Days 6

The daunted face of Misty flickered through her mind all night. Cordelia tossed and turned in her bed. The heat in her chest remained strong. The storm of rage inside her fed off the heat, the flame of longing, and filled her heart with a heat storm.

These fierce emotions would have died with the night, if she and her Cajun had only shared one kiss. One action on the spur of the moment. It could've been a mere mistake. But the second one, the pressing of the girl's lips, was what haunted her. It buzzed her lips.

The next day, she strode through the halls with the air of raging pride.

This would be the day.

As she walked in the kitchen, she heard a laugh of the Woman, and some murmurs. She kept walking towards the sounds. The two figures of Ursula and Misty came into view, then. They stood near the fridge.

Overnight, Misty had become even thinner. Skin and joints barely kept her bones connected. Her arms hung from her shoulders, so lifeless. Her dress kept sliding off her shoulder, without any flesh to keep it in place. The translucent skin revealed the blue veins underneath it. Almost half of the skin glimmered with bruises. A marionette made of old frail wood. Cordelia couldn't shake off the disturbing resemblance.

And yet, Ursula seemed more lively than ever, and kept taking and taking. Her firm crimson lips pressed against Misty's, and she tugged her almost white lip with her teeth. The fragile skin of the Cajun broke easily. Blood oozed, and trickled down to her chin.

The Supreme's rage flared up at the sight, at the smirk of the Woman that grew wider. She stood between the two, and faced Ursula.

"Good afternoon, Miss Goode."

"Save it, you witch bitch." Her voice had nothing but hate in it. "I've been a submissive hostess to you as a sister witch. But I've had it. This Coven has no place for a person who cannot treat another human being with respect."

Ursula raised her brows, feigning shock. "Am I being accused of indecency and disrespect? Miss Goode, I have to say I'm quite offended by your suggestion."

"Stay away from her. Stay away from us. You find too much joy in others' misery."

"Miss Cordelia, please." Misty pulled at her sleeve from behind. But the grip had no strength.

The Supreme didn't recognize the hollow face looking at her. She turned back to Ursula, as a new onset of rage flooded her. "Leave, and never come back. Do not lay a finger on her ever again."

The two Supremes glared at each other, both refusing to be the one to look away first. One obviously enjoyed this exchange way more than the other. Then, the Woman began to saunter around her, with her nauseating smirk. She stood right behind Misty, so that the girl now stood between them.

"Is that the best you could do, Miss Supreme, to give me a warning after another? What a great leader you are." Ursula spoke with unveiled mockery. Every word flew out of her mouth, deeply woven together with provocation. "Tell me, what are you going to do if an army of witch hunters strikes this institution again? Are you going to give them a warning, as they hold a rifle to your head?"

And as she spoke the last sentence, her hand rose, and hovered over the boney shoulder of Misty. Her dark eyes glimmered at Cordelia.

That was the last straw for the Supreme. Fury overtook the last bit of her self-control. With a swift wave of her hand, she took the bait, and flew the venomous Woman to the wall, pinning her to it.

Ursula didn't even gasp, however. She never dropped the smirk. The air of sadistic dominance still radiated off her, even with her limbs in magical shackles.

"Do not underestimate me," Cordelia said, baring her teeth. "I'm no less powerful than any of my predecessors. I can and will kill anyone if the lives of my girls are in peril." She raised her hand again.

But Misty hunched over the hand, and almost put her whole weight on the Supreme. "Don't. Miss Cordelia, please!" she said in a fragile voice.

"Misty, let go."

"No! Don't hurt her!" Life returned to the bloodshot eyes. "She didn't do anything. Let her go!"

"Can't you see what she's doing to you!"

"I'll kill you if you hurt her!" Misty shouted with all of her might, and her voice bounced off the walls around them.

Cordelia froze there, in utter shock. The desperate blue eyes kept looking into hers. The shrill voice kept ringing in her ears. And as her view became blurry, she felt her magic slip through her fingers. Ursula fell to the ground with a thud. Misty wobbled to her, sank down on the floor, and sobbed, like a fawn snuggling against its wounded parent.

The girls now swarmed the entrance of the kitchen. They had come for a short break between classes, oblivious to the scene unfolding downstairs. Cordelia felt too emotional to face them. But even without looking, she could feel the curious eyes of the girls, studying the two lovers on the ground, and casting timid glances at the standing Supreme. Although she didn't know how much of the dispute they had seen or heard, she felt certain that she looked like the villain in this picture.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Ursula walk away with Misty. Despite being the victim of the violence, the Woman wore a look of triumph. The Supreme clenched her fists.

