They weren't sure what to do.
"Lucien thought that killing Jackson would have me charging into his lair on a suicide mission," deduced Klaus angrily. "He either expected I'd enact revenge on behalf of Ibeth or I'd be there with Hayley who'd be doing it for the same reason. When we didn't exit the Compound for more than the funeral, he set his sights on Rebekah. He's kicking hornets' nests, until we have no choice but to confront him."
"He knows she's somewhere nearby, he has to," said Freya. "He saw her be stabbed with that cursed stake, he will assume we put her down but though I cloaked her and everyone in this house, with the Ancestors working for him, he'll find out she's in the Bayou soon enough."
"I'll go get her," said Klaus immediately.
"It's not safe out there!"
"What then?" demanded Klaus. "Are we to sit here and play cards until Lucien slides Rebekah's bitten corpse down the hall? You remain here, aid Freya in the spell. Prevent Kol from suffering any further losses."
"Wait," said Ibeth before he could rush out. "Just... be careful."
He managed a smile. "I'll do my best."
Ibeth heard Hayley outside moments later, convincing him to let her accompany him. She was glad he wasn't going alone. But she was still nervous knowing the two of them were exposing themselves to Lucien. She knew why Klaus was so insistent on being the one to go. Mostly because he wanted to be in control of the situation, but also because he knew that Lucien would be gunning for him. At least now he'd be luring Lucien away from his home and from his family.
She occupied herself by heading downstairs to watch Davina's resurrection, hoping it might bring her some comfort and some hope. She sat on the stairs again, leaning on the railing as Freya set a Hand of Glory on the table, reaching out to hold Elijah's hand.
"Freya," said Kol worriedly. "I need this to work."
"Don't worry, brother," said Freya. "Eleventh hour spells happen to be my specialty. Tell Vincent to begin the consecration."
Marcel reached for his phone, sending the text. He and Kol stood beside one another on the other side of the circle. Freya began to chant, "Se que atrae us van el brun'en. Se que atrae us van el brun'en."
Ibeth watched as the air within the circle began to ripple. Elijah grunted in pain as Freya sucked out his power for the spell, aiming at the Hand of Glory to summon Davina. At last, she appeared half-screaming, stumbling into the ring of black sand.
"Whatever it is you did," she said fearfully when she registered her surroundings, "Thank you."
"What happened?" asked Kol immediately, reaching out to touch her, but finding himself unable to due to the invisible boundary created by the circle. "What did you see?"
"Van's mother, Kara Nguyen," explained Davina, wiping some blood off of her forehead. "The witch I had assassinated. She was there. She tried to magically mark me. As she did it, I felt freezing cold and then this impossible sadness."
Kol frowned. "Did she have a dark green stone?" When Davina nodded, he scowled. "La Gemme Vital. The Lifeblood Stone. They tried to use it on me, but my vampire soul was too stained for their magic to work. Davina, if she had succeeded at marking you, your very soul would have shredded into pieces. A fate worse than death. There'd be no rescuing you. All right, that stone is your Ancestors' greatest punishment."
Davina gulped. "Well, it's a good thing she didn't then. I'm right here, and you're going to bring me back. Today, right?"
"I swear it," promised Kol. "Vincent and I will get Van Nguyen to help us. We'll have the magic to resurrect you soon. I'll be right back." He smiled warmly and headed out the door.
Ibeth followed after Freya and Elijah as they left the room, giving Marcel privacy with Davina. "I think there's a way to kill Lucien," whispered Freya once they were standing on one of the upstairs balconies.
"What is it?" inquired Elijah.
"As long as Davina's caught between our worlds, I can use her as a conduit to channel power from the Ancestors. The same power that was used to create Lucien. Once I have it, I can make Lucien killable again."
Ibeth furrowed her eyebrows. "You don't sound too excited."
She winced. "Everything comes with a price. In order to take power from the Ancestors, you have to steal it. Which means, to make Lucien killable, I'll have to draw through Davina, while she's in the Ancestral Well. And to do that, I will have to break the circle that protects her."
Elijah's eyes widened. "We can't do that. Freya, that will destroy her."
"I know what's at stake, Elijah," said Freya softly. "I know. What the hell do we do?"
