and I will be able to bargain," offered Elijah. "Surely there is something we can offer that will suit them."
"I've got loads of spells and magical items they may enjoy," said Kol. "For the small price of them telling us yet another riddle we need to solve ourselves."
"Once we know what the weapon is, we will destroy it," said Klaus firmly. "And then, once the danger is off the table, Aurora will have no choice but to return Rebekah's true body. As soon as that debt is settled, there is nothing more than needs be done aside from either ridding ourselves of Lucien by running him out of the city, or killing him off."
"My vote is on killing him," said Rebekah. "After Tristan's death, the opportunity for him to come back guns blazing opened. He could recruit Aurora to locate that weapon before we do, and Aurora may know the current Strix witches better and they may be more likely to tell her."
"Then we will head off immediately," said Kol. "Elijah and I will beat her there and get that prophecy."
They sped off without waiting for the rest of the plan to be solidified.