When their footsteps faded away, Zoe and Queenie came to stand by her side.

Zoe rested a hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay?"

Cordelia nodded, still looking down at her toes.

"Fuck, she officially went mad," Queenie said.

At last, the Supreme regained her voice, and looked up. "No, it's not madness. It was just self-defense against an identity crisis."

"What do you mean?" the Voodoo doll said.

"Her eyes, they reminded me of mine, when I was a nobody, when Fiona reigned over my life. I knew how toxic her presence was, but at the same time, I knew I could be at least somebody with her venom permeating my skin."

"Do you think Misty loves her because she can make her feel special?" Zoe said.

Cordelia breathed out. Her world was still spinning around her. "I don't know if Love is the right choice of word. I don't know if it's caused by Ursula's spell or something else. I just know that, if we don't get rid of her right now, she'll end up killing Misty."

ooOooOoo

The three witches then moved to their base, Queenie's room. The windows and the door were locked, the curtains were drawn shut. The Supreme walked to and fro, while the two younger ones sat on the bed.

"I need to get one thing straight," Queenie said. "Is killing her an option?"

Cordelia stopped her feet, only for a moment. "If her immortality is like Marie Laveau's, she cannot be killed in a traditional sense."

"Alright, no killing, then," the Voodoo doll said. She turned to Zoe. "What do we know about that Woman so far?"

Zoe looked down at her notes. "She was born in England. We don't know exactly when, but more than 500 years ago. It's confirmed by Ursula herself. And, somewhere in the 16th century, she moved to what's now North Carolina. She lived there for some time."

"What was in North Carolina around that time?" Cordelia said. Although she knew quite well about the history of witchcraft, world history wasn't her forte.

"Hold on," the brunette said, and picked up her laptop. The sound of the keys felt too loud in their frustrations. "Some spanish colonies," she said.

"Any British colonies?"

Short silence followed, as Zoe scrolled the website down on the screen.

"Roanoke colony," the brunette said, ". . . and it's the only British colony."

"Wasn't there a TV show about that colony?" Queenie said. "Like, some ghosts of the Lost Colony return to this realm during the Blood Moon and kill people?"

Zoe's face lit up. "There was a witch on the show, too."

"It's just a TV show," the Supreme said. "You can't possibly believe in all of the stuff."

"But, people actually died there, didn't they?" the brunette said. "The couple that owned the house and the actors on the show. Even some of the crew died, too, I think."

The Supreme drew her brows together. "Look, it's a tragedy. I know, I read upon it. And some of them did die under suspicious circumstances. But there's no actual proof that ghosts or a witch were responsible for the carnage." She stopped walking for a moment, and sighed. "Back on the track, please. What's more?"

Queenie took Zoe's notes. "The name Ursula Knares is most likely to be fake."

"And she claims to be knowledgeable about astronomy, arithmetic, and geometry," Zoe said, looking at the same notes.

Cordelia chewed on her lip. "Astronomy . . . It may have something to do with the ring she let Misty borrow."

"An actual piece of the sun?" Queenie said.

"There's no way of knowing the true value of it. But it definitely symbolizes the sun."

None of them had any more to comment on this issue. They fell quiet, while Cordelia's mind had a swarm of blurry thoughts.

"Alright," Zoe said, now with her notes back in her hands. "She hates water and fish." She looked up at Cordelia, then. "I was cooking salmon for Kyle this morning, by the way, and she yelled at me. She almost fainted on the spot. I don't know, it might have been just acting."

"What's up with her vengeful loathing towards seafood?" Queenie said. "It's too extra to be just a personal preference. Maybe she has rabies, or a terrible experience in the ocean."

"Like, drowning?" Zoe crossed her arms in front of her chest. "It might be a shipwreck or something like that, when she came to this country."

But the crease between Cordelia's brows only deepened. "It's possible, though it still doesn't explain what she said, that water hurts her."

"Maybe it triggers psychological pain?"

"Or she will melt like Elphaba," Queenie said.

The brunette threw her a look of troubled puzzlement. Only with her eyes, she sought assistance from Cordelia, but the Supreme couldn't care less.

"Zoe," Cordelia said, "could you see the symptoms of rabies in humans?"

Queenie raised her brows. "Wait, seriously?"

"At this point, no possibility sounds too absurd to be true."