"Call Klaus and Hayley," said Ibeth, betting on the fact the majority would agree with her and decide this was a bad idea. "Vote on it. If this is a family matter, we decide together. I, for one, think it would be wrong to do that. I say instead we resurrect Davina then see what can be done to get that power some other way. If we have to kill a different witch to accomplish it, so be it. I don't give a damn anymore. But it won't be Davina. She's family."
Elijah reached for his phone, dialing Klaus's number. As soon as the hybrid answered, he got to explaining Freya's plan.
"And Freya is certain this power will be enough to kill Lucien?" asked Klaus when he was done.
"Yes," said Elijah. "But we'd be placing Davina in terrible danger. The only thing protecting her from the Ancestors is Freya's circle. Now, if it is broken..."
"They'll rip her apart," said Hayley immediately. "Elijah, she's just a kid."
"What choice do we have?" he murmured.
"Several," said Ibeth. "We can't do this."
"I agree," said Klaus. "Find another way. If we destroy Davina, we lose both Kol and Marcel. I won't have us all turning on each other. Keep looking, brother." He hung up on them.
"I need to check on Hope," said Ibeth. "Please, either find another way or don't say anything and just go and resurrect her as planned. She's a kid. We don't hurt kids."
Hope was happy to see her. She crawled over to Ibeth, leaning onto her and hugging her belly. Ibeth smiled, caressing her head lovingly. "Jack?" asked Hope, toddling around and getting a little stuffed wolf. "Jack?"
"I'm so sorry, little one," said Ibeth, placing a hand on her own heart. "Jack's not here anymore. But you know what?" She pulled Hope to her lap. "I bet he's at peace right now." She held up the stuffed wolf, doing her best imitation of Jackson's voice. "I'll miss you. But my grandma always told me goodbye is never forever. We'll all see each other again someday. It just..." her own voice returned, "hurts a lot. You're a Crescent, baby girl. We'll all get to be at peace together one day. Maybe not for a long time, but you'll see Jack again. And so will I. I just wish he could be here to watch you grow up. He loved you so much. And I will make sure that you know that when you're older and able to understand what happened. Okay?"
Hope stared at her quietly, before settling against her chest and sighing, as if a part of her did comprehend that Ibeth was sad. "Baby brother," said Hope, tapping her stomach. "Baby brother..."
"Yeah," whispered Ibeth. "I lost three of my baby brothers. It's not easy. I had so much time with them and it still wasn't enough. You'll soon learn what that's like... you'll be a big sister and you'll get to teach your little brother everything about the world. You'll get to tell him all about what it's like to be the Princess of New Orleans. How about that, huh? And you'll both protect each other... and love each other. Be there for one another, always and forever, right? That's what your mommy and daddy say."
Her phone began to buzz in her pocket. Hope giggled as Ibeth withdrew it to see the message she'd received from Kurt.
'Just spotted Lucien's car driving past the main road. Warn Klaus and Hayley. We're all gonna hide.'
Ibeth got up immediately, hastily handing Hope to one of the maids as she rushed back to where Freya and Elijah were, simultaneously trying to call Klaus, then Hayley. Neither responded.
"They're not answering us, either," said Freya fearfully once she told them what was going on. "He must know where Rebekah is. Or he'll know that they're there. Either way it's not a good sign."
"We're out of time," said Elijah, casting his sister a significant look.
"We need to put an end to this," urged Freya. "The only way to get the power I need to kill Lucien is to use Davina."
"There has got to be another way!" pleaded Ibeth. "Some way to get them back safely so we can buy time and figure this out. Klaus is right, if we do this we lose Marcel and Kol and not only would we be tearing this family further apart, we'd be losing two good allies. Kol might let himself be killed and Marcel is not only our ally, he's like a son to Klaus and this is not a wedge we want to—"
Freya held up her hand, blowing some sand in her face. Ibeth stumbled, and Elijah caught her, gently setting her down on the nearest couch.
When she regained consciousness, she could hear voices downstairs. Remembering what'd happened, she got to her feet as quickly as she could, dashing out to the balcony. She gripped the railing as tight as possible as she moved downstairs, finding she was already too late.
Marcel, Vincent, Kol, and Van Nguyen were in the ballroom. The circle was broken. Davina was nowhere in sight.
"No," she said angrily. "No! Klaus, Hayley, and I told them not to!"
"Elijah jumped me," said Marcel furiously. "Freya took Davina down somehow."
"My brother?" said Kol indignantly. "Why would he do that?"