"Just one sec," the brunette said. She bit her fingernail, then, just like the Supreme. "Infected people will be hyperactive and display erratic behavior. The symptoms are insomnia, anxiety, confusion, agitation, hallucination, excess salivation—"

"It doesn't sound anything like that Woman," the Voodoo doll said. "What do you think, Cordelia?"

The Supreme nodded in agreement. "I think we can take rabies off the list."

Queenie became serious once again. "But she's still afraid of water, though, right? We could still use it against her. We could at least daunt her, and if we were lucky, we could weaken her powers. It's three against one. I think we have a good chance."

The Supreme bit her lip, fully aware of her tight frown. Her heart still had thick fog enveloping it, but she nodded. She nodded again, to reassure herself. "Yeah, it might work. It's better than nothing, at least."

"It just occurred to me now, but," Zoe said, with her anxious eyes, "what if all this information was a lie? Not just the water thing, but the whole possibility of her being the first Supreme. I mean, she didn't even fight back in the kitchen."

"Didn't we dismiss that possibility, though?" Queenie said.

"I don't know. Nothing really makes sense."

They all felt quiet, became almost irritated. It was as though they were running in circle. A caucus race. If Zoe's suspicion turned out to be true, then it'd mean they had been wasting time on nothing.

"I hope my gut feeling is right," Cordelia said. "I think she's telling the truth. She gives me the truth, and challenges me to defeat her, mocking me for my incompetence."

So, despite the lingering feeling of self-doubt, Cordelia made a plan. She made Queenie go to the greenhouse, to get a bucketful of water. In the meantime, she and Zoe would take Ursula to the kitchen, where Queenie could sneak back in through the backdoor.

This posed a bigger challenge than getting a bucket from the greenhouse. Cordelia knew this clearly, as they walked through the corridor of the east wing, straight to the guest room.

"How are we going to get Ursula to come to the kitchen?" Zoe said. "Any ideas?"

Truth to be told, Cordelia had no idea, but they could not afford to waste a second. And even though she still felt uncertain, there was some odd confidence co-residing in her. "We'll tell her . . . something about Misty. We'll improvise. There's no need for the specific anyway."

The door of the guest room came into view. Cordelia stood in front of it, and drew in a deep breath. When she raised her fist to knock, however, some muffled sounds came from the other side of the door. She faltered. Then, similar sounds came again, louder and clearer. The blood in her heart froze. Zoe fidgeted by her side, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. Cordelia didn't need eyes to see the blush on the brunette's face, as more muffled moans of Misty came. They even heard the name of the Woman moaned out, with such carnality that the Supreme felt nauseous.

With another deep breath, she straightened her back, and knocked. The sound of wood echoed in the empty hallway. After some seconds, they heard a faint rustling sound of clothes, along with murmurs. Cordelia glanced at a nervous Zoe, as the Woman's heels clicked closer.

Ursula answered the door with a calm smile, as though she had expected the visitors. A bright red bathrobe hugged her loosely around her waist. "Miss Goode, how may I help you this time?" she said, as she played with the strings.

Cordelia felt heat creep up her neck. At the sight of the Woman's haughty face, the stormy feelings came back to her. But her turmoil remained well-concealed. She knew, from the patronizing tilt of Ursula's head, that the Woman attributed it to the Cajun's moans.

"We need to talk to you," the Supreme said, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

Ursula opened the door a little wider. She raised her brows at Zoe, as though she took notice of the brunette just now. "This must be quite of significance, having two of the Coven's leaders at my door."

"It's about Misty," Zoe said. Despite her attempt at an authoritarian air, her voice wavered.

"Of course." The Woman curled her lips into that smile, showing a bit of her teeth. "Would you like to come in, then?" She took a tiny step back, to let them in.

Over Ursula's shoulder, Cordelia caught a glimpse of Misty lying in bed, naked.

"We'd like to talk to you, actually, without her," the Supreme said. Her cheeks felt warm again. "I don't wish to disturb her in any way. Could you come to the kitchen?"

"Only if you promise me that you won't pin me to the wall this time."

Cordelia did not change her expression.

Ursula laughed. "Of course, it's only a joke. But you must give me some time to change into something else. I'm from a time when this thick material"—she glanced down at the robe—"would've made one feel awfully guarded, but would you believe it, I feel too unprotected now, if you know what I mean, especially with nothing else underneath."

"We'll wait downstairs," the Supreme said, in her business voice that gave away little of her emotions.

Neither she or Zoe spoke, as they descended the stairs, walking into the place of their scheme. The kitchen welcomed them with keen silence and stillness. The sink had no dirty dishes in it, and all the clean dishes sat in their respective places in the shelves.

"It looked like she didn't suspected anything." Zoe heaved a sigh of relief.

"It's too early to relax," the Supreme said. "It was barely the first step."

The brunette gave a haste nod. She walked to the backdoor. The old wooden door squeaked, as she opened it, peeking outside. The head of Queenie appeared behind the window, then she gave Cordelia thumbs-up.

Zoe turned back around to Cordelia. "She's ready."

"Keep the door open," the Supreme said, pulling up a chair at the round table. "The creaking will give her away."

So everything was all set. They waited for the Woman.

Cordelia bit her lip, lost in thought. The image of Misty's naked body, squirming under a white blanket, harassed her mind. The rugged body, the pale skin, the blonde curls sprawling across the pillows. She couldn't shake off the images, her desire, and the morbidity of it all. Her troubled thoughts only paused, when Zoe stood from her seat in agitation. Cordelia hadn't noticed her sitting by her side.

"Do you think we should make tea?" the brunette asked, already scurrying to the stove. "I think she'll ask for a cup." She grabbed the electric kettle, filled it with water. She continued to stare at it, while it boiled the water.

Quite a typical behavior of the girl in her nervousness. And under usual circumstances, the Supreme would have soothed her with calming words and gentle pats on the back. But right now, Cordelia too suffered from immeasurable anxiety. Her heart had a tremor, pulsating in sporadic rhythm. It took all of her to just sit there, and not go insane. She couldn't even blame herself for her self-centeredness in that moment, her complete willful disregard for Zoe's feelings.

And on this edge of breakdown, the little girl in her emerged. The child began to recite, then, the things Misty had said, the reverence in her raspy voice.

Yeah, she's my Rhiannon . . . My Rhiannon . . . I'll kill you if you hurt her . . .

Then, her brain began to produce words of self-doubt. What if this was a huge mistake? What if Misty truly loved Ursula, without magic or anything else? What if Cordelia was on the path to destroying Misty's happiness? Cordelia tried to silence the voices. Pictures of her Cajun with the Woman flashed across her mind. The younger version of herself tugged at her sleeve, telling to give it all up. It might be the best. Even if this attempt resulted in the Cajun despising her and holding grudges against her for the rest of their lives, Cordelia could take it. Anything was worth it if it meant protecting the girl from her demise. But what if by doing this, they drove her to self-destruction? They had no guarantee that the Cajun wouldn't try to follow the Woman.

"Cordelia."

The Supreme broke out of the toxic fog of useless musing. She looked at Zoe in front of the sizzling kettle. The brunette gazed somewhere else. Then, at last, the Supreme became aware of the approaching clicking of heels, already quite close.

"Apologies for the wait," Ursula said, rounding the table. In a tight dress, she sat opposite of Cordelia, with her back facing the backdoor.

At least they wouldn't have to struggle to keep her eyes off the door.

Ursula lit a cigarette. "But you must forgive me," she said. "Your unexpected visit caught us in the middle of something. I couldn't possibly leave the puppy without finishing my business first." Her smirk grew, as she gave Cordelia a suggestive wink.

It roused the fiery repulsion in the gut of the Supreme.

"Misty's sick," Zoe said from the counter. "You shouldn't touch her."

The Woman threw a disinterested glance at her. "She's quite fond of it, that puppy," she said. "She'd do anything for my touch. In fact, I should've made her wait. Such a wasted opportunity. Don't you think so, Miss Goode?"

Still, the Supreme gave no response. The harassing self-doubt melted. She now grew certain again, that by defeating the Woman, she'd bring true happiness to her Cajun.

As she scowled at Ursula, she saw Queenie come in, with a gigantic bucket in her hands. The Voodoo doll wobbled, and could only walk slowly, careful not to let the water slosh. They needed to buy time.

Zoe took one step forward the Woman. "She's not in the normal state to make decisions for herself. You're taking advantage of it. What you're doing it nothing but rape."

This remark seemed to intrigue Ursula, if not displease her. For a split second, the crimson lip of her curled slightly. She regarded Zoe with a sweet smile. "You make an interesting point, little girl. But tell me, what is the definition of a normal state of mind? If you question her decision making ability, go ask her. She'll tell you I had never forced her into sex, or a kiss, like you did, Miss Goode."

At that, Cordelia blushed hard. But the humiliation soon turned into hateful rage, as a sense of shame often does. It didn't matter if Misty had told her about it. What mattered was that the Woman knew about it, and used it to mock her. She gritted her teeth, her hands balled up into fists on her lap. The muscles around her eyes twitched, a warning sign of angry tears.