"They wanted to gain the power to make Lucien killable!" said Ibeth. "He's out in the Bayou right now, he might have already found Klaus, Hayley, and Rebekah. There's still time, right? You can bring Davina back?"
"We gotta do it fast," urged Vincent, shoving Van toward the table of candles. "Van's going to use every bit of his Regency power to bring her back."
"Good," said Marcel. "I'll get Davina's body." He sped out.
"What happened?" demanded Kol as Vincent forced Van to prepare the spell. "Why did they just—?"
"I don't know! They insisted there was no other way, that it had to be done! I said we could kill another witch to do it— it wouldn't be right but at least it wouldn't have been Davina! Oh god, what if this doesn't even work? What if it wasn't even enough power and Lucien kills them all?!"
Marcel returned, carrying Davina's body. He set her gently on the floor, stroking her hair from her face. "Okay," urged Vincent. "It's time to begin."
Van, against his will, started the spell. "Respire la vie corpore. Respire la vie corpore. Respire la vie corpore..."
Usually when spells were being casted, Ibeth could feel the magic flowing through the air, concentrated on whoever or whatever it was being cast upon. This time, she felt nothing. Davina did not stir.
"Wake up, Davina," pleaded Kol weakly.
"Come on," begged Marcel, just as anxious.
Van could repeat the spell an infinite number of times. It would change nothing.
"Wake up!" said Kol, his voice cracking. "Come on, wake up!"
The Regent stopped.
"What happened?" demanded Marcel.
"Nothing," said Van honestly. "It's like she wasn't there at all. The Ancestors got to her first."
Kol advanced on him. "Where the bloody hell is she?"
Vincent tried to calm him down. "That's it, man. She's gone."
Ibeth leaned against the doorway for support, her hand instinctively going to her stomach as Marcel began to cry, leaning down to press his forehead against Davina's, cradling her body against his.
Kol wasn't having it. He slammed Van into the nearest wall. "DO IT AGAIN!"
"I can't!" yelped Van. "If I had a chance at it, it's gone now."
The Original snarled. "Then you just became disposable."
"Woah, Kol, let him go!" urged Vincent. "It's over. Davina would've wanted it that way."
Marcel got to his feet, a fire blazing in his eyes. He pointed a finger at Kol. "I should've known better than to trust your family. You people destroy everything you touch."
"Marcel," said Ibeth, slowly coming closer. "I can't begin to understand your grief but I do know that fingers shouldn't be pointed at the wrong people. He couldn't control the fact he killed her. If there's someone you should be angry at, it's Elijah and Freya. Come on. Let's go upstairs."
He followed her, allowing her to sit him down in one of the upper studies. She wrapped a blanket around his shoulders and fixed him a drink, sitting with him for moral support. He noticed her cradling her stomach and before drawing a sip of the bourbon she brought him, he bit his wrist and poured his blood into a glass, handing it to her to drink. Silently, they downed their portions together.
"I'm sorry," she said gently. "I am so, so sorry. This wasn't supposed to happen." She scooted closer, putting an arm around his shoulders. He leaned against her, allowing himself to cry again. She rubbed his head gently, patting his back rhythmically in her best attempt to soothe him.
A text arrived not long after from Hayley, informing them that Lucien was gone. She showed Marcel the phone screen, but neither spoke about it. It no longer mattered.
When she sensed Elijah and Klaus coming in, she turned to face them. "Not now, please," she said, glaring right at Elijah. "It's not a good time."
"Marcel," began Elijah anyway.
The vampire shook himself out of Ibeth's grip, reaching for the bottle of bourbon and tossing it into the wall, smashing it to pieces. Ibeth couldn't help but flinch. "I did everything you asked," said Marcel, getting to his feet. "I joined your stupid cult, I left my friends in the dust because that's what you needed! I fought for Hope! I kept Hayley breathing, I kept white oak from piercing your cold black heart. I did everything."
"We know," whispered Elijah.
"No, you don't!" snapped Marcel. "No, you don't!"
"Marcel, he had no choice!" Klaus started.
"Klaus," said Ibeth sharply. "Not the right thing to say."
The damage had already been done. "Oh, they were right about you, yeah," said Marcel. "Aurora, Tristan, Lucien. Anybody who's not your family, is nothing to you. Nothing."
"Marcellus, you are family," Elijah insisted.