Ursula's eyes remained playful on the Supreme. "Don't look at me like that. You make me nervous." Her hand went up to the scarf around her neck, loosening it.

At that moment, the electric kettle made a snapping sound, as the water reached its boiling point. Zoe, who still stood next to it, flinched with a quiet expletive.

"Make me a cup of rosehip tea, little girl, will you?" Ursula said, then smiled at Cordelia. "Your gaze leaves me quite thirsty."

And it was when Queenie finally came to stand behind her. She raised the bucket, and said, "Then take a fucking sip!"

Ursula only had enough time to turn around. The dirty water splashed right on her face, drenching the entirety of her figure. It splashed all over the table as well. Cordelia had stepped back, and avoided the victimization.

For the first time, they heard Ursula let out a yelp— But that was all.

Cordelia observed the Woman, frozen, sort of in shock. For some unknown reasons, she had expected Ursula to melt into a puddle, and when the figure of her remained solid, it bewildered her.

"Cordelia!" Queenie shouted.

The eyes of the Woman flashed at her at the same time.

The following ten seconds was a picture of pure chaos. The kettle flew across the room, drawing an arch in the air. The boiling water splashed about. The two council members flew, too, and hit the wall and fell to the ground. The water droplets on the round tale dried up at an alarming rate, and all of a sudden, a huge fire bursted out. The deafening sound of fire alarm rang out.

In the midst of this mess, Ursula looked Cordelia from the other side of the burning table. The Supreme put her in invisible shackles. The Woman, however, broke these restraints off without breaking a sweat, as though it was just yarn around her wrists and ankles. The next moment, Cordelia felt her own body move of its own accord, to the kitchen counter. Her hand pulled a fruit knife out of the knife block. The strength of her grip turned her knuckles white around the handle. She held it with both of her hands, then held it backwards. The sharp metallic point caressed the skin of her throat, sending chills down her spine. Her hands didn't listen to her own commands.

She heard Queenie and Zoe shouting, along with the fizzing sound of a fire extinguisher.

"I got this!"

"I'm going to evacuate the building!"

"Make sure Chelsea is safe. She's pyrophobia!"

Ursula's heels clicked against the wet floor, as she walked to the frozen Supreme. The tip of the knife pressed slightly harder into her flesh.

"Such a pity," the Woman said. Her voice no longer had the fraudulent sweetness. There was only blatant disdain. "What a tragedy. A brainless creature like you is the head of the tribe that I gave birth to." She held her arm in front of Cordelia, then. Some red spots covered the pale skin now, and it expanded to the shoulder, even to the neck under her scarf. "Well, salute to you, however," she said. "You gave me rashes. The chemicals in the water are quite hostile to my sensitive skin to begin with, and your servant managed to get a bucketful of germ-infested water."

Then, it finally hit Cordelia. "You tricked us."

"I must admit it was entertaining, like watching a fly hover over a fire. But I never thought you'd actually plunge yourself into it."

The knife dug a little deeper in her neck.

Ursula bought her mouth close to Cordelia's ear. "Are you frightened? How does it feel to stand at death's door? It must feel exciting. I'll never be able to experience that euphoria myself."

Outside the room, many sets of feet shuffled across the floor, as the girls descended the stairs. Some small ones were wailing, while others talked loudly at one another. Corelia hoped none of them would wander in here. The Supreme, the powerful leader of the Coven, being mind-controlled to hold a knife against her throat, wouldn't be a positive image to witness.

In spite of her wish, however, she heard some footsteps coming in. Labored breathing also reached her ears.

"Ursula, what are you doing?" The feeble voice of Misty came. She staggered closer to them, and stood between the two Supremes. "Ursula, why are you doing this? Let her go." But even as she spoke, it sounded like her energy was slipping out of her mouth.

"She attempted a coup against me," the Woman said. "A dog that bites the hand that feeds should receive proper punishment."

"No, no, no." The Cajun shook her head. And this action seemed to have made her dizzy, as she fell into the arms of the Woman. "Please don't hurt her. Please. Please," she said it like she was talking in her sleep. She then slid down, collapsed on the ground.

"Misty!" Cordelia tried her hardest to break off this Concilium, but she remained powerless, as the curly hair of the Cajun tickled her foot.

Ursula let out a sigh of annoyance. It was only then that the shackles come off. The Supreme put down the knife. She looked down at her feet, and found the unconscious girl there, with her lips almost purple.

"Misty!" She knelt down, but the Woman moved with more swiftness.

The limp body of Misty seemed too light, as Ursula picked her up, bridal-style. Her eyes locked with Cordelia's. The water must have gotten in her eyes, too. They were bloodshot, as red as the eyes of a mad woman.

"She's not dead. Yet." Ursula took one step closer to Cordelia. "Tick-tack," she said, and left the Supreme in the midst of the shambles.

ooOooOoo

The only thing that consoled the Supreme was that the fire only damaged a small part—the very center of the room, but still a small area—of the kitchen. None of the girls got injuries from it. Although it required some time and effort to calm them down, especially the small ones, Cordelia felt lucky enough.

She declared indefinite cancellation of all classes, and gave them a clear order. The students must stay in their respective rooms, while the teachers must stay with the most vulnerable. They had no other options. Although the girls only received limited information about the current situation of the Coven, they knew better to obey the Supreme without a question.

After some more reassuring words and gestures, Cordelia and the council members left the girls to other teachers and Kyle. They went to hold another meeting in Queenie's room. They all looked distraught beyond description, their hair disheveled. The majority of Queenie's skin and clothes were covered in the white powder of the fire extinguisher. Zoe had some minor burns from the boiling water. Cordelia hastened to heal the burns, while the Voodoo witch took a quick shower.

"Your neck is bleeding," the brunette said.

Cordelia covered it with her hand, with a sense of shame nudging her on the inside. "I'm alright. But I'm afraid we don't have much time left anymore."

"Yeah, that Woman is getting out of hand." Queenie walked out of the bathroom in clean clothes. "She could've set the entire building on fire if she wanted to."

"Yes, but that's not what I meant," Cordelia said. "I mean, Ursula said that we were running out of time. But I think she meant little time left for Misty, not for us."

"What's that mean?" Zoe said.

Queenie sat in the bed. "Well, Misty's getting weaker by the day, so . . ." She didn't dare to finish her sentence.

"But she has the power of resurrection," Zoe said. "She can bring herself back even if she dies, right?"

Cordelia's heart beat in an uncomfortable rhythm. "If the cause is within reason. This feels different from being burnt at the stake or running out of oxygen." Then, she remembered the Almond Milk incident, the gash on her forehead that she had failed to heal. "I think her powers are diminishing," she said. "She shouldn't be looking like a skeleton otherwise."

Zoe shuddered once, and shrank her body.

"Either way, that bitch's out," the Voodoo doll said, as she read Zoe's notes with a grimace of concentration. She pointed her forefinger at one place in the paper. "She seems to like blood . . . A vampire?"

The brunette furrowed her brow. "But they are fictional creatures."

"So were we, until the Coven went to public."

Cordelia took no part in this exchange, as she walked to and fro. "She said that," she said, "Misty's happiness is a matter of life and death."

"Sounds shady as fuck," Queenie said.

"Yeah, she's doesn't seem so capable of caring about another human being," Zoe said.

The Supreme nodded a few times, deep in thought. She stopped walking, then, and bit her fingernail. "What if Queenie's right?"

"What? Vampires?"

"No," Cordelia said, with some kind of lightness in her voice. "You said that one has to make sacrifice. Small, frequent sacrifices, in order to attain immortality."

"Right, like Marie Laveau," the Voodoo doll said.

"What if Misty's another sacrifice of her?"

Zoe tilted her head. "How does that explain the 'Misty's happiness is the most important?'"

"Maybe her happiness is the sacrifice," Cordelia said. "Her life energy. This explains her drastic weight loss, and her inability to heal herself."

Queenie let out a hum of semi-approval, as she contemplated. "And how are we going to defeat that Woman? Defeating her can't be accomplished if we have no idea who or what she is."

"You haven't figured out what the rune on her neck symbolizes?" the Supreme said.

"No. I'm trying, though."

Cordelia felt the beginning of optimistic hope fade away. Queenie had a point. All these theories wouldn't mean anything, wouldn't help them in the slightest, without a means to defeat the Woman. That accursed rune. The thing that had started this all. It could be the key to the emancipation of the Cajun.

"We don't have much time," Cordelia said to Queenie. "Find it out, even if you had to rely on Papa or whatever dark entities you could think of. But don't put your own safety at risk. We need you, as much as we need Misty."

The Voodoo doll nodded. But the way she raised her brows told Cordelia that she didn't take the second part of the command seriously. Of course, Queenie would risk her own life to save her sister witch.

The Supreme felt a sense of guilt, as this notion relieved her.