"No I'm not," said Marcel. "Not anymore. Never again. I am not your family. You put down Lucien because he was coming for you, for your family, but the thing is..." he spit his words at Klaus, "you made Lucien. You turned him, you taught him, and then abandoned him. And you blame Lucien because it's always somebody else's fault. But maybe you were the villains in his story. After all, that is the Mikaelson way, right? Kill, maim, torture, all in the name of family. Always and forever. I used to admire that vow. It gave me the thing that had been beaten out of me. Faith in those you love. I was a fool. Always and forever is just an excuse to do whatever the hell you want. What Lucien did wasn't right. And for what I heard he did to Ibeth, I wanted him dead, too. But you know what else wasn't right? What you did. What you allowed to happen today. So I'm done."
He kicked a chair out of his way as he stormed out of the Compound.
"Where are you going?" asked Klaus when Ibeth made to follow.
"I'm going to get Cami," she said calmly. "And we're going to drive to Marcel's penthouse and we're going to be there for him."
"Love—"
"Please don't," she insisted, holding up her hand. "I lost..." she began tearing up, "I lost Jackson. I almost lost Nick, too. And my baby and my life. I wanted Lucien dead more than anything. But I didn't want it to happen at the expense of a child's life. Elijah... we told you not to. And you and Freya did it anyway. You're supposed to be the noble one. But in these past weeks everything I've learned about you, everything you've done today... it makes me struggle to believe that. And Klaus... there is always another way. You really shouldn't have said that. Marcel needs space and I suggest you give it to him. Kol will likely want the same thing. I'm glad Lucien's gone but now we have to deal with the aftermath and it's not any better. So, if you really care, if you really do consider Marcel family, you will work like hell to find a way to bring Davina back. It's always possible. So figure it out, please."
She and Cami spent the night at Marcel's loft, curled up on his couches while he drank at his bar, downing glass after glass of liquor. Vincent and Josh came at around two in the morning to join them. Ibeth supported them by drinking way more orange juice than she probably should've.
In the morning, Marcel arranged for Mary and the wolf children to be brought back safely. Cami left to prepare Davina for her funeral. Ibeth stayed long enough to coax Marcel into a warm bath she prepared for him, and left him some breakfast to eat once he was done.
"I'm going to Davina's funeral," she told Klaus when she saw him in Hope's room. "I would like for you to join me. Afterwards, I'm going to the Bayou to make sure all is well with those who left temporarily. I would like for you to accompany me there, too, so Marcel can have his time afterwards to think."
Like a scolded child, Klaus followed her to the cemetery. He stood behind her as Vincent conducted the service beside where Davina had been buried.
"Say not in grief that she is no more," he said, holding Cami's hand tightly, "but be thankful that she ever was and though she was taken far too soon, may her enduring light show us a way through this darkness. Let us mourn, as we cannot move on until we do. And though the pain may at times seem like more than we can bear, make no mistake, we will move on." He nudged Josh, urging him to be the first to speak.
He took a step forward. "A while ago... forever ago... I told Davina a story about my first boyfriend but what I didn't tell her was that I had never shared that story with anyone else. She was like a sister and a best friend and I loved her. I wish th... uh..." he shook his head, unable to continue.
Cami patted his shoulder comfortingly and took his place. "I always wanted a little sister. When I first met Davina, I had no idea what that friendship would turn into. You know, aside from the color of our hair, we look like we could have been real family. She was, to me. I'm going to miss her dearly." Her knuckles brushed her gravemarker. "Until we meet again."
Ibeth stepped forward. "I first met Davina at the Fête de Bénédictions. She was being mistreated by the witches there. Since then she held her head high. She fought and she grew up. She was tough. I admired it. Despite everything, she was a friend and she promised she would help me with anything I needed. I will always respect that. And I hope she is able to rest in peace."
Klaus couldn't bring himself to speak. Neither could Kol. Marcel looked as if he wanted to say something, but decided against it.
Though Ibeth had suggested Klaus give Marcel space, he didn't listen. She watched, unable to do anything as the hybrid followed after him.
She went into the Bayou by herself, parking her car at the edge and walking to her cabin, where her grandmother was already waiting for her. Everyone who'd left had settled back in. Ibeth was left to relax beside Mary while she mended a hole in Luna's shirt.
"Jayden Nathaniel," mused Mary when Ibeth updated her on name ideas. "Huh. I think that's the first idea of Klaus's that I don't hate."
Ibeth smiled slightly. "Yeah, same here. Would be nice to have several kids and split up the names as intended. But I think this will be my only son. And probably my only baby."
"You don't seem as angry with him as before."
"No. But it'll take more than a week of us being gentle with each other to help me feel safe again. Though, I think that there is hope for us to one day be able to co-parent normally. I probably sound like an idiot for thinking that."
Mary shook her head. "No. I don't think it's wrong to have that hope. But just don't let yourself forget what kind of man he is. Don't let your guard down with him..."
"The way I did with Lucien," finished Ibeth. "Yeah. I know." She looked at her phone as a message from Kol arrived. "Well, apparently we need to stay out of the Cemetery for the foreseeable future. Kol and Vincent are going to blow up the Ancestral Well... make sure the Ancestors can't control anything anymore. Good for them. Guess I shouldn't head back to the Compound just yet."
"How about we do something else?" offered Mary. "Now that it's safe, it's about damn time you had a proper check up with a doctor. We could go together. Take Nick with us, Luna too if you'd like."
Ibeth beamed. "I think that's a good idea. Let's bring Angel along, too. We can get McDonald's on the way back."
Luna and Angel didn't have as much fun as Nick did in the doctor's office. They each took their time looking through magazines and pointing out silly faces that the models made. Nick, on the other hand, was fascinated by all the different diagrams of what a baby in utero looked like.
"That is so cool," said Nick in wonder when the OB placed the ultrasound wand on Ibeth's belly, zooming in to where the baby was visible. "Jayden looks like a dinosaur."
"Jayden is a perfect gender-neutral name," said the OB pleasantly. "It's still too early to tell the sex, but we should be able to find out in a couple more weeks."
"Oh, it's a boy," said Mary confidently. "His big sister has a sixth sense."
"I was under the impression this was your first—?"
"It is," said Ibeth. "My husband had a daughter before we got married."
"That's nice. How old is she?"
"One."
The OB opened her mouth to say something, but decided against it. "Well, all I have left to tell you is that you and the baby are perfectly healthy. I think you're looking at a due date somewhere around Christmas."
"Aw, man," said Nick. "Jayden is gonna hate getting only one set of presents each year."
"Nonsense," said Ibeth. "Whatever day he's born, he's going to get separate presents."
Nick smirked. "Made possible by all that Mikaelson money."
Luna and Angel's mood changed drastically when they got to McDonald's. Luna ordered three Happy Meals to obtain three separate toys (two Winx Club figurines and one Ninja Turtle) they then threw around the play place, pretending they were flying around. Angel's Ninja Turtle didn't survive the first hour of playtime. Nick asked for a replacement, and kept an extra one to give to Jayden once he was born.
"Hi baby," said Luna, making her Winx Club dolls fake talk right against Ibeth's belly button. They leaned forward and tapped her tummy with their nose. "Hiiiii baby."
"I think Jayden's first word might be Luna," said Ibeth, wiggling her eyebrows. "He'll recognize your voice."
"Um, he better! Why did you choose to call him Jayden and not Aiden?"
"It was Klaus's idea. To commemorate Jackson and Aiden together. The 'y' spelling was nicer to me. Fits with how Hayley's name is spelled, too."
Luna wiggled their tongue, pretending to make faces at the baby. "Jayyyyden. Jayden. Jaydennnn."
Ibeth smiled, ruffling their hair. "Just make sure you all keep this same energy when he's born, huh? I'm going to need help changing diapers."
"Ew," said Angel, turning his Ninja Turtle upside down. "No."
"I'll help you," said Luna thoughtfully. "So I can practice for when my parents give me a baby sister or brother."
"Pfft," said Nick, casting them a look. "You have enough younger siblings." He pointed at Angel, who smiled devilishly.
Ibeth had had such a good afternoon that she didn't think to anticipate things being much worse when she returned to the Compound. When she heard the silence upon arrival, she knew something was wrong. But she figured maybe Klaus and Marcel just got into an argument. Or maybe Kol and Freya.
"Klaus?" she said meekly when she found him standing in the balcony of his study, staring out at the city. "What's wrong?"
When he turned around, she saw the tears in his eyes.
"Elijah," he whispered. "He killed Marcel."